Dressed in my uniform and having finished breakfast at the officers'' mess, I made my way to the Operations Staff''s private office.

    It was supposed to be just another routine morning.

    The only difference was that several senior officers in the hallway had started recognizing me.

    “So, you’re that famous lieutenant? The one who embarrassed the staff officers at the command post? Oh, don’t get me wrong—it’s a compliment.”

    “Lieutenant, I can tell you’re confident in your abilities, but don’t show off too much in front of your superiors—unless you plan on having a short military career. Trust me, that’s advice from experience.”

    “Wow! I thought the General Staff was full of rigid bureaucrats, but it turns out we’ve got someone like you! Keep it up—I’ll be rooting for you!”

    ...They stopped me every time I passed by to deliver long-winded speeches, leaving me dizzy by the time I escaped.

    Since ignoring them wasn’t an option, I got through it by repeatedly using the magic trio of phrases—“Understood,” “Is that so?” and “Thank you.”

    The real problem was that I wasted so much time talking to officers that I ended up late for work.

    The reporting time was 8:30 AM.

    It was now 8:28 AM.

    With the staff offices located on the fifth floor, even walking as fast as possible would take at least four minutes.

    And since Imperial officers were bound by that damn decorum rule, I couldn’t even run unless I was in the field—so tardiness was guaranteed.

    ‘Karl’s going to throw a fit again.’

    Once more, let me remind you—my direct superior, Major Karl Heinrich, was a neurotic bastard who overreacted to the smallest mistakes.

    If he were even remotely competent, I might have grudgingly respected him.

    But his entire record boiled down to trembling in the rear lines during a defensive battle against the Allied Nations seven years ago.

    How someone like that ended up in the supposedly meritocratic Imperial General Staff was beyond me.

    If you’re wondering about his rank and title, look no further than his background.

    Karl Heinrich was from an aristocratic family, and his father was an ambassador.

    The Empire might have preached meritocracy, but beneath the surface, nepotism and personal connections were tangled everywhere.

    And Karl Heinrich was a prime example of someone reaping all the benefits of that system.@@@@

    My personal evaluation? He was an incompetent, unstable excuse for a human being—living, breathing garbage.

    I had proof, too. If my dark circles had shareholders, Karl Heinrich would easily hold a majority stake.

    I was already bracing myself for whatever nonsense he’d throw at me today, but my heart remained calm.

    ‘Once I resign, none of this will matter.’

    Since my goal was a dishonorable discharge, I no longer had to tiptoe around Karl.

    Was this how a salaryman felt on their last day at work, resignation letter in hand? I even felt a faint smile tugging at my lips.

    With light steps, I made my way to the fifth-floor office and knocked.

    “Second Lieutenant Daniel Steiner, Assistant Operations Planner, reporting. Permission to enter.”

    After stating my rank and name, I opened the door.

    The first thing I saw was Karl sitting at his desk, clutching his head like he’d made some catastrophic mistake.

    Sweat trickled down his face, and he looked genuinely distressed—an unusual sight.

    He didn’t seem to notice me, so I stepped closer and spoke.

    “Major Karl Heinrich, sir? You need to be ready for the Operations Staff meeting at 9 AM. You should start preparing now—”

    I trailed off.

    Karl lifted his head at the sound of my voice, and his eyes burned with rage.

    Was he seriously this mad over me being two minutes late?

    Before I could process it, Karl shot up from his chair.

    “You! Do you have any idea what you’ve done?!”

    What the hell was he talking about? Being two minutes late?

    I blinked in confusion as Karl stormed toward me.

    “Who said you could speak to the commander?! Who told a lowly orphan like you to stick your nose into a staff meeting?!”

    Grabbing me by the collar, Karl shoved me hard.

    The warm, vibrant colors of spring greeted me.

    It was the perfect season to leave the army.

    *****

    That Evening.

    Major Karl Heinrich’s Residence.

    “Search every corner.”

    “Yes, sir!”

    At the order of Captain Philip Bender, aide to Brigadier General Heinrich Schmidt, the soldiers scattered throughout the house.

    Philip strolled leisurely through the living room, lost in thought.

    ‘Today, Second Lieutenant Daniel assaulted his superior officer.’

    When he first heard the news, he thought he’d misheard.

    How could someone who’d just earned commendations commit such an act?

    Especially someone like Daniel, who, in Philip’s view, embodied the model soldier?

    There had to be a reason.

    Heinrich seemed to share Philip’s thoughts and instructed the military police to conduct a thorough investigation after their delayed arrival.

    During questioning, Karl displayed signs of paranoia, spouting nonsense like, “The Allied Nations might try to kill me.”

    Sensing something off, Heinrich ordered Philip to search Karl’s residence, which was why he and the soldiers had stormed the house.

    “Captain! Over here, please!”

    A soldier’s voice snapped Philip out of his thoughts.

    “I’m coming.”

    Walking over, Philip saw the soldier tapping lightly on the wooden floor.

    Thump, thump—

    The hollow sound was far too light for solid wood—as if it were empty inside.

    “This part sounds different.”

    “An old trick. Tear it up.”

    “Yes, sir!”

    Using a crowbar, the soldier pried open the floorboards, revealing a small box.

    Philip knelt, picked up the box, and opened it.

    Inside were documents and several letters.

    “This is...”

    They were classified Imperial military documents—information that couldn’t be allowed to fall into enemy hands.

    The letters offered promises of large sums in exchange for selling information to the Allied Nations.

    Even more damning was the most recent order—to lure Imperial reinforcements into advancing through the ridges.

    “That bastard...”

    Karl Heinrich was a traitor to his people.

    Blinded by greed, he had sold secrets and sabotaged operations—a slippery snake of a man.

    ‘Which means...’

    Daniel’s assault wasn’t the act of a disgraceful officer.

    It must have been a reaction to the rage he felt toward this treasonous scum.

    Daniel Steiner wasn’t a criminal—he was a hero who unmasked a traitor and protected the Empire.

    ‘We completely misunderstood him.’

    Philip needed to return to headquarters immediately to clear Daniel’s name.

    Having reached a decision, Philip closed the box and stood.

    “Soldier. I’ll head back to headquarters. Report any additional findings to me.”

    “Yes, sir. May I ask why you’re leaving in such a hurry?”

    Philip smiled as he looked down at the soldier.

    “These documents prove that Second Lieutenant Daniel Steiner is innocent. We need to clear the name of the hero who dedicated himself to the Empire as soon as possible.”

    The soldier froze for a moment.

    It was the first time he’d seen Captain Philip—often called a cold-blooded man—smile so brightly.