“W-What?”
Colonel Norris’s face turned bright red at the suggestion of being treated as an accomplice.
“How dare you make such baseless accusations!”
“Frankly, there are many suspicious points. I understand you strongly insisted on holding this medal ceremony at the European branch. Yet, just days before the event, the security system malfunctions, and today, when the Lieutenant passes through this path, the control room coincidentally errors and the containment wall activates on its own? Isn’t the timing too convenient?”
“That’s speculation!”
“Fine, let’s say all this was truly coincidental. But I’m very curious how someone who’s no longer a soldier happened to appear here at this time and encounter the Lieutenant.”
“That’s…”
Colonel Norris’s eyes darted around, momentarily at a loss for words. He felt increasingly cornered as the conversation with Iberis continued.
“Carlos came to see me. I allowed it! I’ve been meeting him often lately, so I told the sentries to let my nephew pass whenever he visits… I didn’t deliberately let him in today. It’s truly a coincidence!”
“Allowing even family to freely enter and exit military facilities as if it’s their home is problematic. Especially, is it okay for a non-military person to wander around the branch on a day like this with such an event?”
The Defense Force strictly limits outsider access for security reasons, even on normal days. On days like today, with many guests including reporters, politicians, and families of medal recipients, security checks are even more thorough. This is due to occasional terrorist attacks by villains disguised as civilians. At Iberis’s point, Colonel Norris lowered his eyes, looking ashamed.
“I have no excuse for that part. But I didn’t expect my nephew to visit today. He came without notice…”
“He probably did so because he’s been coming and going as he pleased. In the end, your violation of regulations is also one of the causes of today’s incident. You’ll have to take responsibility for this.”
“Ugh.”
A groan escaped Colonel Norris’s lips under the continued pressure. He glanced nervously at his nephew in Iberis’s grip. He was afraid Iberis might snap Carlos’s neck at any moment.
“L-Let’s talk after you put him down, shall we? Come on, Major Hyun, isn’t this too harsh for someone you worked with until a few months ago?”
“Any connection between former Major Norris and me was severed the moment he ambushed my guide. And harsh? I’m desperately holding back from killing him right now out of consideration for our past relationship.”
Iberis retorted, sounding hurt, while tightening his grip on Carlos’s collar. White frost began to form on Carlos’s neck.
“S-Stop!”
Colonel Norris was horrified to see his nephew’s body being covered in ice. Carlos, who had been struggling against Iberis moments ago, had now stopped resisting, as if resigned to his fate. He seemed to have no strength left to resist.
“I said stop!”
The agitated Colonel Norris shouted, releasing his mana. Then he blurted out words he shouldn’t have.
“Lieutenant Illum might have attacked first!”
“…What did you just say?”
Iberis asked in an icy voice. The killing intent in his silver-grey eyes intensified, and the air around them churned violently.
“You seem certain my nephew unilaterally attacked the Lieutenant, but nothing has been proven yet!”
Colonel Norris realized his mistake immediately but persisted out of stubbornness. However, he had overlooked something – Billy’s presence.
“That’s not true!”
Billy, who was receiving treatment from a medic, interjected into their conversation with an upset expression.
“I’m a witness! The Colonel’s nephew found the Lieutenant and picked a fight, asking why he was here. Then he got excited on his own and charged at us!”
Billy’s testimony caused a stir among the people present. They had already guessed to some extent from the scene, but hearing the details from a direct witness was shocking.
“Nonsense! What slander!”
The highly agitated Colonel Norris immediately denied it, looking ready to lunge at Billy.
“Are you going to keep making excuses even with a witness present? And you just released your mana, didn’t you? Since you showed intent to attack, it would be self-defense if I restrain you.”
“What…”
A shiver ran down Colonel Norris’s spine as he felt the cold piercing his skin. His eyes darted around uneasily. As he took a hesitant step back with an ominous feeling, ice vines suddenly sprouted from the ground and quickly wrapped around his legs.
“W-What are you doing!”
Colonel Norris, suddenly bound by ice vines all over his body, shouted in panic.
“What else? I’m trying to arrest someone who defended a terrorist and attempted to harm a witness.”
“Release me this instant! Do you think you’ll get away with this? This is insubordination!”
“It’s not insubordination, but a legitimate act of duty. You seem to have not grasped the situation yet, Colonel.”
Iberis replied coldly while drawing up his mana. A biting cold wind whirled around Colonel Norris.
