Editing City Series:Volume6b Chapter4 (section)

===Part 4===

The front lobby of the Geheimnis Agency HQ’s central building was wrapped in the stillness of evening.

The setting sun shined in through the skylight and large windows. With no one around, the white floor tiles were all colored scarlet.

The lobby was a 40-yard room with four stone pillars to hold up the tall ceiling. Sofas were placed around the base of the pillars and along the walls, but…

“Are you kidding me? I finish my Grösse Panzer’s test run and head back to get some sleep, but they put out an emergency summons?”

The voice came from the base of the southeast pillar.

Two people sat in the circular sofa there, awash with scarlet light: Alfred and Schweitzer.

Alfred leaned forward with his head in his hands.

“I use a plane to rush here from Base #8 in only 15 minutes, but now I have to wait?”

“I am waiting too, Alfred.” Schweitzer leaned back in the sofa, his head against the pillar. “I already met Lady Rose today, so what else could one day hold?”

“The first Gard-class being constructed at Base #8 goes into service a week from now, so maybe it’s a rehearsal celebration for that.”

“You do not rehearse celebrations. Besides, the celebration is not until the other seven being constructed elsewhere are complete.” Schweitzer looked up at the ceiling. “War is coming. Once the Panzerpolis Project is in effect, do you really think those Gard-class warships will become the foundation of our air defense?”

“The experimental Babel Kanone at Base #16 up north is ready for use and the Development Division in Berlin has proven the theory behind the city-defense Himmelsschild. With those two things, that impressive ship will prevent any country’s aerial warships and bombers from defiling Germany’s skies.”

“I heard it is an Eingeweide. Do you know who will be piloting it?”

“I know it isn’t you or me. To be honest, I can’t even guess. …Marsch developed the thing, right? Then I imagine it will be named after that disk Eryngium had.”

Schweitzer heard Alfred continue with a “but”.

“That would mean we were called here about something else.”

“So many questions. And I still haven’t even visited that dig site.”

“Do you know what they’ve been digging through the night to get at, Hellard?”

“The remains of P. Wagner’s lab. The military essentially built that lab to spite us and then the Kaizerburg was developed there.”

“What do they hope to accomplish digging that up? There might be some design documents, but we already developed the Sylphide. Granted, Marsch was not much for documentation, so we still can’t reproduce a lot of the parts. Still, we’ve recovered all the Sylphide’s components and we’ve started constructing a new and improved Eingeweide warship.”

Hearing that, Schweitzer crossed his arms. Der Held’s cylinders audibly worked to skillfully cross itself with his biological left arm in front of his chest.

“There are too many unknowns.” He kept his eyes on the ceiling. “Apparently those two would gather like this every year and I hear you were visiting Lady Rose with them. Did you not pick up on anything this could be about?”

“His Excellency gave me an independent unit, but that’s all he let me do. Did he or his aide tell you anything during your visit today?”

They exchanged a glance, but Alfred reached an answer in only a few seconds.

“I guess two incompetent fools who only know how to attack or defend can’t find the answer here.”

“Indeed…hm?”

Schweitzer stood up after noticing Lowenzahn entering the lobby from the north hallway.

Her long, braided hair swayed as she pushed a silver cart of food.

“Lowenzahn!”

He stood up and called her name.

She looked over, but she kept pushing the cart and only turned her head his way. She hopped up onto the bottom of the cart to ride its inertia.

Only then did she give him a businesslike wave.

“Sorry, Captain! I’m a little busy, so maybe later!”

She and the cart slid right on into the eastern hallway.

“Oops!”

Her voice and a metallic crash echoed out from the hallway.

“She’s just as bland as she was three years ago,” said Alfred with his eyes on the hallway entrance.

“Describe her like food and she’s liable to kick you to the floor.”

She was on the way to the mess hall and Schweitzer could see Alfred still looking that way.

“I get that the mess is busy this time of day, Schweitzer, but is she always like that?”

“No, I’ve never seen her bring that thing out of the storeroom before.”

“I see,” said Alfred, standing up. He lifted Rein König from the sofa and pointed it toward the hallway Lowenzahn had used. “We should go check on her. And if she’s fine…” He thought for a moment. “We can grab a bite to eat.”

He started in that direction without even looking back.

Schweitzer shrugged in an exasperated way and followed after him. He was a head taller and had a longer stride, so he caught up quickly.

“Speaking of His Excellency’s sister, Lady Rose-”

“Reminds you of Eryngium, doesn’t she? Even if she has a different hair color and personality.” Alfred cut Schweitzer off. “That Messiah girl you met two years ago is a closer match for Eryngium’s personality. They both said they didn’t want to run away, right?”

Alfred’s tone was light, but Schweitzer noticed the man’s right hand was not moving as he walked. He was gripping Rein König so tight the hand had gone white.

Schweitzer lowered his head a little to hide a small smile.

But a moment later, it was gone. Once he raised his head, there was only strength on his face.

The enormous bearer of Der Held quickened his pace.

The two of them walked side by side as they entered the hallway.

The hallway was a little darker than the scarlet lobby.

The lobby’s somewhat warm air was replaced by a still and stagnant air.

And…

“Sorry about the wait, you two.”

An almost fussily emotionless voice reached them from the center of the hallway.

They came to a stop and saw a pencil of a man standing 10 yards away in the hallway leading to the mess hall.

Bermark Vier stood aloofly in the hallway, the black of his coat apparent even in the dim light.

Finally, he gave a deep bow.

“Are you ready?”

“Yes,” said Schweitzer, but Alfred stepped forward before they could say more.

“Could you hurry it up?”

“This hallway to the left, please.”

“The left? But this hallway only leads straight to the mess. Right, Hellard?”

“Is that so?”

Bermark turned to his right and their left. There was indeed a hallway there. One the other two had never before seen.

Bermark’s voice seemed to ignore all of their thoughts.

“A castle always has its secrets.”

Alfred answered that with a quiet laugh.

He walked up to Bermark and Schweitzer followed a moment later.

“What will we find down there?” asked both men at once.

“Our leader’s office,” replied Bermark with no discernable expression. “The Naylor family Sofort Leser who runs our Geheimnis Agency has granted you an audience. She says the time has come to meet the two of you.”