Archive of Our Own ^beta

After the week long mission, a small fleet of spaceships landed with the familiar grumbling noises on Planet B12’s military base. As the heavy ramp descended, the neatly dressed military officials and soldiers stood a bit straighter, standing in formation to great the returning team with a nervous expression on their faces.

“We are greeting the returning Imperial Admiral, Joo Jakeyung. Salute!” the Base General shouted and all soldier’s followed the order and raised their hand to their hearts.

Without sparing them any glances the Admiral marched down the ramp and headed towards the controlling facilities, the usual stormy expression sitting on his face.

Just a few steps behind, Imperial Secretary Dan sighed and quickly followed him, strengthening out his own blue uniform. All eyes followed the Admiral as he crossed the field.  His huge muscular body, cold eyes and demanding presence were well known in the whole Empire, still his never ending streak of victories and genius military operations brought him fame in the whole star system, almost making people forget the man’s unbearable personality.

It was a common known fact that Admiral Joo Jaekyung couldn’t tolerate anyone around him, all human beings were scum in his eyes and made the constant sore expression more permanent on his face.

Well everyone, except his quiet and calm Secretary, Imperial Secretary Kim Dan.

Some rumours with suspicious origins went as far as stating that, someone saw the Admiral smile around Secretary Dan several times. Of course, these remained rumours since a possible alien invasion seemed more likely to happen then a smile appearing on the Admiral’s stone like face. Either way, it was a hot topic for the Empire for quite a while, eyes glued to the two man all the time.

 Secretary Dan let out a sigh as he watched the angry marching figure and turned to the nervously standing Base General to handle the unpleasant situation.

“Base General, greetings to you as well. Please find on this memory card all the necessary information about the mission, the data we could gather about the samples and the travel journal. If you could handle the rest I would be eternally grateful.”

“Ahh Secretary Kim, pleasant to see you as meticulous as always. Leave it to me! The stars know that this Empire would fall apart without you. ”

“Haha, I would doubt it, still appreciate the compliment. The same goes for Base General, without you Base 1 would still be under chaos.”

“Secretary Kim sure knows how to give compliments.” The military official laughed with a pleased smile on his face.  As expected of the Imperial Secretary, always so competent, thought the General. “I know that Secretary Kim is a busy man but as a celebration for the safe return, care to join me for a drink during the evening?”

Before Dan could open his mouth to reply, a deep voice cut through the air, making the Base General flinch and taking a step back. Dan could barely hold back his tired sigh.

“Secretary Kim! Is there a problem?” Admiral Joo stood at the entrance of the facility, an annoyed expression on his face. Dan sigh again and quickly said goodbye and made his way to the Admiral.

“Tsk, these Officials sure like to stand around and chit chat. Always slacking off if I look the other way. And you are playing along with them. Do I aways have to remind you that you are my Secretary and I pay you a fortune every month to tend to my needs?”

“No sir, I apologise. I will pay attention in the future.”

“Good. Now, let’s go I’m starving. We will have dinner in my room.” Declared the Admiral disregarding any common courtesy as usual and without sparing a glance to the officials, he marched towards his room. Dan wanted to cry, he had the slightest hope that he could leave early today to collapse in his bed at his apartment but as always his plans were crashed by Admiral Joo.

Following silently behind the huge man, he couldn’t not notice the prying or pitying looks sent his way and he could practically hear the unspoken words.

‘Poor Imperial Secretary Kim, suffering under the Admiral’s commands even after work hours.’

‘Poor soul, he is always working. The Admiral is truly a strict man!’

‘How does he do it? I would have long resigned by now, bearing this intense stress every day…. A truly remarkable man!’

Dan silently agreed with the unspoken words and hurried his steps.

It sure wasn’t easy to be the Admiral’s secretary. Besides coordinating the usual military procedures and secretary tasks, he was responsible for the Admiral’s  medical situation, diet, personal matters, clothing and out of work hours programs.

Every morning he was the one who prepared the Admiral’s breakfast; the same thing everyday, porridge, beef, eggs and coffee. He ironed and hung his clothes for each day, making sure that the clothes were appropriate for the day’s programs.

He cleaned his chamber and office and handled all his expenses. It was all necessary since the Admiral was a picky man, he hated when unknow people step into his room or touched his belongings. So all theses task fell on Dan, since he seemed to be the only person Admiral Joo tolerated to some extent.

Well, it is not like Dan had a choice anyway. It’s been 5 years since he become the Secretary of Imperial Admiral Joo Jaekyung, in a rather unprecedented way.

Kim Dan just recently started to work as a medical assistant of the doctor of Base 12 when on his 3^rd week in the job,  a black Imperial spaceship landed on the small base, causing havoc among the soldiers.

It was no need to check the identity of the ship, the shining sign of the Imperial Family made it clear to everyone who landed on their base. There was no person in the empire who didn’t know the name of the young rising star who just received full authority of the Imperial Fleet, gaining victory after victory in the Star System.

At that time the fight between Planet B12 and Planet Sirtex, over one of the major galactic trade routs, kept the whole Empire on it’s toes. After many intense battles it seemed that victory is finally on the Empire’s side when Planet Sirtex obtained information about a secret military operation and turned the battle into stalemate again, by destroying a small fleet of the Empire’s spaceships. It just so happened that the young Admiral’s ship got damaged in the sudden attack and had to make an emergency landing on Base 12, what was closest to the battlefield.

 The base’s Doctor and Dan was requested to tend to the Admiral’s injuries, and when they stepped into the spaceships cabin, Dan couldn’t help but shiver in the heavy atmosphere inside. It seemed like all the coldness was radiating from a young man in the middle of the room.

Shining black hair, sharp features and elegantly cut eyes. His voice was deep, his body tall and muscular, demanding authority despite the Admiral’s young age. It seemed like the excessive talk on the Empire’s social network was not without any reason, and the thousands posts praising the young Admiral’s good looks now made sense. Dan was not really interested in people’s looks but he had to admit the Admiral, putting aside his incredibly scary expressions was pleasant to look at.

As the door closed behind them, he couldn’t really study longer the man’s facial features as the cold eyes snapped towards their direction, a small scrowl forming on the thin lips.

“I made it clear to not let anyone in.” the deep voice rang through the room.

“Please excuse me Admiral, my name is Doctor Han and I am the Base Doctor of Base 12. I am here to examine your injuries.” Doctor Han said unfazed by the intensive glare. He was never the man of many words, so after the young Admiral gave a stern nod with his head he immediately started to examine the patient. Dan didn’t dare to open his mouth so he just silently assisted his mentor, not wanting to fall victim to the cold gaze again.

“Admiral, we just received a report from Base 8 and Base 5 that they lost 11 spaceships and 3 cargo ships due to a sudden attack in the Northers Star Lane. Operation Panther seems to be discovered as well…” A military officer in black clothes reported with trembling eyes.

The room was so quiet, Dan could hear his own heartbeat. After a minute of silence, the deep voice once again filled the room.

“Where is Secretary Cho?”

“Secretary Cho is now handling the operations in the Control Room, sir.”

“Get him here.” Came the cold order, and it was impossible to read the thought’s behind the sharp eyes. After a few minutes a man with thick glasses entered the room.

“Admiral.”

“Secretary Cho. Report the material losses and casualties we suffered on the Bases impacted by the recent attack.”

“Yes, sir. On Base 3, 14 spaceships were destroyed by a chain explosion, 5 tank carriers were stolen and 20 soldiers died, on Base 7 we lost 3 spaceships, 10 cruse attackers and 40 soldiers, on Base 11-“

A loud bang resonated in the room and in the next second Secretary Cho’s body hit the ground, eyes staring lifelessly at the ceiling.

Dan froze in shock, unconsciously glancing at the Admiral’s direction. The man held the gun in his hand with a cold expression on his face, only the thick vein in his neck gave away his true feelings.

“Get him out of my site and withdraw any further operations from Base 3 to Base 9. Don’t use the regular communication channels, instead of operators, only the base Captains communicate with each other. We have been betrayed.”

“Y-yes Admiral, right away sir.”

“Now everyone get out.”

No more words were needed, as nothing happened, Secretary Cho’s body got dragged out of the room and even Doctor Han seemed to be in a hurry to leave. Just as Dan was about to exit the room, still in shock from the previous happenings, the Admiral’s voice rang once more.

“You. Bring me the Star Sytem’s routing map and a working transmitter.”

Dan gulped and quickly glanced sideways, only to find out that only him and the Admiral was present.

“M-me, sir?”

“Who else?”

“S-sir, I am not-“ before Dan could finish his sentence the pair of eyes snapped to his direction making it clear that it wasn’t a request but an order. Dan gulped and with trembling hands received the objects as fast as he cold. He was nervous that since he is not a military member he won’t be allowed to access the storage but as soon as he mentioned the Admiral, the way was clear. It seemed like no one wanted to follow Secretary Cho’s end.

“Admiral, here are the items you requested.” Dan said and quickly placed the object on the table, bowed and hurried towards the door, just to be stopped again by the deep tone.

“Who said you can leave? Sit down and write down everything I say. My arms are still hurting from the injuries.”

“A-admiral, if you want I can call here one of the military-“

“You make me repeat myself once more and I execute you for obstructing the authorities.”

Dan quickly shut his mouth and sat down grabbing a pen, spending the following two hours writing down messages dictated by Admiral Joo. When he thought that his hands will fall off, the Admiral switched off the transmitter and placed it on the map. His eyes scanned the messages Dan meticulously placed on the table and he gave a short nod.

“I’ve seen worse. What’s your name?”

“Kim Dan, sir.”

“Kim Dan.” The Admiral repeated and his eyes bore into Dan’s, making his breath shake. “Congratulations, starting today you will be my Imperial Secretary.”

“W-what? Sir, I don’t understand-“

“Kim Dan. Do you remember what will happen if you make me repeat something again?”

Dan shut his mouth and with that his torturous career as Admiral Joo’s secretary started.

It turned out that every cloud has a silver lining, the payment for becoming an Imperial Secretary was one of the highest in the whole Empire. Dan was already in huge dept due to the loans of his bastard Father and  the medical expenses for his grandma’s unique respiratory illness. She used to work in a mineral mine, where , at that time uncategorized ore made major and irreversible deformation on her and other worker’s lungs.

The treatment for the illness is still in experimental phase so according to the doctors the only possible solution at the moment is to transfer her to Planet Earth.

Planet Earth was the mother planet for humans before the Big Migration many many years ago, now it functioned as a private medical and holiday island for the rich. Earth’s clear air and mild climate could help his grandma’s pain, but Dan didn’t even dare to dream about having enough money to get there and cover the astronomical bills of the treatment.

Yet with this surprising turn of events the impossible seemed to become possible.

He needed money and it didn’t seem like he had a choice in rejecting the job at that time anyways. His grandma was so worried about him working in the military he had to promise to her that as soon as he gather’s all the money they need, he will hand in his resignation. And with that the countdown till his resignation started.

Dan honestly had no idea why the Admiral chose him as his next secretary, since he had no experience or expertise in that filed. When he went to sign his work contract and mentioned that the Admiral appointed him himself,  Administrative Lee who was responsible for human resources in the military, almost fainted. According to him Admiral Joo never had any interest in appointing people before and changed his secretary almost weekly, so the sudden happening shocked everyone. Kim Dan received the Empire’s most beneficial work contract ever with triple of the initial salary and full volume of employee perks. They even promised him a salary increase with each passing month he spent next to the Admiral, almost begging him not to quit. It was a bit concerning but not like Dan had any other choice... He just happened to be at the right (bad) place at the right (bad) time.

After the sudden job change, since the work seemed to never end, Dan spent all his time with the Admiral. He saw him more than his own grandma, learning a new thing about the strict man with every passing day. Out of curiosity he stated to list down all of them in a shabby notebook.

Firstly, the Admiral was a complete workaholic. It become clear to Dan when he spent the 6^th night in the Admiral’s private chamber, laying on the sofa. At this point it made no sense to pay for an apartment.

Admiral Joo has trouble sleeping, always working into late nights and even if he falls asleep the smallest noise could wake him up. For the Admiral’s and his own sake, Dan spent long hours researching what can help his boss and decided on a type of tea, made from a purple flower, that was famous for it’s calming effects. After learning how to brew it, Dan just had to somehow convince Admiral Joo to drink it.

Around 11 pm Dan knocked on the heavy wooden door.

“Admiral, can I come in?”

After a short “hmm” came from inside Dan entered the room.

“Kim Dan. Why are you not asleep yet? If I have to look at your sleepy face the whole day tomorrow I will deduct your salary.”

“I understand sir, I will be quick. I couldn’t help but notice that you have trouble sleeping so I dared to take the initiative to look for a solution.”

“If you say you will sing me a lullaby or cuddle me to sleep, get out now.”

“N-no, of course not sir!” Dan blushed and cleared his throat “I looked after it and found a special tea that can help. It also has an immune strengthening effect and they say it tastes pleasant. Could you please try it Admiral? Just once?”

Admiral Joo sat in his bed silently for a few moments, his eyes boring  a hole into Dan’s. Dan was ready to be rejected when the man rolled his eyes.

“Bring it here. And bring one for yourself too.”

After quickly making two servings Dan quietly paced the cup down to the Admiral’s cupboard, his hands wet with cold sweat from nervousness. Admiral Joo reached for the cup and slowly raised it to his lips, his eyes resting on Dan. Before he could taste it, the Admiral raised one of his eyebrows signalling Dan to try it first. Dan quickly took a sip from his, eyes twinkling at the pleasant taste.

“It is very good Admiral. Please try it.”

Admiral Joo drank the whole cup with a stone cold face, gave the cup to Dan and told him to get out of his room. Dan practically ran to the door with teary eyes due to the failure of his long research and cried himself to sleep that night.

The next morning he woke up at Admiral Joo throwing a pillow to his head and ordering him to prepare the tea every night from now on, then scolding him for being so lazy and useless for waking up so late.

It was also obvious that Admiral Joo had no social skills and seemed to hate people in general. It was no secret that the Admiral was a military genius, many people admired him and wanted to get on his good side, mostly politicians. It was also well known that the Admiral didn’t care about politics, he was neutral from all parties and his only focus was on the protection of the Empire as a whole. Yet it didn’t scare away all politicians from trying to win the military to their side.

