EEBT Chapter 14: Pocket Knife

Adeline stared at Alex with a dazed expression for a moment.

 

“…What did you just say?”

 

“So, I bit Naya. Just by hearing this story, it’s clear that someone as powerless as her could easily be exposed to danger.”

 

He spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world, lifting his teacup and sipping the tea. His demeanor was so composed that it almost seemed as though Alex was the master of this room.

 

Adeline only managed to regain her composure after swallowing a sip of tea. She shook her head, denying what Alex had said.

 

“Ah, no. That can’t be. This doesn’t seem right.”

 

As if he had anticipated this reaction, Alex looked at her and asked, “Let’s hear your reasoning. Why do you think it’s not true?”

 

“He’s the Crown Prince, isn’t he? No matter what, he wouldn’t harm his own flesh and blood… especially his own mother…”

 

“…Power blinds people. That’s an undeNayable fact.”

 

“……”

 

“For hundreds of years, the imperial family has shed a lot of blood. Most of it was the blood of noble figures. Well, only about 10% of it remains in the official records.”

 

Adeline’s face was filled with complex emotions. Although the relationship between Sade and the Crown Prince was strained, they had still joined forces when the heroine was in danger. And in the novel, it was clearly stated that it was the ‘first’ time.

 

She pressed her hand to her forehead for a moment, then turned to Alex and asked, “Why… why would he want to kill the Empress?”

 

“He probably wants to directly control the external forces. Through the Draymus Marquisate, which produced the Empress, he can extend his influence into the parliament. The Empress is a kind of… restraint. With the external family under his control, he can wield more power.”

 

Adeline was left speechless by his razor-sharp reasoning.

 

At that moment, Alex stood up and said to her, “It seems today will be the last day I stay at this villa.”

 

“…Why?”

 

“I’ve found a place to stay. It would be impolite to continue imposing on your hospitality, so I plan to leave this afternoon.”

 

His words were so sudden that Adeline also stood up and asked, “So abruptly?”

 

“It’s not abrupt. I’ve been looking for a place to stay for a while now.”

 

“……”

 

“If you truly believe that an incident will occur…”

 

He looked at her and said, “Keep Lake Sergeant—no, Andrei Lake—by your side.”

 

With those words, Alex walked toward the door. As he grasped the doorknob, Adeline asked him, “What kind of person is he?”

 

Alex turned his head slightly and replied, “People often say this: if the cavalry is the legendary sword of myth, and the artillery is the holy sword enshrined in the cathedral, then the non-commissioned officers are the pocket knives.”

 

He smiled faintly.

 

“The blade might be a bit dull, but it’s still usable. Well then.”

 

After saying that, Alex bowed his head slightly and left through the door.

 

As she watched him leave, Adeline recalled the last expression he had shown her.

 

A smile.

 

It was a genuine smile. One without pretense or ulterior motives.

 

* * *

 

“…What was that?”

 

Clack, clack.

 

Inside the swaying carriage, Adeline gazed out the window and muttered to herself.

 

The smile Alex had shown her at the end lingered in her mind, even days later, on the eve of the ball.

 

“What are you talking about?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

 

“Is that so?”

 

Naya responded briefly and then shifted her gaze back to her book. She was always reading something—newspapers, books, magazines. Later, I even felt guilty for taking up her time, so I made sure to create a comfortable space where she could sit and read even if I started a conversation.

 

The things Naya read became stories she shared with me. And I listened to those stories intently.

 

I needed to fill in the gaps and omitted parts of the novel. The intangible safety net in my mind, the belief that the novel’s plot would unfold as written, was slowly unraveling. That’s why I found myself increasingly relying on Naya.

 

“What are you reading about?”

 

When I asked, Naya closed the book for a moment and replied, “A memoir.”

 

“A memoir?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Whose story is it?”

 

“It’s about Marshal Albert de Grivobal Miles, the former Chief of the Army Staff. He was the predecessor to the current Chief of Staff, General Liam Fieldsman.”

 

A name that never appeared in the novel. But that only made me more curious.

 

“Really? How did you end up reading that?”

 

“There was a war where the Rifle Brigade was deployed near the end of Marshal Miles’ tenure as a field commander when he was a lieutenant general. I don’t know if my brother participated in it… but he never talks about his time in the military.”

 

I looked at Naya. The carriage was filled with various forms of entertainment, but none of them interested me. Naya’s stories were both informative and engaging, making them the best option.

 

When I stared at Naya, she seemed to understand what I wanted from my gaze. She closed the book and looked at me.

 

“It might be better if you read it yourself.”

 

“Listening to your retelling is much more enjoyable than reading it myself. It’s not easy to read in a moving carriage anyway.”

 

“I haven’t read much yet, but…”

 

Naya closed her eyes, organizing the story in her mind for a moment, and then began to speak.

