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"The Central Army Group's advance has halted? Redeploying troops?"
Heiner asked curiously. The officer answered forcefully, still in a calm posture.
“Yes, this is an urgent report that just came in!”
“Wait a minute, troops...”
Heiner abruptly rose from his seat and headed toward the table where a massive map lay. His gaze shifted from the Central Front to the Northern Front, and then from the Northern Front to the Southern Front.
“South...South...? Cheshire Fields?”
He muttered and repeated it again as if confirming it to himself.
“...Cheshire Fields.”
The Führer of Frances had enormous ambitions to take over the Cheshire Fields, the granary of the South.
For him, Cheshire Fields was arguably one of the most important objectives of this invasion of the Padanian mainland.
However, the current situation in the south was turning in Padania's favor. This was in contrast to the central front, where the city was on the verge of being captured.
It seemed that Generalissimo Frances was becoming impatient and was planning to send some of his troops from Army Group Center, which was advancing relatively quickly, to the south.
'What an idiot. Is this our luck?'
If troops were withdrawn, Army Group Central would have to halt its advance. This would give them time to establish a defensive line.
Also, late last night, she received news that Huntingham's mobile force had escaped safely. Everything was going quite well.
Heiner tried to raise one corner of his mouth slightly, but for some reason, it didn't work. He briefly touched the corner of his mouth with his fingertips.
He felt like he forgotten how to smile. He couldn't even pinpoint when it had started. No, if he had to be specific, he would have to go back and ask himself when he first learned how to smile.
“I like you.”
Since when...
“Would you like to date me officially, Mr. Valdemar?”
Heiner consciously stopped thinking. He closed his trembling eyelids, then opened them. He lifted his hand from his mouth and raised his head.
“Convene a meeting immediately.”
"...That's where my mission ended. They were taken to the interrogation room and tortured. For quite a while. Our military is famous for its torture, you know? Haha. They're experts at fabricating facts."
“I was trained as a spy at a military training institute supervised by your father.”
"They say Heiner was the only one who didn't reveal anything. The interrogators thought he was obsessed with some kind of cult. As if enduring this torture guaranteed a ticket to heaven... If it were me, I'd have blown the whistle on heaven and all, wouldn't you?"
"Training, drugs, assault, confinement... every method necessary for training was employed. Your father, pleased with me for graduating at the top of my class, personally recruited me."
"Anyway, the war between Frances and Ratland broke out around that time, and in the chaos, everyone escaped. Honestly, I thought we'd all died before we even reached the border. It was nearly impossible to reach the border in that state."
"But I hated Dietrich and the royal family, so I helped the revolutionaries establish the current government. Approaching you was also part of the plan."
"But later, I checked, and it seems Heiner was the only one who returned to his home country alive. What a miracle, isn't it? How did he manage to return with such a battered body? Seriously. So, I don't know if he ended up getting a ticket to heaven, haha."
Eight years have passed since she first met him in the rose garden. Only now, after all this time, is she finally able to piece together the fragments of his childhood.
Among those pieces, Annette suddenly realized something.
The dry recollections that flowed from him did not reflect even the smallest part of that life.
Annette covered her mouth, her face pale. Hot breath escaped into her palm. Her entire body trembled uncontrollably.
I didn't know.
“Yes... just me. I’m the only one who came back alive.”
How much was contained in his words.
“All my colleagues are on the job...”
What must have been in his mind as he said that?
Annette now understood how pain and suffering dominate human life.
Even if you run away, you can't escape. They're always there, swaying beneath a layer of water. Memories, too, are forever trapped there.
They always move together along the trajectory of life, only sinking down a little as time passes.
At every weak moment in life, it comes up and pulls at my ankles...
“That’s why I asked Miss Rosenberg. Was he happy?”
Annette absentmindedly removed the hand that had been covering her mouth. Then she looked at Elliot. He spoke monotonously.
“I wonder if the place he finally returned to alive was heaven or hell.”
Elliot smiled faintly, holding a long-smoked cigar between his fingers.
"I haven't seen Heiner since. Well, I guess I can't. I have my shame."
"...you..."
"If everyone had just died, we wouldn't have to worry about the aftermath, haha. We wouldn't have to go through all these inconvenient situations, right?"
“How on earth can you do something like that and call him your colleague, your friend...?”
A voice laced with anger leaked out intermittently. Annette glared at Elliot, her shoulders trembling slightly. That shameless man was abhorrent.
“That’s what it is.”
Elliot tossed the cigar roughly to the floor.
"There are people in this world who are born to live like that. People who must live like that. Like Heiner and me... like us."
"Ha."
"And in conclusion, it was Miss Rosenberg's father who didn't send a follow-up unit or attempt a prisoner exchange. He discarded them like old shoes. That's Margrave Dietrich's specialty. Abandoning those who were loyal to him."
“So you are innocent?”
