Starting from South America, speeding through the world

Chapter 248 Polish Bastards
Three forty in the afternoon.

The Governor's Office of the Carpathian Administrative Region.

The curtains were not drawn.

Sunlight pierced through the clouds and fell on the intricately patterned carpet.

Governor Schleck sat calmly behind a walnut desk.

The brooch on his chest gleamed, just like the cufflinks on his black suit.

Just then, footsteps could be heard outside the office.

Schleck didn't look up, but raised the pipe beside him, took two light puffs, and coughed once.

There was a knock on the door.

Before he could say "Please come in," the two men walked in without any ceremony.

The leader was dressed in a black uniform, with his hat brim pulled low and his belt tightly cinched.

He is Major Walter Teschner of the State Security Service.

Behind him was a relatively young adjutant, following closely behind.

Schleck immediately put down his pipe and stood up to greet him.

"Welcome, you must have had a long journey."

The major didn't exchange pleasantries with him; instead, he stood with his heels together and raised his hand in salute.

Seeing this, Schleck had no choice but to straighten his back, nod slightly, and give a restrained and proper response.

"Please have a seat, gentlemen," he said.

"no need."

The major stood still, turning his gaze to the pile of documents in the corner of the desk.

"You should have already received the report."

"really."

"It was delivered fifteen minutes ago, and I haven't had time to read it in detail yet."

The major turned his head and gestured to his adjutant.

The man stepped forward and handed him a few pages of paper.

"A large-scale armed attack occurred in Fort Vassk at 2:20 p.m. today."

"The target is His Excellency Otto Weissmann and his entourage, who are currently on an inspection tour."

"Preliminary confirmation indicates that the incident resulted in 24 deaths."

He paused for a moment, then emphasized again: "His Excellency Weissmann died on the spot."

Schleck did not respond immediately, but slowly sat back down in his chair, as if waiting for the other person to continue.

The major felt a surge of displeasure, but he refrained from reacting immediately.

"His trip was as a special inspector appointed by the President to assess the implementation of the fourth phase of the 'Action for Ethnic Integration' in the Carpathian region."

Schleck nodded, his expression unchanged.

“This is an extremely important position for the Empire,” the major added, “which also means that this case is a direct provocation against Germanic authority.”

The room fell into dead silence.

Even the air pressure seemed to have dropped a few degrees.

After a long pause, Schleck said softly, "I understand its seriousness, and I also understand the responsibility you bear on this trip."

He paused for a moment, then said, "I can assure you that the Governor-General's Office will fully cooperate with the central government's investigation."

“At present, the Vassk Fortress is completely sealed off, and the order was given by me personally.”

Upon hearing this, the major finally took two steps closer.

He stared intently into the governor's eyes and asked coldly, "So, by now, have you narrowed down the suspects?"

“It’s not confirmed yet,” Schleck replied honestly, “but the attack method is extremely professional, far exceeding the capabilities of ordinary underground organizations.”

"So, in other words, foreign or cross-regional forces have successfully infiltrated your core facilities?" the major asked casually.

Schleck did not fall into his verbal trap.

"If true, that is indeed a wake-up call."

"However, as a special security unit, Fort Vasquez's daily operations were not under the jurisdiction of the Governor's Office."

The atmosphere maintained a strange balance.

No one raised their voice, but no one really backed down either.

A dozen seconds later, the major broke the silence.

"Given the sensitivity of the incident, we must consider—" "It is highly likely to be part of a larger infiltration operation aimed at fundamentally undermining the Empire's order."

Schleck looked up at him: "I understand your sensitivity to loyalty."

"But please believe me, everything I do here is in the interest of the Empire."

"Of course we hope so."

The major walked to the chair, but instead of sitting down, he put his hand on the back of the chair.

"But we also hope that local governments will not interpret 'for the empire' as 'being self-contained'."

At this point, he twitched the corner of his mouth slightly, but in an instant, his expression returned to blankness.

"As far as we know, several security personnel in Waskburg voluntarily changed their shift schedule a few days before the incident."

Schleck shook his head.

"The security is handled by the ** Army's garrison squadron."

"As I said before, the fortress is not within my regular administrative authority."

"Of course, I trust your system and it will quickly determine whether there is any internal collaboration."

The major had not given up his plan to seize power.

“It is precisely because these systems exist that we have a responsibility to take over the current situation,” he said.

"In order to prevent further infiltration, sabotage and leaks, I propose that the State Security Bureau take the lead in all martial law work from this moment on."

Schleck sighed.

"I'm afraid I can't agree to that."

The major's gaze darkened: "Are you refusing to assist the Empire's counter-infiltration operations?"

"of course not."

Schleck looked helpless. "But according to current procedures, we are only responsible for orders from the Imperial Ministry of the Interior and the National Defense Forces."

He thought for a moment and then added, "Without receiving the telegram, I do not have the authority to transfer all local defenses to the General Security Bureau."

The major gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes as he said:
“I think we all understand that continuing to emphasize the administrative hierarchy at this time will only cause the empire to suffer more losses.”

Schleck simply smiled and nodded: "I understand."

"So we will wait."

“Wait for what you call the ‘central government’ and express their intentions in an appropriate form.”

At that moment, the major couldn't help but let out a cold laugh.

"Whether you like it or not, Germania will make arrangements soon."

"The State Security Bureau will be formally appointed to take over."

"At that time, I hope you will maintain this cooperative attitude."

“Of course,” Schleck said. “I will patiently wait for the official notification.”

"And consistently maintain the order and authority of the Empire in this region."

After they finished speaking, neither of them said anything more.

The major lingered for a few more seconds, and seeing that there was no way to change the situation, he suddenly turned around and walked out.

The adjutant didn't react immediately, paused for half a second, and then quickly caught up.

The major walked away without looking back.

The corridor was empty.

The sound of military boots treading on the tiles echoed between the arched windows and stone pillars.

Just as he was about to step out of the main hall, the major stopped and called out to his adjutant:

"Damn Polish bastard."

"They will never learn how to truly rule."

"They just lick one side with their tongue like a dog, then lick the other side."

His voice was so loud that it could be heard directly in the office.

Schleck listened calmly to the major's insults before pressing the call button on the desktop:

"Get ready, we're going to the old site."

"Tell that person, he better not be late."

　The author avoids directly using historical terms/departments to mitigate risk.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)