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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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Whyyyyyyyyyy-!!
In less than a few minutes after receiving the message, the accommodation where Julia was staying turned into chaos.
The emergency siren blared in the middle of the night and people rushed out of their rooms as if having a seizure to grasp the situation.
Without exchanging a single word, Julia and Werner left the room and disappeared on their separate ways.
‘Contact me again about this issue.’
Werner Grimm could read those words from Julia’s gaze as she walked away.
In any case, it was a nuclear explosion.
Although he had heard the shocking news that Lea’s discharge and the Graveyard Fortress were related, Werner still knew what was important.
If it were up to him, he would have turned the helicopter’s nose toward the Graveyard right away.
But he couldn’t do that.
Apart from his position as the director of the National Security Strategy Agency, he also had a duty as a regressor to see the end of this world no matter what.
What is important?
Even without saying it, his body was already moving first.
Werner Grimm returned straight to the Eastern branch of the National Security Strategy Agency.
The liaison officer on duty had turned pale in a different sense than a few hours ago.
“Di-Di-Director Werner…!”
“Gather the personnel for an emergency meeting and have them stand by. A first-level combat readiness has been issued to the entire military.”
“Is it another war…?”
The liaison officer asked in a desperate voice.
Werner closed his eyes for a moment before answering.
“It might be.”
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While he had directly grabbed the control stick on the way there, he couldn’t do so on the way back.
From the National Security Strategy Agency headquarters to the Supreme Command, and even the Imperial Military Information Command, with which they had been closely cooperating.
It was already overwhelming just to receive the incessant calls and messages.
“Is it really a nuclear explosion?”
“Yes, our informant on site directly confirmed it. One of Bostania’s symbolic cities has been wiped out.”
Saint Francis.
A huge research city that had led the advancement of technology before the Great War.
That entire city had been blown away?
Werner Grimm was momentarily gripped by a sickening feeling.
Just the recent terrorism targeting the heads of state alone would have been more than enough to trigger a war….
“Is it an accident? Terrorism? Or an attack?”
“We’re still trying to figure out the exact circumstances, but we can’t rule out the possibility that the anti-government forces stole the weapon and detonated it.”
“Please inform me as soon as the information is updated. We’ll also share with you if we find out anything on our end.”
“Damn it…. Alright. Take care.”
With a final sigh filled with various emotions of confusion, fear, and helplessness, the call with the Information Command ended.
“Phew….”
As soon as the communication was cut off, dizziness rushed in.
A nuclear explosion.
Of course, it wasn’t the first time nuclear weapons had been used.
Even just in this cycle, not only conventional atomic bombs but also hydrogen bombs and neutron bombs had been used.
Even weapons that had been strictly prohibited as nuclear weapons before the war were used without hesitation.
Titans were basically organic creatures with mechanical equipment attached to them.
Unless they were individuals with inherently thick armor, they were vulnerable to explosions, and at the same time, they were also vulnerable to the EMP generated when using nuclear weapons.
As a result, nuclear weapons that could devastate a wide area at once were sometimes seen as a game-changer that could solve an unfavorable situation in one fell swoop.
Of course, they couldn’t be used frequently due to the side effect of radiation.
While excellent at killing Titans, the entire area would be contaminated with radiation, making it impossible to station troops and recapture the territory.
‘But what if there’s no need to recapture the area…?’
It would actually be fortunate if the rebels had really detonated it.
The situation unfolding in Bostania was already a fait accompli of a civil war, even if the Bostanian emergency cabinet refused to acknowledge it.
In fact, Saint Francis was a representative pro-government city.
On top of that, it was one of the strategic points where the Republic’s 4th Arsenal was located, so there was a clear possibility that the rebels had struck it with a nuclear weapon they had obtained from somewhere.
However, there were too many strange points to believe that.
The biggest goal of the Bostanian rebels was to capture more territory.
As rebels, they had to win the support of many regions first.
And as far as Werner knew, Saint Francis was one of the places where public opinion was gradually leaning toward the rebels.
The previous 9:1 ratio had narrowed to 7:3 today.
As the civil war intensified, it was inevitable that the situation would turn in favor of the rebels, who had raised the slogan of regaining the precious people they had lost and the value of freedom in this era.
In the first place, the rebels knew that fact, so they didn’t attack Francis or anything like that.
Why bother making enemies in a city that could naturally join them over time?
This was also cross-verified by Dante’s report.
In that situation, suddenly detonating a nuke….
‘It doesn’t add up.’
That’s why Werner had no choice but to seriously think about the mastermind behind the annihilation of Saint Francis.
Saint Francis was important only from the perspective of the Republic of Bostania.
If the Empire occupied it?
That would be good.
But the destruction of infrastructure that would inevitably accompany the process would certainly turn Saint Francis into an ordinary coastal city.
