I Was Mistaken as a Great War Commander

Chapter 76

The Next Morning.

Arriving at the General Staff Headquarters, Lucy paused with her hand on the doorknob of Daniel Steiner’s private office.

It was supposed to be an ordinary workday, but since receiving the order to “eliminate Daniel Steiner,” everything felt strangely alien.

“……”

Lucy, gripping the doorknob unnecessarily long, finally took a deep breath and opened the door.

Inside, Daniel was seated at his desk, reading a newspaper.

It was a sight as ordinary as ever.

“Oh? Ah.”

Noticing Lucy’s arrival, Daniel folded the newspaper.

“You’re here. You’re later than usual today.”

“Apologies, I couldn’t sleep well last night…”

“No need to apologize. As long as you’re not late, it’s fine.”

Daniel folded the newspaper again and placed it on the edge of the desk before opening a drawer.

“By the way, I have good news for you today.”

“…Good news?”

Daniel retrieved a box wrapped in the Imperial flag and placed it on the desk.

Lucy recognized it instantly.

Her gaze locked onto the box, and Daniel tapped it playfully with his fingers.

“Congratulations. It seems your contributions have been acknowledged during the special promotion review.”

Lucy remained silent.

After all, once she killed Daniel today, she would leave the Empire.

Being promoted to lieutenant wouldn’t make a difference in her plans.

‘So, this is how it ends.’

Misinterpreting Lucy’s blank expression, Daniel smirked to himself.

‘She’s trying to act unaffected, but I’m sure she’s cursing me on the inside.’

Daniel knew all too well the frustration and emptiness of receiving an unwanted promotion.

Convinced that Lucy was feeling the same, he rose from his seat.

“I’ll change your insignia myself.”

Unfolding the flag, Daniel opened the box to reveal the lieutenant’s insignia.

He walked over to Lucy and carefully replaced her rank insignia with practiced hands.

Fastening the new insignia on both shoulders of her uniform, Daniel stepped back with a satisfied smile.

“Congratulations on your promotion to lieutenant. Continue to fulfill your duties as my adjutant.”

Lucy instinctively began to respond but hesitated.

Daniel was going to die today.

There would be no “future” for him.

“…Adjutant?”

Finding her silence unusual, Daniel prompted her. Snapping out of her thoughts, Lucy replied, “It’s an honor to be promoted ahead of schedule. I will continue to give my best.”

Daniel stared at her for a moment before nodding vaguely.

It felt like she was hiding something, but he decided not to press the matter.

***

That evening, after completing her daily tasks, Lucy began preparing for the assassination.

She studied the layout of the area surrounding Daniel’s quarters, carefully planning her entry and escape routes.

She changed into combat attire, inserted ballistic plates, and equipped highly expensive anti-magic bullets to counter any retaliation from Daniel Steiner.

Once her preparations were complete, Lucy activated her optical camouflage and waited for the dead of night when the streets were deserted.

Arriving at Daniel’s quarters, Lucy grasped the doorknob and turned it gently, unsurprised to find it locked.

Kneeling naturally, she pulled a lockpick from her pouch and began working on the lock.

Click—

The lock disengaged with a soft sound, and Lucy slowly opened the door.

After pocketing the lockpick, she took a deep breath, stepped inside, and closed the door behind her.

Surveying the living room, Lucy froze.

Sitting on the sofa was Daniel, his back turned to her.

‘No way…’

Had he noticed something and stayed awake?

It seemed unlikely, but this was Daniel Steiner.

Uncertain, Lucy drew her pistol and cautiously approached him.

As she neared, Lucy felt a wave of relief.

From the side, she could see Daniel leaning against the sofa, his eyes closed.

His steady breathing and slightly tilted head suggested he had fallen asleep.

Exhaling softly, Lucy retrieved a silencer from her pouch and attached it to the muzzle of her pistol with practiced efficiency.

Disabling her optical camouflage, Lucy aimed the gun at Daniel’s head.

All she had to do now was pull the trigger, kill him, and escape the Empire.

The moment Daniel’s body was discovered in the morning, the hunt for her would begin. But she would deal with that when it happened.

‘What matters is…’

Lucy reminded herself of the loyalty she owed to Count Kalendra, who had shown her mercy.

For that reason, she had to kill Daniel Steiner.

Placing her finger on the trigger, Lucy held her breath to ensure perfect aim.

