Why Do You Only Hurt Me (1)
Even though her grand plan to force a retirement through this hearing had burst like a soap bubble, that was beside the point. She was not the kind of fool who mixed public and private affairs.
The positions of Wolfgang and the nobles had now completely reversed. The chief reason was that the hearing they had forced into existence by grasping at every possible pretext had ended in utter futility. They had rushed all the way from the eastern front—facing the kingdom across the border—only to ask two questions and adjourn? This was no dog-training exercise.
“I took the trouble to appear at the hearing. What exactly is this? You cannot be serious.”
“You are not wrong. It is not quite compensation, but if there is anything you desire, I will accommodate it as far as possible.”
“I need nothing else. Simply provide a little more support to the Eastern Defense Forces.”
Wolfgang had protested to the Emperor outright, and the Emperor had yielded to her condition as if he had no choice. It was a perfectly staged drama, practically a rigged gambling table.
In ordinary times the nobles would have foamed at the mouth in opposition. One might think there was no harm in supporting the hero who had saved the empire, yet in truth it was only natural. The Iron Blood Emperor, having purged the previous sovereign and the entire royal family before seizing the throne, had first dismantled every organization that did nothing but consume taxes. Some bodies survived, of course, but even they could not escape drastic budget cuts—some by more than half.
Yet even the Iron Blood Emperor, merciless when slashing budgets, not only refrained from reducing the funds for the Vendetta Legion under Wolfgang Leonhardt and the Eastern Defense Forces, but continued to support them lavishly even after the war’s end. Well, if one stretched generosity to its limit, that much could be understood. She was, after all, the hero of national salvation. Without her the empire’s revival would never have come.
But to give still more support? That ultimately meant less money in their own coffers, so naturally no noble would welcome it. Nevertheless, this time none of them dared oppose the Emperor’s decision. They had suffered a crushing defeat at her hands in the hearing only days earlier.
Rumors are, in the end, nothing but rumors.
The hero Leonhardt who saved the empire stood directly against the wicked schemes of the nobles.
Not even the serpent tongues filled with envy and jealousy could erode the truth!!
The news that Wolfgang Leonhardt had shattered the nobles in the hearing spread with unusual speed. Transformed by minstrels into one exaggerated heroic epic, it swept across the entire empire. Leaving public sentiment aside, anyone could predict that Wolfgang Leonhardt would be furious after the hearing. If they opposed her while she was already angry, the backlash would be more than even Duke Ifrit, leader of the noble faction, could handle.
Wolfgang, fully aware of this, did not miss the chance to exploit it thoroughly.
‘In any case, an increased military budget is good news.’
An army was like a hippopotamus that devoured money. Maintaining it alone cost astronomical sums, and it consumed every resource it could seize. Like a bottomless jar, no matter how much money one poured in like water, the military was always short. Of course the Vendetta Legion she commanded numbered only seven, yet to support Vendetta and guard the border the Eastern Defense Forces organized around it boasted over one hundred and fifty thousand troops—an enormous scale. When the empire’s total strength stood at four hundred thousand, the weight carried by the Eastern Defense Forces became clear.
There were other reasons as well. Setting her personal displeasure aside, if they let the matter pass, nothing would stop the nobles from repeating the same tactic. Therefore she had to exact a clear price this time. Political fights were indeed tedious, but she still had to take what she could. Otherwise she would only become a pushover. And if the army’s commander became a pushover, those beneath her would suffer.
She would not inconvenience her comrades for the sake of her own objectives. That was her creed. In the end, because the nobles had committed wrongs, they could only remain silent as if honey had glued their mouths shut. Thus the Emperor was able to grant even greater power to the already formidable Vendetta Legion.
‘The Captain was aiming for this from the start!’
Galina could not help but admire the lightning-fast handling of affairs. It was not that she had doubted the Captain, yet she had wondered why the Captain had insisted on attending the hearing. Now she understood clearly. The Captain had chosen to break straight through from the front with dignity—crushing the ignorant, posturing nobles in the capital by force, then boldly extracting money from the Emperor himself. It was a victory that could only be called a perfect triumph.
Thanks to it, Galina’s already fanatical respect, admiration, and obsessive longing only deepened. If she followed the Captain, how much blood and how many victories would she taste? The mere thought made Galina’s whole body tremble with excitement.
‘Ah, I want to retire. Fuck.’
Meanwhile, Wolfgang’s mind was that of a general counting the days until discharge.
