I Was Mistaken as a Great War Commander

The woman who grasped Daniel’s hand introduced herself as Lef.

Apart from her name, she did not reveal anything else, but Daniel was not particularly curious, so he did not pry further.

After exchanging introductions, the two headed to a nearby variety store, as Daniel had suggested buying a deck of playing cards upon learning that Lef’s gambling involved poker.

Unwittingly following Daniel, Lef paid for two decks of cards and returned to the front of the tavern.

“…Hey.”

Unable to comprehend what was happening, Lef looked up at Daniel.

“Why did you buy playing cards? And two decks at that.”
“As you said, the other party is cheating, correct? If we want to beat them, ordinary means won’t be possible.”

Opening the boxes of playing cards, Daniel took out the cards and selected a few before putting the remaining cards back in the box and handing it to Lef.

“Keep these. Consider it a token of good luck.”

As the perplexed Lef accepted the cards, Daniel slipped the ones he had taken out into his sleeve.

Noticing this, Lef looked at him with bewilderment, but Daniel grasped the tavern’s doorknob and opened it.

The raucous interior of the tavern unfolded before them.

Inhaling the faint aroma of alcohol and the savory scent of various side dishes, Daniel stepped inside.

As Lef followed behind him, the patrons gradually turned their attention towards Daniel.

A stranger they had never seen before, accompanied by the woman who had just caused a disturbance and been expelled, warranted caution.

The tavern owner approached Daniel, who observed them from behind his sunglasses.

“What brings you here? If that lady hired you as a mercenary or something…”
“A glass of rum, please. Or tequila, if you have it.”

Daniel’s nonchalant order for a drink left the tavern owner speechless.

Looking at the dumbfounded owner, Daniel gave a friendly smile.

“Don’t worry. I’m not here to cause trouble. I simply came to drink and gamble.”

Finally understanding that Daniel had hired a skilled player, the owner scanned the crowd and shouted.

“Pramcol! This customer wishes to play a round!”

At the corner table, where Pramcol sat leaning against the wall with a stack of chips, he raised his head.

With a scrawny build, Pramcol glanced at Daniel and gave a thin smile.

“A sucker is always welcome. Come here.”

With permission granted, Daniel approached, pulled out a chair, and took a seat.

The tavern owner also walked over and claimed a seat at the table.

“First of all…”

The tavern owner spoke.

“As you may or may not know, the gambling in our establishment is primarily poker. Additionally, there is no betting limit. If you understand, nod your head.”

After Daniel nodded, the tavern owner placed a thick pouch that had been hanging from his waist onto the table with a thud.

Peeking inside revealed it was filled with worn chips.

“Decide how much you want to gamble. I’ll exchange it for chips.”
“Ah, the lady behind me will provide the funds.”

Lef, who had been singled out, flinched.

While she had anticipated this, the reality of it was still unpleasant.

“…How much is needed?”
“Bet as much as you trust me.”

Having just met him, how could she trust him? Finding it absurd, Lef still opened her wallet, thinking she might as well go all-in since she had come this far.

“Alright. I’ll wager everything.”

Lef took out all the banknotes from her leather wallet and handed them to the tavern owner.

Surprised by the substantial amount, the owner quickly regained his composure.

After rummaging through his pouch, he placed dozens of chips on Daniel’s table.

“Here you go.”

With a nod, Daniel reached into his pocket.

“Ah, but may I make a request?”
“What is it?”

Daniel handed the deck of cards to the tavern owner.

“The lady wishes to ensure a fair game, as she suspects cheating. While I don’t believe it myself, we should still replace the cards, just in case.”

With no particular reason to refuse, the tavern owner accepted the deck.

After opening the box and examining the cards, the owner nodded.

“Seems to be from the neighboring store. Since I’ve confirmed they’re not tampered with, we’ll use these. Pramcol, any objections?”

In response to the owner’s question, Pramcol playfully shrugged his shoulders.

From this reaction, Daniel understood that the ‘cheating’ Lef mentioned did not involve tampering with the cards.

If the cards had been rigged beforehand for poker, Pramcol would have objected to replacing them.

‘So, what kind of cheating is it?’

There was no need to rush. He could figure it out as they played.

