Chapter 321 – 321. The Duke’s First Confusion (3)
– One –
Next day.
The Imperial Army’s 2nd Expeditionary Force was unable to start its march towards the north, and was in deep confusion.
“Did you find any clues about where you were going?”
“Yes that’s right.”
While the soldiers are cleaning up the remains of the camp where they stayed overnight and preparing for the march, the commanders of the imperial army usually hold brief meetings.
That day, it was a briefing to decide in what direction or route, how far to march, which unit would be in the vanguard, and which unit would follow in the rear.
Since the Imperial Army has always been established as a kind of textbook on efficient marching, even the act of marching was often used as a part of training.
They were going to train as usual, marching and forming formations, or flexibly changing to other formations.
The briefing for that was distorted due to someone’s disappearance.
“Is it a well-prepared desertion…”
“But there are too many absurd corners to dismiss simply as desertion. He’s not just a soldier, he’s a lieutenant colonel, and he’s about to be promoted to colonel. What’s wrong with such a person?”
The brigadier’s point was so reasonable that it was difficult for the warden to find words to refute.
At the brigadier’s question, the warden’s eyebrows drew closer.
“Moreover, this is an unfamiliar province with no ties to the missing persons. Not only did you not have the time to look at the topography while stationed for a long time, and it is not a place where geographical information is perfectly grasped, nor is it a barracks you belong to, isn’t it literally riding in a place like this? , Whose cooperation is it that you can completely disappear like this?”
His expression contorted, not from displeasure, but from growing suspicion.
“You seem to have already judged him missing.”
“Yes. This is not a desertion, but rather an accidental disappearance.”
Hearing the conversation between them, Regal was breaking out in a cold sweat.
It was because he had not heard anything about the incident that had occurred the night before through the member of the unit with special abilities who accompanied him as an escort.
In particular, there was no report of Pinot, a person with the ability to see brightly at night because he had the eyes of an owl.
Because with Pinot’s eyesight, whether it was desertion or disappearance, there was no way he couldn’t catch it just because it happened at night.
‘Did they come… ? No, nothing is certain yet.’
Even if there were no secret conversations with the warden, the confusion seemed to delay the advance indefinitely.
Since the operations Regal had prepared had not yet been completed, the delay in itself was a welcome thing.
However, the fact that something that could not grasp the true nature was wandering around, Regal could not help but welcome such a fact.
“Hmm… Did you say that there was no such thing as absurdity or friction between colleagues?”
“Yes. I have personally interviewed his immediate superiors and subordinates, but I heard that his interpersonal relationship went beyond amicable, and he maintained a very close relationship with his colleagues.”
“But let’s talk…”
The small intestine blurs the horse’s tail.
Looking around, I make eye contact with everyone gathered in the commander’s barracks one by one.
They all feigned indifference, but there was a hint of concern and tension in their eyes.
“Even if you accept that the lieutenant colonel is missing as a fait accompli, something seems to be lacking.”
“In what way are you talking?”
The warden nodded and his eyes shone sharply.
“We’ve ordered personnel checks from dawn to squad level and are still trying to figure out the situation, but no additional missing persons have been reported yet. Judging from the fact that no reports have been reported so far, it seems that there are practically no additional missing persons. Do you agree?”
“Yes, General.”
“Assuming your opinion is true, wouldn’t it be that only one lieutenant colonel was missing? And it must be clear that the lieutenant colonel was quietly kidnapped by someone, or secretly murdered and then buried?”
“That’s right.”
“Then, why is the culprit? For what purpose, do you think he kidnapped or murdered the lieutenant colonel and then buried him in secret?”
“Ah, that’s…”
The brigadier evades his words.
It was also because no clear reason came to mind.
“In the Imperial Army, it is common for a lieutenant colonel to serve as a battalion commander commanding hundreds of soldiers or a deputy commander of a brigade, so the missing lieutenant colonel is a high-ranking officer who cannot be compared to one of the common soldiers. But now, the 2nd Expeditionary Force The number reaches 250,000. From an arithmetic point of view, assuming that a battalion commander commands an average of 500 soldiers, it is equivalent to saying that a whopping 500 battalion commanders are now in the 2nd Expeditionary Force. Doesn’t that sound like a designation for this all-too-common?”
“…”
The lieutenant shuts up.
It was a very sharp point that he had to agree with.
“It would be reasonable to assume that kidnapping or assassinating someone is to spread anxiety and fear to the organization to which the target of the crime belongs. How contagious is anxiety likely to be in that organization?”
“Ah… That’s…”
“Of course, if he is a well-known person, the fact that he is missing will have a significant ripple effect. But in reality, how many people in other battalions know him? What’s the difference between you and the old man?”
