Three Favors

Tap, tap tap─

An intermittent rhythm filled the office.

Gartel, who usually only wore a kind smile, stiffened his face and drummed his fingers on the desk.

“Is something the matter?”

Noticing this unusual atmosphere, the dedicated secretary who was handling miscellaneous tasks and Gartel’s follow-up work quietly asked.

“…Something seems off.”

“What do you mean, sir?”

“Does Yena seem like a cadet who would recklessly move around without knowing about rocks or fish in the water and end up in trouble?”

“You mean the girl you talk about every day.”

Gartel put down the document he was writing.

Click─

He picked up the teacup placed beside him and brought it to his lips.

A bitter taste.

The smooth flavor unique to espresso rolled around his tongue.

As it did, his head grew colder and his gaze sharper, as the sweet aroma of coffee awakened his senses.

“Yes…”

It’s not a situation that can be overlooked, is it?

Yena almost died.

She could have suffered drowning, said to be the most painful way to die, by falling into the water. How could he not worry?

“She doesn’t seem like that kind of child, does she? You’ve praised her as an extremely perfect and upright cadet, Administrator.”

“That’s right…”

The secretary’s words added to his conviction.

She’s definitely not the type of child to do something stupid, so why did she have such an accident?

There were several suspicious circumstances that made it hard to dismiss as just a random occurrence.

It’s one thing if it just broke…

But why did that thick steel mass sink into the sea?

Why was the diving suit torn?

If it had caught on a fish or something, the turbine would have just stopped, it couldn’t have caused such severe injuries.

He didn’t let it go even though Yena said it was equipment failure.

Her memory, spoken while unable to think straight after swallowing water, lacked credibility.

“Secretary.”

“Yes, Administrator.”

Gartel’s eyes lit up as he took a sip of coffee.

If there was an unknown cause.

If someone had tampered with it targeting Yena,

Thud─!

He would never forgive them.

He put down the teacup on the desk irritably.

They tried to intentionally kill the precious Yena, whom he had planned to nurture as a successor even if she failed the qualification screening, and whom he wanted to pull out to the rear even if she was commissioned as an officer?

Staking his position.

Staking his life.

He would severely punish and finish them.

‘…Although it’s just a hypothesis for now.’

Of course, he didn’t want such a situation at all.

He hoped it was just a simple accident.

If someone had tampered with a cadet’s equipment, it was clear that he, as the person in charge of the training at the time, would also be punished.

“Can you dispatch an investigation team to the beach?”

“For what reason, sir?”

“I think I need to see the damaged equipment with my own eyes. I’d appreciate it if you could deliver it directly under my name.”

But Gartel ordered an investigation.

Because he cared for Yena that much.

It was because it was her that he made the request.

As he wanted to recruit her to the administration office someday, he gave instructions to the secretary to thoroughly understand the incident.

If by any chance,

If his suspicions were correct,

It would mean there was someone hostile to Yena, and shouldn’t he cut off that bud early? He was willing to help as much as he could reach.

“Understood.”

“Yes, thank you.”

Gartel smiled with satisfaction at the secretary’s answer.

Sip─

Warming his insides with the hot coffee.

---

“Hehe…”

A laugh came out naturally.

Although Helena couldn’t see it because I covered my mouth with my hand, an unstoppable chuckle lingered on my lips.

How could I not be happy?

I could finally achieve what I wanted! I no longer had to feel uncomfortable about Helena’s tailing, I could finally get to the main point and have an honest conversation.

“What kind of… favors?”

Helena asked in a weak voice.

It seemed she had given up on running away.

She was sitting on the roof with her head in her hands, but her fierce cat-like eyes remained the same.

“Three in total.”

Whether she was angry or not, I simply said what I had to say without caring at all.

Rustle─

I spread three fingers.

Helena silently glared at that hand.

“First, hand over all the data you’ve collected while investigating me. I need to roughly understand what you’ve figured out.”

“……”

“Of course, if I think there’s anything lacking or hidden, I intend to submit a description of this situation to the Audit Department immediately. It might be difficult for you to hand it over comfortably.”

Naturally, I didn’t think Helena would hand over the data straightforwardly, but even with just some documents, I could somewhat infer the level of information this woman possessed.

“…And?”

Fortunately, there was no particular reaction.

I guess that means she agrees.

“Next.”

I smiled gently at Helena, who was just asking back.

Crunch─!

