I Was Mistaken as a Great War Commander-Chapter 154

Meanwhile, in the Capital Parliament.

Inside the leadership office of the Free Society Party.

“Your Grace, allow me to congratulate you on seizing control of the Capital.”

A young man in a crisp suit handed a cup of coffee to Belvar as he spoke.

His name was Kadem.

He was a member of the Noble Coalition and had become the new party leader of the Free Society Party after Kembel was imprisoned.

Belvar, seated on the sofa, accepted the coffee, and Kadem sat down across from him.

“It’s reassuring to see everything going according to plan. As expected of Duke Belvar. Lately, I find myself ever more certain that siding with you was the right decision.”

Belvar frowned at Kadem’s sycophantic tone.

“Don’t be so reckless. This isn’t the time to celebrate victory.”

“You mean to say caution never hurts. Understood. More importantly, I heard Your Grace has confined Her Majesty to the topmost level of the Imperial Palace. What are your plans moving forward?”

“Officially, it’s been stated that Her Majesty the Empress is resting, having been deeply shocked by the passing of the late Emperor. The Imperial Daily has already published the article and is spreading it.”

“Hmm. A way to buy time, in other words.”

“Seizing control of the Capital doesn’t mean we’ve secured control of the military. We must make the first move before outsiders realize the situation here and mount any resistance.”

Glancing around unnecessarily, Kadem lowered his voice.

“By first move, you mean?”

“There will be a large-scale reshuffling of personnel. We must neutralize the pro-Empress generals to prevent any unexpected accidents.”

“I see. And after that...”

“I’ll make an official announcement that I’m assuming the role of regent until Her Majesty recovers from the shock and regains full mental clarity.”

Hearing the plan, Kadem began to understand why Belvar had sought him out.

“Then I am to assist in pacifying the people?”

“Yes. The moment I declare myself regent, public dissatisfaction will rise sharply. Especially in the Capital, where most of the citizens support Selvia. To suppress that unrest, I’ll promise a tax cut.”

Promising tax cuts in the middle ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) of a war was, in effect, no different from weakening the military.

That was because most of the tax revenue was being funneled into the production and supply of military goods.

However, for the increasingly burdened public, Belvar’s promise of reduced taxes would certainly be received positively.

After all, people tended to focus on short-sighted personal gain.

“Once public dissatisfaction has subsided, you’ll step up to represent the Noble Coalition. Assert that it’s only right for me to act as regent—and repeatedly emphasize that the Coalition is pushing for reforms solely for the benefit of the people.”

“Of course. And after the tax cuts, we can incite them with something like: ‘The taxes could’ve been lowered before, but the Empress didn’t do it! She never cared for the people!’—something along those lines.”

“Good. You’re catching on quickly. Once we’ve gained a significant portion of the public’s support...”

A faint glint of realization flickered across Kadem’s lips, forming a smile.

“A republic. If everything goes well, we might even depose the Empress and declare a republic.”

“It’s a distant future, but not an impossible one.”

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“As expected of Duke Belvar. My humble brain can hardly keep up with yours.”

Hearing the flattery, Belvar clicked his tongue once and stood up from his seat.

He had shared the general outline of the plan—there was nothing more to discuss.

“When the time comes, I’ll give the signal to act. Until then, make sure the parliament members and party affiliates are properly managed.”

“Of course.”

Kadem rose somewhat awkwardly and gave a respectful bow.

Belvar, silently watching him for a moment, turned and exited the office.

He walked through the halls of Parliament until he reached the entrance—where he abruptly stopped.

Deputy Director Pelliston of the Security Bureau was waiting for him at the entrance.

Restless and fidgeting, Pelliston immediately approached and bowed when he spotted Belvar.

“Duke Belvar.”

“...What is it?”

Lifting his head, Pelliston hesitated briefly before speaking.

“The Allied 12th Armored Division’s surprise attack has failed.”

At his words, Belvar quickly glanced around.

After confirming that no one was within earshot, he lowered his voice.

“What do you mean, it failed? Why?”

“I’ve been told that Daniel Steiner anticipated the enemy ambush and secured a retreat route. Because he held the escape path, the main force was able to pull out swiftly, and the Empire’s 7th Armored Division reportedly suffered minimal losses.”

“What?”

The fact that he’d anticipated the ambush was absurd enough—but to hear that he’d escaped unscathed made Belvar’s head throb.

To him, the continued survival of Daniel Steiner was a worse blow than any other setback.

Belvar glared at Pelliston.

“Make sure that bastard can’t leave the front.”

“But how...?”

“I don’t care if you forge a royal decree or whatever—just block him somehow! If that son of a bitch starts getting ideas, everything could unravel!”

Belvar barked the order, but there was a slight tremble in his voice.

Pelliston, watching the faint traces of fear flicker across Belvar’s face, bowed deeply.

“It will be done as you command.”

After all, for Pelliston, there was no other option.

****

After hearing from Intelligence Officer Phelp that the Division Commander was dead, Daniel headed to the command tent.

It was to cross-check whether what Phelp had said was true.

When Daniel, walking briskly, stepped into the command tent, all the officers seated at the long table rose to their feet.

They turned to face Daniel and, as if on cue, bowed their heads.

“Division Commander.”

“We’ve been waiting for you.”

“...Your Excellency, Division Commander.”