“Well, it’s not that I’m not guilty, it’s that I wasn’t the only one who was an asshole. If you really want to ask about the original sin... well, is it my country to me? But then again, it’s an intangible partner that I can’t blame.”
"Damn it," Elliot muttered. He still had a smiling face, but it was strangely empty inside.
“Stop talking nonsense.”
Annette spoke, her voice choked with repression, but her tone was clear.
"I, too, once thought like you. There are people in this world who are born that way. They're born that way, they're born that way, their circumstances are that way, so what can you do? It's not like I made myself this way."
“...”
“But this is the result. All I have left is my ruined life and the life I ruined.”
The expression on Elliot's face vanished.
"Born that way, you had no choice? Think about it. Did you really have no choice? A choice that would have ruined your life and the lives of others a little less?"
“...That’s not even funny advice.”
“It took me a while to realize that. It might take you longer.”
“There are certainly people who have attempted suicide and then realized the preciousness of life.”
Elliot grumbled, knowing she'd attempted suicide. But his tone was more bitter than humorous.
Annette spoke calmly and without hesitation.
"...If you truly had no choice, you should at least apologize. Of course, everyone's opinions will vary. But at least that's my conclusion."
Elliot didn't answer. The sun shone through, slowly lifting the fog. Silence fell between them for a moment.
He was staring down at his feet, his eyes downcast, as if he was thinking about something. It was a completely different atmosphere from before, when he seemed completely weightless.
“My father’s, Margrave Dietrich’s business.”
Suddenly, Annette opened her mouth.
“If I were qualified... I would like to apologize instead. At least in that regard, you are the victim.”
"...”
"Sorry."
Elliot looked up. His eyes held no emotion. He smiled dryly and shook his head.
"Well. I don't know about other people, but I've never considered you guilty. There are plenty of people worse off than you."
“Still.”
“It’s getting colder. Should we go inside?”
Elliot turned away before she could answer, as if trying to avoid something.
They returned the way they had come in silence. Elliot greeted the soldiers who came to greet him half-heartedly.
As he was approaching the church, he suddenly said:
“Miss Rosenberg, there’s one thing I haven’t told you.”
"... Yes?"
“...”
"He was completely bloodied and sick. I thought he was dead, but he was mumbling something, so I figured he was alive. I wondered what he was saying, so I listened closely. And when I did..."
Elliot looked at her with quiet eyes, his lips moving slowly.
“Annette.”
Her eyes widened.
“He kept calling your name.”
Heiner asked curiously. The officer answered forcefully, still in a calm posture.
“Yes, this is an urgent report that just came in!”
“Wait a minute, troops...”
Heiner abruptly rose from his seat and headed toward the table where a massive map lay. His gaze shifted from the Central Front to the Northern Front, and then from the Northern Front to the Southern Front.
“South...South...? Cheshire Fields?”
He muttered and repeated it again as if confirming it to himself.
“...Cheshire Fields.”
The Führer of Frances had enormous ambitions to take over the Cheshire Fields, the granary of the South.
For him, Cheshire Fields was arguably one of the most important objectives of this invasion of the Padanian mainland.
However, the current situation in the south was turning in Padania's favor. This was in contrast to the central front, where the city was on the verge of being captured.
It seemed that Generalissimo Frances was becoming impatient and was planning to send some of his troops from Army Group Center, which was advancing relatively quickly, to the south.
'What an idiot. Is this our luck?'
If troops were withdrawn, Army Group Central would have to halt its advance. This would give them time to establish a defensive line.
Also, late last night, she received news that Huntingham's mobile force had escaped safely. Everything was going quite well.
Heiner tried to raise one corner of his mouth slightly, but for some reason, it didn't work. He briefly touched the corner of his mouth with his fingertips.
He felt like he forgotten how to smile. He couldn't even pinpoint when it had started. No, if he had to be specific, he would have to go back and ask himself when he first learned how to smile.
“I like you.”
Since when...
“Would you like to date me officially, Mr. Valdemar?”
Heiner consciously stopped thinking. He closed his trembling eyelids, then opened them. He lifted his hand from his mouth and raised his head.
“Convene a meeting immediately.”
***
"...That's where my mission ended. They were taken to the interrogation room and tortured. For quite a while. Our military is famous for its torture, you know? Haha. They're experts at fabricating facts."
“I was trained as a spy at a military training institute supervised by your father.”
"They say Heiner was the only one who didn't reveal anything. The interrogators thought he was obsessed with some kind of cult. As if enduring this torture guaranteed a ticket to heaven... If it were me, I'd have blown the whistle on heaven and all, wouldn't you?"
"Training, drugs, assault, confinement... every method necessary for training was employed. Your father, pleased with me for graduating at the top of my class, personally recruited me."
"Anyway, the war between Frances and Ratland broke out around that time, and in the chaos, everyone escaped. Honestly, I thought we'd all died before we even reached the border. It was nearly impossible to reach the border in that state."