“Imperial Admiral Joo, what a great pleasure that I can finally meet in person with the hero of the Empire. Allow me to introduce myself, I am Minister Gyun from White Star Party.” A man in a white suit held out his hand, a huge fake smile sitting on his face. They were at the Imperial Queen’s birthday celebration banquet, it was an event that the Admiral couldn’t miss out without offending the Imperial Family, so here he stood with a scowl on his face.

“Please allow me to introduce my daughter as well, she is currently working on a new bio fuel for cargo spaceships. Eun Gyun, this is Admiral Joo.”

The elegant woman stepped closer and respectfully bowed to them. Dan felt his face heating up, the women was incredibly beautiful. The Admiral only noted her presence with a quick nod, his face as disinterested as ever.

The lady didn’t seem to take it to heart and started to praise the recent victorious missions and asked a few questions about the Admiral’s hobbies and interests. The Admiral answered all with short sentences; mostly containing the words ‘military’ ‘work’ and ‘spaceships’, all that with no hint of emotion on his face.

Dan seriously debated whether he should suggest the Admiral to take some social etiquette lessons in the future. After the 5^th painfully dull answer the lady decided to switch tactics and turned her attention to Kim Dan to lure him into the conversation.

“Secretary Kim, how do you enjoy the banquet so far? Have you got the chance to try some delicacies?”

“I am having a great time Miss Eun, hope the same goes for the Lady too. If you have any suggestions about the food I am happy to hear. I’m sure the Lady is more of an expert than me.” Dan smiled politely and he could see Miss Eun Gyun face flash with a relieved smile as the awkward conversation lightened.

“Secretary Kim, were you always this charming?” She laughed and hooked her arm into Dan’s. Dan just chuckled awkwardly, not sure what part of his words were charming but he gave up long ago to understand how rich people’s mind work.  “If you have time, I will show you around right now, hope the Admiral can excuse us for a while.”

The banquet was close to it’s end, so Dan truly hoped he could look around for a bit, since with his financial situation he will never have a chance to taste expensive food like this again.

Although when he glanced at the Admiral’s annoyed expression, all his hopes were crushed and he didn’t dare to do anything else but politely reject Miss Eun’s offer, before the Admiral opens his mouth and turn everything awkward again. After another painfully long 10 minutes the two excused themselves and left the banquet room, Kim Dan silently following the still irritated Admiral into their ship.

After a while they arrived to the private ship and left behind the noise of the banquet.

“For today there are no more appointments, the Admiral can head home and rest. I will hand over todays action journal to the administrative department on my way home.” Dan said as he quickly checked the Admiral’s calendar for tomorrow as well, noting that only a visit to Base 12 were scheduled for the whole day.

Great, he might have time to clean up a bit at his apartment since it’s been long ago he even went home.

The Admiral sat down into his chair, his cold gaze resting on Kim Dan without saying anything. After several seconds passed, Dan started to feel a bit uncomfortable under the heavy gaze.

“Is there anything else the Admiral wants to discus with me today?”

“Kim Dan.”

“Yes sir?”

“Are you planning to get married?”

Dan almost dropped the documents from his hands at the sudden question and felt his face turning red.

“N-no Admiral, marriage is not in my short or long term plans.”

“What about getting a lover?”

“A-admiral! N-no of course not.” Kim Dan stuttered with a burning face.

“Good. It should stay this way.” The Admiral hummed pleased and his angry face turned back into his usual expressionless state. “Being an Imperial Secretary is not a joke. No time for fooling around and playing marriage when the Empire is always in a state of war. Keep that in mind and act accordingly.”

“Y-yes Admiral, I will keep that in mind.” Dan decided to agree to this ridiculous statement in hope the Admiral drop the topic. Well  it is not like he had any interest in dating or marriage with his financial situation and busy work anyways.

“Ahh, and Kim Dan. I have a document that I want to discus with you today so you will sleep in my office tonight.” Kim Dan nodded and sighed once again, mentally calculating how much longer does he need to suffer in this inhuman position.

“I really don’t understand why you insist on going home all the time when sleeping in my room is much more effective.” The Admiral added and turned away to discuss something with a standing official, who stood a bit further with a burning face after hearing the conversation between the two. Is it like this between them?!

Despite being intimidating and rude, Admiral Joo had a sweet side that he only showed when he was drunk and Kim Dan was probably the only one who knew about it. It all happened after a successful exploratory mission, when one of the ministers offered a unique drink as a celebratory gift to the Admiral, which according to the merchant, contained no alcohol and helped to calm the mind.

After a long work day, Kim Dan was just about to leave the office when the Admiral’s office door opened with a creak and Admiral Joo walked out, dropping down on the sofa with a weird expression and a foreign bottle in his hand, his eyes focusing on Dan. Kim Dan halted in his steps at the weird sight and furrowed his brows.

“Is the Admiral feeling okay?”

“Kim Dan, where are you going?” the Admiral asked ignoring Dan’s question, his words are a bit mushed, cheeks slightly pink. He almost looked adorable.

“Home, sir. I’m finished with all the tasks for today.”

The Admiral furrowed his brows like he didn’t understand why that should answer his question. “Don’t go. You can just sleep with me.”

Dan felt his face turning bright red at the weird wording.

“A-Admiral, are you sure you are feeling all right? I think it would be better for you to lay down and sleep a bit. Here let me help you-” Dan stepped forward to somehow drag the huge man to his bedroom. It seemed like the Admiral was under the influence of alcohol and Dan wanted nothing more than get out of this room as fast as possible.

Who knows what kind of things the Admiral will do to him in his state? Kill him? Assign more work to him? Just the thought made him shiver.

“Secretary Kim. Kim Dan.” The mumbling came from the tall man as he sank deeper into the couch, showing no sign of cooperation. “Come here and sit with me a bit.”

Before Dan could protest, two strong arms pulled him down and he collapsed next to the Admiral with a shriek.

“Good, just stay here.” The man mumbled still gripping tightly the stiff secretary, his words hard to understand. Just how much did he drink?

“You are all skin and bones. Should I include a 3000 kcal lunch in your work contract?” the Admiral mumbled again not seems to notice what he is saying, his hand pressing along Kim Dan’s arms and side with a frown on his face.

Kim Dan didn’t dare to move, his whole body burning red from the embarrassing moment and the warm touches.

In the future he will make sure the Admiral never gets a sip of alcohol again….

“Why are you so quiet now Kim Dan? You are always so chatty with the other employees but always trying to run away from me.” The Admiral’s mood turned sore pretty quick, a pout on his face. Dan never thought a huge man like this is capable of pouting but life is full of surprises. “Am I not a good company for you? Am I making you uncomfortable?”

Dan bit back his initial response about the Admiral’s questionable personality and with  a little white lie, he hurriedly reassured the man. “Of course the Admiral is a pleasant company! Who would dare to say anything else?”

“You think so?”

The Admiral seemed to be pleased with his answer and hummed happily, suddenly tilting his head into Kim Dan’s lap.

“A-Admiral?!”

“Let me stay like this for a bit.”  Came the muffled mumbling and Dan wanted to cry.

The warm body beside him made his heart beat a bit faster and this unusually soft side of the Admiral confused Dan a bit. Who would have thought a little bit of alcohol can turn a tiger into a house cat? After a few minutes of silence, when Dan thought that the Admiral fell asleep and the opportunity to sneak away appeared, came the sudden question.

“What kind of soap do you use? I really like the smell.”

“I-It is just one from the department store, lavender scent I think.”

“I like it. Get me one as well.”

“Sure, I will buy one tomorrow for the Admiral too.”

“Good.”

After that Dan spent the following minutes answering the Admiral’s out of character drunken questions with a burning face; about his favourite foods, music taste, family and past relationships (?).

Can this torture end already? When it seemed like the man had no more energy to talk, Dan grabbed the opportunity.

“Admiral, how about we go into your room and lay down a bit?” Dan suggested and tried to pier down the heavy fingers still clenching his sleeves with no success.

“Hmm, you and me? Will you sleep in my bed?”

“N-no, of course not!”

“Then no.” The Admiral blurted and if it possible, clenched Dan’s sleeves harder, his fingers probably leaving red prints on the skin.

Dan blinked a few times then tried again, his ears red.

“Then I will lay down with the Admiral for a bit. Would that be okay?”

“Yes.” Came the satisfied answer and the man stood up nearly falling, but somehow he managed to drag Dan with him.

That’s how Dan ended up next to the Admiral on the huge bed, staring in daze to the dark ceiling. After the fell to the bed, the Admiral couldn’t resist the alcohol anymore and fell asleep instantly, his soft breathing filling the room. Dan waited a few more minutes to make sure the man was truly asleep and quietly got up, laid a blanket on top of the Admiral and quickly left the room.

What a weird day!

Still dazed, Dan left the room at 2am, heading home to sleep a few hours. He decided to never talk about this weird night to anyone, especially not to the Admiral.

The next morning, Kim Dan found a really grumpy and very hangover man clenching his head in his office chair.

“Good morning Admiral.”

“Kim Dan! What the hell did that old geezer gave me?! My head is killing me.”

“I will get a coffee to the Admiral, please wait.”

“Hurry up. Ahh, I can’t remember a thing from yesterday! I swear if he drugged that shit-“

Dan couldn’t hear the rest of the sentence and quickly returned with a mug of coffee and a painkiller in his hand.

“Here Admiral, this should help.”

The Admiral gulped it in one and tilted his head back with a painful expression on his face.

“By the way, did you sleep in the office yesterday? ”

“No, Admiral.”

“Are you sure? I swear I remember talking to you.”

“I went home straight after work.”

The Admiral debated his words for a few seconds then without any more comments returned to his work with his brows furrowed. Kim Dan quickly left the office and only dared to let out a relieved sigh when the door closed behind him. He didn’t feel good about lying to the Admiral, but he didn’t want to embarrass the prideful man.

Of course working with he Admiral was not for the weak but despite the initial problems and conflicts, Dan felt like as time passed, the man learned to tolerate his presence and his attitude towards him softened a bit.

After countless errors, Dan learned the Admiral’s weird habits and work methods, he started to understand what is it that the man wants from him and discovered that if  his work was precise, the Admiral was not unreasonable or cruel to him.

He can say that both him and the Admiral changed a lot.

Adding up all these little moments, Kim Dan couldn’t help but come to admire the man. He bared the fate of the Empire on his shoulders. The single shield of the people, the unbreakable force who did not bend under anything or anyone, and the one who dedicated his life to those living in the nation without any complaint or any need for praise.

Beside that, the Admiral truly gave Dan a chance for a better life, saving him from the claws of debt collectors, so Kim Dan couldn’t help but wish he could do more to ease the burden on the Admiral’s shoulders.

That’s why he trained himself and thrived to become more competent, in a hope that by this the Admiral could feel at more ease. Since he didn’t plan to work forever as the Imperial Secretary, he just wanted to give in everything till his carrier ends.

Just till then.

The Admiral’s distant voice pulled him out of his thoughts, just in time as they arrived to the man’s chambers and the automatic doors opened. Dan spent more time here than in his own apartment so the room’s familiar scent calmed his mind after the long journey. The Admiral stepped to his wardrobe and started removing his outer military coat, Dan stepping forward to help with the difficult buckles.

The movements were like routine to both of them, the coat was soon hang to it’s place and Dan gently brushed it clean.

“What did the Admiral think about the new cargo ship prototype?” Dan asked as he started to chose the clothes for tomorrow, matching some deep blue shirt with a black vest.

The Admiral sat on the sofa not so far, his eyes focused on the transmitter in his hand, probably ordering dinner for both of them.

“I think the directions are good, the minimalization of the cooling device increases the useful volumetric storage and the new engine looked better than I expected.”

Dan silently nodded. The new military cargo ship that they viewed a few days ago, although it was still under development, still seemed like a good investment. With the growing number of star colonies, the military needed more powerful transportation devices to be able to properly move both manpower and equipment to the far away places.

“It did look promising. When can the military test it out on the filed?”

“Not sure yet, hopefully till the end of next month. We need to arrange a week long away time around that, so make sure to inform the Administrative department and get a replacement for yourself. The final testing will be on ST-77 colony so get yourself some warm clothes.”

The end of next month? Dan felt his stomach sank.

By the end of next month he will hand in his resignation and be on his way towards Planet Earth with his grandma to the rehabilitation clinic.

He wanted to wait a bit longer with telling the Admiral about his plans, but maybe it is better to get over it now. He already started to hand over his tasks and train a skilful replacement in his place, of course without the Admiral knowing.

He didn’t wanted to trouble the man with such trivial matters. As long as the Admiral has a competent person as his secretary, Dan was sure the man will have no complaints about his resignation.

“Admiral, I-“  But before Dan could finish his sentence the electronic sound of the doorbell rang, signalling the arrival of their dinner. The Admiral strode to the door and quickly returned with two food containers, placing them to the table.

“I ordered the usual. Come and eat, Kim Dan.”

 Dan quietly nodded and sat down opposite to the Admiral. There will be plenty of other time to discuss this, now they were both tired anyway. It will be better to talk about it in a more pleasant environment.

 They both opened the containers and started to eat, occasional conversation filling the room. Dan remembered how awkward he felt in the past, spending his dinner with his boss, but now it become the most peaceful part of his day.

His grandma always said that the food tastes the best when you are sharing it with someone, so eating with the grumpy Admiral was a much better choice, than his empty apartment.

“Here, eat this Kim Dan.” Said the Admiral and put another portion of mushrooms into Dan’s food.  “They put mushroom into it again, no matter how many times I tell them to not. I swear next time, I will personally find this incompetent person and beat him to death.” The man grumbled, but his words had no edge.

 It always happened the same way; the Admiral food seemed to have extra portions of mushroom even though the man specifically asked to not to have them. Since he hated wasting food, all the mushrooms ended in Kim Dan’s bowl, and the Secretary had no other choice then to eat them.

To end the Admiral’s misery, Dan once personally contacted the restaurant and asked the chef to pay attention in the future, but was quite surprised by the chef’s response, who sworn that it was the Admiral himself who asked for the extra portions! Dan was a bit puzzled, but decided to leave the matter alone and continued to eat the Admiral’s mushrooms dutifully. Luckily it was one of his favourite foods.

