A Dark Fantasy Spy

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The proposal from the Royal Intelligence Department was simple.

Unconditional support in exchange for a job transfer.

Director Leoni mentioned it somewhat vaguely, but the Suit Man accompanying her brought me the specific details. By the way, the Royal Intelligence Department employee who handed over his business card was indeed that guy.

“…”

I sat on the sofa in the Military Intelligence Agency office, reviewing the offer presented by the Royal Intelligence Department.

It was a treatment of a Level 4 Manager position, two ranks higher than the Level 6 Civil Servant corresponding to the Major rank. Along with that came significant physical and non-physical support, an increase in operational expenses, access to the Royal Intelligence Department’s overseas information database, authorization for covert operations from the Chief, benefits equivalent to that of a department head, and personal safety guarantees for my family.

Although it had lengthy explanations filled with redundant details, it could be summarized in one sentence.

They were offering a much better working condition than what I currently received at the Military Intelligence Agency.

Each point was not just generous but remarkably innovative. The part that caught my particular attention was the support aspect.

Typically, the manager level in intelligence agencies corresponds to a Level 4 civil servant. The team size led by a manager varies by department, but in operational fields, the manager holds a middle management position—roughly between a team lead and a department head. It is a position from where one can direct a team of at least twenty people.

It was an extremely attractive offer.

That’s not surprising since currently, the only individuals I had the authority to command were Pippin and Jake.

The operative of the Special Activities Department, the counterintelligence investigator, the technical officer from the Technical Intelligence Division, and the information officer from the Overseas Information Office.

The individuals participating in this operation were not my subordinates; it was more of a partnership where we cooperated for the success of a single operation. In fact, the team was scheduled to disband after the operation ended, so it could be considered a fleeting relationship.

However, if I transferred to the Royal Intelligence Department, I could give orders to personnel of the same scale. Not to mention, they would be a permanent team instead of the temporary one I was used to. This meant that as long as I did not leave the Royal Intelligence Department, I could mobilize a team of the same scale at any time.

This alone made the offer worth serious consideration.

But,

“…Hmm.”

It was clear within the game’s story that Clevenz was going to rise to become the next Chief of the Military Intelligence Agency, which weighed on my mind.

Despite the fact that the Chief of the Military Intelligence Agency is a three-year appointed position, he remains the Chief. As long as Clevenz stayed at the Military Intelligence Agency, my support wouldn’t diminish.

The real concern was what would happen next.

If Clevenz completed his term and retired, what would I do?

Could I continue to receive unconditional support and focus on operations in a Military Intelligence Agency without Clevenz?

If not,

Wouldn’t it be wiser to transfer to the Royal Intelligence Department now and settle in quickly?

“…”

I fell into deep contemplation.

Changing jobs to another intelligence agency was a path I had never taken in my life, making it tough to step forward.

However, all of this was about a future that had yet to come, and I was no soothsayer or astrologer to lift the veil and peek into it.

Ultimately, this was a battle of probabilities. In other words, a gamble.

They asked me to contact the number on the business card once my thoughts were organized, but I was unable to make a decision.

“…Damn it.”

While I was sitting on the sofa, racking my brains, the door burst open.

It was Jake.

“Sir—no, Manager.”

“Uh, what’s up?”

“Time to eat.”

—

Episode 5 – Journalist, Diplomat, Soldier, Spy

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Although the Military Intelligence Agency was indeed an intelligence agency, its original form was a command under the Ministry of Defense.

Like all military bases, the Military Intelligence Agency served meals at fixed times to officers, sergeants, civilian workers, and soldiers. If you were late for meal times, you could miss your chance to eat. Especially on days when popular menu items were served, it was common to see the food completely gone if you arrived even slightly late.

However, the Military Intelligence Agency was not just a simple military base.

It was a military intelligence agency, meaning it was an intelligence unit.

Overtime was the norm, and night shifts felt like breaks. You had to brace yourself for the possibility of losing all your hair to work stress by your thirties.

With so much work, not everyone could grab their meals on time, and even if they worked late, meals were not provided at the cafeteria. If the contracted civilian cooks worked night shifts, extra pay was required, all charged to the Military Intelligence Agency’s budget.

As a result, employees working late often had to go out for dinner. But finding a restaurant that opened late was not as easy as it sounded. Plus, they needed to finish their work quickly and get home, so dining out only delayed their return, resulting in numerous instances of coworkers muttering excuses about nightmares involving vengeful spirits instead of facing the consequences of being late.

In any case,

So when working late, most people usually ended up ordering takeaway or having meals delivered to the office.

We were no exception.

“Late-night snacks are here.”

Jake returned to the office with bags full of deliciously fragrant fried food. Pippin poured drinks from a mug (office supplies for the intelligence agency, lowest bid).

“Where should I put this?”

“Just drop it here. Clear off all the documents from the floor.”

While the subordinates arranged the food, I stacked the papers strewn across the desk on the floor. I kept the grease from splattering on the piles of classified military secrets.

Thus, the three soldiers gathered around the desk and began to munch on their late-night snacks. I pulled a chair over and asked Jake a question.

“Wow. You said you wanted to stop eating chicken? So why did you bring fried chicken?”

