A Dark Fantasy Spy

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In the end, I accepted the Team Leader’s request.

The Team Leader explained the operation to apprehend Giada Bianchi, a suspected spy.

In truth, it was more of a covert operation than an actual plan.

To be precise,

“Do you know that counterintelligence can be divided into two categories?”

“Yes.”

“Then we can get straight to the point.”

It was a counterintelligence operation.

—

Episode 3 – A Fantastic Vacation

Counterintelligence.

The term signifies actions taken to counter and neutralize the intelligence activities of spies and foreign intelligence agencies.

If you were to ask someone what counterintelligence is, nine times out of ten, you’d get an answer related to spy investigations.

That’s not entirely incorrect.

However, that is only a half-hearted response.

Various scholars like Kent, Ransom, Ratliff, Shulsky, Richelson, and Holt have differing views on counterintelligence.

And countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and China also interpret counterintelligence in various ways, while some, like the Soviet Union, integrate it into a single concept.

The reason for these differing definitions of counterintelligence among nations and scholars is that counterintelligence is regarded as an area shrouded in mystery, alongside foreign operations.

Even within intelligence agencies, counterintelligence and covert operations are treated as secretive fields, and agents generally don’t possess in-depth knowledge about these areas unless they are specifically involved.

For this reason, the general populace tends to simplify counterintelligence to merely “apprehending spies.”

But what kind of era are we in during the 21st century?

It’s the age of information and globalization.

An era where one can introduce a Chinese person who broke through the Great Firewall to Tiananmen Square and where kids from the East can throw shade at kids from the West on the other side of the globe.

High-level scientific advancements turned the impossible into the possible and opened the door to the world.

The revitalization of transportation, the expansion of international trade markets, job creation through outsourcing, the emergence of NGOs and multinational corporations, the liberalization of foreign exchange markets, mutual cooperation among nations, multipolar diplomacy, decreased threats of total war, and explosive growth in the cultural industry.

Countless citizens of the globe enjoyed the fruits of scientific development, and even the rats hiding in the corners of the world benefited significantly.

Thus,

The development of new terrorism,

The organization of terrorist groups,

Self-generated terror,

Transnational criminal organizations,

Leaking advanced science and technology,

Mass hacking and information leaks, etc.

New forms of threats emerged, compounded by various political, diplomatic, military, economic, cultural, advanced industrial, energy, resource, and geographical issues unfolding across the globe.

Intelligence agencies, once focused on stealing secrets from other countries, now had to deal not only with foreign intelligence agencies but also with criminal organizations, terrorist groups, radical civil organizations, and multinational corporations aiming for markets and technology.

The CIA, which once tussled with the KGB, now had to hunt down terrorists hiding in the desert after flying planes into the Twin Towers, and conversely, the Russian intelligence agencies, successors of the KGB, had to deal with terrorists from former Soviet satellite states.

In fact, countries that once viewed each other as enemies under the same ideology started backstabbing each other. The French intelligence agency sent economic spies to the U.S., while Germany, Japan, Israel, and even South Korea deployed industrial spies against the States.

Suddenly, countries in the free world weren’t flipping the script on anti-Americanism.

It was simply a world that had become that way.

But what are intelligence agencies, really?

They are organizations that overthrow regimes by instigating coups in South America and the Middle East, intervene in countries torn by civil war to suck up the resources, and steal foreign nuclear technology to develop their own nukes.

Intelligence agencies had experienced decades of the Cold War, and their accumulated know-how was substantial.

Each country’s intelligence agency redefined operational concepts and activities in light of the changing times in alignment with national security.

Globalization and informatization altered the security environment, prompting intelligence agencies to break existing paradigms and establish new concepts.

Thus, counterintelligence strategies evolved to become more sophisticated, meticulous, and lethal.

Passive counterintelligence represented by security, and active counterintelligence encompassing all forms of counter-spy activities.

The new counterintelligence strategies added dignity to the plain brawls of the past. Now counterintelligence goes beyond merely apprehending spies.

Counterintelligence investigations, information collection, counterintelligence analysis, counterintelligence operations.

Detecting enemy activities through information agents, thoroughly analyzing and comprehending them, predicting actions by aligning ideologies and thoughts to catch spies, and turning spies into double agents through coercion and persuasion to disrupt the intelligence networks of adversarial forces.

This aggressive and active form of counterintelligence defines the new concept of counterintelligence today.

And the same goes for the intelligence agencies in this part of town.

