Four days after the Christmas banquet.
Deputy of Operations Staff Cedric’s office.
“Colonel Daniel Steiner.”
Cedric, glancing over the documents in his hand, spoke.
“Thanks to the permission granted by His Majesty the Emperor and Her Highness the Princess, we’ve received a request for operations support from higher command as you wished. This time, it’s the Eastern Front.”
Daniel stood at ease, quietly listening to Cedric’s words.
“The location is near the border with one of the Allied Nations, the Belmoore Kingdom. It’s an environment akin to barren land, surrounded by mountainous regions forming a basin. Strategically and militarily, it’s not a significant place, so only a small company is stationed there.”
It was essentially a forward guard unit placed there to detect any advance by the Belmoore Kingdom through the mountains.
Of course, unless the Belmoore Kingdom had lost its mind, they wouldn’t attempt an invasion through such treacherous terrain.
Marching through perilous mountains was practically equivalent to suicide.
“You will lead a battalion-sized headquarters direct command unit to this location. Upon arrival, join forces with the stationed company and complete the handover. You can begin your mission afterward.”
“What mission do you refer to?”
“To rescue the empire’s captured engineering technicians near the border area. Specifically, you must retrieve Hans Jernmecht. He’s one of the engineers who knows the empire’s core secrets.”
Understanding the mission, Daniel saluted.
“I shall carry out the order.”
Nodding, Cedric returned the salute.
Just as Cedric was about to dismiss Daniel, he suddenly added:
“Ah, one more thing: There’s no need to push yourself too hard on this mission. Higher command prioritizes your survival over the retrieval of Hans Jernmecht. Breaking through the border guards with battalion-level personnel is no easy task, after all.”
To Daniel, who had been worried that failure might invite retaliation from the emperor, this was welcome news.
This essentially meant that even if the mission failed, he wouldn’t be held accountable.
The emperor seemed to have judged that keeping Daniel Steiner alive would benefit national interests, sending him to a relatively safer part of the battlefield.
Even better, they had reassured him that failing the mission was acceptable.
Frankly, it was almost like being sent to pretend to participate in the war while actually going somewhere far away to relax.
“Now that I have this mission as justification, I’ll stay on the battlefield for a while longer…”
Once the current emperor, Berthelm, stepped down and handed all authority to Princess Selvia, Daniel planned to return to the capital.
“From what I observed of Selvia yesterday, she doesn’t seem inclined to monitor me closely.”
Thus, if Selvia became empress, Daniel felt confident he could live peacefully in the capital.
“Of course…”
His ultimate goal wasn’t merely to live peacefully in the capital.
Despite the empire’s recent rise in power after subjugating the Eldreshia Kingdom and Belanos, escape still seemed like the best option.
When winter’s frost melted and spring arrived, the great powers would likely declare war on the empire one after another.
Reports indicated that the federation and republic were gradually amassing their armies.
Talks with Count Kaledra, the de facto leader of the Allied Nations, had also increased.
A world war was imminent.
The only way to escape the ensuing conflagration, for now, was to flee the empire.
“But…”
Was it right to leave Selvia behind in the chaos?
Unlike the emperor, Selvia had shown Daniel favoritism.
Moreover, while she cared for the people, she wasn’t adept at politics.
She would undoubtedly fall alongside the crumbling empire.
Thinking about this made Daniel’s head ache.
While descending the stairs, deep in thought, he encountered a familiar figure.
Her silver hair, cut short in disarray, and blood-red eyes immediately identified her as Lucy Emilia.
“Aide-de-Camp?”
Confused as to why she’d left the office, Daniel asked. Lucy blinked her red eyes and replied:
“Oh. A commander from the headquarters direct command unit has come to see you, Colonel. I was searching for you to deliver this message.”
“From the headquarters direct command unit…?”
Daniel had a vague idea of who it might be. With a reluctant nod, he followed Lucy to his private office.
Standing before the door, Daniel took a deep breath, grabbed the handle, and opened it.
The first thing he saw was a woman with light brown hair flowing down past her waist.
On her shoulder was a pristine lieutenant’s insignia.
Upon sensing someone enter, the woman turned around. Seeing Daniel, her eyes lit up, and she clasped her hands together.
“Ah! Colonel Daniel Steiner! You cannot imagine how long I’ve awaited this moment. I’m grateful to serve beside you, Colonel, a veritable saint. Before God, I swear to dedicate my life to cutting down the beasts of the Allied Nations—”
Bang!
Unable to bear it any longer, Daniel closed the door.
