Episode 5 - Journalist, Diplomat, Soldier, Spy
Episode 5 - Journalist, Diplomat, Soldier, Spy
The TV, blaring with news, switched off with a click.
"...What a shitstorm."
Clevins Hendrick tossed the remote aside.
"I heard you caused a scene at the Prime Minister's residence?"
"My apologies. The situation was so urgent..."
"Well... I have no intention of chewing you out. The Prime Minister and the Director have let it slide. Just be more careful from now on."
Clevins let out a deep sigh as he sank into his office chair. His face looked utterly exhausted as he muttered,
"...So. This is all the Inquisition's doing?"
"Yes, sir."
"I didn't expect them to exploit the Saint Selection Ceremony like this... Anyway, did they cooperate? Or was it a solo act?"
The question was a bit abbreviated, but everyone here knew what he meant. He was asking how deeply Lucia was involved in this mess.
"For now, we assess Saintess Lucia's actions as pre-agreed. However, it seems the Church side first sounded out the idea of her entering as a priest, and the Church used her intentions to steer the political situation in a favorable direction."
In short, Lucia's press conference was a statement of conviction. More precisely, since she was a candidate saintess, there had been discussions with the Church, but it didn't mean she'd actively joined the Inquisition's schemes. Or something like that. Bluntly put, she was just a tool for the Inquisition. Whether she was used unknowingly or went along with it knowingly, who knows. Either way, Lucia wasn't an informant or agent under the Inquisition's control or manipulation. This was solid intel straight from Veronica, who had mentioned public opinion warfare, so no further verification needed. Though she wasn't an intelligence officer, as a lobbyist, she seemed to have her own unique perspective on the world.
After hearing my report, Clevins rubbed his forehead.
"What's the source— Never mind. The source isn't what's important right now..."
"......"
What mattered now wasn't where the intel came from, but what would happen next. The water was already spilled, and it wasn't something we could mop up. If we didn't want to get dragged around by the machinations between the Church and the Empire's Magic Tower, we had to stay sharp from here on out.
I continued my report.
"From what we've confirmed so far, the entourage accompanying Saintess Lucia to the Magic Tower will consist entirely of Inquisition agents."
"...Those nuns? The ones included in the delegation?"
"Yes."
"They're dead set on starting a war."
Lucia's visit was an official one arranged through consultations between the Abbas government and the Church's foreign ministry. Thus, the Abbas government knew exactly who was coming in the delegation and their affiliations. It's common for intelligence agents to join a head of state's overseas trips, so the Abbas government didn't make an issue of it. They were wary because there were a few more than usual, but since they weren't armed, there was no reason to object. No real grounds for it, anyway.
Clevins stroked his stubbly chin and spat out,
"Have you figured out their intentions?"
"No, we haven't confirmed that far. However..."
"Speak."
"We've confirmed that the Inquisition Chief's secretary is disguised as a nun."
"......"
"With someone of that caliber involved, it seems aimed at building an intelligence network, but we have no solid evidence yet. Just speculation."
"...I see."
The current Inquisition Chief, Pedro, was a Military Intelligence Agency operative. More precisely, a sleeper agent. Unknown affiliation. Even Clevins didn't know. All we knew was that he was an overseas ops agent from an instructor background. The Church's political operation targeting the Magic Tower. Inquisition agents infiltrating via Lucia as the ship. And in the midst, a cutout recruited by the sleeper agent. It felt too convenient to chalk up to luck. Sure enough, Clevins, head of Military Intelligence's counterintelligence, gave me my orders.
"...You've heard from the Director, but the Prime Minister is very interested in this operation. Make sure there's no hitch. Same for any variables."
"......"
It was an op under the higher-ups' watchful eye—make it succeed, by any means.
"For now, play dumb. Monitor the situation and report on whatever the Inquisition is up to. Understood?"
"Yes, sir."
"...Good. The other staff went into the Magic Tower the day before yesterday, so don't worry about that."
"I'll assess the on-site situation upon arrival and report back."
"Safe travels on your dispatch."
*
After Lucia's bold statement to the press, everything proceeded like clockwork. The Church and Empire propped her up as the "true saintess" with brilliant propaganda, and the Magic Tower, after some deal with the Empire, approved Lucia's entry and my Agréman status. I believe the Abbas government subtly nudged the media too. Very subtly, without drawing attention. From a civilian perspective, the whole incident looked like a diplomatic hiccup caused by a candidate saintess's impulsive action—which it pretty much was—but the intelligence agencies' behind-the-scenes arm-twisting stayed strictly secret. Including the fact that the nuns accompanying Lucia were Inquisition agents. So, everyone except those in the know remained clueless. And there weren't many in the know anyway.
