Kingdom of Runeria, 1613 AL, 10:10
Castle Town Juropolus, Town Center
Under the blue sunny skies, without a cloud in sight, chaos brewed at the once quiet town of Juropolus, a mob had formed.
"Why are they protesting?" A child asked his mother, who tried to shed light to the matter.
"It's only a grumbling few, we need not worry about them" She said, pulling the arm of the boy away from the commotion.
Men and women armed with pitchforks and torches rallied, trying to gain more followers to their cause.
"End the fear! Embrace our superiority!" One man said, standing on top of the statue of the founder of the town.
The mob raised their weapons high, chanting "Kill the Demons!" the leader of the mob, who stood on top of the statue, raised his voice in a shout, the tip of the wand touching his Adam's apple.
"WE SHAN'T LIVE IN FEAR! WE MUST TAKE THE FIGHT TO THE DEMON LORD!" The mob yelled, "Yeah!"
But besides the mob of a hundred or so people, most of the populace paid them no attention, why should they anyways?
The wall protected them, and the defense force and the military police promoted stability and safety.
Those who haven't been swept by the jingoism simply watched or moved on, the entertainment they provided when they will soon clash with the military police might be fun, so say the people still watching.
"Right on time," one of the nobles commented, munching on some prime Minotaur steak at a restaurant.
Steel boots marched, the sound caused the earth to tremble, before long the mob was surrounded by men with tall shields, their imposing statures made some of the protestors whince, while the brave looked at the formation with fire, ready to beat and be beaten.
"Disperse at once!" A captain said, his voice amplified by a spell.
"H-Hey, should we?" A young man asked an older gentleman; both were part of the mob.
His look was jaded, probably a veteran by the amount of scars he had on his face and arms alone. He didn't answer the young man's question; he simply readied his wand.
"READY FORMATION!" Tired of waiting, the captain ordered, his men raised their blunt swords and shields forward, to the mass of people.
As they prepared their weapons, hoping to fend off the might of the military police, a person in the background continued to watch, he was even taking notes on the event.
"You do know it's easier to let the autonomous spell do the work, right, sir?" A military police officer blocked his view, asking the man with the fedora a question, only for him to be snubbed by the man, leaving the officer to his duties confused.
"The Führer and the Ministry will be pleased with this information." he said under his breath, the collar of his trench coat covering his mouth, making sure that no one could read his lips.
Amidst the commotion, the agent stood apart, his fedora casting a long shadow over his face, making his expression unreadable. While the mob's cries of anger filled the air, his presence was quiet, deliberate. He was not there by accident.
In the cloud of dust, spells broke loose, brilliant hues of red and blue being fired by both sides. After the clashing, the agent kept notes, making sure to detail everything down to even the minute and insignificant, hoping it'd play a role later on.
Just a second later, the apathetic watchers were forcibly dispersed by the military police, making sure no one else would be injured.
Main Operating Base "Eden" 1945 AD, 10:30
Kommandozentrum 'Eden' (Command Center Eden)
Der Adlerhöhe, The Penthouse of the Führer
Here I was, doing my part in the living room, I was attached to my phone playing the game.
The soft clink of porcelain echoed through the room, followed by the unmistakable cadence of Helmine's footsteps.
"Brunch is ready, Heinrich." She called gently, her voice carrying a melody of warmth and formality that seemed perfectly suited to the room's elegant design. She placed the plates down with precision, each one a careful arrangement of order amid the subtle chaos of luxury.
I was sitting in the conversation pit, the projector screen was pulled up, revealing even more books and a TV.
I felt the weight of her gaze as she gracefully collapsed onto the plush red cotton seat beside him. There was a quiet authority in her ease.
"Hey" she said softly, breaking the stillness.
Nothing much has happened this morning, I got used to the space pretty quickly, which I was thankful for because back in the old headquarters building, it was basically the same as this place, except the penthouse was like five times the size and usability.
And the reason why she was cooking for me, was because she didn't want any help, I bet she certainly doesn't want any from Gerde.
"Thanks for the food, Helmine, this looks amazing." I thanked her sincerely, putting down my phone to eat, I have already made preparations for if an emergency happens, things like a custom notification sound for the game among other things.
