Tonight, We Hunt
Tonight, We Hunt
After hearing the agency director's words, Daniel went to the nearby city of Erestiom to find a way to contact General Headquarters.
The company did have a radio operator, but because the signal range was limited, he had no choice but to use the city's communication network.
So he stopped by city hall, and fortunately, the mayor of Erestiom recognized him, which made it easy to borrow a telephone.
Daniel contacted General Headquarters via telephone and explained the situation. GHQ responded that they understood and granted him permission to remain for a certain period.
Upon hearing that, Daniel outwardly cultivated an air of disappointment and devastation, but inwardly he cheered in triumph.
'I can rest for a few more days!'
As the saying went, the front lines and the afterlife were both places where the later you went, the better.
'What should I do to proudly say I spent my time enjoyably...'
As Daniel emerged from city hall, pondering how to amuse himself, Lucy cut in.
"Colonel. If it's alright with you, I would like to spend today with you."
Daniel's body stiffened even as he wore a faint smile.
That was because the presence of 'Allied Nations spy Lucy' was none too welcome to Daniel, who had wanted to spend his time leisurely and alone.
"Adjutant? Spending time with one's superior officer can't be all that pleasant."
Daniel made that remark in an attempt to shake her off as best he could, but Lucy was resolute.
"Even so, I want to be with you."
Unable to find any further reason to refuse, Daniel had no choice but to nod.
"Then let's take care of eating first."
Daniel took Lucy to a nearby restaurant (recommended by the mayor) and, after eating a plate of steak, tried to part ways with her.
He attempted it under the pretense of having some business nearby, very naturally.
"Colonel? Don't lie."
But today, Lucy was more persistent than he had ever imagined, so he had no choice but to stay with her.
In the end, Daniel ended up accompanying Lucy all the way to a dessert shop (also recommended by the mayor).
As Lucy and Daniel sat by the window of the charming shop, a server approached them.
"Here is your Begenheim wine and tiramisu."
The server set down a wine glass along with a plate of tiramisu.
As the server poured the wine, Lucy gazed at the unfamiliar dessert and tilted her head slightly.
"This is..."
"It's one of the famous desserts in Erestiom. Erestiom has a warm and humid climate, so it's famous for producing cheese with a creamy yet light texture. It's no exaggeration to say that this tiramisu, made with that cheese, boasts a supreme flavor."
Lucy audibly swallowed upon hearing Daniel's explanation.
Pleased by that, Daniel extended his index finger and continued his explanation.
"Furthermore, Begenheim wine is a fortified wine produced in the southern region of the Kingdom of Eldreshia. Its distinctive feature is a unique caramel flavor. Thanks to that, it's an ideal drink for pairing with tiramisu. However, the alcohol content is high, so drinking a lot at once is out of the question."
The server, who had been listening to the explanation, finished pouring the wine and looked at Daniel with a smile.
"It's exactly as you say. To the point that there's no need for me to give a separate explanation."
"You flatter me. I merely know a little about it."
"From what I can see, you know more about it than my own wife does."
"Oh my. It seems the husband has little interest in the lady. If it were me, I would have studied everything carefully to win the favor of such a lovely lady."
"Goodness. How is it that an officer speaks so charmingly..."
The server let out a pleasant laugh and raised a hand to cover her mouth.
"Oh dear. I've been talking too much. Well then, I hope you have a wonderful time."
Once the server bowed her head and vanished, Lucy stared fixedly at Daniel.
Daniel, who had been preparing to eat the tiramisu, became conscious of Lucy's gaze and felt puzzled.
"...Why? Doing this increases your chances of getting good service, doesn't it."
"Adjutant. Enough with the look that paints me as a strange person. I don't mess with people who are already taken. What's more, I swear to God, my romantic history is practically a blank slate."
It was blatantly obvious that was a lie.
Lucy, who had been about to bring up Kelly, shook her head.
She didn't want to ruin the mood for nothing.
Daniel, who had been reading Lucy's demeanor, cut a piece of tiramisu with his knife and placed it in his mouth.
A soft yet sweet flavor began to fill his mouth.
"Mm! Yes. This is the taste. Adjutant, hurry up and try it too. You'll probably be astonished."
It looked like he was exaggerating, but she decided to play along just this once.
Lucy cut the tiramisu with her knife, speared it with her fork, and cautiously took a bite.
"...!"
And before she knew it, she was shocked.
Because an almost violent softness and a primal sweetness were paralyzing her brain.
Beyond mere emotion, to the point where her body tingled and resonated.
Having swallowed the tiramisu, Lucy let out a soft, open-mouthed sigh of admiration.
Lucy, who had been dazed for a moment, lifted her glass and took a sip of wine, only to succumb all over again.
'Ah...!'
The caramel flavor was gently embracing the cream left in her mouth, and the two were dancing together.
Following that, the acidity of the wine cleared away the sweetness, compelling her to eat more tiramisu!
A perfect hostage situation was, in a word, unfolding inside her head.
