Daniel Steiner Deceives Everyone
Daniel Steiner Deceives Everyone
Edvol, darting his eyes around nervously, swallowed dryly.
Edvol, deciding that cooperating for now was the better course, gave a small nod.
Moving cautiously, Edvol walked to the sofa and sat down across from Hamtal.
The Black Bird operative, disguised as a soldier, still had his pistol aimed at him.
When Edvol, irked by the sight, glanced sideways, Hamtal raised a hand.
At that, the operative lowered his pistol without a word of complaint.
Noticing they weren't trying to kill him, Edvol felt inwardly relieved and looked at Hamtal.
"...What is it that you want?"
Hamtal did not answer.
He simply stared steadily at Edvol.
Silence was sometimes a powerful weapon.
Feeling the pressure, Edvol spoke up even though Hamtal had asked no question.
"Are you from the Imperial Intelligence Department? If so, I shall cooperate. As you likely already know, I am indeed the one who commanded the territorial waters be opened to the submarine. But that was because the Allied Nations threatened me. I will submit evidence related to that..."
Wait.
Edvol, who had been continuing to speak, faltered.
His train of thought had halted completely.
'Was there... any evidence?'
Edvol looked back on his dealings with the Allied Nations.
The Allied Nations had always sent people to relay orders to Edvol verbally or deliver bribes.
And always in places where the Allied Nations wanted no one else present, at that.
Also, the bribes were purely in cash, not transactions conducted through a bank.
That meant there was no basic paperwork, let alone communication records.
There was no evidence.
Only then did Edvol realize he had been played by the Allied Nations, and his eyes quivered faintly.
"Edvol."
Hamtal, who had been watching Edvol, quietly spoke.
"What we want from you are not such trivial things. We merely wish for you to tell the truth to the world."
Edvol broke into a cold sweat.
The ticking sound coming from the wall clock seemed unusually loud.
Breathing heavily, Edvol frowned.
"I cannot do that. Is that not the same as telling me to go die? If you've come to bargain, then make a proper proposal."
Hamtal let out a low laugh.
"It seems we still look like Imperial Intelligence operatives to you. They really do say there's no medicine for stupidity."
After a moment's deliberation, Hamtal nodded.
"Fine. Since we've met like this, I'll tell you an old story of mine."
Hamtal raised a hand and stroked his own fingers.
"Edvol. Do you know how long it takes for a fingernail to grow back after being pulled out?"
Edvol did not answer.
No, it would be more accurate to say he could not answer.
If one had lived an ordinary life, one would never have had reason to think about nails being pulled out and regrown.
"It takes from six months at the shortest to nearly a year. Let me tell you in advance, it was information I didn't want to know either. Because the experience of having your nails pulled out was truly one of the worst agonies."
Hamtal clicked his tongue softly.
"When I was young, it was natural for black people to be discriminated against. It's not much different now, but back then, black people weren't treated as human at all, since we were considered on the same level as beasts that could speak human language."
Hamtal laughed self-deprecatingly.
That laughter, for some unknown reason, made the atmosphere heavy.
"I, too, was nothing more than a beast back then. Because my owner treated me as a beast. The bastard had a vicious hobby: torturing black slaves."
Hamtal removed his leather gloves.
As he looked at his own hands, the smile vanished from Hamtal's face.
"Thanks to that, being beaten by my owner was a daily routine for me. I lived with scars all over my body. Ridiculously, back then I thought I could somehow endure that much. It was a pathetic slave mentality."
"...."
"But my owner, perhaps thinking he needed a greater thrill, came at me one day with a pair of pliers. That day, I lost my nails amidst screams."
Hamtal turned his hand and showed it to Edvol.
Uneven, bumpy nails that had grown irregularly were visible.
It was a deformity that had resulted from the nails growing back after being pulled.
"It was painful. Why was it so painful? I found out later that there is an excessive distribution of nerves under the nails. So naturally, the pain was such that a flesh wound would seem laughable by comparison."
