The Masquerade Ball
The masquerade ball. A long-standing noble tradition dating back to the old imperial era. As with traditions, it was essentially a gathering for the high and mighty to network. There hadn't been room for such things during over ten years of war, but in the Eastern Army Command, where the proportion of old nobility was high, it was said to have been held occasionally even during the war. With the pretext of celebrating victory, it was scheduled as the second day and finale of this banquet. That finale was about to be stained with the blood of many. Werner disliked such events, but that didn't mean he had reason to stand by and watch someone die.
"The signs of terrorism have been confirmed."
"Without a doubt."
"Damn it..."
Arthur Philias's groan came through the communicator. He had sent him to monitor the suspicious movements of the self-proclaimed nobles in the Eastern Army Command, only to get caught up in a terrorist incident. The Supreme Commander had his own headaches.
"Possibility of voice extraction error? No... right, you wouldn't lie about something like this or handle things sloppily."
"I've completed cross-verification of the audio file as well. What should we do now?"
He was no longer Lutus Edan, the war hero and fortress commander. The available manpower was ridiculously small, and the only decent weapon was the pistol brought from the Graveyard. Moreover, the terrorists' objectives, why they targeted the Eastern Army Commander, and who was behind them—nothing had been revealed. Lacking authority, armament, and justification.
"...We have to cancel the party."
"What reason can we give? The Supreme Commander and the Chancellor personally ordered it?"
"It's not impossible."
In fact, there was no need to prepare a scenario. Soldiers must obey orders absolutely. Even the Eastern Army Command's self-proclaimed nobles would normally follow orders from above to cancel the party. Unless it was a horrific war crime like civilian massacre. However, Werner knew well how stubborn the generals and commander, Lieutenant General Heinrich Rendal, of the Eastern Army Command were. They would cancel the party. Formally, at least. The masquerade ball was closer to a social gathering. In other words, if they held it as a private charity event rather than a military event, there would be no justification to stop it. At best, personnel dispatched from Supreme Command or other army commands would return urgently. Rendal and his commanders, the main targets of the terrorist forces, would still be exposed to danger.
"What if they don't listen?"
"...We'll have to reveal it, won't we?"
"The safety of the local collaborator we worked hard to contact will be at risk. The prestige of the Security Bureau will also plummet."
It was a dilemma. If they revealed the intercepted content, the terrorism would be thwarted, and the instigators could be caught without difficulty. The problem was the source of the evidence. The answer to why they had intercepted and who had ordered it couldn't be revealed rashly. If it was merely a warning measure, revealing or being discovered wouldn't matter. In that case, Werner would have openly mingled with the generals and blatantly shown his vigilance. But the Chancellor intended to completely overturn the Eastern Army Command, so revealing it now would be like showing his trump card from the very beginning. The newly established organization called the Security Strategic Agency wouldn't be looked upon favorably anyway. Rather, this incident might cause the Eastern Army Command's private organizations to hide deeper while properly confronting the Chancellor. The end would be... probably war. Not against the Titans, but a civil war between fellow countrymen and yesterday's comrades.
Werner closed his eyes tightly while continuing communication with Arthur Philias. This wasn't the victory of humanity that he had grasped by dying forty times. Neither Arthur nor Werner could easily decide. Moreover, they couldn't rely entirely on the Chancellor. Being a man through and through political, in the worst case, he might order them to stand by and watch the terrorism occur in the Eastern Army Command. Why would the Chancellor refuse when the thorns in his side were falling away on their own?
Werner Grime fell into serious contemplation. Was there truly no answer other than choosing between the tragedy in the Eastern Army Command and the exposure of the Security Strategic Agency?
'No.'
At that moment, an idea flashed through Werner's mind. The best scenario that could prevent both the Chancellor's unnecessary intervention and the terrorism.
"Please send a message to the Eastern Army Command immediately, Supreme Commander."
"A message? What kind of message?"
"The Eastern Army Command's security orders need to be revised."
Werner recalled the content of the voice. After the banquet, in the underground armory, stealing guns and ammunition? He could form one hypothesis. The thought that had come to him immediately after intercepting the suspicious conversation was why they hadn't carried out the terrorism right away. Was there a need to set the date of action specifically for the day after the masquerade ball? He could infer from the documents he had read on the helicopter coming to Branberg.
