Plarte felt an inexpressible fear from Daniel’s appearance as he recommended a tasting.
For an informant, the most frightening thing was having their intentions deciphered by the opponent.
‘But how…’
How could Daniel Steiner possibly know that the whiskey contained poison?
‘Was my act too clumsy?’
It was not.
Plarte was an experienced informant.
He had never been caught while working as an informant for the Empire’s nobles.
So, no matter how shrewd Daniel Steiner might be, he would have failed to notice anything unusual.
‘Then…’
There might be someone within the Palencia Branch cooperating with Daniel Steiner.
If information had leaked, it would certainly explain Daniel Steiner’s current words and actions.
‘Which bastard would…!’
Caught in despair, Plarte racked his brain, but no particular figure came to mind.
After all, those working as informants in the heart of the Empire were members of the Palencia Branch.
They were people who could hide their true intentions as much as they wanted, making it impossible to guess who the betrayer was.
‘Damn it…’
Plarte bit his lip and held onto his glass.
‘It must have been a mistake to attempt to assassinate Daniel Steiner.’
As he looked down at the rippling golden whiskey in the glass, Plarte smiled bitterly.
Ricin was not an instantaneous poison, but there was no antidote, so drinking it was tantamount to receiving a death sentence.
There was also the option of begging Daniel Steiner for his life without drinking it, but that was not a choice available to Plarte, who had vowed loyalty to the United Nations.
‘My life as an informant, long or short, ends today.’
Plarte slowly lifted his head to gaze at Daniel Steiner.
As he locked eyes with the abyss-like black pupils, Plarte understood Daniel’s intentions.
At that moment, Daniel Steiner was pressing him.
If he didn’t want to die after consuming the poison, he was being told to confess the truth and pledge obedience.
‘I will never submit to you.’
Filled with anger and sadness, Plarte ultimately decided to die for the United Nations.
After taking a deep breath, Plarte slowly raised the glass filled with death.
Watching him, Daniel thought.
‘…What is he doing?’
Since he had brought the expensive liquor, he had yielded the first drink.
Yet the other party hesitated as if watching a passing parade, now wearing a martyr-like expression.
‘Was his love for alcohol a lie?’
If that were the case, it would make sense.
That whiskey was quite high in alcohol content.
‘He’s afraid of drinking it neat instead of on the rocks to lower the alcohol percentage. If he can’t drink, he should just speak up, but he insists on posturing.’
Letting out a sigh, Daniel grabbed Plarte’s wrist as he brought the glass to his lips.
As a result, Plarte’s shoulder flinched.
He had been prepared for death, and Daniel’s sudden stop left him startled.
“…Why are you doing this?”
“Just… I wanted to stop you because it seems you can’t handle your liquor.”
“Even if you show mercy like that, my mind won’t change. I always live prepared for death.”
It’s just a matter of drinking high-proof whiskey, yet he’s talking about death. Daniel thought his bravado was quite remarkable and chuckled.
“Who would understand if you die like that?”
“My homeland…”
“Stop with the nonsense and just relay to the person who gave you that whiskey that I don’t want any more of these cheap bribes.”
There’s no way someone who can’t drink properly would choose to gift high-end whiskey.
Daniel said that expecting there to be someone who picked the gift instead.
On the other hand, Plarte interpreted Daniel’s words as “Tell your superior not to attempt such a crude assassination.”
Swallowing hard, Plarte slowly lowered the glass he held.
“…Are you letting me live despite knowing everything?”
Daniel couldn’t help but smile at Plarte’s serious expression, which was almost dull.
Believing him to be quite a unique individual, Daniel nodded in satisfaction.
“If someone dies on a day like today, wouldn’t it bring bad luck? So take this whiskey home and…”
After pondering what was good, Daniel snapped his fingers.
“Right. Please give it to the friend who told you to gift it to me. That friend must know the value of this drink well.”
Thanks to Daniel, who casually suggested suicide, Plarte felt every hair on his body stand on end.
However, unable to refuse, Plarte awkwardly nodded.
Seeing this, Daniel lightly patted Plarte’s shoulder.
“Have a good day. Just make sure to lie moderately; there’s no need to get caught.”
Plarte opened his mouth to respond but could not utter a word.
He felt an unknowable sense of awe toward Daniel Steiner, who was not only saving someone who came to kill him but treating him so normally.
‘…Is this kind of assassination attempt just child’s play to Daniel Steiner?’
As Plarte let out a despondent sigh, Daniel turned and walked toward the center of the banquet hall.
He had heard Ernst calling out.
As Daniel approached, Ernst questioned, seemingly puzzled.
“Who were you talking to that way?”
“Oh. Was it Vyram? He said he was in charge of repairs for the royal family.”
“Hmm. A low-ranking official, huh? What did he want with you?”
“He mentioned he got a bottle of top-grade whiskey and wanted to gift it to me. It seems he thinks that if he makes a good impression on me, he might get promoted.”
“Whoa! Top-grade whiskey!”
Ernst licked his lips and looked over to the table where Daniel had just been.
Plarte quickly packed up the whiskey bottle and hurriedly exited the banquet hall as if he had urgent business.
Seeing this, Ernst smacked his lips.
“Why didn’t you just take it? Nowadays, whiskey prices are as high as gold; it’s hard to come by unless you’re well supplied.”
