Chapter 88

"The following summer, the late king set out on a summer retreat, taking only the direct royal family with him. On the way to the summer palace, the royal family visited a certain monastery. I'm sure you know what happened next, don't you?"

A bomb exploded in the chapel. The late king and several heirs to the throne were killed on the spot. It was a shocking incident that is still talked about even after nearly 30 years.

I heard that because the late king's body was found under a fallen cross, there were rumors of divine wrath against the royal family. However, it was eventually revealed to be the work of the rebels.

"How did the rebels get to know the king's itinerary, which was a top secret?"

For decades, the current king tried to uncover this but it remained a mystery.

"I investigated out of curiosity and found out that among those responsible for security at the time, you, Commander, were also there."

"What's your point? I've already been through the official investigation and was found to have no involvement. False accusations are a serious crime."

Leon ignored the commander's rebuke and connected the government and the assassination, two seemingly unrelated events.

"Right after the incident, Nora Watson disappeared, claiming she was returning to her hometown to care for her sick mother. In fact, the married woman had a daughter with you, Commander, and raised her as her husband's child."

The commander's eyes began to waver again.

"Her husband must have known the child wasn't his. The one who instructed her to become your mistress must have been that man."

Leon pointed to the woman's montage with his index finger and asked.

"Do you know this woman's real name?"

The man's face drained of color, sensing that his fate would change the moment he spoke her real name. Leon pronounced each letter of the name he had always gritted his teeth and spat out clearly.

"Angela Riddle."

The commander's turquoise eyes turned pale with fear, just like the eyes he had seen in the annex before coming here.

"The Riddle who killed my father."

The commander suddenly tried to overturn the montage. However, his trembling hand, clearly visible, kept slipping off the paper. His fingertips were as pale as his face.

"There are lines that shouldn't be crossed, even when offending someone. That's a very good point."

Leon calmly gathered the evidence of a much more fatal offense than his own and placed an invisible collar around the commander's neck.

"Yes, that's right. I have a rebel in my custody, whom I use privately."

"..."

"A rebel with rare turquoise eyes. Evidence that you, Commander, unknowingly participated in the king's assassination."

The commander's face was like that of a man who had a grenade with the pin pulled thrown in front of him.

"Damn it..."

His face soon contorted in agony, and the elderly man, with his neatly combed brown hair, clutched his head and groaned.

"Captain..."

The voice that had been like a roaring beast a moment ago was now as thin as a mouse's.

"By the way, I have a report to send to His Majesty, and I should send this with it. His Majesty must be very curious about how his father passed away and the truth behind it."

As the commander slowly reached for something under the desk, Leon twisted his lips into a smile and warned.

"I hope you don't think that killing me will solve your problem. Our family has a safe. A safe with a note that says, 'If I am murdered, expose what's inside.'"

Leon shook the file in his hand.

"This is a copy, and the original is already in that safe."

"Listen, Captain Winston. Don't do that, sit down."

The commander, trembling like an old man with a stroke, offered the chair in front of the desk, but Leon stood tall like a god, looking down at the pitiful creature.

Isn't a god all-knowing and the master of life and death? At this moment, he was a god.

Daisy, Sally, Grace Riddle. Whatever.

The damn woman who had reduced him to a fool had made him a god.

"Actually, did you know that the inspector was sent by His Majesty to pressure me with the report? It caused me quite a bit of trouble, but if I offer this..."

Each time Leon lightly shook the file, the commander held his breath as if facing a blade in the executioner's hand.

"Gratitude will be immediately stopped, and I will become a hero."

"Wait, just a moment..."

"If you stop the investigation, of course, none of this will happen."

"Of course, of course."

Easier to tame a father than a daughter.

"Ah, I wanted to be a hero, but it's a bit disappointing."

Unlike his fierce barking earlier, Leon smiled contentedly in front of his now docile dog.

