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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: Who Opened the Territorial Waters?
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Early morning.
Faint light filtering through the inn room's window heralded the dawn.
Thanks to it, Daniel, who had been sleeping rigidly on his back, stirred his eyes.
Reflexively, Daniel's eyes slowly opened. He turned his head towards the window and let out a self-deprecating laugh.
'Morning already. I definitely planned to sleep in until noon...'
Even though he had intentionally gone to bed late, waking up in the morning like this showed he hadn't shaken off his habits as a staff officer.
'Well, I lived as an officer in the General Staff for a year. Habits don't just change overnight.'
Daniel, chuckling at himself, sat up and ran a hand over his face.
His body felt a bit stiff, but the fatigue seemed to have vanished, so it wasn't bad.
'Let's see. Today is...'
Slowly recalling his schedule through his groggy mind, Daniel nodded.
'It's the day I go to Reff's mansion.'
That tomboyish young lady had successfully lured Daniel to her mansion with the bait of money.
The problem was that Reff hadn't told him the mansion's location.
So Daniel had asked how he was supposed to find a mansion whose location he didn't know.
To that question, Reff had simply said, "When the time comes, I'll send someone for you," and then left the cocktail bar.
'Maybe I should have asked what kind of person she was, or where she was from.'
Judging by her cautious demeanor, it didn't seem like she would have answered even if he had asked.
'Well, anyway...'
Since Reff had agreed to be his sponsor, there was no real need to refuse the dinner invitation.
'...It was a dinner invitation, wasn't it?'
It was still early morning, which meant he had plenty of time.
It was a rare break, so idling away at the inn wouldn't be bad, but since he was in Bellanos anyway, he felt like trying some of the mainland's desserts.
Thinking it was time to head out, Daniel got out of bed and put on his slippers.
He then walked over and opened the closet door.
Inside the open closet hung new clothes, neatly arranged on hangers.
There was a tweed jacket, a vest, and trousers.
The ensemble was dark grey, with a subtle check pattern woven into the vest, adding a touch of class.
Daniel had bought them with his own money after receiving Reff's dinner invitation.
'That woman looks like a noble, no matter how I look at her...'
To maintain at least a minimum level of dignity, he had specially purchased some reasonably upscale clothes.
Others might call it overdoing it, but for Daniel, it was important.
'If it's a dinner party, Reff's family will surely be there.'
The ones actually providing the money were more likely Reff's parents, not Reff herself.
In that case, Daniel needed to win over Reff's parents, not Reff.
Naturally, if he could impress them, the amount of money he'd receive would increase.
From that perspective, Daniel had purchased fine clothes even if it meant spending his own money.
Nobles were generally sensitive to others' attire.
It wasn't for nothing that the monastery dressed the children in formal attire when city councilors and nobles who provided sponsorships visited.
Besides that, there were other things to pay attention to, like his gait, manner of speech, personality, and dining etiquette, but for Daniel, none of it was particularly difficult.
'I was always in charge of entertaining nobles at the monastery, after all.'
He knew perfectly well what nobles liked and disliked, so earning their favor wouldn't be difficult.
'Time to put in some effort. For my social standing and my bakery.'
Having made up his mind, Daniel went into the bathroom, quickly washed up, and changed his clothes.
After styling his hair in front of the mirror, Daniel finally put on his sunglasses and left the inn.
Warm sunlight, almost unbelievable for the approaching winter, greeted Daniel.
Thinking what lovely weather it was, Daniel headed to a famous dessert shop in Bellanos, as he had originally planned.
Pushing through the crowd, he entered the dessert shop, found a seat, and a waiter approached him.
The waiter, drawn by a peculiar charm from Daniel as he sat composed by the window, spoke.
"May I take your order?"
Daniel turned to the waiter and nodded.
"Could I have one trifle? And coffee with it, please."
"One trifle and coffee... Understood."
The waiter, smiling at Daniel, turned and walked away.
Having placed his order, Daniel leisurely gazed out the window.
Perhaps because the dessert shop was on the second floor, the outside view was quite clear. A massive merchant ship was approaching from the vast sea, sounding its horn.
A flock of seagulls, reacting to the horn, could be seen soaring high into the sky.