The truly unsettling part was that Prien’s voice continued from inside, as if the door was nothing more than a minor barrier to her vision.
Exasperated, Daniel turned to Lucy.
“Aide-de-Camp.”
“Yes?”
“Is there any chance of returning this?”
Daniel stared intently at Lucy, who frowned—a rare sight.
“Colonel, you shouldn’t speak of people that way.”
“People…?”
Could he really call that woman, steeped in nationalism and misinterpreting religion to suit her whims, a person? He suppressed the urge to describe her as something closer to a monster in terms of mental state.
Regardless, since they’d have to endure each other’s presence for a while, it was unnecessary to say anything rash.
—
Meanwhile, at the basin bordering the Belmoore Kingdom.
In the Special Warfare Company’s operations room under the Airborne Special Operations Brigade.
“Company Commander.”
Commander Bernard, who had been sleeping face-down in the command post, slowly opened his bleary eyes.
After blinking silently for a moment, Bernard yawned softly and sat up.
His uniform was completely unbuttoned, and the laces of his boots were untied, but Bernard didn’t care.
After all, this place allowed for such laxity.
“What is it? What’s wrong? Did we run out of alcohol?”
With a vacant gaze, Bernard questioned the platoon leader, who shook his head.
Seeing this, Bernard scratched his forehead irritably.
“Well, then what?”
“Sir… We should probably start preparing for our mission.”
“Mission? Did you just say mission?”
Bernard chuckled humorlessly, as if mocking the absurdity.
“Listen up, Sergeant. We’ve been abandoned here. Over a year ago, we were told to focus solely on guard duty until new orders came. And since then, higher command hasn’t issued us any further instructions.”
Bernard raised his hand to brush back his unruly hair.
“So, we just sit tight, drink our supply of booze until the war ends. Let’s look on the bright side. Sure, it’s a wasteland of mountains, but at least we won’t get shot, right?”
Bernard snickered and then paused, noticing something odd.
Normally, the platoon leader would chime in by now, but today, his face was pale.
“…What’s wrong? Surely, higher command hasn’t issued new orders?”
The platoon leader nodded.
“Yes, sir. A battalion-sized force from the headquarters direct command unit is coming, and we’re to follow the colonel’s orders.”
“Colonel? Ha! What difference does it make if a battalion comes here? Are they planning to invade the Belmoore Kingdom with fewer than a thousand men? That’s ridiculous… Damn it. Why do you look so scared?”
Bernard disliked the trembling platoon leader’s demeanor.
Glaring at him, Bernard demanded an explanation, prompting the platoon leader to take a deep breath before speaking.
“The colonel coming here is none other than…”
“None other than what?”
“…Colonel Daniel Steiner.”
Upon hearing the name, Bernard froze in place.
Even in this remote basin, news from the capital reached them.
Daniel Steiner, the Lieutenant Colonel of the General Staff Headquarters’ Operations Staff, was a name no soldier in the empire could forget.
“Sergeant? I don’t appreciate jokes.”
Though skeptical, Bernard asked, but the platoon leader didn’t retract his statement.
“I heard it clearly. Colonel Daniel Steiner is coming here…”
As a result, Bernard raised his trembling hand to his forehead.
“If it’s Daniel Steiner… Isn’t that the man who peeled the face off an Allied soldier in front of the Eldreshia Kingdom’s foreign minister?”
Rumors tend to distort the truth, especially in remote areas where stories grow more exaggerated with each retelling.
What started as mere “drunken banter” eventually transformed into “truth” as it spread.
The platoon leader was one of those who mistook these distorted rumors for reality.
“That’s not all. Do you know that when Duke Belvar pressured him, Colonel Daniel Steiner stormed the mansion and shot a private dead right in front of the duke?”
“My God…”
Bernard’s pupils trembled.
Sweating cold, Bernard looked up at the platoon leader.
“If Colonel Daniel Steiner sees our current state…”
“Execution. It’ll definitely be execution.”
Terrified, Bernard let out a nervous hiccup.
Sobering up instantly, Bernard shouted as he jumped to his feet.
“Inform all troops! Conduct immediate facility inspections and cleaning! Implement gun checks and ensure proper attire! All technical matters will also be reviewed!”
“Understood. But how should we explain the reason…?”
For over a year, it wasn’t just Bernard who had become lax. The soldiers, too, had grown complacent in the absence of combat, spending their duty hours playing poker.
But reviving their spirits would be simple, as Bernard himself had just experienced.
“Tell them he’s coming. Daniel Steiner…”
Pale-faced, Bernard swallowed dryly before continuing.
“The Demon of the Empire is coming here.”
