“……Why is this here?”
Sidney’s pupils wavered. Her fingers moved toward the vile object, then came to an abrupt halt.
A shameful toy with a violet jewel embedded at its tip. The anal plug she had defiantly inserted back on the train.
It seemed she had taken it with her, too preoccupied with hastily disguising her identity and fleeing to even think of removing it.
‘Status Analysis.’
[Name: Sidney Wellesley]
[Status: Extreme embarrassment, trauma triggered, self-loathing]
[Emotions: Insane, I’m insane! Why did I bring that damn thing all the way here! That devil of a man……!]
Sidney’s face, reflected in the mirror, flushed bright red. With trembling hands, she picked it up.
*Crunch.*
And with the sound of grinding teeth, she flung it into the trash can in the corner of the room.
‘Throwing it away won’t make it disappear, though.’
I let out a scoff.
Sidney, looking disgusted, went into the bathroom, washed her hands, and showered her body. And I, after observing for an appropriate while, ended [Vision Sharing].
[Skill ‘Vision Sharing (Lv.1)’ has ended.]
*
Meanwhile, in a temporary treatment room at the Elancia Central Hospital.
“Three hours have passed since antibiotic administration. Most patients’ body temperatures have dropped to normal levels, and dehydration symptoms are now under control.”
“That’s a relief. Make sure to thoroughly check the distribution for the outdoor tents so we don’t run short on IV packs.”
“Understood, Captain!”
Captain Elise von Kleist signed a chart as she received the medic’s report.
The central hospital, a scene of hell just a few days ago, was gradually regaining stability.
They had narrowly overcome the revolutionary army’s horrific terror attack and the epidemic crisis that nearly followed in its wake. All thanks to the massive quantity of medicine and water purifiers Max had prepared.
‘In the end, things proceeded exactly as he planned.’
Even while collapsing from overload, the arrangements he left behind miraculously saved the entire city.
‘Tactics, diplomacy, and now mana awakening and even medical issues.’
Just where were the limits of Max Jäger? She couldn’t help but think he was a truly remarkable man.
*Knock, knock.*
Just then, there was a knock at the treatment room door.
“Come in.”
Elise raised her head. The person who opened the door and entered was neither a wounded soldier nor a medic.
A sharply tailored uniform and medals. An elderly general exuding a commanding and weighty presence.
“You are working hard, Captain.”
“D-Division Commander?!”
It was the 1st Armored Division Commander, Major General Falkenhaim. A heavy-hitter—the Emperor’s Chief of the Royal Guard and the direct superior of the Jäger Combat Group—had come to the treatment room without any prior notice.
Reflexively, Elise stood and saluted.
“Loyalty! I am Captain Elise von Kleist, medical officer attached to the Jäger Combat Group!”
“At ease, at ease. I didn’t come for formality, so feel free to sit.”
Falkenhaim waved his hand and scanned the interior of the treatment room.
“When I received the report that the cathedral terror attack was causing an epidemic, even I felt a chill run down my spine. But thanks to your dedicated measures and quick response, Captain, we were able to protect not only our division but also the public sentiment in Elancia. I offer my sincere praise as your division commander.”
“Thank you! I merely did what was proper as a medical officer.”
“You are modest. However, the Empire has a law of granting proper rewards to those who have achieved merit.”
Falkenhaim grinned and dropped a bombshell.
“Soon, a field-grade officer’s medal—an Edelweiss blossom—will be adorning your shoulder, Captain. I’ve already submitted the recommendation for your promotion to Major, so you may look forward to it.”
“……Excuse me?!”
Elise’s brown eyes shook violently.
A medical officer, a young captain at that, receiving a special battlefield promotion directly to Major? This was a massive deviation from Imperial Army administrative norms.
Flustered, Elise stammered.
“D-Division Commander. I am honored by your praise, of course, but I merely distributed the supplies Lieutenant Colonel Max Jäger provided and looked after the patients. A promotion to Major is far beyond what I deserve……”
“I know.”
As if he’d expected that, Falkenhaim smiled and cut off Elise’s words.
“Lieutenant Colonel Jäger, that fellow, talked about you until my ears wore out even before he was bedridden.”
“Ah……”
“He said you are the only physician he can trust with his life and an irreplaceable talent who can prevent the medical collapse of Elancia. It’s a rare thing for that devilishly clever brat to evaluate someone so highly and try to keep them by his side.”
Max Jäger had orchestrated her promotion from behind the scenes.
The moment she realized that fact, her heart felt like it dropped into her stomach. No, saying it dropped was an understatement. It was an itchy, strangely warm, and yet somewhat clinging sensation.
‘No… this is….’
Deep down, she knew. That a man of Max Jäger’s caliber wouldn’t do something like this out of simple goodwill.
He was promoting Captain Elise, the only person who knew his fatal secret—whether he had undergone mana awakening—to Major, seeking to completely draw her onto his side, into his line.
‘But….’
Elise didn’t find this blatant political maneuvering unpleasant. Instead, she felt……
her heart pounding.
“More importantly, Captain. When does it seem Lieutenant Colonel Jäger will make a full recovery?”
Falkenhaim shifted the topic with a serious expression.
“His high fever has subsided considerably, and his previously unstable vitals have returned to normal. However, because the initial symptoms were so severe, he needs absolute rest for at least a few more days.”