Thanks to Wolfgang’s achievement this time, the expanded military budget allowed the Eastern Defense Forces to begin large-scale repairs. The ramparts were reinforced and every piece of old, broken equipment replaced at once. In truth, where people lived it was harder for corruption not to exist—especially in a closed institution like the military. Yet within the Eastern Defense Forces corruption simply did not exist. It was not that it was minimal or insignificant; literally, even if one washed one’s eyes and searched, not a single instance could be found.
How was this possible? The answer lay with Wolfgang Leonhardt. She was a war hero revered above all by the empire’s citizens, and the soldiers who enlisted were little different.
Commander Leonhardt is watching over us!
No mistakes will be tolerated!
For the sake of our Commander Leonhardt!!!
Other units were similar, but the Eastern Defense Forces where Wolfgang Leonhardt was personally stationed took it to extremes. Their faith bordered on fanaticism, and that faith made the impossible possible. The fact that she had crushed the arrogant nobles in the hearing and expanded the military budget only strengthened their devotion further.
Yet despite the Eastern Defense Forces’ support growing even fiercer, Wolfgang herself wore a long face. In other words, her retirement had just moved farther away.
“Why the long face? Did you not achieve a great victory over the nobles in the hearing?”
“Get lost.”
Her workload had already increased and her mood was foul; seeing Leifen sitting casually before her and sipping tea was like pouring oil onto a burning house.
“You’re the Emperor, aren’t you? Is it really acceptable for you to be in a place like this?”
“You have not forgotten my specialty magic, have you?”
“Even if it is spatial teleportation, still. Is it proper for an Emperor to wander about like this?”
“I did not come without reason this time. There is actually something I must discuss.”
Judging that further teasing would be dangerous, Leifen promptly drew a letter from his robe. It was sealed with the lion emblem that symbolized the Mines Kingdom.
A sealed missive from the Mines Kingdom
— Bearing the lion emblem, symbol of the Kingdom of Knights —
“A letter from the Mines Kingdom.”
“Yes.”
“But why show it to me?”
“...I heard you drank an enormous amount after the hearing ended.”
Leifen usually maintained a dignified, unshakable bearing, yet now rare hesitation colored his voice. The name Lana Frost had surfaced during the hearing, and that same evening she had consumed a staggering quantity of alcohol. Could it truly be coincidence? If it had summoned a past she wished to forget? If she had drunk to erase those memories?
That was why, despite having had ample time, he had been unable to mention the letter to her. At first he had intended to handle it himself, but he could not.
‘My consideration might become poison to her. With anyone else it would not matter, but I wish to avoid earning her hatred at all costs.’
“I simply drank because I felt like it.”
“Truly?”
“Yes.”
Not the slightest tremor appeared in Wolfgang’s eyes as she answered. I see. Was I worrying needlessly? After all, she was Wolfgang Leonhardt now, not Lana Frost.
‘Besides, the forces guarding the border with the Mines Kingdom are the Eastern Defense Forces, and the commander who leads them is me. If that is the reason, it makes sense.’
Leifen’s consideration proved futile; Wolfgang had already reached a rational conclusion in her mind and, at the same time, realized her workload had just increased by one more task.
‘Ha, fuck.’
‘Her expression is dark. Well… the past is not something one can forget simply by wishing to.’
Misunderstandings multiplied like tails on a kite. The two of them ran on parallel lines, each lost in their own dream. Yet Leifen did not hesitate. He took up a letter knife and broke the seal.
“Read it first.”
“...? It may be an important diplomatic letter between states. Should not the Emperor read it himself?”
“It is fine. By imperial decree, I permit it.”
‘For any other matter, perhaps not. But when it concerns the kingdom, it is right to entrust it to her.’
Anything related to the kingdom he would leave entirely in her hands. If she desired revenge, he had no intention of stopping her. On the contrary, he would support her with everything he possessed. Because that was the right thing to do. She had always chosen the right path without hesitation—whether during the Winter War or when she rejected the proposal to destroy the kingdom. If such a person chose war with the kingdom?
‘I will support you unconditionally. Because I believe you are in the right.’
Food had always been scarce; to survive they had offered the corpses of family and friends who had died. In a bottomless abyss of despair where hope did not exist, you appeared like the sun. If you gathered soldiers and raised a rebellion, then I would gladly smile as I met your blade. For if you raised a rebellion, it would mean I had become a tyrant.
That straight, bamboo-like faith of his, she...
‘This bastard. He’s just dumping his work on me because he doesn’t want to do it himself, isn’t he?’
She simply dismissed it as shirking duty. But what could she do? In the end a soldier had no choice but to obey. Wolfgang let out a sigh and picked up the letter from the kingdom.