Helmine smiled, a flicker of satisfaction passing over her face as she took a measured bite of the wiener würstchen. Her movements were composed, precise, as though each action was part of an unspoken dialogue of its own.
"Hey Helmine, I need your advice on something," I asked while she took a bite out of her wiener würstchen (vienna sausages). Her eyes met mine with an attentive gaze, a subtle nod encouraging him to continue.
"Should I invest in the infrared upgrade for the STG-44?" She places her knife and fork down smoothly on her plate, wiping away the sauce from the wiener.
"If we think about it, our troops could use something like that, especially the ones on night patrol," I nodded. She smiled at me before continuing, "To equip something like the Z. 1229 on our forces would require recalling and refitting of our troops." Makes sense.
"So do you still want to do it? The upgrade?" I nodded.
"I'll upgrade the troops, thanks for your input," she beamed.
"Anything for my Führer," she said, raising her hand in a salute slightly.
We continued our brunch peacefully, I would occasionally look at my phone, my prayers to God or the gods above to let me rest from the worries, but I guess this was all subconscious now. After spending what felt like a few weeks now, maybe it's been a month? I'd never know.
I took a quick glances of Helmine, her porcelain clear skin made her seem like a doll, with her picturesque way of dining, I hardly believe she was that rude yesterday. I guess I have a yandere on my hand.
"Hahaha," I chuckled, catching the sudden attention of Helmine, who looked at me with a confused face.
"Is there something funny about me, My Führer?" she inquired.
"H-Huh? About you?" I inquired back, she smirked slightly.
"Well, you've been stealing glances my way, of course I'd notice if you moved your head every five seconds to me." She took a sip out of her clear beef soup, swallowing then adding, "I don't mind, by the way, just... ask, y'know?" She took a while to send her message, but right after, I bet she regretted it, she blushed profusedly, turning her white, pale skin to pink red in a matter of seconds.
"Oh? What happened to the cocky tone earlier, sweet Helmine?" I joked, causing her to recoil back slightly, she covered her face with the oval serving tray She used to deliver the food.
"N-Nevermin-Disregard that, please," she pleaded.
This continued for a while, until we were finally done.
We were on our way down. I checked my phone.
"HEIL HEINRICH!" Everyone outside saluted when I stepped out of my new penthouse, I simply raised my hand, saying "Heil" Walking away, stopping just in front of the elevator door, I felt the presence of another person in the group, but I didn't really care.
"To the ground floor, My Führer?" A man asked, I nodded yes.
"Understood." A press of a button made the elevator bell ring; the whole place was big, but there were so many people here for some reason. Well, it's alright, I guess, it's for protection, I guess.
"The chauffer should be right outside, My Führer." Gerde spoke suddenly, pulling me back to reality in a second.
"Thank you Frau Gerde" I thanked her.
For a couple of minutes inside the building, I forgot that this was an actual government and military building, I thought I was in a 5-Star Hotel, well who could blame me with all of the gold used in the interior, it really showcased the lavishness this building gave to the hundreds of people working here, this was undoubtedly the most secure place in the world.
I mean, yeah, there was magic and stuff, but as long as they don't have anything that can track us, we hold the title.
Finally, outside of the Command Center, I decided to take my party to a new building I built, this was probably one of the most important buildings here.
Eden kept expanding further and further; I could even see restaurants popping up, movie theaters, and a public bathhouse. It started looking like a proper town now, like a military town. I checked my phone for what my agenda was.
We drove on the asphalt, taking in the sight of the new residential-commercial zone, This was a great accomplishment to me, thanks to the multiple meetings in how we'd design the base that prioritizes comfort.
We'd occasionally make a turn left or right, I think it was like a five minute drive to the agency.
Yup, that's right.
We got an Agency now, so think of James Bond or something. Well, besides that the Agency has been really useful, just last night, the Agency got finished building and immediately sent out Operatives to conduct espionage, stuff like data gathering among other things where we can't use jets, luckily it looks like the spies fit in nicely with the locals, no casualty reports have been made yet, if there was I'd be alerted with a notification on my phone.
