Mistaken for a War Hero

Chapter 90 - The Prime Minister of Bellanos Is Afraid

『 TL – Divinity 』

『 PR – Vein 』

The officer was bewildered by Daniel's blatant denial.

'He doesn't know Daniel Steiner?'

Daniel Steiner was the Empire's war hero and the one who caused a global stir with his all-out war speech.

Even in Bellanos, located across the sea, anyone who read the newspaper or listened to the radio would know who Daniel Steiner was.

So, his claim of not knowing him raised suspicions.

'Moreover...'

The man in front of him matched the physique described in the information the officer received from his superiors.

Although his eyes were hidden behind sunglasses, his facial features were identical to the portrait of Daniel Steiner.

The officer looked back and forth between the portrait and Daniel, then spoke with difficulty,

"...If you don't mind, could you take off your sunglasses? I won't bother you any further after I confirm."

Daniel groaned softly.

He had expected this, but the fact that the officer wasn't backing down easily was giving him a headache.

'If I take off my sunglasses, my identity will be exposed. But...'

He thought about it from the officer's perspective.

Could a junior officer arbitrarily detain an ordinary citizen of Bellanos just because he looked similar to someone?

Even if he had the authority, he wouldn't act rashly without permission from his superiors.

'The Empire respects international law.'

If he denied it again, the officer would contact his superiors to request permission for detainment.

Daniel decided to buy time by denying it again and then look for a chance to escape. He raised his hand and said,

"Didn't I tell you?"

He took off his sunglasses and glared at the officer with a chilling gaze.

"That I don't know who he is."

The officer felt a chill as he met Daniel's eyes.

His sharp, wolf-like gaze was identical to the one in the portrait.

Just as he was about to reflexively salute in surprise, a thought stopped him.

'Wait a minute. If he keeps denying it...'

...there must be a reason.

The officer gulped and recalled Daniel's achievements.

The first-class contributor to the Nordia invasion operation.

Holder of the Gugseon Medal, the Empire's 2nd Class Order of National Defense.

Holder of the Golden Cross Medal, the Empire's 1st Class Order of Diplomatic Service.

The youngest field officer.

A key figure in the princess' faction who ended the succession struggle.

The great orator who united the people with his all-out war speech.

The officer, seeing Daniel's impressive list of achievements, couldn't help but feel overwhelmed.

Daniel had accomplished so much in such a short time.

He was truly a genius strategist.

An ordinary person couldn't even begin to fathom his thoughts.

'He must be hiding his identity as part of some grand plan that I don't understand.'

The officer, realizing this, bowed his head instead of saluting.

"I understand, sir. Then I'll be on my way."

He tipped his cap respectfully and turned to leave.

The soldiers also bowed their heads to Daniel and followed the officer out of the inn.

Daniel watched them with a puzzled expression.

'What? He's just leaving?'

Although he couldn't understand the officer's intentions, it wasn't a bad thing.

Relieved, Daniel hurriedly went up the stairs and entered his room.

'I don't have much time. Now is the time to escape. The officer might be gone, but he must still be wary of me.'

The officer would surely report to his superiors that he had found someone who looked identical to Daniel Steiner.

Then, it was easy to predict that someone with higher authority would come looking for him with more soldiers to confirm his identity.

Daniel, thinking that he had to escape the Empire's dragnet before they arrived, turned his gaze towards the window and paused.

"......"

He could see four massive warships waiting in the harbor, beyond the landing ships and supply vessels.

Daniel let out a sigh of disbelief at the sheer size of the fleet, which dwarfed the Tentarbachem harbor.

'They sent this many ships just to find me?'

Daniel, who had expected at most a single warship, felt a sense of dread.

'Are they insane?'

He couldn't understand Sylvia's obsession with him.

Moreover, he didn't think he could escape through that blockade.

═ ⋆★⋆ ═

At dawn, Lowell Tailwis, the Prime Minister of Bellanos, was agonizing in his office.

'Why did the incident have to happen in our territorial waters…?!'

Ever since the Empire's diplomatic vessel was sunk within Bellanos' territory, Lowell hadn't been able to sleep peacefully due to the Empire's demands and statements.

He felt particularly dizzy when he received the notification from the Empire to "open your borders."

Demanding that they open their borders was no different from demanding that they allow the Empire's troops to be stationed in Bellanos.

The notification was unacceptable for a neutral country, but they had no justification to refuse due to the terrorist attack that occurred within Bellanos' territorial waters.

Because of this, the Imperial fleet had entered the port of Tentarbachem without bloodshed and begun their operation.

There was no telling what demands the Empire would make next, now that they had succeeded in stationing their troops.

Fearing this, Lowell had ordered the Military Intelligence Agency to find the person who opened their territorial waters to the terrorists as soon as possible.

He wanted to escape the Empire's influence by quickly finding the culprit and handing them over.

