A Dark Fantasy Spy

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I just returned to the hotel, and a cold aura was dripping off Camila’s body.

I let Camila inside.

“Were you outside this whole time?”

“I had some work on the front lines and just stepped out.”

Camila said it nonchalantly, and I asked if she wanted something to drink while boiling some water.

“Anything is fine.”

“Then I’ll give you coffee.”

I placed the kettle on the table and turned it on, watching as the spell began to glow a reddish hue.

As the rich aroma of coffee filled the room, Camila, who had been sitting on the sofa, casually broke the ice.

“Nothing strange happening lately, right?”

“Of course not.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Nothing at all.”

Camila chuckled playfully.

“Sounds like you’re hiding something.”

“There’s really nothing going on, I swear.”

I replied in a monotone voice.

Clatter! The sound of dishes and cups shaking followed. I prepared two coffees and dumped plenty of sugar into Camila’s cup.

“Thank you.”

Camila, smiling, took a sip of her steaming coffee.

I stirred my coffee with a teaspoon.

“How’s everything going? Still burning down forests?”

“Yep! I just torched another mountain today!”

Camila grinned widely. Her answer was full of energy.

“The Naroda Mountains hadn’t been maintained for years, and the deep forest was untouched by human hands, so there were plenty of monsters. Since it’s winter, many are hibernating. When I set the place on fire, they jumped out in shock, and I managed to catch them all.”

Her lively tone, while discussing burning the forest and its monsters, was quite upbeat. I took a sip of my coffee with a skeptical look, but Camila continued her story without a care.

“Still, the Empire Army has been steadily hunting them down, so there shouldn’t be that many left. Don’t you think you’re exaggerating a bit, Camila?”

“Oh gosh… don’t even get me started. At first, it was so quiet I thought it was just a forest, but once the trees started burning, massive insects the size of humans started popping up from the ground. I thought I was in Starship Troopers!”

Camila dramatically waved her hands as she compared her experience to a movie.

I nodded along as I sat across from her.

“Seeing you joke around like this tells me you’re in pretty good spirits. It’s nice to see you’re consistent.”

“Hehe.”

“Right. No problems at work?”

“Other than being a bit cold, there’s no problem! It gets freezing when we travel in the vehicle or wait for the operation to start. But once the forest is on fire, it gets hot enough to make me sweat.”

Camila energetically flailed her arms as she explained her situation.

“Sometimes monsters flood out of the forests, but then the military comes and handles it. Everyone fights well, you know?”

“That’s because the troops sent to the north are elite forces. By the way, we need to finish preparing for the offensive by the time next year’s Army Day arrives. Do you think it’s possible from your perspective, Camila?”

“Preparation for the offensive? How would I know?”

“Oh, right….”

I suddenly remembered she was just a civilian, not an information officer.

As I sipped my coffee, Camila pouted, clearly displeased, and grumbled.

“You didn’t just ignore me in your head, did you?”

“Of course not.”

Camila took a sip of her coffee with a sulky face. Seeing her made me chuckle, and she yelled at me not to laugh.

“Don’t laugh!”

“Alright, I’ll stop. Just drink your coffee before it gets cold.”

*

We chatted over coffee.

There wasn’t any special agenda for our meeting, so we talked about all sorts of trivial things.

“It feels like the burnt smell has seeped into my clothes and hair because I’m always setting something ablaze. No matter how much I wash, it just doesn’t go away, you know?”

“That’s too bad. It’s hard to get rid of burnt smells. Personally, I think it’s best to just change clothes that have that smell. If you don’t want to, you could pay to have them cleaned, or ask the magicians for help. There are magicians who specialize in cleaning up with magic.”

“That’s a good idea.”

We shared stories about the small inconveniences we experienced in life.

“By the way, what are Lucia and Francesca up to these days?”

“They’re both working. The administrator is busy rebuilding the infrastructure in the north, and the Saint is… always doing the same things, treating the sick and helping refugees.”

“It’d be nice to at least say hi whenever we pass by. It’s hard to even catch a glimpse of their faces lately.”

“Everyone is busy, so it can’t be helped.”

We also talked about Lucia and Francesca.

Since their realms of activity didn’t overlap, the interactions between the three of us were nowhere near as lively as before. Even for me, in charge of communication, gathering Camila, Lucia, and Francesca in one place wasn’t an easy task.

I updated Camila with news about the two who weren’t present. Since Lucia and Francesca were also curious about how Camila was doing, it wouldn’t hurt to pass on her news to them the next time we met.