In other words, it had no strategic value worth the effort to occupy.
As for the port, they could just occupy and use Diego below.
In the first place, as a coastal city, its value was relatively lower for the Empire, which mainly commanded an army.
Excluding that, what remained was a treasure trove of knowledge boasting hundreds of years of history.
But when had President Mikhail ever cared about such things?
He was a man who edited even the Empire’s history as he pleased.
Moreover, this way, he could also steadily accumulate justification for intervention.
According to ‘Operation Plan 8293’ to intervene in the Bostanian civil war and establish a puppet government of the Empire, the stance the Empire would take was to support the government forces, not the anti-government forces.
It was only natural, if it could be called that.
The President had almost died while participating in the event, so it was absurd to support the anti-government forces that had carried out the terror attack in the first place.
And in the midst of that, the rebels detonated a nuclear bomb in a major city.
Not just any weapon, but a nuclear weapon.
If they actively condemned the rebels and dispatched troops at this time…
While the Kingdom of Wales and the Svarog Federation, which had not yet quelled the domestic and foreign turmoil, were preoccupied, they could swallow up the Republic of Bostania in one go.
Good heavens.
Werner felt chills all over his body.
It was a miscalculation to think that he had somewhat figured out President Mikhail.
At this rate, he was no different from a war monger obsessed with power and territorial expansion.
He hoped all of this was just his own misgivings, but the problem was that the President was sufficiently capable of doing that and more.
“Fuck….”
It was a curse that unintentionally slipped out.
Just when he thought he had finally found peace, just when he thought he had finally given them peace.
The war that the power-blinded President would start was already approaching Werner.
Then there was only one way.
‘Eliminate the President.’
The rest could be thought about later.
If a car with broken brakes started to go out of control, the way to protect the passengers inside was to collide early.
Even if it meant turning back the world once again.
Eventually, Werner Grimm arrived at the National Security Strategy Agency— Forbidden Lake.
Five o’clock in the morning.
Even at a time when deep darkness still lingered, the fortress was shining with bright lights.
As the helicopter landed on the helipad like that, Captain John Hobbes, the headquarters commander, ran towards him frantically.
“Director!”
“I heard the story. Let’s go to the command center. Bring the trend reports we’ve been keeping on the Republic of Bostania so far. And….”
“Yes, please speak.”
“Also check the current status of the Defense Industry Agency, including the Armaments Bureau and the Technical Research Institute.”
“The Defense Industry Agency? Why all of a sudden… Ah…?!”
John, who had already been informed about the contents of Operation Plan 8293, could easily grasp what the director was thinking.
“Director, even if His Excellency the President is out of control, this is…!”
“There’s no harm in making sure. Keep in mind. We may have to face an enemy more persistent and meticulous than the Titans.”
Gulp.
John Hobbes swallowed his dry saliva.
It was the moment when Werner’s aimless gun finally pointed at the top of the Empire.
What is important?
That question rose in Werner Grimm’s mind once again.
He answered without a moment’s hesitation.
‘My duty is the most important.’
Confirming the end of the world.
Twisting the fate that will be painted with despair and death.
Apologizing for the mistakes made with his life and walking a path that others can never bear.
That was the mission of the Empire’s watchman and its lonely gravedigger.
Even if it meant sacrificing his own life, he would protect everything to the end.
‘I’m sorry, Lea. I’ll finish cleaning up the mess caused by my arrogance.’
Beyond Werner’s gaze, he could faintly see her crouching and crying.
Lea Gilliard.
Werner didn’t even have the courage to imagine what she might have seen in the Graveyard.
It had always been like that.
Memory recovery was not his burden, but the burden of those who had trusted and followed him.
There wasn’t much Werner could know.
That they suffered to the point of death every time they recovered their memories.
That even in the midst of that, they would tightly hug him and comfort him, saying he had a hard time.
But Lea Gilliard would be alone now.
She wouldn’t be able to tell anyone.
Because she would think that was what Luthers Edan, who had painstakingly avoided memory recovery, didn’t want.
Indeed, she would just be crying alone.
No matter how lonely, solitary, sad, or longing she was.
She would simply move forward, saying she would steadfastly follow his path.
And yet, if she met him one day, she would surely smile brightly and strike up a conversation.
Saying that she missed him, but respected his choice because she loved him—.
As if he could hear that voice ringing in his ears, Werner bit his lip tightly.
‘Dying, finishing my mistakes… it has to be after seeing the end of this world.’
He reached out his hand towards the crouching Lea, then retracted it.
‘For the sake of not regretting it in the next cycle.’
Even if his name had changed, he was still Luthers Edan.
‘And then. Let’s tie up our relationship a little more neatly, Lea.’
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