'If the Empire finds the culprit before we do...'

...they might criticize Bellanos' incompetence and demand a list of military personnel, leading to interference in their internal affairs.

Just as Lowell was praying to God with his eyes closed,

Knock, knock—

He opened his eyes at the sound of knocking.

"Come in."

The door to his office opened, and the Director of National Intelligence entered.

The Director, with a tense expression, saluted Prime Minister Lowell and walked to the center of the room.

"Sir, we have succeeded in finding the culprit who colluded with the terrorists. It seems the culprit was Colonel Edvol, commander of the 12th Naval District Defense."

This was good news.

Lowell's face brightened as he clenched his fists.

"That's a relief! How did you find him?"

The Director hesitated for a moment at Lowell's question, then spoke with difficulty,

"I'm afraid it wasn't the Military Intelligence Agency that uncovered the culprit. Edvol came to the Military Intelligence Agency and confessed."

"...He confessed?"

"Yes. Apparently, he visited the Military Intelligence Agency with a distraught expression and confessed to his crime. But there's one strange thing..."

The Director paused for a moment, then continued,

"According to Colonel Edvol, Daniel Steiner's private army visited his home. He begged for his life, saying he was threatened. He was terrified."

Silence fell between the Director and Lowell.

Lowell, his mouth dry, swallowed hard.

"So... it wasn't the Military Intelligence Agency that found the culprit, but Daniel Steiner's private army? And they threatened him and made Colonel Edvol confess?"

"That seems to be the case, sir."

According to the Director, this meant that Daniel Steiner hadn't been hiding after surviving the sinking of the ship.

Disguising his survival with a presumed death, Daniel Steiner was operating in secret in Tentarbachem.

Thinking this far, Lowell's breathing became erratic.

'Don't tell me...'

Lowell knew that his daughter had recently invited a guest to the mansion.

This was because most of the servants in the mansion were his people.

He had been too busy to pay much attention to the news, but now, realizing that Daniel Steiner was not only alive but had also been actively operating, a cold sweat trickled down his back.

Overcome with a sense of foreboding, Lowell hurriedly reached for the phone on his desk.

He picked up the receiver and frantically dialed the number.

After a few rings, a voice answered from the other end,

— Father? Why are you calling at this hour?

It was a sleepy voice, as if she had just woken up.

Lowell, gathering his thoughts, spoke as calmly as possible,

"Lef, listen carefully. I have a question about the man you invited."

— Who? Ah, are you talking about Liberad? He was a decent man. Good sense of humor, too.

"That's not what I'm asking! His appearance... I mean, do you remember what he looked like when you first met him?"

The Empire had investigated the hut after finding Daniel Steiner's uniform on the beach.

More precisely, they had tracked down the owner of the hut.

The owner was an elderly man who lived near the coast. He had a record of the items and clothes he had left in the hut.

The Empire, after receiving the list and cross-checking it, confirmed that a pair of sunglasses, a hat, and some clothes were missing from the hut.

They shared this information with the Bellanos government in real-time, so Lowell knew what Daniel was wearing in Tentarbachem.

Therefore, he was trying to verify if the person who contacted his daughter was indeed Daniel Steiner by checking his appearance.

— Why are you asking that? Are you going to say something about it now? You're the one who allowed it, thinking there wouldn't be any trouble with an illegal immigrant? Just so you know. Anyway, his appearance...

Lef grumbled, then recalled her memory.

— Hmm, well, he was wearing a fedora and sunglasses. And he was wearing shabby cotton clothes, brown on the top and gray on the bottom. It was the kind of outfit an old man would wear, but it strangely suited him. Maybe because he's handsome?

Lowell's hands started to tremble as he listened to Lef's description.

It matched the information he had received from the Empire.

'Daniel Steiner... not only did he search for the culprit on his own, but he also contacted my daughter?'

And she was his illegitimate daughter, whose existence he kept secret from the world.

Unable to understand Daniel's intentions, Lowell was gripped by fear.

As he was desperately trying to hide his fear in the heavy silence, Lef's voice came from the receiver.

— Ah, and what was it again? He asked me to deliver a message to our good-for-nothing father. Oh, I remember now.

Lef imitated Daniel's voice and said,

— You should practice good governance. Or something like that?

Lowell felt his heart sink.

It was clearly a threat directed at him, the Prime Minister.

After a few shaky breaths, Lowell managed to say he understood and slowly put down the receiver.

"We were wrong."

Lowell's eyes were filled with gloom as he hung up the phone.

"Terribly wrong."

He gritted his teeth and couldn't help but sob.

"We weren't up against the Empire..."

His sobs were like the self-reproach of someone who had given up everything.

"Our enemy..."

Clutching his head with his eyes closed, Lowell cried out in anguish,

"It was Daniel Steiner. That Devil all along..."