Letters Carry Memories (3)
Karin Maven was not in a good mood. She could not even say why. Perhaps it coincided with that time of the month that visited women once every cycle.
“…”
No. That was not it. She had to admit the truth. The reason for her foul mood was something else entirely.
First, that strange woman named Dorothy had ruined the appointment she had planned with the Director. Second, it was because of the letters that kept arriving from Leah Gilliard.
Letters. Yes, the letters could be it. She was not his girlfriend, after all, and she had no right to meddle in Director Berner’s affairs. Yet women possessed a certain intuition, did they not? She had not read the contents, but it was obvious that Leah was expressing affection toward the Director. Of course the woman had protected him, but the fact that she sent letters every single day after leaving—while mistaking him for someone else—made no sense. A woman who had left him, now sending letters under the delusion that he was another man. Karin could hardly imagine how Werner Grime must feel. Even without any personal experience in romance, anyone with half a brain could see that this was morally wrong.
So she broke the seal and read the letter.
“Just this once…”
It was an impulsive act. The usually obedient Karin had climbed onto the stove for the first time in her life. Even while doing it, she kept rationalizing. What if the letter contained poison? As the captain of the security platoon responsible for the overall protection of the Security Bureau’s facilities, she had a duty to inspect all incoming mail in advance.
Yet the contents she discovered were… strange.
Dear Captain John Hobbs,
I could not sleep at all last night. Perhaps that is why the pen feels awkward in my hand.
Have you been well today, Captain? I would like to send you letters every single day now, but it is a shame that your replies do not arrive quickly. Is the Supreme Command direct unit always so busy?
Yesterday I went on a trip. It had been a long time, so my mood felt wonderfully refreshed. The autumn leaves were so beautiful. I lost count of how many times I gasped in admiration while looking at them. Come to think of it, our old fortress’s “Lieutenant Colonel” quarters also had autumn leaves blooming back then. The memories came rushing back.
Graveyard. It was not so bad. There were a few chronic problems, but every fortress has those.
You know, Captain, I think I will stop writing letters now. The season when the cold wind returns has already arrived. Thank you for kindly replying all this time. If fate allows, perhaps we will meet again someday.
Thank you.
Leah Gilliard, with love.
Even if Karin’s education was lacking, she could still read. The grammar was oddly off in several places. At first she thought it might be simple mistakes, but Leah would not make the same error repeatedly. Beyond the grammar, the overall tone felt strangely alien.
“She says she will stop writing letters…?”
That line stood out, and while it should have been welcome, it also felt peculiar. Leah Gilliard had been the one sending the letters in the first place. She sends them, then claims she will stop because the replies are not satisfying? So that was the kind of woman she was. Karin could not help but let out a hollow laugh.
“…Hah.”
Still, it was fortunate she had read the letter herself. Otherwise she would have had to watch Director Berner suffer in silence again. The real problem was what to do with it. Should she deliver a letter filled with such pointless ramblings to the Director? Or should she neatly cut out the problematic sections? In the end, she lacked the courage for either option.
“If he finds out, he will definitely hate me…”
There was no choice. She would simply hand it over. And while she was at it, she wanted to see what Dorothy was scheming by visiting the Director at this hour. If possible, she even wanted to interfere.
Thus Karin picked up the letter and left the dispatch security platoon captain’s office.
***
“A letter? You interrupted our private time over something so trivial, Lieutenant?”
“…”
“Hey, I am talking to you. Look at the person speaking.”
Dorothy radiated a sharp killing intent, yet Karin remained silent. In truth, she could not meet the other woman’s eyes. If she did, she feared the “weak” side she had desperately hidden would come spilling out. Just moments earlier, a single glance at the entrance had been enough to make her flinch and step back.
‘No, Karin. If you back down here, it will all be for nothing.’
She forced herself to steady her heart. Dorothy was still human. A person who would die if shot. Compared to the Titans that kept rising no matter how many missiles struck them and charged toward the fortress line, she was nothing to fear.
“Hah, look at this bitch.”
“That is enough, Dorothy. It is an important letter.”
Berner downed the glass filled with liquor in one gulp.
“Unfortunately, we will have to stop here for today. I will keep the rest of the bottle. Later.”
“…You had better keep that promise.”
