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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: The Prime Minister of Bellanos Is Terrified
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Daniel's confident retort plunged the officer into confusion.
'He doesn't know Daniel Steiner?'
Daniel Steiner was none other than the Empire's war hero, the one who had sent shockwaves across the world with his total war speech.
Even in Bellanos, located across the sea, anyone who read newspapers or listened to the radio couldn't possibly be unaware of Daniel Steiner's existence.
Yet, he claimed not to know who he was, amplifying the officer's suspicion.
'And what's more...'
The man before him matched the physique of Daniel Steiner as described by his superiors.
Though his eyes were hidden by sunglasses, his facial features perfectly matched Daniel Steiner's portrait.
The officer, alternating his gaze between the portrait and Daniel once more, struggled to speak.
"...Would you mind removing your sunglasses, if possible? Once the verification is complete, I won't detain you further."
Daniel muttered under his breath.
He had expected this, but the officer's refusal to back down easily made his head throb.
'If I take off my sunglasses, my identity will be revealed. But...'
Let's consider it from the officer's perspective.
Could a junior officer forcibly arrest an ordinary citizen of Bellanos just because their appearance was similar?
Even if he had the authority, he wouldn't act rashly without permission from his superiors.
'Because the Empire adheres to international law.'
If he denied it again, the officer would radio his superiors for arrest permission.
Daniel, thinking he could buy time and then seize an opportunity to escape, raised his hand.
"Didn't I tell you?"
Daniel, grasping his sunglasses, slowly lowered them, glaring at the officer with a chilling gaze.
"That I don't know who he is."
The officer, meeting Daniel's gaze, felt as if his entire body had frozen.
Indeed, the sharp, wolf-like eyes were identical to those depicted in the portrait.
The officer, flustered and about to instinctively salute, paused as a sudden thought struck him.
'Wait a minute. His persistent claim of ignorance...'
There must surely be a reason for it.
The officer swallowed hard, recalling Daniel's achievements in his mind.
The primary contributor to the Nordia Invasion Operation.
Recipient of the National Order, the Empire's second-class Order of Merit.
Recipient of the Golden Cross Medal, the Empire's first-class Order of Diplomatic Merit.
Youngest field-grade officer.
Key figure of the Princess Faction, who ended the succession struggle for the imperial throne.
Great orator who rallied the nation with his total war speech.
Even listing only his major achievements amounted to this much.
Daniel had mastered all the achievements that others would struggle to accomplish even once in a lifetime.
Daniel Steiner was indeed such a brilliant strategist.
An ordinary person wouldn't dare to infer his thoughts.
'Surely, hiding his identity must also be part of a strategy I'm unaware of.'
The officer, realizing everything, bowed his head instead of saluting.
"I understand what you mean, sir. In that case, I shall take my leave."
The officer, raising his hand to lightly touch the brim of his uniform cap as a gesture of respect, turned and departed.
The soldiers also bowed their heads towards Daniel before following the officer out of the inn.
Daniel watched them, puzzled.
'What? They're just leaving?'
Daniel found it difficult to grasp the officer's true intentions, but it wasn't a bad thing.
Thinking he had dodged a bullet, Daniel quickly climbed the stairs and entered his inn room.
'There's not much time. Now's the perfect moment to escape. The officer left, but he'll still be keeping an eye on this area.'
The officer would undoubtedly report to his superiors that he had found someone matching Daniel Steiner's features.
In that case, it was easy to predict that someone with higher authority from the superiors would come with soldiers to verify the facts.
Daniel, thinking he needed to escape the Empire's encirclement before they arrived, turned his gaze to the window and froze.
"..."
Within Daniel's sight, four massive surface combat ships were visible, waiting beyond the landing craft and supply ships docked in the harbor.
Daniel let out a hollow breath at the sheer scale of the fleet, which made Tentarbaham Harbor seem small.
'They sent a fleet that size just to find me?'
Daniel, who had expected at most one ship, felt an unknown sense of dread.
'...Are they insane?'
He simply couldn't comprehend Selvia's obsession directed at him.
Furthermore, no matter how much he thought about it, he didn't seem able to break through that encirclement and escape.
*
In the early hours of the morning, Lowell Taylweiss, the Prime Minister of Bellanos, was racking his brain in his office.
'Why, of all places, did an incident have to occur in our own territorial waters...!'
Ever since the Empire's diplomatic vessel, which had entered Bellanos's territorial waters, was sunk, Lowell had been unable to sleep, plagued by the Empire's incessant demands and declarations.
He had felt dizzy when the Empire notified them to 'open the borders.'
Opening the borders was tantamount to allowing the Empire to station its troops in Bellanos.
From the perspective of a neutral nation, this was a demand that should never be accepted, but due to the terrorist attack in Bellanos's territorial waters, there was no justification to refuse.
Thanks to this, the Empire's fleet had entered Tentarbaham Harbor without a fight and begun its operations.
Having successfully stationed its troops, there was no telling what demands the Empire would make next.
Fearing this, Lowell had ordered the Military Intelligence Bureau to quickly find the person who had opened the territorial waters to the terrorists.