“Argh.”
“Get back! You’ll get caught up in it!”
The sudden gust of wind caused the gathered people to panic. No one dared to try and stop Iberis. At that moment, Lucas approached him, pushing through the violently swirling wind that threatened to flay flesh from bone.
“Calm down.”
“…! Luke?”
Iberis, who had been glaring at Colonel Norris as if he would devour him, hesitated as his vision was blocked. The familiar, warm sensation enveloping his eyes brought back his reason that had flown far away.
“These people aren’t worth dirtying your hands, Major.”
Lucas, who had gently embraced Iberis from behind, whispered softly. If Iberis killed Carlos or attacked Colonel Norris here, things would become complicated.
“It’s not dirtying. I’m just trying to clean up trash.”
“Cleaning up trash is good, but we should make full use of them first. There’s a lot of information we can get from them.”
“But…”
“Shh, breathe slowly.”
Lucas gently cut off Iberis’s words and soothed him in a calm tone. He guided Iberis to take deep breaths.
“Huff…”
“That’s right, keep going.”
As Iberis followed his instructions, taking deep breaths in and out, Lucas lightly kissed his soft earlobe.
After repeating this a few times, the icy wind that had been raging as if to slash Carlos and Colonel Norris gradually subsided. When the violently churning air calmed, Lucas removed his hand from Iberis’s eyes.
“…”
Even though everything had quieted down, people only exchanged glances. At that moment, Winfried stepped forward and clapped his hands.
Clap.
As the cheerful sound of applause rang out in the quiet space, all eyes turned to him. Winfried looked around and took control of the situation.
“Come on, everyone, snap out of it.”
“L-Lieutenant General… please save me!”
As soon as Winfried stepped in, Colonel Norris, who had been unable to move, hastily pleaded for help. However, he had no intention of helping him.
“Save you? You’re speaking strangely, Colonel.”
“Didn’t you just see? Major Hyun…”
“Major Hyun what? From what I saw, there was nothing wrong with his actions.”
“What?”
“Why are you defending a criminal with such strange logic? I understand you’re shocked that your nephew suddenly became a terrorist, but don’t overdo it. If you cross the line any further, I won’t stand by.”
Winfried warned in a low voice, placing his hand on Colonel Norris’s shoulder. Startled by his threat, the colonel hiccupped.
“Major Hyun, I understand you’re angry because your cherished subordinate was hurt, but calm down. There’s no need to cause unnecessary commotion.”
Having instantly silenced Colonel Norris, Winfried now turned his gaze to Iberis.
“More importantly, wouldn’t it be better to take care of Lieutenant Illum now rather than wasting time being angry?”
“Ah…”
A faint exclamation escaped from between Iberis’s small lips at Winfried’s words. Iberis blinked, feeling his mind, which had been consumed by anger, clear up.
Glancing up at Lucas, Iberis nodded. Then he mercilessly threw Carlos to the floor.
“As you say, Lieutenant General, taking care of the Lieutenant seems to be the priority. May I ask you to handle the scene?”
“Of course. Take the Lieutenant back to your quarters. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask.”
Winfried smiled kindly. Then he took out his phone from his pocket.
“I’ll hand over former Major Norris, who attacked the Lieutenant, to the investigation bureau. We’ll interrogate him as soon as he regains consciousness and share the situation with you.”
“Thank you.”
“The Colonel, who failed to control his nephew, will also receive appropriate punishment. I’ll personally refer him to the disciplinary committee.”
“We need to investigate before that. We can’t rule out the possibility that the two were accomplices.”
“Don’t worry about that either. Whether intentional or not, the Colonel allowed his nephew to freely enter and exit the European branch. He’s essentially the cause of this incident, so he should certainly be investigated. Leave this to me, and you two hurry back and rest.”
“…Understood.”
Accepting Winfried’s proposal, Iberis gathered his mana and turned around.
“Are you okay? The treatment?”
“The emergency treatment is done.”
“…I see.”
Iberis sighed in relief as he confirmed that Lucas’s wrists, which had looked as if they had been hacked with a sharp weapon, and his cheeks, which had been full of small scratches, were now clean. Even the worst wounds on his neck and shoulders had been perfectly stopped from bleeding. He lightly grasped the sleeve of Lucas’s gown, which was torn and tattered and stained with red blood.
“Let’s go back.”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
