Hartmann’s consideration allowed to return straight to my quarters and rest. The next morning, I reported to the General Staff Headquarters.
The clear skies without a single cloud and the refreshing breeze put in a good mood, but that mood vanished the mont I stepped inside the headquarters.
Everyone I passed in the corridors treated as if I were so kind of ghost.
Those of lower rank stiffened and saluted nervously, while higher-ranking officers barely managed to acknowledge my salute, avoiding eye contact as they hastily returned the gesture.
Wondering what was going on, I decided to stop by the break room for coffee—and there, I uncovered the source of the commotion.
The personnel officers had gathered and were openly discussing .
“Did you hear? That Operations Officer Daniel Steiner pretended to take leave but was actually on a mission for Her Highness.”
“I heard he even visited Duke Belvar’s mansion. He was with Colonel Hartmann, Her Highness’s chief bodyguard.”
“Now that he’s a war hero, maybe he’s planning to step into politics. Either way, let’s make sure we don’t cross Daniel Steiner. We can’t afford to get caught up in his ss. And…”
The Personnel Planning Departnt major, who had been rambling, abruptly cut off his sentence when he noticed .
Frozen in surprise, the major forced an awkward smile in my direction.
He leaned toward his colleagues and whispered sothing.
The officers who had been chatting turned to glance at before coughing nervously and breaking the silence.
One of them, the lowest-ranking—a major—finally mustered the courage to speak.
“G-Good morning, Major Steiner.”
I took a sip of my coffee and replied.
“Yes. Good morning. It’s a perfect day for gossip, isn’t it?”
My words caused them to exchange uneasy glances before hastily discarding their coffee and making excuses to leave.
“Co to think of it, I have so urgent work to take care of…”
“Ah. I just rembered—I need to see my departnt chief right away.”
One by one, they mumbled excuses and filed out of the break room.
Watching their retreat, I let out a low sigh.
Judging by the strange rumors circulating in the headquarters, it seed I had sohow solidified my position as “Her Highness’s closest confidant.”
Not that I could bla anyone for spreading such rumors.
‘If I were in their shoes, I’d think the sa thing.’
Given the circumstances, it would have been stranger if they didn’t think I was close to the princess.
The problem was that I had absolutely no intention of taking on such a role, and the situation was quickly becoming a headache.
‘How did things end up like this…?’
I had simply gone ho to enjoy my leave. But after unintentionally dismantling the Crown Prince’s secret organization, the situation had spiraled completely out of control.
‘I wonder what His Majesty thinks about all this…’
The last ti I t the Emperor, he had emphasized that “soldiers must remain politically neutral.”
Yet here I was, acting in a way that couldn’t be more political.
‘He definitely won’t look kindly on this.’
Even a child knew that drawing the Emperor’s ire would end badly.
I felt uneasy, but worrying about sothing that hadn’t even happened yet was a bad habit.
Finishing the rest of my coffee, I crumpled the paper cup and tossed it into a nearby trash bin.
Grabbing my briefcase, I left the break room and climbed the stairs to my private office.
Opening the door, I saw Lucy already at her desk, working as usual.
Sensing my presence, she looked up and imdiately stood to salute.
“Major Steiner. You’re early today.”
“I couldn’t sleep for so reason. Anyway, you won’t have to worry about the Security Bureau anymore.”
“…Did you take care of it?”
I nodded and started walking toward my desk but stopped abruptly.
There was a box sitting neatly on my desk, tied with a ribbon.
Curious, I approached and tapped the box lightly.
“What’s this? Looks suspicious.”
“It’s apple strudel. I thought you might like it.”
“Huh? Do bakeries even sell this here? It’s a southern dish—not exactly common around here.”
Lucy hesitated for a mont before replying.
“I made it myself.”
“…You made it?”
Lucy nodded without a hint of emotion, and I imdiately broke into a cold sweat.
‘An assassination attempt?’
For a brief mont, a chilling thought crossed my mind, but I quickly regained my composure.
‘There’s no way she’d try to kill here—in the General Staff Headquarters, of all places. It’d be too easy to trace back to her.’
Lucy wasn’t stupid. She had to know how obvious it would be.
‘So she really just made this for as a gesture of goodwill?’
I stood there, baffled, before the truth slowly dawned on .
‘Does she think I saved her from the Security Bureau?’
In reality, I had only acted to protect myself, but it seed Lucy had gotten the wrong idea.
There was no need to correct her misunderstanding, so I simply nodded and untied the ribbon.
The box opened like a blooming flower, revealing perfectly baked apple strudel inside.
“It looks delicious.”
I picked up the utensils included in the box, sliced off a piece, and took a bite.
Chewing carefully, I couldn’t help but be impressed.
