I Was Mistaken for a Great General of War

---

The next morning.

Lucy stopped cold, clutching the doorknob of her personal office at the General Staff Headquarters.

It was supposed to be just another normal workday, but ever since she received the order to “eliminate Captain Daniel Steiner,” everything felt off.

“……”

After a deep breath, Lucy reluctantly opened the door.

There sat Daniel at his desk, reading a newspaper.

Just like any other day.

“Huh? Oh.”

Daniel folded the newspaper upon noticing Lucy’s entrance.

“You’re late today.”

“I’m sorry. I couldn’t sleep well last night…”

“No need to apologize. As long as you’re not too late, it’s fine.”

Daniel placed the newspaper on the edge of the desk and opened a drawer.

“Anyway, I have good news for you today.”

“Good news?”

Daniel pulled out a box from the drawer and placed it on the desk.

Lucy immediately recognized what the box was wrapped in—the Empire’s flag.

As her gaze fixed on the box, Daniel playfully tapped it.

“Congrats! It seems your contributions were recognized in the special promotion assessment.”

Lucy remained unresponsive.

After all, she was planning to kill Daniel today and then leave the Empire.

So getting promoted to lieutenant wouldn’t exactly cause any issues.

‘Look at that.’

Daniel interpreted Lucy’s dull expression differently, secretly smiling.

‘Trying hard to act okay, huh? I bet she’s cursing me inside.’

He understood well the sense of emptiness and anger that arose upon receiving an unwanted promotion.

Thinking Lucy was experiencing the same feelings, Daniel stood up.

“Let me pin your new rank insignia on you myself.”

He unfolded the flag and opened the box, revealing the lieutenant badge.

Walking over with the badge, Daniel personally replaced the insignia on Lucy’s shoulders with the lieutenant badge.

Daniel smiled in satisfaction as he pinned the insignia on her uniform.

“Congratulations on becoming a lieutenant. Now, continue to serve as my aide-de-camp.”

Lucy, who was about to respond automatically, hesitated unconsciously.

Daniel was going to die today.

So there wouldn’t be a ‘from now on’ for him.

“…Aide-de-camp?”

Daniel, curious about her puzzled expression, asked her, and Lucy came to her senses.

“It’s an honor to be promoted early. I will do my best moving forward.”

Daniel nodded vaguely while watching her delayed response.

He noticed she seemed to be hiding something, but he couldn’t just ask outright.

*

After finishing her workday as usual, Lucy began preparing for the assassination.

She not only mapped out the area around Daniel’s residence but also planned the entry and escape routes.

She changed into combat gear, packed bulletproof plates, and even included semi-magic bullets known for being a bargain in case Daniel tried to fight back.

After completing all preparations, Lucy used optical camouflage and set off towards Daniel’s residence at the earliest hours of dawn when there were few people around.

Once she arrived in front of Daniel’s residence, she turned the doorknob gently, but unsurprisingly, it didn’t budge.

Naturally, she knelt down and pulled out a lockpick.

Click—

Hearing the sound of the lock disengaging, Lucy turned the handle and carefully opened the door.

With the door confirmed open, Lucy tucked the lockpick back and stood up.

Taking a deep breath, she entered the room and quickly shut the door behind her.

As she surveyed the living room, she froze.

It was because she could see Daniel’s back as he sat on the sofa.

‘No way…’

Could he have sensed her and stayed awake last night?

She thought it was unlikely, but it was Captain Daniel Steiner she was dealing with.

In a moment of desperation, Lucy withdrew her handgun and slowly approached Daniel.

As she walked towards Daniel, aiming her gun, relief washed over her.

Daniel was leaning back against the sofa with his eyes closed.

His breathing was steady, and he appeared to be in a peaceful sleep.

Releasing a quiet sigh, Lucy pulled out the silencer and attached it to the gun’s muzzle.

Now, she simply had to pull the trigger and eliminate Daniel to escape the Empire.

It was going to be the death of the Empire’s hero, and while they would probably hunt her down as soon as the body was discovered in the morning, she could think about that later.

‘The important thing is…’

To be loyal to Count Kaledra, who had helped her.

So Lucy had to kill Captain Daniel Steiner.

With her finger on the trigger, Lucy held her breath to steady her aim.