 

“Four years ago, there was a battle to capture a fortress in a region called Hoderbil…”

 

—

 

Albert lowered his binoculars. Though he prided himself on having survived countless battlefields, the carnage unfolding before the star-shaped fortress left him deeply shaken.

 

The area outside the fortress walls, the moat, and the slopes were littered with the red uniforms of the army. Soldiers who had been moving in orderly formations just moments ago were now motionless. The barrage of cannon fire from within the fortress had immobilized even the living, binding them to the dead.

 

Soon after, reports from the staff officers, who had received news from the messengers, followed.

 

“The third assault has failed.”

 

“The vanguard has collapsed. We can no longer continue the offensive.”

 

Though many units remained, the troops available for this offensive were limited.

 

A powerful move. A decisive strategy was needed.

 

At that moment, Brigadier General Liam Fieldsman, commander of the Rifle Brigade, raised his hand and proposed an idea.

 

“Send in the Rifle Brigade.”

 

Hearing this, Albert was momentarily tempted.

 

The Rifle Brigade. The light infantry unit trained by Brigadier General Fieldsman had proven itself to be nearly omnipotent. They excelled in skirmishes, defensive battles, and even large-scale engagements.

 

Could they pull it off this time as well?

 

But he resisted the temptation. Sending them all in might secure a victory, but it would leave them unable to handle subsequent battles.

 

In the end, he…

 

—

 

“War stories really aren’t my thing. By the way, was the Rifle Brigade already famous back then?”

 

I raised my hand to stop the story and asked Naya a question. While the story was interesting, the subject matter just didn’t resonate with me.

 

“They were famous, but you could also say they were infamous.”

 

“Why?”

 

“The Rifle Brigade’s light infantry always targeted officers. And back then, most officers were from noble families.”

 

“Isn’t that still the case? I heard about half of them are nobles.”

 

I recalled what the Crown Prince had told me and asked. Naya shook her head and kindly answered my question.

“Nowadays, the doors are open to commoners as well, but back then, unless you achieved something extraordinary, only nobles could serve as officers.”

 

“Ah, I see. But since the Rifle Brigade specifically targeted officers…”

 

“That’s why they became infamous. Officers received special treatment on the battlefield, so the idea of targeting only officers was unimaginable at the time.”

 

Listening to this, I felt like I almost understood what the Crown Prince had meant. Then, a question suddenly crossed my mind.

 

“But why did you choose this story?”

 

Naya looked at me and answered.

 

“Because the Second Prince died during this battle. Because of that, Her Majesty the Empress didn’t appear in social circles for a long time.”

 

At that, a fragmented piece of the novel’s plot that had been buried in my mind began to resurface.

 

The Crown Prince had once told the heroine about his younger brother. He said he felt guilty because his brother had gone to the battlefield in his place and died, which was why he, as the Crown Prince, had later gone to the battlefield.

 

Without thinking, I muttered to myself.

 

“So that’s why… I wonder if we’ll ever know how he died?”

 

When I asked, Naya closed her eyes for a moment, searching her memory, then flipped through the book and found the relevant section.

 

“Ah, it’s here.”

 

Naya turned the book toward me so I could see it clearly. The passage she pointed to caught my eye.

 

[As we entered the inner fortress, the enemy raised white flags and surrendered everywhere. The civilians who had been mobilized by them did the same. This included the families following the soldiers, as well as civilians who had lived in the houses around the fortress and were forced inside due to evacuation orders.

 

However, having lost so many comrades, our troops were consumed by uncontrollable rage. Not just the soldiers, but even the non-commissioned officers who were supposed to control them, and the officers who were supposed to lead them, were the same. Eventually, a one-sided massacre began, triggered by someone’s gunshot.

 

Among the Rifle Brigade, the 1st Battalion, which had been deployed for the siege, was the only unit untouched by this madness. They tried everything to stop the slaughter.

 

Eventually, the reserve forces, alerted by the 1st Battalion’s report, managed to calm the situation, but not before many lives were lost in the chaos.]

 

“Among them was Second Lieutenant Midras Hermann Berg, the Second Prince, who had been serving in the 17th Infantry Regiment, part of the 4th assault force…”

 

“It had a huge impact at the time. The news that he had died in the chaos while trying to stop our own troops from running amok led to all social activities being suspended during the mourning period.”

 

“So that’s what happened…”

 

I nodded, trying to act natural. It felt like the Crown Prince’s story from the novel had been fleshed out a bit more. Then, a conversation I had with the Crown Prince came to mind.

 

*‘If I ever get the chance, I’d like to uncover the truth about my brother’s death.’*

 

The truth.

 

My intuition began to urge me to pay attention to that word.

 

“The truth…”

 

I leaned my head against the window and quietly repeated the word to myself.

 

As I lost myself in thought, the carriage steadily made its way toward the capital.