“This is… incredible.”
The tartness and freshness of the apples combined with the warm, aromatic cinnamon flavor.
The walnuts and almonds added a crunchy texture, while the sugar and raisins subtly asserted their presence.
The pastry was baked to perfection, with a rich, buttery flavor.
I had eaten plenty of apple strudels before, but this was easily the best I’d ever tasted.
“You could open a bakery with this. Do you cook often?”
It was an innocent question, but Lucy blinked in surprise, as if she hadn’t expected the complint.
After a brief pause, she spoke.
“No, not really. I bought a cookbook yesterday and practiced…”
Lucy trailed off mid-sentence, falling silent.
Lucy’s expression looked as though she was mortified—like she had just admitted, “I practiced cooking for you.”
After a mont of struggling with her emotions, she regained her composure and said calmly,
“...It’s my way of repaying you for looking out for yesterday.”
She bowed her head slightly before returning to her seat.
Though she quickly adopted a neutral expression and dove back into her work, her ears betrayed her—they were faintly red.
‘And on top of that...’
Noticing the bandage wrapped around her left index finger, I realized she must have injured herself while preparing the dish.
‘She probably cut herself while slicing the apples.’
Practicing cooking just to serve her superior—it was praiseworthy enough to make want to overdo the complints.
Lucy truly was the model adjutant.
‘The problem is…’
That model adjutant was also likely plotting my death.
Chances were high that this dish was intended to lower my guard.
The thought left my throat feeling strangely tight.
‘It’s probably best to…’
Dispose of the leftovers later when I returned to my quarters.
***
anwhile, inside the imperial palace’s reception room—
“What… did you just say?”
The golden-haired Prince Arno’s eyes trembled.
The news delivered by Felisten, the deputy director of the Intelligence Bureau, was so absurd that it defied belief.
Prince Arno wanted to deny reality, but Felisten repeated his report despite the heavy tension in his voice.
“...Duke Belvar has announced that he will withdraw from the succession struggle. He is currently refusing all visitors and has locked himself in his chambers.”
It was a devastating blow.
With Dawn’s Light apprehended, Arno had relied on Belvar’s support to continue the succession battle.
And now, out of nowhere, Belvar had decided to abandon him.
“Why…?”
Muttering to himself, Arno waited for an explanation.
Felisten responded.
“While we are uncertain of the details, it seems his decision ca after a private conversation with Major Daniel Steiner.”
“...Daniel Steiner? That bastard again?”
Arno, who had been laughing in disbelief, suddenly roared.
“Why the hell is that bastard interfering with at every turn!? Why!?”
From the northern assassination incident to the present mont, Daniel Steiner had not only obstructed Arno’s plans but had also systematically shattered every single one.
And now, by stripping away Belvar’s support, he had completely destroyed Arno’s future prospects.
A sharp pain throbbed in Arno’s temples.
At the sa ti, rage boiled up from deep within him.
“Deputy Director! The fight isn’t over yet! Find it—find sothing we can use to arrest Daniel Steiner imdiately! Evidence that he used private soldiers—bring it to ! I—”
Arno’s voice began to falter.
Normally, Felisten would have nodded resolutely, but instead, he hesitated, nervously gauging the prince’s reaction.
Just as Arno was about to demand an explanation, Felisten bowed his head apologetically.
“Your Highness, we have already conducted a private investigation… but we found nothing.”
“Nothing?”
“Yes. We assud Daniel was building a personal network and launched a large-scale investigation, but we uncovered absolutely nothing.”
Sweat trickled down Felisten’s forehead.
“For soone capable of dismantling Dawn’s Light so swiftly, a large organization would have been necessary. There should have been clear command structures for issuing and receiving orders. However, Daniel…”
Felisten bowed his head even lower.
“Major Daniel Steiner didn’t communicate with a single person during his ti in the south. And as for the group that attacked Dawn’s Light—they disappeared without leaving a trace.”
“What…?”
“Your Highness, if I may speak bluntly—it feels like we’re chasing a ghost. We can’t figure out how Daniel Steiner operates, no matter how much we investigate.”
There was a faint tremor in Felisten’s voice.
Arno, stunned, collapsed into his chair.
“What in the world…?”
In short, Daniel Steiner had executed his operations so flawlessly that even the Imperial Intelligence Bureau couldn’t find a shred of evidence.
Faced with this revelation, the anger bubbling inside Arno cooled into an icy dread.
That dread soon transford into a naless fear.
“...What kind of man is Daniel Steiner?”
The prince’s question hung in the air, unanswered.
Felisten remained silent, unable to define the enigma that was Daniel Steiner.
‘A man who would stop at nothing to achieve his goals…’
A ghost-like presence that left no trace behind.
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