The mushrooms made him think of his grandma’s risotto, what made him think about his grandma’s upcoming examination on this Friday. He had to take her to the medical centre on the other side of the city, so he had to apply for a day off.

For some reason as soon as his application was sent, an official called him from the administration team to make sure that he really intended to take the day off. When Dan said it was really no accident, the official made him swear that he is coming back to work on the next day and this is not an attempt to leave his position. Dan was a bit confused by the questions, but assured the man that he will continue to work as Imperial Secretary after Friday as well. He decided to leave out his plan for resigning soon…

“Admiral, I’m not sure if the Administrative Department already informed you, but I won’t be in the office on Friday. Sorry for the trouble, I arranged a replacement for the meantime so the Admiral has no things to worry about.”

The spoon stopped in the Admiral’s hand, his eyes now fixed on Kim Dan.

“Taking a day off? Why?”

“I have some personal business to take care of. I apologize for the trouble, sir.”

“But you never took a day off before. Why now? What business do you have?” the Admiral squinted his eyes, his huge body tilting towards Kim Dan. The Secretary leaned back a bit with a confused expression.

“I-I took a day off before too. What does the Admiral mean?” Dan furrowed his eyebrows. Who wouldn’t take a single day out in 5 years?

“No, you didn’t. I would certainly remember.” Said the Admiral his expression turning more serious. Dan tried to recall the last time he was out of office, but to his surprise not matter how hard he wracked his mind, the Admiral was right.

He never took even a day out in his career. Now the administrative official’s questions made a bit more sense. He really need to rest a bit more!

“So where are you going Kim Dan?” pressed the Admiral the matter further, seemingly really curious about the truth, the food long forgotten. “Are you meeting up with someone? Hmm?”

“N-no of course not, Admiral. I need to take one of my family member’s to the hospital.” Dan answered, not sure why the Admiral was so obsessed with dating these days.

Perhaps he was open to get to know someone? Many lady would feel euphoric from this news. Kim Dan decided to make a list of possible partners when he has some time, hopefully he can help to find a suitable person to the Admiral.

“To the hospital? Which one? And with who?”

“Noth Saint hospital and I’m taking my grandma for examination, Admiral.”

“That is pretty far away. You can take my spaceship. You know how to control it right?”

“Wh-what? Admiral how could I possibly take it?!” Dan felt his head spinning. For him to take the Admiral’s private ship for a personal matter like this? What does this man thinking? The ship worth more than Kim Dan’s all possessions and it was no secret the Admiral took great care of the machine.

“Just take it. You can finish earlier and come to the office after.” Said the Admiral, once again focused on his food, seemingly closed the conversation. Dan opened and closed his mouth to protest further for several times, but then decided to stay quite. It would have been a hassle to get a taxi or use public transport with his sick grandma and the Admiral’s offer was really generous, so in the end, he had no choice but to accept it.

“Thank you Admiral. I will come back as fast as I can.”

The Admiral only hummed and continued to eat his dinner.

On Thursday afternoon, Kim Dan made sure to arrange everything for Secretary Seo who will replace him on Friday, before he left the Office. Secretary Seo was a skilful young man with a pleasant personality and ambitious goals. Kim Dan planed to recommend him as his successor and  already started to explain all his tasks to him, so when he takes over his position, there will be no trouble. The young man was quick to learn so Dan had no worries, and he was sure that he could leave his position to Seo with his heart at ease.

The next day morning he picked up his Grandma with the ambitious spaceship, earning a few curious glances from the people around.

“My dear, where exactly did you get this thing? It looks really expensive.” His grandma asked him worriedly. Having dealt with loan sharks, something as expensive as the black spaceship brought back bad memories for both. Dan quickly reassured Grandma that it is not stolen and he didn’t take out any loan to pay for it.

“It was just a nice gesture from my boss, grandma. When Admiral Joo heard that I will bring you to the hospital, he offered that I can take his spaceship, so please don’t worry about it.”

“The Admiral? How thoughtful! Be sure to thank him properly, Dan.” Grandma beamed, then her expression turned soft “ I still feel uneasy about you working at that dangerous place, but at least Admiral Joo treats you well.”

“Yes, he does.” Dan smiled, decided to keep secret all the times he felt like the Admiral will truly murder him.

He helped up Grandma to the spaceship, which had comfortable chairs and a simple but well equipped interior. Turning on the navigation system, Kim Dan carefully manoeuvred the spaceship towards the direction of the hospital and the vehicle shot out with a quick light.

Meanwhile on the other half of the city……

Secretary Seo took a deep breath and stepped closer to the metal door. Since Secretary Kim was out of office today, the whole place seemed to be in panic and the atmosphere was so tense a knife could cut it.

It was unbelievable how the absence of one person can turn the whole military office into a state of chaos. 

It was usually the Imperial Secretary, who communicated with the Admiral throughout the day; handing over documents, delivering messages, preparing different researches and conveying the Admiral’s orders towards the different departments was all did by him, since he was the only person who could handle the Admiral’s difficult personality.

With the absence of Secretary Kim, people realized that they cannot avoid directly meeting with the Admiral and a state of panic spread through the office. In their final desperation, all eyes turned towards Secretary Seo. He was the one who got appointed as a replacement, not by anyone but by Secretary Kim himself! So his fate was sealed, and hundreds of documents and requests fell on his table and brought him in front of the huge metal door.

Secretary Seo took a deep breath and with shaking legs, knocked three times.  A quiet grumble came from the other side, as a signal that he can enter.

“Good morning, Admiral. I brought the project approvals sent by the Ministry of Development. They are expecting a reply by the end of the week. ”

The Admiral sat at his office desk, impatient aura seemingly darkening the corner. After a few moments of silence the ice cold voice rang through the room.

“Where is Kim Dan?”

Secretary Seo gulped.

“H-he is on his day off, sir-“

“Do you think I am dumb? Of course I know he is on his day off! That’s why I have to look at your sorry face right now.”

“I-I am sorry Admiral.”

“I asked where he is right now.”

“A-Admiral, I truly have no idea where Secretary Kim is spending his day off. He didn’t mention anything about his plans but maybe I can try to contact him-“

 “No need. He always has his transmitter with him. Track it down.”

Secretary Seo was taken aback. Tracking down Imperial Secretary Kim Dan’s  transmitter?

“Admiral, with all respect I think this is illegal and is considered as a violation of privacy-“

“If you don’t move in the next second, I will make sure you spend the next five years on a mining planet, digging dirt.”

“Y-yes Admiral, I will be back in a minute.” Secretary Seo said and true to his words, he came back with a digital board in his hands.

“Imperial Secretary Kim Dan is currently located on the third floor of the western wing in North Saint Hospital. According to our thermal camera inspection and digital footage analysis, there are 4 people in the same corridor, two middle ages female employees, 1 elderly women and 1 middle aged man also employed by the hospital. Should we gather some audio data as well?”

“No, it is fine. Keep monitoring his position, notify me in case of any irregular movement or suspicious activity. ”

“Yes Admiral.” And with that Secretary Seo left the room with a racing heart and cold sweat, silently praying that Imperial Secretary Kim Dan will come back soon.

The examinations took longer than Kim Dan expected, it was only suppose to be a routine check up with only a CT and a blood test mapping, but after the doctor saw the results he insisted on further tests. Kim Dan couldn’t help but worriedly wait in the corridor. Finally a doctor in white coat came out from the examination room and took off her mask.

“Are you Mrs. Kim’s relative?”

“Yes, I am her grandson. How was the examination Doctor? It isn’t any serious right?” Kim Dan asked worriedly, but as soon as he saw the Doctor’s expression, his heart sank.

“I’m afraid Mrs. Kim’s condition turned worse. Her lungs are under major pressure at the moment and the infected area in her left lung seemed to grow since the previous check up. Was her under stress or perhaps under increased physical activity?”

“No, as far as I know nothing changed. Is it serious? It can be treated with the regular injections right?” Dan asked nervously. The regular injections were the only method currently, that could somehow slow down the spread of the disease.

“The area is still small enough to be treated so the injections might help for a short while, although I’m sorry to say this, but her condition will only worsen. By the next check up I’m afraid the usual medicine will not be enough. Here, we can’t do more for Mrs. Kim.”

“Oh God-“ Dan breathed out shakily, but quickly cleared his throat and regained his composure. He was also a doctor, so he knew that this moment will eventually come, and he tried to be as prepared as he could.

“You said that here we can’t do much about Grandma. I suppose the Doctor has some suggestions where we can turn to.”

“Well, yes. I know it is quite expensive but I would still recommend Eden Clinic in Planet Earth. They can provide a treatment suitable for Mrs.Kim and the atmosphere on Earth can significantly ease the burden on the lungs. If you are willing to pay the price, I can inform the Clinic and Mrs. Kim might get a place there by next month. I suggest you to think about it.” The Doctor said with a soft voice and gently patted Dan’s shoulder.  

“Thank you Doctor, I will speak with my Grandma about it first.”

“Please do.” And with that the Doctor left with a bow, leaving Kim Dan alone.

It wasn’t that Kim Dan needed any time to think about his choice, the whole purpose of his hard work was to have enough money when the time comes. It arrived sooner than he expected, but with what he put aside, he could finance Grandma’s treatment at Eden Clinic for a year at least. To what to do after a year, was still uncertain. He can pick up some job at Planet Earth, hopefully his past experience as an Imperial Secretary will score some bonus points during the applications.

Well, it was the story of the future.

With a sigh, Kim Dan opened the door and stepped inside. His Grandma was laying in the hospital bed, her wrinkled face tired from the examinations and the excessive talking, but her eyes still shined with a kind of youthfulness.

“My dear Dan! Why the worried face? What did the Doctor say?”

“How are you feeling Granny? Should I bring you some water?” Dan asked and sat down next to her on the bed.

“I’m fine, dear. I would rather you tell me what is bothering you. Is something wrong?”

“Don’t worry Gradma, you should just focus on getting better. I will handle everything. What do you say about moving to a nice clinic? They have amazing facilities and they can make you healthy in a blink of an eye!”

“Haha my dear boy. If this place exist why don’t all old Ladies like me spend their time there?”

“There is really a place like this Grandma, although it is a bit far away. I will talk with the Doctor and she will help us arrange a place at the new clinic. Does that sound good?” Dan asked and gently caressed her Grandma’s cheek.

“But dear, what about the medical fee-“

“Grandma, please trust me with this. Your health is the priority, please don’t worry about the money and just focus on getting better soon.”

Dan’s face was full of determination, Grandma had no choice but worriedly agree with him. They talked for a few more minutes, then Grandma become sleepy and Dan decided to leave her to rest, since he also had to get back to the office. The Doctor advised that Grandma should spend the night at the hospital so in the morning they can make some more tests, so they said goodbye to each other and Dan left the hospital.

The whole procedure dragged out much longer than he expected and by the time he exited the building, the sun was ready to set. If he goes straight to the Office now, then maybe he can finish with the tasks he scheduled for this afternoon, till the Admiral comes to work the next morning.

Kim Dan rubbed his tired eyes and was about to head towards the spaceship, when a tall figure stepped out from the shadows, scarring him to death for a moment.

“A-Admiral?”

The tall man slowly stepped closer and Dan furrowed his brows. What does the Admiral doing here? Did something happen in the Office?

“I was waiting for you all day at the Office.” came the deep, displeased voice.

“I apologize. It took much longer than I expected. Did the Admiral need me specifically for something? Did something happen?”

“Did something happen you ask? Kim Dan.” The Admiral eyes burnt a hole into his Secretary’s, his face as cold as ice as he took a step closer. “Don’t ever leave me with that bunch of incompetent people again. They know nothing, they are loud and basically just human trash. All of them! I swear if I have to spend one more day with those fuckers, I will kill them all.”

“Y-yes?” Dan gulped and took a step further. He knew that the Admiral was dead serious about what he said, and Dan couldn’t help the shiver running down on his spine. Just what happened in the Office?!

He will ask Secretary Seo about it tomorrow, but now he needed to do something about the still furious Admiral.

“But what brought the Admiral here?”

“Of course to have dinner. Come on, I want to eat BBQ.” The tall man said and turned around to walk towards the spaceship. Dan stood there dazed, his mouth opening and closing helplessly. Did the man come all this way just to have dinner with him?

“I-I’m coming, please wait for me Admiral.”

Now that Dan thought about it, he couldn’t remember the last time he had dinner without the Admiral. They often worked into late nights and as a break grabbed something quick to eat, or if they miraculously could finish early, they spent their dinner in one of the restaurants nearby, usually in a BBQ place since that was the Admiral’s favourite.

But today, Dan was not in the office and it made no sense for the man to travel to the opposite side of the city just to eat dinner with Kim Dan. If he didn’t know the Admiral better, Dan would have thought that the man came just to see him. But of course, it was such a far fetched theory that Dan didn’t think more to it. He sighed and quickly caught up with the tall figure.

The next week passed in a blink of an eye, well more like without it; the whole military office was buried with work due to the sudden continuous attack of the Empire’s suburban warehouses.

The warehouses were completely emptied then blown up, generating massive losses to the Empire. The investigation went slowly since the attackers seems to knew everything about the security measures and easily deactivated the multilayer detective shields, almost as if they received intel from someone. The days passed without much progress and the Admiral’s mood worsened simultaneously.

Since the warehouses were not specifically for military goods, but contained all type of cargo, like jewelleries, advanced technology, or even antique replicas, the Royal family and several politicians were also involved in the case. So far, Kim Dan was able to hold back the several ministers who wanted to barge in and demand answers from the military about how could this possibly happen but the problem occurred, when a person requested a visit to the Military Office, who Kim Dan could not possibly refuse.

“Ah Imperial Secretary Kim Dan. What a pleasure to meet with the man I heard so much about!” Royal Prince Choi Heesung smiled as he entered the room, his fabulous clothes and strawberry blond hair drawing a sharp contrast with the plain room. He was the sun of the Empire, the young Prince who with his bright smile and handsome face stole the hearts of many men and women.

