In front of headquarters, as if put on display, a black luxury vehicle was parked. The mark of the [Imperial Inspectorate] embedded on its hood stood out with particular clarity.
‘…Wait. The Inspectorate?’
My steps came to an abrupt halt.
Not the Reward Committee or Personnel, but the Inspectorate? A chill ran down my spine.
‘What the hell happened?’
I immediately entered the headquarters building.
The moment I opened the conference room door, my breath caught in my throat. The atmosphere was even colder than I had imagined.
‘Analyze status.’
[Name: Karl von Dietrich]
[Emotion: Surging anger and humiliation, but also helplessness suppressed before the authority of an inspection.]
[Name: Helga von Strauss]
[Emotion: Contempt toward the inspector, anger at her superior being insulted.]
[Name: Seraphina von Reinhardt]
[Status: Sharp vigilance, hostility toward unjust treatment.]
Finally, my gaze turned to the root of all this trouble. Beside the regiment commander’s seat at the head of the table, an unfamiliar officer sat arrogantly.
Glossy pomaded hair, gold-rimmed glasses perched on his nose, and a stiff dress uniform without so much as a speck of dust on it. He reeked of the typical rear-echelon administrative officer, someone far removed from the dust and dirt of the battlefield.
‘Analyze status.’
[Name: Albrecht von Zwinger]
[Race: Human]
[Affiliation: Imperial Inspectorate]
[Rank: Lieutenant Colonel]
[Status: Trying by any means to damage Dietrich’s achievements and turn them into his own accomplishments.]
[Emotion: Disdain and contempt for the bumpkins at the front. Full of arrogance and suspicion.]
As expected. I clicked my tongue inwardly.
“Colonel Dietrich. I respect your long military career. However, the Imperial Inspectorate operates not on respect, but on regulations.”
The regiment commander outranked him, but the [Division Inspection] armband on his left arm gave him authority that transcended rank.
“And according to regulations… regrettably, Colonel, your actions appear to be a clear violation.”
“Watch your tongue, Lieutenant Colonel Zwinger.”
The regiment commander, who had been listening in silence, twitched an eyebrow.
“While you were sipping warm coffee in the capital and pushing a pen, my men were rolling through the mud of the Ashen Forest. Having inspection authority does not give you the right to insult the honor of a field commander, does it?”
Dietrich was not simply taking it lying down. As expected, there was still a presence about him that came from rank and years of service.
“Insult? Nothing of the sort, Colonel. I merely have… a few small questions about the ‘strange parts’ in the report.”
“What strange parts could there possibly be in the report?! Every bit of it was a victory my men achieved through bloodshed!”
The regiment commander’s face flushed red and blue. But Zwinger twisted the corners of his mouth as if finding it laughable.
“Bloodshed, you say? That is… quite strange.”
He picked up a page of the report with his fingers and waved it.
“Only twenty-one killed in action. Sixty-five seriously wounded. For occupying a forest crawling with orcs, isn’t that number a little too modest?”
The regiment numbered roughly several thousand men. Realistically, at least hundreds should have been killed or wounded.
“T-that is…!”
“And look at the ammunition consumption. You drove out a large orc force, and from the Ashen Forest, their own backyard at that, yet you used thirty percent of the usual amount? Was this written properly? Surely you did not simply fire it off on the books and then hand the actual ammunition over to the black market, did you?”
“That is slander, Lieutenant Colonel Zwinger! It was all due to the 7th Regiment’s tactical…!”
“A tactical miracle, you mean. I know.”
Zwinger cut him off.
“But Colonel. Miracles are words that belong in scripture. In the Imperial Army’s administrative system, we have more reasonable terms—embezzlement and false reporting.”
That bastard Zwinger did not want to know the truth right now. He was simply trying to use the authority of the Inspectorate to brand the 7th Regiment as a corrupt organization and turn it into his own achievement.
From his point of view, our miraculous victory was nothing more than a stepping stone for his promotion. He was probably planning to force it into the frame of “false reporting and embezzlement” and report it to the higher-ups.
Why? Because nothing drew attention quite like bringing heroes crashing down.
‘Good grief. I wondered why they ordered us to rest, and it turns out this was the rotten reason.’
Not only the 7th Regiment, but even my own achievements were about to be stolen by that bastard.
“Colonel. This is truly unfortunate.”
Zwinger clicked his tongue.
“I heard that this Ashen Forest subjugation was even scheduled to receive praise from His Majesty the Emperor? And your long-cherished promotion to general must have been right before your eyes.”
At those words, Regiment Commander Dietrich’s eyelids trembled. Zwinger had struck the regiment commander’s reverse scale with perfect accuracy.
“Regrettably, however, now that the Inspectorate has received allegations of serious corruption, all reward procedures will be frozen.”
“…See here, Lieutenant Colonel. Allegations? Nothing has been proven yet!”
Dietrich protested in a suppressed voice.
[Name: Karl von Dietrich]
[Status: Searching for a way to defend himself against an unjust inspection, under extreme stress.]
