Episode 16: The Creeping Shadow ③
This is a story from back when I still wore the rank insignia of a Second Lieutenant.
“Hey, Lieutenant Fonkt.”
As usual, the Battalion Commander called out to me, her voice tinged with weariness.
“Are you pro-Emperor, or anti-Emperor?”
I stopped organizing my documents and turned around, feeling a little tense.
“Is this one of those things where I have to choose a side?”
“I don’t recall giving you permission to ask questions.”
Despite saying that, the Battalion Commander was clearly amused.
Given her mood, it seemed safe to continue speaking.
“There’s no way an officer in the Imperial Ceremonial Battalion would be anti-Emperor.”
“I see. So, can I interpret that as you being pro-Emperor?”
The Battalion Commander, grinning broadly, looked somewhat cute, so I shook my head with a laugh.
“A model soldier who has sworn loyalty to His Majesty the Emperor would have given a more definitive answer.”
“In that case, it means you’re neither…”
The Battalion Commander wore a feigned, innocent expression.
But her eyes behind her glasses were like those of an eagle that had spotted its prey.
I sighed, tapping the documents to straighten them.
“I sincerely wish for His Majesty the Emperor’s reign to last long, but to achieve that, I also believe we cannot simply go along with every single one of His Majesty’s imperial edicts. After all, there are limits to an autocracy.”
“That’s disrespectful. It’s grounds for a firing squad, you know.”
The blonde beauty threatened me, but of course, she wasn’t serious. Still, she’s someone who could have me shot if she felt like it. Scary.
I handed the bundle of documents to the Battalion Commander and replied with a serious expression.
“I, for my own sake, wish for the peace and prosperity of my homeland. I have no interest in being pro-Emperor or anti-Emperor.”
“You cheeky bastard.”
The Battalion Commander chuckled, then took the execution report I offered.
After quickly scanning it, she said.
“Very well. Starting tomorrow, you’re a First Lieutenant. I’m making you a Company Vice-Commander.”
“That’s something that automatically comes with being a First Lieutenant, isn’t it?”
“Show some happiness. Your next promotion is more than ten years away.”
Well, that’s probably true. Captain is the end of the line for me, after all.
The Battalion Commander, looking satisfied, sat on the edge of my desk.
“You’ve truly become a fine officer. I have high expectations for you.”
“I will serve diligently. By the way, Battalion Commander-dono.”
“What is it?”
As the Battalion Commander leaned closer with a sweet smile, I couldn’t hold back and said.
“Please don’t put your butt on someone else’s desk.”
“Ah, yes, yes, I understand.”
The beautiful Battalion Commander pouted.
“So, something like that happened.”
After explaining this to Lieutenant Krimine, I dunked a piece of bread into the cheese fondue pot.
“You’ll probably get the same question from the Battalion Commander within a few years. Meinen said he was asked the same thing around the same time. It’s informal, but you should think of it as an interview.”
Lieutenant Krimine is my junior, and now we’re partnered up.
She’s the type who doesn’t give a damn about imperial edicts either, so she’ll probably be promoted to First Lieutenant as one of the Battalion Commander’s trusted subordinates.
I spoke in a hushed voice.
“We, the Imperial Ceremonial Battalion, are a unit directly under the Emperor, but the Battalion Commander’s intentions seem to be a little… off-center. That’s why we get missions like the recent one, and because of that, there’s a chance some faction is watching us. We’re even being tailed right now.”
The only problem is, our position isn’t clear.
“Ostensibly, we’ll kill anyone as long as there’s an imperial edict. But while we faithfully carried out the purge of the pro-Emperor Lord Griem, in the matter of ‘Yuo Neville,’ we helped the anti-Emperor Lord Humazov. If anyone knew the inside story, they might see an ideology there.”
Scooping up cheese with the bread, I twirled it on the end of my fork.
“Is the Imperial Ceremonial Battalion the Emperor’s hunting dog, or a viper in his bosom? Ambiguous entities are seen as dangerous. Whichever way the scales of this Empire tip, the dangers surrounding us will only increase.”
