---

“First, bring someone from the Empire.”

Leoni said.

“Is it a rescue operation?”

“Something like that.”

The Former Chief of the Military Intelligence Agency Kien Empire stated.

“A few months ago, one of the senior officials of the Empire sent a letter to the embassy. It was about wanting to hand over the information they had and receive compensation in return.”

“What did you do?”

“What else could I do? Of course, I received the goods and handed over the money. It was a very satisfying transaction.”

The Former Director of the National Operations Bureau of the Royal Intelligence Department said.

“However, the staff member in charge of that was expelled. The local intelligence network collapsed due to the Empire’s counterintelligence activities, and he was thrown out wholesale. After all that effort to rebuild the intelligence network, how unfortunate…”

Leoni licked her lips with a bitter expression. It truly seemed to distress her.

“If the information officer was expelled, does that mean the information agents were captured?”

“I don’t know. The local intelligence network has been paralyzed. Who knows if they were caught or executed in the chaos? Thankfully, it seems they managed to survive somehow. The guy who went silent has made contact much more cautiously than before.”

“He wants to defect, huh?”

“With his family.”

Including himself, one wife and one child. A total of three. The entire family wants to defect.

“Anyway, there’s no reason to stop him, so you can take it on. Seems like he knows something interesting.”

“When will the operation details come out?”

“Next week.”

It would take a week to receive the operational order. Once the details came out, there would be various preparations to make, which would also take about a week.

By the way, I had two weeks left of my leave.

In other words, it meant I had to head over to the Empire right after my leave ended.

—

Episode 10 – Change Course to Northwest

Having traveled through a snowstorm for over an hour, I had to use a car to get back. However, since they took the car to prevent any trailing, I currently had no means of transportation.

Of course, I still had my sturdy two legs intact.

But walking back the hour-long drive on that snowy December road was simply out of the question.

Fortunately, the company provided me with a vehicle.

To be precise, they gave me a ride.

“We have arrived.”

The information officer had found a decent vehicle somewhere and brought me to the townhouse.

He was the one who was doing body searches at the safe house earlier, but looking at his uniform, he seemed like a rookie just starting out. I didn’t know which agency he belonged to; it was either the Royal Intelligence Department or the Military Intelligence Agency.

He passed the keys to me with slightly clumsy hands, as if he wasn’t used to handling the vehicle.

“Please park the vehicle in front of the house. We’ll come to collect it later. Feel free to use this vehicle during your leave.”

“Oh, okay. But is this a company vehicle?”

“It’s a rental. If it gets damaged, you’ll have to pay for it, so handle it with care.”

I locked the door with the keys I received. The information officer trudged through the plowed snow and disappeared somewhere.

I pocketed the keys, fiddled with the unfamiliar pistol, and made my way home.

—

Even though I was on leave, I really didn’t have much to do. I had no friends I could call up for a drink at any time and not a single person I was dating.

Spending time with my family was awkward as well.

My father, mother, older brother, and older sister were all civil servants, and getting off work was hard for them. They said they took leave, but I wouldn’t be able to see them until next week. My younger sister, who was unemployed, was in a better position but had now landed a job, so I wondered if I could even meet her.

Of course, if I did meet her, I was planning to kill her halfway.

Anyway.

Even though I was wasting my leave, it didn’t mean I had nothing to do at all.

“Welcome.”

At dawn, which was hardly what you’d call morning, I entered the lobby, greeted by the hotel staff.

The employees wearing name tags bowed their heads to greet me, while the well-dressed plainclothes officers shot me a glance before turning away.

In this place, which ran like a well-oiled machine, only one person greeted me with a friendly attitude.

“Good to see you, Saint Lucia.”

“Oh, you made it.”

Lucia greeted me with a warm smile. Despite the early hour, she was perfectly groomed from head to toe.

“What time did you wake up? It’s winter, so the sun rises late, but it’s still early. Did you have an uncomfortable night?”

“No, I slept well; I just don’t usually need a lot of sleep.”

“Oh, I see.”

She gestured for me to follow her to the bed. As always, on the table was a silver tray containing warm holy water and a pristine white towel.

“Are we doing it again today? The treatment?”

“I told you it’s best to do it daily. Of course, you need to do it today as well.”

Lucia replied firmly. Well, if the saint says so, I suppose I should go along with it.

I removed my jacket and lay down on the bed.

—

Since the day I was bitten by the beastman terrorist, all of my treatments have been handled by Lucia.

If I followed the FM, I’d need to be treated at a designated military hospital, but the injuries that required hospitalization had long since healed.

Of course, I could technically be discharged, but the doctor had indicated I would need periodic outpatient treatment. However, that was hardly treatment; it was closer to rehabilitation, and there was no real need to go to the hospital.

Therefore, the Military Intelligence Agency granted me permission to rehabilitate outside the military hospital, trusting that the person who reattached my severed finger wasn’t a military doctor but Veronica, and it was judged that getting help from that side would aid in my recovery.

And that judgment was accurate.

“Could you try moving your finger?”

As Lucia instructed, I slowly moved my right thumb. Unlike before when even slight pressure made it twitch, now it could bend as well as my left thumb.

Her efforts over the past few weeks were starting to bear fruit.

“Does it feel okay?”

“Um… yes.”

Lucia looked at me with a relieved expression.

Her time as a healing priest may have been short, but it would not be an exaggeration to call Lucia an expert, given her experience in conflict zones.

She gently pressed my thumb with a warm towel and then slowly stroked it down before pressing the area around the thumb firmly, starting the conversation.

