Ch.260Episode 12 – The Strongest Mage in History

After completing my intelligence gathering on that fox, I returned to the office to compile the information.

A document filled with Kiyen text landed on my desk. Jake handed it to me along with a report from the joint investigation team and began his briefing.

“There are four villages where Romain Cheire is believed to have visited. According to investigations by the Military Governor and the joint investigation team, all residents from all four villages have disappeared without exception.”

“Anything else?”

“Yes, we’ve received quite a bit from various sources. First, we have additional information from the Palm Tree Guild about regions Cheire is expected to have visited. Also, Pipin and Charnoi heard from children at the shelter about someone resembling the fox being spotted in the urban area…”

I worked on transforming all the intelligence gathered from various regions into usable information.

While classifying materials according to their sources and reliability, Jake, who was organizing documents, suddenly asked a question.

“By the way, Chief, about that fox who might be a necromancer or a bumazha. What does the Inquisition say about it? I feel like Priestess Rebecca might know something.”

I sank into my chair and muttered in a weak voice.

“She says she doesn’t know either.”

On the day the fox’s identity was confirmed, I visited Priestess Rebecca to ask if she knew anything, but I didn’t get a clear answer.

Why Romain Cheire hadn’t aged, where he had been and what he had done during the nearly 20 years since disappearing from the Moritani continent, where the exorcist priest who accompanied him was, why he appeared only now…

I asked many questions, but Priestess Rebecca couldn’t answer easily. Even when I tried to probe gently, she genuinely seemed not to know, making it awkward to press further.

Jake put down the documents and tilted his head in confusion.

“Chief, I’ve been thinking.”

“What now?”

“Whether he’s a necromancer or a bumazha, there’s definitely something about him…”

Jake’s voice trailed off, then he asked cautiously in a slightly lowered voice.

“Can we really catch that guy?”

“…”

Just as I was about to answer Jake’s question, the door burst open, and Pipin and Charnoi entered the office.

“Pipin, Charnoi. Thanks for the fieldwork. Everything went well?”

“Charnoi was a bit difficult to handle as he wandered around everywhere. Oh, but Chief, there’s a telegram for you from headquarters.”

A telegram? New instructions?

Surprised by the sudden news, I looked up from the documents at Pipin.

“What telegram?”

“I’m not sure about the contents… but since you’re the only one allowed to see it, it seems like something you need to handle personally. Here’s the telegram.”

Pipin handed me a sealed envelope.

It was an envelope treated with anti-forgery markings and special chemicals that would show if it had been forcibly opened, preventing unauthorized access.

Inside the strictly sealed envelope were a few sheets of paper with brief text. There was a list densely filled with names and a telegram from the Abas Embassy.

The content of the telegram was simple.

[Telegram.

Frederick Nostrim, resident officer in charge of the Kiyen Empire who receives this telegram, is to investigate the staff of the Magic Tower Secretariat Bureau listed in the attached document operating in the northern region of the host country and report to headquarters.

Direct order from Director Leoni.

-Military Intelligence Agency, Overseas Intelligence Operations Department.]

Episode 12 – The Strongest Magician in History

The Secretariat Bureau is the Magic Tower’s highest government institution.

It assists the Oracle, who oversees the Magic Tower’s decision-making, and communicates the Oracle’s instructions to various administrative agencies—essentially functioning like a presidential secretariat or staff organization.

In the Magic Tower’s civil service, the Secretariat Bureau is considered a prime position.

There’s no better institution for building one’s career, so competition is fierce, and it attracts elites from various fields, making it highly popular.

Intelligence agencies are no exception to this rule.

Naturally, people working in such departments receive special attention from intelligence agencies. They’re state-recognized elites who serve as staff to the head of government and handle all kinds of information, so they have access to many secrets worth extracting.

In that context, the order from the Overseas Department to investigate Secretariat Bureau employees wasn’t unusual. When your agency tells you to investigate foreign officials, the reason is obvious.

However, the situation was somewhat ambiguous to treat this as an ordinary directive.

A few days ago, the Military Intelligence Agency’s overseas division gave me an order: to secure appropriate identities and infiltration routes for several intelligence officers to enter the northern region.

When I asked why they were dispatching intelligence officers in this situation, Clebins answered that they were going to assassinate someone in the north.

Though it came from Clebins’s mouth, it was clearly an order from the overseas division. More precisely, it was something Leoni had been planning for a very long time.

