Corpses That Defy the Natural Order - 2
The Apels restorationists who went by the grandiose name of Third Glory. Blocking these corpses from approaching the Academy was the natural measure for the safety of the nobles currently staying there, but it was also a matter of the Empire’s prestige.
Apels had fallen some three hundred years ago, and the Empire had once made a deliberate point of crushing not only the restoration army but every figure who might have served as a focal point for any revival movement. And now, leaping across the ages, an Apels restoration force had appeared again?
What a goddamn disgrace.
The size or competence of that restoration force did not matter. The mere existence of people who rejected imperial rule and yearned for a nation that had vanished into the distant past was enough to bruise the Empire’s dignity. Other countries would laugh themselves sick behind closed doors. How pathetic must an empire be, they would say, to spawn traitors like that?
So not a single member of Third Glory could be allowed to slip away. Total annihilation or total capture—that was the victory condition for this defense. If even one escaped and word of Third Glory—of an Apels restoration army—reached the outside world, especially the three great powers, my communication orb would light up a brilliant, damning violet.
That could not happen. Absolutely not. I was already under orders from the Crown Prince, who had just finished serving as Palace Minister over the Ainter affair. If something that damaged imperial prestige erupted right where I was staying, the absolute minimum would be a direct call from the Crown Prince. The worst would be the line above him, and fuck that.
I’m going to lose my mind.
A wave of irritation rose; I pressed my brow and let out a long breath.
If it had been any other group I would not have had to clench my teeth and maintain this level of security while wiping them out. But of course it had to be the one organization whose discovery guaranteed a public roasting: an Apels restoration force. Third Glory or Third Fucking Disaster, whatever—if I captured even one of them I would send it straight down the First Section Chief’s express interrogation track.
Which was why I had called the First Section Chief in, both to discuss tomorrow’s work and for that reason.
“Chief. Calling someone at night is seriously not okay.”
I had even delayed the call a little out of consideration, in case she was still speaking with the Fourth Section Chief. The woman in front of me, however, showed zero appreciation for her superior’s thoughtfulness. Ignoring the First Section Chief as she pouted without an ounce of tact, I spread open a map of the Academy and the surrounding region.
“All right. Let’s map a route for old times’ sake.”
“Waaah…”
Work was work, so she shuffled over eventually. I glanced at her once, then returned my eyes to the map.
Third Glory would appear near the Academy around five in the afternoon tomorrow. That intelligence had come from the Intelligence Department, so it would not be wrong. Our job was to intercept them before they reached the Academy; therefore we had to decide in advance where that interception would take place.
“Even so, if they have any brains at all they’ll approach stealthily, right?”
“True, but they show up at five, before the sun has even set. Hard to relax about that.”
What kind of raider strutted in while the sky was still bright? If they were deliberately targeting a crowded hour I could understand it, but being spotted before the raid even began would make the whole thing pointless, wouldn’t it?
Trying to understand them was probably a waste of effort. The sheer stubbornness and obsession required to resurrect a three-hundred-year-dead nation was a distillation of madness ordinary people could never grasp.
Besides, these people had been introduced in the original story solely to create a crisis for the protagonists; they were unlikely to be a carefully planned assault force. First appearance meant tutorial-level difficulty. They alone would probably be this much of a mess. The other four organizations had history and tradition behind their bastardy, so I could not afford to lower my guard with them.
“If it were me, I’d come from this direction.”
“Right? There’s really nowhere else.”
Since becoming Audit Department Chief I had not racked up much experience with defensive battles. I had been through a few up north, but only as someone grinding under a commander. So I had been fretting over which direction to watch while waiting for Third Glory—until I flipped the perspective and thought of us as the attackers. The answer appeared at once.
All I had to do was find the route I would take if I were Third Glory and then plug that hole. The man who has thrown the punches knows exactly where it hurts. Not that I ever wanted to learn that particular lesson.
Heads together, the First Section Chief and I marked a small forest northwest of the Academy. They would come this way if we simply waited.
“We can rendezvous with Mukgwangdae here as well.”
Meeting early and leisurely watching the corpse procession roll in would be perfect.
Around noon on the second day of the expo, I slipped away from the booth to a deserted spot and contacted the Fourth Section Chief.
“We’ll meet here.”
After some back-and-forth I held the map up to the communication orb and showed her the rendezvous-and-interception point the First Section Chief and I had chosen. She nodded without hesitation; she would find it without getting lost.
—Understood. I’ll move quickly.
“Just get there by four. I’ll time my arrival for then as well.”
—Yes, Chief.
“Good. It’s been a while—I want to see you soon.”
—It is an honor.
At my lightly smiling words the Fourth Section Chief bowed her head and ended the call. I might have been a touch too personal with a former subordinate who was joining for official business.
Still, there are people you simply want to look after a little more when you see them. For me that person was the Fourth Section Chief, so even unimportant remarks tended to slip out. Back when Mukgwangdae had still been the Fourth Section, the Second Section Chief had once grumbled that I was playing favorites with her.