* * *

When the commander and his staff ascended, a group of officers descending the stairs stepped aside and saluted in unison. The commander, who had been kindly acknowledging the salutes, hastily averted his gaze when he met the eyes of a young officer standing apart from the group.

'He looks like he's seen a ghost.'

As the commander passed, Leon lowered his hand and twisted his lips.

He continued walking. As he passed a group of lieutenant colonels, resentful gazes followed him.

Leon couldn't have been unaware of the rumors circulating among the officers. The rumor that he, a mere captain, had secretly launched a dirty offensive against the new commander and was now the object of his favor.

He even heard that he was Davenport's dog.

Leon just laughed.

Who was the real dog?

Commander Davenport was quite a useful guard dog. Since that day, he had chased away everything that bothered him.

Whether at the mansion or the headquarters, he would never see the inspector's face again.

Of course, Leon's revenge didn't end there.

His mother, who had heard through the doorman and butler that the inspector had come, couldn't have just sat still. Leon knew this and let it happen.

The rumor spread quickly. It reached the social circles of the capital, where the king, always wary of the military due to the power struggles between the military and the parliament, had no choice but to dismiss the inspector.

Excessive loyalty can lead to a quick fall.

The Winston family eventually received a rather polite letter of apology from the former inspector, now a retired brigadier general.

He must have been quite surprised by the sudden change in the commander's attitude. But that's how connections work. The one with the stronger connections always wins.

Thanks to this, the woman was still in his hands. The emotional distance was being maintained quite smoothly. She would grovel, but then try to stand on his head, causing him headaches.

'Grace, try to be more like your father.'

Sinclair had long since delivered the investigation report through the Duke. Since then, the Duke had said nothing.

Everything was resolved, and peaceful days followed.

But the moment he received a call from his superior and entered the underground interrogation room, that brief peace was shattered.

"Captain Winston, you finally made it."

"..."

Leon, who was about to salute Lieutenant Colonel Humphrey, who was already there, froze.

'What is he doing here?'

The man sitting at the interrogation table, handcuffed, was Jeffrey Sinclair, the eldest son of the Sinclair family.

Leon walked past the table to the lieutenant colonel standing against the wall.

"What's going on?"

"Ah, while you were out this morning, an emergency arrest order came down from above."

Emergency arrest? Suddenly? It all sounded absurd.

"Is this within our jurisdiction?"

The Sinclair family's base was in the east, not the west.

"He happened to visit Winsford today."

From the lieutenant colonel's casual answer, Leon read countless truths.

The 'above' that issued the arrest order was clearly the king.

The king must have given the lieutenant colonel instructions to arrest Jeffrey Sinclair on the day he came to the west. He had deliberately assigned Leon an external task to keep him away and had one of the officers under him carry out the arrest.

Leon turned his gaze to the subordinate sitting across from Sinclair, and the lieutenant colonel approached.

"Captain Winston, you've been specifically ordered from above to conduct the interrogation."

Specifically. From above.

It was clearly an order to finish the job properly.

"This is a great opportunity for you to advance."

Leon didn't need advancement.

"A confession is needed."

The lieutenant colonel lowered his voice and gave a casual order before disappearing from the interrogation room.

"Can I make one phone call? I need to call my lawyer."

When Jeffrey Sinclair made this request, the lieutenant sitting across from him snorted.

"From what I understand, those arrested by the military on suspicion of rebel activities are not allowed to have a lawyer present during interrogation."

Rebel activities.

Leon picked up the file on the lieutenant's desk. The file was filled with a pile of evidence, stamped with the seal of the Western Command Intelligence Bureau, proving that the investigation and evidence were complete.

'Investigation? By who?'

The investigation of rebel activities in the Western Command was under the Domestic Intelligence Division, which Leon headed. It was impossible for all this to have happened without his knowledge.

'This also came from above.'

The need for a confession meant that they had the evidence and just needed the confession.

As Leon flipped through the file, looking for the connection between Jeffrey Sinclair and the rebels, his eyes narrowed.