Chapter 34
Chapter 34
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: War on Terror (5)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Rielson shot to his feet the moment he heard my words.
"Cut the bullshit! My country abandoned me? The Ortz Kingdom is nothing like you Imperial bastards! No matter what happens, we never betray those who fight for their homeland!"
I had nudged him toward betrayal with a little push.
But what did that matter?
In war, results are everything.
No amount of rage or cursing at me would bring his dead family back.
But right now, I needed Lt. Colonel Rielson's cooperation.
I had to put on a bit of a show to get his help.
I bit my lip hard and let out a deep sigh.
In a low voice laced with a hint of tears, I said,
"Colonel, I'm sorry. As tragic as it is..."
"No way, no way... The Ortz Kingdom wouldn't do this to me."
"Your wife, son, and daughter were beheaded in the capital two weeks ago. And the Ortz Kingdom declared you a traitor long ago."
This time, I handed him a newspaper published by the Ortz Kingdom.
Usually, you'd doctor something like this for dramatic effect...
But the fact that the Ortz Kingdom had fallen for my trap and executed Lt. Colonel Rielson's family was the plain truth.
Even the Imperial Intelligence Department, no slouch of an organization, couldn't fake it without it showing.
So I'd given him an unaltered copy on purpose.
Lt. Colonel Rielson read one article over and over.
At first, he shook his head in denial.
By the second read, tears were streaming down his face.
"Emma, Nora... Theodor. Your father is sorry. Sorry for being such a worthless husband..."
"Colonel, I have no words. My deepest condolences."
The colonel grabbed me by the collar.
The guards around me rushed in at the sudden outburst to subdue him.
I stopped them.
"Stand down!"
"But he's trying to harm you, Major."
"Put yourself in the colonel's shoes. If you lost your wife and kids, could you think straight?"
The pain of losing your wife and children all at once was beyond words.
Especially the kids—people said you never got over that grief until you died.
Even tasty food or a trip would remind you of them.
"Major Schumacher! You son of a—"
The colonel raised his fist.
I caught it with one hand as it swung toward my face.
His wild, irrational swing didn't pack much power.
"Colonel, calm down."
"Do I look like I can calm down right now? The Empire! This rotten Empire killed my family!"
"I understand your pain a hundred—no, a thousand times over. But think rationally for a moment. Settle your heart."
Who could stay sane after losing their family?
"No matter how powerful the Empire is, we don't have the sway to move the Ortz Kingdom's General Staff. At best, we can extract intel from there."
"Yeah, I suppose..."
"The Empire couldn't have killed your family by any means. Except assassination."
"So the Ortz Kingdom openly executes my wife and kids for treason, and it wasn't the Empire?"
"Yes, exactly."
The look in the colonel's eyes changed as he stared at me.
Hatred still burned in them.
But that heavy loathing had shifted targets.
Toward the Ortz Kingdom he'd devoted his life to.
"I can't presume to understand the devastation of losing your family. And to be abandoned by the homeland you were so proud of... It must feel like your heart is being torn apart. But there's one thing I can offer."
"You want me to abandon Ortz and pledge myself to the Empire."
"Yes."
The colonel ground his teeth.
"Thick-skinned bastard. Got a steel plate under there or something?"
"I'd do anything for the Empire."
"The Empire's young war hero has loyalty to match. But no matter how loyal you are, you'll end up like me. Discarded rags—or worse, utterly pathetic."
It takes a long time for a person to change for the better.
But they can shatter in an instant.
And Lt. Colonel Rielson was in pieces because of the operation I'd orchestrated.
"That's not the point, is it? Let me make my proposal again."
With Rielson, I could round up all the Ortz Kingdom spies in one go.
A colonel in Intelligence Command would know plenty of key secrets—personnel files, branch locations, that sort of thing.
"I won't spout pathetic lines like 'start a new life in the Empire' or 'the grief of losing your wife and kids fades with a new young woman in your arms.' Take my hand."
"...... You're giving me a chance at revenge?"
"A chance to get revenge on the homeland that abandoned you. The pain and grief of losing your family won't vanish forever. But if you don't even take revenge, you'll spend your life drowning in regret and torment."
"Pour me a stiff drink."
I signaled the guard.
He handed Lt. Colonel Rielson a bottle of top-shelf whiskey.
The colonel chugged it straight from the bottle.
No hangover for him.
He'd drink tonight and sleep through tomorrow and the day after.
"The Ortz Kingdom General Staff and that Intelligence Command hack aren't idiots. My subordinates under me must've squealed. Right?"
We'd already squeezed everything out of Rielson's men.
They'd outlived their usefulness.
Like charred logs in a fire.
If he wanted the trash that was no longer useful, who was I to deny him?
"Yes, they talked. Thanks to them, we found two Ortz spy branch offices."
"I wanted to deal with them personally."
He didn't want to give them an easy death, it seemed.
Instead of a clean beheading, maybe let the axe slip "accidentally"...
Chop the shoulders, the back, make it brutal.
Yeah, I'd used those guys to make his country abandon him...
But he'd never know I was behind it until he died.
"That depends on what feats you perform, Colonel."
"Fair enough. Good. Arrange for me to meet the highest-ranking officer available nearby right away. You know why."
"Of course. And now you're an officer in the Imperial Army, Colonel."
Lt. Colonel Rielson stripped off his uniform and tossed it aside.
Then he changed into an Imperial Army officer's uniform.
"This good enough?"
"Yes, Colonel. And if I may overstep with one word?"
Rielson wouldn't trust the Imperial Army or the Ortz Army right now.
I had to make him trust us.
Even if it meant lying.
"Speak."
"Your late wife, son, and daughter would want you to start a new life once revenge is complete."
Tears fell from Rielson's eyes.
He hugged me and sobbed.
"...... You're the most honorable officer I've ever known. Fine, as you say, I'll do my best to live a new life in the Empire. Even after revenge, I have to keep living."
"I'll take my leave, sir. Loyalty."
As I left the room, I ordered the guards to bring Lt. Colonel Rielson plenty of strong liquor, meat, and snacks.
He'd want to drink himself silly tonight.
**
"Battalion Commander, good work with the interrogation."
"Lieutenant Lina, didn't I say you could go home since the interrogation would run late?"
"How could I leave when you're working late, sir?"
Her dedication was admirable.
But did subordinates have to pull all-nighters just because their superior did?
No need at all.
"Next time I say you can leave, you leave. Needless overtime is the Imperial Army's real enemy."
"Understood. How did the interrogation go?"
"Lt. Colonel Rielson agreed to hand over all the intel he has to the Imperial Army."
"...... You've notched another major achievement, Major."
This time, I got lucky.
A little incitement from me, and they hooked themselves.
Everything fell into place.
"So what do you plan to do with Lt. Colonel Rielson?"
"What do you think, Lieutenant Lina?"
"Given his contributions to the Empire... maybe let him continue serving?"
"You're still young, Lieutenant."
Lina and I were only a year apart in age.
She shot me a slightly displeased look.
"Kill him."
"Pardon?"
"If Lt. Colonel Rielson serves in the Imperial Army and learns the truth later, it'll be a hassle."
That blade of revenge turning on us?
Real trouble.
A tough bastard who wouldn't crack under torture sharpening his knife against the Empire?
Who knows what could blow up.
"We eliminate potential problems beforehand. And wasn't he a spy who snuck in cowardly to overthrow the Empire? Spies deserve the most miserable deaths."
What Lt. Colonel Rielson did was a form of terrorism.
So I'd treat him like a terrorist.