Of course I ignored him; the speaker was the Second Section Chief. If the Deputy Chief or the Fifth Section Chief had said it, maybe. The Second Section Chief had no business saying that shit to me.
Still have time.
The distance from the Academy to the rendezvous point was not short, but it was perfectly manageable by four. I would stay at the booth for now and slip out with the First Section Chief at the right moment.
After ending the call with the Chief, I carefully stroked the communication orb. Speaking with her was always both an honor and a source of tension.
—Good. It’s been a while—I want to see you soon.
Recalling the Chief’s final words, the corners of my mouth lifted of their own accord. As expected, she had not forgotten me. She always watched over us with interest.
“Captain.”
At the deputy captain’s voice from behind, I smoothed my expression and turned. The moment she realized I was speaking with the Chief she had moved away on her own so as not to interrupt. Anyone of Mukgwangdae who had received the Chief’s grace—anyone of the old Fourth Section—was expected to do exactly that.
“What did the Chief say?”
“We will rendezvous with her. We move to Forest A-1 by four o’clock.”
“Yes, Captain.”
The deputy captain saluted and headed toward the other members. Forest A-1—an improvised designation for the woodland closest to the Academy. We had shared every temporary place-name before setting out, so they would understand.
At the deputy’s order the members began gathering in front of me with noticeably more energetic steps. None of us had seen the Chief for a long time.
We were going to meet the hero of the Fourth Section, the one who had raised the collapsed Fourth Section back up and saved us from lives as bottom-feeding insects. Who would dare dawdle on a path like that? Any ungrateful bastard would be dealt with by the others before my own hand ever reached them.
“Foolish corpses that defy the natural order are heading toward the Chief.”
Every gaze locked onto me.
“They dare mock the Empire, deny the Mandate of Heaven, and bare filthy fangs at the Chief.”
Quiet fury filled the members’ eyes—public fury as Special Affairs operatives facing traitors, and private fury toward those who would harm their benefactor.
“Is there any arrogant fool who intends to appear empty-handed before the Chief?”
No one answered. They simply denied it with burning eyes and silence.
“The Chief need not lift a finger herself. We will not block their path; we will strike from behind. Capture every last one and present them to her.”
They might be weaving a complicated approach route, but in the end they were nothing more than a flimsy, feeble restoration force. A rebel band scraping the bottom for cause, supplies, and manpower alike. Locating them and taking their rear would be simple.
Watching the members scatter to dismantle the temporary camp after receiving what was, in effect, an attack order, I recalled the Minister of Special Affairs’ instructions.
“Third Glory—an inflated name for something so hollow. They will be easy to clear out, but backers or collaborators may exist. Capture as many as possible.”
Before setting out to assist the Chief I had spoken with the Minister of Special Affairs—a middle-aged man whose face was a lattice of scars and sutures that magic and holy power could easily have erased, yet which he left as a reminder of his own inadequacies. The Emperor’s loyal hound.
“And see to it that the Audit Department Chief does not have to act. What we need is a prisoner who will spit information, not a burst corpse.”
I had nodded before I even realized it. Having the Chief step onto a capture operation would be slightly inconvenient. Even without the Minister’s order, of course, the Chief would never have needed to move personally.
There was no reason for our revered Chief to stir herself over insects. Though we had left her side for the Ministry of Special Affairs, the Fourth Section still carried the same heart that existed for her alone. We devoted ourselves to the Empire in accordance with the will of the Empire’s most loyal servant, and we followed the person who was our benefactor.
“For our revered Chief.”
I murmured the vow quietly to myself. And in the same silence I recalled the words I, as an imperial official, could never speak aloud—words that would only trouble her if they left my mouth.
For our revered Master.
Whether it was Third Glory or Third Whatever-the-Hell, losing even one would be a problem, but the cleanup itself was nothing. How strong could a brand-new rebel group be if even the Intelligence Department Chief had only learned of them recently? A whole swarm of that caliber could not put a single scratch on Mukgwangdae.
Myself, the First Section Chief, and Mukgwangdae would crush them with overwhelming superiority. They say a capable general settles victory before the fighting even begins; maybe I was wasted in this goddamn Audit Department and belonged in the military after all?
“Chief, here.”
“Thanks.”
I took the dagger the First Section Chief handed me and checked the edge. Still being at the Academy made carrying anything conspicuous awkward, and a short blade would be more convenient if the fight spilled into the forest. This one felt a little too short, though.
“It’s been a while since you’ve been out in the field, hasn’t it?”
“Only if there’s a reason for me to step in.”
As Audit Department Chief I was stationed at the Academy and had even solo-cleared a dungeon that should never have been on my plate, but actually joining a skirmish was rare. I was not some lunatic whose body itched if I did not fight, so there had never been a need to force myself into one.
Still, the thought of moving my body after so long brought a strangely fresh feeling. If I let myself go completely soft I might seize up, so I would have to tell the Fourth Section Chief to keep the encirclement loose and leave me a little room.