“His Royal Highness, the pleasure is all mine. You are too kind.” Kim Dan bowed his head respectfully. Prince Heesung’s laugh filled the room as he stepped closer, his eyes shining with mischief.

“Well, I have to admit all the rumours proved to be true. Secretary Kim is truly a beautiful person. Like an angel.” And with that his lips lightly kissed Kim Dan’s extended hand. “I’m envious of those working here and being able to admire Secretary Kim closely every day. Should I join to the military too?”

Dan felt like his face burning from embarrassment and quickly took a step back.

“His Highness is truly a playful person, but please don’t tease me like this.”

Prince Heesung laughed again and stepped closer.

“Does Secretary Kim thinks I am lying? That won’t do. It seems like I need to prove my sincerity somehow.”

“No, there is really no need-“

“Secretary Kim, could you spend dinner with me? I would be deeply honoured.” He beamed, his hand barely caressing Kim Dan’s cheek. Dan felt his face burning and his heart beating fast in his chest.

“I-I don’t think-“

“Secretary Kim is busy. Stop bothering my secretary and get lost.” Came the deep voice from behind. The smile on Prince Heesung’s face seemed to froze for only just a second before it turned towards the Admiral.

“Jaekyung, you changed nothing! I thought you won’t even come out to welcome me. It's been ages since I last saw you!”

“Now you saw me, get lost.”

“You hurt my feelings.” Prince Heesung pouted but his glinting eyes gave away his true feelings. “Is this how you welcome an old friend?”

“You are not my friend and not welcomed either.”

Prince Heesung just laughed and withstanding the piercing gaze of the Admiral sat down. “I won’t bother you for long my friend, I just have a few concerns with what I hope you can help me with.”

Kim Dan already guessed the conversation will be about the warehouses. The Admiral seemed to debate throwing out Prince Heesung himself, but finally sat down to the couch with a low growl, his eyes shooting daggers at the guest. Kim Dan couldn’t help, but let out a relieved sigh  and quietly stepped closer to the Admiral’s side.

The two man had a complicated history that trailed back to their childhood, not quite friends not quite enemies. If Dan had to name the cause of this problem, he would say they were too similar to each other. Both had a strong personality, overbearing presence, and a handsome face, but while the Admiral preferred to be left alone and focus only on his work, Prince Heesung bathed in attention. He always had on his playful smile and clothes that made him stand out in any room, talking and flirting with whoever he wanted. The Admiral hated all these things so no wonder the two had a weird relationship.

 “What do you want? I don’t have all day to sit around.” The Admiral grumbled and leaned back on the sofa.

“How cold.” The Prince rolled his eyes. “I don’t want to waste your time either so let me be frank. In one of the warehouses that was attacked recently I stored a really important thing. I need you to find it, no matter what.”

“What am I, your dog?” scoffed the Admiral.

“Don’t be like this Jaekyung, you know I won’t ask you to do it for free.”

“I don’t need you money or anything else from you.”

“Are you sure about that?” said the blond and with a knowing smile, his eyes flickered towards Kim Dan, who raised one of his brows confused.

“Secretary Kim, how long have you been working as an Imperial Secretary?”

“About five years, your highness.” Kim Dan answered dutifully, but a bit confused about the sudden change of the topic.

“Five years?” beamed the Prince. “That is really impressive, but no wonder since Secretary Kim is truly remarkable! A treasure  for this whole Empire.”

“It’s really not that impressive.” Mumbled Dan, feeling more embarrassed with each passing second, a slight blush on his cheeks.

“Not many people are this dedicated to their job. Secretary Kim is one in a thousand. I can just hope that people working for the Imperial Palace would be half as diligent as Secretary Kim.”

“Hey, what the hell are you-“ The Admiral’s gaze turned fierce as he slowly registered the Prince’s words, his mouth twisted into a scowl.

“I’m not sure if you have heard about it, but the Palace is thinking about sending research groups to some newly discovered planets, but it is so hard to find the right person with experience to coordinate the operation. Since the outcome of this mission will effect the whole Empire and is crucial for the colonisation, I’m thinking about appointing someone personally.”

“Hey, Heesung! Don’t you dare-“ the Admiral’s angry growl cut through the air, but the Prince continued calmly, his eyes never leaving Dan’s.

“I was thinking suggesting Secretary Kim for the position. I will also have to spend some time in the new territory, and with Secretary Kim by my side, I would feel truly reassured. Spending so much time together would also be a great opportunity to get to know each other a bit better, don’t you think Secretary Kim?” he grinned, tilting his head to the side, his eyes glinting.

Before Dan could register the words, a loud bang filled the room and the table in front of Prince Heesung broke into two pieces. Panic filled the Prince’s eyes for a second as he blinked down at the destroyed furniture, then his mouth broke out in his signature grin. Dan glanced at the opposite side, biting his lips nervously. The Admiral sat there, his hand still clenched into a fist, his eyes cold as ice.

“You talked nonsense long enough, don’t you think?” the deep voice cut through the air and Kim Dan couldn’t help but take a step back at the threat lingering behind the words. The Admiral seemed truly scary. “Now tell me what do you want to find and get the hell out before I throw you out myself!”

Prince Heesung also seemed to be startled by the threat and the murderous glaze, his eyes shaking before he could regain his composure.

“Very well. I will send the necessary information about the item, through my Secretary. Needless to say, that this is highly confidential and urgent, so I suggest you to handle it accordingly. Now if you excuse me.” Said the Prince and stood up, straightening his clothes out. “Secretary Kim, it was a pleasure. Jaekyung.“ he bowed as a goodbye and walked to the door, the Admiral’s eyes piercing a hole into his back. Before he fully exited the room, the blond stopped and turned around, eyes settling on Kim Dan. “If you ever need a new position, my offer is still valid, so please don’t hesitate to reach out to me. A place is always reserved for you, Secretary Kim.” And with a wink he left the two of them in the room, the soft click of the door echoing in the silence.

Kim Dan was still utterly confused about the whole conversation but taking one glance at the Admiral’s face was enough to decide that it was not the right time to bring it up. With shaking hands, Kim Dan ordered the cleaning service to remove the broken table and quickly put in an order for replacement. When the cleaning service left with the pieces, the Admiral finally opened his mouth, making his Secretary flinch as he almost forget about the silent man in the room.

“Kim Dan.”

“Yes Admiral?”

“If that man ever offers you anything, come to me first. I will pay double of what he said. No. Triple!”

“Certainly, Admiral.” Dan answered even more confused. He is getting plenty of money now as well, why would the Admiral pay him even more?

“Good.” Said the man and stood up, his face still stern “Tell me if you receive the documents about the missing object, I will handle it personally.”

Just at that moment, Secretary Kim’s transmitter beeped as a new message entered his mailbox, it was about the Prince Heesung’s missing item. Activating the holographic screen he quickly displayed the file, and stepped closer to the Admiral so the man can take a look as well.

“Just how urgent is this for that bastard?” grumbled the Admiral, but leaning over his Secretary’s shoulder, his eyes started to scan the text. The huge muscular body was close enough that Kim Dan could easily smell the Admiral’s signature scent, sandalwood with an almost unnoticeable hint of lavender. It was really pleasant and made Dan a bit dizzy in the head. With furrowed brows, he cleared his throat and quickly read through the document as well.

“Moonwater crytal? All that fuss was about a gemstone?!” growled the Admiral as he finished reading.

“I heard about it once. It is one of the most expensive types that can be found in this galaxy, only two stones are officially registered in the Empire, since it has astronomical value and is almost impossible to obtain. Prince Heesung is really fortunate that one of these stones are in his possession.”

“What is so special about it? Does it have any unique function or power?” asked the Admiral as his eyes inspected the attached photo of the gem. It was only a photo, but the vibrant blue colour of the stone seemed to paint the room around them.

“Well… it is really beautiful.” Said Kim Dan as his eyes sparkled. He was not a fan of jewels or gems but he had to admit that the blue crystal looked truly magnificent.

“Is that so? “ asked the Admiral frowning, his hot breath hitting Kim Dan’s neck and sending a shiver down on his spine. “Do you find it beautiful, Kim Dan?”

“Of course, it is magnificent.”

“Do you want one?”

Dan almost choked on his own tongue. “P-Pardon?”

“Do you want this?” asked the Admiral again pointing at the hologram, his eyes still glued to the picture. Dan let out a nervous chuckle.

“No, Admiral. I don’t think it would suit me.”

“Hmm… you are right.” The man agreed with him, his face looking serious. “It looks a bit small and shabby. Something bigger would suit you better Kim Dan.”

“W-what?”

“Never mind.” Said the Admiral, leaving no time for the confused Secretary, to ask about what he just said.

 With a determined expression on his face the Admiral marched towards the door. “Prepare my spaceship, we are going to the warehouses. I want to find that stupid stone as fast as possible and get over with this circus.”

“Yes Admiral, right away.” And with that Kim Dan’s mind switched back into work mode, blocking any unnecessary thoughts or questions.

After a good 20 minutes, the Imperial spaceship lifted off the base dock and entered the flow of the interstellar corridor minutes later, heading towards the suburban region of the Empire, where the now ruined warehouses were located. The Admiral sat down to the command chair in the control bridge, while Kim Dan stood meters away, checking the coordinates of their destination.

One of the mot enjoyable part of being an Imperial Secretary was without doubt the times Kim Dan could travel within the Empire, what normally he couldn’t afford. Of course, these trips were always because of work and most of the time he didn’t have much time to go around sightseeing on the planets, but as often as he could, he would spare just enough to buy some souvenir for his grandma. By now, she had a whole shelf of small objects from every corner of the Empire, that she proudly showed around to her neighbours and acquaintances. Dan couldn’t help the smile that broke out on his face, as the pleasant memory filled his thoughts.

“Seems like you are in a good mood. Any specific reason for it?” came the deep voice from a few meters away. Dan quickly turned his expression into a neutral one again and turned fully towards the Admiral, whose intense stare made his heart beat slightly faster.

“Just thought about something pleasant, Admiral. No specific reason.”

“Is that so? I just became curious, what makes my Secretary smile like this. Usually you either have an expression of someone who will broke out crying any minute or you daze around like you are not even listening to a word I say.”

“D-Do i?” Kim Dan cleared his throat and a slight blush crept to his neck.

Does he really look like that? Of course he is tired from the work, but he thought he could maintain his neutral expression at least in front of the Admiral.

“The weirdest thing is that you still remember every tiny detail of what I tell you.” Continued the Admiral with furrowed eyebrows. “How do you do it, really?”

Mostly drinking ungodly amount of coffee and mastering sleeping with open eyes, Kim Dan wanted to say then wisely chose to remain silent.

“So what does my Secretary find pleasure at? What makes you smile, Kim Dan?” asked the Admiral and leisurely leaned back in his chair, eyes fixed on the slim figure of his Secretary. The long trips sometimes bored the man enough to paster Kim Dan about his private life. At first, it left Dan really uncomfortable and red, but by now, he become used to the Admiral’s weird questions, dutifully answering them, so the interrogation would end earlier.

“I quite enjoy reading books or going for short walks in my free time.” ‘Not that I would have any free time…..’ was left unsaid. 

“What kind of books?”

“Medical or historical ones, Admiral.”

“Sounds boring.” Stated the deep voice.

Kim Dan couldn’t help the uncomfortable laugh that escaped him. Can they drop the subject already? Of course the Admiral had no plans to finish the torture just yet, people standing in the control bridge also secretly invested in their conversation.

“How many books do you have, Kim Dan?”

“Ehm, around 10, Admiral.” Said Dan, trying to recall his small bookshelf.

“10?” asked the Admiral incredulously, then his face turned pitying. “ You must read rather slowly.”

‘More like I don’t have money for more.’ Kim Dan thought and put on a fake smile, his neck burning red from embarrassment.  Paper based books were rather expensive in the Star System and Dan needed to save every penny for his plans.

“I just enjoy rereading my favourites.”

“Nonsense.” Said the Admiral, his face determined. “My secretary needs to broaden his perspective by reading all the books in the galaxy, so he can work properly. It is essential for the Empire. When we return, I will buy you the 10,000 most recently released books. You said historical and medical right?”

A few gasps were heard from the closely standing officials, and Kim Dan felt his eyes bulging out as his face turned white. Just what is this crazy man saying now?!

“A-Admiral!”

“What? Is this not enough? Do you want 20,000?” asked the man with an annoyed expression. “You are really hard to please, Kim Dan. But fine, 20,000 then.”

Kim Dan felt his ears ringing from the insane statement. This man has no concept of money? It is true that Kim Dan was the one who handled the Admiral’s finances and knew exactly how rich the man is, but still, didn’t the Admiral know just how much money he is planning to spend?!

“Admiral, it’s way too much! I deeply appreciate your kindness, but please reconsider it. This amount is way too much, furthermore, I really don’t see the reason why you should spend money on books, that are clearly not benefiting the Empire. Once again, please reconsider what you j-“”

“Kim Dan.” The deep voice cut though Dan’s frantic rambling, drowning the rest of the sentence in the Secretary’s throat. “Don’t you know, you should say thank you, when someone gives you a gift?”

Dan gulped, cold sweat forming on his neck. It is insane!

“But Admiral-“ the annoyed look on the man’s face made him shut up instantly.

“W-well, in this case. Thank you, Admiral. I will read them well.” He said and bowed his face red from embarrassment and from the hushed whisper of people around.

The Admiral seemed to be pleased with the answer and Kim Dan could swear he saw a ghost of smile on his lips, but it was probably the illusion of his damaged mental state of the moment.

As Kim Dan’s heartbeat finally calmed down, the spaceship’s receiver suddenly flashed red as a new message arrived. One of the Controllers stepped to the screen and opened, what appeared to be a video message and several files. After listening to it’s content, Kim Dan let out a relieved sigh and stepped to change the coordinates of their trip.

It was a report from one of their scouter ships, that were sent out during the investigation. It seemed, that one of them could find the signal of one of the stolen electronic devices and could successfully locate the whereabouts of the attackers, now following them from far. It was a golden opportunity to get back all the stolen goods.

“When can we catch up with the scouter ship?” asked the Admiral his eyes focused on the report.

“Estimated arrival is within 2 hours, Admiral.”

