Despite fighting wars on multiple fronts, the Herse Empire was holding together remarkably well.
Its interior, however, had rotted to the core.
The prolonged wars had exhausted the people and driven them apart.
The empire’s festering interior had gradually fractured into factions that were now fiercely fighting among themselves. Yet because they had to conceal that fact, they were doing something utterly foolish—pouring part of their precious military strength into covering it up.
How rotten did a nation have to be for part of the Central Army to maintain an entire unit devoted solely to cleaning up the higher-ups’ filthy problems?
As that festering rot approached the point of bursting, one man hurried to the higher command.
“Silvio Montese, Commander of the Central Army’s 1st Special Corps, reporting to the Commander!”
“Sit.”
The Central Army Commander glared furiously at the Corps Commander.
The moment he saw Silvio’s face, he remembered the humiliation he had suffered during his meeting with the Director of the Intelligence Bureau.
‘We must resolve the Kyle situation somehow.’
The Director of the Intelligence Bureau had barged in without warning and immediately begun pressuring him.
Although the Central Army Commander ranked slightly lower in the formal hierarchy, he was still the supreme military authority of an entire region.
His face had reddened with rage when the Director questioned him as though reprimanding a subordinate. However, the Director merely continued staring at him with sharp eyes before silently tossing down the intelligence he had brought.
The Commander had wanted to overturn the desk and storm out.
The moment he read the information, however, he had no choice but to fall silent.
He finally understood why the Intelligence Bureau had been forced to concern itself so deeply with a mere lieutenant colonel.
He had risen to the position of Commander himself, so he already knew more about Kyle than what had been publicly revealed.
He knew that Kyle deserved part of the credit for the fact that at least some troops had survived the collapse of the Northern Fortress, which had stood firm for decades.
He even knew that Kyle had borne virtually no responsibility for major disasters such as the catastrophic defeat in the Eastern Grand Battle and the failed Ghost Forest operation.
However, what the Director of the Intelligence Bureau had given him was far more shocking.
It concerned the higher-ups in the central government.
The Central Army Commander had known only that Kyle had made numerous influential figures indebted to him.
Recently, however, the political atmosphere has changed.
The more chaotic the central government became, the more desperately each faction sought to expand its influence.
In that process, Kyle’s value had risen at an astonishing rate.
He knew our shameful secrets, but he also knew those of our enemies.
Furthermore, although his influence was limited, he could still affect the armies fighting on the front lines.
Kyle was not a noble, and bringing him into a faction might shake the firmly established foundations of its existing power.
On the other hand, recruiting Kyle and several other emerging figures could provide an opportunity for that faction to expand.
The problem was that more than one faction had reached the same conclusion.
Kyle’s value had long since surpassed the intelligence he had acquired from cleaning up other people’s messes and the modest influence he wielded over the regional military.
After the Director of the Intelligence Bureau departed, the Central Army Commander had spent the entire night awake, worrying about how to handle Kyle.
Then the idiotic Corps Commander who had allowed the situation to deteriorate this far came to see him of his own accord.
“I have come regarding Lieutenant Colonel Kyle Ripley.”
The Central Army Commander glared at Silvio with undisguised fury.
“Why are you only reporting this to me now?”
The news that Kyle had submitted his discharge application had already spread throughout the military.
Why had Silvio waited until now to request a personal meeting?
The Commander might now spend most of his time sitting in an office and receiving reports, but he had once been a formidable warrior on the front lines.
No one without genuine ability could ever rise to the position of Commander.
Connections and school ties could carry a person only so far.
His unrestrained killing intent constricted Silvio like an iron grip.
Sweating profusely, the Corps Commander hurriedly handed him the report Kyle had delivered.
“…What is this?”
“Lieutenant Colonel Kyle Ripley brought it to me.”
At Silvio’s answer, the Central Army Commander unconsciously stopped his hand before it reached the report.
In the end, however, he read it.
He immediately regretted doing so.
The report contained information Kyle had retained as insurance against unforeseen circumstances.