This was to quickly find and hand over the culprit to the Empire, thereby escaping its influence.
'If the Empire finds the culprit before we do...'
The Empire might criticize Bellanos's incompetence, demand the military's personnel roster, and then attempt to interfere in its internal affairs.
It was around this time, as Lowell, desperate to prevent that, closed his eyes and prayed to God.
Knock, knock—
Lowell opened his eyes at the knock and spoke.
"Come in."
The office door opened, and the Director of the National Defense Intelligence Bureau entered.
The Director, with a tense expression, saluted Lowell, the Prime Minister, and then moved to the center of the office.
"Your Excellency. We have succeeded in finding the culprit who colluded with the terrorists. The culprit is said to be Colonel Edbol, Commander of the Navy's 12th District Defense Command."
That was welcome news.
Lowell's face brightened, and he clenched his fist.
"Excellent! How did you uncover him?"
At Lowell's words, the Director hesitated for a moment before finally speaking with difficulty.
"I apologize, but the Military Intelligence Bureau did not uncover the culprit. Edbol came to the Military Intelligence Bureau and confessed."
"...He confessed?"
"Yes. From what I hear, he came to the Military Intelligence Bureau with a dazed expression and confessed to his crime. But there's one strange thing…"
The Director paused for a moment before continuing.
"According to Colonel Edbol, Daniel Steiner's private organization came to his house. He begged for his life, claiming he had been subjected to some kind of threat. He was utterly terrified."
Silence fell between the Director and Lowell.
Lowell's mouth opened and closed as if his throat were parched, and he swallowed dryly.
"So… it wasn't the Military Intelligence Bureau that uncovered the culprit, but Daniel Steiner's private organization? And they threatened Colonel Edbol into confessing?"
"That appears to be the case, Your Excellency."
According to the Director's words, Daniel Steiner hadn't merely hidden away after surviving the sunken vessel.
Daniel Steiner, having faked his death, had been secretly active in Tentarbaham.
As Lowell's thoughts reached that conclusion, his breathing grew ragged.
'Surely not...'
Lowell knew his daughter had recently invited a guest to the mansion.
Most of the mansion's staff were Lowell's people, after all.
He had been too busy to pay much attention to that sudden news, but now, realizing that Daniel Steiner was not only alive but had been active all this time, cold sweat trickled down his back.
Feeling an ominous premonition, Lowell quickly reached for the telephone on his desk.
Picking up the receiver, Lowell spun the rotary dial like a madman.
After a few rings, a voice came through from the other end.
—Dad? Why are you calling at this hour?
Her voice was sleepy, as if she had just woken up.
Lowell, gathering his thoughts, spoke as calmly as possible.
"Ref. Listen carefully. I have a question about the man you invited."
—Who? Oh. You mean Rivellard? He was a decent man. Good sense of humor, too.
"That's not what I'm asking! His description… do you remember his appearance when you first met him?"
After finding Daniel Steiner's uniform on the coast, the Empire had investigated the nearby shack.
More precisely, they had tracked down the shack's owner through inquiries.
The shack's owner was an old man living near the coast, who kept records of abandoned items and clothing in the shack.
The Empire, upon receiving these documents, cross-referenced them and confirmed that sunglasses, a hat, and a few articles of clothing had gone missing from the shack.
The Empire had shared this information with Bellanos's government in real-time, allowing Lowell to know what attire Daniel had been wearing while moving through Tentarbaham.
That's why Lowell was trying to verify, using the description, whether the person who had contacted his daughter was indeed Daniel Steiner.
—Why are you even asking about that? You're not going to scold me now, are you? You're the one who approved it, thinking there wouldn't be any trouble if he was just an illegal immigrant, remember? Just so you know. Anyway, his appearance...
Ref grumbled but still tried to recall.
—Hmm. Well, he was wearing a fedora and sunglasses. And he had on some shabby cotton clothes, I think the top was brown and the bottom was gray. It looked like something an old man would wear, but it actually suited him. Maybe because he's handsome?
Lowell's hands began to tremble as he listened to Ref's story.
It matched the information he had received from the Empire.
'Daniel Steiner... not only independently searched for the culprit but also contacted my daughter?'
And his illegitimate daughter, whom he kept a secret from the world.
He couldn't discern Daniel's intentions, and a wave of fear washed over him.
Just as he was desperately trying to hide his fear in the heavy silence, Ref's voice came through.
—Oh. And what was it? He told me to pass a message to my damn father. Ah, I remember now.
Ref imitated Daniel's voice and spoke.
—'You should govern justly.' That's what he said.
Lowell felt his heart sink at those words.
That was, by all accounts, a clear threat directed at him, the Prime Minister.
After a few ragged breaths, Lowell replied that he understood and slowly hung up the receiver.
"I was wrong."
A gloomy light settled in Lowell's eyes after he hung up the phone.
"Terribly, terribly wrong."
Lowell gritted his teeth and unknowingly sobbed.
"We weren't dealing with the Empire..."
His sobbing was like the self-reproach of someone who had given up everything.
"Our enemy is..."
Lowell closed his eyes, tore at his hair, and uttered in a voice choked with rage.
"Daniel Steiner. That very devil..."