chapter_0062

61 – Daniel Steiner, (Reluctantly) Participates!

61 – Daniel Steiner, (Reluctantly) Participates!

Having apprehended Morten’s subordinates who had been operating in the shopping district’s basement, Daniel Steiner relinquished his vacation and conveyed his intention to return to the Imperial City to the General Staff Headquarters.

Respecting Daniel’s wishes, the General Staff Headquarters arranged for a return train, and within two days, Daniel was ready to leave his hometown.

“Daniel? I thought you were going to stay here for at least a month?”

Standing at the monastery entrance, Mother Superior Hierony regarded Daniel with concern as he came to bid farewell.

She felt sorry that he couldn’t properly enjoy his vacation and had to return to the Imperial City.

Daniel, too, wished he could leisurely spend time in his hometown, but having captured the insurgents, he had no choice but to hasten his return.

‘The Imperial Faction members must think of me as a key figure in the Princess Faction by now…’

Even if it was unintentional, the circumstances of him taking the lead in apprehending Morten’s subordinates were enough to cause misunderstanding among the Imperial Faction members.

Being misunderstood and continuing to leisurely enjoy his vacation was akin to advertising, “Please kill me.”

“I apologize. Something came up in the Imperial City.”

Of course, there was no need to tell his mentor, the Mother Superior, about that.

Smiling as if it were nothing, Daniel took out a money envelope from his coat and handed it over.

“Rather, please accept this. I added a little bonus to my salary.”

Hierony’s eyes widened as she checked the thickness of the envelope.

“Daniel! Just having you visit the monastery on your vacation is like God’s grace, and now this much money! I absolutely cannot accept it! Please, use it for yourself.”

“Mother Superior, donating this money to the monastery is using it for myself.”

Daniel urged in a gentle tone, but Hierony adamantly refused.

“The monastery can feed the children sufficiently even without your help, so please use this for yourself. I wouldn’t want to take money from you when you’re already going through so much.”

“Is that so? Then, since this money is unnecessary, I shall burn it.”

“Daniel, don’t make such ridiculous jokes…”

Hierony trailed off.

With a nonchalant gesture, Daniel pulled out a lighter from inside his Officer coat and lit it.

A faint smile played on Daniel’s lips as he held the money envelope over it.

“Mother Superior, you know very well that I do what I say. If you don’t take the money envelope right now, I will burn it.”

Hierony swallowed hard.

Just as she thought he wouldn’t possibly burn that much money, Daniel’s hand gradually moved downwards.

Soon, the edge of the envelope began to char, and Hierony screamed in alarm, reaching out her hand.

Snatching the envelope in haste, Hierony exclaimed in surprise.

“Daniel! Are you going to trample on the hearts of those who gave you this money?!”

“I was going to trample on them, but since you took it, Mother Superior, that won’t happen.”

“What do you mean… Ah.”

Only then did Hierony realize she had been tricked by Daniel, and she wore a blank expression.

Seeing Hierony’s expression, Daniel chuckled softly.

Hierony frowned, snapping back to her senses at the sound of Daniel’s laughter.

“…Daniel. Is it fun to play such terrible pranks?”

“I apologize, but I had no choice. If I didn’t play a terrible prank, you wouldn’t have accepted the money, Mother Superior.”

“Honestly. You really haven’t changed from then until now…”

Hierony sighed softly and nodded as if she couldn’t help it.

“Alright. If this is truly your heart, I will use it for the children.”

“That’s what I hoped for. Then, I shall take my leave now.”

“Already? I wish you could come inside and have a cup of tea…”

“I would love to, but my train is leaving soon. As you can see behind you, the taxi driver is also waiting.”

As Daniel said, Hierony turned her gaze and saw an Asian man in suspender pants leaning against the vehicle.

The Asian man, meeting Hierony’s eyes, lowered the fedora he was wearing and greeted her politely.

Seeing that, Hierony spoke with a somewhat puzzled expression.

“He’s an Asian driver. But I don’t recognize his face in this town…”

Did he recently get a job here? Hierony blinked in confusion and nodded.

“Anyway, since you’re pressed for time, I shouldn’t hold you any longer. Daniel, we will be praying for you here, so if things get difficult, come visit us anytime.”

“Yes, I will.”

Daniel smiled and greeted her before turning around.

Immediately, the smile vanished from Daniel’s face.

Slowly walking to the taxi, Daniel got into the back seat and looked at the driver’s seat.

“Please take me to the nearest train station.”

Hearing the taxi driver’s reply that he understood, Daniel leaned back against the seat.

His mind was filled with the events that were currently unfolding in the Imperial City.

‘Duke Belvar will be the Imperial Faction member who will most keenly accept the fact that Morten has been captured.’

Duke Belvar was the head of an old and distinguished family in the Empire, as well as the Imperial Court Minister.

Duke Belvar, who valued the legitimacy of the Imperial Family, firmly believed that the Imperial Prince was the most suitable candidate for the next Emperor.

