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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: Who is the Hunter?
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The next day.
The entire garrison of the outpost, excluding the minimum watch personnel, ascended the western mountain ridge at dawn.
This was because Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Steiner had issued orders for a reconnaissance and fortification construction exercise.
The troops, having brought sandbags, twelve mortars, and four heavy machine guns, were told that the fortification construction would be like a real battle, and then received new orders from Daniel.
—Construct the fortifications in a manner that encircles the outpost.
In essence, they were to conduct an exercise in forming an encirclement, treating their own outpost as an enemy one.
Though the troops couldn't grasp the meaning, they decided to obey, as it was the Lieutenant Colonel's first order.
After leveling the ground, they set up mortar positions and installed heavy machine guns.
The unit's snipers ascended the sheer cliff on the flank and took up positions, while the special forces company, originally assigned guard duty at the outpost, received orders to cut off the retreat route.
It was thought that these men, familiar with the terrain around the outpost, were perfectly suited for the task of blocking the retreat.
Since the order itself was sound, Burnard decided to comply. After joining the company directly under Headquarters, they set up positions on the retreat route and concealed themselves.
A 'hold position' order was then issued, so Burnard and his troops were resting among the trees.
Burnard, leaning against a tree with his arms crossed, sighed and looked to his side.
Lieutenant McCall was sitting on the ground, studying a map and performing land navigation.
"Hey."
McCall raised his head when Burnard called.
"Did you call, sir?"
"Yes. There's something I want to ask."
Burnard scratched his head once and said,
"What's the point of this exercise? I don't understand the idea of encircling an enemy outpost in the first place."
"Hmm. Could you elaborate, sir?"
"It's an outpost, isn't it? A base where they'd be putting the utmost effort into security, right? So, does it even make sense to encircle such an outpost from all sides? Are they idiots?"
He wasn't wrong.
But Lieutenant McCall merely chuckled.
"Indeed, if this were merely an exercise in encircling an enemy outpost, it would be contradictory."
"See, you think so too, don't you? I thought he was some amazing genius staff officer from Headquarters, but it seems the rumors were exaggerated."
"Please retract that, sir. The rumors are not exaggerated."
"…What are you talking about? You just said yourself it was contradictory?"
Lieutenant McCall folded the map and said,
"I said it would be contradictory *if this were merely an exercise*."
Burnard, still not understanding, blinked blankly as Lieutenant McCall put the map away.
"I was with the Lieutenant Colonel during the invasion of Nordia. If you knew how he captured Nordia, you wouldn't see this as a simple exercise."
"…Are you saying this isn't an exercise?"
"That's right. He must be preparing for something."
Burnard, looking at the confident Lieutenant McCall, said grudgingly,
"If he's preparing for something, why hasn't he told us? And what about doing nothing for nearly half a month since we arrived here?"
"The Lieutenant Colonel despises his plans being leaked through others. Furthermore, do you truly believe he did nothing for half a month?"
"Then surely…"
Lieutenant McCall nodded.
"There's a proverb that says one makes a move after much deliberation. From my perspective, the Lieutenant Colonel has merely been biding his time, like a beast waiting for its prey."
Lieutenant McCall stood up and turned his gaze towards Daniel's location.
Daniel could be seen, standing apart from the troops, frowning with a hand on his chin.
Judging by his contemplative gaze, he must be formulating numerous detailed strategies in his mind.
Lieutenant McCall, observing Daniel, murmured with a sense of awe.
"It seems… he's finally ready to bare his fangs."
Of course, contrary to Lieutenant McCall's expectations, Daniel Steiner currently had nothing particular on his mind.
'I've seen that bird somewhere before. What was its name…?'
He was merely trying to recall the name of a bird preening its feathers on a branch.
*
Meanwhile, Bleff, the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Belmore, led a battalion of elite troops towards the outpost where Daniel Steiner was located.
He would have liked to bring more troops, but due to the nature of mountainous terrain, an excessive number could make control difficult, so he exercised restraint.
Moreover, he needed to capture Daniel Steiner as a prisoner before he could escape, requiring stealthy movement, which is why he insisted on a battalion-sized force.
Thus, Bleff, having set out early in the morning with his battalion, only reached the Empire's outpost, located in a basin on the mountainside, by nightfall.
Although the troops were somewhat fatigued from ascending the mountain, their combat effectiveness was unimpaired, so Bleff ordered an assault without hesitation.
