Ch.197Chapter 21. The Art of Deceiving Each Other (9)

“There’s a spy from Minsk in the Capital Defense Command. They’re at least a field-grade officer, and they’re being systematically concealed, so we can’t identify who it is. The problem is that His Excellency the President is surrounded by a ‘curtain of people,’ preventing him from seeing the situation clearly. These conspirators are even planning to assassinate the President if their plot is exposed.”

“…!”

“The future of Elza rests in your hands. Do you understand?”

Even for those with military spirit ingrained to their marrow, trembling hands would be the normal response in this situation. Virginia pointed to the glasses in front of them.

“No need to hold back. It’s for excellent leadership.”

The 2nd squad leader, who had been swallowing dryly, raised his hand with courage.

“Um, Martial Law Commander. If they demand to see a warrant…”

“We can’t trust the military legal officers or the inspection team. No one knows where information is leaking from. Elza’s high-ranking officials and officers have diverted this information in insidious ways, evading criticism for their incompetence, accusations, and even law enforcement. Do you really think those people deserve to be in their positions?”

None of the five squad leaders dared to say yes or no.

“Isn’t it young officers like you who are bleeding and falling in the mud? When old men easily give orders with just a point of their finger, it’s your trigger fingers that get shot, your feet that should run for your comrades that get bitten off by zombies.”

“……”

They all bit their lower lips. The 1st squad leader lifted his glass of diluted whiskey with trembling hands. The other squad leaders all raised their glasses as well. Virginia, with a bright smile, was the last to raise hers.

“Save the President, save Elza, save the citizens.”

“Yes.”

“For Elza.”

“For Elza!”

The next morning at 9 AM, an emergency broadcast announced that the President of Elza had been infected with the Cro virus.

At 11 AM, the Director of Disease Control gave an emergency briefing stating that the President had been quarantined.

At noon, the administrative cabinet resigned en masse, and an emergency cabinet was formed, led by Virginia Helford as Martial Law Commander and Acting President.

Unfortunately, all those who should have inherited the presidential authority were classified as “Cro virus carriers” and quarantined after being confirmed to have had “close contact” with the President.

At 3 PM.

Virginia Helford took over the Presidential Office. Since the administrative cabinet had resigned, officers from the martial law command sat in the empty ministerial seats.

Virginia personally called in deputy minister-level personnel for a tea party, maintaining quite a soft atmosphere. It was a gentle gathering where generals with guns at their sides didn’t need to put their arms around each other and whisper, “We should smile in front of the Martial Law Commander, right?”

“In the end, both soldiers and civil servants move according to systems. Even if the leadership changes, the work itself must maintain consistency. Continue with your existing work methods, and don’t hesitate to request approval for matters requiring ministerial authorization. Understood?”

“Yes, Your Excellency.”

Virginia spent a long time giving complex and difficult instructions. She personally called each division unit, giving directions, seeking cooperation, confirming loyalty, and offering encouragement. Sometimes she gave contradictory orders and instructions. If the military acted in confusion, they wouldn’t rashly attempt treason.

By the time everything was finished, it was already 10 PM. Though the coming days would be like walking on thin ice, at least today seemed sufficient. But there was no time to rest. One hour wasted now might become an irreversible year later.

Positioning. Preparation. Design.

“Hmm.”

Virginia adjusted her appearance in front of the mirror. She smoothed her disheveled hair and, after a moment’s hesitation, even applied makeup, which she rarely did. With her already distinct features and intense impression, there wasn’t much to touch up.

“This should be visible even on a low-resolution camera.”

* * * * *

Knock knock. Bam.

Hmm. This knocking pattern is Leticia’s. Camilla just throws the door open and shouts “Hey! Are you sleeping?!”, while Cassandra silently stands there if there’s no answer and then leaves, but Leticia knocks while simultaneously opening the door. I don’t really understand the point of knocking.

“Johan.”

“Sorry, I’m tired today… I haven’t had any high-protein food lately.”

Usually, she would have pushed her way in without question, but today she just plopped down on the edge of the bed. Ah, I thought she was going to start with her repertoire of massaging my shoulders, then naturally sliding her hands down to my waist and back up to my chest, but suddenly she thrust something bright at me.

“Too bright!”

“Oh, sorry. Virginia staged a coup and took the presidential seat.”

What is she talking about? This was too difficult for someone who had just woken up from a half-sleep. I was about to protest to Leticia to slow down…

“And she wants to talk to you.”