“That was the only place open at this hour.”

“Jake, put the fried chicken away from the pasta. I’m not eating it.”

“Allergic?”

“No. Watching my weight.”

“But why are you eating… Oh, hey, don’t hit me.”

“It’s all dusty. Stop it.”

Ignoring the two bantering, I turned on the TV to check the news channel.

Coincidentally, the news was broadcasting about the operation in No Man’s Land from this morning.

Jake, who was scooping mashed potatoes, glanced at the TV and threw out a comment.

“The Hero participated today too, right? In the barren land operation.”

“Yeah, there she is.”

Footage of Camila taken by the Ministry of Defense’s press department began playing. Massive flames engulfed the forest, and a monster resembling a wild dog howled in agony as it was burnt alive, broadcast without any filtering.

I wondered if it was acceptable to air something so graphic on official news, as Pippin exclaimed in awe.

“Wow. Shouldn’t they be using artillery to take that down? Just burning it like that…”

I remembered the defense attaché from the Empire’s embassy had watched that too. Their reaction had been quite remarkable. I murmured it offhand.

“The Empire’s attaché was completely stunned watching that.”

“Really?”

Before I could answer Pippin’s question, Jake suddenly muttered.

“She’s pretty.”

“Oh, don’t kill the mood…”

Once again, Pippin and Jake began to bicker.

Amidst their squabbling and the occasional voice from the anchor, I tore off a piece of fried food and popped it into my mouth.

Savoring the grease, I said to Pippin and Jake, “So all the employees infiltrated, huh? They set off this morning.”

Jake stopped bickering and responded to my question.

“Yeah. I heard they entered the southern part of the Empire through the Warp Gate. Also, I’ve got it that they’ll collect two weeks’ worth of operational expenses and identification from the Magic Tower there.”

“They’ll be entering the Magic Tower in two days then. What about the equipment?”

“It’s currently stored at the customs warehouse. Once the office is determined, we’re planning to hide it as office supplies and smuggle it into the Magic Tower.”

How they could discuss work while eating was something quite remarkable.

To an outsider, it might be shocking, but for us, it was just another day. So we continued to munch on our late-night snacks while discussing work.

Pippin, holding her mug up to her lips, said, “The operational expenses should be channeled through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I think they mentioned a company…”

“That’s a ghost company. They’re using Ministry assets because there’s no company that matches the identity. Anyway, there’s no issue, right?”

“I contacted the intelligence management officer at the Magic Tower, and they assured me they wouldn’t need to undergo audits or security assessments.”

Looks like the talks with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs went well.

I punctured the pasta with my fork and spoke.

“Yeah. As I said before, Pippin, you should just handle support duties at the representative office.”

“Okay.”

“If you get caught poking around the field for no reason, it’ll be an international embarrassment. Got it?”

Pippin nodded.

Pippin would be analyzing the information while collecting open-source intelligence with analysts, so there wasn’t much risk for her. The problem lay with Jake and me.

Jake was slated to run the intelligence-gathering team by controlling the information agents associated with the Overseas Information Department, waiting at the Magic Tower. Meaning Jake had the highest chance of being detected first among the three of us by the counterintelligence agency at the Magic Tower.

“Be as cautious as possible. No one knows how things will unfold in the field, but if it feels dangerous, just report and withdraw immediately. You can pass it off to the Special Activities Department.”

“Got it. What about you, Manager?”

“Me? Well… I’ll just do what I always do.”

I chewed on the pasta while thinking it over.

When looking at the participants, equipment, and operational expenses, it was incomparable to when I was with the cult. Not to mention, this operation was already underway with intelligence officers from the Military Intelligence Agency inching into the Empire and the Magic Tower. We were set to receive real-time intelligence collected by officers every morning and evening, receiving bits of it as we spoke.

Although the Royal Intelligence Department was keeping a close watch, it was still feasible. The only concern left was to resolve the Agreman issue.

While I was musing over these thoughts, abruptly, Pippin started to complain as she downed another drink.

“Why do we always just talk about work when we eat? Let’s have some ordinary conversations like other people.”

“Isn’t this ordinary enough?”

“The whole workplace isn’t ordinary, so what…”

The conversations of intelligence agency agents talking about work were rarely the norm. But what could I do about it since we had nothing else to talk about? I didn’t have any connections, nor was I particularly close with my family. Besides, I didn’t even carry my phone around, so I had no idea what my family was up to these days.

“Should I dig up some tales from our training days then? Oh right, Pippin, remember that time you grabbed the instructor’s hair during sea training…”

“Shut your mouth.”

“Okay.”

Pippin and Jake continued rattling on about their own little topics while I flipped through the TV to see what was happening on other channels.

Then, as I held the remote scrolling through channels—

Ding.

“-Breaking news.”

Breaking news rolled onto the screen.

“-The Kien Empire’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that the Magic Tower’s public assets held within the Empire would be frozen and the Tower’s investments nationalized. Some analysts suggest this could lead to a default declaration by the Empire against the Magic Tower…”

The Emperor was drawing his sword.

“-Furthermore, the Empire’s police announced their stance of conducting massive preemptive arrests to stabilize the unstable southern region.”

The full-scale war between the Empire and the Magic Tower had begun.