Someone even went on TV claiming "the saintess is suspicious," but with zero evidence, it got dismissed as conspiracy theory. When a pretty young beauty pleads on air to let her do some volunteer work, what's to suspect? Especially since she wasn't some random civilian—she was a candidate saintess who'd saved lives on the battlefield.
Anyway, thanks to Lucia's efforts, the messy diplomatic spat resolved in a flash.
"Passports, please."
"Diplomat."
I strode confidently onto Empire soil with my diplomatic passport.
"Yes, confirmed. Welcome to the Empire."
The Empire immigration officer waved me through the moment I flashed the diplomatic passport. My diplomatic pouch baggage sailed through without any inspection and was handed straight to me.
Why the Empire instead of the Magic Tower? Because the Tower floats over Nastasya, a city in the Empire's south. To reach it from abroad, you either use a direct warp gate or transit through the Empire first. No other way.
I hefted my heavy bag and said to Camilla Lowell, who was bent over doubled-up,
"Stomach okay? Still queasy?"
"Yeeesss... bleeeeurgh!"
"Whoa there."
Camilla was clutching a bag and hurling her guts out. Beside her, an Empire official holding paper bags for warp gate users paced anxiously, shifting from foot to foot.
"Motion sickness happens sometimes with warp gates. It's a side effect, so don't take it too hard."
"Th-thanks..."
"Please move over this way for a moment. Ah, give me the bag."
I took the paper bag from the official and led Camilla to a secluded bench out of sight.
Her face was pale green from experiencing magic's side effects firsthand. She looked just like I did back when I got traveler's diarrhea from bad water in Southeast Asia.
"Ughhh..."
I patted her back consolingly.
"A mage getting motion sick on a warp gate... tsk tsk."
"D-don't tease..."
"You'll have to use it again to enter the Tower. You good?"
"C-can't we just... walk in?"
"No way to walk in."
You can't walk into the Magic Tower. Back when they were at war with the Church, the Inquisition abused land routes so much that the great mages just floated the whole damn thing into the sky. Mages have magic to get around, and warp gates are commercialized enough for normals, so it'll never come down.
I grinned at Camilla.
"Just give up and it'll be easier."
"...Urk!"
Eventually, she stopped after downing some meds from a nearby pharmacy. Guess the world needs more STEM than humanities after all.
*
We spent minimal time in Empire territory before heading straight to the Magic Tower. Since our goal was transit, not residency, we skipped full entry procedures. The Empire officials fast-tracked the Church group's paperwork too. The Tower did the same. Despite the recent diplomatic dust-up, after twists and turns, the Oracle approved Lucia's entry. Post-talks with the Empire, the Tower even announced simplified processing for Church guests—an epochal shift from detaining visiting priests for hours.
The issue was Camilla's dizziness, but meds fixed that. By checkout, she was well enough to joke.
"In movies, a handful of powder and boom—instant teleport. Nothing like that here?"
"If it existed, everyone'd use it."
"No chants needed for spells either."
"Shamans chant. Clerics sometimes too."
Sounded like she was talking about Harry Potter. Honestly, it was so long ago I could barely follow her references. Was I getting dementia? I pondered if it was that or just faded memories. Forgetfulness, maybe.
Anyway. We checked in, then headed to the foreigner hotel provided by the Tower to unpack. The Tower's a tourist hotspot, so the hotel was luxurious. Made me suspicious of their motives, but whatever.
"You've had a long journey—well done. Rest up today. Hero, and companions. On behalf of the Magic Tower, we again thank our esteemed guests for visiting."
The Tower escort was politely urging us to unwind. After a brief hotel intro and precautions, they asked us to stay put for now. All expenses covered, so use services freely—no need to hold back. Less like confinement, more like oddly hospitable consideration.
After the escort left, Camilla, unpacking in the suite, said,
"They doing this 'cause I'm a mage?"
"Could be."
Her being a mage companion probably helped, but her own mage status surely factored in.
"They said rest today, so head in first. Rooftop's fine for practice."
"Thinking library first. Heard they got tons of magic books—should help."
"That's what they're for. Anyway, relax these next few days. I'll head out then."
"Yeah. You rest too, Fredric."
I saw Camilla off first, met Lucia and the Inquisition folks we'd bunk with temporarily, then entered my assigned room.
Click.
I locked the door. Drew all the curtains. Cranked the TV volume. Tossed the diplomatic pouch on the bed.
I unzipped the bag.
The pouch, untouched by Empire or Tower inspections, held all my gear.
"......"
I pulled out the secure terminal and powered it up.
"...Hello?"
'Been waiting for your call, Section Chief.'
Time to work.