Man, I’m… pretty cool today! I’m giving off the vibe of a skilled veteran officer.
I wish I could tell my past self. To think I could do something like this if I redid my life.
I had a slight hope that Lieutenant Krimine might respect me for this, but her reaction came from an unexpected direction.
“The Battalion Commander… she was planning to get a head start, wasn’t she…?”
“What are you talking about?”
Were you even listening to me? I went to all the trouble of striking a cool pose, and it was completely pointless.
Lieutenant Krimine, with a serious face, muttered something like, “Victory goes to the one who strikes first, huh…?” then eventually looked up at me.
“So, First Lieutenant-dono, you’re aware that your own person is in danger, correct?”
“Eh? Ah, um, yeah, that’s right.”
Did the conversation suddenly connect? No, I wonder… I don’t quite get it.
I’m not that smart, so when a conversation veers off in an unexpected direction, I can’t react instantly. It’s sad, but even reincarnated, an ordinary person is still an ordinary person.
Clearing my throat lightly to smooth things over, I replied.
“We of the Ceremonial Battalion could be seen as enemies by either faction. And neither faction is monolithic. It’s a situation where you don’t know where the bullets will come from.”
Lords of the Kavalaf Region like Lord Humazov are mostly anti-Emperor, but they probably haven’t allied with other anti-Emperor factions.
And the pro-Emperor faction has many in the center of power, but they’re busy tripping each other up.
The situation is chaotic, and siding with either one doesn’t guarantee safety.
The conversation had gotten a bit complicated, so I offered a smile.
“Precisely because the situation is like this, I want us to get along well within the battalion. The resolve you showed on the last mission was admirable. I’ll be counting on you.”
“Yes, First Lieutenant-dono! I will strive to live up to your trust!”
She saluted with an incredibly agile ‘hyup!’ You can salute that crisply? You should do it normally.
It felt like parts of the conversation didn’t quite connect, but it wrapped up neatly, so I felt relieved for the time being.
“Well then, shall we think about how to ‘deal with’ the tail outside?”
“Yes, it would be good if we could turn the tables and catch them by counter-tailing.”
Oh, so you’ve learned the basics properly. I thought you might be slacking off since you’re a quasi-noble lady, but your officer training seems fine. That’s a help.
“That’s true. It might be possible depending on support from the Company Commander. However, depending on the tail’s identity, arresting them could lead to trouble later. Keep in mind the options of deliberately letting them go, or returning to Battalion HQ with the tail still on us.”
“Understood.”
Just then, there was a knock on the door.
“‘Launderer’ and ‘Baker,’ are you here?”
“Come in, ‘Toymaker.'”
Captain Yugi, the Company Commander’s voice was heard, and a woman in a wide-brimmed hat and a dress entered.
She came herself, after all.
We immediately stood and saluted, but Captain Yugi was all smiles.
“Considering the possibility of being tailed, I changed outfits twice on the way. That’s why I’m late, though.”
Saying that, Captain Yugi looked around the room. She stared intently at the bed with two pillows.
“…Perhaps I should have arrived a little later?”
“No.”
Her unnecessary consideration is painful.
“Also, I have Corporal Decott waiting outside.”
“Ah, my look-alike.”
He’s an unfortunate corporal who sometimes gets mistaken for me at work because our builds are similar. He’s taciturn and honest, but also a crafty fellow who’s an expert in document forgery.
“We’ve come disguised as a quasi-noble couple, so please go out in these clothes. We’ll impersonate you and take on the tail instead.”
“So, will you be initiating a counter-tail?”
At that, Captain Yugi made a troubled face.
“That’s the plan, for now, but the Battalion Commander has ordered us to act cautiously since we don’t know who the opponent is.”
“It might be a trap disguised as a tail, after all.”
If the ones who set the tail are just amateurs, that’s fine, but if not, it’s troublesome. There’s also the possibility they’re using amateurs as disposable pawns for some scheme.
I smiled to reassure the Company Commander.
“Don’t worry, as usual, I’ll only work as much as I’m paid.”
“Hmm… hahaha.”
Why the wry smile?