Several days earlier, Marcus, who rarely showed up for work, came to the file room that served as the office for the Second Division of the Financial Audit Bureau.
“I want all of you to keep watch on the foreign dignitaries arriving in Emeroade,” Marcus suddenly said.
When she heard him, Cesia’s eyes widened in surprise, and she looked at the others. Felix and Roy looked surprised by the risky assignment, too, but Layne and Keith seemed calm. Marcus must have told those two already, Cesia thought.
As usual, Marcus had begun from his conclusion and left the explanation to Layne.
“As you all may have already noticed, the masterminds behind these recent big incidents have always just barely evaded arrest and escaped the country. That timing is too perfect to be a coincidence,” Layne began.
Everyone nodded silently. The main members of the gang of kidnappers and the drug smuggling ring had been arrested, but in both cases, the all-important ringleader had escaped just in time, as if they had had information on the investigation team’s movements. Nobody wanted to admit it, but what it meant was clear.
“Someone working at a high position within the castle, or possibly very close to us, is in secret communications with a foreign criminal organization,” Layne declared. He spoke with his normal low, easily understandable voice, but his strong words were effective. Cesia felt alarmed.
Cesia wasn’t an enforcer because she wanted to do good for her country; she just did it because it was her job. She faced cruelty and danger because her duty was to prevent harm from reaching average citizens. But when it came down to it, her job consisted of receiving orders from Marcus and Layne, putting those orders into effect, and finally, working with other bureaus to capture the bad guys. Her enemies were always clear “bad guys,” but now she knew that one of the good guys who worked in the castle with her was a traitor.
Marcus saw Cesia grow pale and slightly smiled, trying to comfort her. She finally learned to trust the people around her, so it must be hard to know that someone nearby is secretly an enemy, he thought.
He would be lying if he said that he hadn’t at least fleetingly considered removing her from this assignment. It was natural for Marcus to put the people important to him under his protection, just as how he acted with his younger sister, and that was all the more true for the woman he loved.
However, the country couldn’t afford any incident during the steadily progressing preparations to welcome foreign guests to the hectic castle. Marcus had made her an enforcer, and she was a vital asset to the Second Division.
I’ll believe in her, Marcus decided.
“Can I ask a question?” Roy asked, raising his hand. Layne nodded, and Roy continued with a somewhat troubled expression. “I get someone in the castle is connected with a foreign criminal organization. Given the timing and the similar modus operandi, I believe it also makes sense to conclude that it’s the same organization for both incidents.”
Felix and Cesia nodded. The possibility that the kidnappers and the smugglers were both part of one large, foreign criminal syndicate had been a frequent topic of discussion in the division.
“But, one thing I don’t understand is… What about the person passing along information? The order to watch foreign guests is…well…” Roy trailed off. This was rare for him; he usually spoke very clearly.
Layne glanced at Marcus, who nodded and spoke.
“You’re right. My guess is that a member of that criminal syndicate is among the foreign visitors, and I believe they’re using the festivities as an opportunity to establish contact with their source of information in the castle.”
Cesia was surprised again. Marcus had just said that one of the important, high-ranking visitors was connected with a criminal organization. It would’ve been strange for her not to feel surprised.
“Why do you think they’re among the visitors, sir?” Felix interjected, unable to stay silent. But, maybe because he wanted to ask the same question, Roy yielded the floor.
“They’re trying to weaken the strength of our country,” Marcus said sharply.
Cesia thought she had gotten used to it over the past year, but she shivered at the cold undertone in his voice.
Layne exchanged looks with Marcus, then continued the explanation.
“I’m sure you all have noticed something in the investigations you participated in. To start with, the crimes all took place centered on the capital, and the drugs were being sold primarily to nobles.”
Cesia thought back to the cases she’d worked on until that point and realized that Layne was correct. Ports dotted the coast of Emeroade, and there were cities besides the capital where commerce flourished, but the drug sales had been targeted especially toward the capital’s nobles. If the goal had been pure profit, they would have made much more money by spreading out their operations to other cities with laxer law enforcement.
“Just because a country is sending a delegation for the birth of the young prince doesn’t mean that our relations with them are perfect, and there are probably countries that secretly think ill of our prosperity, too.”
By taking advantage of its geography, Emeroade had grown rich. A considerable number of nearby countries would stand to gain if they saw their fortunes decline.
“But, thanks to our recent successes, we’ve discovered multiple criminal operations connected to foreign countries. So, there’s a high possibility that the foreign ringleader, seeking to strengthen their relationship with their source of intelligence, is using the festivities to establish direct contact with their spy on the inside,” Layne concluded. “And, besides that, the Security Bureau is on high alert due to the large influx of foreign guests. It’s up to us to leave that to them and focus on what we can do.”
What we can do? Cesia made a face. Marcus noticed it and grinned. She sensed something unpleasant was coming.
“In other words, your specialty: undercover investigations,” Marcus said.
It’s not our specialty, Cesia internally retorted. They just didn’t have the authority, so they had to keep their investigations a secret from their enemies and allies.