“Let’s begin, then.”

Signaling the start of poker, the tavern owner dealt two cards each to Daniel and Pramcol.

After the initial betting, they progressed through the flop and turn, arriving at the river.

With all five cards on the table, Daniel checked his hand.

‘Two pair.’

Two pair had a relatively low probability in poker.

A hand worth betting on.

As Daniel was contemplating his next move, Pramcol, without any mind games, called out.

“Raise.”

He intended to increase the pot.

After a brief silence, Daniel called and revealed his hand.

Pramcol’s hand was a ‘triple.’

Having lost with his two pair, Daniel watched as Pramcol smiled and collected the chips.

“I thought you were a skilled player since that lady brought you, but I’m disappointed.”

Daniel did not respond, only giving a faint smile.

Five consecutive rounds followed, but Daniel did not win a single one.

Gradually, Lef grew impatient.

‘What is this idiot doing…?’

While she did not know if he was recklessly spending someone else’s money, watching Daniel call even with a single pair made her feel uneasy.

In contrast, Daniel’s mind was as serene as a still pond.

He had discerned Pramcol’s trick.

‘He’s using a shallow trick.’

In all five rounds, Pramcol had won by the narrowest of margins.

While it was easy to spot someone cheating at gambling, to always win by the slightest difference?

It indicated that Pramcol had an accomplice among the spectators signaling his hand.

‘The accomplice must be signaling my cards to Pramcol.’

To avoid suspicion, Pramcol was staging narrow victories.

Now that he understood how Pramcol was cheating, Daniel could simply turn the trick against him.

“Your skills are impressive.”

After offering a compliment that was not a compliment, Daniel began the sixth round with Pramcol.

Receiving the cards from the dealer, the tavern owner, Daniel played until the final river round.

The five cards in his hand pointed to no pair – a garbage hand that should prompt a fold.

However, Daniel calmly pushed all his chips into the center.

“All-in.”

Causing Pramcol and the spectators to exclaim in surprise.

Lef, who had been watching from behind, was equally astonished.

‘You madman! What are you doing!?’

She questioned his sanity as Pramcol chuckled.

‘Is he trying to bluff? Too bad, but I can see your hand.’

Pramcol had intended to let Daniel win once out of pity, but changed his mind and spoke.

“Call.”

Pramcol pushed most of his chips into the center.

At that moment, Daniel concentrated mana into his central nervous system, accelerating his nerves.

Within the slowed time, Daniel swiftly reached into his sleeve, switched his hand, and stopped the nerve acceleration.

The exchange happened so quickly that Pramcol, who had not suspected any sleight of hand, revealed his cards.

“Two pair. You?”

He asked out of courtesy, already aware of the outcome.

Fully cognizant of Pramcol’s intentions, Daniel revealed his hand in an exaggerated manner.

“Royal straight flush.”

The highest possible hand in poker caused Pramcol’s eyes to widen.

‘What? When did he…?’

Unable to perceive any hand movements, Pramcol felt as if he had been bewitched.

After blankly staring at the cards for a while, Pramcol raised his head, sweating profusely.

Daniel was smiling, as if this had been his intention all along.

“Why? Never seen a royal straight flush before?”

At Daniel’s mocking tone, Pramcol gritted his teeth.

“You bastard…! Where did you learn to cheat like this?”
“Cheat? Where’s the evidence that I cheated?”
“Don’t play dumb! You clearly…”

Agitated, Pramcol attempted to reveal Daniel’s original hand but stopped.

He had realized the spectators’ hostile gazes were fixed on him.

If he revealed Daniel’s original hand here, Pramcol would be admitting that he had been cheating at poker all along.

In the ensuing silence, Daniel took a sip of the tequila the owner had provided, his gaze still on Pramcol.

‘You’ve likely cheated others here too, haven’t you, Pramcol?’

As Daniel had expected, there were quite a few patrons who had lost money to Pramcol.

Consequently, Pramcol’s reputation within the tavern was nearly as low as garbage.

Look now.

Even though some spectators had belatedly realized Daniel had switched hands, they remained silent.

Such was their desire to see Pramcol’s defeat.