It was truly a pastoral scene, making him feel completely at ease.
'Yes. This is what a proper life feels like...'
Being able to escape a life where he trembled, unsure when he might die, and enjoy peace was, for Daniel, the ultimate luxury.
Feeling so good, he hummed to himself for a while until the waiter returned.
"Here's your trifle and coffee."
The waiter placed the trifle and coffee on the table.
Daniel was about to say thank you when he paused.
Three almond cookies had come as a bonus.
"Huh? Did I order almond cookies too?"
"Oh, no. Consider the almond cookies a complimentary service."
"A service, you say? Thank you. Bellanos truly has many kind people."
As Daniel smiled at her, the waiter secretly blushed.
"Th-then, please enjoy your meal."
The waiter quickly bowed her head and scurried away.
Daniel found it odd but didn't pay it much mind.
What was important now was the trifle.
Daniel picked up his fork, gently cut a piece of the strawberry-topped trifle, and put it into his mouth.
A refreshing, soft, and sweet flavor filled his mouth.
Daniel, a satisfied smile on his face, unconsciously opened his mouth.
"Adjutant. This place is proper; you should try some..."
Mid-sentence, Daniel closed his mouth.
He had instinctively looked for Lucy, even though there was no one in the seat opposite him.
Daniel, finding the fact absurd, let out a low chuckle.
'To escape all that, only to find myself missing the spy who tried to kill me...'
This was why habits were so terrifying.
'Still...'
If Lucy had been here, the enjoyment of eating would probably have increased.
Because if Lucy ate this, she would surely lose her composure.
It was almost as if he could see her secretly trying to suppress her admiration, unwilling to admit it tasted good.
Watching Lucy like that was a kind of fun in itself.
Even so, he had no desire whatsoever to return to the Empire.
'I should be satisfied with this peace now.'
Shaking off the thoughts in his head, Daniel cut another piece of trifle with his fork and put it into his mouth.
The taste of the trifle, when he ate it again, somehow wasn't as good as the first bite.
*
The merchant ship that arrived at Tentarbajem Port in Bellanos confirmed its mooring position and dropped anchor.
Afterward, mooring lines were used to connect the ship to the pier, and a ship ramp, known as a boarding ramp, was installed.
Once the ship ramp was secured, the merchant ship's crew began to move, one by one, to unload cargo.
Among these crew members, the secret organization Black Swan also made its move.
About thirty individuals, dressed in black suits, entered Tentarbajem via the ramp.
They moved in unison, as if by prior arrangement, and neither the merchants doing business near the port nor the touts dared to approach them.
Intense fury smoldered in their eyes as they walked, grim-faced and silent.
Everyone could only speculate about who they were and why they had arrived in Tentarbajem.
Speculation and wild guesses continued, even leading to whispers of, "Are they a mafia organization?" but Hamtal, the leader of Black Swan, paid no mind.
Black Swan's conspicuous black suit attire, unlike their usual appearance, was solely to mourn Daniel Steiner.
'Daniel Steiner is dead. Right here...'
A prophet, practically a symbol of racial equality, had been martyred in Bellanos.
Black Swan understood this fact intellectually, but not emotionally.
Their inability to comprehend it emotionally turned into rage, and they became obsessed with finding the culprit who had played a part in Daniel Steiner's death, no matter the cost.
"Leader."
One of Hamtal's subordinates approached him, as Hamtal was leading them.
"Shall we dedicate all our efforts to identifying the culprit, as you instructed?"
Hamtal nodded at his subordinate's words.
"Bellanos is corrupt, from its nobles to its politicians and military. If we offer bribes, they'll readily reveal who ordered the territorial waters to be opened. Accumulate clues like that and track them down."
"Understood. But what if someone doesn't cooperate...?"
"Make them cooperate."
At the chilling voice, the subordinate nodded without a word of complaint.
He understood very well what 'make them cooperate' meant.
As the subordinate stepped back to relay the orders, Hamtal looked straight ahead, clenching his teeth.
'I don't know who you are. But I will make you bitterly regret killing our prophet. We will find you, no matter what, and...'
He clenched his fist so tightly that his leather glove twisted.
'...thoroughly punish you!'