“Good, make it an hour and a half.”

“Copy”

“We need to deal with a moving target, so get ready the assault fighter ships and close distance kinetic weapons. Also check the charge of the main ship’s shield and report to Base.” The Admiral gave out the quick orders and stood up from his chair. “The target ship is carrying valuable cargo, so the main object is to receive the items without damaging the ship and catch the attackers without casualties.”

The control bridge turned busy in a second, and Kim Dan quickly followed the Admiral out.

“Will the Admiral join the fight as well?”

“Yes, I need to make sure this mission is successful, so I can forget those annoying fuckers sooner. Get ready my suit.” Grumbled the Admiral and Dan bowed without a word. He quickly stepped to the container wardrobes and picked out the Admiral’s familiar fighting suit. The material of the clothing was made out of a unique galactical soft metal, that could withstand ultra high pressure, extreme temperature changes and protects the body in case of fire and explosions.  

With practised movements, Kim Dan first unbuttoned the of the man’s outer coat, gently laid it on the nearby hanger and started to work on his shirt. His hands moved carefully, making sure to keep the distance from the warm skin as he knew well, that the Admiral hated physical touch. Kim Dan ignored the warmth of the man’s body pleasantly heating his fingers and kept his eyes focused. Just as he was about to ease the last button, the usually steady spaceship suddenly started to shook, causing Dan to lose his balance.

His body helplessly fell forward, hand moving frantically to hold onto something till a strong chest collided with his face and a large hand gripped his hip.

“Just what the hell is going on up there?” the deep voice coming form so close, made Dan’s breath hitch and his heart skip a beat. Their position was a bit uncomfortable at the moment, and Dan wished nothing more than to get out of the room.

With clearing his throat he quickly stepped back from the Admrial, the heavy hand’s print leaving a burning reminder on his skin. “I will check it, please leave it to me Admiral.”

As he was about to turn around and leave, the ship shook once more. It was more drastically this time, Dan feeling his body once again moving fast towards the ground, but never reaching it, as the Admiral grabbed him with an iron grip and pushed him to the nearby wall, his body pressing into his.

“Careful Kim Dan, it is unsteady.” The hot air hitting his neck.

‘Well, the ship is not the only thing that is unsteady at the moment’ thought Dan with a racing heart and a burning neck, as he waited for the shaking to stop. When it felt like it is over, the Admiral showed no sign of moving, his knee still pressed between Kim Dan’s legs, one of his arms resting on the wall next to Dan’s head.

“I-I think it is fine now, Admiral. I will quickly go and check-“ Dan tried to gently move out from the perplexing position, but his hips were pinned back to the wall by the Admiral’s hand.

“It is still unsteady, stay like this. One wrong step and you can hit your head really hard. Just stay like this.”

“O-oh okay.” Dan gulped and continued to stand stiffly in the Admiral’s embrace. The tall man seemed to have no problem with the position, his face looking concentrated as he tried to listen to noises around them.

A few minutes passed without any more shaking and the Admiral finally stepped back, his face looking weird. “Whoever is responsible for this will pay with his life. Just what the hell are these guys doing?”

“I will go and check it out, please finish dressing up Admiral. I will be right back.” Dan said hurriedly and left the room, clenching to his heart as soon as the metal door closed. Why is it racing so fast?!

It turned out the disturbance was caused by a closely passing meteoroid field, what hit the back of the spaceship, but the shield luckily prevented any damages. Dan just finished checking the sate of all the devices and weapons, when they left the interstellar corridor. The target ship with all the goods were flying in front of them, well within shooting range, but could not detect the Imperial ship due to their active stealth mode.

“Assault fighter unit XZ-557 and unit GT-1281 prepare for detachment in two minutes.” Dan gave out the orders in absence of the Admiral, his eyes scanning the digital screens in front of him. “Prepare a cargo carrier ship to retrieve the goods as well. Follow the implemented plan, formation ‘lion hearth’ with the lead of the Admiral’s ship.”

After two minutes, various small ships left the Imperial Marcher and slowly closed up on their target, stealth mode active on each. It was not a decision without any risk, an active stealth mode meant to give up 50% of the shield capacity of the ships, therefore making them vulnerable to a possible counter attack. But as long as they can go without the other ship detecting them, they could successfully intrude.

Dan couldn’t help the anxious feeling creeping into his stomach, as he watched the Admiral’s familiar ship getting closer and closer to the enemy on the radar. He had the same feeling every time the Admiral went out to a fight, even if he knew that his worry was completely unreasonable and baseless. The Admiral knew what he was doing and Dan truly believed in his skills and competence.

The convey of ships reached the shield zone of the target ship, and in the next second the Admiral pierced through the invisible field, activating multiple alarms on the bigger ship. It was inevitable, the whole ship become alert and all weapons got activated, yet it was too late for them, the small ships were already all inside of the field, the weapons no longer could aim at them. The soldiers disrupted the shield’s activity from the inside and Dan quickly overwrote the ship’s control command, blocking any command’s from the enemy.

After some small fight inside the ship, the Admiral’s team successfully secured the floors and they could start to transfer the goods back to the Imperial ship, where they got locked away with multiple layer of security fields. Kim Dan personally assisted during the process, making sure to look for the specific item that Prince Heesung requested, letting out a sigh of relief when the shining object also got locked under the protecting shields.

By the time Kim Dan could check out the last missing object on his list, 5 hours had already passed. He wanted nothing more than to go and sleep for a few hours, but they still had a long journey back to the Base with piles of paperwork. Kim Dan couldn’t help the tired sigh escaping his mouth, and dragged his body to the control bridge. Just a few more weeks of this job and he can rest for a while….

A week has passed since they successfully returned with the stolen objects and Prince Heesung received his gemstone a well. After a thorough investigation, they figured out that the attackers worked together with two high ranked officials from the Border Control Tower, which was responsible for trade gates in the Empire. For the promise of a good sum, the involved officials gave away information about the routing and security measures of the cargo, making it easy for the attackers to ambush the warehouse. The Admiral was furious and killed all the involved officials on the sport, causing Kim Dan a few sleepless night over, how to prevent information leaking to the media.

 Luckily only the good news reached the civilians, and needless to say that the popularity of the Admiral grew even bigger with the highly successful mission. Thousands of fan letters and political invitations arrived each day, but the most overwhelming were definitely…..the marriage proposals. When it become unbearable, Kim Dan could no longer drag it out and eventually had to inform the Admiral about them. With a pack of the messages,  Dan sighed deeply and knocked on the Admiral’s metal door.

“Admiral, do you have a minute?”

“If it is another invitation for a political party, burn it and push the remains down the throat of whoever decided to send it to me.” said the deep voice, the Admiral not even looking up from his table. Scary.

“Well…it is not a exactly a political invitation.”

“Then what is it?”

“Well..” Kim Dan hesitated to continue. The Admiral hated anything that was connected to love or marriage, well basically to any other human relationship, so Kim Dan didn’t feel to eager to poke this particular ‘angry nest of hornets’.

 “Why are you standing there all tensed for? Come closer, Kim Dan.”

“Y-yes, Admiral.”

“Tch, looking so scared like you want to give me a love letter or something.” the Admiral said and rolled his eyes.

“……..”

“…….”

“Marriage proposals, Admiral.”

“…….”

“……..”

“Kim Dan.”

“Yes, Admiral?”

“Get the hell out of here, before I throw you out myself!!” came the angry roar as the Admiral’s fist          slammed down on the table. “Do I look lonely to you, huh?! It was my lunatic mother’s idea, right?! Dare to bring this bullshit up one more time and you are dead!”

“A-Admiral, it’s not it, but having a partner would make the Admiral’s life easier and your mother also said that they would be delighted if the Admiral would start dating wi-“Dan mumbled with cold sweat forming on his neck as he slowly started backing towards the door. The Admiral’s eyes turned ice cold as he gritted his teeth, eyebrows forming a furious arch.

“Seems like you have too much time to worry about my love life,  Secretary Kim.” Growled the deep voice, as the Admiral stood up from his desk. “I don’t fucking want to do anything with this love bullshit, tell this to my parents too! And I need even less from your or my parent’s concern! Do you think I have enough time to play marriage with some good for nothing woman?!”

“A-Admiral, please calm down.” Dan rumbled, knowing too well, it would be wiser to keep his mouth shut if he wants to see tomorrow. Yet the earlier phone call from the Admiral’s mother kept his mouth moving. “Your parents are just worried about you since you work too much. T-they just want to see someone taking care of the Admiral and standing by your side to support you.”

“Fucking great! Why would I need a lousy woman to do all that, when I have my very capable Secretary who do it for me?”

Dan felt his face turning bright red after the Admiral’s word.

“Admiral that’s not what-“ he tried to say but the deep voice didn’t allow it.

“But alright. If my mother is so fucking obsessed about this-” stepped closer the man, leaving no escape for Dan, his eyes glinting with an unfamiliar flame.

“ -should I just marry you, Kim Dan?”

The dark brown eyes bored into Dan’s, and it felt like as all the air in the room suddenly disappeared.

What? Kim Dan felt this ears ringing as he blinked a few times, his overstressed brain not willing to fully register the unreasonable words, that left the Admiral’s mouth just now.

“A-Admiral what are you talking about? I-I’m your Secretary, a man, furthermore have no plans to marry the Admiral!“ Dan shrieked out. The Admiral only continued to star at him fiercely, not seemed to be discouraged by the rejection.

“Why? It would be convenient. We could start working earlier and finish later since we would be living together, without you being so fixated on work hours and about going back to your shitty apartment.”

“Admiral?! Once again with all respect, I have no intention of m-marrying you!”

Just as the man opened his mouth to continue his utterly ridiculous persuasion, the single black telecommunication device on the office desk started to ring. The noise made both man froze on their sport.

The black device sitting on the desk was quiet on most days, since it was only connected to the Imperial Palace through one secured network. Now that it was ringing loudly, could only meant one thing. Dan gulped and nervously glanced at the Admiral’s face, whose eyes still rested on his secretary.

“Admiral, I think you should pick up.”

After a few more moments of wordless stare, the Admiral clicked his tongue and stepped to the phone, but before picking up he shoot one last glance at his secretary. “We will get back to this marriage thing later, Kim Dan.”

And with that, his face turned serious again and picked up the device, leaving Kim Dan in a state if shock and completely horror as he imagined his life married to the Admiral.

“Imperial Admiral Joo Jaekyung reporting for duty.”

Kim Dan stood nervously at the door, he could not hear the words of the other party, his eyes rather fixed on the Admiral’s unreadable expression. After a brief exchange of words, the Admiral turned off the device and sat down to his chair. It was nearly impossible to read anything from the stone like expression but Kim Dan spent most of his days with the man and the stiff shoulders gave away the Admiral’s frustration. Before he could open his mouth to ask how can he assist, the Admiral pinched his nose bed and leaned back.

“Call the captains of all Bases and arrange a military conference for this afternoon. I want all past statistics about our joined military trainings and the reports what we conducted on the southern border attacks so far.”

Kim Dan quickly noted everything and quickly stepped to open the door, but before exiting he turned back.

“Can I ask what is happening, Admiral?”

The dark eyes started at him for a few moments before the Admiral’s deep voice filled the room.

“The Empire is under attack.”

The Base soon become packed with military spaceships and officials from every corner of the Empire, and the number of dark coloured uniforms made it obvious that something big is happening. Due to the urgent schedule, Kim Dan had to leave the Admiral’s side and coordinate the placement of guests and the assist the preparation of a spaceships, therefore was unable to join the conference.

From the Admiral’s brief words before he marched into the room, he learned that the Empire’s southern border provinces suffered continuous attacks from the Guul Republic in the past days, and by the time they could report due to telecommunications issues, several small bases has already fell to the hand of the Republic.

The diplomatic connections between the Empire and the Republic were neutral on the best days, but the attack came as a surprise, as the Imperial Emperor just announced his intention to strengthen the economic relations of the two nations.

To stop the further aggression of the Republic, the Empire needs to send troops to the furthest provinces as soon as possible. Kim Dan didn’t know much about the southern region, it was the furthest from the central bases.

It was known as the land of no one, since the population was incredibly low there and due to it’s heavy space storms, the region often had issues with communication and food supplies.

Kim Dan nervously bit into his lips, as he arrived at the Admiral’s office after he arranges everything. Maintaining a front at a place like that, is no easy task. Dan felt as worry filled his stomach. What will the Admiral do?

“Admiral, can I help you with anything?” he asked as he stepped into the low light room. By the time, both Kim Dan arranged everything and the conference ended, it was already late at night. The Base become quiet despite the current situation and everyone went to rest.

“Kim Dan, I was waiting for you. Come here.” Came the deep voice from the sofa. The Admiral sat in his plain shirt and pants, his hair dishevelled and eyes tired. They could not meet all day due to the busy schedule and Dan felt his heart ease at the sight of the huge man.

“The Admiral looks tired. Should I make you some tea?”

After the man’s approval, Dan quickly stepped to the small kitchen area to prepare the usual hot drink, his hands proficiently picking the leaves. As he minced the plants, all stress slowly started to leave his body. He often wondered, when was the point when he started to feel more relaxed in the Admiral’s chamber rather than his own home.

Feeling the Admiral’s eyes resting on his back, Dan slowly carried the cup to the man and placed it gently on the table before sitting down himself as well with his own cup.

The man picked up the cup and leaned back on the sofa.

“Did the arrangement of the soldiers went well?”

“Yes, there were no complications.”

“Good.” Said the man and took a sip from his cup.

“Did the conference went as planed, Admiral?”

“Yes, we will leave tomorrow at noon according to plans.”

“That is really soon. Maybe I should go packing.” Dan said, already mentally preparing a list of all the necessary things. The sudden news of departure forced him to quickly arrange all the administrative work and to find a solution for the replacements in the Base. In absence of the Admiral, the Base General took over the commanding position therefore Kim Dan had to find him as soon as possible, to discus things further. The silence from the Admiral’s side made Kim Dan look up from his thoughts, only to find the brown eyes already staring at him.,

“Kim Dan.” The voice sounded strange.

“Yes, Admiral?”

“This time you will not come.”

