A Veteran Player is Needed in the Apocalypse

Chapter 70 Father (2)

Before meeting Anton.

Since I needed to figure out what Bones was currently thinking before dealing with General Max, I first headed to the Commander’s Residence.

The reason I headed to the Commander’s Residence was that Bones and Lucas, key witnesses in this incident, were staying there for their protection.

While witness protection was important, the atmosphere among the senior officers, who were the fallen 2nd Team members’ comrades, was quite hostile. If I had sent them to the officer’s quarters, they might have been harmed.

However, it was said that the strong request for the two to stay at the Commander’s Residence came from Josef.

He insisted that no more young officers should be sacrificed.

‘A slippery human.’

Bones had long since requested to meet with General Max, but it was judged that if they met, Max might pressure him not to testify, so their meeting was prohibited.

‘But these guys…’

“Why are the protected witnesses not cooped up in their rooms but training with my servant?”

When I crossed my arms and asked that, Lucas, drenched in sweat, also broke out in a cold sweat as he responded.

“Well, uh… we were told we could move freely while staying at the Commander’s Residence… and we decided to follow Lord Haydam’s schedule, so this happened.”

“But do you really train with such a tight schedule every day?”

And why is that bastard Bones shirtless in someone else’s mansion?

“Do you think Taejong trained you just to work you to death?”

“Is this ‘Taejong’ the servant you’re talking about?”

“That kid Taejong, what exactly is he? He’s better than most officers. Could he be some kind of secret weapon raised by Lord Haydam?”

From the nonsense he was spouting, it seemed Bones still hadn’t recovered from the shock of that time.

‘He’s pretending to be cheerful on purpose.’

I could somewhat understand why they weren’t locked in their rooms and were training with Taejong. Moving their bodies would keep their minds from wandering.

Instead of pointing out that Bones was faking cheerfulness, I replied.

“Taejong is going to enroll in the Academy soon. Thanks to you guys supporting Plato’s graduation speech.”

“So, that kid pushed Plato to get him enrolled, huh? That Darling Outsider guy too—”

“Let’s cut the chatter here.”

Sensing that Bones was trying to divert the conversation, likely to avoid talking about General Max, I cut him off and asked.

“Are you prepared?”

Bones pulled a grim face at my question.

“Prepared for what?”

“For when it’s revealed that your father really abandoned you.”

“…”

Bones’ green eyes shook violently at my words.

Of course, I knew that General Max wouldn’t have done such a thing.

But considering what Anton and I were going to do next, it would be troublesome if Bones wasn’t mentally prepared.

“If I was abandoned, I was abandoned. What kind of preparation do I need for that, damn it.”

Trying to act tough, his temper flared in the end.

“In your case, it seems necessary. I heard from Lucas that your whole life revolves around gaining your father’s approval, and you said if you were abandoned, you’d just die.”

“You damn bastard, Lucas…!”

Bones turned to Lucas as if to grab him by the collar, but Lucas, having anticipated what I would say, had already slipped away.

“Damn that tattling bird, spreading that crap around…”

“Bones.”

I called out to him, who was now fuming, and asked from behind.

“If it turns out you were truly abandoned by your father, will you die?”

Bones hesitated for a moment, then answered in a low voice.

“…Not anymore.”

“Not anymore?”

“I’ve realized that my father isn’t everything.”

I frowned, as if I didn’t understand, and Bones, his ears slightly flushed, spat out in frustration.

“Damn it… I’ve come to value my life now. I’m alive thanks to those seniors who let me escape, and the one who slapped me to my senses while I was running through the streets, and the guy who yelled at me to stay alive. Even though that bastard had no loyalty and tattled everything I said in my weakened state to Lord Haydam.”

Still holding a grudge, I see.

“It would’ve been good if we could’ve found the bodies of your senior officers.”

Come to think of it, it was said that a few senior officers from the 2nd Team stood in the way to help Bones and Lucas escape.

At least, it didn’t seem like Bones blamed himself for their deaths, which was fortunate.

Aside from his issues with his foster father, his personality was sharp.

“If General Max really did it… he has to pay for his crimes. No, I’ll make him pay.”

Bones seemed to have regained his composure.

I could now proceed with the next step without worry.

‘But Josef… that bastard is unforgivable.’

He drove the officers who were willing to stand in the way of their juniors to their deaths, all for his own advancement.

‘What’s the point of rank?’

Josef did it for power.

With Anton having declared his retirement, Josef would also have to step down.

If someone with Anton’s influence vacated his position, Josef’s power would only grow.

Josef knew it was time for him to step down, but he probably didn’t want to.

Even though he had no intention of opposing the Commander and was the Commander’s closest ally, the fact that he had to give up power just to avoid suspicion likely felt unfair.

