Ch.187I love coffee, I love it so much

# Chapter 187: Coffee, I Love It So Much

Despite the brief duration of the battle, the upper structure of the Diplomatic Enforcement Agency had been completely wrecked.

As a result, I was still stuck in the underground temple of the Diplomatic Enforcement Agency, reduced to the status of a NEET who just sips beverages…

“Remember what I said earlier?”

“Yes.”

“Please handle it immediately.”

“Leave it to me, Minister.”

That’s not to say I had become a do-nothing hikikomori.

Based on what Ambassador Samiya had told me, I had ordered the purge unit members and supervisors to conduct another investigation…

There was nothing I could do except wait patiently.

“Heh, people often make excuses like that.”

“Gal!”

*Flick!*

Of course, our mischievous Riel would occasionally act up.

“Minister Arto? I’d like to discuss your propaganda skills once more.”

For some reason, Ambassador Samiya had also come along, so it wasn’t particularly boring.

And after about 30 minutes had passed like this…

“Minister? I have something to report…”

“Ah, come in.”

When the door to the temple-cum-shelter opened.

Someone appeared wearing a blood-stained gown and a surgical mask over their mouth—the typical mad scientist (bioengineering) style.

It was a truly bleak sight, but…

“Have you already found something?”

“Yes, Minister.”

Riel and I already knew this person was the supervisor who had been investigating the captured individuals.

“Hmm… It seems the Diplomatic Enforcement Agency also employs separate investigators.”

Even Ambassador Samiya… perhaps because she came from the space Nazis who turned aliens into soap, she wasn’t particularly surprised.

“Then I’ll begin the briefing immediately.”

Despite his appearance, the investigator’s speech was polite, competent, and extremely gentle.

Thanks to this, our conversation proceeded very smoothly and calmly, in stark contrast to his grim appearance.

Of course, most of the briefing was quite complex due to the investigator’s expertise, making it difficult for me to understand…

*Ring ring!*

[Pause]

[Event: Wiretapping Device in My Brain]

[According to the professional supervisors’ investigation, Ambassador Samiya was correct.]

[Not only in the bodies of the captured raid commanders.]

[Surprisingly, traces of vaccine injections containing Prosnack’s so-called “berry chip” were also found in the remaining limbs of the former Papal Knights who participated in the Diplomatic Enforcement Agency raid.]

[Additionally, when the Prosnack Marines captured a psionic ability user among the commanders and forced them to enlist voluntarily.]

[The ability user’s head exploded on the spot, which further amplifies suspicions about this incident.]

[However, Prosnack’s Coward Type-C 19 vaccine is only distributed in Prosnack’s home country, so why did the Papal Knights possess such items?]

[Option 1: Investigate thoroughly, down to the roots. (Linked event progression)]

[Option 2: Well, it happens. (Linked event progression, increased probability of negative events)]

‘Is this really supposed to be a choice?’

Anyone would obviously choose option 1 without thinking, which made me suspicious that there might be some kind of trap.

Of course, given the characteristics of the event messages and status window in the original game, if there were “really” a problem, it would give an explicit warning.

So I set aside such suspicions and…

[Option 1: Investigate thoroughly, down to the roots. (Linked event progression)] <Selected>

I immediately chose option 1, canceled the pause, and spoke to the supervisor in front of me.

“That’s quite an interesting story. Coordinate with the Ministry of Internal Affairs and look into it thoroughly.”

“Yes, understood, Minister.”

As the supervisor bowed and walked out, Ambassador Samiya beside me asked with curiosity.

“Hmm, there’s one thing I’m curious about, may I ask?”

“What is it, Ambassador Samiya?”

When I promptly responded to her question, Ambassador Samiya asked with a tone of incomprehension…

“As far as I know, the internal inspection and intelligence gathering capabilities of the Diplomatic Enforcement Agency under your command are considered top-notch…”

“Yes, that’s correct, but?”

“Then why are you specifically pursuing collaboration with other departments?”

“…?”

[Pause]

I should have felt a bit confused and embarrassed by the ambassador’s question.

And as soon as I felt that, I activated the pause.

I mean, obviously this wasn’t about catching spies but gathering information about an incident involving large-scale personnel mobilization.

Above all, we were secret police specialized in capturing VIPs or spies in small numbers.

The Internal Affairs Security Department.

In other words, based on my previous life, we were like a police organization not particularly suited for investigating large numbers of people at once.

So naturally, we needed to coordinate with the Ministry of Internal Affairs to thoroughly investigate this issue… was that what I needed to explain?

It almost seemed like she was trying to identify our weaknesses…

‘No, there’s no need to explain.’

But thinking about it, this might not be an attempt to exploit our weaknesses.

Perhaps it was just a genuine question.

I spent quite a long time pondering her intentions…

After a while.

[Pause Released]

“Well… this is how our empire does things.”

“Ah, I see.”

Perhaps thanks to my vague excuse.

Ambassador Samiya didn’t ask any further questions, allowing me to smoothly avoid a troublesome situation.

——————————–

About three weeks after the raid incident…

‘Still no results.’

As it was taking so long that I was about to forget the order I had given.

I decided to test the new coffee pot installed in my office to steady my wavering mind and heart.

*Clunk, whirr…*

“Oh.”

I put a handful of coffee beans, given to me by Emilia who had visited after the raid incident, into the rather vintage-looking coffee pot.

*Grind, grind.*

The beans were automatically ground by the grinder attached to the coffee pot.

Eventually, as the sound of brewing coffee began and…

As the fragrant coffee aroma spread throughout the room, I felt my body and mind relax despite the busy period.

“…This method is so outdated that they don’t even make them anymore these days, but Riel managed to find one somehow.”

And not long after, drops of coffee began to fall one, one, one, two.

Into my personal mug inside the pot, and watching this, well…

While the world moved at such a busy pace.

Here I was, the second most powerful person in a massive empire ranked in the top 5 of a galaxy filled with dozens or hundreds of interstellar nations.

Just waiting quietly to drink a cup of coffee, it gave me a strange feeling.

‘Is this what they call that middle school syndrome “feels” or whatever?’

Fortunately, no matter how old-fashioned the style was, perhaps because this was essentially around the 23rd or 24th century by my previous life’s standards.

The coffee pot brewed the coffee much faster than I had expected.

*Clack.*

When I heard the sound indicating the coffee was done brewing, I snapped out of my thoughts and immediately took out the mug.

As soon as I picked it up, the rich coffee aroma gently permeating the entire room gave me great satisfaction as I sat back down.

“Mmm, fragrant.”

And just as I was about to enjoy both the taste and aroma of the freshly brewed coffee while continuing to work through the mountain of administrative tasks…

*BANG!*

“Minister, the investigation results you ordered last time are in!”

“…”

Riel burst into the office with tremendous force.

Simultaneously, the official documents on which I had placed my mug began to shake from the impact…

*Slide… CRASH! SPLASH!*

My handcrafted coffee, along with my personal mug, fell straight to the floor before I could take even a single sip.

They performed a bungee jump without a cord, crossing a path of no return.

“Ah.”

Having witnessed the moment the mug fell and shattered, Riel froze after uttering just one word.

I quietly stared at the spilled coffee and the broken pieces of the mug on the floor, then stood up.

“Ah… just a moment, I understand you’re angry, but…”

“…”

“Please calm down first and listen to me… Ow!”

I approached Riel, grabbed her by the waist, lifted her up.

Then executed a German suplex, slamming her head into the office carpet floor.

However, this caused the minor issue of freezing the supervisors and investigation team members who had been following behind Riel.

But what does it matter, one way or another?