Episode 229 – Work (2)

Work (2)

Zia’s factory. I had just finished cleaning the place up. The once chaotic space was now spotless.

“Did you clean up already?”

Just then, a voice tinged with laughter called out to me from the entrance of the factory.

“…Hmm?”

I looked at her and smiled in welcome. I had expected her to come, after all.

It was Sonya.

“Haha.”

She approached with a smile on her face.

“I came to think about this weapons industry.”

“Yes, so-”

“Ah. Let’s talk comfortably now.”

“…”

Sonya waved her hand. I silently watched her. Sonya smirked.

“I know what you’re going to say. How dare you speak casually to Sonya, who has Libra blood in her veins~ Even if it’s a distant connection~”

She shook her head bitterly.

“It doesn’t matter. I’ve been abandoned by Libra, and I’ve decided to join you.”

Indeed, she seemed to have made up her mind.

I gave a small smile.

“…Still, I’m more comfortable speaking this way. Let’s just be at ease in our actions.”

“Well, as you wish.”

Sonya glanced around the interior for a moment.

“Hmm. The production line itself looks promising. With a bit of fine-tuning, we could start right away. The location is good, but, as expected, the problem is the competing company.”

“I’ll handle Lockhard.”

“Can you manage? They’re not just any riffraff. It might be too much for a college student to handle.”

Ding-

An alarm went off on my smartphone. It was a message from Grawl.

[Grawl: Corporate information on Lockhard. I’ll send it to you now~]

“Who’s that?”

“A personal informant.”

“Oh~ Building up a Chaser’s network, are we?”

Chasers usually have several informants. I find one to be enough.

“Can you trust this informant?”

“Yes.”

[Grawl: The CEO of Lockhard. Started by modifying lighters into illegal weapons in back alleys. Lockhard is a small to medium-sized enterprise, but not to be underestimated. There’s a financial backer behind them.]

“There’s a backer, huh?”

“A backer. Of course, they couldn’t have started such a mess from the beginning without one.”

“Yes.”

If there’s a backer, then even if we take down the head of Lockhard, another will take its place. To prevent proliferation, to make recovery impossible, we must strike at that backer first.

[Grawl: And, I found him. The location of the bald guy.]

My eyes flickered slightly.

[Grawl: He’s active as a dealer trading drugs illegally. His name is Silas. I’m setting things up quietly, so we should be able to arrange a meeting soon.]

“Something else has come up that needs to be done first.”

The bald man from Vancheon. The actual bald man needs to be killed as soon as possible, before he can be recruited as an ally by Libra.

As soon as he defected, he would blow the cover of all of Vancheon’s allies that had infiltrated Libra.

I called Bell Moore.

“Hello?”

─Yeah. What is it?

“The mission I mentioned last time. It looks like we can start soon. Please bring the cash bag this Friday…….”

* * *

The campus of the national university. I was walking along with Layla.

“Shion. You know, we have that ‘curse’ thing. The primary mage.”

“Yeah.”

“When I went to check, they were already dead.”

“…….”

“Doesn’t that give you the creeps?”

Layla rubbed her shoulders for no reason.

“But it’s not just one primary mage that’s dead. All the primary mages that were on the suspect list are dead.”

“Is that so.”

“Doesn’t that give you the creeps?!”

I don’t know the details of the ‘curse’ incident that occurred this time. It’s not in my Memory.

However, there was one significant incident related to the ‘curse’.

A simultaneous outbreak of multiple ‘curses’.

Tens of thousands of sorcerous murders plunged the entire continent into chaos.

Many people died then, suffered irreparable disabilities, and lost their families.

“So we’re going to do that with our club.”

“Club? I thought you weren’t doing that anymore?”

“What are you talking about! Our club is about catching villains.”

Layla frowned.

“You broke off with Elise.”

“No, I didn’t. It’s just that Elly keeps picking fights with me, so I’m fighting back. By the way, Shion. How’s Soliette?”

Soliette.

I smiled faintly and shook my head.

“Soliette is traveling right now.”

“Traveling? Isn’t she skipping classes too often?”

“It’s fine. What’s important for Soliette right now isn’t that.”

I must not interfere with that journey.

“She’ll come when she’s needed.”

Ding-

My smartphone rang.

[The Glistening Snowman: Hey. Don’t you have anything you’re curious about with me?]

It was a text from my mentor. Like Layla and Kain, they were exchanging this and that with the mentor, but I had nothing to do.

[Nothing besides what I mentioned last time.]

[The Glistening Snowman: What. Dementia?]

My brow furrowed.

[No. It’s like there’s someone who seems to have forgotten something.]

I was about to put my phone away when I hesitated.

[The Glistening Snowman: There is a way.]

[The Glistening Snowman: Subconscious exploration. You know about it?]

“Shion, are you preparing well for the midterms?”

Layla asked out of the blue.

“Ah, right. Midterms.”

I had forgotten about them. There was just too much going on.

“It’s a relief I’m not the only one.”

“For your information, I’m confident I’ll do well.”

“Oh right, Shion! Look at this.”

