> “Colonel Drake!”

> “…Lieutenant Sue. What is it?”

> …It was the idiot who nearly handed over the prisoners to the Federation on her own discretion. Or really, the root of the issue was her close relationship with that political officer. In other words, half of the problem was appearing before him now, brimming with enthusiasm. Frankly, Drake sensed God’s malice.

> Oh Lord, I’m going to remember this…

> “About the prisoners…”

> “What about them? I want to take a walk. Is it something you need to discuss here?” There’s nothing to discuss. Let’s at least go somewhere else. Despite an attitude implying those things, Sue persisted.

> “It’s urgent. Please, it’ll only take a moment.”

> “Surely you can walk and talk at the same time.”

> “It’s important. Please, sir.”

> “Argh.” Drake sighed. “Something about the prisoners?”

> “Yes, that’s right, sir.”

> “It’s not as if I wanted to have that argument with Colonel Mikel. In fact, I really didn’t.”

> The whole reason he had needed to trouble Mikel and put on that farce in order to regain custody of the prisoners…was this girl.

> He really loathed the idea of openly fighting in front of a crowd.

> But he had been forced to because he listened to the voice of humanity and conscience inside himself. He had guaranteed those prisoners they were in Commonwealth hands, so it would have been an exceedingly cruel betrayal to give them to the Communist Party.

> “…Lieutenant Sue, that was such a thoughtless thing to do! Why did you transfer them?!”

> For a time, there was silence.

> Sue hesitated and then spoke. “Because, well, the Federation has abolished capital punishment.”

> Are you kidding me? Drake thought while implying with his eyes that she should continue.

> “Considering that in our country, the highest punishment for irregular combatants when they don’t qualify as belligerents is death by firing squad…”

> “Did you really give them away because of that?!” He had to shout despite his headache.

> This was approaching the level of being a picky eater.

> An officer employing the logic of a child—this absurdity—should have been unimaginable given the education frontline officers went through. Yet this is a first lieutenant?!

> Of the glorious Commonwealth Army?!

> “I-it’s Christmas. And I’m sure they had their reasons for doing what they did…”

> Drake was a seasoned soldier, but this caught him completely off guard. It was so silly, he felt himself sinking into a stupor.

> I got told—during the Christmas party—that our prisoners had been given to the Federation!

> Santa would never do anything so heartless!

> “I don’t want to hear it.”

> The fact that First Lieutenant Mary Sue seemed to have no idea what a cruel thing she had done made Drake’s headache rapidly worsen.

> “You’re a soldier of the Commonwealth!”

> Even if only for political convenience.

> Or maybe that was why. If she was going to make light of the bare minimum that had to be upheld as a Commonwealth soldier, he wouldn’t stand for it.

> He didn’t want to have this conversation on Christmas.

> “But, I mean, there’s no reason we have to tie them up and send them all the way back to the Commonwealth… Imprisoning them closer to their homes would be…”

> “More humane…?” The reason he didn’t let I can’t believe this slip was probably more out of shock than restraint. “Yes, what a wonderfully humane idea that is, Lieutenant.” Drake made a pledge to himself: The next time I talk to this giant moron, I’m taking painkillers first. “Are you serious?”

> “…What about you, Colonel? Why are you so focused on achievements? You’re dragging around those poor people as if they were trophies…”

> As far as Drake knew, humanity was extinct in the Federation.

> Technically speaking, the people themselves still had warmth and emotions. But anyone who was surrendering themselves to the mercy of the profoundly kind Communist Party would be better off flying into the freezing winter sky.

> “I just wanted to give them some good news on Christmas. That said, it’s possible that they would still be punished. Liliya, er, I mean, the Federation does punish people, so…”

> “That’s enough! Shut your mouth! Listen,” Drake said, choosing his words carefully to emphasize policy in order to break off the conversation while avoiding any diplomatic or confidentiality problems. “What you’re saying makes no sense at all! We are a military unit deployed here on a joint mission with the Federation Army, and we must carry out our duty in accordance with military laws and regulations!”

> It was precisely because they had a legal argument that they didn’t have to transfer the poor souls to the Federation Communist Party’s justice system, which people often compared to a meat grinder.

> Anyone could scoff at policy, bureaucracy, and what have you as the evils of vertical administration if they wanted, but anything can do good depending on how it’s used.

> “Naturally, managing prisoners is one of our duties! We don’t have the authority to approve their transfer! We can’t set a bad precedent!”

> “If we could set a good precedent, then those poor people…”

> “You’re not making sense!”

> A good precedent?! Swallowing that shout mentally exhausted Drake to an unimaginable degree.

> How infuriating it was to be stuck having a discussion with an officer who was this dense when it came to discerning people’s true intentions in a hotel room that was almost certainly bugged.

> He suddenly had an idea that even he found excessive. I wonder if it would be possible to throw her in a Federation prison for a night…

> Instead of a Christmas present, he found himself wanting to give her the concentration camp experience.

> Anyone given the choice between POW facilities in the Commonwealth, where the highest punishment was death by firing squad, and the Federation camps, where the death penalty had supposedly been abolished, would choose the former.

> It wasn’t even a matter of this extreme either-or.

> Why did he have to endanger the position of his esteemed brother-in-arms, Colonel Mikel, making him walk such a tightrope on Christmas, because of this little girl who couldn’t even grasp that simple fact?

> “Why in the world are you so obsessed with prisoners, Commander?!”

> “We need a souvenir for Londinium! And more importantly, it’s not something we should be poking our noses into! It’s high-level politics!”

> It wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t the whole story, either.

> As far as Drake knew, people in government in Londinium hadn’t set their eyes on prisoners but refugees, because they would speak to the harsh rule of the Federation.

> Political landscapes were constantly shifting, though, so he couldn’t say for sure.

> …That said, all he needed to do was what he could.

> “I have my position to worry about, too. I can’t say any more than this, but I just need you to understand.”

> But his true feelings didn’t get through. In Sue’s steady gaze was condensed disappointment.

> It was easy for him to guess at her feelings of dissatisfaction and discontentment as he watched her take her leave.

> If she wanted to talk about confidential matters, all she had to do was invite him outside—somewhere they weren’t at risk of being spied on. The one who truly wanted to lament the state of affairs was Drake.

> No one with a normal conscience would be able to tolerate releasing people under protection in the name of the Commonwealth to the Federation Communist Party’s kind hands.