Now she just needed to pull the trigger.

But for some reason, her finger wouldn’t budge.

Amid the mysterious hesitation, as the assassination stalled, Lucy noticed something at the edge of her vision.

She reflexively turned her gaze and spotted Daniel’s officer coat draped over the back of the sofa.

A crumpled paper was peeking out from the inside pocket of the coat.

“……”

Curious about the paper, Lucy lowered her gun and checked the inside pocket of the coat.

What she found was a scorched piece of paper and an old photo folded in half.

She first examined the photo.

‘This is…’

A picture of Daniel with the orphans from the monastery.

Young Daniel was smiling in the center, while the kids clung to him like glue, fighting over who could be closest.

If he was popular with the kids, it meant he was probably a good person.

While observing Daniel’s peaceful side as he slept, Lucy shook her head.

Whether he was a good person or not had no bearing on her mission.

Turning the picture over, Lucy unfolded the paper.

As her fingers felt the rough texture of the aged paper, she paused upon reading its content.

『…According to recent documents provided by the United Nations, there appears to be a successful specimen in their experiments.』

‘United Nations?’

Lucy couldn’t believe that the United Nations had conducted bio-experiments.

But what was even more unbelievable was the next sentence.

『At present, it is unique and its magical enhancement exceeds our expectations. As a result, our researchers have respectfully decided to name the upcoming project after this specimen—the Lucy Project.』

The Lucy Project.

According to the document, the subject of the successful bio-experiment conducted by the United Nations was none other than Lucy herself.

Lucy trembled as if refusing to accept reality.

‘That can’t be true.’

The Empire, not the United Nations, conducted the experiments she suffered from.

‘Count Kaledra saved me from the Empire’s human experiments.’

So this document must be a lie.

But for some reason, the paper appeared quite old.

To become this worn, it would have to be exposed to the air for a long time.

It certainly didn’t look like a hastily fabricated document.

In her confusion, Lucy’s gaze landed on Daniel.

She couldn’t understand how Daniel ended up with this paper.

What puzzled her more was Daniel’s attitude—having knowledge of it but choosing not to express any suspicion.

This document might not serve as concrete proof for identifying a spy, but the possibility of doubt was there.

Yet, Daniel treated her as he always had, without a hint of suspicion.

‘On the contrary…’

He even stepped in to protect her when the Security Bureau came investigating.

As memories of that time flashed in Lucy’s mind, her breath hitched.

‘He knew I was a spy…’

Yet Daniel had risked his life to confront the Security Bureau.

Why? Lucy couldn’t understand, no matter how hard she tried.

Amidst all the confusion, Lucy gripped her handgun tightly.

─ Lucy. Those who show no gratitude are no different from beasts. Everything that comes from me except my words is a lie.

Count Kaledra’s words echoed in her head.

‘The contents of the paper are lies.’

So all she had to do was remain loyal to Count Kaledra and the United Nations as usual.

As she aimed her gun at Daniel, Lucy steadied her ragged breathing.

All she had to do was kill Daniel and return to the United Nations.

With her finger on the trigger, she narrowed her eyes sharply.

But she couldn’t pull the trigger.

No idea why, but Daniel’s words echoed in her mind.

─ Just. I was drawn to how beautiful you look today.

No pressure activated her finger to pull the trigger.

─ Don’t put my aide-de-camp in a predicament.

As her chaos intensified, her heart began racing again.

─ If possible, I would love for us to rise high together.

Lucy squeezed her eyes shut, stifling her silent sobs.

As she encountered unprecedented emotions in her memories, her hands trembled lightly.

‘Even if what’s on the paper is a lie…’

It would mean that Daniel had known she was a spy.

But Daniel had never told anyone that she was a spy.

Instead, he went out of his way to save her from the Security Bureau.

Lucy owed a debt of gratitude to Daniel.

And those who show no gratitude are no different from beasts.

Lucy wasn’t a beast, so she simply couldn’t kill Daniel.

Caught in this intense conflict, Lucy ultimately lowered the handgun she held.

Her head throbbed painfully.

In the stillness, breathing heavily, Lucy could sense it.

‘Right now…’

She absolutely couldn’t kill Daniel.

 

---