Suddenly, she snickered and showed me her smartphone screen. There was Elise.

“Why is this… Ah.”

Elise, with an election sash across her chest, smiling faintly.

“Kek kek kek. Look at this. Elly said she wouldn’t campaign, but there she goes. I took a photo as soon as I saw her.”

Layla flicked through the photos with a swish of her finger.

At first, Elise was just smiling and campaigning in front of the subway, but upon spotting Layla’s paparazzi act, her expression suddenly twisted, and the last photo captured the moment she started running towards Layla.

“Kek kek. What do you think?”

“──Why are you laughing like that?”

Just then, Elise appeared in front of the schoolyard. As usual, she held her textbooks close, flipping her hair back like a dignified noble as she looked at us.

Layla showed her the smartphone.

“Hehe~ I showed this to Shion~”

“…….”

For a moment, Elise’s expression turned icy cold. Even the magic around her began to rise like particles.

Sensing something seriously wrong, Layla realized her mistake and timidly stepped back behind me.

To Elise, I said,

“What? It’s a cute photo.”

I blurted out without thinking.

It wasn’t that it wasn’t true; her face was red like a steamed bun as she chased after her, which was quite childlike.

“…….”

Elise shuddered. The blizzard-like magic around her dissipated instantly.

“What, what, what are you talking about? Have you finally lost your mind? I don’t know who you’re talking about, making such an outrageous statement. Do you think election campaigning is a joke? It’s harder than eating a meal, you know.”

Elise rambled on with strange noises and suddenly pointed a finger at Layla.

“Layla. You said you deleted that!”

She was shouting, but she didn’t look as angry as before.

Layla seemed to realize this and pouted her lips.

“What~ Everyone says it’s cute~”

“You moron……”

Elise used telekinesis to pull Layla’s hair, and I noticed a slight smile forming on Elise’s lips.

“…….”

I realized something in that smile.

It was a tiny conviction.

“Delete the photo, you idiot, before I kill you…”

After all, I’m not so oblivious.

…

At the same time.

Theia Esil, a chair professor at the national university, put down her smartphone.

“……”

She silently stared at the laptop screen.

The eldest son, Derek. He demolished the orphanage to build an economic district that hit the jackpot, raking in money with a rake.

The eldest daughter, Johanna. She acquired 3.5% of the Golden Casino’s shares through gambling and is showing enthusiasm for the construction of a new casino.

The second son, Jade. He succeeded in business with an extreme mana stone. It was his first success after eleven consecutive losses.

The youngest, Zia. She dabbled slightly in Jade’s extreme mana stone.

“……Trash.”

Glaring at them, Theia clenched her teeth. She harbored grand animosity towards ‘Libra.’ Toppling Libra was her life’s goal, and therefore.

She was still collecting their sins.

The corruption, bribery, embezzlement, industrial accidents, environmental pollution, and cover-up of death incidents committed by Derek.

The countless murders, intimidation, and lobbying perpetrated by Johanna.

The various attendants who suffered from Jade’s venting after his business failures, leading to their suicides or entanglement in unfortunate incidents resulting in death.

All of it was stored in Theia’s vault.

But for now, these pieces of evidence were meaningless.

Libra was growing stronger by the day, with the power to bury all these criminal acts.

Theia always felt suffocated.

The feeling of indigestion that had been worsening lately.

“……Sigh.”

Ding-

A text message arrived just in time.

It was from her ‘mentee,’ saying they would try using the subconscious exploration device.

* * *

Late at night.

I stood on the street, waiting for the party that would soon arrive.

Vroooom──

Right on cue, a car approached. It was a van.

Thud-

The door opened right in front of me. Inside were two people.

Bell Moore and Riley.

“You’re here.”

I nodded and took my place. Bell Moore glanced outside cautiously before quickly closing the door.

“Alright. Explain the plan. Who are we catching in Vancheon?”

“There’s a dealer in Edsilla who sells illegal drugs. His name is ‘Silas.'”

“Illegal drugs? You mean narcotics?”

“No. Unauthorized synthetic drugs, smuggled substances that are sold in other countries but not purchasable in Edsilla.”

I pulled out a file and showed it to them. The bald figure was clearly captured in the photograph.

Riley remained composed.

“He deals once a month, in the sewers.”

“So?”

“We’re going to infiltrate, posing as distributors.”

“Are we going right now? These types don’t deal with faces they haven’t seen before.”

“I know. I’ve already laid the groundwork, and we have an appointment set for today.”

In truth, it was Grawl who had arranged it.

“Oh~ As expected.”

Bell Moore clapped his hands in approval.

“There will probably be other distributors there. We’ll get as close as possible and then—”

“Take him down? But how did you know this guy is from Vancheon?”

“Intelligence.”

“…I get that, but we need evidence to make it count.”

I shrugged my shoulders.

“I’ll fill you in later. For now, let’s get going.”

…

Riley maintained the utmost composure. Inside, she felt like she was burning up, but she didn’t let it show on the outside.

As a member of Vancheon, she had a duty to report this situation.