If Morten, who had been secretly working for the Imperial Prince, was the Imperial Prince’s left arm, then Duke Belvar, who openly supported the Imperial Prince, could be said to be the Imperial Prince’s right arm.

He was so stubborn that even when the Imperial Prince’s defeat was certain, he stood in opposition to the Princess to protect that damned legitimacy, so it was understandable how stubborn he was.

Therefore, Daniel had only disclosed the news that insurrection documents had been discovered while arresting Morten and his remnants to the Princess and her closest aides.

This was to give Duke Belvar the illusion that Morten had burned all the related documents and kept his mouth shut before being captured.

It was a kind of stalling tactic.

‘Furthermore, revealing this fact to the press should be left as a last resort.’

Spreading information carelessly was the same as losing a useful bargaining chip.

Moreover, if the disclosure of information turned into a public opinion war, it could have the side effect of further solidifying the enemies’ unity.

‘So, I need to use this information in a limited way to cause internal division…’

Only then would he be able to survive in this chaotic and violent succession battle.

Daniel, who had been racking his brain in the moving taxi, suddenly let out a low sigh.

Loosening the tie that was choking him and looking out the window, Daniel’s face was filled with worry.

‘How did things turn out like this…’

He was supposed to play with the monastery children in his hometown, have a meal at Jack’s restaurant, and enjoy a leisurely stroll.

When he came to his senses, he was forcibly affiliated with the Princess Faction and was trying to figure out how to survive.

‘Just who the hell wiped out the Imperial Prince’s secret organization and passed the responsibility onto me?’

Unable to understand, Daniel narrowed his eyes and clenched his teeth, and the taxi driver, who had been checking Daniel’s appearance through the rearview mirror, wore a subtle smile.

‘Judging by his joyful expression, he seems to like our gift.’

Daniel Steiner will rise to even higher places in the future.

As the prophet leading the Black Swan.

*

Meanwhile, at Duke Belvar’s mansion.

“Morten has been captured?”

Hearing the news from the south, Belvar opened his mouth in astonishment.

It was only natural to be flustered, as an organization that had been operating for the past three years without leaving a trace had been wiped out overnight.

But now was not the time to be flustered.

“The confidential documents? Has it been revealed that Dawn’s Radiance was working on the Imperial Prince’s side?”

At Belvar’s question, Basson, his confidant and informant, shook his head.

“From what I can tell, it seems to still be under investigation.”

“That’s a relief, at least. But it’s only a matter of time before it’s revealed. But who captured Morten?”

“…Major Daniel Steiner.”

Daniel Steiner.

As soon as he heard that name, Belvar felt dizzy and touched his forehead.

“That damned bastard. So he’s finally revealing his true colors.”

It was common for a person whose prestige had risen as a war hero to also get involved in politics.

It seemed that Daniel had also participated in the war to make the Princess the Emperor for his own advancement.

However, Daniel was different from ordinary war heroes.

‘To pretend to have no interest in politics until right before arresting Morten…’

Daniel was the one who severely restricted meetings with politicians and did not respond to various interviews.

This time, he took a long vacation at the most important time due to the succession battle, so Belvar had even thought that Daniel might really have no interest in politics.

‘But all of this was a deceptive strategy…!’

Considering his skill in thoroughly deceiving everyone and arresting Dawn’s Radiance, he must have been preparing for this for quite some time.

Belvar felt resentful at the thought that he had been played in Daniel Steiner’s hands.

But no matter how clever and meticulous he was, there was bound to be a loophole.

“Katman Schultz…”

In fact, Katman Schultz, the chief inspector of the Security Agency, had visited the mansion a while ago.

He said that Daniel Steiner seemed to be colluding with a spy.

But when he heard the story, there was no proper evidence, so he thought it was a waste of time and kicked him out.

‘But now I have to grasp at straws.’

The situation was urgent, so he couldn’t afford to be picky.

“Contact the Security Agency and tell Katman Schultz. Tell him that I, the Imperial Court Minister, will back him up, so he should somehow find evidence that Daniel Steiner is colluding with a spy!”

Hearing Belvar’s words, the confidant bowed his head and left the room.

Seeing the confidant leave the room, Belvar threw the wine glass he was holding to the ground in a fit of pique.

Clang!

Red wine spread out like blood from the broken glass.

Belvar stared down at the scene and clenched his fist tightly.

‘Daniel Steiner…! How dare you, a mere orphan, try to manipulate this Empire!’

Belvar thought that Daniel’s ultimate goal was not to make the Princess the Emperor.

His intuition told him.

His dark intentions were sure to be deeper and darker.

However, Belvar was afraid because he could not gauge the depth of the darkness that Daniel possessed.

Belvar, whose hands were trembling, desperately shook off his fear and squeezed his eyes shut.

‘This Empire that our ancestors have protected…’

He would never hand it over to a vagrant like him.

Author’s words (Author’s note)

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