Dan felt as is his heart skipped a beat, the tea in his hand poured onto the sofa. What? Why wouldn’t he go? During this time the Admiral needs his assistance more than anything, staying at the Base was unreasonable. Just as he opened his mouth to protest, the Admiral continued.

“The southern region is unpredictable and dangerous, and I know that you are not a soldier but my Secretary, even if you acts as both at most times. But this time it is too dangerous, so you will stay back here and maintain order.”

“But Admiral-“

“I’ve already decided it. I need someone I trust to stay behind and make sure the Empire is in order.”

The words made Dan’s heart miss a beat, but his brain was already in panic mode to think about it further. It as simply unheard of, an Admiral without his Secretary by his side in such a serious matter?

“But the Base General would be a much more logical choice. I believe it would be better, if I could go with the Admiral. I know quite a bit about military matters and recently I started to train, so I won’t be a hindrance if the Admiral is afraid about that. Please don’t leave me behind.”

 Kim Dan stared into the deep brown eyes almost pleadingly, his heart beating wildly for unknown reasons. The Admiral stayed silent for a long time, an inner argument seemed to play behind his eyes, then eventually his face turned stern and he averted his eyes.

“No, I’ve already decided. The Base General is familiar with that region, he is necessary for the operation so he has to come. Till I’m away you will be in charge, I expect a diligent work from you.”

Dan wanted to protest further but the Admiral already risen from the sofa and moved towards his bed, signalling the end of the discussion. With a heavy heart, Dan also stood up to leave, his mind still uneasy from the sudden news, but before he could reach the door a deep voice halted him.

“Kim Dan. It’s late.”

Dan glanced at the digital clock on the wall in daze. It was past 1 am.

“It doesn’t make sense to go back to your apartment this late. Sleep here.”  Said the Admiral, his voice missing the usual order like manner. Yet, for Kim Dan it felt impossible to refuse. He nodded silently as the tiredness of the day swept over him, he stepped towards the sofa to lay down, when the still wet spot on the furniture made him stop.

“Admiral, I’m sorry it seemed like I spilled some of my tea on the sofa. I will take care of the cleaning and pay for the possible damages tomorrow morning, but for now it seems I will leave.” He said and made a quick mental note to inform the cleaning service and look up the price of the expensive looking couch.

“Why would you leave, when we just agreed you will sleep here?” asked the Admiral with furrowed brows.

“The sofa where I would sleep is wet, so I thought-“Dan wanted to explain when the Admiral’s voice interrupted his.

“What’s the big deal? Sleep in my bed.”

“Then where would the Admiral sleep?”

“Where would I sleep?” asked the man with an almost irritated expression. “Of course in the same bed. Now enough of this time wasting and get here, Kim Dan.” He grumbled and stepped to the bed. Kim Dan gulped, thinking whether he should protest further, but the sleepiness made his thoughts twirl without reason.

Silently, he walked to the other side of the bed and removed his outer clothes, painfully aware of the presence behind him. He felt silly for having a racing heart and a red face when the Admiral acted like it was the most natural thing, making Kim Dan feel like a fool for overreacting.

He quickly slipped under the covers and scooted as far away as possible from the radiant heat of the huge man, laying only in an arms length distance. The Admiral put out the light and darkness wrapped them over, making every movement in the room feel more intense than before. It was not the first time they slept in the same room thanks to the long working days, but sleeping right next to the other was a completely different story.

After a few minutes of silence, just when Dan was sure the Admiral fell asleep, the familiar deep voice made him startle.

“Kim Dan.”

“Yes, Admiral?” Dan asked almost whispering.

“Keep your transmitter with you while I am away. I want you to answer right away, when I contact you, be it in the middle of the night.”

Kim Dan felt an unexplainable warm feeling spreading in his chest and nodded in the darkness, not finding any good reason why he should not accept the request.

“Okay, I will.”

After a few seconds passed the Admiral spoke again.

“I want you to make an excellent job while I am away and you need to be well rested for that. Stay in my office while I am away.”

“Admiral, that’s really not-“

“I hate to leave it unattended so consider it as a task.”

Dan felt no more energy to protest and silently nodded. It was just another task, don’t have to make it into anything weird.

He waited for the next sentence but the Admiral seemed to be finished talking. After a few minutes it was Kim Dan who broke the silence, his voice barely a whisper.

“Admiral.”

The Admiral stayed motionless, not indicating anything that he heard the call, yet Kim Dan continued.

“Please be careful and return soon.”

The answer was silence again and Dan finally decided to give into his sleepiness, drifting into a dreamless rest.

The silent smile of the man beside him, remained the secret of the night.

The huge fleet of the various spaceship departed a bit later than noon at the next day. As Kim Dan stared after the Imperial Ship leaving the Base, he could almost feel the brown eyes staring at him. It was a silly thought, the Admiral was most likely busy giving orders to the crew so Dan shook his head and when the last ship left his eyesight, he turned around with a slightly big coat on his shoulder.

Before the Admiral boarded the ship, he stepped to Kim Dan and laid his signature black military coat to Dan’s shoulder without a word. Dan was shocked as the weight of the various size bigger clothing nearly drowned him, then by the time he could question it, the Admiral was already shouting orders to the officials about departure.

Well, no questions were needed, the message was clear. The Admiral trusted his Secretary with the role of Commander, his coat made it obvious for everyone who was the one who held power in his absence.

Among the curious glances, Dan turned around and headed inside the Base, to dive into his work and arrange the necessary things due to the absence of the Admiral. The trip to the appointed destination would take a week for the Imperial Fleet, without including any possible held backs, so Dan didn’t expected much news from the Admiral till then. But just as usual, his predictions turned out wrong really quickly, as the terminal in his hand started to ring just as he stepped into the Admiral’s office. With a slightly surprised expression, he accepted the call.

“Yes Admiral?”

“…”

The other side remained silent and Dan had to double check if the connection was made or not, but there seemed to be no problem.

“Admiral?” he tried again.

“Just checked if you have your terminal with you.” Came the deep voice and in the next second the line disconnected. Dan couldn’t help but stare at his device with confusion. What was that?

It wasn’t like the Admiral to make unnecessary calls, but no matter how he tried, Dan couldn’t figure out the reason behind it, so with a sigh he dropped the topic. Sitting down into the Admiral’s chair, several piles of paper towered around him, almost blocking the light. He had to approve ongoing military projects, financial matters and report to the Imperial Palace. It wasn’t like it was anything new, his usual tasks pretty much covered the same areas, but in the absence of the Admiral, Dan had to participate in more formal and physical activities. As he checked the schedule, Secretary Seo entered after a short knock.

“Secretary Kim, I apologise for interrupting you but you have a filed inspection in Unit 22 in ten minutes. Should I help you with the dressing?”

Dan quickly glanced at the clock and nodded, rising from his seat. It was supposedly the Admiral’s task to survey and encourage the military training of each unit, meaning that he sometimes engaged in physical fights as well. Kim Dan was not a big fan of fights and weapons, but staying beside the Admiral meant to learn about these naturally.

“Thank you Mr. Seo for the reminder. I will be out in 5 minutes so please inform the Unit Leader to be prepared.”

“Certainly.” Said Secretary Seo and left shortly after that. Dan quickly unfolded his less formal clothes and changed into the black elastic coverage.

He started to take self defence classes after one time, a hostile person tried to attack the Admiral in a military parade, but ended up kicking Kim Dan in the chaotic scene. The Admiral was furious about the incident and order Dan to attend to a few classes, so he won’t embarrass him again. What started as a compulsory task, now become a hobby for Dan and after his secret practises, he felt like he could confidently hold his ground against many military officers. Of course, he never mentioned this neither to the Admiral or anyone else, wanting to have some private hobbies for himself.

Shortly, he arrived to the training room of Unit 22, loud noises filling the air as many muscular bodies strained against each other. Unit 22 was the last and youngest unit in the Base, full of freshly enrolled soldiers who later with time and experience, can migrate to upper Units.

As Dan stepped into the room, several heads turned into his direction, slightly surprised eyes blinking at him. Only the Unit Leader seemed unsurprised of his arrival, the older man walking to him with a smile on his face.

“Secretary Kim, I’m really happy that you could take time out of your busy schedule and visit our Unit. I can imagine how hard it is for you in the absence of Admiral Joo.”

“It is my duty, so please don’t worry Leader Joon. I was actually really curious about the progress and training methods, so please continue freely as if I’m not even here.” Dan said and Unit Leader Joon gestured to the soldiers to continue, the now quieter shouts filling the arena again.

“If there is anything Secretary Kim is curious about, please ask away. I would be more than happy to answer, since it is not everyday that I have a chance to talk with our Empire’s famous Imperial Secretary.” Smiled the man as his eyes inspected the fighting figures in the distance.

Dan couldn’t help the small laughter escaping his mouth at the absurd statement. He could imagine the disappointment of the Unit when they figured out the one who will visit them is not the Admira, but his mere secretary.

“Actually, I had some questions about the mental training part when I came across some reports a while ago. Does the Leader perhaps familiar with the process?”

“Ah, you must mean the Advance Mental Agility Encouragement Program.” Nodded Mr. Joon. “It is actually a pretty new implementation and many believe that it is a waste of time and money. After analysing several past space battles, it was clear that most cases the reaction time of soldiers were much longer, than in the simulator room. The reason behind that, is while some soldiers are good at weaponizing their high adrenalin level into faster reaction time and accuracy on the battlefield, the majority has often slowed down with mental barriers which can cause fatal results in these situations.”

“Indeed, based on my observation those who could achieve results in the high passed battles, are not the ones who are more trained or skilled but the ones who have stronger mental strength. I was curious if mental strength can be developed and if yes, how much?”

“We are quite optimistic about the program, even if it only in testing phase, the battle simulations specifically developed for this purpose seemed to improved the mental agility of test soldiers. It will be a long progress, especially with the mindset of some really old fashioned military officers.” Grumbled the man and Dan lifted his eyebrow curiously.

“Are there people against the new method?”

“Unfortunately there are always people who are against to everything new, and they are the loudest when it comes to decision making. They are so fixated on physical training, not understanding that a good physic is useless without a strong mind.” Sighed the Unit Leader.

It wasn’t news to Dan that even within the military there were some members with a progressive or more traditional mindset, resulting in different fractions, but he didn’t know the opposition was this great. It was worth to look into it in the future.

Just as he was about to continue his questioning, the Leader clapped his hand and stepped forward.

“Alright, now enough of this aimless kicking and punching. Let’s fight for real and show Secretary Kim the new treasures of the military! Park and Monjoo, get into the ring!”

Instantly, the to young soldiers stepped into the fighting ring, both sending a curious glance at the way of Secretary Kim. The beautiful and gentle looking man was just as popular among military men as the Admiral, so his presence made all of them a bit excited and wanted to show their best.

“Alright, the first one whose shoulder touches the ground for 3 seconds is the looser and has to train on this week’s rest day as well.” Said the Leader with mischief in his eyes, and the two gulped visibly.

“Fight!”

Just as the shout rang through the arena, the two started to circle each other, their faces focused on every move of the other. Loud shouts were heard from all around, cheering for their favourite, and Dan couldn’t help but be surprised at their dedication.

Park was the braver, his fist swinging forward, only missing the other’s face by a few centimetres. Monjoo didn’t want to be left behind so with a quick counter attack, he threw a strong punch into Park’s side, making the other curse from pain. Afte that the two engaged in a fierce fight, kicks and punches were thrown so fast, Dan had a hard time following it and the cheering grew louder.

“They are very promising. I heard that both of them admire the Admiral and Secretary Kim greatly and they want to get into the special operation teams and work directly under the Admiral.” Said the Leader as he turned slightly towards Kim Dan. “Does Secretary Kim also participate in any training?”

Dan thought for a few seconds weather he should out his secret, but it was not specifically a secret in the first place, so he nodded and continued in a humble tone. “I am not any good in fighting, just know some basics.”

“What a shame! Many of these youngsters wanted to spare with Secretary Kim, when they figured out you will join for the training. ” Said the Leader and Dan raised his eyebrows in surprise. Spare with him? He glanced back at the fiercely fighting soldiers and bit into his lips. They are working so hard, it would be a shame to not praise their efforts.

“I can do a quick spare, if that is what they truly want, but apologies in advance as I am not an expert like the Admiral in physical fighting.”

“Really? Secretary Kim would truly do that?” asked the Leader looking quite excited at the surprising news. He was also a secret fan of Secretary Kim, so to see him spare and possibly teaching him something made the older man just as excited as the young soldiers.

“Yes, it would be good for me too, to get some exercise.” Dan smiled softly.

The Leader then forced his expression into a firm one again and turned to the still fighting soldiers. “Whoever wins, can spare with Secretary Kim next.”

Everyone froze for a second, the cheers got silent as well, then as the words sank into their brain, the arena turned more chaotic than before. Sparing with the famous Imperial Secretary? It was a greater gift than any appointment from the Admiral himself!

Park and Monjoo glanced as each other panting heavily, then with a renewed fire in their eyes, they threw themselves at each other again, now the price was much higher than before. Their insanely fierce fight lasted for 5 more minutes, when eventually Monjoo turned out to be victorious, his eyes glinting happily as the cheers around him chanted his name. Park left the ring with an almost tearful expression, and Dan decided to step forward.

As the young soldiers watched the tall, but delicate man step forward, they couldn’t help their hearts beating faster. Secretary Kim was exceptional and beautiful, and the only one who could handle the Admiral, gaining the respect of many.

Monjoo quickly bowed to the man in front of him respectfully, his face and ears a bit red, either from excitement or from the previous fight. Dan returned the gesture and stepped into starting position.

“Secretary Kim, the rule are the same as before, 3 seconds on your back and you lost. I wish a successful spare for both of you.” Said the Leader and signalled the start of the fight. The cheers broke out again and Dan was surprised to hear that many people cheered for him.

‘Fight well Secretary Kim!’

‘Go Secretary Kim, Go!!’

Dan’s ears turned red form embarrassment, then he blocked out the noised to concentrate on his opponent. Circling around the centre, he quickly compared what he conducted from the previous match with Monjoo’s current movements. He couldn’t help but notice that in the previous spare, the boy’s left side was often defenceless right after a punch attack, leaving an opening for a kick.

