Let's Just Go Like This
Let's Just Go Like This
Four days after the festival had successfully concluded.
Daniel was roaming the streets with his intelligence staff officer, Pelf, and an escort detachment.
He didn't have any particular purpose for striding through the streets.
He was simply getting some fresh air to soothe his weary mind and body after spending all day processing paperwork at City Hall.
Since the festival had ended only recently, remnants of it still lingered throughout the city streets.
At the street corners sat boxes of decorations that the merchants hadn't yet managed to tidy up, and the ground was littered with flower petals used during the festival, left scattered about carelessly.
A few citizens who were cleaning up the aftermath of the festival spotted Daniel.
Among them, a citizen whose eyes met Daniel's casually raised a hand.
"General Daniel! I heard from Professor Meranto that you enjoyed the festival alongside us on the final day? How was it? Our city's pride, the Shinmyo Parade?"
Instead of answering, Daniel raised his hand and stuck his thumb up.
The citizen, satisfied with that, burst into laughter.
A smile tugged at Pelf's lips as he watched the scene from the side.
"The citizens have completely assimilated. Now, not only do they not fear the Imperial Army, but they seem to regard the division commander as a familiar neighbor."
"What do you think is the reason?"
"There would be several, but the biggest is likely that the division commander risked his life to save a Republic child. It also helped that the child's father happens to be a renowned professor in Lakedrapol."
That was the correct answer.
Human hearts were originally like reeds, easily swayed by the words of authority figures.
Even in the modern era, where one could obtain vast amounts of information if they put their mind to it, weren't there people who blindly trusted the statements of authorities? In this current era, it was even more so, not less.
Thus, countless people in Lakedrapol were beginning to trust Meranto's words that 'Daniel Steiner's true nature was close to that of a good man.'
And since it was indeed true that he had saved a Republic child, there was no refuting it either.
'Somehow...'
He had succeeded in seizing the hearts of the people in an occupied territory, widely considered the most difficult achievement of all.
In the past, in Nordia too, he had deliberately set out to ruin things, only for the situation to backfire and resolve itself perfectly, leaving him flustered—and now he had ended up in a similar predicament.
'How will the General Staff Headquarters take this...'
Daniel, who had been worrying about his rising reputation, suddenly realized that the liaison officer, Rimshel, was nowhere to be seen.
Rimshel was the one who usually followed him everywhere, recording Daniel's every move and action.
So the fact that he was not visible now struck him as suspicious.
"Intelligence Staff Officer? I don't see Lieutenant Colonel Rimshel. Is he resting at his quarters?"
"Hm. I doubt that would be the case. As far as I know, Lieutenant Colonel Rimshel is an extremely diligent person, so one rarely sees him taking a rest."
"Then are you saying he is still working?"
Pelf, recalling Lieutenant Colonel Rimshel's recent movements, nodded.
"It's likely. Actually, not long ago, he requested a simple question-and-answer session with me."
"Question-and-answer?"
"Yes. He was persistently asking mainly about the division commander's achievements. Since it didn't appear to be simple curiosity, I suspect his purpose was probably cross-verification."
It was probably a task ordered by the General Staff Headquarters.
"Do you have any knowledge of who Lieutenant Colonel Rimshel has been visiting? It doesn't seem like he would have only requested a question-and-answer session with the intelligence staff officer."
"I don't know precisely, but he has likely been going around asking questions, focusing primarily on the people around the division commander, hasn't he? I heard he even met with the mayor..."
A sense of unease crept over him.
Daniel let out a groan without realizing it, but he forcibly regained his composure.
Pelf, who had been observing Daniel, quietly continued.
"As I thought, Lieutenant Colonel Rimshel is not someone sent here merely for commendation. He seems like a person dispatched by the General Staff Headquarters to confirm the fact that Lakedrapol was occupied. Is my guess correct?"
"That probability is high."
"Ah. Then once the fact-checking is complete, wouldn't there possibly be additional compensation? The founding ideology of the Empire is reward merit, punish failure, after all."
Daniel shook his head.
"I have already been additionally awarded the White Dragon Medal of Military Merit. Lieutenant Colonel Rimshel's fact-checking under the orders of the General Staff Headquarters is merely a verification of whether I am qualified as an additional recipient of the White Dragon Medal."
"That means..."
"There won't be any additional compensation. And I don't desire it either."
Because of this, Pelf was inwardly filled with admiration.
To Pelf, Daniel—who could be content with a single medal even after achieving such magnificent feats—appeared all the more impressive.
Of course, even receiving an additional White Dragon Medal of Military Merit was an enormous honor in itself.
"As expected. I feel I made the right choice in serving under you, Division Commander."
After giving Pelf—who was clearly trying to demonstrate his loyalty—a puzzled look, Daniel turned his gaze straight ahead.
