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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: A Calculated Guess
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"Let's hear your thoughts on this."
Upon arriving at the division headquarters of the outpost with the prisoners, Daniel sent the wounded soldiers to the infirmary and began to settle in.
Having finally caught his breath, Daniel thought to pour himself a glass of officer-issue whiskey to shake off the accumulated fatigue, but the timing wasn't right.
"Captain Daniel Steiner? The Division Commander is calling for you."
Without a moment to rest, Daniel nodded and followed the Division Commander's adjutant to the temporary operations headquarters.
Though the exterior appeared intact, inside, the corridors were littered with stone debris and wood fragments.
It was a stark contrast to the opulent yet orderly corridors of the General Staff Headquarters, which vaguely resembled a hotel.
'Well, they did just drive out the Royal Army that was stationed here and occupied the building…'
He couldn't exactly complain about the lack of cleanliness.
After all, demanding cleanliness on a battlefield where bullets were raining down was akin to madness.
As Daniel walked, taking in the temporary operations headquarters, he finally reached the operations command center on the third floor.
The adjutant knocked, announcing Daniel's arrival, and a voice from within bade them enter.
The adjutant nodded once and opened the door, revealing Major General Felderham seated at the head of a large conference table.
Felderham, a man of such imposing build that the wide table seemed small in comparison, raised his thick eyebrows and fixed his gaze on Daniel.
He was intimidating enough on his own, but arrayed around the conference table were numerous other high-ranking officers.
The lowest-ranking officer present was a Major.
It was safe to say that all the brightest stars of the Division Headquarters were assembled there.
He felt a sudden tightness in his chest.
Heinrich, catching his eye, subtly raised a hand in acknowledgment, but Daniel found it only made him more uncomfortable.
Sighing inwardly, Daniel stepped into the command center and saluted crisply.
"General! I understand you called for me!"
Felderham let out a low chuckle and returned the salute.
"Indeed. I called you to cross-reference the radio operator's report. It states you attacked an enemy supply battalion, killing 135 and capturing 192. Is that accurate?"
Daniel shifted to a relaxed stance, looking straight ahead as he spoke.
"I merely got lucky."
"Enough with the modesty. There's too much here that can't be explained by mere luck. More importantly, Captain Daniel Steiner, have you uncovered the enemy's supply route?"
A supply route? He'd merely intercepted a supply battalion; he didn't know their route.
"My apologies, General. I do not know the route."
"What are the chances of extracting that information by interrogating the supply battalion's commander you captured?"
"After speaking with him, it's clear he's a man of strong resolve. Even under intense interrogation, I believe the chances of him divulging information are low."
Murmurs of disappointment rippled through the room at Daniel's answer.
His reply was, after all, a disappointment to men who were desperate to uncover the enemy's supply route.
Yet, no one present dared to openly criticize Daniel.
His accomplishments shone too brightly to be overshadowed by a few disappointing words.
"I like your honesty. Far better than some of the other staff officers who are all talk."
Felderham glanced around at the officers seated at the table before turning his gaze back to Daniel.
"In that case, Captain Daniel, if you have any theories regarding the enemy's supply route, I'd like to hear them. Even if it's just a guess, it matters not. We must explore every possibility."
All eyes in the room turned to Daniel.
In the heavy silence, Daniel's mind raced.
'Hold on. If I spout some nonsense here…'
It wouldn't just disappoint a single Division Commander; it would leave a terrible impression on every field-grade officer present.
This was a golden opportunity to send his performance evaluation plummeting into the abyss, wasn't it?
There wouldn't be a better chance. Daniel took a deep breath and blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
"An underground tunnel… a subterranean passage, that is."
Murmurs rippled through the command center at the mention of an underground tunnel as the enemy's supply route.
Among them, a Colonel, who appeared to be a regimental commander, furrowed one eyebrow and spoke.
"Hold on, Captain Daniel. Isn't that a bit of a stretch? The distance from where you attacked the supply battalion to Nordia is roughly 58 kilometers. Are you suggesting a tunnel that long exists?"
They seemed unable to fathom a tunnel of such immense length, even if smaller underground passages were conceivable.
He wondered if they'd faint if they knew Vietnamese soldiers had constructed underground tunnels spanning 250 kilometers.
But for those who had never experienced the Vietnam War, such an ultra-long-distance underground tunnel was not just unfamiliar; it was an uncharted, almost mythical, concept.
"It defies common sense to believe a 58-kilometer-long underground tunnel exists!"
"Yet the enemy is receiving supplies without naval or air support. They're breaching our solid encirclement! An underground tunnel would explain everything!"
"No matter how robust our encirclement, there are bound to be gaps. It's far more realistic that they're passing through those."
The officers at the table began to argue, a cacophony of differing opinions.
Daniel, having unintentionally stoked the argument, remained awkwardly silent.
As the voices grew louder, Felderham raised a hand to silence them.
"Enough. Let's hear more from Captain Daniel. Do you have a reason to be so certain the enemy's supply route is an underground tunnel?"
No. But he could fabricate one easily enough.
"The enemy soldiers were all lightly armed. It was as if they never expected to encounter resistance. If they were breaching our encirclement to deliver supplies, they would surely be heavily armed."
"That alone isn't sufficient reason."
"Indeed. However, every single one of the lightly armed enemy soldiers was equipped with a portable flashlight. It was as though they intended to navigate dark spaces quickly."