And now, coincidentally, I received instructions to investigate Magic Tower Secretariat Bureau employees operating in the north.

With Leoni personally ordering me in writing.

“This makes me uneasy…”

While I should avoid hasty speculation, the timing is too perfect to ignore.

Unlike Clebins, who openly stated they would assassinate someone, Leoni didn’t reveal anything about the operation.

But considering Leoni’s character of keeping operational details confidential, unlike Clebins, it was clear that the two orders were connected.

In other words, the Military Intelligence Agency is planning to assassinate someone from the Magic Tower Secretariat Bureau.

The target is probably one of the individuals on the list attached to the telegram.

I checked the list of Magic Tower Secretariat Bureau employees forwarded through the embassy. It included people I had encountered several times while staying in the north over the past month.

[Magic Tower Secretariat Bureau, Political Affairs Department, Karim Boumediene.]

[Magic Tower Secretariat Bureau, International Department, Gabi Schneider.]

[Magic Tower Secretariat Bureau, Operations Support Department, Jean Marbot.]

[Magic Tower Secretariat Bureau…]

·

·

·

Most names were unfamiliar, but the attached photos made identifying them straightforward.

Of course, there were also familiar names on the list.

[Magic Tower Secretariat Bureau, Planning and Coordination Office, Juan Pablo Martinez.]

After scanning through the names on the list, I stuffed the paper into my pocket. I wasn’t thrilled about this order since I didn’t know why it was issued, but orders are orders.

Though I decided to investigate these people, what I could do was extremely limited. No matter how I stretched my time, it was impossible for me to monitor half a dozen people alone.

But this time, I didn’t need to do the legwork myself.

There was a more reliable method than conducting the investigation personally.

I picked up the receiver.

“…Yes, is this the Secretariat Bureau? This is Frederick Nostrim from the Abas Embassy. Could I speak with Administrative Officer Ranieri briefly?”

*

Although the atmosphere in the north had become somewhat hostile, it was difficult to notice any changes on the streets.

The joint investigation by the Magic Department and the Inquisition, the Military Governor’s information control, and the agitation among Magic Tower personnel had no impact on daily life in the north.

Necromancers, bumazhas, and all that nonsense—people were more concerned with their immediate survival.

That’s why, even at this moment, there was hardly any noticeable change on the streets of the north.

However, a few unusual sights caught my eye.

“…”

The northern streets were filled with peculiar things not found in countries like Petrograd or Abas.

Heavily armed military police in helmets and bulletproof vests patrolling the streets, a gunner from the Internal Army with his hand on the trigger of a heavy machine gun, vigilantly watching the intersection from an armored vehicle.

The streets were littered with homeless people. Disheveled citizens stood everywhere, and most refugees waited for rations with haggard faces in the December blizzard.

When church clergy, civil servants, and volunteers handed out a piece of stale bread and thin gruel, the refugees would pack the food in black garbage bags and trudge back to temporary tents and underground shelters.

Hope was nowhere to be found. The laughter and vitality that once filled the streets had grown cold, and only the north wind from the frozen ground remained in the snow-covered desolate streets.

A garbage dump of terrible lethargy, pessimism, and fear. The major cities of the north had become sewage treatment plants collecting all kinds of negative emotions.

Yet, just as weeds sprout between concrete and lotus flowers bloom in sewage, there was one person who exuded an elegant atmosphere in the middle of this gloomy gray city.

I called her name in a low voice.

“Administrative Officer Francesca.”

“Ah, Officer.”

Francesca gently turned her head and met my gaze. Surrounded by what appeared to be Magic Tower magicians and northern civil servants, she gestured to dismiss them and slowly walked toward me.

“I received your message. You were looking for me?”

“Yes, I have a few questions. If it’s alright with you, could we move somewhere else?”

“Of course.”

Nodding readily, Francesca instructed the Secretariat Bureau magicians.

“I’d like to speak with the officer for a moment. Please remain here and focus on the railway reconstruction.”

“Understood, Lady Ranieri. What about the sewage management project that Lord Martinez is overseeing? Lord Martinez will be coming up from underground in about 20 minutes.”

“Hmm. 20 minutes…”

Francesca hummed softly and closed her eyes gently. After contemplating for a moment like someone lost in thought, she opened her violet eyes and spoke.

“It depends on what business the officer has with me…”

“…”

Francesca’s gaze turned toward me.

I silently looked around, and Francesca smiled softly as she turned to the Secretariat Bureau magician.