The sleek car glided closer to the heavily fortified entrance. Guards stood at attention, the imposing black uniforms giving them an air of authority. Their faces were obscured by the sharp shadows cast by the guardhouse—a far cry from the makeshift wooden shacks most would associate with such posts. This one was a fortress in itself, made of reinforced concrete, standing as both a deterrent and a promise: entry here was not granted without absolute clearance.
"Welcome to the Abwehr Command Center, my Führer."
The guard's voice was crisp, professional, his hand already hovering over the red button that controlled the gate. His rifle was slung casually over his shoulder, but there was nothing casual about his demeanor. He was as vigilant as a hawk, making sure none would get past him, he was a pro.
With the push of a button, the gate groaned open, and the mansion loomed ahead, every inch a blend of modern efficiency and the old-world grandeur of a bygone era.
As the car slowed and I stepped out, the weight of their collective gaze followed me. The guards saluted me with a sharp expression.
'So this is it...Der Abwehr,' I thought to myself.
The elegant mahogany double doors swung open, letting out cold air suddenly, my eyes were fixed at the quaint old man who stood in front of me, clicking the heels of his shoes together and raising his arm proudly yet smoothly, it was like he was dancing for me, I didn't mind the flavor he added to the salute, but I wished to be let in immediately.
"Welcome to Der Adbwehr, my Führer" He said, motioning his hand inside, "Let's continue inside, shall we, my Führer?"
Inside of the mansion, I could tell they had a LOT of fun designing, there were all sorts of memorabilia and exhibits that pay homage to actual spies back in the war, I couldn't help but notice the largest exhibit had the face of a man with a gnarly scar on his face, stretching from his upper cheek all the way down to his lower chin on the left side.
"Otto Skorzeny..." I read the silver plaque card.
"Ah, I see you are interested in Herr Skorzeny, yes?" The old man asked to affirm, I nodded yes.
"He has a lot of operations on his belt, like Unternehmen Eiche, the rescue of the Duce of Italia.
"Did he succeed?" I asked him. He caressed the plaque holder before answering, his eyes still fixed on the exhibit of a wax figure of Otto Skorzeny walking through a mountain; behind him was a bunch of German commandos and a glider.
"I am Hardwin Sitz, Chief of the Abwehr" I knew it! I knew this dude was a big figure.
"And this is my Deputy Head of the counter-espionage bureau, Friedhelm Zimmermann." I looked around, only to see my men and Helmine, when I took a look back at Hardwin, there was suddenly another man stood next to the Chief.
"Heil Heinrich." He saluted me with a cunning smile. Hardwin smacked the back of the head of the man, shaking his head left and right in disappointment. He bowed his head down, making sure that Friedhelm bowed his too.
"I am terribly sorry, my Führer, he has insisted on testing the aptitude of training your personal guard has; I'll be sure to reprimand him for this." I waved my hand with a chuckle. "It's alright, Herr Sitz; this was a good test as well." I heard multiple gulps behind me, well they should be scared.
"Thank you for the test, Herr Friedhelm, this will be good training material against a magical enemy." Friedhelm nodded his head, smiling all the while.
Friedhelm clasped his hands together. "Let's begin!" I went to Helmine's side, I leaned to whisper.
"He seems like the enthusiastic type, huh?" Helmine nodded slightly.
We walked all around the main lobby/exhibit room; this place acted as a museum of German espionage and the headquarters of the agency, Hardwin did a lot of the explaining, like the history of each exhibit, the functions of the equipment and a bunch of other stuff.
There wasn't much use trying to understand it, I relied on Helmine mostly anyways.
"We've finally come to the operative dispatch and control center" Hardwin explained, He opened a door to the brains of the operation, where the operatives relied on.
I saw the heads of multiple men and women, dressed in comfortably, rows upon rows of paper and file cabinets, records in shelves, there were phones ringing constantly, I heard the continuous tapping of the telegraph echoing through the large space.
"Ladies and Gentlemen! May I have your attention please!" They all stopped suddenly.
"It is with great honor to announce that the Führer has entered the mansion!" Hardwin exclaimed, his booming voice was heard in all four corners of the room.