Then he became lost in thought for a moment.
'History has changed. If things continue this way, a future where the Empire wins is no longer impossible.'
Currently, the Republic was not sending troops to reclaim Lakedrapol.
'That means...'
It was equivalent to the Imperial Army successfully holding off the Republic's general offensive.
Effectively routed, the Republic would likely be unable to recklessly dispatch forces to retake a lost city.
Thus, Lakedrapol would also be placed in a safe state for the time being, so there was no great need for worry.
'Good. It's regrettable that I couldn't return to the capital, but for now, let's just maintain the status quo.'
Quietly staying here as the occupation zone commander until the war ended wasn't a bad proposition either.
While it was the very front line, from the moment he had dealt with the enemy resistance forces and won over the populace, this place had become relatively safer than other locations.
'Seeing as there are no special orders, the General Staff Headquarters also seems to intend to keep me seated in the occupation zone commander position...'
If he just kept his head down and lived quietly, that would be enough.
*
Meanwhile, in the office of the Chief of the General Staff at the General Staff Headquarters, a grave discussion was taking place.
"...Is that truly the case?"
When Chief of the General Staff Arman asked back, Deputy Chief of Staff Cedric nodded.
"According to the testimony of Liaison Officer Lieutenant Colonel Rimshel, the reason Daniel Steiner invaded Lakedrapol was not simply 'because he could win.' Daniel Steiner had staked the Empire's fate on a fight that 'had to be fought.'"
As Arman signaled with his eyes for him to continue, Cedric resumed speaking.
"According to the information Lieutenant Colonel Rimshel obtained from the mayor of Lakedrapol, there existed a single mage who fell outside the established classifications—known as the 'Archmage'—within a grand mansion in the city. This person was said to possess the absolute trust of the Republic's highest councilor and chairman."
"A practitioner of that caliber?"
"Yes. She was proficient in numerous schools of magic, of course, and it was said that there was no equal to her unique doll technique. Having used it to carry out countless assassinations of key figures and political purges, it would not be an exaggeration to say she was a woman positioned at the very core of the Republic's power."
After a brief silence, Arman let out a hollow breath.
"...And Daniel Steiner dealt with her?"
"According to what I have heard, yes. Even though she was an adversary extremely difficult to handle, Major General Daniel Steiner appears to have used only scant information to deduce the existence of the being who employed the doll technique within the city, and then boldly maneuvered his forces to neutralize her in a single strike."
The reality was that it had been an achievement Frien had accomplished after countless regressions, but there was no way Cedric or Arman could know that.
Thus, to them, Daniel's actions were being perceived as even more extraordinary.
Even Cedric, who always maintained a blank expression, was feeling a sense of awe toward Daniel this time.
"That puppeteer appears to be the entity the Intelligence Department referred to by the codename Black Thread. I heard the Intelligence Department had been persistently pursuing her. It was believed she would cause great harm to the Empire in the future."
Yet Daniel Steiner had dealt with her.
This was effectively an achievement surpassing the mere occupation of a city.
Arman, who had been frozen as if in disbelief, narrowed his eyes.
"But having accomplished such a deed, why did Daniel Steiner not report it to the General Staff Headquarters? If the mayor of Lakedrapol hadn't opened his mouth, wouldn't we still be unaware of this?"
"I don't know the exact reason either, but if I were to infer from Daniel Steiner's character..."
Cedric, who had hesitated briefly, spoke decisively.
"He probably thought it was simply doing what had to be done."
The reality was that Daniel, who had been reluctant that his rising reputation would block his path to the rear, had deliberately refrained from reporting it.
Of course, there was no way Cedric or Arman could know that.
"...The more I learn, the more baffling a figure he is. No, at this point, I'm even confused whether he's truly the same kind of person as us. It's no exaggeration to say that Daniel Steiner has changed the fate of the Empire."
"I also agree. Had the puppeteer been left alive, we would have suffered from countless intelligence operations during the Republic's general offensive."
Arman, nodding, rose from his seat.
"Since the cross-confirmation is complete, it seems there is no need to delay any further. Let us go to the Imperial Palace. It would be best if we together reported the things Daniel Steiner has accomplished to His Majesty the Emperor."
"You mean...?"
"Yes. It would be a discourtesy to seat such a great man in a mere position as an occupation zone commander. I shall discuss promoting Daniel Steiner to Lieutenant General."
Conviction gleamed in Arman's eyes as he picked up his coat, which had been draped over the chair.
"My intuition is telling me. That there will soon be a final battle to bring this war to a close. And so, at the vanguard of that battle..."
Beneath the gaze that trusted Daniel Steiner, a fierce warrior's smile stretched across his lips.
"I'm thinking of sending Daniel Steiner as a corps commander."