“This might take some time. Let Lord Martinez handle the sewage issues as he sees fit.”

The Secretariat Bureau magician bowed deeply.

“Understood. I’ll handle it that way.”

Like an ebbing tide, people began to leave. The Secretariat Bureau magicians went elsewhere to direct the site in Ranieri’s place, and the northern civil servants departed with them.

Thus, only Francesca and I remained on the street. Of course, military police guarding the area and Francesca’s security personnel were still present, but neither the military police nor the security guards were in a position to eavesdrop on our conversation.

“Well.”

Francesca, having dismissed the Secretariat Bureau magicians, began.

“So, what brings you to me, Officer?”

“I have two favors to ask.”

I lowered my voice and whispered to her.

“First, I need you to investigate some of your people.”

*

It didn’t take long to explain the situation to Francesca.

I didn’t know why Leoni ordered the investigation, who they planned to assassinate, or which department the intelligence officers carrying out the assassination belonged to, but I had no reason to explain all that to her.

I only conveyed the information Francesca needed to know.

“You know the Secretariat Bureau people working here? I need to investigate them.”

“Secretariat Bureau employees?”

Hmm. Francesca folded her arms and rubbed her chin thoughtfully.

“Investigating Secretariat Bureau employees… That’s a rather sudden request.”

“It’s not a request. I’m also under orders.”

“I see.”

Francesca is a bureaucrat of the Magic Tower Secretariat Bureau. Until a few months ago, she worked as an administrative officer in the Secretariat Bureau’s Economic Management Department, managing the Oracle’s slush funds with skills that would put most economic criminals to shame.

She belongs to the Economic Management Department, considered a key position within the Secretariat Bureau, and is a direct descendant of the noble family founded by the great magician ‘Ranieri.’ This means she can exert influence on the Secretariat Bureau or the Magic Tower if she chooses to, through her connections.

Of course, she’s now my informant.

“If that’s the case, I should help. Who do you need me to investigate?”

“Please look into the people on this list.”

Having spent over a decade in espionage for both the Intelligence Command and Military Intelligence Agency, I had a good sense of what to investigate the moment I received the list.

Department, age, name, contact information, gender, family relationships—there’s no need to collect such trivial intelligence now. That information can be obtained by bribing a single low-level official. An organization like the Military Intelligence Agency wouldn’t need such basic information.

Moreover, Leoni specifically ordered me to collect intelligence.

This means the information Leoni needs is available only in the north, not from the Magic Tower.

“I need you to investigate more personal and detailed aspects, not just their department, age, gender, or family relationships.”

“For example?”

“Which areas they mainly operate in, what duties they’re responsible for, who they frequently contact, and who their closest colleagues are here. Information about their favorite restaurants or preferred foods would also be helpful. Please investigate as thoroughly as possible.”

I prioritized collecting intelligence necessary for assassination. Though I wasn’t certain yet, given Clebins’s hint about an assassination operation, it was highly likely that the people on this list were assassination targets rather than recruitment candidates.

But that wasn’t Francesca’s concern.

I handed over the list and added various requests.

“Please be careful not to let the subjects know they’re being investigated. And if possible, find out if there are any conflicts among them.”

“Conflicts?”

“I mean, check if there are people who don’t get along. Like, this person often fought with someone since their student days, or they have an uncomfortable relationship with their superior. Also, if possible, please confirm if they have any illnesses, even minor ones.”

“Hmm… That’s quite a unique order. Well, I understand.”

Francesca, who had been listening quietly, made a nasal sound.

She didn’t write down my requirements anywhere. Francesca memorized everything in her head and began scanning through the list.

“Oh?”

Suddenly, Francesca raised her eyebrows while examining the list. I looked back at her, wondering if there was a problem.

“What is it?”

“These people, not all of them, but several have overlapping work locations?”

“Pardon?”

What does that mean? Before I could ask, Francesca’s finger pointed to several names on the list.

“Karim Boumediene from the Political Affairs Department, Gabi Schneider from the International Department, Jean Marbot from the Support Department, and Lord Martinez. These four people have all worked on a different continent.”

“…A different continent?”

“Well, I don’t know the career histories of all Secretariat Bureau personnel. Martinez worked there during his adventurer days, not as part of the Secretariat Bureau, but the others were dispatched there for several years. I’d need to check the exact timing.”

“Where is this place?”

Francesca answered.

“The Moritani Continent.”