The higher-ups had probably suspected that Kyle might have compiled something like this.
However, they had never pressured him over it because Kyle had never attempted to use the information.
An unspoken trust had formed between them.
That trust had only deepened over the years as Kyle continued resolving the higher-ups’ dirty problems without exploiting what he learned.
The information accumulated through years of that trust had now passed through the Corps Commander’s hands and landed in those of the Central Army Commander.
‘I’m fucked.’
The moment he read the report, that was the only thought that entered his mind.
“I-Is this all of it?”
“No. He said he would compile all the information held by his subordinates and submit another report.”
“Surely he does not also possess…evidence…….”
“I believed it was necessary to report this to you as quickly as possible, so I have not yet been able to confirm that. My apologies.”
The Central Army Commander’s expression twisted.
Silvio was disguising his actions as loyalty, but what he truly meant was simple.
‘I’m not dying alone.’
“For now…return this to Lieutenant Colonel Kyle.”
The Corps Commander understood that the Commander intended to pretend he had never seen the report and dump it onto whoever took over Unit 6.
He nodded faintly.
The moment he received the order, Silvio headed toward Unit 6, where Kyle was located.
However, he was already too late.
“I have reported everything concerning that matter to the Corps Commander. Direct all future inquiries to him.”
“…Pardon?”
Kyle said he had used the handover process as an opportunity to report everything he knew to the Corps Commander.
“Tell them not to worry. I reported it only to the Corps Commander.”
“…Yes, sir.”
Kyle spoke with a smile, but the person listening interpreted his words differently.
‘Do not dump your garbage on me anymore. Touch me, and you die.’
Naturally, Kyle’s additional statement that he had not yet submitted everything because he was still compiling the information sounded like a threat as well.
Like any man approaching discharge, Kyle intended to spend his remaining service dumping all the dirty cleanup work onto others and living comfortably.
He also planned to scrape together every unused day of leave he had accumulated and take an extended vacation.
Until then, he would concentrate solely on the handover.
The Corps Commander hurried to see him.
“Loyalty! Corps Commander, what brings you here……?”
“Keep this report for now. Submit everything together at a later date.”
“Yes, sir. Loyalty!”
Kyle clicked his tongue as he watched the Corps Commander return to his office after receiving his salute.
It was already too late.
To prevent himself from being harassed even after his discharge, Kyle had begun taking action the instant he reported the information to Silvio.
By now, the higher-ups would know that information concerning their disgraceful secrets had reached the upper command.
Even if the Corps Commander returned the report now, it would not change the fact that he was fucked.
Kyle had spent twenty years working like a dog.
Was it not only fair that he live the remainder of his life in peace?
The other members of Unit 6 felt the same way.
Most of them had spent nearly their entire military careers being worked to the bone on the front lines.
Even after arriving in the central region, they had lived by cleaning up other people’s messes.
They wanted to live comfortably for once.
In fact, of all the people Kyle had once commanded, those who had not followed him to the central region were still earning distinction on the front lines.
When Kyle had first commanded them, they had possessed no power and could do nothing but work like dogs.
Things were different now.
The strength they had accumulated over the years was bringing them authority and influence.
Of course, several of Kyle’s subordinates occasionally said things like this.
‘Contact them, even now, and borrow their strength.’
‘At the very least, clear your name before leaving the military, Lieutenant Colonel.’
They wanted revenge for the false accusations unfairly attached to his name and all the unreasonable treatment he had endured.
How could his subordinates not feel that way?
Kyle, however, was exhausted.
To take revenge, he would have to plunge into another vicious struggle.
There was no guarantee that he would succeed, and even if his name were cleared, he could not know what they might demand from him in return.
Compared to that, simply leaving the military cleanly was far more peaceful.
Most of Kyle’s subordinates understood his reasoning and abandoned the idea without further argument.
Naturally, their decision was also supported by the money they had secretly accumulated.
‘I may not have been promoted, but that does not mean I’m poor!’
Unit 6 had been buried in the Special Corps as though it had been exiled.