“Absolute rest…. That’s troubling. Truly troubling.”
Falkenhaim let out a deep sigh and pressed his temples firmly. Seeing this unusual behavior, Elise asked.
“Is there a reason the Lieutenant Colonel needs to wake up quickly?”
It wasn’t that she had the courage to question a division commander, but she felt that if it concerned Max Jäger, she should know what was going on.
‘Because… I am his attending physician.’
“A reason? There certainly is, and more than one. It’s become a huge headache. As you know, Captain, didn’t Lieutenant Colonel Jäger toss that damned ‘Santa Barbara colonial subcontract’ issue onto the diplomatic stage?”
Elise held her breath at the scale of international diplomacy spilling from the division commander’s mouth. For a moment, she wondered if she was allowed to hear this, but Falkenhaim continued without concern.
“Though it was rejected by the United Kingdom’s parliament, precisely because of that, the politics of those islander bastards across the sea have become quite entertaining. Thanks to him, our Imperial Foreign Ministry is now in a quandary over how to handle this.”
“I… see.”
“They say dozens of old diplomats and the minister are racking their brains, but it’s useless. That’s because……”
Falkenhaim paused,
“There is only one man who can design and lead this massive game board.”
Elise sensed immediately who he meant.
‘But… a mere lieutenant colonel?’
A flicker of doubt crossed her mind, but of course, she didn’t contradict the division commander’s words.
“That’s exactly the expression. Wondering if Lieutenant Colonel Max Jäger is truly a figure of that caliber.”
“Ah….”
Having her thoughts seen through, Elise murmured softly.
“But I can state it with certainty.”
Falkenhaim continued,
“Inside that young lieutenant colonel’s head is drawn a vast chessboard, something old generals bound by outdated notions cannot even dare to approach.”
It was an uncommon sight. For the esteemed Captain of the Royal Guard to speak so unguardedly and at his own pace.
“Therefore, Captain Elise, your duty is more crucial than ever. Ensure he recovers perfectly so he can rise from his sickbed as soon as possible.”
At the firm command, Elise had no choice but to state her rank and name forcefully.
“C-Captain Elise! I shall carry out your orders!”
*
The next morning.
After finishing urgent tasks in the ward, Elise was passing by the VIP room that had been set aside for Max.
“Please eat this, Lieutenant Colonel. It’s a stew I simmered myself this morning.”
A familiar voice flowed through the gap in the open door of the hospital room.
Elise stopped in her tracks and glanced inside.
It was Staff Sergeant Hanna Meyer. The usual image of the sprightly adjutant was nowhere to be seen. With her cheeks flushed red, she was scooping hot stew from a thermos and bringing it to Max’s mouth.
“Is it too hot, Hanna?”
“Hoo, I shall blow on it. Ah~ please say ah~”*
Elise narrowed her eyes. From a medical perspective, Hanna’s flushed complexion and dreamy eyes were not due to respect for a superior. It was a typical sign that her sympathetic nervous system was excited and oxytocin was being released.
‘She’s in her prime.’
And that wasn’t all.
“Staff Sergeant Meyer. While nutritional supplementation is good, what the Lieutenant Colonel needs right now is physical rest.”
At some point, Major Serafina had entered and approached Max’s bedside.
“Lieutenant Colonel. How is your energy level… this morning?”
“Uh, Major. Captain Elise said he needs absolute rest for the time being. Overdoing things will delay his recovery!”
Hanna snapped and glared at Serafina, and invisible sparks flew between the two women.
Watching this subtle confrontation, Max just smirked and leaned back against the bed.
Right after that, Captain Erika stormed in, fussed over him cutely for a while, then slammed a rare, top-quality restorative tonic onto the table and left. Frederica also came in and chattered about tanks.
Leaning her back against the hallway wall, Elise quietly exhaled.
‘Everyone is completely bound to him.’
The core forces that moved the Jäger Combat Group, women who were each elite among elites. These proud and strong women were revolving solely around one man named Max Jäger.
Culturally, the Empire is tolerant of polygamy. It’s not a rare thing, especially for capable men like Max.
But instead of jabbing each other out of jealousy or possessiveness, the sight of them maintaining this precarious yet strange balance while orbiting him was astonishing.
‘Just how did it come to this….’
Unconsciously, Elise touched her own lips.
“Hnn…….”
Elise’s pale nape instantly flushed red.
Was it just her imagination that the chocolate she had tasted in her hazy consciousness that night overlapped with this moment? The hot, rigid penis pressing in between her parted lips. The intense male scent that had stabbed deep into her esophagus.
‘Ah, no…. That… that was…!’
She hurriedly shook her head. She was a doctor. That had only been a medical procedure to resolve mana stasis. She tried to grasp the reins of reason by repeating this to herself, but the gustatory pleasure once imprinted wouldn’t easily fade.
The sticky looks Hanna, Serafina, Erika, and Frederica gave Max.
The realization that perhaps she, too, might be looking at him with the same eyes as those women.
Clasping her heated cheeks, Elise gazed out the window.
The streets of Elancia, hit by shelling and swept by riots. Among the collapsed ruins and cracked asphalt, small red spring flowers, unknown when they had bloomed, were poking their heads out.
The wind was still cold, but the sunshine already carried a mingling of the sharp scent of earth and warmth.
Unnoticed, spring was arriving.