A Dark Fantasy Spy

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The main building of the Magic Tower’s Abas Representative Office.

On the 5th floor, there is the Defense Attaché Office.

At first glance, it looked no different from other office floors, but security was absolutely tight. Not only other employees, but also representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs couldn’t just walk in here without permission.

Only a select few, including personnel from the Military Intelligence Agency, were allowed entry.

And here, there were those few permitted individuals.

“Pippin. I’ve finished the reports.”

“Uh, thanks.”

Pippin, the information management officer at the Defense Attaché Office and the head analyst of the 73rd project team of the Military Intelligence Agency, received the documents handed over by the civilian worker.

As soon as she set the documents down, she instinctively picked up a pen and signed her name on the cover page.

Suddenly, she thought it was quite strange what she was doing right now.

“……”

She was sure she used to be an analyst. But somehow, she had become something resembling a senior analyst without even realizing it.

Still, she had been promoted, so it wasn’t entirely unpleasant, but it felt like she was in clothes that didn’t quite fit.

“I found it, but. There’s no official data coming from the Talent Development Institute. I think it might need to be transferred to another department. …Pippin?”

“……”

“…Pippin?”

“…Uh, wh-what? What’s up?”

“Are you feeling okay?”

She snapped back to reality at the sound of her friend’s voice calling her name. The pen in her hand remained still.

“Sorry. I was lost in thought for a moment. What were we talking about?”

“You don’t look well. How about we call it a day?”

“No, it’s fine.”

It seemed both she and Jake would need time to get used to the sudden workload.

And Pippin thought that among the people she knew, there was only one who could take on such a workload and still be fine.

Knock, knock.

“Come in.”

“Ah, everyone’s working hard, huh?”

“Manager?”

That’s right, the person who entered through the door!

“By the way, where is Pippin?”

—

Episode 5 – Journalist, Diplomat, Soldier, Spy

—

“Here I am.”

“Ah, thanks.”

I visited the Defense Attaché Office located on the 5th floor of the representative building.

To be honest, calling it a visit felt strange since I was in the role of a Defense Attaché, but I was practically not handling any Defense Attaché duties, so this expression seemed somewhat appropriate.

“I see you’re still drinking coffee mix here, as usual.”

“Well, it’s a product made at the Magic Tower.”

“Ah, right.”

Pippin handed me a paper cup and took a seat.

Her desk was piled high with papers, and as I sipped my coffee, I skimmed through the documents.

“Is all this from the Magic Tower’s representative office?”

“Yes. We’re currently looking for information from the Talent Development Institute. There’s very little public data available.”

They were unable to find anything from the Institute.

That meant the Talent Development Institute was either small and thus had little publicly known information or the Magic Tower was controlling information about it. Surely, it could be both.

“Take your time looking. But why is this coffee so sweet?”

“The team members like sugar…”

“Don’t eat too much sugar; it’ll rot your teeth.”

“If I leave it under the bed, the fairies will take it away.”

It felt like a story that only a fairy tale would tell, but it was somewhat reasonable in a world where fairies existed. Of course, not the kind that replaces old teeth with new ones; rather the kind that sneak off with your new teeth while you sleep.

Anyway.

“Pippin, can I ask one favor?”

“What kind of favor are you talking about…?”

“I’d like you to find some information. Publicly.”

Pippin leads the information analysis team responsible for analyzing information and collecting open-source intelligence, aka OSINT missions.

Press releases.
Academic journals.
Theses.
Daily newspapers.
Promotional materials.
National Assembly audit materials.
Official educational materials, etc.

The information I needed was among those. Therefore, she was the right person to handle the task.

“Go ahead.”

“I’m looking for information on robberies, robbery homicides, or similar crimes, focusing on local police and the Ministry of Justice. Types, methods, means, victims, perpetrators, and areas where they occurred…”

I muttered while reading information about Fabio Verati on a pin board that filled one wall of the office.

As I flipped through information notes with one hand and took a sip of coffee with the other, Pippin, who had been staring at me from behind, asked a question.

“Why are you looking for that kind of information? Are you getting involved in something dangerous?”

“Not really.”

I turned my head to look at Pippin.

“I’m planning to do that.”

*

The moment I mentioned kidnapping Fabio Verati’s youngest daughter, the reaction was explosive.

-‘Are you out of your mind?’

“Why do you keep saying that?”

-‘You’re going to kidnap a kid? In the middle of the Magic Tower?’

Thinking about kidnapping a 17-year-old minor was honestly a slightly shocking statement, even for me. But at this point, there was no other option.

I convinced Clevens with plausible reasoning.

“Another intelligence agency is getting involved, and if they move first, our operation could be derailed. If the National Security Agency, Imperial Army intelligence, or the Royal Intelligence Department makes a move, we’ll lose everything before we even get started.”

-‘Still, kidnapping is off the table. This is not an issue of politics or diplomacy.’

It didn’t quite fit Clevens’ image to say that after capturing hundreds of spies, but I understood because that was just his nature. If my superior had been Leoni at this moment, she might have agreed with me.

Anyway.

Clevens opposed my proposal from an ethical and moral standpoint.

But the fact that we were lagging behind other intelligence agencies and that time was running out were undeniable facts. So, the decision-making authority passed from Clevens to someone even higher up.