However, doing so would cast suspicion on herself.

Only three people knew about this mission: Shion, Bell Moore, and herself. Therefore, it was impossible to warn of the danger in advance.

Instead, she could perhaps leave a secret note for Silas, advising him to escape.

Moreover…

‘Informant. Who could it be?’

She was suspicious of Shion’s source of information.

Not without reason, Silas was from Vancheon. An executive, no less. His existence was such that ordinarily, one couldn’t even catch a whiff of him—

“Ms. Riley.”

Suddenly, a steady tone of voice called out to Riley. She turned to look.

Shion Ascal.

He tilted his head with a dry expression.

“Are you nervous?”

“…Of course not.”

She smiled faintly. Shion nodded. There was no further conversation.

“We’ve arrived.”

In silence, they reached the entrance to the sewer.

“Put your hoods on.”

Following Shion’s instruction, they pulled their hoods down tightly. They got out of the car and entered the sewer.

Thud. Thud.

Their footsteps echoed deeply.

Each of the three carried a suitcase full of cash.

──Ah. Here they come.

A voice flowed from the other end of the sewer. Soon a flame was lit—tak—and about a dozen figures appeared.

Silas stood in the middle.

──Ah~ stay right there. I don’t trust people easily, you know. It’s cash up front, got it? Put the money down.”

Shion nodded at Bell Moore and Riley. The three of them simultaneously placed their suitcases on the ground.

Riley seized the moment.

She slipped a very small note into a crevice of the case.

Whiiiiing───!

In an instant, Silas retrieved the suitcase with telekinesis. Riley’s heart pounded furiously, but she forced herself to calm down. She wrapped a faint magical barrier around herself to ensure the sound of her agitation didn’t leak out.

Silas checked the contents of the first suitcase. Bundles of cash. All real.

──…Okay. One’s legit. Next—

Suddenly, his expression hardened. It seemed he had seen Riley’s note.

──…

He was silent for a long time, as if deep in thought.

To Riley, it seemed unnecessary. He could just run away.

Just in case, she signaled to Bell Moore.

‘Did you put in fake money?’

‘No. Are you crazy? Why is he acting like that?’

‘…’

Bell Moore bit his lip, and Shion remained silent.

──Haa…

A heavy sigh filled the air. Then Silas stood up from his crouched position.

──Guys. Step outside for a moment.

It was an odd request.

He had sent his own entourage of about a dozen bodyguards out of the sewer.

And then, thud, thud.

He approached them.

Riley glared at him. She had no idea what crazy thing he might do next.

Was he planning to attack Shion and Bell Moore?

“I knew this would happen. I always knew a day like this would come.”

Silas spoke with a tone mixed with self-mockery, yet clearly excited.

“But, I’ve been waiting for you, Libra folks.”

Silas’s gaze swept over them.

At that moment, a wave of anxiety washed over Riley.

“…How. How did you know we’re Libra?”

Bell Moore furrowed his brow, stepping back a few paces and gripping his hand axe.

“Ah. Don’t be too wary. I… I want to be your ally.”

What in the world was this man talking about?

Riley was confused.

“Aren’t you curious? How I knew who you are.”

“…”

Silas muttered something strange and cryptic.

But suddenly, it all made sense to Riley, and she realized she had been ‘played’.

“Yes. I am from Vancheon.”

He was trying to sell them out.

From the beginning, he had been looking for an opportunity to defect to Libra.

They had come to him just as he had mentally defective.

“I’m just tired. So tired. Living a life hiding in these damn sewers…”

The cursed bald man looked up into the void, feigning sentimentality. Riley clenched her teeth in frustration.

“……”

Out of her sight, Shion glanced at her from the corner of his eye.

“I want a normal life now. Anything that’s more normal than this sewer. In exchange, I’ll tell you. About the spies in Libra. About the vermin scurrying under your feet.”

There was resolve in his words.

Despair bloomed deep within Riley’s heart.

And then──

“Let’s do it.”

Shion nodded and drew his sword.

Ssshhh──

A streak of lightning surged. A pale light brightly illuminated the sewer and then faded away.

It was the 「Severing Sword」.

Without any hint of murderous intent, the Detonated blade embedded itself in the bald man’s neck.

“……Why──.”

Silas glared at Shion with wide eyes. Unfortunately, a clean cut was impossible, but this was within the expected range.

Shion deployed the second Severing Sword.

The crossing of the 「Severing Sword」 that simultaneously stabbed and sliced, a physically impossible maneuver.

Cough─!

A diagonal line was etched into Silas’s body. The shockwave sent him flying, crashing into the sewer wall.

Cough, cough, coughing…

The bald man gasped, his body covered in blood, and then slumped down.

He had lost his breath.

“……”

“……”

Afterward, only the sound of rotten water rippling in the sewer.

The silence filled the space.

Riley and Bell Moore stared blankly at the murdered Silas.

Riley’s brain seemed to freeze for a moment, and Bell Moore…

“Damn it───fuck! What the hell is this───! This crazy lunatic shit──”

He threw a fit at Shion, gesticulating wildly.