Chapter 28: Quidar’s Arrival at Purburg

“Boss, being assigned to the Purburg Intelligence Station as the Special Operations Team Captain this time, your future is truly boundless!”

The subordinate fawned over Quidar, the middle-aged man with a pipe seated on the sofa.

The middle-aged man scoffed, removing his pipe to exhale a plume of swirling smoke. He shook the pipe, then shook his head, a mocking glint in his eyes.

“Heh, what ‘boundless future’ are you talking about? At this Purburg Station, the combined ages of the station chief and deputy chief are barely more than mine.”

He deliberately lowered his voice, glancing around before speaking to his subordinate in hushed tones.

“They’re both children of generals! Promoted purely through connections. Tell me, with that kind of setup, can the Purburg Station actually accomplish anything? It’ll be a miracle if they don’t mess things up spectacularly!”

“Ahem, well… Boss, their inexperience just leaves more room for you to shine. Eventually, won’t everything here, both inside and out, have to follow your lead? You’re a seasoned agent; in terms of qualifications and experience, how could those two youngsters ever hope to compare?”

The subordinate continued his flattery, and Quidar, sitting with one leg crossed over the other, was clearly swelling with pride.

“Hmph, it’s just that my background isn’t as illustrious. But in terms of capability, no one at this Purburg Station can hold a candle to me. You’ll see. My arrival here essentially means I’ve been appointed the station chief by those above.”

****

The Purburg Station’s official vehicle slowly pulled to a stop in front of the mansion. Everyone pushed open their doors and stepped out.

As Yuli took Fran’s hand, about to happily enter the house, they heard the voice of an unfamiliar man echoing from inside the mansion.

The voice was loud and spoke in Teuton.

Yuli frowned.

“Someone’s here?” Yuli inquired, turning to a nearby attendant.

The attendant quickly nodded in reply.

“After you left this morning, Captain Quidar, the head of the special operations team sent from Purburg, arrived shortly after. He is now waiting for you inside the house.”

“Tsk—” Lyon scratched his head, then turned to the attendant beside him for confirmation. “Were his credentials checked? Are we certain he was sent from Purburg?”

“Yes, everything was checked!” The attendant, not daring to be negligent, added, “The individual was initially somewhat uncooperative, but later presented his documents, and no anomalies were found.”

This…

Lyon’s expression darkened slightly, and he shook his head in puzzlement. “Tsk, that’s not right. If someone from Purburg has arrived, why weren’t we notified?”

“Who cares…”

Yuli was not particularly bothered by this. She was preoccupied with showing Fran around her mansion, and pushing open the door, she walked in with an air of confidence.

As the door swung open, Quidar, who had been chatting idly with his subordinate on the sofa, noticed the three individuals entering. He recognized the silver-haired girl leading them; he had heard of her, General Gustav’s daughter, and the station chief herself.

Beside her was a blonde ‘girl’ who appeared quite intimate with the station chief. However, Quidar did not recognize this person; he had reviewed the intelligence station’s personnel list, and they did not appear to be on it.

The last person, a black-haired youth, was Lyon, the deputy station chief, and the one Quidar found most wary of. Of course, as a mere youngster, there wasn’t much to truly fear. Yet, this individual had undeniably undergone intelligence work training and was far from an amateur.

Quidar rose to his feet, facing the three as they approached. With a confident tone, he introduced himself with decorum.

“Hello, everyone. I am Quidar, the captain of the special operations team dispatched by Purburg to the Army Intelligence Department’s Purburg Station.”

“Oh, Captain Quidar, hello, hello…”

Yuli stepped forward to shake his hand, then introduced herself as a matter of routine.

“I am Yuli Gustav, the station chief here at Purburg Station. This man beside me is Lyon, our deputy station chief. And this one next to me… is my secretary, Fran.”

‘Wait? Secretary?’

Lyon, standing to the side, blinked in confusion. ‘Wasn’t he a maid? Seriously… Sister Yuli is bringing in personal favors again?’

Lyon felt a surge of indignation. He cast a helpless glance at Yuli. Ahem, but with an outsider present, he couldn’t openly object. He could only grudgingly accept the explanation.

He then shook Quidar’s hand warmly and spoke. “Hello, hello, Captain Quidar. I’ve heard much about you. The higher-ups always spoke of you as a very experienced, seasoned agent! Please do look after us in the future!”

“Yes, yes, yes…”

Quidar smiled as he shook hands, clearly flattered and a bit carried away by the praise. Fran, standing nearby, listened to the trio’s conversation.

He understood nothing at all.

Fran’s Teuton language skills were still quite poor. Primarily, he hadn’t had enough time to master it proficiently. With three native speakers chatting at a rapid pace, Fran found himself completely lost.

‘This won’t do,’ he thought, a sense of urgency rising. ‘How can I carry out missions in the future without knowing Teuton?’

Fran grew somewhat worried. Yuli, noticing Fran’s apparent discomfort but unsure of the exact cause, assumed he was merely shy or perhaps bewildered by the Teuton language.

She gently tugged his arm, signaling that little Fran could hide behind her.

Fran, indeed, moved to hide behind Yuli. The others paid little attention to the small figure; Quidar merely found him a little odd.

After exchanging pleasantries, everyone settled onto the sofas and resumed their conversation.

“Hey, by the way, Captain Quidar, why didn’t you notify the station in advance of your arrival? We could have arranged to pick you up.”

Hearing Lyon suddenly bring this up, Quidar gave an awkward laugh.

The reason for not notifying the station, naturally, was Quidar’s desire to make a surprise entrance. He wanted to establish a bit of authority as soon as he arrived at Purburg Station. If he had been picked up, it would have given the impression of being a guest, subject to the hosts’ arrangements.

However, he couldn’t openly state his true intentions. So, he casually offered an excuse.

“Haha, I was just worried about troubling you, Deputy Chief. I also brought a few people with me. You see, that shouldn’t be a problem, right?”

“Uhm…” Yuli’s expression was displeased. “According to station regulations, bringing unauthorized personnel… is not permitted. At the very least, you should have consulted the station chief.”

“Oh? Is that so?” Quidar showed a look of disappointment, his eyes revealing his displeasure with Yuli. This left Yuli completely flustered.

She turned her head away, biting her lip. She felt irritated but couldn’t show it. She could only concede, “This time, it’s fine. But from now on, any personnel recruitment within the station must have my approval.”

“Alright then, thank you very much, Station Chief. Tsk…”

Uncle Quidar nodded with a cold sneer, and the atmosphere instantly turned chilly.

The group fell silent for a moment, then dispersed to attend to their own affairs.

Yuli took Fran’s hand, stood up, and headed towards the stairs. The two ascended together.

“What a person…”

After they reached the upstairs, Yuli still couldn’t help but complain about him. “He just arrived and already thinks he’s some important figure…”

These two sentences were spoken in Francian, both for Fran’s benefit and to avoid being overheard by those downstairs.

Fran offered an awkward smile. Although he hadn’t caught the specifics of their conversation, he could infer some of it. He spoke up to comfort Yuli.

“It’ll be alright. Things will settle down after a period of adjustment.”

“Hmm… never mind, let’s not talk about that anymore. Come on, Fran, I’ll show you the room I’ve prepared for you. And while we’re at it, how about a little game?”