It was a simple matter of pulling the trigger now.

But for some reason, her finger refused to move.

Amidst her hesitation, as the assassination dragged on, Lucy became aware of something in the corner of her vision.

Turning her gaze reflexively, she noticed Daniel’s officer’s coat draped over the back of the sofa.

Peeking out from an inner pocket of the coat was a weathered piece of paper.

“……”

Curiosity piqued, Lucy lowered her pistol and reached into the coat pocket.

Inside, she found a piece of paper, scorched at the edges, and an old photograph.

She examined the photograph first.

‘This is…’

It was a picture of Daniel with a group of orphans at a monastery.

A younger Daniel stood smiling in the center, while the children clung to him like barnacles, squabbling amongst themselves.

Being adored by children usually meant someone had a good heart.

Glancing at Daniel’s sleeping profile, Lucy shook her head.

Whether he was a good person or not was irrelevant to her mission.

Flipping the photograph over, she unfolded the paper.

Feeling the coarse texture of aged paper, Lucy began to read its contents.

“...According to recent materials provided by the Allied Nations, a subject from their experiments has shown successful results.”

‘The Allied Nations?’

Lucy couldn’t believe the implication that the Allied Nations had conducted biological experiments.

But what shocked her even more was the next line.

“Currently, it is a one-of-a-kind subject, exhibiting magical enhancements that far exceed expectations. In recognition, our research team has named the upcoming project after this subject: the Lucy Project.”

The Lucy Project.

According to the paper, the name of the subject from the Allied Nations’ successful experiments was none other than Lucy.

Her hands trembled as she struggled to accept this.

‘That’s impossible.’

The experiments had been conducted by the Empire, not the Allied Nations.

‘It was Count Kalendra who saved me from the horrors of the Empire’s human experiments.’

This document had to be a lie.

And yet, the paper appeared genuinely old. Its surface had grown coarse from prolonged exposure to air over many years.

It didn’t resemble a hastily fabricated forgery.

Amidst her confusion, Lucy’s gaze shifted to Daniel.

How had he come into possession of this document?

And why, knowing its contents, had Daniel never shown any sign of it?

The document could have been used to incriminate her as a spy. Yet, Daniel had neither acted suspiciously toward her nor treated her any differently.

On the contrary…

He had intervened to protect her when the Security Bureau launched an investigation.

Recalling that moment, Lucy’s breath trembled.

‘Even though he knew I was a spy…’

Daniel had risked his life to oppose the Security Bureau for her sake.

Why?

Lucy couldn’t make sense of it, no matter how much she tried.

In the midst of her confusion, she gripped her pistol tightly.

? “Lucy. Those who repay kindness with betrayal are no better than beasts. And remember, anything not spoken by me is a lie.”

The words Count Kalendra had often told her echoed in her mind.

‘The contents of this paper are lies.’

All she had to do was continue serving Count Kalendra and the Allied Nations as she always had.

Steadying her erratic breathing, Lucy prepared to pull the trigger.

If she killed Daniel here and returned to the Allied Nations, everything would be over.

Narrowing her eyes, Lucy placed her finger firmly on the trigger.

But she couldn’t bring herself to pull it.

Daniel’s words from the past reverberated in her mind.

? “Just… I thought you looked particularly stunning today.”

Her finger wouldn’t move.

? “Your skin doesn’t smell unpleasant, Lucy. In fact, it’s almost fragrant. There’s no need to rely on luxuries like perfume.”

Lucy bit her lower lip hard.

? “Don’t make things difficult for my adjutant.”

Her breath quickened as her confusion deepened.

? “If possible, I’d like for us to climb to the top together.”

Silent tears welled up in Lucy’s eyes as she clenched them shut.

Overwhelmed by emotions she had never experienced before, her hands trembled slightly.

‘Even if the contents of the paper are false…’

Daniel had known she was a spy.

Yet he had never exposed her and had even risked his life to protect her from the Security Bureau.

Daniel had shown her kindness.

And she had been taught that those who betrayed kindness were no better than beasts.

Lucy was not a beast. She couldn’t bring herself to kill Daniel.

Caught in an intense internal struggle, Lucy finally lowered her pistol.

Her head throbbed as if it were about to split.

Breathing heavily in the silence, Lucy came to a realization.

‘Right now…’

She could never bring herself to kill Daniel Steiner.