9th Grade Civil Servant In Another World Chapter 91 - The Clown (4)

“Why me, of all people?”

“How could I possibly guess His Excellency’s thoughts?”

To Lieutenant Colonel Johann Werner’s question, his superior Lieutenant General Leon Kaiser replied with his characteristically cheerful tone.

Lüdelheim District 1, the Ossel headquarters disguised as a garbage dump. Beautiful melodies flowed through the top-floor office.

The concerto streaming from the gramophone was light and lively, as if reflecting the lieutenant general’s mood.

“Ferint seems hard to trust. There’s no organization more loyal to His Excellency than our Ossel, after all. Isn’t that right, Lorenz?”

Lieutenant General Kaiser’s adjutant, Major Fabian Lorenz, who stood like a statue some distance from the desk, gave a slight nod. The lieutenant general paid no attention to that insolent gesture.

‘What a tasteless joke.’

Johann sneered to himself.

Lieutenant General Kaiser had seized the opportunity when the White Raven Order attacked Ossel headquarters to kill all his subordinates who had been acting as the Supreme Leader’s eyes and ears.

Despite all his efforts to hide it, it was only a year and six months ago that Johann’s tip-off had finally put him on a leash to the Supreme Leader.

Yet he talked about loyalty…

“And as for why His Excellency chose you instead of me, the head of Ossel—don’t you know better than anyone?”

Johann saluted and left.

As he moved away from the garbage dump and entered District 1’s downtown area, the atmosphere was ominous beyond description.

The sun was setting and sparkling lights were beginning to flicker on one by one. The unsettled air and wary glances pervading the beautiful streets.

“The Cortana government has released the results of their internal investigation! Check the evening papers for detailed coverage!”

When the newsboy raised his voice, passersby rushed over to buy newspapers.

January 1st.

As soon as the new year opened, tremendous news had struck Schufaben.

The border had been invaded. Naturally, the entire country was buzzing like a disturbed beehive.

The 1st Battalion under the 22nd Infantry Regiment under the 36th Infantry Division was an insignificant small border unit.

But there, the battalion commander ‘hero’ Lucas Redan and ten royal-born majors who followed him had been attacked by suspicious soldiers.

Nine majors died on the spot, Lucas Redan was stabbed in the chest with a sword but barely survived, while Major Appel Damier and Captain Alina Himmel suffered minor injuries.

They hadn’t gone down without a fight. At the scene, the bodies of attackers bearing gunshot wounds were discovered, all wearing Cortana military uniforms.

The Schufaben government immediately protested, but Cortana countered that they knew nothing about the matter.

The government was magically preserving the victims and the attackers’ bodies, and signs pointed to fierce debates among continental nations over the investigation.

Though only a week had passed, the continent was stirring with chaos.

War might break out.

Everyone felt it.

Johann passed by people huddled around newspapers, murmuring among themselves.

On the front page was a large photo of Lucas Redan, bloodied as expected. A photo that appeared without fail every day.

The newspapers condemned Cortana with provocative and inflammatory language, heightening the sense of crisis.

They emphasized the horrific condition of the surviving Lucas Redan more than the dead majors.

According to the articles, Lucas Redan’s external wounds had all healed, but he had fallen into a coma from shock.

The reporters spouted nonsense about how he had been an ‘exemplary,’ ‘sincere,’ and ‘loyal’ officer throughout his military service.

Photos were published of battalion soldiers who had trusted and followed him, weeping upon hearing the news.

People loved and sympathized with Lucas Redan.

Even now, crowds praying for his recovery were gathering in front of the Cortana embassy, holding all-night vigils.

“Cortana, return our hero!”

“Return him! Return him!”

“Cortana, apologize for your atrocity!”

“Apologize! Apologize!”

About a hundred people or so.

Considering that cultures like ‘protests’ and ‘sit-ins’ had disappeared more than twenty years ago, it was a tremendous scale. Moreover, the numbers were steadily growing.