“So, what about you, Camila? Any fun stories?”

“Fun? In the middle of a war? It’s all just gloomy tales….”

Camila slumped her shoulders. She sounded tired as if just imagining things was exhausting.

“The atmosphere on the front line feels a bit strange.”

“Strange? What do you mean?”

“It feels overall odd, hard to pinpoint just one thing.”

Camila began listing the things she observed, heard, and felt on the front lines.

“The frequency of monster appearances in the mountains has noticeably increased. According to the soldiers, it seems more than previous years.”

“Monsters are everywhere. Those from the north are known for their resilience even in harsh climates.”

“Even considering that, it seems strange. Even though there hasn’t been human intervention, we’ve been actively hunting them recently, and with this unprecedented snowfall bringing the cold wave, monsters just keep popping up.”

“The military headquarters hasn’t said anything about it yet.”

“I’m not sure about that side, but those on the front lines are puzzled, especially the ones who’ve lived in the north for a long time.”

“….”

The story didn’t end there.

“There’s also talk that the monsters have become more ferocious.”

“Ferocious, you say?”

Monsters tend to be fiercer in winter. With food running low, they become more aggressive and violent to survive.

However, Camila’s explanation didn’t seem to follow that pattern entirely.

“Yes. While they sometimes attack crops or livestock to survive, the monsters of the Naroda Mountains are now prioritizing attacks on people rather than farms or ranches. Of course, it might be due to the harsh cold eliminating food sources in the mountains and converting the area into a war zone, but… isn’t it odd how violently they’ve changed?”

“…….”

“Oh, but what I’ve said so far is just rumors without any proper investigation or statistics, so it’s not certain. It’s just what people have sensed.”

Camila added a disclaimer, but this was still meaningful information despite the caution.

I set down my coffee cup and stared at Camila.

“Anything else? Apart from monsters showing up often and becoming more violent?”

“Now that you mention it….”

Camila stroked her chin in thought.

“I haven’t been on the front lines for long, but it does feel like there have been fewer attacks from the demon tribe recently.”

“…The demon tribes aren’t attacking the Empire Army?”

“No, they do attack. It’s just… how should I put it? They don’t seem to attack with the same ferocity as before. They used to bombard from the sky and directly assault the defense lines, but it’s been quiet for several months now.”

“…….”

I’ve heard that somewhere before. Upon reflection, it was likely during my first visit to the Empire Ministry of Defense.

They mentioned the demon tribe’s offensive has waned compared to last year. The exact reason was unknown, but the Empire military believed that now, when the demon tribe isn’t actively engaging in fighting, would be the best time to prepare for an offensive.

That’s why we came to the north.

In fact, Camila, Lucia, and Francesca had all been cleaning the mountains, rebuilding transport networks, and reestablishing medical facilities in preparation for the offensive operation planned for next spring. The Empire government and military were also extending support to help us.

Asking why the demon tribe suddenly stopped their attacks seemed like a foolish question. During a war, who could just keep launching offensives without care? It’s not easy for any demon tribe to maintain an offensive against the Empire Army for more than five years.

Yet, things felt a bit off.

“…….”

Combat magicians and inquisition officers had been killed, the battle priest who went missing in the Mauritania Continent suddenly appeared in the north. Monsters we have no idea how they crossed over have launched a surprise attack on the rift, and enemies suspected to be necromancers or possessed have been making a commotion in the north.

Suddenly, undead creatures, which hadn’t been reported for several decades during the Empire’s complete control of the north, started reappearing, and entire villages mysteriously vanished without a trace.

Is it just a coincidence that the offensive from the demon tribes decreased at such a chaotic time?

I found myself lost in thought for a moment. Camila slouched on the sofa and muttered in a weary voice.

“The atmosphere has been really tense lately. Suddenly, bodyguards are assigned, and those foreign volunteers who were supposed to come are nowhere to be seen… It seems like the higher-ups know something, but no one is saying anything to clear the air.”

“…The higher-ups?”

“Generals. They sometimes appear on the front lines, and when people from the magic tower or cult show up, they conveniently leave. It’s as if they’re trying to avoid uncomfortable conversations.”

Right. They’re avoiding encounters with priests or magicians.

While lower-ranking officers may not know, higher-ranking officials like generals and chiefs likely have a rough idea of what’s happening in the north.

They would have picked up on the fact that the various issues in the north are linked to the cult and the magic tower. After all, anyone who lacks the perceptiveness to figure that much out wouldn’t have risen to that level in the first place.

