Tyranny of Steel

For quite some time now, the refugees who had fled the Japanese Empire, and more importantly Empress Itami Riyo's wrath, had found their way into the German Empire, where they lived a quiet and free life. 

Under the orders of the Kaiser they were to be treated with exceptional kindness, and because of that many of these refugees had come forward and volunteered the information they had about The Japanese Empire and its modernization efforts.

This so-called conservative element of the Japanese Empire was the old Samurai class, which refused to bend the knee to the new Imperial Dynasty. It was only after they entered the borders of the reich did these traditionalists fully comprehend the threat that the Germany posed to Japan, and why their newest empress had practically gone crazy in her attempts to compete with a foreign power on the other side of the world. 

Among these newest refugees was actually a man who had been intimately involved with Japan's shipbuilding projects. Because of this, he was now sequestered by German Imperial Intelligence who interrogated him on what information he knew.

This man was named Ogura Yoriie, and he sat within the headquarters that belonged to the world's greatest spy agency with a rather anxious expression on his face. It was only after several minutes of silence that a particularly beautiful blonde woman in her mid-to late twenties appeared in the room. Her hair was styled in a simple ponytail as she sat down across from the Japanese Shipwright. By her side was a native Japanese woman who interpreted her words perfectly. 

"Mr. Ogura, my name is Catharina von Núfran, it is my responsibility to welcome refugees into the borders of the Reich. I must make you aware, we do not often let foreigners into our country, and because of this you should realize that it is your most esteemed honor to reside within the fatherland.

You do not need to worry about your family. They are currently being taken to your new residence in what we like to call Little Kyoto. In this community, you will find many Japanese refugees like yourself. However, before I let you go, it is my duty to find out some information.

Naturally, as someone who has escaped from the Japanese mainland, you must have had a certain degree of influence within the Japanese Empire. It is my job to find out what that is. So, if you don't mind, would you please explain to me what your occupation was in your homeland?"

Despite the cold tone with which Catharina spoke with, as well as the indifferent expression in her pale blue eyes. Ogura found her to be rather approachable and thus decided not to conceal the information that he knew. It took him a few moments to fully be comfortable enough to speak, but when he was, he held nothing back.

"I was a shipwright within the Empress's foremost shipyard. It was my responsibility to help bring her designs to life. You have to understand, just a few years ago we were making ships out of wood, and the idea of making a steel hulled vessel was simply a dream. It wasn't something that anyone ever thought was possible. 

However, in a few short years, the empress introduced new steelmaking processes, and new tools for our trade. By the time we started building her so-called destroyers, we barely knew what we were doing. The length of time it took us to finally complete a single vessel was beyond the Empress's expectations, and because of this, she became enraged. 

My superior was arrested, and I never heard from him again. After this, I was made the foreman of the shipyard, and was given a great amount of pressure to build these ships on a tight schedule. It was because of this that I learned a great deal about not only the destroyers we were building, but the so-called battleships that should be under production as we speak. 

Luckily, I managed to take a few copies of these blueprints with me. Please, I don't ask for much, nor do I know much beyond these designs. All I ask is for me and my family to live a simple life in this magnificent city. The blueprints should be in one of the satchels you confiscated from me when I first entered your borders."

Catharina nodded her head in understanding as she heard this and immediately pulled out the blueprints that the man had spoken of. Though she was not a shipwright herself, even she could tell the designs were similar to those of the Kriegsmarine's current fleets. 

However, Catharina had a confident expression on her face, and did not immediately ask about just how capable these warships were. Instead, she stared at the man in silence for several moments, causing him to be filled with great discomfort. Eventually, he asked the question that was most present in his mind. 

"Is there anything you need my help with?"

Contrary to his expectations, Catharina did not speak in the slightest about the ship designs. Instead, she instantly asked a question that was entirely unrelated to his expertise as a shipwright. 

"Tell me, how did you escape from your homeland? As far as we are aware, there are tight restrictions regarding travel aboard. It appears that Miss Itami is doing everything in her power to keep people like you under her control. I know you must have smuggled yourself out somehow. I just want to know the specifics."

Ogura shifted his eyes back and forth with a look of guilt on his face. It was apparent that he had paid a serious price in order to leave the island. Of course, Catharina never would have guessed by his expression that it was something she herself did not consider being of importance. Thus, his words somewhat surprised her.

"I was forced to interact with some smugglers from the Ming Dynasty. Though it was dishonorable to associate with such criminals, I had no choice. We were behind schedule, and I feared that if I were to stay in my homeland, the Empress would call for my head next. I could not leave my family behind in this world by themselves. So I brought shame upon myself and my family. However, we are alive, and safe, and that is what truly matters..."

Catharina's brow raised slightly as she heard this. Naturally, after interacting with so many refugees from Japan, she was aware of what the concept of honor meant to them. At least to some degree. However, by the looks on this man's face, he was indeed guilt ridden by what he had done. Not that that was of any importance to the veteran agent. Instead, she quickly asked the next question on her mind. 

"Is it possible for you to get in contact with these smugglers? If I were to give you the means to do so, could you arrange a meeting for me?"

Upon hearing this, Ogura looked slightly shocked, but after several moments of contemplation, he nodded his head thrice before responding.

"It's not impossible. Though I must warn you, my homeland has become incredibly paranoid, and foreigners are to be viewed with suspicion. If you are thinking about infiltrating the Empire, I would not recommend it. Such a thing would only result in certain death."

A faint smile formed on Catharina's lips as she rejected the shipwright's advice before standing up from her seat. Her response was one that he was not expecting. 

"All death is certain. I appreciate your cooperation. In the coming days, I will send someone to your new residence who will get the proper information from you regarding these Ming smugglers. As for your family's safety, you can rest assured, so long as you dwell within the borders of the Reich, no harm shall come to you."

With that said, the federal interrogated left the man alone within the room, where she quickly reported the information she received, along with the blueprints directly to the Deputy Director of Imperial Intelligence. 

Hemma sat within her office as the pony-tailed agent entered the room. She had a lit cigarette in one hand and a mug of black coffee in the other. One could tell by the bags under her eyes that she was suffering from overwork, but what else was new? With a slightly jittery tone, as if she had consumed too much caffeine, the woman snapped at her subordinate for barging into her quarters. 

"What is it? This had better be important!"

The blonde-haired agent bowed her head in respect before giving a response to her superior's question.

"I found a way to infiltrate the Japanese mainland. One of the recent refugees appears to have a reliable method of smuggling our people into Japan."

The deputy director took a long drag of her cigarette before exhaling deeply. As she did so, a large plume of smoke appeared within the office. It was only after she washed down the smoke in her throat with some coffee did she respond to her subordinate's statement in a somewhat crude manner.

"Is that all?"

The pony-tailed agent nodded her head in silence, but before she could give an answer, Hemma barked at her. 

"Then get back to work!"

After saying this, the woman left, leaving the deputy director by herself, with the copied blueprints on her table. Though she was not a naval engineer by any means, she had a deep sense of worry in her eyes upon seeing how similar these ships were to the ones currently employed by the Kriegsmarine. As she took another drag from her cigarette, Hemma expressed her lament aloud. 

"It appears this war is going to be a bloody one..."

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