The police surrounding the area didn’t disperse the protesters. They simply monitored to prevent violent incidents while distributing bread and water.

It was essentially a government-sponsored demonstration.

‘No different from a religion.’

Johann, riding in a carriage, scoffed as he listened to the protesters’ chants.

The god was Friedrich Kruger, and the cult leader was Lucas Redan.

‘Is this what you wanted? Well played.’

Johann recalled the words Lucas Redan had left him the last time they met before his commission.

“I might die, or nearly die and survive. I’m not sure exactly when it’ll happen. But if such a thing really occurs, it’ll most likely be Kruger’s self-directed drama. He’ll try to use my death as a spark for war. Remember that well.”

To think it would really turn out that way.

‘How far ahead were you looking?’

It was unknowable.

For now, he just needed to proceed as planned.

The carriage stopped.

After three hours of identity verification, body searches, and waiting, Johann headed with dignity toward the imposing airborne fortress casting its shadow.

***

The place where I awakened was a room where all six surfaces—four walls, ceiling, and floor—were painted pure white.

Staring blankly at it made my senses grow dim.

“But for a hospital room, it’s rather small… and there’s no window either.”

It felt more like a solitary cell than a hospital room. I apparently hadn’t been taken to an ordinary hospital.

I put on the plush slippers placed at the foot of the bed and tried opening the door in the nearby wall.

It was a bathroom. The mirror reflected a face that was pale beyond description.

Just as I was about to turn the handle of the other large door that wasn’t the bathroom, it burst open.

“Ah, you’re awake.”

It was a middle-aged woman with a gentle appearance. Wearing a pure white gown, she herded me back to the bed.

“Let me check your condition.”

“Are you a doctor?”

“I’m a magical healer. Now, open your mouth. Give me your hand.”

She muttered incantations while taking my pulse. Something like a cool energy seemed to circulate through my entire body before flowing out. My body trembled involuntarily.

“Fortunately, you’ve improved quite a bit.”

“Y-yes, thank you. You’ve removed the wounds and scars.”

“Don’t mention it. It’s only natural I should do this. His Excellency ordered that your health be restored to perfect condition. He was very worried about you, they said.”

“The Supreme Leader was worried about me…?”

I tilted my head in apparent bewilderment.

“I’m just a simple healer, so I don’t know much, but it’s true that His Excellency specifically instructed us to take special care of Mr. Redan.”

After releasing my wrist and pushing up her wire-rimmed glasses to write something on a chart, she stood up.

“You can relax for now. The wounds have all healed, and there are no signs of infection. Rest a bit. Other healers and doctors will come to do detailed examinations besides me.”

As she turned to leave, I desperately grabbed her sleeve.

“W-wait a moment. Where is this place?”

At that moment, her face as she smiled at me was like a doll’s.

“The Supreme Leader’s residence.”

Click—the door closed, leaving me alone.

I quietly mulled over the healer’s words.

“He ordered them to give me perfect care. And they brought me all the way to his residence and even provided expensive magical treatment.”

A chill ran down my spine.

This place was an enormous prison.

***

Life at the residence was mind-numbingly boring.

An empty room with no newspapers, no radio, no books. There was nothing but a bed and a bathroom.

I would lie there blankly in a daze, then when nurses brought meals, I would only repeat the cycle of cleaning my plate.

I had no appetite, but if I skipped meals too, I felt like I’d really become a complete wreck.

When I received my first meal, I took small portions of the meat, potatoes, and porridge to analyze them, but nothing suspicious seemed to be mixed in.

After some time passed—how long, I wondered—about five doctors and healers swarmed in to draw my blood, measure my height and weight, test my vision, and even collect urine and stool samples.

Everything was done within the white room. I had thought if they took me to an examination room, I could explore the surrounding environment a bit.

More tedious time passed, and they returned to show me the test results.