The hushed voices made it clear—there was no need for cross-verification.

Some of them hadn’t even washed properly; soot from the bombing still clung to their faces.

Daniel scanned the officers’ faces, then moved toward the vacant seat at the head of the tent.

The seat where the Division Commander should have been... was empty.

‘What the hell...’

He hadn’t expected the Division Commander to be killed by the bombing, and the shock still hadn’t faded.

But he couldn’t afford to remain stunned.

Everyone in the tent—the staff officers, the unit commanders—were all staring at him.

Daniel, who had noticed the subtle fractures in their expressions, slowly opened his mouth.

“...Before we get to the damage report, there’s one thing I need to make absolutely clear. I believe most of the staff and commanders here already know.”

The cracks on their faces stemmed from distrust.

“I’m talking about the fact that the Imperial Intelligence Bureau fed us false information.”

The distrust originated from the Bureau’s aerial reconnaissance analysis.

The Bureau had clearly reported that the enemy was defending their stronghold—that was the intel passed to the 7th Armored Division.

But when they advanced, there wasn’t a single Allied soldier at the supposed stronghold.

It had been a blatant lie.

“Because we were duped by the Intelligence Bureau’s false report, we walked straight into the enemy’s ambush. What do you think that implies?”

“That those bastards are in bed with the Allies.”

The growling voice belonged to the commander of the armored grenadiers.

Murmurs of agreement spread throughout the room.

Raising his hand to quiet them, Daniel spoke calmly.

“If it’s true the Imperial Intelligence Bureau colluded with the Allied Nations, then this isn’t something we can overlook. Not only did they drive our own troops into a slaughter, they’ve also disgraced Her Majesty the Empress.”

“Then what are we supposed to do?”

“The most straightforward course is to inform Her Majesty directly. But if the Intelligence Bureau is corrupt, it’s unlikely the other departments are clean either.”

Muted grumbling rippled through the room.

The Reconnaissance Battalion Commander, his face grim, opened his mouth.

“Our own side betrayed us, and the enemy’s right in front of us. This time, thanks to the Chief of Staff—no, the Division Commander—we managed to retreat with minimal losses, but we’ll hit a wall soon enough.”

“Damn it! At this rate, we’re all going to die for nothing!”

“Exactly. What’s even worse is, if we end up stranded here, no one will ever know what the Intelligence Bureau did. The damage to the Imperial Army will only grow.”

The murmurs grew louder as unease filled the air.

Daniel, who had been silently watching, came to a conclusion.

This was his opportunity to return to the Capital.

“Someone has to expose the Intelligence Bureau’s crimes.”

As Division Commander, Daniel’s words immediately drew everyone’s attention.

“Now that it’s clear the Bureau has colluded with the Allies, there’s no point in guarding the front lines. They’ll use even more elaborate schemes to destroy our forces from within.”

“In that case...”

“If communications are compromised, someone has to deliver the message in person. But it’s unlikely the Bureau betrayed us alone. There must be a ringleader.”

In Daniel’s eyes, that ringleader was Belvar.

After all, Security Bureau Director Otto had once warned him that “Belvar will bring the storm.”

‘Didn’t think he’d go this far, though...’

Since Belvar had risked everything on this power grab, Daniel had to respond in kind.

“If that ringleader has ties to certain military units, things could get complicated. They’ll try to stop us before we can reach the Capital and speak the truth.”

The armored grenadier commander swallowed hard.

“Then you mean for us to mobilize our own forces and head to the Capital? But if the enemy notices we’ve abandoned the front line, won’t they launch an immediate offensive?”

“They won’t. Remember, the enemy bombed their own stronghold to carry out the ambush. We saw with our own eyes that their defensive and supply facilities were destroyed.”

There is no advance without supply lines.

The Allied Nations would need time to repair their stronghold before launching another offensive.

Even if they forced an advance, the front was too wide, and aside from the 7th Armored Division, Imperial forces were still deployed across various sectors.

Unless the entire Allied force launched a full-scale attack, no single unit could penetrate too far alone.

Doing so would only expose a supply line-less unit to a devastating counterattack.

Moreover, the 7th Armored Division currently held about 3,000 Allied prisoners of war—leverage that could stall any further Allied movements through negotiation.

Having done the math, the unit commanders looked around at each other and began nodding, one by one.

“We’ll follow the Division Commander. If you hadn’t secured the retreat path, my unit and I would’ve died out there anyway.”

“Same here. I’d rather expose those Intelligence Bureau bastards than sit here and rot in isolation.”

“Give us the order. We’re with you, sir.”

As the unit commanders offered their full support, the rest of the staff officers—having no better option—gave their silent approval.

Surrounded by them all, Daniel nodded with a solemn expression.

“As Commander of the 7th Armored Division, I hereby issue this order.”

Taking a short breath, Daniel raised his voice.

“All unit commanders, return to your positions and declare this: We will not stand by and let the Intelligence Bureau—who colluded with the enemy and drove our comrades into slaughter—go unpunished. Not a single traitor who commits insurrection against the Empire will escape judgment!”

As the mood inside the command tent surged, Daniel shouted aloud:

“So convey this to all personnel of the 7th Armored Division—!”

Daniel’s eyes narrowed, sharp and decisive.

“Prepare to turn back. We’re marching on the Capital.”