chapter_0208

207 – Operation

207 – Operation

As noon approached, Lucy moved under the guidance of her maid, Namerias.

It was because Count Caledra had summoned Lucy as the appointed time had arrived.

“My lady, this way…”

Namerias led her to a courtyard garden located within the mansion.

Brilliant sunlight streamed down, and birds welcoming the summer perched on branches, chirping.

It was truly an idyllic scene, but Lucy felt no appreciation for it.

Rather, a slight unpleasantness rippled through her heart, as if someone had thrown a stone.

‘Count Caledra…’

The man she once called father and trusted was sitting at a table in the center of the garden.

Lucy felt an unknown impulse, but she didn’t reveal it outwardly.

She clenched and unclenched her fists, took a deep breath, and approached Caledra.

Sensing her presence, Caledra looked up from his newspaper.

Despite it being a long time since they had last met, Caledra folded his newspaper without any visible emotion.

“Sit.”

Lucy did so.

Sitting down, Lucy looked at the numerous dishes laid out on the table.

As if made by a top chef, each dish contained expensive ingredients.

The greasy sheen on the surface of the food indicated that it was properly seasoned.

However, she had no appetite.

As she stared blankly at the food, Caledra folded his newspaper and picked up his utensils.

“Eat. These are prepared for you. Didn’t you want to eat them so much when you were young?”

“…Did you know?”

Silence fell between them.

Lucy, deliberately avoiding Caledra’s gaze, moved her lips.

“Did you know I liked these kinds of foods?”

She was asking why he had never once offered them to her when she was young, even though he knew.

The only food Lucy had eaten while living with Count Caledra was bland health food with no seasoning.

It wasn’t much different from what she had eaten at the research facility.

Even on Lucy’s birthday, the menu didn’t change.

So, even though Lucy ate in the same space as Caledra, she always ate different food.

Caledra, who had been watching Lucy express her past grievances, picked up a knife and began to cut the meat.

“Are you going to complain about food now? You’re old enough to know. Everything was for your own good.”

It was a truly convenient excuse.

Lucy, involuntarily letting out a hollow laugh, slowly raised her head.

“Was it also for my own good that you conducted torturous experiments at the research facility?”

Caledra’s hand, which had been cutting the meat, stopped.

Putting down his utensils, Caledra met Lucy’s eyes.

The resentment in her red eyes was clearer than anything else.

“…Did you see it? Or did Daniel Steiner tell you?”

Now that Lucy had realized the truth, there was no need to lie anymore.

“I admit it. That wasn’t for your own good. But it was for the Allied Nations.”

“…Then why didn’t you tell me the truth? Why did you deceive me all this time, telling me that the Imperial soldiers were the ones who conducted the experiments?”

“I don’t know what your intention is in asking when you already know. I simply thought you wouldn’t follow me if I told you the truth.”

Lucy’s eyes widened.

She hated Caledra.

She couldn’t forgive him.

But somewhere deep inside, she had been hoping that Caledra would make an excuse.

She wanted to find even a small possibility of forgiving Caledra.

However, the Caledra before her now was trampling on even the slightest glimmer of possibility.

“Lucy Emilia. Do I look like a devil to you? Or do I seem like a hypocrite? I have no intention of interfering with your emotions, but good and evil are ambiguous in this world. I don’t have a hobby of tormenting young girls. But this cruel world always forces me to make choices.”

It didn’t seem like regret existed on Caledra’s face.

“If you’re going to demand that I admit my sins, then I admit it. Objectively, I’m trash. I’ve committed unforgivable sins. But even if I could go back to the past, I would do the same thing. Because I know it’s for the good of this country.”

Lucy, looking at Caledra as if she couldn’t understand, suddenly jumped up from her seat.

“…”

“…”

Lucy, looking down at Caledra in heavy silence, turned and walked away.

She thought the conversation was meaningless.

Caledra, watching Lucy’s retreating figure, raised his hand and touched his forehead.

He felt a headache.

He might have spoken recklessly because he was angry that Lucy had saved Daniel.

As he groaned with his eyes closed for a while, someone approached him.

It was Regiment Commander Sampe, one of the commanders of the assault unit.

He saluted.

“Count Caledra! As of this moment, we have completely recaptured the target city, Penbarch! The number of enemy killed is estimated to be approximately 320, and we have secured 58 prisoners! Also…”

Caledra raised his hand to stop Sampe’s words.

Caledra, exhaling lowly, glared at Sampe.

