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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: How Many Moves Ahead?
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Just how many moves ahead had that man seen?
The following day, early evening.
In the monastery's dining hall, Abbot Hieronymi was busy conversing with city council members and wealthy benefactors who had come to make donations.
Normally, he would have gone out to greet Daniel, but unfortunately, the donation event coincided with Daniel's visit, leaving him no choice but to attend to the guests.
Of course, Daniel was important, but from Abbot Hieronymi's perspective, the money to feed countless orphans was paramount.
As it was, donations for the orphans were steadily decreasing, so Hieronymi was doing his best to win over the city council members.
"It's truly ironic that while the number of orphans is increasing due to the war, donations for them are steadily declining. What exactly are the corporations that profited from the war doing…?"
Hieronymi nodded with an awkward smile at the city council member's prim remarks.
"In that sense, Councilman Redden, you are truly a blessing. You have stepped forward to generously donate a large sum to our monastery for the orphans. It is nothing short of God's grace."
"A large sum? Not at all. And I apologize for saying this, but our city council may reduce the budget allocated to the orphanage in the future."
He had gone to great lengths to appease them, but the outcome was not good.
Still, Hieronymi understood.
Even the city council, after all, had limited funds.
Therefore, he couldn't condemn them as villains for reducing donations.
"If you say the budget will be cut, then to what extent…?"
As Hieronymi cautiously posed his question, the dining hall doors opened.
Hieronymi and the city council member instinctively turned their heads, seeing a soldier in an officer's uniform.
Click-clack—
The officer's boot steps echoed hollowly within the dining hall.
Everyone froze, intimidated by the sight of the officer slowly advancing, adjusting his uniform.
Hieronymi, too, was wondering why an Imperial officer had come here.
"Abbot."
The officer, speaking in a low, resonant voice, removed his uniform cap.
Only then did a look of delight spread across Hieronymi's face.
"Daniel!"
Hieronymi, about to move towards Daniel in delight, paused.
He had spotted the Major's rank insignia on Daniel's shoulder.
Daniel approached Hieronymi, who was blinking in stunned silence.
"It's been a long time. Have you been well?"
"...Yes. But it seems you've had quite a bit happen. A Major? Am I seeing this correctly? Are you *that* hero of the Empire?"
As Hieronymi spoke in a daze, Daniel offered an embarrassed smile.
"I've unintentionally been through a few things. And who might this gentleman beside you be?"
The city council member, whose gaze met Daniel's, instinctively snapped to attention and replied.
"I, I am Councilman Redden. It is an honor to meet you."
"The honor is mine as well. If you are a city council member, then you must be one of the benefactors donating to our monastery. I look forward to your continued support."
"Yes. Yes, sir…"
Daniel, having heard the council member's reply, maintained his smile and looked at Hieronymi.
"More importantly, how are the children? Are they doing well?"
"Th-they are. They're all gathered over there."
Daniel turned his gaze to see children standing idly in a corner, watching.
The boys wore white shirts with black suspender trousers and bow ties, while the girls wore white dresses with flower pins in their hair.
'Nothing has changed.'
Dressing the children in neat clothes for show whenever there was a donation event was the same now as it had always been.
Daniel let out a low chuckle and said to Hieronymi,
"Then I'll go play with the children until the event concludes."
With that, Daniel walked towards the children.
The city council member, watching his retreating back, nervously fidgeted with his hands before finally managing to speak.
"...So Major Daniel was from this monastery. It would have been good if you had mentioned it earlier, Abbot. I apologize for retracting my words, but the city council's budget cut for donations will be rescinded."
"What? Really?"
Indeed. A war hero of the Empire, personally awarded the Golden Cross Medal by His Imperial Majesty, had just said, "Please take good care of the monastery," and they certainly couldn't proceed with budget cuts after that.
As the city council member reluctantly nodded, Daniel, who had stopped in front of the children, sternly clasped his hands behind his back.
"Listen up, all of you. I am Major Daniel Steiner, Operations Staff Officer of the Imperial General Staff Headquarters. Does anyone know why I have come here?"
The children, frightened, merely swallowed hard.
Daniel, who had been observing them coolly, soon let out a laugh and extended both hands.
"It's to play with all of you! Ella! Luca! Meli! You've all grown so much!"
Only then did the children realize Daniel had been joking, and they burst into giggles, rushing towards him.
Some were so overwhelmed with excitement that they tried to cling to Daniel, almost dangerously so.
Fearing the children might get hurt, Daniel knelt on one knee, and Ella, clasping her hands in front of her chest, said,
"Big Brother Daniel! Why didn't you tell us you were coming? I waited so long!"