“All your conditions are good, and there are no signs of illness. However, it seems you’ve experienced malnutrition before, so you should be careful. Can you see? Even now, you’re underweight for your height. You’d better work hard to gain weight.”

A white-haired doctor spoke gently with a soft smile.

“You’ll look much healthier than before on the outside. We used magic to remove even the smallest scars and blemishes. But you mustn’t let your guard down. Even though there are no major problems, you’re constitutionally weak, so you need to be careful.”

No wonder I looked more handsome when I looked in the mirror. To think they’d even remove blemishes.

“So when can I leave?”

“Well. Haven’t you been through quite an ordeal, Mr. Redan? You’ll need to recuperate for a while.”

Damn them. It’s all up to Kruger’s whims. How long is that bastard planning to keep me locked up here?

***

I felt like I was going insane.

Have you ever tried killing time trapped in a pure white room with no stimulation, unable to even see the sun rise and set?
2Everyone I encountered was kind and warm. Doctors, healers, nurses, even the occasional cleaner.

Right, they were smiling machines.

‘So this is how they break your spirit? Or are they testing my mental state? How childish.’

Childish, but an effective method. I had to admit it.

They only smiled and never told me anything important. The only things they mentioned were matters related to my physical condition.

How the outside world was turning, what had happened after I collapsed, even what time it was now, what the weather was like!

Nothing, absolutely nothing! They wouldn’t tell me, so I had to rack my brain frantically and try to get hints from people’s tones or expressions.

All while pretending not to show it, acting like I was mindlessly killing time. Since they were all likely watchers sent by the Supreme Leader.

Days of sleeping, waking, eating, and sleeping again continued.

How many days had passed?

Suddenly a nurse knocked on the door.

“Mr. Redan, sorry to interrupt your meal, but you have a visitor.”

“A visitor? Who would come all the way here…”

The moment I saw the guest who entered bringing in the cold air, I nearly screamed with joy despite myself.

“I came for an investigation.”

Lieutenant Colonel Johann Werner in his black Ossel uniform stood there looking at me with a twisted smile.

***

Johann stood at the foot of the bed, bending over to look down at me.

“You look like you’re about to cry from happiness.”

“What if I am?”

I belatedly realized I was getting teary-eyed and stiffened my face with a serious expression. Then I asked quietly.

“When we first met, how did you subdue me?”

“What?”

“Answer me, Lieutenant Colonel Johann Werner. How did you corner me?”

Johann’s brow twitched.

I had gotten involved with Ossel because of Chief Clerk Emil Hoffman’s tip-off. At that time, Johann knew I was a royal descendant and began surveillance.

Right, his subordinate First Lieutenant Philip Decker had stupidly barged into our White Raven Order meeting and got captured instead. I had taken him hostage and headed to Johann’s house, but Johann easily subdued me…

“I threw a lighter.”

Johann answered lightly.

Back then, Johann had thrown a lighter to distract my attention and twisted my joints. I thought my bones were going to snap.

“Right. And what I proposed to you then? Do you remember that too?”

“What are you playing at?”

“Nothing special, just answer.”

Johann replied in a whisper with cold eyes.

“You said you’d help the White Raven Order grow, then devour it at the right time.”

A long sigh finally escaped my lips. The tension throughout my body released.

“You really are Johann Werner. I was starting to think someone had shape-shifted or something.”

“Not even funny. How many mages with that level of skill do you think exist in the country?”

“At least Kruger probably has some under him. Since this is his palm. But wait, is this really the Supreme Leader’s residence?”

“Feeling anxious?”

Johann sneered.

He looked strangely pleased. Did my cornered state amuse him that much?

“It is the residence. A building far from the main residence where the Supreme Leader primarily lives.”

“That’s a relief. I was worried they were deceiving me and this was some mental hospital. So, why did you come?”

Let’s get to the point.

“I came to investigate the incident. January 1st, when Cortana guards invaded the border and killed Schufaben army officers. Do you remember anything?”