Everyone faced me, all of them ecstatic, excited to see me, there were even some who were beet red, I think I saw a few collapse for some reason.
They paused, raised their arm in unison and shouted "HEIL HEINRICH!" holding their position.
"Heil!" I shouted back, raising my hand to receive their praise, trust and loyalty.
I felt myself smiling at the scene.
Once I lowered my hand to rest, that was when they continued working.
"What do you think, my Führer? Is the place to your liking?" Hardwin asked, he seemed nervous for some reason.
"It's great what you have here, I think it's nice to see that my people are working so hard for the Reich, I'll be sure to lead us to the path of victory." I replied.
"If you don't mind, I need to talk to you about something, my Führer," I pondered for a second, then replied. "Helmine stays with me though, that's fine, right?" Hardwin nodded.
We walked around for a couple of minutes through the operation, passing the many men and women armed with paper and paperclips.
I was finally greeted by a quaint frosted glass door, the nameplate read out 'Head of Abwehr - Hardwin Sitz' in black in the classic fraktur font.
"Please come in, my Führer, Frau Krüger" He gesticulated us through the door.
When we the four of us entered, what I noticed was the amount of books there were on the shelves, next to that was....
"Earth.." I felt melancholic for a second, letting the globe spin with a twirl of my finger, although it wasn't the globe I was familiar with, I still saw countries from the old world, from France to the US.
Well I guess it makes sense that this was a dated globe, looking at Africa, it was still colonized by France, the UK and Italy, there was also the Belgian Congo and Spanish Africa, but that was all I was familiar with.
"My Führer?" Helmine called my name, placing a hand on my back gently.
"S-Sorry, I was just nostalgic" I chuckled slightly.
We went to take our seats on the couch in the middle of the room, tea was served to everyone with a handful of crumpets, I found it odd for a second but I disregarded it as quickly as it entered my mind and stomach, this was some gourmet tea.
"This is some gourmet shit" I held the cup close, referencing a certain actor in a certain movie.
"My Führer?" Everyone besides me looked pretty confused, till I realize I was still stuck in 1945.
"Sorry, this is a bit later down the time" I chuckled.
"So" Hardwin leaned forward slightly, "We have received certain information from my operatives, we have translated a part of the language, from what we could tell, we've encountered the Republic of Runary"
"What is their military capabilities?" Helmine asked, I was intrigued too.
"My operatives have taken note of the structure and state of the garrison, they are composed of armored knights, the typical knights from the legends of King Arthur, although it isn't clear how far they are in this technological timeline, we are sure of their uses of magic though." Helmine and I nodded, understanding the gravity of the situation.
"As of this moment, we might be able to defeat them using large-scale bombings or sustained artillery fire on magician columns, most of our concern is on the magical side of things so we are focused on info-gathering on that part" Hardwin stopped for a second, letting Friedhelm continue.
"For now we are assisting the operatives on info-gathering, but we are ready to start sabotaging them if the need arises through random bombings of industrial and military sites, spread fear through legends and myths, cause chao-" I spoke up.
"O-Okay, thanks for the.. um.. the report Friedhelm" Friedhelm smiled and saluted proudly.
"But! We are NOT going to orchestrate terror attacks on these people, l-let's be diplomatic for now y'know?" Helmine perked up when she saw me dismissing the two people.
"But Mein Führer, we have a serious advantage against them, shouldn't we at least stunt them of their progress to widen that gap?" I disagreed heavily, shaking my head no furiously.
"We shouldn't be the aggressors; I don't want to be Hitler 2.0!" They looked at me weirdly.
"L-look, I'm fine with intel-gathering and infiltration, but let's not harm our already sour relations with the natives with a medieval 9/11, and infiltration is more inconspicuous than planting fucking bombs on a castle" I pleaded.
"What's a 'medieval 9/11'?" Friedhelm asked innocently, raising his hand up as if he were asking a professor.
"I-its not important, as long as you guys get the point, the discussion is over, okay?" I looked around the room, well, it looks like they understood me so we ended it at that.
We spent a few more hours discussing various things surrounding the agency, but with the way things are set up, I can leave it to the heads and staff; as long as I have final say on the operations, then it should run on autopilot.
