Ch.328Episode 13 – There Is No Country for Wizards

“Gabi Schneider is a former diplomat from the Magic Tower’s Secretariat Bureau who was directly or indirectly connected to terrorism targeting foreign intelligence agents while serving on the Mauritanian continent.”

The analyst’s calm voice echoes throughout the building.

“Her lover, Jean Marbo, was also connected to the terrorism. But Jean Marbo disappeared, and Gabi Schneider died when her head exploded during interrogation. I believe Jean Marbo is also dead, just like Gabi Schneider.”

Scanned ancient documents appear on the screen.

“The Heresy Inquisition Office shared centuries-old records they had in storage with us. Thanks to that, we discovered that the explosion in her head was black magic developed by mages during the war between the religious order and the Magic Tower—magic that is now prohibited.”

The Royal Intelligence Agency analyst continued.

“From this moment on, all operations will focus on elimination rather than capture or kill. As the senior analyst, I’ll support you to complete your mission as cleanly as possible.”

“……”

“Let’s all make it back alive.”

Episode 13 – There Is No Country for Mages

Gabi Schneider is dead.

Her head was blown off during interrogation after being abducted by the Royal Intelligence Agency’s operation team.

The cause of the explosion was magic.

Specifically, it was one of countless spells developed by the Magic Tower during their war with the religious order to prevent mages from betraying them—a spell that was classified as black magic and prohibited immediately after the war ended.

The pot-bellied analyst discovered that this magic had been implanted in Gabi Schneider’s brain based on information shared by the Heresy Inquisition Office.

The magic was triggered by information leakage.

The moment she uttered a specific word, it served as a detonator activating the spell.

And that word was someone’s name.

There’s no way to find out why such dangerous prohibited magic was implanted in the head of a Secretariat Bureau employee. Terrorism, intelligence officer assassinations, informant abductions, and so on—all kinds of stories emerged, but I currently lacked information.

However, one fact was clear.

“…I’ve gotten mixed up in something troublesome.”

After the briefing, we relocated to a nearby naval base.

Inside the quarters within the naval port arranged by Leoni, I tossed my keys onto the table and slumped onto the sofa.

“How does the material look to you all?”

“Hmm… it’s solid.”

Pippin, who was shuffling through documents in the kitchen, answered.

“I’ve looked through everything from the obtained intelligence to the analysis process, supporting materials, and internal meeting minutes, and it all seems fine. The Royal Intelligence Agency analysts are quite skilled.”

Jake cracked open the hard shell of a walnut he’d bought at the market with a knife, extracted the kernel, and handed it to Pippin.

“Nothing missing or insufficient?”

“Nope.”

“Charnoi, what do you think?”

“I agree with Pippin-noi…!”

Charnoi answered energetically while munching on a walnut kernel. After confirming their responses, Jake stabbed a walnut with his knife, twisted it forcefully, and looked at me.

“That’s what they say, Section Chief.”

I also have no objections to the Royal Intelligence Agency’s analysis.

The capabilities of the Royal Intelligence Agency are not to be taken lightly. The materials they’ve received from over ten intelligence agencies while tracking terrorists for the past decade, along with intelligence directly collected through their branches in various countries, are detailed and extensive enough to fill an entire library and more.

However,

“…Sigh.”

“What are you worried about?”

I had many concerns.

It’s problematic that several intelligence officers and informants were assassinated, but it’s also an issue that the terrorists behind it are mages. Not just any mages, but civil servants of the Magic Tower. Elite mages trusted enough by the Secretariat Bureau, the Tower’s top government agency, to be dispatched to conflict zones.

Yet it turns out these people are terrorists. They committed acts of terrorism against Abas intelligence agencies and attacked numerous intelligence organizations including the Kiyen Empire, Fatalia Republic, and Lushan Federal Kingdom.

Looking at just this, one might think the company has barked up the wrong tree, but there were indeed some suspicious aspects.

Jean Marbo disappeared and died the day the necromancer appeared, and Gabi Schneider’s head exploded while being interrogated by a Royal Intelligence Agency investigator.