“…”
The lieutenant is silent for a moment.
Still, as if he had judged that he couldn’t just go on like this, the moment he tried to refute something,
Swoop.
Chuck.
The warden raises his hand to pause his remarks.
He turned to the brigadier general and waved his palms as if telling him to calm down and continued his words.
“I’m not saying we should just move on. If it’s certain that the lieutenant colonel disappeared after being kidnapped by someone, or murdered and then buried, as you said, I’m just saying this to examine the culprit’s abilities and purpose more closely. “
“Ah… I know what you mean.”
When the warden made sure he didn’t mean to dismiss his opinion, the brigadier nodded in agreement.
And he begins to participate in the warden’s worries.
“Out of 250,000 soldiers, there should be enough 20,000 soldiers who keep vigil by simultaneously standing vigil every night.”
“That’s right.”
“Then, the culprit must be someone with great physical abilities. After infiltrating the perimeter of 20,000 soldiers, kidnapping or killing a lieutenant colonel in the middle of an allied camp without showing any signs of popularity, I mean, it’s a secret burial.”
“…!”
Those who hadn’t thought of it this far raise their eyes in surprise.
The brigadier must have thought the same as the warden, but he nodded his head with a serious face and agreed with his words.
“Even without leaving any traces, he finished the crime and leisurely escaped the scene. Then, if the criminal is to be graded as an assassin, there is nothing strange about classifying it as a special grade or higher.”
“I agree. I have seen such a risk, so I said it should not be taken lightly.”
“But let me tell you.”
Gulp.
Someone swallows dry saliva, unable to overcome the tension.
It is because they also began to recognize the seriousness of the situation.
“As I said before, why did a criminal with such great ability target a lieutenant colonel? He must have been aiming for the second-in-command.”
“Ah…”
Everyone’s gaze scans Regal and the warden’s face.
Regal was the commander, and the major was the deputy commander, so it was only natural.
However, for a high-ranking aristocrat, the meaning of such a gaze was too rude.
Those who were in the commander’s barracks suddenly realized the fact and looked around.
“Isn’t that true? There is already one missing person. And if we give up our advance and stay here to look for traces of the missing person, maybe we will find the body of the missing person. And the guard on alert It will be much higher than now. Even if we don’t stay here and immediately advance, it’s only natural that we will be on high alert.”
“So, when everyone is off guard, why did you aim for a halfway field officer instead of aiming for the most optimal target?
“Exactly. Even if the purpose is to warn of the fact that the same will happen if we do not halt our advance, in the end it only serves to demonstrate their inability to stop our advance by normal means. No matter how our Even if the vigilance is severe, interpret it as an expression of confidence that the criminal can break through. If that’s the case, then that confidence should be regarded as nothing more than blackmail or bluffing.”
Although he may be a foolish person who is unilaterally swayed by the senile Regal in terms of politics, it seems clear that he did not rise to the position of warden simply by competing for loyalty.
With only a few facts revealed on the outside, he was analyzing the situation sharply.
As if even Regal was very surprised by it, he pretended to be calmly participating in the meeting on the outside, but he was surprised inside.
“If you look only at the results, wouldn’t it be that you didn’t even get a proper result while provoking the entire expeditionary force in a way that was too inefficient?”
“Umm… Unless suicide is the goal…”
Someone listens to the warden’s words and mumbles.
As if agreeing with his words, many officers nodded their heads.
“Because of such an obscure aspect, I cannot easily agree with the opinion that the lieutenant colonel was kidnapped or assassinated by someone.”
“…I know what you mean.”
The brigadier nodded.
Looking around, the brigadier general also sensed that the atmosphere had tilted a lot toward the director’s opinion.
“As the general said, it seems to be borne in mind that the cause of the disappearance may not be kidnapping or assassination, but desertion.”
“That’s right. At the same time, we should also leave open the possibility that someone else might be involved. Whether it was direct harm to the lieutenant colonel or helping him to disappear, without a third party involved, it would be so perfect. It’s impossible for one person to disappear. It’s not just one or two people, it’s a place where hundreds of thousands of people are gathered. How easy is it to disappear so completely?”
Everyone nods.
“And no matter how outstanding the physical ability of the third party involved in this case is, in the end, it is only a small number. It has no meaning in front of the organizational power of the majority, so we must be more vigilant and take precautions against any possible assassination or raid. You’ll have to prepare for it.”
“Yes, I understand!”
Perhaps the warden’s logical understanding of the situation helped, and the anxiety, confusion, and even tension between them slowly faded.
Around that time, the warden’s eyes turned to Regal.