After pulling back his hand, Hamtal put his glove back on.
"What was even more terrible was that I couldn't pick up objects because I had lost my nails. Every time I tried to pick something up, tremendous pain shot through my fingertips, making it hard to even lift a glass of water."
"...."
"So I made up my mind. To kill the owner who had given me this hell. I was able to endure many years just on that rage alone. But unfortunately, the opportunity for revenge never came my way."
Hamtal's eyes slowly closed and then opened again.
"Because my fellow slave, unable to bear the owner's tyranny any longer, snatched a gun and shot him. What do you think I felt back then? Go on, tell me."
Having been gauging Hamtal's mood, Edvol opened his mouth with difficulty.
"...Wouldn't you have been happy?"
Letting out a low laugh, Hamtal shook his head.
"Not at all. The owner died too easily. A bullet lodged in his head, so he probably felt no pain whatsoever. A peaceful death was nothing short of an immense luxury for him."
"So...."
"As a child, I was furious. If possible, I wanted to bring the bastard back to life. Bring him back to life, and return the pain I suffered right back to him. I wanted to show him a living hell where he could neither die nor live."
Hamtal, having reined in his laughter, stared fixedly at Edvol.
"But that rage, now...."
In his empty eyes, a cold killing intent dwelt.
"Is about to be directed at you."
At the sound of that voice, Edvol felt a spike of terror and exhaled heavily.
Because lurking in those words was a horror beyond the mere threat of torture.
Having watched the terrified Edvol in silence, Hamtal shook his head.
"But I do not intend to do that. Because I am a different person from my owner. However, Edvol. If you should refuse our proposal...."
In the bleak atmosphere, Hamtal continued speaking.
"We will willingly become devils."
Edvol, who had been facing Hamtal, gasped for air and unconsciously lowered his gaze.
He did not have the confidence to endure Hamtal's stare.
"This is the one and only chance. I hope you make a wise choice."
If you do not reveal the truth to the world, you will witness hell.
Having made his meaning clear, Hamtal picked up the fedora on the table and placed it on his head.
Afterwards, as Hamtal rose from his seat, Edvol, who had his head bowed, spoke in a trembling voice.
"...May I ask just one thing?"
"What is it?"
"If you people are not from the Imperial Intelligence Department, then what exactly are you trying to uncover the truth of the diplomatic vessel sinking incident for?"
It was a question Edvol mustered the courage to ask, but Hamtal and the Black Bird operative merely laughed as if it were absurd.
However, the laughter did not last long.
At some point, the laughter abruptly ceased, and Hamtal's chilly voice could be heard.
"You must know. Did you not lay a hand on someone you shouldn't have touched?"
Edvol's eyes widened into circles.
"It can't be...."
Because he had heard well that Daniel Steiner had a private organization of unknown whereabouts called the Armed SS.
Just as Edvol discerned Hamtal's identity, an impact like a peok was felt against the back of his neck.
Unable even to scream, Edvol collapsed limply to the floor and rolled his eyes back.
In his blurring vision, he could see Hamtal looking down at him from above.
"Everything...."
His consciousness slowly faded.
Just before Edvol passed out, Hamtal lowered the brim of his fedora and whispered.
"For Daniel Steiner."
*
Meanwhile, the Imperial fleet that had crossed Bellanos' territorial waters under Selvia's orders had arrived safely at the port of Tentarbahém.
With four massive surface combat ships escorting them, the sight of four landing craft loaded with search troops and two supply ships crossing the sea and entering the port was truly a spectacle.
In addition, maritime patrol aircraft were circling the fleet, and several Imperial fighters were flying over Tentarbahém as if reconnoitering, so the citizens at first mistook it for war breaking out.
Since no unnecessary misunderstandings could be allowed, the fleet commander, upon arriving in Bellanos, explained the reason for the troops' arrival to the citizens and then ordered the search operation.
As if even having time to rest was a luxury, the troops began the search operation without a word of complaint.