Martinez, the head of the Secretariat Bureau, concealed his employee’s disappearance from his superior, Francesca.

Even when documents go missing, civil servants typically report it, yet he didn’t even report a person’s disappearance. Considering Martinez’s behavior so far, it seems inconsistent to view this simply as an attempt to avoid disciplinary action.

The problem is that Leoni plans to assassinate these people in the northern Kiyen Empire where martial law has been declared.

And the assassination targets are Francesca’s subordinates.

I lit a cigarette and inhaled the smoke.

“Jake. Can the company carry out assassinations in the north?”

“I don’t think it’s impossible.”

Jake, with his special forces background, discussed paramilitary operations.

“Operations like assassinations, kidnappings, terrorism, sabotage, and seizures are certainly difficult. Even more dangerous if the operational area is in hostile territory. But considering force from the planning stage means we can’t resolve the situation quietly anyway, right?”

“That’s right.”

“So it doesn’t matter. Whether we shoot them and run, or poison them. Either way, if we get caught, we’ll be lucky to rot in prison for a few years. If unlucky, we’ll be executed.”

“You bastard…”

I looked at him with admiring eyes.

“Your way with words. How do you speak so beautifully?”

“Thank you, Section Chief.”

“Enough, just bring me some walnuts.”

While Jake placed some walnuts in a bowl and opened the window to let out the smoke, the phone began to ring. It was Pippin. She was sitting at the kitchen table examining documents with Charnoi when she grabbed the phone, muttered something, then put it down and looked at me.

“The Royal Intelligence Agency called. They want the department heads to meet briefly.”

“…Alright.”

I stubbed out my cigarette in the ashtray, tossed some walnuts into my mouth, and left the quarters.

*

As soon as I left the quarters, I got into a waiting car. The naval duty officer who had come to pick me up in his personal vehicle drove me across the docked warships to a secluded underground building.

There, the pot-bellied analyst, the operation team leader and deputy leader, and several others were already waiting.

As I opened the door and entered, I spoke to the deputy leader standing nearby.

“I’m a bit late.”

“No, you’re right on time.”

The pot-bellied analyst with mobility issues addressed me and the deputy leader.

“Ah, everyone’s here. Gather around, friends. Let’s wrap this up quickly and get some rest.”

He used his cane to steady himself as he called together the intelligence officers scattered around.

The first to speak was the analyst who had summoned us.

“Thanks for gathering at this late hour. I’m Larry. I worked at the Royal Intelligence Agency’s Analysis Bureau and joined this team as a senior analyst a few months ago on orders from the ‘Committee’.”

The analyst who introduced himself as Larry was quite a unique individual. He seemed to have a disability as he couldn’t use one of his legs.

He gestured toward the intelligence officers standing behind him and the operation team leader and deputy leader.

“These are my colleagues from the same agency. And these are Matthew and Steven, the operation team leader and deputy leader. They’re the most senior and experienced among us. Feel free to call them Matt and Steve.”

The deputy leader, whose name had been called, placed his hands on his hips and looked at Larry with dissatisfaction.

“Shut up, Larry.”

“Oh, sorry. I was hasty. You should have made the introductions.”

“We’ve already exchanged names, so there’s no need for separate introductions.”

“Right, right… Anyway, this gentleman is Frederick Nostrum. Everyone watches the news at the office, so you’ve probably seen his face and name in passing.”

The mobility-impaired pot-bellied senior analyst, Larry, introduced the operation team leader Matthew and deputy leader Steven as the senior members.

Typically, when employees from various intelligence agencies gather, the highest-ranking person takes the senior role, and it seemed Matthew and Steven were the highest-ranking intelligence officers among us. Of course, being well into their 40s, they were also the most senior in terms of age.

“We were gathered here by the ‘Committee.’ Director Leoni personally handled the recruitment.”

Senior Analyst Larry began, supporting himself with his cane.

