Tyranny of Steel

Immediately after landing on the deck of the SMS Osterreich, Itami and her family were sequestered away from the public eye. Min-ah, however, had been taken towards the command center with the intention of a full debriefing during her time in the Imperial Palace. 

The Joseon Princess stood at attention in front of Admiral Nolthe Schriber, as well as her personal contact Agent Friedrich Ziegler, the two men stood and listened to Min-ah's report on what had transpired within the Japanese Imperial Palace over the last few days.

"It is exactly as you have suspected. General Shiba had taken the Empress captive, and forced her into house arrest, after she declared her intention of surrender. The man has gone mad, and I expect I know why. 

Shiba is deeply infatuated with Itami, and has been trying to gain her hand in marriage for several years now. I have no doubt that Itami herself is completely oblivious to this fact. She dug her own grave the moment she said she will only marry the man who can best her on the battlefield.

By declaring her intent to surrender to Shiba, he may have confused her words, that she desired to marry Berengar, because after all, the Kaiser had bested Itami at every turn. As a result, Shiba has led a coup d'état, and is now the effective ruler of the Japanese Empire. He is exhausting every resource to prepare for the Reich's invasion. 

I wouldn't doubt that the fool is probably going mad at this very moment, knowing that Itami has escaped from his clutches. This means he will probably be even more erratic when it comes to the defense of the Japanese mainland. Germany must be prepared to fight even the civilians of Japan, or else I fear you will suffer heavy casualties."

After hearing this report, Admiral Schriber nodded his head in silence for several moments as he contemplated the next best course of action. After a while, he finally spoke, which immediately attracted the attention of Freiderich and Min-Ah. 

"Send word to the Crimson Prince, and tell him that I have a special job for him... It has become clear to me now that we must transport Itami and her family to Kufstein as quickly as possible. The Kaiser will know how to best proceed from here."

Min-Ah did not say a word in response to this. Instead, she was quickly dismissed, where she immediately began to flirt with Agent Ziegler, who had captured her heart some time ago. As for Itami, she was pacing around the room that she and her family were held in, wondering what horrific plan the Germans had in store for her.

After nearly an hour, the door opened to reveal several heavily armed german soldiers, as well as a and adolescent boy, who Itami noticed was no older than fifteen. She was quite curious why someone so young was dressed in what was clearly an officer's uniform. However, in the next moment, Hans introduced himself in perfect Japanese. 

"Captain Hans von Kufstein... I have been ordered to fly you and your family to Kufstein. My father wishes to speak with you in person."

Itami immediately put two and two together when she heard the boy's surname, as well as the mention of his father. She frowned heavily, realizing that Berengar had sent his young son off to war at such an early age.

Of course, Itami did not realize that Hans's brain was highly developed for his age, and that his maturity was well above that of his peers. If she did, she might be more impressed by his appearance here on this carrier. As a result of this misunderstanding, Itami was rather rude when she replied to Hans's introduction. 

"I would very much like to meet the man who thinks it is appropriate to send a young boy onto the battlefield, let alone his own son. I can't wait to scold him for such inhumane treatment of the youth!"

Hans's lips curled slightly upside down into a frown. From this brief interaction, he could already tell why his father referred to this woman as "the bitch". Itami was clearly very entitled, and had a disagreeable nature. These were two qualites that Hans found repulsive in a woman, no matter how pretty she might be. 

However, he maintained the grace of an officer, and thus ignored Itami's taunts, before leading her to the deck of the carrier, where a large jet bomber sat waiting for them. Admiral Nolthe Schriber had ordered all pilots to hit the air in order to accommodate this aircraft, which had been en route to the SMS Osterreich since the start of the operation. 

Itami was stunned to see that the Germans had already managed to make long range jet bombers. However, when she stepped foot in the vehicle, she realized that this aircraft was no bomber; it had been hollowed out of its military equipment, and replaced with the luxury interior of a private jetliner. 

The conditions inside the aircraft included beds, bathrooms, and even a shower. As well as a dedicated compartment to prepare food. Where several beautiful German women were already on board waiting to attend to the guests' needs. 

