That Man Is Trustworthy
That Man Is Trustworthy
After Daniel joined forces with Princess Selvia, the tide of battle reversed dramatically.
It was thanks to the platoon members who, following Daniel's orders, dismounted and scattered, then linked up with reinforcements dispatched from the forward base's Special Mission Unit to literally sweep away the prince's army disguised as Allied Nations soldiers.
On top of that, because Captain Heinz had requested additional support, reconnaissance helicopters and fighters from a nearby aviation battalion joined the fray, leaving the prince's army with no chance of victory.
In the first place, they were a small unit deployed for the purpose of a quick, decisive battle.
The situation had already been difficult to withstand with the Special Mission Unit's reinforcements alone, so the aviation battalion's arrival practically sealed their defeat.
As the prince's soldiers were cornered, they chose to take their own lives as if by prior agreement, and the situation was concluded.
And now.
Daniel and his platoon stood at ease in formation in a forest clearing.
In front of a transport helicopter that had landed in the center of the clearing, Selvia blinked her blue eyes as she looked at them.
'As expected. They say excellent soldiers follow excellent commanders...'
Daniel and his platoon members were all uniformly drenched in blood.
That meant they had not hesitated to fight the prince's soldiers.
Though, of course, none of them besides Daniel would have known that the ones they fought were the prince's men.
"Lieutenant Daniel."
Selvia, who had been surveying the platoon members, met eyes with Daniel.
When she gestured for him to come closer, Daniel strode over with long steps.
"You called for me, Your Highness?"
Selvia nodded, then went up on tiptoe and whispered into Daniel's ear.
"Please keep what you saw and heard today to yourself. It must not become known to others that my brother was involved in this matter."
"...I understand. Because there is no evidence, and to rashly assert that it was the prince's doing could invite a backlash."
"Just as I thought. I like how easily I can communicate with you."
The voice sounding directly by his ear was sweet.
Having spoken softly, Selvia took a step back.
"Then I shall return to the Imperial Capital. In my heart, I would like to travel to General Headquarters and converse with you more, but... the incident has grown larger than expected, so I must hasten my return."
The incident had indeed grown. By now, the news that the princess had been attacked would be spreading like wildfire through the military leadership in the capital.
It was thanks to Captain Heinz, who had judged the situation dangerous and requested support from the aviation battalion.
In any case, if Selvia did not hurry back, she could face not only the current Emperor's displeasure but also the critical glares of the vassal nobles. She had no other choice.
Daniel, fully understanding Selvia's position, bowed his head.
"It was an honor to meet you. I shall eagerly await the day I may serve you again."
At Daniel's courteous words, Selvia gave a faint smile.
"We will be able to meet again soon."
It was a meaningful remark.
While Daniel was at a loss for how to react, Selvia turned and boarded the transport helicopter.
Once they confirmed Selvia was aboard, the Imperial Guard members climbed in with disciplined precision and closed the door.
When one of the guards signaled that all were aboard, the pilot prepared for takeoff.
The helicopter's propellers began to spin with a Hwik-hwik, then soon pushed against the air with a thunderous roar.
No, it would be more intuitive to say it was pushing against the ground.
The helicopter, which took off while scattering the snow accumulated in the clearing in all directions, flew straight toward the capital.
"......."
Inside the helicopter, Selvia sat in her seat and looked down at the ground through the window.
Far below, she could see Daniel and his platoon members saluting the helicopter.
After watching them quietly for a moment, Selvia turned her head and looked at the guard inspecting his firearm.
The guard who caught Selvia's gaze bore the insignia of the Golden Wing (金翼), symbolizing the chief security officer of the Imperial Guard, on his shoulder.
Lieutenant Colonel Hartmann Edelstein.
He was the figure who oversaw the Imperial Guard's field operations and was also a senior officer widely known as a living weapon.
The eccentric exploit of wielding a single sword to slaughter enemies on a bullet-riddled battlefield was one of the oft-repeated anecdotes whenever Hartmann was described.
If that living weapon had one being he feared, it was Selvia von Amberg, who was currently sending him a gaze with an expressionless face.
Normally, Selvia, who was young enough to be his granddaughter, was nothing but cute and pretty. But when she stared at him like that, wanting something, the chilling uncertainty of her intent made his blood run cold.
However, since it wasn't something he could keep ignoring, Hartmann set down the gun he had been cleaning and took off his gas mask.
