Chapter 39
It felt like a dream to be promoted to major in an occupied territory.
If I had to classify what kind of dream it was, it was closer to a nightmare.
What was even more horrifying was that the series of events I was going through wasn't even a nightmare.
It was reality.
“Congratulations on your promotion, Major Daniel Steiner.”
Lucy’s voice echoed hollowly inside the office.
“As you know, General Staff Headquarters has entrusted you with the position of temporary garrison commander. Since the Division Commander is leaving the city with his troops, you will now have to manage the city.”
I knew. Looking down through the window of my office, I could see the Armored Division’s tanks and field artillery leaving the city alongside the soldiers.
Heinrich, who had pinned the major’s badge onto me, was also moving with his brigade.
So today was the day they were supposed to join the northern front.
‘Isn’t this a bit much? Handing me the garrison commander’s position on the very day you’re leaving!’
I wanted to protest, but shouting from here would not reach Heinrich anyway.
I let out a sigh without meaning to.
“How many troops did the division leave behind for me?”
“A battalion-sized force. The total troop strength is 950 men.”
The one fortunate thing was that the division had left behind a nearly full-strength battalion.
Nordia was not a particularly large city, so that many troops should be enough to maintain public order.
But that was not the real problem.
‘I inadvertently racked up far too many military achievements.’
As a consequence of the military achievements I had accumulated in such a short time, I had been promoted directly to major.
In other words, I had become a field-grade officer whose authority was incomparably greater than that of a company-grade officer.
This news would reach the Allied nations before long, and I would be branded a ‘key member of the Imperial Army’s leadership.’
It meant that the moment the war was lost, I would be sentenced to death at a war-crimes trial.
‘Then should I bet on the Empire winning?’
No. The odds were far too low.
If the Empire and another nation fought a one-on-one total war, there was no country in this era that could defeat the Empire.
But war was not a fair competition fought in a ring with a referee watching over it.
The fact that the Allied nations had drawn the Kingdom into their alliance was proof enough.
The Empire was now wielding its hammer in fury against the Kingdom for abandoning its neutrality, but what would happen if the Kingdom, struck by that hammer, fell while bleeding profusely?
The great powers would wonder, ‘Could the Empire become the hegemon if this continues?’
Fearing that possibility, they would begin rushing to support the Allied nations.
The most notable examples were the Sochialis Republic in the south and the Beleka Federation in the northeast.
The moment they entered the war, a world war would begin to take shape.
The Empire would suddenly have to face the Republic, the Federation, and the Allied nations on three sides, with the sea as the only exception.
Predicting an Imperial victory in that situation was the mindset of a gambler betting his life on an underdog.
‘The stake is my life. So I need to be careful…….’
Things had become tangled in all sorts of ways, but nothing had changed.
Unless the Empire experienced enough good fortune to reverse the unfavorable course of the war that awaited it, that was.
Realistically, I had no choice but to find some way to escape the Empire.
‘Of course…….’
Now that my name carried weight, I would not be able to seek asylum through ordinary means.
I doubted they would even accept me, and even if they did, they did not seem likely to guarantee my safety.
But if I offered the Allied nations a deal they could not possibly refuse, the story would be different.
“Major?”
I flinched and turned around as I was thinking through the various possibilities in my head.
Lucy was calmly blinking her red eyes as she looked at me.
I had momentarily forgotten that Lucy was a spy for the Allied nations.
Now that I had been promoted to major, the likelihood of assassination seemed to have increased.
As I secretly broke out in a cold sweat from an inexplicable sense of unease, Lucy tilted her head.
“I’m sorry to interrupt your deep thoughts, but I think we should start making plans for the city.”
“Ah. Right.”
After clearing my throat, I clasped my hands behind my back as naturally as possible and spoke.
“Wouldn’t a city plan mainly involve maintaining public order? We can strengthen patrols, focusing on the major streets where crimes occur. As for administration, we can follow the existing customs……”
But I stopped halfway through.
I realized why Lucy had gone out of her way to emphasize city planning.
“……Don’t tell me the administration has collapsed?”
Lucy nodded.
“That’s right. Not only did most of the civil servants escape on fishing boats, but high-ranking officials such as the mayor also fled the war and went into exile.”
“So we need to rebuild the administrative system.”
After thinking for a moment, I spoke.
“Restoring basic public services should be our priority. Release military supplies to distribute food, and bring the remaining doctors back to restore medical services. Maintaining public order will be handled through cooperation between the garrison and the local police. Also……”
I trailed off and hesitated.
Wouldn’t it be better not to diligently carry out the ‘temporary garrison commander’ assignment given to me by General Staff Headquarters?
If they judged me to be highly capable at operations, I might continue being assigned this sort of work at the front.
I already had to endure assassination threats in the capital. Conducting operations in a distant land would be no different from increasing my chances of dying.
‘Then…….’
It might already have been too late, but I should struggle to lower my performance evaluation as much as possible, even now.
Let’s think this through.
If I revived the city’s administration in the wrong way, the citizens’ dissatisfaction would explode, and if that dissatisfaction led to protests or riots, it would be equivalent to exposing my incompetence.
In that case, Headquarters would judge me unfit for the position of garrison commander.
They would appoint a replacement garrison commander and send them here as quickly as possible, shortening the time until I could return to the capital.