Five Days Later
Kingdom of Runeria, 1613 AL, 10:10
Castle Town Juropolus, Town Center
A massive formation of peasants and noblemen watched; they formed a circle around the knights clad in rune-enchanted armor, These men held their heads high as they faced the gates of the town, from beyond the world of man was....
The world of monsters.
Boys and girls gawked at the knights; the boys loved the armor while the girls loved the knights themselves; the formation was tight, and there were a few more knights for the future.
The man at the lead was a battle-scarred man, his armor barely holding his hulking body, he forgone his helmet, letting his gray hair sway, a man of strength, a man of combat.
"SIR RENAULT!!!!!!! WE LOVE YOU!!!!!" Peasant girls yelled out, pushing the Military Police line to the brim; they could barely hold the excited girls back.
The single men scoffed at the women, they chugged their ale and mead as they watched.
"W-Wait! I recognize that armor!" A man pointed towards a knight, his breastplate forming around her rich bossom; the men couldn't believe who was in the formation.
"T-That's Kin! I can't believe Lady Kin is here!" The same man yelled out. It looks like she was equally famous.
"The King has answered our prayers! They've sent two heroes for this extermination!" Another man clasped his hands together in prayer.
"Blessed be to the King!" He cried out, knowing that the forces of the Demon King would finally be slain.
"BLESSED BE TO THE KING!" Others rejoiced, tavern owners even reduced the prices of their drinks knowing that once the expedition is over, more land will be claimed, and more land meant more riches to the owner of that land.
The Demon Forest was especially rich in various resources, from the mountains of the chaos dragons to even the lowly goblin cave. Riches wait for the strong who venture out to the forest, but it was forbidden from entering it. Juropolis was first centered around the exploitation of the forest, letting them generate profits that quickly made them richer, second only to the capital itself, but that was a long time ago now. As the monsters suspiciously grew stronger, many believed it was the miasma of the Demon King and the portal to his world, introducing various monsters to the region. Only God knows how many monsters are in those woods.
"So are the 102nd and 103rd Demon Expeditionary Force moving in one by one or are they merged?" A gatekeeper asked his fellow keeper.
"I dunno, I just see this as an absolute win for us, knowing that two heroes of the 2nd Demon War are here, especially Sir Renault!"
"Bah! Ya'll don't know nuthin bout Renault!" An older keeper walks up to the two.
"Oh yeah, you fought for him right?" One of the keepers asked.
"Mhm, and he was glorious in the battle for Rosmon, he slew a General AND its officers in that single battle, bet they're all grumpy in the demon world right now!" The old keeper explained.
"I'm still confused on that though; you say the General and the Officers were killed but then you say they are grumpy in the Demon World?" A younger keeper asked.
"Haven't they taught you this yet or are you still sucking your mum's tit?" The men laughed at the joke, leaving only the younger keeper out of the loop.
"Well, there are five worlds, yeah?" One of the keepers explained. He held up three fingers on one hand, then two on the other; the three were stacked on top of the two.
"The Under and the Demon world are connected together, they, if I remember correctly from the story, are allied and seek to conquer Rutra, which is the middle of the five worlds, now some may call this Midworld or Midgard, but us Runerians call it Rutra right? Well anyways, when there is down then there is up, which is where the God Realm and Paradis Worlds are, Paradis is where the good dead folk go, and the God Realm is where those who were chosen by God get sent up there to work under him exclusively, now when bad folk die, they are forcibly recruited into the Demon World as grunts, those who are most notorious are given special titles."
"Like General and Officer, right?" The younger keeper chipped.
"Yup, now you get it?" The keeper looked confused though.
"So Paradis and the God Realm aren't connected like The Under and the Demon World are?" He asked.
"Yeah, because God has the duty of bringing balance and blessing to the world," He responds.
"Hey! They are marching now!" One of keepers looked towards the formation and yelled.
"Ah! We missed the fucking ceremony! All thanks to your yapping!" One of the keepers who was listening blamed the other.
"Well, let's see them off then." The older one simply raised a miniature flag and waved it around. The knights marched into the forest; the clattering of armor soon died down, and the town atmosphere returned to normal.