Just as the thought formed in his head, Monjoo launched forward his powerful fist just slightly missing Dan’s shoulder.

‘Monjoo if you dare to punch Imperial Secretary Kim’s face, I will personally beat you up!’ shouted a few from the audience and Monjoo gulped. Of course he had no intention to hurt Secretary Kim, as he was afraid of the wrath of many, yet he couldn’t just stand still and appear weak. He once read in the Imperial Newspaper’s special section for Valentine’s Day, that Secretary Kim’s preferred future partner would be someone with great skills and determination, so not giving in his all was out of question!

With a quick roll, he managed to kick the Secretary on his stomach, but his follow up attack was blocked with a frowning Dan. Growing impatient with the spirit of the fight, Monjoo once again tried to land a punch on his opponent’s chest, but to his surprise Secretary Kim dodged it as if he was expected it and in the next second Monjoo found himself on the floor and the count down already ended.

Loud cheers broke out, all praising Secretary Kim’s skills and everyone fell a little bit deeper in love with the gentle looking, but competent man. Monjoo also stood up and with an blushed face, bowed to his opponent.

“Thank you for spearing with me Secretary Kim, it was a huge pleasure. It seems like I still need to learn a lot, but I truly hope in the future you will spare with me once more.”

“It was indeed a good match, you are truly remarkable, Candidate Monjoo. Keep up the good work.” Said Dan encouragingly and stepped down from the ring. After saying a few more encouraging words to the other soldiers and thanking the Leader the opportunity, he left refreshed, to continue his administrative tasks.

A few planets away….

The Imperial spaceship fleets just passed Planet PX, and the Admiral was busy looking over military documents, a displeased aura surrounding him. He looked like that till they departed from the home base, an irritable expression sitting on his face constantly. No one dared to approach the vicious man, fearing they might worsen his mood.

Only if Secretary Kim was here…

Adjutant Gen just finished checking the report he got, when received a new message from Secretary Seo, who stayed in the home base. It was a video about Unit 22 training session. Curiously, Adjutant Gen played the video and his eyes widened in surprise at the sight of Secretary Kim sparing skilfully with a young soldier. When he finished the video, he carefully glanced at the displeased Admiral on the other side of the room, then a new idea formed in his head. Wouldn’t hurt to try!

“Admiral.” Adjutant Gen cleared his throat and stepped closer, ignoring the waves of anger now pouring at his direction.

“What?”

“I think you should see this. It’s about Secretary Kim.”

“What about Kim Dan?” the Admiral’s eyes suddenly looked more focused than before and his aura seemed more deadly. Adjutant Gu gulped and stepped closer, holding out the terminal to his boss.

“Secretary Kim participated in Unit 22 training and spared with a young soldier. Would the Admiral want to see the video that Secretary Seo sent about it?”

The Admiral’s usually expressionless face flashed with surprise for a second.

“Give it to me.” He growled and snatched the transmitter from Adjutant Gen’s hand.

The video started to play again, showing Secretary Kim’s slender body in a black compression suit as he stood in a fighting ring, the sight made the Admiral’s face darken for a second. His opponent was a tall and muscular young man with brown hair, apparently called Monjoo as it was known from the surrounding shouts. The sparing started and Adjutant Gen couldn’t help but glance at the Admiral’s expression, rather than watch the video again.

“Secretary Kim is truly remarkable, I had no idea he was so skilful in fighting.” Said Gen, since he couldn’t help but praise the man.

“I didn’t know either.” mumbled the Admiral his face flashing with dissatisfaction once again. Just at that moment, Monjoo sent a strong kick into Secretary Kim’s stomach, the pain clearly visible on the secretary’s face even through the low quality video.

“How dare he?!” growled the Admiral unexpectedly, his voice as cold as his eyes, as he slapped on the table.

Before he could continue, the scene drastically changed and the Admiral’s face once again flashed with bewilderment. Kim Dan was pushing the soldier down to the ground, his legs wrapped around the other’s waist, leaving no chance for escape. Adjutant Gen watched many fights like this, but as Secretary Kim executed the movements, it all looked much more elegant than form those rusty soldiers, it was a magnificent sight. With the countdown, the video ended, the black screen reflecting the Admiral’s now glinting eyes.

“What does the Admiral think? Secretary Kim is truly remarkable!”

“Huh!” grunted the Admiral, but his proud eyes gave away his true feelings “He is my secretary after all, I wouldn’t expect any less from him!”

Adjutant Gen nodded silently in agreement.

“On the other hand, Unit 22, especially Candidate Monjoo seemed rather pathetic next to my Secretary, don’t you think?” asked the Admiral the former gentle tone long forgotten “Arrange a private training with the unit when I get back. I will personally teach Candidate Monjoo a few things.”

Adjutant Gen gulped at the sight of the Admiral’s murderous glare and couldn’t help but feel sorry for the young soldier.

After he left the room, his terminal lighted up once more with a new incoming message.

Admiral Joo Jaekyung: Send me the video. Don’t show it to anyone else.

The following days were spent in a daze, Kim Dan had so much work to do that he could barely sit down to eat. In the absence of a remarkable number of soldiers and military staff, the inside work become unevenly distributed and Dan had to put an end to this chaos as quickly as possible. Hand in hand with Secretary Seo, they spent long hours planning and strategizing an effective way to maintain the base, since the returnment of Admiral Joo was still uncertain.

“I think we can finish for today, Secretry Seo. Please contact the Financial department tomorrow morning and align with them.”

The base was long covered in darkness by the time Dan stood up and signalled the end of today’s work. Secretary Seo’s face could not hide the relief, as he quickly put away all his documents and bowed to Dan.

“Then tomorrow. Please take a good rest, Secretry Kim.”

Dan nodded and left the room to head to the familiar chamber next to the Admiral’s office. Since the man basically ordered him to live in his chamber during his absence, Dan couldn’t stay no. It was more practical anyways.

Entering the room, he quickly get rid of his military uniform and took a quick shower, letting the warm water wash away all the stress from the hard work. Rubbing his wet hear in a towel, he just headed towards the small kitchen area when his transmitter started to buzz on the counter.

Dan quickly glanced at the digital clock on the wall and noted that it is exactly 10pm, and with a small scoff picked up the terminal.

“Admiral, good evening.”

The other side of the line stayed silent for a few moments than the familiar voice rang through it.

“Kim Dan.”

“Yes Amdiral?”

“Are you in my room?”

“Yes, Admiral. Just finished showering.” Admitted Dan and sat down on the sofa a soft smile playing on his lips.

“Good. Stay there and don’t wander around, you need to be fully rested and focused in my absence. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Admiral. I will not go anywhere else.”

Only a low approving grunt could be heard. Dan left the soft smile to reach his eyes too. It was like this in the past few days; exactly at 10pm his terminal would rang and Admiral Joo’s name would flash brightly on the screen. At first Dan was a bit reluctant to answer, fearing that more work would be handed to him, so he let the terminal reach the end of the buzzing. Of course it didn’t work, just as it stopped the familiar name flashed again. By the third time it happened, Dan’s fear won against his tiredness and he reluctantly picked up the call. After a few moments of chilling silence, the Admiral’s voice filled his ears ‘If you won’t pick up my call withing 3 rings next time, I will personally beat you to death, Kim Dan.’

Needless to say, Dan diligently answered everything from then on, just like now.

“How is the situation in the Base? Any trouble?”

“Everything is under control, please rest assured. How it is on the Admiral’s side?”

“Adequate. Tomorrow we will reach the border of Planet-001 and start to advance south. The Republic is stationing at the border so we expect resistance, as some communicational barriers. From there forward, space storms are almost constant so we have to use the old system, to connect the main ship.”

“Understood.” Said Dan and left some note for Secretary Seo. The old system was much slower and unreliable that the current one, messages were often delayed by hours yet due to space storms, no other telecommunication method could work.

“Admiral, please take care.” He couldn’t help but add. “I hope all of you will return soon.”

“Kim Dan-“ the man started with a weirdly soft tone but was interrupted by his secretary.

“Ahh, Admiral I almost forgot. Your mother called me today and asked me to pass a dinner invitation to you, for the second week of next month. Miss Hyun is expecting you for a casual dinner and hopes you have some time to get to know each other. Can I put it into your calendar?”

“…..”

“Admiral?”

The line was long disconnected.

Dan let out a sigh and headed towards the big bed. He truly felt sorry for the Admiral’s mother, who had such high hoped for her son’s love life and troubled herself with the arrangements of small dates, yet the Admiral had rejected all without a second thought. She often cried her eyes out to Dan, asking him what she should do, but Dan was just as clueless. The Admiral seemed to have no place for love in his heart.

The following days passed with only short messages from the Admiral’s ship and without his usual evening calls. Dan couldn’t help, but felt the anxiety slowly clenching his heart, as his eyes scanned the short reports.

Reached Planet-001 Stop Victorious attack on Republican fleet stop Heading towards Star 33 stop

Problem with communication devices and engine stop possible communication problems with Base in the future stop

Victory at Star 33 stop Chasing Republican ships stop Supplies are sufficient stop

After that, no more messages arrived and two days passed without any news. Dan was just skimming through some documents when his terminal started to buzz. His heart skipped a beat and his eyes glued hopefully to the screen, expecting to see a familiar name, just to sank back to his chair at the site of an unfamiliar number. Swallowing his disappointment, he accepted the call.

“Kim Dan.”

“Ah, Mr. Kim, I’m Doctor Ha Eun from the hospital and I’m calling you about your Grandma.” The familiar voice made Dan sit up straight, panic in the brown eyes.

“Miss Ha Eun, is something wrong? Did something happen?”

“We got back the results of Mrs. Kim recent check up and we have some concerning news. The infected area seemed to be bigger than we initially thought and it reached the size, that immediate treatment is necessary. Please don’t panic, we are not out of time yet, but you have to make a decision quickly. Have you decided whether you want to transfer Mrs. Kim to Eden Clinic? An available space is reserved for you till tomorrow, but please understand, that I can not hold it much longer as the waiting list is long. ”

Dan felt his breathing quicken, but before panic could fully take over his mind, he forced himself to take some deep breath and think clearly. It was not a question at this point, only the timing was sooner than expected.

“Yes, I’ve already decided since there is no other option. Please arrange the transfer and send me the necessary documents. “

“Alright Mr. Kim. I will contact Eden Clinic and transfer the treatment plan to them, please expect a call today afternoon about the details.” Miss, Ha Eun said, then after a small pause continued in a much softer tone. “Please don’t worry. Eden is the best place for Mrs. Kim, you made the best choice. I will also keep an eye on the recovery personally.”

“Thank you Doctor. Then I will trouble you.” Said Dan and after a few more rounds of thanks, hang up the call. He leaned back in the chair, his thumb pressing down on his forehead trying to suppress the forming headache without much success.

He really though -or at least hoped, that he has some more time, before he has to hand in his resignation to accompany his Grandma to Earth.

At least, till the Admiral comes back.

He wanted to leave more time in handing over his tasks, but working with Secretary Seo in the past weeks and seeing his competence and diligence, put his heart at ease a bit. Secretary Seo is perfectly capable of assisting the Admiral, and the two will fall into a comfortable pace in no time.

Dan couldn’t help, but let out a deep sigh. In the past years, he was waiting for this moment to come, when he can finally give in his resignation and rest a bit at his Grandma’s side, yet the thought that he no longer has to prepare the same boring breakfast every morning, select clothes or discuss military matters with the Admiral did not seem right at all.

He probably just got used to this, a few weeks and he will find his own routine, Dan thought and deliberately ignored his aching heart.

A soft knock disturbed his thoughts and in the next moment Secretary Seo came in with an excited smile on his face.

“Secretary Kim! We got a message from the Imperial Fleet! Admiral Joo brought victory to the Empire once more. The Republican Army got destroyed and our fleet achieved an overwhelming victory!”

Dan felt his lips curling into a happy and equally relieved smile as he leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.

“The Admiral will gather the ships and head back as soon as possible, yet delays are still expected in communication. Estimated arrival at the home base is 5 days.” Secretary Seo continued as he checked his data table.

“I had no doubt about the Admiral. Please prepare for their arrival and arrange a small celebration banquet. Invite all the relevant figures and inform the Imperial Family of the success.” Dan gave out the task quickly with a smile still playing on his lips, Secretary Seo nodded and headed towards the door, but Dan stopped him.

“Secretary Seo, please stay for a few words.”

It was better to be over it sooner, and give more time for things to settle, so by the time the Admiral arrives back everything will be in order. Dan would have preferred to inform the Admiral in person about his resignation, but he had no time and he could not reach the man at the moment.

“Secretary Seo, in the past few weeks I could inspect closely your work moral and methods, and I have to say you are diligent and punctual. Please believe me when I say that you are the most competent secretary I’ve ever worked with.”

Secretary Seo first looked surprised at the unexpected praise, then flushed to light pink.

“S-secretary Kim, thank you so much. Coming from you, the words mean a lot to me.”

Dan smiled and continued. “For this exact reason, after handing in my resignation today, I will recommend you with a joyous heart to the position of Imperial Secretary. I have no doubt, that you are more than capable to fulfil the position and assist the Admiral in his future affairs. If it is you, I’m sure the Empire and the Admiral are both in good hands.” Dan smiled and glanced at Secretary Seo, just to furrow his brows confusedly.

Secretary Seo stood at the centre of the room, his face is white as a ghost’s, his data table laying on the ground.

“Secretry Seo?”

“NO!” the shout startled Kim Dan and he watched with growing concern how the man eyes start to tremble “ No, no, no, no. Secretary Kim, please don’t speak nonsense! How could you resign?!”

“What?”

“You can’t resign! Absolutely not! Do you know what would happen if he figures out you-“ Secretary Seo mumbled, now his whole body trembling.

“Secretary Seo, please calm down. I know it is a bit unexpected but I’ve already arranged the handover, there won’t be any problems. You are very capable so-“

“Secretary Kim, please tell me you are kidding! You can’t resign. You are the Imperial Secretary and the Admiral-“

“The Admiral will be satisfied as long as he has a capable person to assist him. Don’t worry Mr. Seo.” Dan smiled reassuringly as his terminal started to ring. “Could you excuse me Mr. Seo, I really need to take this call. I will inform you about the details later.”