A subtle battle of wits is unfolding between the cult, the magic tower, the Empire, pro-Empire dictatorships, and Abas in the north.

The Empire government is trying to keep the chaos in the north from spilling out to the outside world, managing the news and controlling the flow of information. But the moment a foreign affairs official slips up, everyone’s in trouble.

Therefore, the Empire government postponed the entry of foreign war correspondents as well as foreign volunteers from coming in, knowing full well how much harder it is to keep a lid on foreigners than on their own citizens.

I wasn’t an exception either.

I had planned to create a decent relief organization for the information officers to operate comfortably in the north. But by suddenly overturning the plans, the Empire government threw a wrench into that idea.

‘By the way, Colonel. What was the other request you mentioned earlier?’

‘There are plenty of relief organizations at the magic tower, right? Let’s borrow some statuses for the volunteers.’

‘Ah, that’s a bit tricky. The Empire Ministry of Foreign Affairs has denied visa applications right now, so foreign volunteers can’t even step foot in the Empire.’

Thanks to that, I was once again stuck with a tough situation. The Empire really knows how to mess things up.

While I was lost in thought, propping my chin, a sudden white palm popped up in front of me. That fair, smooth palm waved up and down, capturing my attention.

The hand was belonging to none other than Camila.

“Excuse me?”

“…Ah, yes. What is it, Camila?”

“Well, I just thought your expression looked way too serious. I was curious about what you were pondering so deeply.”

Camila, having lowered her hand, plopped down on the sofa.

In an indifferent tone, she remarked.

“You don’t need to overthink things all alone.”

“Excuse me?”

“If you have worries, just tell someone. Why try to solve everything by yourself?”

“…….”

“I just said that because you weren’t responding when I called. You were sitting there with a serious face.”

If it’s really hard for you, Camila added, you could tell her.

It’s quite baffling how she speaks to me while tapping her chest. What can I say?

“…….”

I looked at Camila with a dumbfounded expression as she spoke confidently.

“Hey, how could I trust someone who once burned cornfields in Africa and then got chewed out by the legal team for damages?”

“Ah, come on! Why do you remember that!”

“Well, you said it yourself….”

“Forget it right now!”

Camila flailed her limbs in a frenzy, but unfortunately for her, there was no way I’d get beaten down.

Of course, I wasn’t about to forget about her amusing embarrassing past either.

*

Even as the situation grew increasingly serious and something seemed to be brewing, my daily life remained unchanged.

I attended meetings at the Military Government Headquarters, communicated among Camila, Lucia, and Francesca, and diligently fulfilled my duties as a Colonel and colleague.

Progress was being made on tracking the inquisitor, who was suspected of being a necromancer or a possessed person. We got tips that some individuals with striking similarities to an ongoing investigation were spotted in the northern cities and countryside.

“Hmmm… So the sightings in the cities came from children while the countryside came from the military?”

“Yes. To be precise, foreign soldiers moving to another region said they saw someone resembling an inquisitor by the roadside.”

An army from a pro-Empire dictatorship. Troops sent by dictators or warlords to be a show of loyalty to the Emperor.

Among those countless tyrants’ troops, one claimed to have spotted an inquisitor in the countryside. There were also tips from Pippin and Charnoy that they saw an inquisitor in the city, but since those were from kids, the military’s information seemed a bit more credible.

Of course, neither source was exactly trustworthy, but it was a level of credibility one might call “pick-a-corner”.

“Charnoy! Organize the materials. We’re heading to the cathedral, so do it as quickly as possible.”

“On it, sir…!”

I organized the documents and set off towards the cathedral. I needed to hand them over to Archbishop Theodosius at St. Basil Cathedral.

With a background as an exorcist and having taught classes on the inquisition and grand exorcisms at the seminary, he would definitely be able to utilize this information better than a novice like me.

Of course, being a person guaranteed by Petrus, the risk of security breaches was ‘almost’ nonexistent.

Anyway, I stuffed the documents into my briefcase and headed toward the cathedral.

Having gone back and forth to see Lucia so many times, even the Military Government Headquarters, let alone Senior Lyudmila, the translator in charge, all knew the destination and scattered to do their own things.

So, I was able to reach the cathedral without anyone obstructing me.

But then—

“Oh no, your Grace! You can’t do that! This is something that cannot be handed over to others!”

“I’m just borrowing it for a moment. I promise to return it safely, so please release it, brother.”

“I’d rather put dirt in my eyes than hand that over!”

“Really, please remove your hands before I do that.”

“Ahh…!”

“…….”

What is happening now?