“Daniel Steiner? Where is he?”

The atmosphere seemed to freeze.

Sampe, sweating profusely, said,

“We are accelerating the search, but we have not yet found him.”

“Did he escape? If we can’t catch him, what’s the point of all this…”

As Caledra gritted his teeth, Sampe swallowed hard and opened his mouth.

“Your Excellency. I don’t think it’s meaningless. Isn’t this our first victory against Daniel Steiner, who is called the devil of the Empire? Also, it is believed that the defeated will realize the difference in military power and try to give up Penbarch.”

Caledra, hearing Sampe’s words, raised his head.

“Daniel Steiner giving up Penbarch? You’re talking nonsense.”

Caledra’s eyes, feeling absurd, narrowed like a snake.

“He will definitely come back.”

*

At the same time, an operational meeting was in full swing at the brigade’s command post.

“So…”

Pelf, the intelligence officer, said with an incredulous face.

“You’re saying we should abandon the bridge?”

The expressions of the other staff officers were not much different.

However, Daniel nodded with conviction.

“They succeeded in driving us out of the city. Once they finish clearing the city, they will most likely move to reclaim the bridge. With morale high and a superior force, it’s only natural to secure a strategic point.”

Daniel raised his baton and tapped the bridge drawn on the operational map on the table.

“The enemies who arrive at the bridge with their troops will discover that there are no Imperial soldiers. It will seem as if we have abandoned the bridgehead and completely withdrawn. What do you think the Allied forces will think in this situation?”

“Of course, they will think that the Imperial army has retreated across the river.”

“Will they follow the Imperial army?”

“That’s unlikely. The enemy is wary of you, Brigadier General. They will not advance but build a base near the bridge in preparation for a possible counterattack or ambush.”

The operations officer, flustered, interjected.

“Brigadier General. If I understand correctly, are you saying we should abandon the bridge and retreat?”

“No.”

It was an immediate answer.

Moving his baton, Daniel pointed to the northern forest area.

“While they are wary of our non-existent troops and building all defenses near the bridge, we will be here.”

It was a kind of deception operation.

The operations officer thought it made sense, but it was too dangerous, so he spoke.

“It’s not impossible, but we can’t make the Allied forces wary of the other side of the bridge forever. They will surely conduct aerial reconnaissance, and the moment they realize that there are no enemies on the other side of the bridge, won’t they redeploy their troops?”

The moment they realized that Daniel Steiner’s brigade was not on the other side of the bridge, there was a possibility that the Allied forces would conduct all-out reconnaissance.

If that happened, it was only a matter of time before the friendly forces hiding in the northern forest area were discovered.

However, Daniel had anticipated that as well.

“I will request support from headquarters. I will tell them to install air-inflatable tank models and camouflage positions in the forest 200km beyond the bridge. I have selected places that are easily detected by aerial reconnaissance, so they will surely discover this ‘fake unit’ and return.”

As murmurs arose among the staff officers, Daniel continued.

“Also, in order to completely deceive the enemy, this fake unit will continue to communicate with headquarters. It would be good to use communication frequencies that are easily seized by the enemy. If the Allied forces hear this information, they will recognize this fake unit as real.”

Daniel put down his baton.

“On the other hand, we will cut off all communications and move independently to the northern forest. Once the troop movement is complete and all preparations are finished, headquarters will announce that it has supported the fake unit.”

The Allied forces, who were eavesdropping, would judge that they had to launch a preemptive strike before reinforcements were attached to Daniel Steiner’s brigade.

A large army would surely cross the bridge to attack Daniel Steiner’s brigade.

“At that time, we will blow up the floodgates upstream.”

If the river flooded at the same time as the floodgates were blown up, it would be possible to prevent the Allied forces from retreating to the city.

Even if the Allied forces belatedly identified the ‘fake unit’, there would be no way to return.

Naturally, the city would become an empty house.

Daniel Steiner intended to take advantage of that moment to lead the entire brigade into Penbarch.

“The time it takes for all operations to be carried out is 15 days.”

As the staff officers listened with awe, Daniel quietly continued.

“In half a month, we will…”

Daniel Steiner’s eyes narrowed sharply.

“We will turn Penbarch, which Count Caledra is occupying, into hell.”

Author’s Note

Thank you, Haedaljoa, for the 10 coin donation! Thank you for always supporting me! I will repay you by writing hard! Thank you!

Thank you to all the readers who read my work!

I hope everyone is having a happy day!

Then see you again tomorrow!