Letters Carry Memories (2)
The newly established eastern branch of the Security Strategic Agency. Werner Grime stared at the stack of letters spread across his desk. The recipient: Captain John Hobbs. The sender: Lieutenant Leah Gilliard. Eight letters had already passed between them. He had never intended to become entangled with her again in any form, yet somehow it had come to this. And to make matters worse, the Inspector General's Office—specifically its current director, Arhen Orca—had been sniffing around the agency, forcing him to hand over the correspondence. It was better to yield on reasonable terms than to provoke Arhen's curiosity and risk her digging deeper. If they happened to cross paths, he doubted she would let it slide gracefully.
“Haa…” Werner sighed and lit a cigarette. His heart felt heavy, and there was no helping it. Who would have thought Arhen Orca would be appointed Director of the Inspector General's Office? She had quite literally thrown her own superior under the bus, so the Chancellor must have seen her as a surprisingly useful blade. With a massive purge and reorganization of military personnel looming, Arhen was perfectly suited to wield that blade.
‘…There shouldn’t be any major problems, but I should prepare for the unexpected.’
Werner already understood the Chancellor’s murky depths. The Eastern Army Commander, Heinrich Rendal, had been forced to choose between a dishonorable discharge and having his faction torn to shreds. If he chose discharge, what would follow was obvious. Heinrich’s decision was already set in stone. With this, the influence of the Imperial Faction that had been slowly rising within the military would plummet. Naturally, the Emperor and his family—already reduced to little more than relics—would soon vanish from history entirely.
In truth, Werner had left the Chancellor alone precisely because the man excelled in these matters. Leading the war against the Titans for over ten years was proof enough. He was a victorious warlord and a born politician. His popularity among the imperial citizens was considerable, and when it came to politics, he surpassed even Werner, who had reached this point through countless regressions. But… what would happen when the Chancellor finally turned against him?
As Supreme Commander Arthur Philias had said, the Chancellor was wary of Werner as a war hero. Even though Werner had taken no political action, the Chancellor had been alarmed by the fact that a brigadier general had overturned his own retirement. Recalling how the Chancellor had openly obstructed Werner’s achievements when he reached the ranks of major general and lieutenant general in previous regressions… Being wary of anyone who could challenge the throne was simply the Chancellor’s nature.
It would not be Werner Grime alone. Every unparalleled hero born during the war posed a greater threat to the Chancellor than the remnants of the Revolutionary Faction or the Imperial Faction. Therefore, countermeasures of some kind were necessary. Perhaps… there was more to Arhen’s personnel assignment than met the eye. There was no guarantee the Chancellor wouldn’t try to manipulate Arhen, Leah, or the others as he pleased.
But the immediate problem was neither the Chancellor nor Arhen. It was Leah.
‘Of all people…’
Just like with Arhen, he had wanted to avoid any entanglement, yet now they were exchanging letters. He had initially sent a polite refusal, but a reply had come, and here they were.
Dear Captain John Hobbs,
Thank you for your concern. My body has recovered quite a bit. I used to get injured often at the fortress too, so this level of wound isn’t really a wound at all. If anything, I think you were the remarkable one, throwing yourself into danger to rescue so many people. Do you often get assigned to such dangerous missions? I know it’s not my place to say, but I’ll pray you take care of yourself.
The recovery was quick, but the aftereffects hurt more than I expected. Lately, I’ve found a regular restaurant in town. It’s famous for Eastern cuisine made by a chef from the Eastern Continent. If you ever visit the Eastern Military District again, you should definitely try it. I’m sure you’ll like it.
Oh, by the way, do you not have any particular hobbies? I’ve been completely absorbed in growing plants these days. It’s called a marigold, and when it blooms, it produces bright yellow flowers. Once the flowers bloom, I’ll definitely take a photo and send it to you. I’d like to try growing other flowers later too. There weren’t any flowers to be found at the old fortress. Ah, that’s not to say the fortress was bad. In a place where people were dying left and right, there was no time to leisurely grow flowers.
Captain, have you heard the rumors about Graveyard? The famous Brigadier General Lutus Edan was my superior. He always had a blunt demeanor, but he would occasionally crack jokes and secretly look after us from behind the scenes. I heard he retired after our fortress was his last post, though I don’t know where he is now. Still, if it’s the Lutus Brigadier General I know, I’m sure he’s doing well wherever he is. It would be wonderful if I could run into him by chance someday.