Upon hearing the Crown Prince's command, the soldiers began to infiltrate the Empire's outpost after a stealthy approach.
There were Imperial soldiers on guard, but their numbers were few, allowing them to be easily subdued.
After seeing his soldiers enter first, Bleff paused for a moment before entering the outpost himself.
Thanks to this, Bleff believed he had secured an easy victory.
Having quickly dealt with the guards and entered the outpost, all that remained was to slaughter all the sleeping Imperial soldiers and capture Daniel Steiner.
Feeling a thrill at the thought of achieving immense merit, Bleff ordered all enemy troops, except Daniel Steiner, to be killed.
The soldiers, hearing Bleff's command, moved throughout the outpost to carry out their mission, but strangely, no gunshots were heard.
After about ten minutes of silence, a puzzled Bleff summoned his officers.
He needed to ascertain what exactly was going on.
"I distinctly ordered all enemy troops, except Daniel Steiner, to be killed. Why are there no gunshots?"
The officers did not reply.
The officers were just as clueless about what was happening.
As everyone maintained silence, Colonel Gallewalt, Bleff's direct aide, finally spoke with difficulty.
"Your Royal Highness. I regret to inform you, but…"
Gallewalt's voice trembled slightly.
"There are no Imperial troops to be seen here."
"What?"
Bleff's eyebrow furrowed as if he had heard something preposterous.
Indeed, it was incomprehensible that an enemy outpost had no enemy.
"No Imperial soldiers in an Imperial base? Did you search properly?"
As Bleff rebuked him, the battalion commander, who had been listening nearby, interjected.
"Colonel Gallewalt's words are true. I ordered the troops to conduct a search, but…"
The battalion commander bowed his head as if ashamed.
"No Imperial forces are present anywhere, including the command post, barracks, mess hall, infirmary, storage, communications, latrines, maintenance, watchtowers, training grounds, and underground facilities."
"What in…"
Bleff, intuiting that something was gravely amiss, swallowed dryly.
"Are you saying the Imperial army vanished overnight?"
"Forgive me, Your Highness, but I am merely relaying the facts."
Naturally, the battalion commander wouldn't lie to him, the Crown Prince.
Even knowing this, the fact was utterly incomprehensible.
"Then where on earth did the Imperial army go…?"
A feeling of unease began to creep up his spine.
The thrill that had coursed through him vanished, and fear reared its head.
Just as he felt the night air grow unusually cold, a non-commissioned officer came running.
The NCO, wearing sergeant's insignia, stopped before Bleff and prostrated himself on the ground.
"Your Royal Highness! We found Imperial troop footprints leading to the western ridge. So we sent out scouts, and…"
A bead of sweat on the sergeant's forehead dripped down.
"…the reconnaissance revealed they had established positions armed with mortars and machine guns."
His uneasy premonition turned into certainty.
As a flustered Bleff's hands trembled, the sergeant closed his eyes tightly and said,
"Your Highness! It appears we've been encircled…!"
Mutterings broke out here and there.
Everyone had already assumed the worst, given the absence of enemy troops at the outpost.
However, only Bleff refused to acknowledge his blunder and turned to his aide.
"Colonel Gallewalt! Is what he says true!?"
Gallewalt could only clench his teeth and lower his head.
"Circumstantially, it appears so. They've likely already cut off our retreat. That's what I would have done…"
A voice heavy with the pallor of defeat settled over them.
Bleff, having received confirmation from his aide, shook his head in disbelief.
"Impossible. It can't be. Did information leak? The one who gave me the information was bribed by the Allied Nations. But how…?"
Bleff's face turned ashen.
"How could Daniel Steiner have known all our plans!"
Gallewalt clenched his teeth again, then exhaled slowly.
"It seems there's an informant loyal to Daniel Steiner within the Kingdom of Belmore. Perhaps Daniel Steiner… came here targeting Your Royal Highness from the very beginning."
Daniel Steiner had used the information Bleff, the Crown Prince, possessed against him to set a trap.
At this point, that was the only conclusion.
"Ah…"
Bleff, now understanding the entire situation, stumbled, feeling utterly drained.
An officer nearby rushed to support him, but Bleff's eyes were devoid of life.
Thinking he had been played by Daniel Steiner's scheme, Bleff let out a hollow breath.
"The one being hunted…"
From Bleff, who had lowered his head, a hollow voice emerged.
"Was it me, not Daniel Steiner?"
Only then could Bleff truly understand.
That a mere human could never hunt a devil.