“The moment I accept a bribe, trouble will surely come my way. I’m already receiving those side-eyes from various places; it wouldn’t be good to create unnecessary incidents.”
“Then living as a war hero can’t be easy. It’s a shame to let go of a top-grade whiskey, but there are plenty of good drinks here, so it’s not so bad. What’s more valuable is…”
As Ernst whistled, a waiter approached and set down a tray.
Ernst took two glasses filled with champagne from the tray and handed one to Daniel.
“Our Majesty the Emperor is generous, so all drinks are free! So what do you think? Would you like to join me for the night?”
“Sir, while I do enjoy drinking, I’m not too keen on it turning into a drinking party…”
Daniel stopped speaking mid-sentence.
The eager look in Ernst’s eyes was more burdensome than he thought.
“…Did you have a fight with your spouse recently or something?”
Nod.
“So you want to come home as late as possible to avoid getting scolded?”
Nod nod.
“And since saying you were late drinking alone would mean no breakfast the next day, you’re using me as a shield?”
Nod nod nod.
Seeing the painful nods of a married man, Daniel pondered for a moment before answering.
“…Fine. When else would I get to drink as much as I want if not today?”
At that, Ernst burst into laughter and patted Daniel’s back.
“Thank you! Thank you! You’re my best subordinate! Oh, by the way! There are several officers who want to see you, so take this opportunity to expand your connections! I’ll introduce you to everyone!”
Sighing, Daniel nodded, and Ernst raised his hand and shouted.
“Waiter! On a day as delightful as today, there shouldn’t be a shortage of drinks! If there is a lack of alcohol, wouldn’t that insult our Emperor? So hurry and bring some more drinks!”
It seemed that going home early today was going to be impossible.
*
Meanwhile, in the reception room of the textile factory where the Palencia Branch was located, there was a flurry of activity preparing for the reception of guests.
“Didn’t I tell you to prepare the most expensive snacks? Not these cheap ones! The businessman coming here is a big shot. We need to secure proper investment this time!”
Under the orders of branch head Theobald, agents disguised as employees moved in an organized manner.
Theobald crossed his arms as he watched his subordinates.
‘We need to secure proper investment this time to maintain the Palencia Branch for the long haul.’
While the Palencia Branch basically received funding from the United Nations, due to its location in the heart of the Empire, they couldn’t receive large amounts of money at once.
The larger the sum of money, the higher the chance that it would be caught in the Empire’s watchful gaze.
As a result, a portion of the intelligence operating costs was self-supplied by the Palencia Branch.
Operating a textile factory was not just a cover.
The factory’s profits were the foundation of the Palencia Branch.
Recently, those profits had been dwindling, but just in time, an investor had emerged wanting to invest in the textile factory.
‘I heard he’s a businessman who has gained prominence relatively recently…’
Before Daniel Steiner’s Total War Speech, when anti-war protests were peaking and negative public sentiment about the war was prevalent, this businessman had made significant investments in the military industry.
Having poured almost all his money into the military industry, the Total War Speech by Daniel Steiner exploded, allowing the businessman to reap profits dozens of times his investment.
After making a fortune, he had been quiet for a while but recently started investing in various fields.
One of those investments was the textile factory where the Palencia Branch was located.
Theobald couldn’t afford to miss this opportunity, so he directly invited the businessman.
It was best to hold a business presentation to secure even more investment.
‘Five minutes left.’
Just as he was assessing the time by looking at the wall clock, a noise came from the radio he was carrying.
Startled, Theobald picked up the radio, and a familiar voice came through from the other end.
─ This is Blue Wall. The operation has failed. Daniel Steiner has caught on to my identity.
The codename Blue Wall referred to Plarte.
─ I plan to vanish while keeping my identity concealed for a while. Be cautious, Branch Head. There’s a possibility that Daniel Steiner knows about the branch’s identity. I’ll explain it all in detail when the opportunity arises.
After delivering his message clearly, Plarte ended the transmission.
‘Daniel Steiner knows about the branch’s identity?’
A flustered Theobald pressed the transmission button.
“Blue Wall? Answer me! What does that even mean?”
But there was no answer.
It seemed he had switched the frequency of the radio in consideration of being monitored.
‘There’s no way Daniel Steiner could know about the branch. Lucy? No. That child hasn’t completely betrayed the United Nations yet. She wouldn’t have said a word about the branch.’
At that moment, as Theobald thought Plarte must have misunderstood something, one of his subordinates approached.
“The investor is on his way.”
“…Alright.”
It was first priority to attract investment.
Changing the frequency of the radio and putting it away, Plarte tidied himself up.
After a moment of waiting, the door to the reception room opened, and a well-dressed man entered.
The man, with black skin, wore a fedora and monocle.
Successful black businessmen were not common in this era.
As Theobald watched in quiet fascination, the man approached with confident strides.
He moved toward Theobald with a demeanor that was neither frivolous nor arrogant, extending his hand silently.
There was an aura about him that made it impossible to refuse the handshake.
After hesitating for a moment, Theobald loosened his tense body and took the man’s hand.
“I run a textile factory. You can call me Belter.”
Upon hearing Theobald’s alias, the man raised his head with a gentle smile.
“I’m glad to meet you. I’m the one running multiple businesses….”
Narrowing his eyes sharply, the man continued in a monotonous voice.
“I’m Hamtal.”