The search troops also included the Imperial Guard, and Hartmann, the Guard's chief of security, was commanding battalion-level personnel.
"We will investigate the nearby coastline! This is Her Imperial Highness the Princess's order! Comb through it thoroughly!"
When Hartmann issued his command on a stretch of shore, the Imperial Guardsmen spread out in all directions at once and began searching.
Having confirmed that the troops were moving in unison, Hartmann surveyed his surroundings.
'Abandoned fishing boats and hut, huh...'
It was a somewhat shabby landscape.
It was the moment Hartmann, who had been admiring the scenery for a while, decided he should inspect the hut and moved his feet.
"Lieutenant Colonel Hartmann, sir!"
His head naturally turned at the voice of his subordinate.
With eyes full of disbelief, the subordinate opened his mouth.
"...I believe we have found something."
Hearing that they had found something, Hartmann immediately approached his subordinate.
Then, at the subordinate's feet, a military uniform buried in the sand came into view.
'This is...'
Hartmann bent his knees and dug through the sand to retrieve the uniform.
The uniform had the Golden Medal of National Order, not to mention the Golden Cross Medal, attached to it.
It was unmistakably Daniel Steiner's military uniform.
"Huh..."
Hartmann, who was dumbfounded, stood there, mouth agape, and his subordinate spoke.
"Could he have hidden his uniform?"
Only then did Hartmann regain his senses and nod.
"It seems he hastily dug into the sand and buried his uniform before leaving this place. The wind has been blowing hard these past few days, so the sand must have scattered and revealed it."
"Why would Lieutenant Colonel Daniel do such a thing..."
"When he was shipwrecked, he would have realized there was someone in Bellanos colluding with an enemy nation. So it's reasonable to assume he took off his uniform to hide his identity for safety."
Hartmann put the uniform down and rose to his feet.
"Of course, that alone wouldn't be the reason he hid his identity. Clearly, Lieutenant Colonel Daniel would have intended to exploit his own presumed death."
"What do you mean by that, sir..."
"Sergeant Pandem. Think about it carefully. Under the justification of ascertaining the truth of Daniel Steiner's death, we bloodlessly entered Bellanos with our army. What would this mean?"
Now, the Prime Minister of Bellanos had no choice but to take a submissive stance toward the Empire.
Because, on top of a terrorist attack targeting the Empire having occurred within his nation's territorial waters, he was under suspicion that there might be traitors inside who had collaborated with the Allied Nations.
On top of that, with the Imperial military having entered Bellanos, the Prime Minister had no choice but to conduct diplomacy from an extremely disadvantageous position.
Sergeant Pandem, who realized that, blinked vacantly.
"...Certainly, the Empire will secure tremendous diplomatic advantages. But why did Lieutenant Colonel Daniel not inform the homeland of this fact? He could have operated secretly."
"Daniel Steiner fundamentally does not trust his allies. Because there is no telling who could be a spy."
There had been a similar incident previously in the southern part of the Empire.
Daniel had gone down south alone without informing anyone within the Empire and wiped out the prince's private organization all at once.
If you want to deceive the enemy, deceive your allies too.
Hartmann was well aware that it was Daniel Steiner who best embodied this maxim.
Clicking his tongue, Hartmann looked at his subordinate.
"Inform the homeland that there is a high probability Daniel Steiner is alive. Her Highness the Princess, who must be heartbroken, will be delighted."
"Yes, sir!"
Sergeant Pandem, after giving a forceful salute, walked toward the radio operator.
Having sent his subordinate off, Hartmann raised his head and gazed at the city not far away.
Daniel Steiner was surely operating covertly over there.
'I knew he was no ordinary figure to begin with, but...'
He even used his own death for the sake of the Empire, to the point where he no longer seemed human.
Feeling an inexplicable sense of awe, Hartmann swallowed dryly.
'What kind of schemes is he plotting over there now...'
For Hartmann, who could barely manage to think one step ahead, the thoughts of the genius staff officer Daniel were simply beyond him.