I straightened my uniform and had breakfast in the officers’ mess before heading to the Operations Staff private office.
It was an ordinary day, as usual.
If there was one difference, it was that some senior officers I encountered in the corridor began to recognize me.
“Are you that famous Second Lieutenant? The one who made the staff at the command post look foolish? Ah, don’t get me wrong, I’m saying this as a compliment.”
“Second Lieutenant, I know you’re confident in your abilities, but don’t show off too much in front of your superiors if you want to have a long military career. Just a piece of advice from my experience.”
“Wow! I thought the Staff Headquarters only had stuffy people like that, but I didn’t expect someone talented like you to be here! I’ll be rooting for you, so keep pushing forward!”
…Every time I ran into them, they would hold me back and ramble on, making it quite dizzying.
I couldn’t ignore them, so I managed to escape by recklessly throwing around three magic phrases: “I understand!”, “Is that so?”, and “Thank you!”.
The problem was that I was wasting time being caught up by the officers, which meant I would be late for work.
The start time was 8:30, and the current time was 8:28.
The staff office was on the fifth floor, so even if I hurried, it would take me at least 4 minutes.
As an officer of the Empire, I had to maintain my dignity, so unless I was in the field, I couldn’t run, making tardiness a certainty.
‘Karl is going to have another fit.’
Once again, I want to stress that my direct superior, Karl Heinrich, is neurotic about everything and reacts hypersensitively to even the smallest mistakes.
If his track record were decent, I might have had some respect for him, but his accomplishments consist solely of hiding and trembling in the rear during the war with the Allies seven years ago.
How could such a person be in the staff headquarters of the Empire, which champions meritocracy?
If there are doubts about a superior’s rank and title, they say to look at the background.
Indeed, Karl Heinrich comes from an aristocratic family, and his father is active as a diplomatic ambassador.
Though this may be the case everywhere, if you look inside the Empire, which promotes meritocracy, you’ll find a complicated web of connections based on blood ties, regional ties, and academic ties.
The one who benefits the most from this privilege is my superior, Karl Heinrich.
In my assessment, he embodies the epitome of incompetence and character failure, a living piece of human trash.
There is evidence. If you were to mark shares on the dark circles under my eyes, Karl Heinrich would undoubtedly be the major shareholder.
Thanks to that, I was curious what sort of nonsense would occur today, but my mind was at peace.
‘Anyway, I’m done once I’m discharged.’
Since my goal was an dishonorable discharge, there was no need to accommodate Karl any longer.
I wondered if this was how a working person felt when carrying their resignation letter in their pocket. A smile almost crept onto my lips.
With that lighthearted step, I headed to the Operations Staff office on the fifth floor and knocked on the door.
“This is Second Lieutenant Daniel Steiner, Operations Staff Deputy. I am entering.”
After stating my name and title, I opened the door and saw the interior of the office.
The first thing I noticed was Karl sitting at his desk, his head in his hands as sunlight poured into the room.
It was strange to see him sweating profusely as if he had made some significant mistake.
Since he seemed unaware of my entrance, I approached and opened my mouth.
“Lieutenant Colonel Karl Heinrich? You need to go to the Operations Staff office by 9 o’clock. You should start preparing now….”
I suddenly shut my mouth.
Karl lifted his head at the sound of my voice, and I could see his eyes flicker with anger.
Could he be reacting like that just because I was two minutes late? Just as I was feeling flustered, Karl suddenly leapt to his feet.
“You! Do you even know what you’ve done?”
What have I done? Being two minutes late? Confused, I blinked, and Karl marched toward me.
“Who gave you the right to relay your opinions to the commander? How dare a mere Second Lieutenant like you interrupt the meeting…!”
Karl reached me, grabbed my collar, and shoved me roughly.
I almost fell over but barely managed to maintain my balance by stepping back.
“Because of you, all my plans have gone up in smoke! Damn it! It’s not just that; my life has been put in danger because of you, you piece of shit!”
What the hell is he saying? He was always obnoxious, but today’s outburst was something else—
Thud!
I groaned low as my head slammed against the wall.
“If I end up in trouble, I won’t stay quiet. I’ll drag you down to hell with me no matter what it takes! Do you understand, you bastard?!”
…Is this guy really insane?
Normally, I would have held my anger, but not today.
“You started it first, Karl.”
“What? Are you speaking informally to your superior…?”
Smack! I knocked Karl’s hand away and immediately threw a punch at his face.
Caught off guard, Karl turned his head to dodge, but it was too late.
My fist struck his cheekbone.
“Argh!”
