Thanks to Daniel’s bold retort, the officer was thrown into confusion.
‘He doesn’t know Daniel Steiner?’
The war hero of the empire and the mastermind behind the total war speech that sent shockwaves around the world was none other than Captain Daniel Steiner.
Even if Belanos was across the sea, anyone who read the newspapers or listened to the radio would’ve heard of Daniel Steiner’s existence.
Yet this guy claims he has no idea who he is—raising suspicion even further.
‘And…’
The man before him matched the physique description of Daniel Steiner passed down from higher-ups.
Though his eyes were hidden behind sunglasses, his facial features perfectly aligned with the portrait of Daniel Steiner.
After comparing the portrait with Daniel one more time, the officer hesitantly spoke up.
“…If you don’t mind, could you take off your sunglasses for verification? I promise not to detain you any longer once it’s done.”
Daniel let out a low sigh in response.
While he had anticipated this, the fact that the officer wasn’t backing down easily was giving him a headache.
‘If I remove my sunglasses, my identity will be exposed. But…’
Put yourself in the officer’s shoes.
Just because someone looks similar, can a lower-ranking officer forcibly escort an ordinary citizen of Belanos?
Even if they have authority, without approval from their superiors, they wouldn’t dare act rashly.
‘The empire follows international law after all.’
If Daniel refused again, the officer would surely contact their superiors for permission to arrest him.
Thinking he could buy some time and find an opening to escape afterward, Daniel raised his hand.
“Didn’t I already say it?”
Gripping his sunglasses, Daniel slowly lowered them, glaring coldly at the officer.
“That I’m someone you don’t recognize.”
The moment their eyes met, the officer felt as though his whole body froze.
It made sense—his sharp, wolf-like gaze was identical to the one in the portrait.
Panicking, the officer instinctively tried to salute but paused mid-motion.
‘Wait a second. His insistence on being unrecognized must mean…’
There’s definitely a reason for it.
Swallowing hard, the officer recalled Daniel’s accomplishments in his mind.
The key figure behind the Nordia invasion operation.
The owner of the second-class National Order of Goryeo Medal of the Empire.
The recipient of the first-class diplomatic Golden Cross Medal of the Empire.
Youngest field-grade officer.
A core figure in ending the royal succession struggle for the princess faction.
The great orator who united the nation through his total war speech.
Listing just these major achievements was impressive enough.
Accomplishments most people couldn’t achieve in a lifetime, yet Daniel had mastered them all.
That much was clear—Daniel Steiner was a genius among staff officers.
To the point where no criminal could even begin to fathom his thoughts.
‘This must surely be part of a mission I’m unaware of.’
Having fully realized the situation, the officer bowed his head instead of saluting.
“I understand what you’re implying. I’ll take my leave now.”
With a slight tip of his cap as a gesture of respect, the officer turned to leave.
The soldiers followed suit, bowing their heads to Daniel before exiting the inn alongside the officer.
Watching them go, Daniel looked on in puzzlement.
‘What’s this? Just leaving like that?’
Though Daniel struggled to fully grasp the officer’s inner thoughts, it wasn’t a bad outcome.
Relieved, Daniel quickly ascended the stairs and entered his room at the inn.
‘Time is running out. Now’s the best chance to escape. Even though the officer left, they’re probably still keeping an eye on me.’
The officer would undoubtedly report finding someone whose facial features matched Daniel Steiner’s to their superiors.
It was easy to predict that someone with higher authority would arrive with troops to confirm the truth.
Thinking he needed to break free from the empire’s encirclement before then, Daniel glanced out the window and froze.
“…”
In his line of sight were four massive amphibious assault ships anchored beyond the landing craft and supply vessels at the Tentarvahem port.
Seeing the fleet so large it dwarfed the harbor, Daniel let out a defeated sigh.
‘They sent this many ships just to find me?’
Expecting maybe one ship at most, Daniel felt an inexplicable sense of dread.
‘…Is everyone sane over there?’
He couldn’t comprehend Princess Selvia’s obsession with him.
Moreover, there seemed to be no way he could break through such an encirclement and escape.
*
At dawn, Prime Minister Lowell Tailwise of Belanos was wracking his brain in his office.
‘Why did this incident happen within our territorial waters?!’
Since the sinking of the empire’s diplomatic vessel in Belanos’ territorial waters, Lowell hadn’t been able to sleep due to constant demands and statements from the empire.
Especially when he received notification from the empire demanding the “opening of borders,” he felt dizzy with anxiety.
Opening the borders essentially meant allowing imperial troops to be stationed in Belanos.
From the perspective of a neutral nation, it was a demand that absolutely couldn’t be accepted. However, since the terror attack occurred within Belanos’ territorial waters, there was no legal basis to refuse.