A bead of cold sweat had formed on the face of the wrinkled old soldier.
"Your Highness the Princess. Did you have something to say to me?"
"I do. Why did you not rescue Lieutenant Daniel immediately?"
"What do you mean by that, Your Highness?"
"Hartmann, do you take me for a fool? You must have arrived before Lieutenant Daniel even engaged the enemy, so why did you not assist him and merely observe? Answer me."
He had suspected it, and indeed, that was the case.
Wondering how on earth he should explain this, Hartmann looked around.
It was his own way of sending out an SOS, but the other guards were all desperately bowing their heads and cleaning their firearms.
They were pretending not to know as hard as possible, lest any sparks fly their way.
'You rotten bastards...'
After glaring at his subordinates once, Hartmann turned back to Selvia and forced the most amiable smile he could muster.
"As I understand it, Your Highness's order at the time was 'to rescue Lieutenant Daniel without injury.' As Lieutenant Daniel was not actually injured, it can be considered that we faithfully carried out our orders."
"Are you calling that an excuse right now?"
"Your Highness. I understand your anger, but we needed time to ascertain what kind of person the individual Your Highness wishes to favor truly is. For that, too, is part of our duty."
It was not that he doubted Selvia's judgment, but it was crucial for the Imperial Guard to understand what kind of abilities and ideology a person approaching the princess possessed.
"If I may offer a little more in the way of excuses, there were results regarding that."
Lieutenant Daniel Steiner was a rare individual who could use the neural acceleration ability.
It was said that this ability had not been highly regarded in the past because, compared to the extreme mana consumption, the duration for which one could accelerate their nerves was remarkably short.
With only a few seconds, one could not pierce a knight's armor or break a mage's barrier.
However, with the advancement of technology and the advent of firearms, the time it took for a person to kill another person had shifted to mere seconds.
In the modern battlefield, as long as one knew how to aim properly, even the most lowly person could kill someone of the highest status.
If one could have even a few seconds of their own time on such a battlefield, they could gain an overwhelming advantage.
In that respect, Lieutenant Daniel Steiner was an exceedingly desirable talent.
So much so that, had he not been attached to General Headquarters, Hartmann would have immediately approached him with a job offer to work for the Imperial Guard.
"Lieutenant Daniel Steiner's combat ability was excellent. With just a little more luck, he could have single-handedly taken out all six soldiers."
"......."
Selvia half-opened her eyes with a sullen expression.
Hartmann, who had served beside the princess for a long time, could tell.
That right now, Selvia was effectively applying silent pressure, as if to say, 'That's not what I'm asking about, is it?'
If he gave the wrong answer here, he could incur her hatred.
For Hartmann, incurring Selvia's hatred was a rather painful ordeal.
Although the difference in their status was stark, Hartmann truly regarded Selvia as specially as a granddaughter.
Therefore, he had to somehow reveal one more piece of intelligence he had gathered.
After clearing his throat, Hartmann spoke in a very serious tone.
"If Your Highness truly intends to recruit Lieutenant Daniel Steiner as an ally, it seems there will be no need to test his loyalty."
What was this all of a sudden? As Selvia blinked in puzzlement, Hartmann continued.
"Lieutenant Daniel Steiner said before the prince's soldiers that 'a half-witted prince can never become emperor.' He further asserted that 'the one who will become emperor is the princess.'"
Selvia's eyes widened.
It was because Selvia, who had arrived at the scene late, was hearing for the first time that Daniel had said such a thing.
"...Is that true? That Lieutenant Daniel said such words?"
"Yes. Everyone here heard it."
The guards who had been cleaning their firearms each nodded their heads.
Seeing that, a faint smile played around Selvia's lips.
"I see. So Lieutenant Daniel said that..."
Trailing off, Selvia turned her gaze out the window and looked down at the ground.
By now, the distance from the clearing had grown quite far, so there was no way she could see him, yet Selvia's gaze was unconsciously searching for Daniel.
"Hmm. To think he said that..."
He couldn't be sure, but it seemed Daniel's remarks had pleased her immensely.
'Is she happy because she can recruit new talent?'
Though, for that, she seemed more flushed than usual.
'Surely she doesn't see Lieutenant Daniel as a man...'
No. That couldn't be. Having been so tormented by her own brother, Selvia was precisely the type to view men as stones.
Whatever the reason, seeing Selvia wear an expression befitting her age was a truly pleasing sight for Hartmann.