Then I regained my expressionless face while chewing the candy I had been rolling around in my mouth.

“You know Wolf von Streman, right?”

“Isn’t he the eldest son of the Streman family?”

“What kind of relationship does that cadet have with Rina, whom you serve?”

Now we’ve gotten to the real ‘main point’.

Unlike before, this question was purely out of curiosity.

I intended to find out exactly what the relationship between the families was like, why they maintained a close relationship without rejecting each other.

“They’ve been on friendly terms since the previous generation.”

“Since medieval times?”

“…You should know. The Hohenzollern and Streman families have been noble families known for their sincerity and dignity, passed down for generations since the past.”

Helena raised her eyes, pronouncing the latter sentence particularly strongly, as if to say that the imperial princess she served was on a completely different level from me.

I found such pride amusing.

Or rather, I didn’t care at all in the first place.

“Hmm.”

Without giving her a glance, I just recalled past speculations.

‘Is it certain that it’s a newly created family?’

If Wolf’s family was closely cooperating with the former imperial family, I couldn’t not know about it. It seemed like a person who didn’t exist in the past.

“Is this the favor?”

“How could it be?”

Now that I had confirmed that Wolf was a newly created character, I smiled with my eyes at Helena, who was glaring at me.

I hadn’t brought up the content of the favor yet.

This was just a brief confirmation process, the main story was separate.

“Can you investigate that Wolf?”

This was the real request.

“Do you mean personal information?”

“That’s included, but find out in detail what he’s doing at the Sevirpol training grounds. Like you did with me, by tailing him.”

Wolf’s footsteps.

I intended to thoroughly investigate that.

The accident that occurred in the morning.

Because I thought he was behind it.

He was the only one likely to harbor ill will towards me. I had suspected Rina, but now I was sure it wasn’t her.

She didn’t seem to want me dead.

Isn’t Wolf the only one filled with enough anger to plot with the equipment?

It was still a guess.

That’s why I planned to find out what he was doing.

With Helena’s agility…

She should be able to follow him well without getting caught by other cadets.

“It’s best not to do anything rash. We’re looking into it on our side too, so this is a request for cross-verification.”

It’s good to lay down some insurance.

“…So you do have backing.”

I quietly shrugged at her, who asked with a fierce expression.

I would use the misunderstanding that woman harbored.

There was no one I was actually cooperating with, it was just something I said hoping Helena would bring high-quality data.

Although it might lead to bigger misunderstandings, what did it matter?

For now, it was important to unravel the tangled thread in front of me.

Anyway, I wasn’t the undercover cadet she claimed, and by the time my commoner status was revealed, I was confident I would have grown to a position that couldn’t be casually messed with, so I wasn’t afraid.

It’s just Helena who would have a headache.

“So, what’s the last one?”

She asked, chewing her lips.

Has she given up now?

As soon as she admitted there was a backer, Helena was shaking severely, her whole body leaning on the roof as if drained of strength.

Is she despairing at the fact that she’s been caught?

Anyway, her complexion was dark.

The more so,

My face brightened.

How could I not be delighted?

Showing gestures as if she was discouraged.

Seeing someone despair after realizing their situation and recognizing their helpless position,

“Haha…”

It gave me such a satisfying sensation.

That’s why I laughed cheerfully again.

Covering my face.

Even I wasn’t the type of person to laugh boldly in front of someone making such a sad face.

That would make me someone who enjoys others’ misfortunes.

I was definitely not that type.

It was just happiness bursting out because of all the annoyance Helena had brought me so far.

Really.

“I’ll tell you the last one after the joint training is over. Well, when the time comes, won’t we have a reason to meet?”

I refrained from saying more.

It wasn’t something to say here and now.

As I thought it was a proposal best delivered when relaxed after the training schedule was over, I didn’t bring it up here.

“…I understand.”

“If you work hard, no harm will come to Rina. She might even be able to graduate normally.”

Helena acted as if she hadn’t heard my words.

Thud─!

Before long, she threw herself towards the way she had come.

How fast she was,

The sharp wind created by her movement brushed my cheek.

This should be a successful deal.

It was a beneficial time where I settled the accumulated relationship with Helena and requested surveillance on Wolf.

The long conversation time had come to an end.

But,

I still couldn’t go home.

There was one thing left to do.

“…I should get going now.”

I stepped forward briskly.

Click─! Click─!

The monster combat training ground.

To enjoy a different kind of training in that huge building.