That’s why he framed General Max, who had a high chance of being promoted to the next leader.

If General Max’s position became vacant, it would create chaos among the senior officers, and Josef would be the only one capable of handling it.

He chose to break the balance entirely, expanding his influence so much that no one could remove him from his position.

But even Josef wouldn’t have expected that the trap he set would endanger both me and the Commander.

‘Well… it’s for the best.’

If I hadn’t been involved, the Commander would have turned a blind eye to Josef’s wrongdoing.

He’s not the kind of person to punish Josef for General Max’s sake.

But since I nearly died because of it, I now had the right to get involved.

By now, Meursault must have relayed what I said, and since there hadn’t been any orders from the Commander, I could take it as his tacit approval.

‘Then, it’s time to move.’

Using a serpent to catch another serpent.

** * **

“Haaah…”

Anton’s sigh was long and heavy.

Seeing Anton, who looked as if he had aged another ten years since I last saw him, I began to understand why Meursault felt pity for him.

“My only son nearly died the moment he became an officer…”

“I was the one who saved him, though.”

Ignoring my comment, Anton continued his lament.

“And now that my son has safely returned, Lord Haydam comes to ask me if I knew that my dear friend, General Max, had ordered a hit on his own foster son.”

“Anton. Did you decide to lose all restraint after retiring?”

“And you, Lord Haydam—coming back from the dead and now deciding to talk down to me? Though, I must say, I prefer the informality.”

“Stop dodging the question and just answer.”

Anton let out another long sigh and clasped his hands together.

“General Max… he’s not that kind of person.”

“Not that kind of person? Then who is?”

“…”

Instead of responding, Anton just glared at me.

“Do you expect me to answer that General Max is capable of something like this? Why did you come to see me in the first place?”

“I know General Max isn’t that kind of person. That’s exactly why I came to see you, Anton.”

At those words, Anton looked at me with even greater suspicion.

“What are you trying to say?”

When dealing with someone who’s already suspicious of you, it’s best to be overly straightforward.

I responded calmly.

“I’m suspicious of Josef.”

Anton’s expression changed.

From the look on his face, it seemed he also believed Josef was the real culprit.

But instead of immediately agreeing with me, Anton said this:

“You’re aware that Josef is His Excellency’s closest aide, right?”

“I am. And I also know that even after you stepped down from the position of commander, Josef is still holding onto his rank.”

“Josef isn’t foolish enough to do something like this.”

“Between General Max and Commander Josef, who do you think is more likely to act foolishly?”

“…”

Anton frowned, pausing for a moment before speaking again.

“You’ve come to me because you want something.”

“No, Anton.”

I crossed my legs and leaned back on the sofa.

“I’m here to help you get what you want.”

“Do you even know what it is that I want?”

“You said General Max is your dear friend. You don’t want to see him get executed by firing squad, do you?”

“Batom…”

Anton looked at me with a strange expression.

“Batom already died that way.”

‘He’s bringing up the past?’

I thought we had already settled the matter of Batom with the Commander.

He wasn’t trying to dig up old grievances, was he?

Was he implying that General Max could be dealt with the same way as Batom, and wondering why I was bothering to come to him?

Considering I’ve never been particularly friendly toward Anton, it made sense that he’d question my motives.

He probably thought I was here to set him up, pretending to defend General Max, only to stab him in the back later.

But even so, Anton had no choice but to act according to my intentions.

From his perspective, General Max was a crucial figure who could potentially succeed him as commander.

With General Batom already dead, if General Max were to die as well, the pro-Daphne faction would be shaken to its core.

For someone like Anton, who was trying to straddle the line between the pro-Daphne faction and myself, that kind of upheaval wouldn’t be welcome.

And of course, he wouldn’t want his dear friend to go down in history as a scoundrel who ordered the deaths of seven soldiers.

“You said earlier that I stole your son.”

“Ahem…”

“Consider this payback for that. Helping with General Max’s situation.”

“What are you trying to say…”

“Let’s call it even for saving your son’s life by helping me with this matter.”

“…”

Anton stared at me blankly for a moment before lowering his voice.

“Do you even realize what you’re suggesting?”

“I know. We’re going to make Josef, your father’s closest aide, the scapegoat instead of General Max.”

“Why? Has His Excellency approved this?”

“He said I couldn’t handle it directly.”

It seemed that Anton finally understood why I had come to him.

“You’re trying to use me to deal with this? I’m not Meursault. I don’t just go around killing people on command.”

“…Why is it that both you and Meursault only think about killing?”

“Then… what exactly are you asking me to do?”

“What you need to do isn’t to kill. Quite the opposite, actually.”

“The opposite…?”

Anton tilted his head in confusion, unsure of what I meant.

I looked at him and said,

“From now on, you need to bring the dead back to life.”