………
Werner flipped the letter over and crushed his cigarette in the ashtray. He could have simply ignored it. Even if Leah lacked some tact, she would eventually understand if he stopped replying altogether. But for some reason, he didn’t want to. After all, there was no way for Leah to discover his true identity. He was using the name of the actual Captain John Hobbs, so there would be no issues. In that case, exchanging a few light letters might not be so bad. It even helped suppress the occasional signs of his seizures. Perhaps reading letters from his former lover was healing his worn-out spirit.
While Werner Grime sat blankly staring at the letters—
“Werner, are you in there?”
With a creak, the closed door opened and a woman with striking red hair stepped inside.
“Dorothy.”
One of the Foundation Stones, and the drug lord known as Hetaira Dorothy. Her nickname carried many meanings. The word itself referred to ancient high-class courtesans and temple priestesses. Even if it once described the most prestigious and affluent women of their time, any ordinary person would have felt deeply insulted. Dorothy, however, accepted the name with pride. After all, it wasn’t entirely inaccurate.
Drugs robbed people of their souls. They stripped away reason and left only instinct. They offered happiness to the hopeless, rest to the restless, and pleasure to the listless. Even though it was all an illusion, the sweetness was so overwhelming that people kept falling back into the dream. Naturally, Dorothy’s business was deeply intertwined with prostitution as well. It was wartime. Regardless of status, the most effective ways to relieve stress on the battlefield were drugs and sex. Dorothy had exploited that weakness perfectly. That was why Werner Grime—back when he was still Lutus Edan—had taken her in. The saying went that while some people had never set foot in Dorothy’s mansion, no one who entered once ever left after a single visit. It was true. The weaknesses Werner had secured from the powerful figures connected to Dorothy had proven extremely useful during the war.
“What is it?”
“What do you mean, what is it? I just came to spend some time with Director Werner.”
She smiled brightly and took a seat across from his desk. Werner’s expression twisted. He could immediately tell what she was after.
“Dorothy, I’ve told you not to do this.”
At his words, her eyes narrowed. Sharp like a snake’s, yet alluring. “Have you ever seen a snake that doesn’t bite just because you told it not to?”
Dorothy grinned and pulled a bottle of liquor from her coat. “Besides, this is really expensive stuff. Even the Chancellor can’t get his hands on it. I went through a lot of trouble to obtain it—you’re not going to leave me hanging, are you?”
“…Haa.”
In truth, this wasn’t the first time he had received such an approach. Through forty regressions, Werner had clearly recognized the affection Dorothy harbored for him. Her seductive red hair swayed before his eyes.
“From now on, Director Werner will need my help quite a bit… Isn’t it about time you offered me the reward I want?”
“No.”
“Tch…”
“Instead, I’ll gladly be your drinking companion.”
After all, he was the one receiving help. At this level, he was willing to grant her request.
“Well, I’ll settle for that today. Oh, by the way, Director, is there something going on with your subordinate?”
“Subordinate?”
“That girl named Karin or whatever—she was glaring at me so hard earlier. I wanted to gouge her eyes out for daring to look at me like that—”
Clang—!
Werner grabbed a glass from the shelf and slammed it down hard on the desk. At the sound, Dorothy relaxed her expression and waved her hand dismissively.
“…If you lay a hand on my subordinate, you won’t like what happens, Dorothy.”
“Aah~ Of course. It was just a joke. Just a joke~”
This was the most troublesome part. Werner knew Dorothy’s true nature. She was the kind of criminal who needed to be kept under control. In another regression, the first time Lutus Edan had become involved with her was because she had tried to distribute drugs in Graveyard. She was a wild dog that had to be kept on a tight leash. Even the feelings she held for him now were closer to “curiosity-driven” than genuine affection. As she herself had said, there was no snake that wouldn’t bite just because you told it not to. If Werner showed any weakness, she would undoubtedly do whatever it took to make him her own. That was why he treated her more harshly with warnings than the other Foundation Stones. Of course, when she had mentioned Arhen last time, he had genuinely threatened her. She had tucked her tail between her legs immediately after.
Glug, glug, glug, glug.
Acting as though the warning meant nothing, Dorothy hummed a tune while filling the glasses. However, contrary to her expectations, the moment was cut short.
Bang!
“Director, a new letter has just arrived.”
Karin Maven had burst into the room without warning. For an instant, Dorothy’s and Karin’s eyes met.
“……”
“……”
Dorothy lifted the corner of her mouth slightly and let out a cold laugh, but Karin simply stood there, her gaze fixed like a stone statue.
“You said last time that if a letter arrived, I should bring it here no matter what.”
As she spoke, a single letter rested in her hand. Though why its seal had already been broken was anyone’s guess.