Chapter Sixty-Six: The Golden Eagle Organization Interview

October 19, 2237, 9:00 AM, William Avenue, London

William Avenue lay on the outskirts of London. Since the revival of the monarchy, it had always served as the residential district for knights of rank below viscount. Later, when a certain knight residing at Number Two William Avenue received a promotion due to his meritorious service, he offered his house for military use.

That knight was none other than Colonel Elman in his youth. Back then, he was a rather unremarkable viscount, but owing to an incident involving His Highness Trechy, he became the prince’s close attendant. Step by step, he ascended to the position of Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights. Because of this, he came to be known as “the Grand Master at His Highness’s knee.” Yet Elman’s leadership on the battlefield was unmatched, so he managed to hold the title of Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights for an extended period.

A young man appeared at the end of the avenue, dressed in an officer’s uniform. Judging by his epaulettes, he seemed to be a captain. He did not waste time searching for his destination—the houses on the avenue were not numbered by location, but sequentially according to their occupancy. Instead, he walked straight to a house without a numbered plaque, and, standing before the gate, knocked.

“Who is it?” The door was opened by a man dressed as a butler. To most, he would seem an ordinary servant in a knight’s household, but the young man replied with practiced familiarity, “Elite! Golden Eagle!” This was a simple password, and upon hearing it, the butler understood at once.

“Come with me,” the butler said, opening the gate and leading the young man inside.

“May I ask, young sir, which instructor you are here to serve under?” the butler asked casually. The young man replied, “The instructor of the other instructors!” At these words, the butler paused, reappraising the youth before him. He chuckled. “So you’re here to be the chief instructor? Not bad! I have high hopes for you!” With that, he led the young man further inside, into a room.

“Colonel, he’s here!” the butler announced, bringing the young man before a stern, uniformed colonel seated with a file in hand. “Captain Mingchuan, you’ve arrived?” the colonel put down the file and approached him.

“I’ll take my leave then, Colonel,” the butler said just as the colonel moved to shake hands with Mingchuan.

“Why rush off so quickly, Colonel? Won’t you shake my hand first?” Mingchuan showed no intention of shaking the colonel’s hand. On the contrary, he seemed to have realized that this colonel was an impostor. The butler froze at these words, then suddenly burst into laughter.

“Haha! Excellent, excellent! I didn’t expect you to be the first among all who have come here to see through my disguise. Tell me, what gave me away?” The “butler” ceased laughing and stepped over to the fake colonel, helping him remove the uniform and putting it on himself.

“First,” Mingchuan began, “you show the telltale habits of someone accustomed to carrying a firearm—your hand remains poised as if ready to pull the trigger even when empty. Second, the fake colonel’s file is upside down; a real officer would never hold a file like that—clearly a deliberate oversight for us to notice. Third, when two soldiers meet, they salute, not shake hands… Well, I’ll leave it at that.” Realizing he’d said enough, Mingchuan stopped.

“Very well! Captain, allow me to salute you!” With that, the butler-now-colonel gave a crisp military salute, which Mingchuan promptly returned.

“Captain, I’ve invited you here to provide guidance. I’ve heard tales of your remarkable marksmanship, but I’d like to see it for myself. I have some apple targets set up in the backyard. Would you care to demonstrate?” the colonel asked.

“No need. Right here will do, if that’s all right?” Mingchuan cast a glance at the targets below and smiled, as though the challenge were trivial.

“Oh? Is that so? Very well, let’s see what you can do,” the colonel said, curiosity piqued by Mingchuan’s confidence.

Mingchuan drew his modified RC-6 pistol, loaded with anti-riot rounds—less lethal and less accurate than .45 caliber bullets, designed for crowd control rather than lethal force. A rapid burst, swift as automatic fire, sent twelve shots ringing out. Each bullet struck an apple lined in a row.

“Impressive—twelve apples at this distance, not a single shot wasted!” the colonel exclaimed.

But Mingchuan smiled. “Not quite—there were only eleven shots. One round remains,” he said, racking the slide so a perfectly intact bullet was ejected. Eleven bullets, twelve apples—all felled at such a sharp angle, with one shot splitting two.

“Amazing, Captain Mingchuan—the strongest special operative! I surrender, truly!” the colonel laughed heartily, astonished that a feat only Winchester had previously managed had been surpassed.

“Tell me, Captain Mingchuan, are you willing to give your all for the Crown, even though you were not born of this world, and yet serve the Crown faithfully?”

“Yes, sir! I am willing to give everything for the Crown, now and forever!”

—— Endnote ——

A double release in one day—not bad, quite satisfying! Perhaps it’s because there’s little to do on the highway? But don’t expect me to travel every day so you can always have two chapters daily!