So then, how do we catch the industrial spy who infiltrated the Advanced Military Magic Research Institute under the guidance of the Magic Tower’s intelligence department?

As if to answer, the Team Leader displayed two fingers.

“The Military Intelligence Agency broadly categorizes counterintelligence into two concepts.”

Passive, defensive security measures, and active, offensive counter-spy activities.

“You’ve probably heard of passive and active counterintelligence.”

“If the former is a preventive measure, the latter should be understood as a responsive measure—information collection, counterintelligence investigations, counterintelligence analysis, counterintelligence operations. Aren’t they the most direct means of response?”

“Correct.”

The Team Leader nodded.

“While the counterintelligence activities that are widely known are the investigations, in reality, more often than not, counterintelligence operations are conducted after investigative processes or legal proceedings.”

By and large, active counterintelligence is characterized by a very aggressive nature.

If counterintelligence investigations target official undercover agents (White) and unofficial undercover agents (Black), counterintelligence operations aim at the foreign intelligence agencies behind field agents.

There are various forms.

Hiring information agents to collect intelligence, spreading disinformation to deceive the enemy, even turning spies into double agents to extract information, or disguising agents to infiltrate intelligence agencies.

Though it’s called ‘counterintelligence’ operations, it is essentially no different from operations abroad.

“Counterintelligence operations and clandestine operations share several similarities. They both have the basic elements of operatives, budget, and objectives, and their targets often transition from abstract to concrete over time.”

Since the basic structure is the same, it means understanding isn’t an issue.

I decided to ask a more productive question.

“So then, what is the objective of this operation?”

“The goal is to identify the organization that has infiltrated the research institute and bring the key operatives to justice.”

It meant gathering all the spies and putting them on trial.

The type of operation would likely be information collection. Most foreign operations are also about information collection.

“In order to proceed with legal proceedings, evidence is necessary. Therefore, this operation will also proceed by collecting evidence and intelligence.”

“So what exactly do I have to do?”

“You will be following and monitoring the suspect. The substantial work involving evidence collection will be handled by the team members; Colonel, you just need to guide the team members so they can approach the target.”

It meant the operatives would handle everything; I just needed to cooperate.

“How will the disguise be done?”

“I’ll pair you with two team members from a similar area of origin. You can pose as senior and junior from the military.”

The implication was to gloss over their identities as local senior and junior acquaintances.

Alumni connections, regional ties, and blood relations held valid truths in this world as well.

“Your role is simple. Just tie up the suspect and keep watch; the team will handle the complicated matters from there.”

For confirmation, I asked the Team Leader a question.

“Are they trustworthy friends?”

“Yes.”

That meant they were the best.

The Team Leader rummaged through a steel cabinet.

He placed several thick files on the desk and said to me, “Here’s the operation plan, personnel profiles, and suspect documents. Please read them thoroughly and return them afterward.”

It was time to kick off the operation.

—

In operations, the most critical aspect is security.

Security is not merely a matter of success and failure; it directly impacts the lives of operatives and operatives on the ground.

During the 90s, operatives conducting North Korean operations from bases in China and Japan were often monitored by North Korean security agents.

While operatives maintained strict disguises to conceal their identities, a few faced security breaches leading to abductions or were killed on-site.

There was no need to explain what kind of scenarios agents from the National Security Agency and the Information Agency faced upon being dragged to North Korea.

Those who knew were already aware.

To prevent such unfortunate incidents, all intelligence agencies meticulously disguise the identities of agents from the initial stages of operation preparations.

From that perspective, my assigned role was significantly important.

I was a colleague of Camila Lowell, and Giada Bianchi was a senior researcher in the Biological Analysis Lab, involved in all examinations related to Camila.

Thus, among the assets available to the Military Intelligence Agency, I was the only one who could approach the suspect right now.

Therefore, I had to assist the counterintelligence agents in their disguises while concurrently guiding them to the prime suspect, Giada Bianchi.

Any slip-up could result in a total disaster—whether it be my life or career.

“Of all things, a mage is indulging in espionage. They should just live a normal life…”

Crumpling in frustration, I silently vented my anger on the poor stack of documents.

It wasn’t that I was upset about not being able to take a vacation.

Probably.

Knock! Knock!

I heard a knocking at the door as I hid the stack of papers in between the files and stood up.

“Come in.”

And then,

“Salute. Captain Aaron Gordon here. This is Sergeant Samuel.”

“I’m Sergeant Samuel; I’ve been briefed by the Team Leader.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Colonel Frederick Nostrim.”

The operation had officially begun.