[Emotion: Fear that if he misses this chance for reward, his military career may be over.]
Reading the regiment commander’s status analysis window, I clicked my tongue inwardly.
The longer the investigation dragged on, the more the regiment commander would miss the timing for promotion. By the time the allegations were finally cleared, the bus would have already left. At that point, whether the 7th Regiment had truly won an overwhelming victory or not would no longer be the important issue.
“I will prove it from now on. Very slowly and meticulously.”
“Grrr… Zwinger!”
The regiment commander, who had been groaning as he stared down at the desk, finally exploded.
“Do you think I don’t know what you’re after? Do I look like a scarecrow with no connections in Central Command? If that’s what you think, you had better steel yourself.”
But Zwinger paid him no mind.
“Heh heh, steel myself? I am merely fulfilling my duty as an inspector.”
He was utterly composed. He clearly believed the board had already been set in his favor.
“And there is no need to… turn red in the face and raise our voices with you, Colonel.”
It was then.
“After all, the truth lies not in documents, but in people.”
Zwinger lightly closed the report he was holding with a smack. Then he slowly turned his gaze toward us officers standing below the platform like a folding screen.
“Rather than a hundred excuses, one confession from the person involved would end this, would it not?”
Adjusting his glasses, he swept his snake-like eyes across the conference room.
“…Because it seems the main character of that report is present here.”
His gaze, which had been roaming around the conference room, fixed on one point. Me.
“Are you… that very Lieutenant Max Jaeger?”
As if he had found a convenient sacrificial lamb to tear into, his fangs flashed.
“The very platoon leader recorded in this absurd false report as having made a ‘decisive tactical contribution’?”
Zwinger descended from the platform and began walking slowly. Each time he passed, the officers of the 7th Regiment swallowed dryly and opened a path.
“Looking at the report, it truly is quite a spectacle. A mere platoon leader destroyed a mortar position, defeated a shamanic altar with a single platoon, blew up an enemy outpost using a conveniently located pile of gunpowder, intercepted Kaldor’s charge through timely command, boldly thwarted an enemy night raid, and even devised the decisive operation that turned Orc Great Chieftain Gromnar’s trap against him…”
At last, he came right up in front of me.
“Tell me honestly, Lieutenant. Did you write this report? Or did the colonel order you to…”
With a fishy smile spread across his face, he opened his mouth.
“…create it?”
He was certain right now. Any victory beyond his common sense was false.
“If you tell the truth even now, I will show consideration to you at least. What power does a company-grade officer have? You must have done it because you were ordered to.”
The air in the conference room froze. The regiment commander’s face reddened as if it would burst.
Sowing discord.
It was a ploy to drive a wedge between the regiment commander and me, then coax me into becoming an internal whistleblower. I could feel the regiment commander’s gaze wavering anxiously.
I pondered for a moment.
‘Which line would be more profitable to take?’
In truth, there was no need to think about it.
What if I sold out the regiment commander here? At best, all I would get would be exemption from a slap-on-the-wrist punishment under the name of consideration. But if I protected the regiment commander and had my achievements recognized? Then, with the title of an imperial hero, the regiment commander’s line would open up a smooth road ahead of me.
There was some risk, but the return was incomparable.
Most of all.
‘Analyze status.’
[Name: Albrecht von Zwinger]
[Status: Convinced that his strategy is perfect, and that this bumpkin officer will tremble in fear and confess.]
[Emotion: Contempt and superiority toward Max Jaeger.]
Tremble in fear?
I swallowed a hollow laugh inwardly.
‘You knocked on the wrong door, you milksop.’
If you really thought about it, the regiment commander was also a snob full of thoughts about using me, but at least he had pride as a commander and respect for me as a fellow field officer.
As for Zwinger, this bastard?
He was the kind of man who would simply use me and throw me away.
Therefore, there was only one thing I had to say.
“I didn’t quite hear you?”
Twitch.
Zwinger’s eyebrow twitched. He looked blank for a moment, as if he could not believe my answer.
“Huh? Are you deaf? Or do you not grasp the reality of the situation?”
“I.”
Staring straight into his eyes, I opened my mouth again.
“Didn’t hear you?”
Zwinger’s face flushed red. Beyond his gold-rimmed glasses, his pupils trembled with humiliation.
“Are you daring to insult an inspector, a mere lieutenant like you!”
Bang!
He slammed his fist down on the table before me. The air in the conference room froze even more solidly than before.
[Skill ‘Indomitable Spirit’ is active.]
[Suppresses unnecessary emotional agitation and guides the most efficient thought process.]
Thump, thump, thump.
My heart was beating with perfect steadiness. My mind was colder than ever, and the intimidation Zwinger was radiating felt utterly pathetic.
“Insult you? Nothing of the sort, Lieutenant Colonel.”
I spoke with the most aggrieved expression I could muster.
‘Charming Speech.’
[Skill ‘Charming Speech (Lv.3)’ has been activated.]