As Karl stumbled backward with a scream, I chased after him, grabbed his neck, and tripped him.
Thud!
Karl hit the floor, contorting his face in pain as he spat.
I climbed on top of him and pulled my fist back.
Before hitting him, I gave him a brief moment to speak, and despite trembling, he opened his mouth.
“…You know this is assaulting a superior. A military court will convene. That means your military career is over. Are you aware of that?”
Would I not know? I shrugged my shoulders.
“There’s no need to worry. I’m doing this to end my military career.”
“What? What do you—”
Thunk! The sound interrupted his sentence as Karl’s jaw snapped back, and he fainted.
I looked down at Karl, who lay unconscious on the ground.
As I dusted off my hands, footsteps approached from outside the door.
They must have heard Karl’s screams.
After a moment of waiting, the door burst open, and two soldiers entered.
“What the hell is going on!?”
The commanding soldier froze upon seeing the scene before him.
I understand. How could one comprehend the situation when the Operations Staff officer and his deputy were collapsed on the floor?
So, I decided to help.
“It’s assaulting a superior. I’m the perpetrator, so take me away.”
I kindly offered an explanation, yet the soldiers hesitated.
I sighed inwardly at their lack of action.
“What are you staring at blankly for? Do you need to compare my fist and the bruises on Lieutenant Colonel Karl to drag me away?”
“N-No, sir!”
Finally moving, the soldiers drew some handcuffs from their belts and approached to cuff my wrists.
As I accepted my restraints with an expressionless face, I smiled in relief on the inside.
‘Since it was an accidental assault on a superior, the punishment won’t be severe. Considering my previous merits, this will likely end with just taking off my uniform.’
It was practically a discharge with no penalties!
While I internally celebrated, I turned my head to look out the window.
The brilliance of spring unfolded before my eyes. It was the perfect season to be discharged.
*
That evening.
At Lieutenant Colonel Karl Heinrich’s residence.
“Search thoroughly.”
“Yes! Captain!”
Under the orders of Philip Bender, the deputy of Major General Heinrich Schmidt, the soldiers scattered in all directions.
Philip strolled through the living room at a leisurely pace, deep in thought.
“Today, Second Lieutenant Daniel assaulted his superior.”
When he first heard the news, he thought he must have misheard.
How could someone who had only recently achieved merit cause such an incident?
Moreover, to Philip, Daniel was the epitome of a model soldier.
If someone like Daniel committed an assault, there must be a reason.
Heinrich, who shared Philip’s thoughts, requested a detailed testimony investigation from the military police unit that had arrived late.
During that process, Karl exhibited signs of anxiety and spouted nonsensical claims that “the Allies might kill him.”
Sensing something was off, Heinrich ordered Philip to search Karl’s residence, which was the reason Philip was leading the soldiers there now.
“Captain! Come this way, please!”
The soldier’s shout snapped Philip from his reverie, and he nodded.
“I’ll be there shortly.”
As he walked over, the soldier lightly tapped the floor.
Thud—
The sound from the floor was surprisingly light, as if it were hollow.
“The sound here is different.”
“Classic technique. Tear it off.”
“Yes! Captain!”
As the soldier used a crowbar to pry open the floor, a small box was revealed inside.
Kneeling down, Philip picked up the box and opened its lid.
Inside were documents and a few letters.
“What is this…?”
It was a confidential document of the Empire that should not be known to the enemy.
The content of the letters promised a fortune in exchange for selling information to the Allies… and there was even an order to lead the Empire’s reinforcements into the hills.
“This fucking scumbag….”
Lieutenant Colonel Karl had been a traitor to the nation. Blinded by money, he sold secrets and sabotaged operations.
‘Then….’
The reason Daniel assaulted Karl must have been due to an inability to contain his anger towards this traitor.
Thus, Daniel was not the despicable person who assaulted his superior.
He was a heroic figure who had captured a spy in the name of his country.
‘So, we misjudged him for no reason.’
I needed to return to headquarters immediately to inform them of this fact and correct the misunderstanding.
Having concluded his thoughts, Philip closed the box and stood up.
“Soldiers, I’ll be returning to headquarters, so report if any further information arises.”
“Ah, understood. But may I ask why you are in such a hurry to return?”
With a smile, Philip looked down at the soldier and said,
“Thanks to this material, it has been proven that Second Lieutenant Daniel Steiner is innocent. So don’t we need to clear the unjust charges against a hero who dedicated himself to the Empire as quickly as possible?”
The soldier momentarily froze.
He had just realized that the Captain, known as a cold-blooded man, could wear such a bright smile.