“It seems like your body has no magic power, so your recovery is quick. I always had a hard time treating due to the magic, but I’m not sure if I should call this a blessing.”

“What do you mean?”

“Magic power and divinity don’t easily blend and often clash with each other. So, the recovery feels slow. If it were an external injury, it would be one thing, but for internal injuries, it’s even worse.”

This didn’t apply to me at all. With my low magic affinity, I couldn’t use spells, and it was impossible for me to enhance my body using internal magic like a half-breed could. Who knew not being able to use magic would actually be a benefit?

“But how do you know that magic and divinity clash? The study of divinity is a forbidden field…”

“I’ve treated magicians before. In the Empire.”

“Ah.”

Well, having served in the northern conflict area for nearly three years, I must have met a magician or two who got injured.

While I was watching the light flowing along my fingertips, Lucia spoke to me.

“I heard you’re going to the Empire soon.”

“Where did you hear that?”

“I was told at the National Affairs Council. They said they were running into difficulties tracing the individuals designated by the oracle, so they might have to head to the Empire first since the situation is quite challenging. I heard it from the Bishop while arranging the canonization ceremony date.”

Squeezing the moisture from the towel, Lucia dipped her fingers into the holy water. As her slender, pale fingers brushed together, I calmly responded in a casual tone.

“I’m not sure about my colleagues, but as you said, going to the Empire is a done deal. The rumors have already spread widely in diplomatic circles.”

“Is that so? I see you’ve heard something since you’re a diplomat.”

I nodded.

Even though the human intelligence assets of the Abas Information Agency were compromised, an information agency is still an information agency.

The Military Intelligence Agency intercepts the Imperial Army’s communications centered around signals intelligence units, operates open-source information collection, and mobilizes any remaining intelligence assets (HUMINT) to gauge the situation in the north to some extent.

Though intel coming in has dwindled due to the counter-espionage activities of the Empire Information Agency, it still gives a rough estimate of what’s going on in the north. At the very least, it’s not the worst-case scenario of blind people trying to figure out an elephant.

Of course, explaining all this to Lucia was impossible, so I filtered what I had gleaned from diplomats and the press and shared it with her.

“Conflicts between the Empire and the Magic Kingdom are intensifying. If last year’s disputes were somewhat similar to those of previous years, this year’s situation has escalated to a level beyond comparison. The scale of hostilities has increased, damage to infrastructure and industrial facilities is significant, and some areas have been occupied by the demon tribe, leading to a rise in military operations.”

“Hmm….”

“So, I can understand the Empire’s perspective. If it was directly explained at the National Affairs Council, then discussions regarding dispatch between the Cult and the Empire must have been ongoing. They might even currently be negotiating funding.”

That’s a lie. Actually, the actual negotiations have already concluded.

The Kien Empire-Abas-Cult Ministry of Foreign Affairs has finished the practical negotiations. They’ve dispatched special envoys, wrapped up coordination between embassies, and I’ve heard they are about to release an official announcement soon.

However, it seems Lucia didn’t know that much.

“Hmm….”

She momentarily forgot to channel her divinity and fell deep into thought. As she absentmindedly stroked her chin with the fingers that were healing her thumb.

Suddenly coming to, she exclaimed, “Oh, I’m sorry. I lost my train of thought for a moment.”

“What were you thinking about?”

“Well, that is….”

With a shy smile, Lucia opened her mouth.

“I felt a bit regretful.”

“Regretful? What exactly do you feel regretful about?”

“Just, various things.”

She gave an awkward smile. It looked a little bittersweet too.

“Even with the Empire, there are people in other places who need help, right? The Magic Tower is still in a state of chaos….”

“…Ah.”

“There are many people in need of help, but there are few who can provide it, so it’s unfortunate. That thought just suddenly crossed my mind.”

“…….”

As silence took the place of my response, Lucia uneasily chuckled.

“Was that too much?”

“…….”

Lucia, as always, asked with a gentle smile.

Yet at that moment, I found it difficult to look directly into her face.

So, I said nothing.

It was an awkward silence.

*

Employees dispatched abroad with a diplomat status from the Information Agency become objects of envy.

Once one becomes a diplomat, they are granted immunity and do not face criminal prosecution in the host country. Whether they commit a DUI, get caught speeding, or end up spying, it just results in expulsion — that’s the end of it.

Even excluding such grim reasons, just the status of being a diplomat is cool enough that the competition for selecting diplomats from among information officers is always fierce. Except for the regions of Africa and the Middle East, that is. There, they are considered undesirable posts due to a lack of labor and underdeveloped infrastructure.

Nonetheless, there’s a reason to envy employees going on dispatch as diplomats.

That’s the advantage of being able to spend their vacation back in the homeland.

“Huh?”

In front of the Abas-Magic Tower warp gate, one of the guys dragging his suitcase through the immigration checkpoint widened his eyes.

“Manager?”

“What? Colonel, you’re here?”

I waved at the guys who’d come back home after a long time as I waited for my coffee to arrive.

“Hey, Pippin, Jake, welcome back.”

Pippin and Jake approached, arms loaded with bags. The subordinates who had come back from their vacation greeted me with delighted expressions.

“Whoa! You went on vacation and didn’t get in touch. How did you end up here?”

“When did you get here?”

“About 30 minutes ago. I came to pick you guys up as soon as I heard you were on vacation.”

I took out the key that the office had given me and gestured toward the exit of the arrivals hall.

“You’ve put in months of hard work, so let’s have some food.”

With that, I headed to the restaurant with Pippin and Jake, whom I hadn’t seen in a long time.

And there, I unexpectedly encountered someone I never wanted to see again.

 

---