"My apologies. I wrote a letter to the Abbot, didn't he tell you?"
"No, he didn't! The Abbot is grumpy!"
Naughty Luca chimed in.
Luca, with his pug nose, raised his voice, his face alight with excitement.
"Brother! But are you really a Major? Isn't that a super high rank? Do thousands of soldiers with guns follow you now?"
"It's not *that* high a rank. The number of people I can command is at most a few hundred."
"A few hundred is still a lot! But Brother, is it true? Meli said earlier that you came here on a secret mission!?"
At the mention of a secret mission, the children's eyes sparkled.
Daniel was flustered by their gazes, but there was no harm in playing along.
These children were practically confined to the monastery, with only two outings a month.
So, it was an act of kindness to tell them an entertaining story, even if it meant a little fib.
"Oh dear. You've found me out. It's true, I came here to carry out a secret mission."
Luca clapped a hand over his mouth, his eyes wide.
The other children also nervously glanced around, focusing on Daniel's words.
"Listen carefully. I came here on the Imperial Family's orders. It's because insidious forces have taken root here. My objective is to wipe them out in one fell swoop."
"...R-really?"
Even the more mature Ella was completely taken in by the lie and chimed in.
Daniel smiled and nodded.
"Yes. They usually operate as shop employees, but beneath the shops, in the underground, they gather various intelligence and conduct covert activities. Their number is no less than…"
"No less than?"
How many should I say?
Daniel, thinking too few would be anticlimactic, held up five fingers.
"Approximately fifty."
Gasp! The children collectively gasped and murmured in fright.
Some of the children looked scared, so Daniel continued, trying to mitigate their fear.
"But there's no need to worry. I'll handle them all. Understood?"
The children, trusting Daniel, nodded in unison.
Daniel, who found their expressions endearing, chuckled, then suddenly paused.
He felt a persistent gaze from somewhere.
Instinctively turning his head, his eyes met with one of the wealthy benefactors attending the donation event.
The benefactor seemed startled, then quickly moved away to another spot.
'What was that…?'
Was it just my imagination?
As Daniel tilted his head in confusion, Luca tugged on his arm.
"Brother! You're really, really cool! I want to be like you! I want to be a cool soldier like you! So I'll help you and—"
"No."
Daniel cut off Luca's words, wiping the playfulness from his face as he spoke seriously.
"I'm warning you, never become a soldier."
It was advice straight from the heart.
***
Underneath the shops, Dawn's Embrace Headquarters.
"Your Excellency! Chief of Staff, Your Excellency!"
The informant sent to observe Daniel searched for Morten as soon as he entered the underground base.
The informant burst into Morten's office without even attempting to catch his breath and spoke.
"Your Excellency! Daniel Steiner…!"
Morten frowned, displeased by the sight of his subordinate, disguised as a benefactor, gasping for air.
"Catch your breath, compose yourself, then speak."
The informant nodded, took a deep breath, and began to speak.
"It appears Daniel Steiner not only came here under the Princess's orders but also knows the location of the headquarters."
Morten, who had been sitting at his desk, saw one of his eyebrows twitch.
He took off his glasses and looked at the informant with suspicion.
"...He knows? This place?"
"Yes. I overheard him jokingly talking with the children, and he mentioned having a headquarters beneath the shops, even knowing the approximate number of personnel. More importantly…"
The informant recalled Daniel's chilling gaze, which had flickered towards him, and continued.
"...After finishing his story, he glared at me, who was observing him. As if he had known everything from the very beginning."
Morten, hearing the informant's words, grunted in irritation and gritted his teeth.
While getting the approximate location and number of personnel could be dismissed as coincidence, identifying the person observing him as well meant it could no longer be seen as mere chance.
'Furthermore…'
Daniel had divulged all the information, even knowing that a Dawn's Embrace informant was observing him.
In Morten's view, that was nothing less than threatening Dawn's Embrace, all while pretending to play with children.
"Damn it. Daniel is warning us. He's saying he could wipe us out if he wanted to, but he won't."
"...Why is he doing that?"
"I don't know the reason. One thing is certain: Daniel wishes to converse with us."
It was a checkmate; they couldn't refuse.
His head throbbed with dizziness.
Morten took a deep breath, forcing himself to overcome his fear, and lifted his head.
"Very well. If he wishes to converse, we must accept. I will personally go and ascertain Daniel's intentions."
He didn't know what Daniel's scheme was.
But for the sake of the organization's survival, Morten had no choice but to agree to Daniel's proposal.