Dorothy bit her lip. She had been so close to crossing the line, yet the sudden appearance of the lieutenant had forced the man to redraw it. Now everything was ruined. In the end, Dorothy also emptied her remaining glass and had no choice but to leave Berner’s office.
“Next time, try knocking before you enter. I am asking nicely, Lieutenant.”
The voice she whispered close to Karin’s ear carried a chill. In that moment, Karin understood the true nature of the red-haired woman. She was vicious. The worst kind of vicious. In the past, even if she had mustered courage, she would have been overwhelmed by sheer presence. She would never have been able to meet the woman’s eyes or act so brazenly. But now, having risen above her past and serving at the side of the Empire’s greatest hero, she could not afford to be pushed around by a mere criminal. The Director already had enough worries. There was no need to add stress from someone like this.
Karin steadied herself even further. Since she had already acted, she had to gain something from it. Suppressing the thunderous pounding of her heart, she fixed her gaze straight ahead and replied in a dry voice.
“With all due respect, my own appointment was interrupted as well.”
“…Hmm?”
“Dorothy, leave. I happen to have something to say about that letter as well.”
“Fine, really. Why is it that only annoying people gather around you?”
Dorothy bowed slightly toward Berner and hurried away. Karin stood frozen like a statue until Berner closed the door, then let out a long sigh and collapsed on the spot.
Thud.
Her legs had given out.
“I told you not to push yourself. Dorothy probably realized you were scared.”
Berner helped her up as he spoke.
“Still…”
“Still, you did well.”
“Pardon?”
Karin doubted her ears. According to Dorothy, she had essentially interrupted a superior’s meeting. She had expected at least a scolding from the Director, who valued military discipline and courtesy above all. Yet the words she received were the opposite.
“I was actually in a difficult spot. I have no choice but to work with her professionally, so I cannot treat her any other way.”
“Ah… Did that woman cause trouble for you on her own?”
“Well, it was not anything worth worrying about. Even so, she listens to me.”
“Then it would be better if you simply dismissed her…”
“Unfortunately, she is the most important of the Foundation Stones. There is no one who can replace her.”
This was a fact he had confirmed through multiple regressions. He had tried pushing the uncontrollable Dorothy aside and installing a figurehead in her place, but none of them could handle the work as effectively. No one else possessed the ability to manage every brothel and drug trade spread across the entire Empire. Still, Berner found Karin’s actions rather pleasing. He had thought the officer leading the Security Bureau’s only combat unit lacked sufficient ferocity. Yet she had faced one of the underworld’s leaders despite her fear. With a little more polish, she would develop quite a respectable charisma and courage.
“By the way, that letter—did it come from Leah?”
“Ah, yes.”
Karin hurriedly handed over the letter. After confirming that the seal had been broken, Berner looked at her.
“…Did you read the contents?”
“Ah…”
Karin fidgeted with her fingers. She squeezed her eyes shut and lowered her head deeply.
“I am sorry! I did not mean to… No, I did mean to, but… I had no ill intentions!”
“It is fine… It was not anything special anyway.”
Berner waved his hand dismissively. As he said, the letters he exchanged with Karin truly contained no substance worth mentioning.
“…Hm?”
Yet this letter went beyond being meaningless. He could not properly understand what it was trying to convey. Because he himself had been the one exchanging letters with Leah until now, the sense of dissonance was even stronger. Even the greeting was different. Several words had been deliberately replaced with characters of similar sound, and the arrangement of perfectly normal words was inverted.
“…Karin, was there anything else enclosed with this letter?”
“Ah, no, there was not.”
Berner’s eyebrows twitched. This looked as though someone was trying to convey a special message. He immediately took out a blank sheet of paper and began extracting the words that felt out of place.
“Every single day send d.”
“Very regret le.”
Following that pattern, he collected eight characters from the oddly arranged or strangely emphasized words. When he combined the letters he had written from beginning to end, a single clear sentence emerged.
“Find Lieutenant Colonel Drake?”
Lieutenant Colonel Drake. It was a name Berner could never forget. Naturally.
“Why would Lieutenant Colonel Brown Drake…?”
The assault battalion commander of Graveyard Fortress and humanity’s spearhead who had always taken the vanguard in every previous cycle. Even Berner did not know why that name appeared in Leah’s letter.