As a result, the empire’s fleet had bloodlessly occupied the Tentarvahem port and begun operations.
With the successful stationing of troops, there was no telling what additional demands the empire might make next.
Lowell feared this deeply and had ordered the military intelligence agency to quickly identify whoever had opened the territorial waters to terrorists.
His aim was to find the culprit quickly, extradite them to the empire, and free Belanos from imperial influence.
‘If we don’t find the perpetrator first and the empire does instead…’
The empire might criticize Belanos’ incompetence, request the military personnel roster, and attempt internal interference.
Desperately wanting to avoid that scenario, Lowell was praying silently to the heavens when…
Knock knock—
Responding to the knock, Lowell said,
“Come in.”
The door opened, and the director of the National Defense Intelligence Agency entered.
“Sir. We’ve successfully identified the person who colluded with the terrorists. It was Colonel Edvol, commander of the 12th Naval Defense Zone.”
That was good news.
Relieved, Lowell clenched his fists.
“Thank goodness! How did you track him down?”
Hesitating for a moment, the director finally spoke.
“My apologies, but it wasn’t the Military Intelligence Agency that uncovered him. Colonel Edvol came to us and confessed.”
“…Confessed?”
“Yes. Apparently, he walked into the Military Intelligence Agency with a dazed expression and confessed to his crimes. He was completely terrified.”
A brief silence formed between the director and Lowell.
Dry-mouthed, Lowell swallowed hard.
“So… it wasn’t the Military Intelligence Agency that found the perpetrator but rather Daniel Steiner’s organization that discovered him and forced him to confess?”
“Based on the circumstances, yes.”
According to the director, Daniel Steiner didn’t hide quietly after surviving the sunken ship; instead, he’d been operating covertly in Tentarvahem.
Realizing that Daniel Steiner had not only faked his death but also been active recently, Lowell began breathing heavily.
‘Could it be…’
Lowell knew his daughter had recently invited a guest to the family mansion.
Most of the servants there were loyal to him, so he hadn’t paid much attention to the odd news until now.
But upon realizing Daniel Steiner was alive and had been active, cold sweat trickled down his back.
Feeling ominous vibes, Lowell hurriedly reached for the phone on his desk.
Picking it up, he frantically dialed the rotary number.
After a few rings, a voice came through.
– Daddy? Why are you calling at this hour?
She sounded groggy, having just woken up.
Organizing his thoughts, Lowell tried to speak calmly.
“Ref. Listen carefully. I have a question about the man you invited over.”
– Who? Oh, Ribellaire? He was a decent guy, funny too.
“That’s not what I’m asking! Do you remember the appearance and clothing of the man you first met?”
After the empire found Daniel Steiner’s uniform by the seashore, they investigated the nearby cabin.
Specifically, they tracked down its owner, an old man living near the coast who kept detailed records of items abandoned in the cabin.
Cross-referencing those records, the empire confirmed that certain items—a pair of sunglasses, a hat, and some clothes—were missing from the cabin.
The empire shared this information with the Belanos government in real-time, allowing Lowell to know exactly how Daniel had dressed while moving through Tentarvahem.
Thus, Lowell wanted to verify whether the person his daughter met was indeed Daniel Steiner based on the description.
– Why are you asking about something like that? Not trying to complain now, are you? You okay with illegal immigrants as long as nothing bad happens, right? Anyway, about the outfit…
Ref grumbled but tried to recall.
– Hmm. First, he wore a fedora and sunglasses. The clothes were somewhat shabby—brown on top and gray below. Kind of looked like something an old man would wear, but oddly suited him. Maybe because he was handsome?
Hearing Ref’s description, Lowell’s hands started trembling.
It matched the information provided by the empire.
‘Daniel Steiner… not only did he independently search for the culprit but also met my daughter…’
Their secret illegitimate child, at that.
Uncertain of Daniel’s intentions, fear crept in.
Amidst the heavy silence, Ref’s voice broke through.
– Oh, and something else. He asked me to deliver a message to our terrible father. Ah, I remember now.
Ref mimicked Daniel’s tone.
– You should practice righteous politics.
This struck Lowell like a punch to the gut.
That was clearly a threat directed at him, the prime minister.
After taking several deep breaths, Lowell slowly hung up the phone.
“It’s wrong.”
Cutting off the call, a gloomy look filled Lowell’s eyes.
“Terribly wrong.”
Clenching his teeth tightly, Lowell unconsciously whimpered.
“Our adversary isn’t the empire…”
His sobbing sounded like self-blame from someone who’d given up on everything.
“Our enemy is…”
Closing his eyes and clutching his hair in frustration, Lowell uttered through clenched teeth.
“Daniel Steiner. That demon…”