He watched worriedly as the still trembling man left his office and just then connected the call.

By the time he arrived to the Administrative Department to inform Mr. Lee about his resignation, the whole military base knew about the shocking news.

Imperial Secretary Kim is resigning.

Dan felt like his way to Mr. Lee, was full of obstacles. First, some officials dragged him along to discuss some matters, then the Financial Department insisted that he needs to look at some projects and by the time he arrived at the office, working time was almost over. Mr. Lee was just about to leave the office in a hurry as if running from something, when Dan knocked on his door with a smile. Mr. Lee’s face crumbled and with a deep sadness sat back to his seat.

After that Mr. Lee spent the following hour trying to persuade Dan to stay, but eventually accepted his resignation, murmuring something about the upcoming end of the world.

When the formalities were done, Dan headed to the hospital to arrange everything for his Grandma’s transfer what will take place in 2 days. He sent back all the necessary documents to Eden Clinic and paid the agreed sum in advance.

His Grandma would get a private room, including all the necessary equipment, furniture, a private nurse and a sunny balcony. Dan was really pleased to hear about the quality of the service and quickly arranged a temporary accommodation to himself as well, near the Clinic. He had many things to do in the following 2 days; finish handing over the tasks to Secretary Seo, contact a person to help him sell his small apartment and to pack his things.

Since the short report about the Admiral’s victory, no further news reached the Base as expected, space storms and an unexpected meteor shower completely cutting of the communication. Dan ignored the disappointed feeling in his chest and concentrated on his tasks.

On the second day, he handed back his military uniform, identification cards and his terminal to Mr. Lee and said goodbye to all his coworkers, wishing them a successful career and good luck, then headed to his Grandma to travel to Earth together.

He was oblivious of the cryptic atmosphere after he left behind...

“Admiral, we entered the Empire’s central zone. Communication is repaired between the Base and the Fleet. Do you want to convey any messages?” asked Adjutant Gen and watched as the Admiral’s tired face, light up for a split second.

“Contact Secretary Kim.”

Adjutant Gen hid his smile professionally and left to bring a terminal. It was no secret that the Admiral was stressed since they could not contact the Base, and Adjutant Gen had a clear guess why. Of course, he was far too professional to voice out his thoughts, and far too professional to mentioned how the Admiral was basically glued to his terminal, playing the same suspiciously familiar video on repeat.

He dialled the Base and conveyed the Admiral’s request, just to turn motionless a minute later, attracting the attention of the Admiral.

“What is wrong? You look like someone just died?” asked the Admiral and impatiently drummed on his desk. “Did you connect Kim Dan?”

‘I wish I was dead’ though Adjutant Gen and cleared his throat. “Secretary Kim is not at the Base at the moment. Maybe try it later?”

The Admiral furrowed his brows. “It is the middle of the day, what else does my Secretary doing than staying at the Base? Slacking of in my absence.” He grumbled and took out his personal terminal. “He better pick up or I will beat him to death.”

Adjutant Gen decided to stay silent and just waited for the inevitable.

After a few minutes and unsuccessful tries the Admiral’s face twisted into an ugly grimace, his eyes flashing coldly. Adjutant Gen gulped in fear.

“Call Secretary Seo.”

“Yes, sir.”

After a few rings, a small voice answered the call.

“This is Secretary Seo. How can I help you Adjutant Gen?”

Before he could answer, a strong arm snatched the terminal from his fingers and the Admiral’s deep voice rang through the line.

“Where the fuck is Kim Dan?!”

It was a sunny afternoon, the weather perfect for a short stroll, so Dan decided to take Grandma to the Clinic’s garden to spend some time together. The air of Planet Earth was indeed much softer than Dan expected, and he could already see the changes in Grandma’s condition, her breathing looking less painful and forced. Although it was still early to say that it will work as a long time solution, Dan was quite optimistic.

In the past few days, they could settle down peacefully. Grandma was very pleased with her new room, although voicing her concerns for the financial problems many times, but Kim Dan assured her that it is alright and she should focus on her recovery. It was equipped with the necessary furniture, medical equipment and a nurse checked in in every 2 hours.

Eden Clinic was a rather small facility with a small number of residents, so Dan could slowly recognise the  familiar faces of other patients. As they slowly passed a small fountain, Dan waved toward a young women and her Grandpa sitting not far away, most likely enjoying the weather.

“Such a lovely young lady. You should go and talk to her, Dan.” Grandma chuckled and also waved at the duo.

“Grandma please. Why would I want to talk to her when the prettiest lady is right besides me?” Dan winked playfully at her Grandma, not considering the option seriously even for a second.

“Hahah, this boy. Always knows how to make this old soul feel young again.”

Dan was about to answer when someone tapped his shoulder.

“Ah, Mr. Kim. I hope I don’t disturbed you. I just wanted to ask if you could settle down yet or you need any help.”

Just like her Grandma’s whish got answered, the young lady from before stood next to him with a soft smile. Dan had already met her and knew her name was Miss Jae.

“Miss Jae, how are you? How is your Grandpa?”

“He is as energetic as ever.” Laughed the lady and tucked her hair softly behind her ears. “Luckily his new medication is working, so we have nothing to worry about.”

“Glad to hear it. He is also very lucky to have such a devoted grandchild as you, Miss Jae.” Dan smiled politely. He had a good impression of the woman and felt a slight fellowship between them, as both wanted the best for their grandparents.

“You are too kind, Mr. Kim.” She chuckled. “I was wondering if you had the chance to discover the neighbourhood yet. I heard you live closely by the Clinic.”

“Ah, yes just a few streets away, although it is just temporary, till I find a good apartment.”

“What a coincidence, I also live in the neighbourhood. Although it is difficult to find a big apartment nearby, I can try to help. Does Mr. Kim’s wife live here as well?”

Dan let out an awkward cough, then quickly put back his polite smile. “No, I don’t have a wife and I live alone.”

“That is surprising, since Mr. Kim is really handsome.” smiled Miss Jae and stepped a bit closer, her eyes glinting. “If Mr. Kim has time, I can –“

But before she could finish her sentence a loud roar shook the tranquillity of the garden, as a huge shadow passed over their head.

“What is that?” asked Miss Jae hesitantly and Dan furrowed his brows at the all too familiar noise. Soon many ships covered the sky, completely blocking out the sun.

“Is that- is that the Imperial Fleet?” asked a nurse not far from them in disbelief, all eyes fixed on the spectacle.

The biggest ship slowly descended and landed on the ground, blowing away all the bushes and trees below it, and the ship’s ramp fell open with a loud bang. The whole garden fell into a shocked silence, till an animalistic growl rang through the air.

“KIM DAN!”

Dan gulped at the familiar angry tone, and tried to vanish into the ground. All eyes were fixed on the captivating figure in military uniform, who determinedly marched over the field, a furious expression on the handsome face. By the time Dan recovered from his shock, the tall figure arrived before him, his eyes burning a hole into his.

“Admiral Joo. What brings you here?” Dan cleared his throat and bowed to the man, feeling Miss Jae staring at him with a shocked expression and his Grandma watching the situation with a little too much excitement.

“You are a hard man to find, Kim Dan.” Sneered the Admiral, his eyes flashing angrily. “So you were hiding here, hmm. Afraid to face me after leaving without a word?”

Dan furrowed his brows in confusion. “Admiral, I didn’t try to hide-”

“Then why didn’t you tell anyone where you will go?” growled the man. “I had to track down the whole Star System, just to find you hiding here like a little mouse!”

“Admiral-“

“I think you should show a bit more respect to Mr. Kim.” Came the sudden voice of Miss Jae. The Admiral’s cold eyes flashed toward her direction as if just realising there are other people present beside Kim Dan.

Miss Jae started to shiver under the cold stare, but it was too late to hide. If Dan thought that the Admiral’s mood was frosty before, after he took a glance at Miss Jae and him, the man turned into an ice statue.

“Huh, I see how it is.” Sheered the Admiral and titled a bit closer to Miss Jea’s ear, so beside the three of them no one could hear his following words. “Why don’t you back the fuck off while I show some ‘respect’ to Mr. Kim here, hmm?”

“You-!” gasped Miss. Jea but under the murderous gaze, she couldn’t do anything else and turned around angrily, missing the smug smile on the Admiral’s face.

 ‘So in the end Mr. Kim does have a wife!’ She thought as the cold gaze played before her eyes.

Before Dan could saying anything to prevent the Admiral from destroying his public image further, a strong hand gripped his arm and yanked him forward.

“Let’s talk, Kim Dan.” Deep voice growled next to his ear, the hot air sending a shiver down his spine.

He knew better than to try to reason with the angry man, and followed him silently. He had so much questions, how was the mission, is the Admiral okay, why is the whole Imperial Fleet in the garden of his Grandma’s clinic?

The Admiral silently dragged him behind a small building and in the next second Dan found his back hitting the stone wall, a strong body pressing into him, leaving no place for movement.

“A-Admiral?”

Dan tried to escape from the awkward position, his face flashed with a light pink, but the man in front of him showed no intension of letting him go. Suddenly the Admiral’s right hand shoot up, and grabbed Dan’s chin, tilting it up with just enough force, that Dan could not look anywhere else, but into the familiar stern eyes in front of him.

“Kim Dan, explain something to me.” Came the deep voice. “Why does the first thing that I have to hear when I come back from a long and dangerous mission, is that my Imperial Secretary decided to run away without a word? Help me understand it.”

“I-I didn’t run away, Admiral. I resigned.” Dan gulped and forced his breathing to slow down. This close proximity to the man, did not help him at all.

“Is that so?” asked the Admiral, his eyes flashing. “And who allowed you to resign, Kim Dan? Because sure as hell it was not me!”

“6^th paragraph of the Imperial Labour Law, if I remember correctly. ‘All employees are legally allowed to terminate the work contract by-‘” Dan tried to recall the whole paragraph, but before he could even finish, the Admiral’s hand squeezed together his cheeks, turning the sentence into a series of muffled sounds.

“Aren’t you so smart?” sneered the man. “Sad thing is that, I could not care less about it. Cut this bullshit and come back to work.”

Dan didn’t know from where, but he gathered some courage and stared into the cold eyes. “No, Admiral. I’m sorry but I can’t.”

The Admiral’s face turned flabbergasted for a moment, then calming down instantly.

“Is this about money? How much do you want? Double? Triple? God, I will give you even 10 times your current salary, just come back!”

Dan started at the Admiral incredulously. Does he know how much money he is talking about?!

“No, Admiral, it is not about money. And please try to be a bit more responsible with military finances.” He muttered.

“So money is not the issue. Then tell me what you want, Kim Dan. I will only say it once, but name a prise and I will give it to you. Do you want a house? A private spaceship? Fuck, I will give you a fucking Planet, just tell me!” said the Admiral, his voice turning more desperate with each question.

Dan could not believe his ears, and his heart flattered. He had no idea the Admiral valued his work this much. But still, he could not do anything, even if he wanted to go back to work, he could not leave his Grandma here alone and the Base was too far away, to go back and forth between the two places.

“Admiral, I truly appreciate your offers, but as I mentioned I can not go back. Please consider this as my final answer.” Dan said and averted his eyes, his heart aching.

“Why? Why can’t you come back?” The Admiral’s voice was filled with a never seen panic and urgency. “Is it me? You are not coming back because I did something?”

“No, of course not!” Dan was quick to reassure the man, who seemed more lifeless by each passing second.

“Then why?”

Dan did not want to burden anyone with his family situation or with the condition of his Grandma, but at this point he had to come clean. He felt like the Admiral would not leave till he gets an acceptable explanation, so he took a deep breath.

“I have to be here, in Earth with my Grandma. She has a unique lung disease and the only place that is suitable to treat her is Eden Clinic, here. Admiral, please understand that I can not and do not want to leave her alone. I have to stay here.”

He glanced at the surprised expression on the man’s face, which soon turned into a hurt one.

“Why didn’t you say anything till now? I could have helped you, Kim Dan. If I had knew it is this serious, I could have helped you.”

“H-how could I’ve burdened the Admiral with these kind of things?” Dan stuttered.

“Who else would you burden if not me?” asked the man and his eyes flashed with determination.

“I understand your reasons, Kim Dan. So your only condition is that you want to stay beside your Grandma?”

“Yes, Admiral.”

The man suddenly stepped back and took out his terminal. With quick motions he dialled someone and glanced at Kim Dan.

“You could have said it sooner. You are so annoying, Kim Dan.”

Dan furrowed his brows in confusion, just to turn dumbstruck in the next second as the terminal connected.

“Your Majesty…… Yes, this is Admiral Joo……. No, I’ve arrived back fine, please don’t worry. …….Yes, his Majesty was right as always……… No, this victory is thanks to the hard work of the Empire’s soldiers and to the wise leading of his Majesty. …….Yes, I’ve decided what I would choose as my reward since his Majesty is so generous. Please allow me to relocate Military Base 1 to Planet Earth……. No specific reason, I just fell in love with the scenery here………Yes, please do, I would be honoured….. My Majesty.”

And with that the call ended and the Admiral turned towards his motionless Secretary. “The Base will move to Planet Earth. I assume now you don’t have any more excuses, right Imperial Secretary Kim Dan?”

Dan could only open and close his mouth helplessly, no word coming out. Relocating the military Base just for him? The Admiral truly lost his mind! Dan felt his heart beating crazily. The whole situation felt so surreal, the only thing that gave away that it is not a dream, was the cold stare of the man beside him.

“And Kim Dan.“

“Y-yes Admiral?”

“Don’t disappear again. I don’t like the man I am when you are not by my side.”

Dan felt his heat beating crazily at the words, but he forced some professionalism in his voice.

“It won’t happen again, I promise.”

The Admiral stared at him for a few seconds, almost as if trying to detect any lies, but when he found nothing, his lips pulled into a small smile.

“Then I expect you to stay by my side till the end.”

“Most certainly, Admiral.” Dan smiled as well, his eyes turning into crescent moons.

Grandma watched with knowing eyes as the two man walk closer, a soft smile playing on both of their faces, shoulders touching with each step. How sweet was young love!

Only if his grandchild was less of a fool...