* * * * *

Virginia, with a black military jacket draped over her shoulders, filled the mobile phone screen. Brazenly showing her face, she looked quite tired but also remarkably relaxed.

– The image quality seems better. Though the signal is unstable. The Minsk folks have noticed war is imminent, so they’ve added more satellite channels but also increased encryption, interference, and inspections. This communication channel, hacked from Minsk military satellites, might close soon.

Is she acting like this because she doesn’t know I’m here?

“Yaaawn.”

– Leticia, are you there?

Leticia, suddenly addressed, shrank back.

“Yes, eek?!”

I grabbed Leticia firmly by the waist, holding her back as she tried to jump up in surprise.

“She’s not even your superior anymore. Just a rude kid.”

“R-right! Who are you to speak informally to me, you’re younger than me!”

– Sister Leticia, are you there?

Leticia seemed to have forgotten how to breathe, and I almost dropped the phone. Virginia on the screen was smiling rather eerily. Her sense of humor is murderous.

“Talk to me. It’s hard to talk about Leticia.”

– Ah, good. I was going to ask for you anyway. You know, I was raised in a noble family in Römer.

“So?”

– It means I was taught that looking at someone’s face when talking is proper etiquette. But you have never shown your face to me. Savior of the Wilderness.

There’s something oddly dissonant. Was Virginia always this articulate? Or has she lost all fear now that the top brass are gone?

“Savior? Are you talking about me?”

– I have eyes and ears too. I don’t know what your other helpers have done, but you’re moving the western part of Elza. From the Acting President’s position, I’m truly grateful. After all, you’re protecting citizens’ lives.

“Bullshit. You tried to ‘borrow’ firepower from Minsk. You were planning to waste ammunition on zombies and then pick off depleted units one by one, weren’t you? But you know, I’m currently gathering zombies, gangs, fanatics, and civilians and moving them? If I move a little more, Minsk’s mobile brigade will happily rush to the capital. Can you stop tanks?”

– That doesn’t seem like something you need to worry about. You knew what I could do from there, and I knew what you could do. I just contacted you to suggest we stop bothering each other and go our separate ways. What do you think, does that sound bad?

What is she plotting now? I asked Leticia to call Camilla and Cassandra. While Leticia nimbly slipped out of camera view, I stalled for time with “hmm,” “ahem,” and other fillers. Only after the three women had entered the room and sat down did I continue the proper conversation.

“So you’re saying we should go our separate ways now?”

– Both you and I have come to lead our own groups, haven’t we? Truthfully, before, I was quite curious about where you came from, who you are, and what you were doing. I needed to know if you were interfering with my work. But now I’ve achieved what I wanted, and you’re neither a hindrance nor a help anymore. I simply don’t want to be hostile—so this is our last conversation.

Oh, really? That’s good.

“Fine, then live well.”

I was about to hang up abruptly. If she wasn’t going to bother us anymore, that was good enough.

– Wait!

Quite an urgent voice. Camilla made a throat-slitting gesture, but Cassandra and Leticia signaled to keep listening. Including me, that’s 3 to 1.

“What?”

– I’d like to see your face just once, as a final request.

“No, why?”

– I told you, this is the last time. No one has ever pushed me this far, and no one has ever manipulated me like this. Yes. Though I hate to admit it, I, Virginia, have been defeated by you alone.

That’s not right. There’s definitely something here.

There’s no way she’s a woman who pretends to be friendly for no reason. She’s a woman who growls about erasing people’s heads like an eraser on a metal plate, and she actually has the power to do it. And she’s acting friendly?

I gave a signal. Camilla took out her phone and started recording.

– So, I just want to see my adversary’s face properly, even if just once. Whether you’re a Minsk spy or from Elza’s moderate faction. You can wear a disguise if you want. But I want to see your face head-on, just once.

I don’t want to.

“Really? Then show me your chest.”

The three women made various disgusted expressions. But Virginia was indeed an unpredictable person.

– My chest? Very well. They say men like such things, and it seems you’re no different.

Oh, is that so?

Camilla handed me a large cloth from across the room. Using one cloth to cover my hair and another to cover below my nose, I looked quite like a terrorist.

“There. Look.”

I boldly showed my face. Shortly after, Virginia put on her coat and buttoned it up. But what showed on screen was still her chest area. A faint laugh came from the phone.

– Let’s do this. For each cloth you remove, I’ll take off one layer of clothing. How about that?

All three women simultaneously glared at me with daggers in their eyes.