In the current situation, there seemed to be no reason to slow down the march or to discuss the fact that the church had to wait for the priests to dispatch troops, so they finished the silent agreement with just their gaze.
“Then, I will be stationed here for another day. Today, collect clues and scout the surroundings to get a more accurate picture of the situation. Increase your alertness more than usual, and make sure that there are no additional missing persons.”
“Yes, General!”
Soldiers disperse.
Regal also mixed up with the crowd and left the commander’s barracks.
He was hastily moving his steps towards his bodyguards.
– 2 –
Swoop, swoosh, swoosh.
Whoops, whoops, whoops.
Sureureung.
A woman with long, slender fingers was sharpening a fairly long dagger on a whetstone.
To her left was a pile of blunt daggers, and to her right were sharp-edged daggers neatly placed.
Chew.
Tick, drop, drop.
Dip the blade in water,
Struck, Struck, Struck, Struck.
Evil, evil, evil, evil.
With the blade laid at an angle, carefully sharpen on the whetstone and grind again.
There was a rotary whetstone by her side, but she seemed to prefer the flat whetstone more than that.
And there were women watching her work.
As if she wasn’t bored, she watched the work that continued for several hours and quietly waited by her side for the sharpening work to be finished.
“Estras sister, that-“
“Because this tastes better~♬”
“Ah… Are you reading the inside now?”
“I knew very well what Margarita unnie would be curious about from me~♬”
“Ah, cha-am. Hmmm… Why are you embarrassing?”
They were Estrus and Margarita.
Of course, it was Estrus who set the blade, and Margarita who watched.
However, Margarita’s eyesight was toward Estrus, but what she actually saw, no, sensed, was farther away than that.
Could it be because of continuous long-distance sensing?
Margarita’s face was covered with a deep tiredness that could not be hidden.
“Hee hee~♬ Isn’t there nothing to be ashamed of now?
“No, no! But, this isn’t the time!”
“It’s just a dissatisfaction~♡”
“Sister too, really…”
She really is frustrated, but she won’t be so consumed with her sexuality that she can’t stand it.
Even if she enjoys sex, she knows for sure that survival comes first in order to enjoy it.
However, Margarita was not unaware that Estrus had only told her jokes to soothe the exhausted Margarita and ease her tension.
“By the way~ Brother Jose and Unnie Demosi~ I don’t know if they reached their destination safely~?”
“It arrived well.”
“After Honey dropped off her sister Demosi in her neighborhood, she came back and joined Bennison a little while ago.”
“My baby~ I don’t know if my balls are missing~?”
“Yes…?”
Margarita blinked at Estrus’ sudden words.
Estrus runs her hand through her hair and winks one of her eyes at her.
“If you want to run after two flying people on your own two feet, you shouldn’t have had to run so hard~♬”
“… Seeing that he didn’t collapse while complaining of pain in his groin, he seems to be running fine…”
“Hihi~♡ When you come back later~ You worked hard~ You should suck your balls carefully~♡ If you suck them without washing them~♡ Our own smell will come up~♡”
Hearing Estrus’ words, Margarita’s expression turned to bewilderment.
“That…But wouldn’t it be better to do it after washing…?”
“If we don’t wash it~ Our own unique body odor rises up~? Later, when Jose oppa comes back~ Try it while the two of you are together~♡ If you get addicted to it~ Jose oppa might hate washing up ~?”
Klopp.
Margarita swallows her saliva.
When Benison was the subject, it was an act he was not very reluctant to do, but after replacing the subject with Jose, it seemed that his heart was strangely moved.
“That, that, really, that’s-“
“Yeah~♬ This Estrus is an expert on sex~♬ You can trust her~♡”
Margarita’s face turned bright red.
She too is dyed by Estrus.
“If I’m going to have a quick nap later at night~ I think I’ll have to get some sleep now too~ Margarita unnie~ Get some sleep before nightfall~”
“Um, is that so? But would that be all right? Can I stop hearing about the people who went south? Besides, there are still many knives to be sharpened.”
“Yeah~ It’s okay~♬ These are all extras~? And since everyone else is sleeping~ Let’s sleep together~♡”
As she left those words,
Shashak.
Mungle.
“Aww!”
He hugged Margarita from behind.
It was only natural that her hands moved lustfully, groping her breasts and thighs.
“Shall we sleep together hugging each other after a long time?”
“That that,”
“Shall we~? I knew that~♡”
Before Margarita could even protest,
Shashashashak!
“Kyaaaaagh!”
With Estrus lifting Margarita into her princess hug, she runs toward the bedroom.
Margarita’s screams were not very loud, so she must have been extremely tired or simply babbling.
Estrus resolved to interpret it as the latter.