In this atmosphere of public resentment, revealing Daniel’s original hand would be tantamount to admitting his history of cheating at poker, potentially resulting in a beating.

Realizing he had walked into a trap, Pramcol’s pupils narrowed.

“How unfortunate for you, Pramcol.”

Daniel regarded him with a concerned expression.

“If I were you, I would gracefully accept the outcome. If not…”

Resting his arms on the table, Daniel leaned his upper body forward.

With a smile, Daniel continued in a quiet voice.

“You’ll end up a half-wit here today.”

At those chilling words, Pramcol, swallowing his tears, could only nod in resignation.

While Daniel was enjoying the gambling, Lucie was spending her days busy with work at the General Staff Headquarters.

After completing all her tasks following an extended overtime period, Lucie gathered the documents.

“Lieutenant Colonel. It’s time to clock out now…”

The words Lucie had uttered almost reflexively while looking towards Daniel’s desk trailed off.

Daniel was not present.

He had been dispatched as an envoy to Velanos.

“…”

Without Daniel, who would always make some silly remark when it was time to clock out, she felt an inexplicable emptiness.

After blinking vacantly for a moment, Lucie shook her head and rose from her seat.

Since he would return eventually, there was no need to indulge in sentimentality.

As Lucie was about to leave the office with her document bag, she paused.

The sound of footsteps could be heard approaching from the hallway.

Just as she wondered who it could be, the office door opened, and Ernst entered.

“Chief of Operations.”

Lucie saluted, and Ernst wearily returned it.

Sensing an unusual, somber atmosphere from Ernst, Lucie lowered her hand with a puzzled expression.

“Chief. Is something the matter?”

In response to Lucie’s question, Ernst clenched his teeth and nodded.

Taking a moment to compose himself, Ernst looked at Lucie.

“Lieutenant Lucie. I will only say this once, so listen carefully. The diplomatic vessel carrying your superior, Lieutenant Colonel Daniel, has…”

Unable to continue while looking at Lucie, Ernst averted his gaze.

“…been sunk by a terrorist attack.”

Sunk.

The weight of that word brought Lucie’s thoughts to a halt.

Unable to comprehend, she remained motionless for a while before asking.

“Is this… confirmed?”

As the Chief of Operations, it was unthinkable for Ernst to lie about such a matter.

Lucie’s rationality was well aware of this premise.

Yet her question was akin to a defense mechanism denying reality.

When Ernst nodded with a trembling exhale, Lucie’s lips parted slightly.

In the heavy silence, as Lucie carefully chose her words, she bowed her head towards Ernst.

“…I will clock out now.”

Fully understanding her state of mind, Ernst did not attempt to stop her.

Thus, Lucie left the office, her footsteps echoing down the corridor.

Memories intermingled in her mind, sometimes merging and sometimes scattering.

With each fleeting thought, Lucie’s breathing became increasingly unsteady.

‘Why…’

Why was the vessel carrying Daniel Steiner sunk?

Why was she unaware of this?

Why did she only learn of this news now?

Unable to find answers to the questions swirling in her mind, Lucie descended the stairs.

‘I need to ask…’

She wanted to contact intelligence operatives active in the capital and uncover the full details of the incident.

Lost in these thoughts, Lucie’s foot slipped as she hurried down the stairs.

Her ankle twisted, causing her body to stagger.

Quickly grabbing the handrail, Lucie lowered herself to maintain her balance.

While she avoided falling, her breathing was even more labored than before.

In her hastiness, she had made a mistake she would never normally commit.

With half-lidded eyes and rapid breaths, Lucie slowly closed them.

Amidst the turmoil in her mind, Daniel’s words from the front of the General Staff Headquarters resurfaced.

– If you’re free during Christmas, we can go together. If you’d like, that is.

His playful suggestion to share Stollen together vividly replayed in her mind.

But Lucie knew.

Now that Daniel was dead, that Christmas filled with Stollen would never come.

Unconsciously biting her lower lip, Lucie slowly opened her eyes.

The glistening crimson orbs reflected not sorrow but fury.

For she had a hunch about who had ordered the attack on the diplomatic vessel.

‘If the Allied Nations truly attacked the diplomatic vessel carrying Daniel…’

She could no longer trust Count Calredra.