"But I hated Dietrich and the royal family, so I helped the revolutionaries establish the current government. Approaching you was also part of the plan."
"But later, I checked, and it seems Heiner was the only one who returned to his home country alive. What a miracle, isn't it? How did he manage to return with such a battered body? Seriously. So, I don't know if he ended up getting a ticket to heaven, haha."
Eight years have passed since she first met him in the rose garden. Only now, after all this time, is she finally able to piece together the fragments of his childhood.
Among those pieces, Annette suddenly realized something.
The dry recollections that flowed from him did not reflect even the smallest part of that life.
Annette covered her mouth, her face pale. Hot breath escaped into her palm. Her entire body trembled uncontrollably.
I didn't know.
“Yes... just me. I’m the only one who came back alive.”
How much was contained in his words.
“All my colleagues are on the job...”
What must have been in his mind as he said that?
Annette now understood how pain and suffering dominate human life.
Even if you run away, you can't escape. They're always there, swaying beneath a layer of water. Memories, too, are forever trapped there.
They always move together along the trajectory of life, only sinking down a little as time passes.
At every weak moment in life, it comes up and pulls at my ankles...
“That’s why I asked Miss Rosenberg. Was he happy?”
Annette absentmindedly removed the hand that had been covering her mouth. Then she looked at Elliot. He spoke monotonously.
“I wonder if the place he finally returned to alive was heaven or hell.”
Elliot smiled faintly, holding a long-smoked cigar between his fingers.
"I haven't seen Heiner since. Well, I guess I can't. I have my shame."
"...you..."
"If everyone had just died, we wouldn't have to worry about the aftermath, haha. We wouldn't have to go through all these inconvenient situations, right?"
“How on earth can you do something like that and call him your colleague, your friend...?”
A voice laced with anger leaked out intermittently. Annette glared at Elliot, her shoulders trembling slightly. That shameless man was abhorrent.
“That’s what it is.”
Elliot tossed the cigar roughly to the floor.
"There are people in this world who are born to live like that. People who must live like that. Like Heiner and me... like us."
"Ha."
"And in conclusion, it was Miss Rosenberg's father who didn't send a follow-up unit or attempt a prisoner exchange. He discarded them like old shoes. That's Margrave Dietrich's specialty. Abandoning those who were loyal to him."
“So you are innocent?”
“Well, it’s not that I’m not guilty, it’s that I wasn’t the only one who was an asshole. If you really want to ask about the original sin... well, is it my country to me? But then again, it’s an intangible partner that I can’t blame.”
"Damn it," Elliot muttered. He still had a smiling face, but it was strangely empty inside.
“Stop talking nonsense.”
Annette spoke, her voice choked with repression, but her tone was clear.
"I, too, once thought like you. There are people in this world who are born that way. They're born that way, they're born that way, their circumstances are that way, so what can you do? It's not like I made myself this way."
“...”
“But this is the result. All I have left is my ruined life and the life I ruined.”
The expression on Elliot's face vanished.
"Born that way, you had no choice? Think about it. Did you really have no choice? A choice that would have ruined your life and the lives of others a little less?"
“...That’s not even funny advice.”
“It took me a while to realize that. It might take you longer.”
“There are certainly people who have attempted suicide and then realized the preciousness of life.”
Elliot grumbled, knowing she'd attempted suicide. But his tone was more bitter than humorous.
Annette spoke calmly and without hesitation.
"...If you truly had no choice, you should at least apologize. Of course, everyone's opinions will vary. But at least that's my conclusion."
Elliot didn't answer. The sun shone through, slowly lifting the fog. Silence fell between them for a moment.
He was staring down at his feet, his eyes downcast, as if he was thinking about something. It was a completely different atmosphere from before, when he seemed completely weightless.
“My father’s, Margrave Dietrich’s business.”
Suddenly, Annette opened her mouth.
“If I were qualified... I would like to apologize instead. At least in that regard, you are the victim.”
"...”
"Sorry."
Elliot looked up. His eyes held no emotion. He smiled dryly and shook his head.
"Well. I don't know about other people, but I've never considered you guilty. There are plenty of people worse off than you."
“Still.”
“It’s getting colder. Should we go inside?”
Elliot turned away before she could answer, as if trying to avoid something.
They returned the way they had come in silence. Elliot greeted the soldiers who came to greet him half-heartedly.
As he was approaching the church, he suddenly said:
“Miss Rosenberg, there’s one thing I haven’t told you.”
"... Yes?"
"Back then, in the interrogation room, I actually went to see that bastard's solitary confinement cell once. Even though I handed him over myself, I couldn't help but worry about him."
"He was completely bloodied and sick. I thought he was dead, but he was mumbling something, so I figured he was alive. I wondered what he was saying, so I listened closely. And when I did..."
Elliot looked at her with quiet eyes, his lips moving slowly.
“Annette.”
Her eyes widened.
“He kept calling your name.”
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