Flashlights? While it wasn't unusual for a soldier to carry a portable flashlight, they weren't standard issue for the Royal Army's supply units.
"Hmm."
A flicker of surprise crossed Felderham's face, and he tapped the table, prompting Daniel to continue.
"If the enemy truly is using an underground tunnel for supplies, then you must order a search operation immediately. This is a clear opportunity, General."
"And why do you believe that?"
"After subduing the supply battalion, I inspected their equipment. They had radios, but all the batteries had been removed. It appears they were trying to avoid interception."
Everyone present knew that Imperial Intelligence had successfully compromised the Royal Army's communications.
The Royal Army's encryption had been perfectly broken, making them extremely reluctant to use their comms.
So why was this an opportunity? Felderham pondered, and a quiet realization dawned on him.
'The enemy's supply route… it could become our invasion route!'
On the battlefield, countless variables existed, so a day or two of supply delay was common.
Delays of up to a week were not uncommon.
Since the supply battalion had refrained from using their radios, Nordia's Ironclad Division would likely only know the simple message from logistics headquarters: 'Supply support has departed.'
This meant they wouldn't know the supply battalion had been attacked.
If he could exploit this gap, find the underground tunnel, send in the Magical Mobile Army Brigade, and then advance the remainder of the division's forces toward Nordia…?
'…It would fall!'
It was as if the impenetrable fortress of Nordia was falling effortlessly before his very eyes.
The Nordia Ironclad Division, exposed to enemy attack from both within and without, would surely surrender without offering significant resistance.
Felderham shivered at the sheer devilry of the tactic.
Felderham's hands trembled with excitement, but he quickly regained his composure.
'The tactic is perfect. But this is a matter of probability.'
This tactic was only feasible if Daniel Steiner's words proved entirely accurate.
Frankly, he couldn't fully trust the word of a mere captain.
'But…'
It was a gamble worth taking.
"...Very well. Captain Daniel Steiner. I will put my trust in your words this once. I shall order all available personnel, including the reconnaissance battalion, to thoroughly search the vicinity where the enemy supply battalion was located."
"It is an honor to earn your trust, General."
Daniel spoke with a grave expression, though a smile played on his lips inwardly.
'An underground tunnel? Utter nonsense.'
Truth be told, Daniel's opinion was much the same as most of the officers at the table.
Using an ultra-long-distance underground tunnel for supplies defied logic. It was patently absurd.
It was far more realistic that a breach existed somewhere in the encirclement, allowing the enemy to resupply by land.
'Even if, by some remote chance, an underground tunnel did exist…'
Unless the Royal Army were fools, they would have hidden it thoroughly, making it exceedingly difficult to find.
'As a result, I would be the primary cause of confusion within the Imperial Army…'
His performance evaluation would plummet, and he would easily incur the Division Commander's displeasure.
Then he could finally bury his accidental 'competence' under a mountain of 'incompetence'.
Daniel allowed himself a subtle smile at the thought that, with a bit of luck, he might finally be able to shed his uniform.
Felderham, witnessing this, drew a sharp breath.
'He's smiling? Is his conviction in this plan truly that profound?'
Even the most capable staff officers usually fretted about their predictions going awry, yet Daniel was smiling.
And he was doing so while discussing the potential slaughter of the enemy upon the operation's success.
Thanks to this, Felderham felt his impression of Daniel had been utterly transformed.
'An elite staff officer from headquarters? A hero of the establishment?'
A ridiculous sobriquet, truly.
Felderham, his gaze fixed on Daniel, offered a fierce smile.
In Felderham's eyes, Daniel Steiner was a magnificent warrior, hungry for blood.
***
Late into the night.
The Reconnaissance Battalion, under Division Headquarters.
"Are you sure there's an underground tunnel nearby?"
"Don't know. They told us to dig, so we dig. Honestly, I don't believe it, but…"
The reconnaissance soldiers grumbled as they trudged onward.
The headquarters had suddenly ordered them to search the area where the enemy supply battalion was captured, and they'd been scouring the vicinity for six hours already.
But far from finding an underground tunnel, they were struggling to even find animal burrows.
It was just as they were wondering how much longer they had to endure this foolish endeavor.
Thump…
A sound like stepping on metal, not earth, vibrated through his boots.
He glanced down, wondering what it was, but it was obscured by branches and countless leaves, making it impossible to discern what he'd stepped on.
"What is it? Why'd you stop?"
"No. Didn't you hear that? I think I stepped on something. A-a mine, isn't it?"
"What? Damn it! Hold on. Don't move your foot!"
The soldier, rifle slung on his back, knelt and carefully cleared away the branches and leaves around his comrade's foot.
What was revealed, however, was not a mine, but a massive iron door.
The soldiers, stunned for a moment, exchanged glances before cautiously backing away.
"This can't be…"
Reaching a silent consensus, the two men grasped the protruding handle on the iron door and pulled it open.
A pitch-black interior was revealed.
"Flashlight. Turn it on."
The soldier nodded, raised his flashlight, and pressed the power button.
Click—
The beam spread in a fan, illuminating a staircase leading deep underground.
Simultaneously, the soldiers froze, stunned.
There was no mistaking it.
"This is…"
It was the Royal Army's underground tunnel, the very one Division Headquarters had ordered them to find.