“It’s a massive assembly of high-ranking officials from the Intelligence Department, Foreign Ministry, Defense Department, Prime Minister’s Office, Interior Ministry, and intelligence committee members from both houses. Kind of like the shadow government of Abas.”

After making this frivolous joke and rambling on, Larry seemed to feel embarrassed by the stares and waved his hand dismissively.

“Don’t mind that last part. The Inspection Office starts with pay cuts even for jokes if they hear about it. Anyway! The Committee has given final approval for this assassination operation. The Prime Minister’s endorsement just came through.”

“That’s good.”

The operation team leader and senior intelligence officer, Matthew, spoke up. With his arms crossed and standing on one leg, he asked a question.

“So why did you gather us?”

“Obviously to distribute roles. Let’s allocate roles before discussing the operation details.”

Despite talking about role distribution, nothing significant was discussed. This was because Leoni had already assembled specialized teams from the Royal Intelligence Agency and Military Intelligence Bureau.

“We’ll handle the overall operational support and intelligence analysis. If you gather intelligence in the field or need equipment, tell me. I’ll analyze it as quickly as possible and provide the equipment you need.”

Senior Analyst Larry had formed a headquarters with the Royal Intelligence Agency’s analysis team and the Military Intelligence Bureau’s operational support team.

Funding, equipment, vehicles, passports, IDs, safe houses, and more—Larry’s job was to supply not only intelligence analysis but all the materials and assets needed for the operation.

Naturally, the fieldwork fell to Operation Team Leader Matthew and Deputy Leader Steven. The two men, who appeared to be paramilitary operatives at a glance, would be responsible for intelligence collection, basic analysis, and the finale and core part of this operation: assassination.

“Then what about me?”

“Ah, of course, we have something for you too. Follow me.”

Larry, with his awkward gait, beckoned to me. I followed him slowly toward the wall of the underground building.

Repeatedly tapping the ground with his cane, Larry spoke with a slightly excited voice.

“It was quite difficult to obtain IDs for entering an area under martial law, but thanks to you, we could disguise ourselves as volunteers from the religious order. I really, really wanted to thank you when we met, and now I finally can.”

“Yes, yes.”

“Your task is quite simple. Collect intelligence needed by the operation team and handle minor eavesdropping tasks. Of course, you can work directly in the field if you want. But the most important task for your team right now is moving equipment.”

“Equipment?”

“Yes, equipment. Most of it has already been moved to the north. However, some equipment simply couldn’t be moved by human power… I heard Director Leoni mentioned you might be able to help. Is that true?”

“Yes… more or less.”

I’m not sure what this equipment is, but through Francesca, we could disguise it as contraband and transport it to the north. After saying it seemed possible, Larry visibly brightened and clapped his hands.

He opened a small side door, entered somewhere, and led me to another room.

Waddling like a duck, Larry held his access card against an iron door, and upon reaching a spacious room, spread his arms wide and laughed loudly.

“Haha, look at this!”

Following him into the room, I stopped in my tracks at what I saw.

“…What is this?”

“Vehicles for the operation team!”

Larry, clearly excited, raised his voice and smiled like a child.

He tapped on the hood, which was taller than his waist, and said:

“It took weeks of modifications. Of course, we have other equipment too. We prepared thoroughly since we don’t know what might happen in the field.”

After looking around at the vehicles in the room, I turned my head with an astonished expression.

“…You’re not asking me to move these armored car-like vehicles, are you?”

The senior analyst flashed a bright smile.

“Of course you have to!”

“…Ha.”

Looking at the sturdy, military-grade vehicles that resembled armored cars, I held my forehead and sighed.

What kind of lunatic is this guy?

*

-“…Hello?”

“Oh, Francesca. It’s me.”

-“Ah, Mr. Military Attaché. What brings you to call? It’s dawn here…”

“Sorry, but could you possibly call a moving service for me? I’ll send you the address.”

-“…Right now?”

“Yes.”

-“…Surely you didn’t call just for that. It’s not a particularly funny joke.”

“I’m not joking, it’s real. Please call a moving service. I need to move several cars.”

-“……”

“……”

-“…Are you insane?”