Itami was not the only one surprised about this luxurious aircraft, so too were her mother and sister, who could not fathom that such a massive plane was capable of flight. After all, they had previously taken a float plane and were terrified by the experience. Yet this jet was so much larger, and so much more comfortable. 

Hans had already entered the cockpit and was preparing to take off, as Itami sat down in the copilots' seat to demand answers from him.

"What the hell is this? Why does such a jet exist?"

Hans merely scoffed as he activated the engines of the aircraft before responding with a simple tone in his voice. 

"My father appreciates the finer things in life. As a man who routinely travels across Europe and Asia, he prefers his personal transports to be as comfortable as possible. I'll admit, this plane is a much needed improvement over the previous model. Now take your seat. I don't have time to entertain your questions."

After saying this, Hans forced Itami out of the cockpit and locked the door behind her. Once he had gotten approval from the command deck of the SMS Osterreich, he took flight, sending the massive jetliner into the air, and towards Singapore, where he would need to refuel before journeying onward to Kufstein. 

Once in the air, Haywire, Ghost, and several of the other pilots of his unit, flew by his side, though it was impossible for the Imperial Japanese Air Force to target him at such an altitude, these men wanted to say their brief farewell to the best pilot they had ever seen. 

Having reached a safe distance away from the front lines, Haywire made a short salute before turning his tail and running back to the Carrier Strike Group, as did the rest of the fighter pilots. The journey to the Reich would take nearly an entire day to achieve, but once the plane had touched down in Kufstein, Itami and her family were both anxious and relieved. 

Anxious for what awaited them as they entered the capital of their enemy, while relieved that they could finally step foot on solid ground. Only Itami seemed to not care about the flight, as if it were the most comfortable thing she had ever experienced. 

After landing in Kufstein, Hans led Itami and her family to a car, which had been prepared for them upon arrival. This was the first time he had step foot in his homeland since he had first deployed to war, and as he sat in the seat beside the driver, gazing off into the city of Kufstein there was an odd sense of nostalgia that entered his mind. 

As for Itami, she was utterly dumbfounded by what she was seeing while the car zipped through the streets of Kufstein. Everything from street lights to trolleys, high-speed trains and double-decker busses it was all beyond what she had been able to achieve on her own in Japan. 

It was not just the means of transport that shocked Itami, but the standard of living that the German people enjoyed. There were no homeless people begging on street corners, and every citizen she watched walk through the streets was dressed in clean and tidy clothes of the latest fashion. 

Even the blue-collar workers wore lavish suits and ties, while their wives and daughters adorned fine dresses. Itami had actually mistaken this to be the wealthy district of the city. Which caused her to express her disbelief aloud. 

"I can't believe how wealthy your upper class is here in Germany..." 

Hans instantly looked back at Itami with an embarrassed expresion on his youthful face, which she immediately noticed and called out. 

"What? What is it?"

Hans looked away as he struggled to find the ability to express his thoughts to the Japanese Empress, fearing that she might become hysterical if she were to learn the truth of the matter. In the end he felt it was better not to keep it a secret and thus sighed in exhaustion before speaking to her. 

"Empress Itami, I don't know how to say this, but this is the old quarter of the city. Our poorest citizens reside here. If you think this is an impressive standard of living, then I suggest you close your eyes when we enter the Palace district for the sake of your own mental health. I am now afraid to ask how your citizens live..." 

Itami was completely stunned into silence for several moments when she heard this. This boy had to be lying to her. After all, she had just witnessed a large screen television through one of the local bar's windows just now.

Was Hans seriously saying that even the poorest of Germany's citizens could afford a television of their own? Such a thing was only accomplished by the United States in her past life towards the end of the 20th century. Just how wealthy were the Germans to accomplish this already? 

Thus, Itami sat in utter silence for the rest of the journey to the palace while she took in all the bewildering sights with careful observation. By the time she entered Berengar's home, it was as if her soul had left her body. A single word repeated itself over and over again in her mind throughout this time.

Failure

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