"What do you think. The combination I recommended..."
Daniel asked smugly, resting both hands on the table and propping his chin on them.
She didn't want to admit it, but lying would have been an insult to the dessert right in front of her.
Lucy, having averted her gaze from Daniel, had no choice but to concede defeat.
"...It's delicious."
Only then did Daniel lean back with a playful smile.
"Then eat to your heart's content. I won't disturb you. If you'd like, you can eat mine too, you know?"
She wanted to eat it, but some sense of indignation she couldn't quite place made her grit her teeth.
"I don't particularly want to eat yours too, Colonel..."
Lucy's shoulders flinched as she was about to refuse.
Because she felt someone's persistent gaze.
As if nothing were wrong, Lucy picked up her napkin, wiped her mouth, and scanned the interior of the shop reflected in the window.
In that instant, she was able to spot a man who had been watching them and hurriedly turned his head away.
'I had a feeling...'
As expected, surveillance personnel had been tailing Daniel.
There was only one reason for surveillance to be attached in an unfamiliar city.
Assassination.
*
After leaving the dessert shop, Daniel entered the largest hotel in the city (also recommended by the mayor).
The problem was that Lucy had followed him all the way to the hotel.
Daniel was inwardly uncomfortable with that, but without voicing much of a complaint, he walked over to the hotel's front desk clerk.
The clerk recognized Daniel and offered a courteous smile.
"So you are Colonel Daniel Steiner. I received word from the mayor in advance. But the person beside you?"
Daniel was about to answer, but Lucy beat him to it.
"I am First Lieutenant Lucy Emilia, personal adjutant to Colonel Daniel Steiner, who has been appointed chief of staff of the Eastern Front 7th Division."
"I see. In that case, after identity verification, I will arrange to reserve one additional room..."
"The same room, please."
"Excuse me?"
At Lucy's words, both the clerk and Daniel were taken aback.
The same room? A man and a woman who had finished a meal and shared drinks together? The clerk, who had assumed they were lovers, wore a puzzled expression. Daniel turned to look back at Lucy.
"Adjutant? The same room? There seems to be some kind of misunderstanding..."
"There is no misunderstanding. I must use the same room as Colonel Daniel."
Lucy's mind was currently filled with the thought, 'I must protect Daniel.'
For the close protection of a VIP, 24-hour physical proximity was essential.
Consequently, she was unable to find anything odd about a man and a woman drinking and sharing a room.
On the other hand, from the perspective of Daniel, who could not know that he was facing the danger of assassination, Lucy's words and actions could only appear abnormal.
After mulling over why on earth Lucy was acting this way today, Daniel thought of one possibility.
'...This might be part of a honeytrap.'
The moment he refused, if Lucy concluded the honeytrap had failed and resorted to more ruthless measures, there would be no way to stop her.
Realizing that refusal was not the best approach, Daniel raised a hand and wiped his face once.
"Since she says it's not a misunderstanding..."
Daniel turned back to the clerk and put on an awkward smile.
"It seems I'll have to sleep with my adjutant after all. I'd appreciate it if you could assign us the same room."
*
"The wolf has entered the Lamprimp Hotel. Together with a woman who looks like his lover."
Bilbosel, who had been sitting on a bench beyond the hotel entrance pretending to read a newspaper, murmured into his radio.
As soon as he lifted his finger from the transmit button, a reply came back.
─ Confirmed. Prepare to carry out the operation tomorrow. Do not act rashly.
Hearing the radio's answer, Bilbosel let out a scoff.
'It's nothing more than killing a defenseless bastard, and they're telling me to wait until tomorrow?'
From Bilbosel's standpoint, that was utter nonsense.
'Fucking cowardly pieces of shit. Daniel Steiner will die not tomorrow, but today.'
Bilbosel wasn't simply bluffing.
He was a specialist in assassination, even among spies.
The number of people Bilbosel had killed alone exceeded a hundred, and among them was even a Neural Acceleration ability user.
Thanks to that, Bilbosel prided himself on being second only to one among the high-flying Allied Nations spies.
The only number one that Bilbosel acknowledged was the unidentified agent called 'Codename Hongsa.'
Solely because that person was the only one who had killed more people than he had.
To put it another way, in Bilbosel's view, all agents aside from Hongsa were nothing more than half-baked trash.
Because no matter how strong an ability one had, it was meaningless without real combat experience.
'In the end, even those who prided themselves on being strong wound up begging me for their lives. Daniel Steiner will be no different.'
Letting out a gloomy chuckle, Bilbosel drew a dagger from his breast.
Bilbosel's somber face, corpselike, was reflected in the clean blade.
'Now that I think about it, that lover clinging to his side was quite a looker...'
Bilbosel stuck out his tongue and licked his lips.
'I am curious, you see, exactly what kind of scream that bitch will let out before she dies...'
Bilbosel tucked the dagger back into his breast, let out a low, snickering laugh, and headed toward the hotel.
All the while thinking that tonight would be a fine hunt.