I could lower my performance evaluation and return quickly, so it was a win-win situation!
‘Good.’
Having finished thinking, I spoke with a faint smile.
“Select people without regular occupations and assign them military service. A battalion-sized force doesn’t provide enough manpower. If we order them to help the garrison and handle miscellaneous chores, they’ll understand.”
Being forced to serve in the military and help the enemy garrison? Their dissatisfaction would surely explode.
It would not be limited to the people forced into labor; their families and acquaintances would share in their resentment as well.
“Furthermore, we’ll need to reassess the city’s tax rates. What are the existing rates?”
“We don’t know. Perhaps anticipating defeat, the civil servants burned all the relevant documents while fleeing into exile. However, we should be able to determine them to some extent if we conduct a survey.”
“No. There’s no need.”
This was actually for the best.
I could collect taxes however I pleased.
“From now on, impose an income tax of 30% on Nordia’s citizens under the pretext that we need to raise funds for the war. For high-income earners, levy up to 50%.”
The Empire’s current basic income tax for workers was 22%.
That was low considering the ongoing war, but when one considered that it had originally been only 12%, it was already quite high.
Naturally, even within the Empire, complaints about the increased tax rate had begun to trickle out.
But setting Nordia’s basic income tax at 30%, clearly higher than the Empire’s rate? The complaints would naturally explode.
“Furthermore, post a recruitment notice to hire capable people to fill the shortage of administrative personnel. However, select them according to Imperial standards, not the Kingdom’s.”
Eliminate the Kingdom’s existing practices from the civil service selection process.
It was essentially a form of cultural oppression.
This, too, would be more than enough to provoke the Kingdom’s citizens.
After hearing everything I had said, Lucy gave a light salute.
“I’ll convey your instructions immediately.”
After returning her salute, I turned around and looked out the window once more.
The Empire’s Magic Armored Division was almost completely out of the city.
I could see citizens who had come out into the streets, watching the sight with indescribable emotions.
Seeing the citizens made me feel somewhat sorry for them.
‘I’m sorry, people of the Kingdom. Life is going to become a little harder from now on.’
But there was no malice behind it.
I had done this only because I wanted to survive.
*
Late at night.
The secret society Black Swan Council, in the basement of a bar.
“As you all know, Nordia has fallen into the hands of those Imperial bastards.”
Everyone solemnly nodded at the middle-aged man seated at the head of the table.
Hamtal, the dark-skinned leader of the Black Swan, continued speaking in the somber atmosphere.
“It’s already been ten years since we began fighting for freedom and equality. We’ve been through countless things in that time, but I believe this is the first time any of us has experienced the pain of losing a city to war.”
Hamtal slammed his fist against the table.
“But we haven’t given up on the city yet! If we eliminate that vicious Daniel Steiner, we may be able to take the city back! Am I wrong?”
“That’s right!” Voices of agreement rose from all around the room.
Hamtal was watching their resolve with satisfaction when he turned toward the sound of the door bursting open.
It was Tarki, a young man who served as an informant for the secret society Black Swan.
He was holding a bundle of documents.
“Comrades of the resistance! The garrison has announced its plans for the city today!”
“So that bastard finally……! Let’s hear it.”
It was only to be expected that the garrison commander would run the city as he pleased.
As groans arose from all around, Tarki looked down at the documents in his hands and spoke.
“F-first of all, they say they’re imposing military service on the unemployed.”
“They expect us to work for the Empire! Outrageous! How are the citizens reacting?”
“Uh…… The reaction isn’t bad. They say they’ll pay proper wages, and since they’re using Imperial standards, it comes to about twice the average worker’s wage when converted. There are so many applicants that they’re flooding in.”
They would pay proper wages? While everyone fell silent at the unexpected answer, Tarki continued speaking.
“Next are the tax rates.”
“Ha! Tax rates! Of course they’d be in there. How high are those bastards raising them?”
“Well…… They say the basic income tax will be 30%, with high-income earners taxed up to 50%. They’ve actually lowered the tax rates.”
The resistance members could only blink blankly at that.
The Kingdom’s existing rates were a basic income tax of 45%, with high-income earners paying up to 70%.
There had even been signs that the rates would rise further because of the war, driving the citizens to the brink.
Yet Daniel Steiner, the garrison commander, had lowered those rates.
While the resistance members struggled to find anything to say, Tarki scratched his cheek and spoke.
“Lastly, regarding civil service recruitment, they say they’ll hire according to Imperial standards rather than the Kingdom’s.”
“Finally showing their true colors! You mean they’re only going to select talented people loyal to the Empire!?”
“Um. Not exactly. They said they’ve eliminated all the pointless bonus points in the Kingdom’s civil service selection criteria. For example, the bonus points given to people from noble families.”
In other words, he intended to recruit talent based solely on ability.
After hearing all of this, the resistance members exchanged glances and swallowed dryly.
This should have been the time for the spark of revolution to burn brightly, but everyone was as tongue-tied as if they had honey in their mouths.
After a silence that lasted for some time, a man who had pulled his robe deeply over his head finally managed to speak.
“I’m not sure whether it’s all right to say this, but…….”
The man fidgeted with his hands before turning to Hamtal.
“……Isn’t life actually easier to live now than before?”
In a truly ironic twist, no one could refute the man’s words.