Even so, Kyle had received substantial gratuities for cleaning up other people’s filthy affairs.
Whenever his promotions were blocked, he had also been paid generous sums under the pretext of special reward bonuses.
He had hidden all of it as secret funds, and some had already been deposited in banks across three different countries.
With more than enough money secured for the future, Kyle could decide to leave the military far more comfortably than most soldiers.
Once he became a man who had given up everything and was merely waiting for discharge, the world felt remarkably peaceful.
“Oh… You’re here?”
“Yes.”
Coutinho slipped into the office after completing the day’s handover work.
Kyle welcomed him with a smile and pulled out a bottle of alcohol he had secretly hidden away.
“Is this all right?”
“What does it matter? It is almost time to leave anyway.”
“Ah…….”
It was something they had avoided in the past out of fear that someone might use it against them.
Now, they no longer cared.
“Ah! That is good.”
“Isn’t it?”
It was only cheap alcohol accompanied by dried meat, but the surroundings made all the difference.
Both men were already intoxicated by the unique pleasure of drinking while shirking their duties during working hours.
Parshu and Korn entered soon afterward.
When they saw what was happening, they sat nearby as though eager to join and helped themselves to Kyle’s alcohol.
“What will you do after leaving the military?”
Kyle pondered Coutinho’s question.
Coutinho’s appearance clearly revealed his immigrant background.
Kyle had considered the question carefully after submitting his discharge application, but he still could not think of anything he immediately wanted to do.
“I am not sure… I think I will start by doing something like fishing and take my time deciding.”
“Well, we have certainly had enough of mountains.”
From the north to the east, they had seen more mountains and forests than they ever wanted.
Understanding Kyle’s feelings, all three men nodded slightly.
“Now that you mention it, I would like to go somewhere by the sea as well.”
“Me too.”
“Hmm… There are many free cities along the coast. Perhaps I should head in that direction too.”
The three spoke as though they intended to follow Kyle.
He shook his head wearily.
“Let us finally go our separate ways.”
The three immediately clung to him as though refusing to accept that.
They did feel some regret about abandoning the military to which they had devoted their lives.
However, the peace of mind provided by ample funds for a fresh start allowed them to prepare for discharge with smiles, unlike most other departing soldiers.
The same was true of the other prospective discharge personnel in Unit 6.
With substantial financial cushions in their pockets, they left work exactly on time for the first time in years, gathering in small groups and heading out to drink together.
“Hah… This is driving me insane.”
From a distance, the Corps Commander watched the members of Unit 6 leave on time and let out a deep sigh.
After speaking with Kyle several times recently, Silvio had concluded that Kyle genuinely wanted to leave the military, at least as far as he could tell.
He did not know what Kyle intended to do afterward.
However, it was obvious that Kyle wanted to escape his current situation.
The result was the behavior now practically shouting, ‘Do not touch me!’
Silvio himself wanted to let Kyle leave quietly.
The question was whether everyone in the upper command would feel the same.
From their perspective, Kyle was an enormous risk.
They would undoubtedly want to keep him in the military somehow so they could continue controlling him.
To outsiders, his actions might also appear to be an open expression of dissatisfaction with the military leadership.
The person most affected by that interpretation would be Silvio himself.
He understood that perfectly, which only made the situation even more maddening.
“Loyalty! Corps Commander! The Security Corps keeps asking whether Unit 6 truly cannot provide support.”
“Yes. They cannot. From now on, ignore every inquiry related to that matter.”
The officer saluted and left.
Pressure would come from the higher-ups, but it could not be helped.
That was still preferable to Kyle causing an incident.
Besides, the Central Army Commander would probably filter out some of the pressure.
“Hah… It may be time for me to step down as well.”
Silvio had stubbornly remained in his position while clinging to a faint hope, but he could no longer continue.
If he stayed any longer, he might be forced to take the blame for everything.
The time had come to take out the thing he had always kept hidden in the back of his mind.
He opened a drawer and removed an envelope that had been tucked away in one corner.