'The masquerade ball allows the attendance of uninvited external personnel, including aides.'
The terrorist forces that had infiltrated the banquet hall until today—the number of advance party members was extremely small. As personnel flowed in from outside, the scale of the party would grow, naturally creating holes in security. Who would even think of causing terrorism at a commemorative event for the end of the war with the Titans? Moreover, what they ultimately aimed for was the Empire itself. Using the Eastern Army Command as an example.
"The masquerade ball starts at 18:00. Please change the shifts of the sentries responsible for guarding the armory and facilities between 17:00 and 19:00."
To infiltrate the banquet hall with the secured weapons, cooperation from the guarding personnel was absolutely necessary. Otherwise, the security forces that identified suspicious armed individuals wouldn't stay still.
"I see. Understood."
Arthur Philias's voice came through the communicator, sounding as if he agreed.
"The Eastern Army Command won't suspect something like that."
There were plenty of excuses. Since it was only changing patrol times, there was no reason for internal complaints.
"Werner Grime, Director."
"Yes, Supreme Commander."
"You are directly under the Chancellor, but you are also my subordinate. That means my authority applies as well."
Arthur added more seriously than ever.
"I will leave all matters occurring on-site to the discretion and judgment of you, the on-site commander. I will take full responsibility for the consequences."
"That's more than enough. Then I will contact you as soon as the matter is resolved."
Werner ended the communication with Supreme Command. Then he put on the clothes he had roughly brought. Since Werner wasn't particularly knowledgeable about fashion, most of his civilian clothes were solid colors close to black and dark gray. Coincidentally, it was the perfect outfit for infiltration. He layered a tactical vest over his dark civilian clothes and checked the pistol's magazine. 16 rounds, 3 magazines, total 48 rounds. It would have been perfect if he could attach a silencer, but he thought he must attach one from the next mission onward. Werner completely covered the rest of his face with a black mask. He didn't forget the tactical knife in the thigh sheath. The only thing shining from the pitch-black figure was his sharp blue eyes.
"...Let's go."
With that muttered self-talk as the last, Werner left the safe house.
===
The Branberg Command after the banquet was terrifyingly quiet. In fact, the real banquet began after all schedules were over. People gathered in groups of three or five with those they met at the banquet and went for a second round at nearby pubs or hotels. Some male and female officers who hit it off booked separate accommodations. Higher-ranking personnel moved to places much more luxurious and secret than the command to start their own banquets. Moreover, it was victory. There was no reason to wake up suddenly to Titan air raid alarms or to sharpen their senses to the frontline situation. As a result, everyone from the commander to the lowest soldiers naturally loosened up. There was a commander in charge of the formal night duty, but he disappeared right after the handover and didn't return. Soldiers patrolling the corridors were openly dozing off or chatting and giggling. They weren't even carrying firearms.
'I didn't expect it to be this much of a mess.'
There was no need to wear camouflage. Perhaps wearing just the regular dark green military uniform would have been a more certain disguise. With no proper security forces, if he walked around openly, no one would know.
Werner lamented the utterly dismal reality and arrived at the armory located in the basement of the command. And there...
Men in sloppy military uniforms that anyone could see were taking out weapons from the armory.
"Move them quickly. We don't know where the duty officer went. Now's the chance."
"The bombs are installed, right?"
"Of course."
The conversation he overheard while pressed against the wall was clearly related to terrorism. The last bastion had collapsed. Already, the name of Lieutenant General Rendal was being mentioned from their mouths, and with assassination talk going back and forth, no more evidence was needed. Convinced they were caught in the act, Werner immediately drew his knife. There were four of them. Among them, two were armed. He slipped out of the shadows and naturally approached them. Approaching with footsteps close to silent and minimizing presence, he made eye contact with one sentry who happened to be yawning.
"...? Wait, when did you get here."
The flustered soldier immediately aimed his gun, but he couldn't pull the trigger or even finish his sentence. With a thud, the knife grazed the carotid artery, and the sentry collapsed on the floor, spraying blood.
"What the hell!?"
"Daprin! Who the fuck are you!!"
As their comrade instantly turned into a corpse, the suspicious men screamed at the top of their lungs in panic. Werner judged that except for one person who had fallen to the floor trembling, having lost strength in his legs, it wouldn't matter if he killed the rest. Time was short. In the basement filled only with musty mold smell, a blade like moonlight flashed.