To the Military Intelligence Agency Chief.

-‘I’ve received the report. However, there are issues with interim reporting. This is not something to conclude hastily, so please come up with a concrete plan first.’

“Understood.”

Clevens looked distinctly displeased, but he didn’t argue against the Chief’s orders. I doubt Clevens will be able to handle matters so recklessly when he rises to the position of Chief.

At least I had received permission.

So, my tasks were now clear.

“…So I need to start gathering information now.”

-‘So you asked Pippin to find out about robberies or robbery homicides, correct?’

“Yep.”

Pippin and Jake reacted similarly to Clevens. They didn’t seem pleased with my plan.

It wasn’t an appropriate response for subordinates to show to superiors, but I understood. I had been like that back in the day too. I still felt a tad uneasy, but now I was somewhat accustomed to living this way for a living.

“Jake. Go over to the staff by the academy and rummage through some trash.”

-‘You mean trash?’

“Yep. Just don’t bring back anything weird. Focus on papers, especially documents.”

Every organization uses paper. Private companies, public agencies, banks, educational institutions, military, prosecution, police, diplomatic missions, and so on.

A vast number of papers are used daily, and similar amounts are generated as documents the next day and the day after that.

Naturally, there isn’t sufficient space anywhere to keep all of it. Even if there was space, it would need to be regularly shredded and disposed of to make room.

And those papers contain an array of information. The information I was looking for was included there too.

-‘And why….’

“Communications, materials used in meetings, inter-departmental documents. We need to find out if there’s any schedule for students to go outside.”

This is an old trick used by the KGB, synonymous with communism, to sweep up Western diplomatic missions. They used to charm janitors and low-level employees into doing the work, but due to time constraints, we’d have to do it ourselves this time.

“I’m going to ascertain the students’ schedules for going outside to map out their routes. I can’t just base our plans solely on the route from number 51’s benefactor, can I?”

-‘So you intend to create a second plan? Got it.’

For now, the HUMINT team led by Jake was dispatched to rummage through the papers (or rather, sift through the trash).

I turned off my communication device and entered my office.

There were still other kinds of information I needed.

“Excuse me.”

“Who are you— Ah, it’s the Attaché!”

A police officer sitting at a desk stood up eagerly to greet me.

“You’re the police officer assigned to the representative office, right?”

“Uh, yes. From the Foreign Affairs Division.”

Foreign Affairs Police.

They investigate crimes involving foreigners, expatriates, and international matters. Unlike the official cover for espionage activities, they genuinely handle investigative work.

“By the way, what brings you here…?”

“Do you have any data related to high-crime areas around the Magic Tower? I’ve heard you’re in close coordination with the local police.”

“Ah, of course! But may I ask why you need that?”

“It’s just that, you know, there are some folks who are very dedicated in faith.”

“Oh, are those the ones who volunteer in medical services?”

“Yes.”

“In that case, of course, I need to provide you with that! I saw on the news that you’ve been in some pretty rough areas.”

It turned out the police officer was a believer. I wasn’t sure if he was a genuine one or not, but since it was an issue regarding the protection of a saint, he fetched the materials for me from the vault.

“As you’ve been educated before deployment, boardings, borrowings, and taking pictures are all prohibited. We can’t even make copies, you know?”

“…Is it classified?”

“No, that’s not the case, but this isn’t entirely our own material… Well, as long as it’s not lost, we might be able to work something out.”

“Thank you.”

After I slipped him a little extra cash, the police officer turned a blind eye to the release of the materials. It was technically illegal, but what’s the harm? We’re all public servants.

“Oh, right.”

“Yes, what is it?”

“Could you look into these individuals for me? It’s a sensitive matter, so I’d appreciate if it could be handled discreetly.”

“Of course! That’s entirely possible.”

I handed over the photos of those protecting Fabio Verati’s youngest daughter to the police officer. Deceiving someone so filled with faith was like taking candy from a baby.

While the police officer was making calls, I copied all the material and tucked it under my arm before heading back to my office.

“The materials have arrived.”

“…Where did you get all this?”

“This is from the Foreign Affairs police. I noticed some data regarding robbery among it.”

“I’ll make use of it. Thanks.”

The information analysis team began analyzing the materials received from the police. Since these were diplomatic documents exchanged between governments, the quality and quantity of information were exceptionally high. Naturally, it would shorten the time spent on intelligence gathering, allowing for cross-verification as well.

For a while, I continued to go around various places gathering information.

Special Activities Department, Technical Information Office, Counterintelligence Department, the Defense Attaché Office, Magic Tower Representative Office, Magic Tower Police, Inquisition, etc.

With my diplomatic identification and the status of a hero as my background, no one stopped me. After all, the Inquisition was led by Rebecca, my senior, who had often dined with me.

Eventually, I compiled all the information I had collected into a plan and sent it to the Military Intelligence Agency.

And that evening.

-‘I’ve approved it.’

The Military Intelligence Agency Chief’s permission had come through.

“Thank you, Colonel.”

-‘Yes. It’s spilled water now, so do your best to clean it up. Stay cautious.’

The state had sanctioned a crime.

It said I could kidnap her.