Anyway, It's Not My Fault (2)
In principle, all operations and schemes were reported "upward." This was especially true for anything involving the Elza independence movement. The tangled web of interests and conflicting approaches between government ministries required someone to coordinate, lest one department's work sabotage another's.
The previous commanders had washed their hands of the job. While officers like Leticia were forced to handle duties that should have fallen to the special task force commander.
The rigid elite officers reported every little detail to their superiors. The "weak link exploitation tactic"—the operation to recruit Hoot—was one such example.
It didn't leak from below. It leaked from above.
Hoot had spent a week in the Human Non-Protected Zone. That meant this pursuer had been active for over a week as well. An agent who could track Hoot, scavenge food and water, fight zombies, and avoid infection was rare.
An information broker? A mere broker wouldn't do something so insane when safer sources existed in abundance.
That left only one possibility. Someone "above" had leaked the information, and an agent from another government department had snatched it up. To avoid drawing suspicion, they disguised themselves as an information broker.
Virginia clenched her fist.
A heavy silence hung over the intelligence department. Everyone kept glancing at the division chief's office. In a situation like this, a cheerful atmosphere would have been the truly strange thing.
Why isn't she back yet?
Leticia, who had stormed out of the commander's office, still hadn't returned. The intelligence staff were busy imagining what kind of hell she must be enduring.
The mood remained unbearably heavy.
Even the morning, when Leticia had passionately argued that "no matter what the special task force commander said, reporting such a critical matter was the right thing to do," had been preferable.
Her point wasn't entirely wrong, though it wasn't entirely fair either. The non-commissioned officers and commissioned officers who had worked with Leticia for a long time found themselves regretting, "We should have just been flexible about it."
Leticia wasn't a universally respected commander, but she wasn't the type to let her emotions dictate her behavior either. When something upset her, she would drink herself into oblivion after work rather than lash out at others.
She's a decent soldier, just cursed with terrible superiors.
And now that decent soldier had been dragged off by a parachute commander who had appeared out of nowhere.
The rumors that followed were grim. The commander, unable to contain her rage, had smashed an entire steel desk. Someone had heard shouting, though the exact words were unclear. Leticia had kicked the door open and fled.
...Still, she doesn't deserve this kind of treatment.
Just as one officer, deciding enough was enough, began to rise from his seat—
Click.
Leticia had returned.
...?
Something was off. She looked remarkably calm. No—more than that. She looked clearer and more at ease than she had when she'd arrived at work that morning.
"Ah. Um. Information Staff Officer..."
"Operations Officer."
"Yes!"
"You had that list of information brokers compiled, right? Verify it's up to date and send it to me. Categorize what kind of information they usually trade, and sort them by survival capability, from highest to lowest.
Controller, I need the latest status of all government agencies and other unit activities within a 40-kilometer radius of Mini Bell. It must be current as of this exact moment. If you need cooperation from the administrative branch, notify me immediately.
Operations soldier. Redeker's platoon went out on reconnaissance last night, correct? Is the platoon leader asleep? Wake him and bring him here. Tell him it's urgent. Can Hoot be interrogated right now?"
The flood of orders sent the staff scrambling. These were the same tasks they always handled—only the tempo had accelerated dramatically.
"Hoot received a nerve stabilizer injection and hasn't regained consciousness. The shock was too severe, so the military doctor administered it."
"Then leave him for now. Everyone, attention! From this moment on, we will make contact with V. Connect it to the large screen on the secure operations phone. Continue normal operations, but the moment V replies, divert all intelligence resources toward gathering information on V and the surrounding area. Understood?"
"Yes!"
Fortunately, the Leticia who had returned was the superior they knew. Everyone felt a sense of relief, as though the universe had righted itself again.
Only the non-commissioned officers and commissioned officers who had worked with Leticia for a long time noticed that she seemed to be in quite a good mood. There was something light about her—the unmistakable air of someone who had successfully wrapped up a difficult matter.
Yet only Leticia herself knew how she had managed to steady her heart.
I am a Roemer. I am the master. As long as I act like a master, I am a Roemer soldier.
The crushing sense of defeat that had clung to her ankles her entire life had been swept away by that single, refreshing declaration.
She would not let this slip away. Not ever.
Leticia picked up Redeker's report. She checked the number written on the clean document two, then three times before sending the message.
Using an ID that clearly belonged to a soldier, yet one that wouldn't openly admit it.
8qawsed8
The reply came much later.
Ding.
A loud message notification rang out. Every member of the department turned toward the large screen. It was a reply from the briefcase seller.
V
"Activate all resources!"
Everyone in the department focused on their pre-assigned tasks. Leticia sat down and cracked her knuckles with a satisfying pop.
Just then, the controller handed her a report. It contained the latest news regarding incidents near the area. Coincidentally, it was information connected to Langbert.
"...Controller. What is this?"
"I'll look into the details right away."
Leticia nodded. According to the controller's report, Langbert was extremely dangerous. For now, she needed to reply first.
8qawsed8
The reply arrived immediately.
V
"Can't you trace the location?"
Leticia shouted.
"It's not showing up on the regular network. It looks like they're using a separate transmitter. We're tracking it!"
"Keep searching!"
Leticia traced her finger across the map. She still didn't know whether V was traveling on foot or by vehicle. She drew a wide circular band centered on Mini Bell and handed it to the signal tracking team.
"Search with this as the center for now! Find every signal!"
As she returned to her seat, Leticia thought hard.
The person who wants to buy it first is probably Hans.
If her hypothesis was correct, Hans intended to carry out a terrorist attack in Hampton City. He probably wouldn't show up there himself. He would bring an unsuspecting buyer to the location and detonate it remotely.
That was exactly the kind of method he excelled at...
Ding.
A new message arrived.
V
8qawsed8
V
"...What? What?!"
Leticia shot to her feet.
At that same moment, in the secret hideout of the Elza Liberation Movement Central Army—
A man with hollow eyes stared at the monitor.
He was chewing almonds as usual. Hunger was chronic here, and it was common knowledge that no amount of eating would ever satisfy it. Constantly munching like a cow was the method the man—and the Central Army's cell organizations—had discovered.
The man's role was surveillance. His duty was to intercept and store all voice and text records transmitted through the spyware. No one liked spyware, but it held special meaning for members of a secret society.
In the final moments, when even a suicide note was impossible, one could at least whisper last words into a phone.
Just now, another comrade had died. The faint murmur of "Long live Elza" had been heard. The man recorded the audio file and noted the comrade's name along with the date and time of death. The final voice of the deceased would somehow reach their family...
"Huh?"
A warning flashed. It signaled that contact was being made with a "person of interest" number. These were phones that required special monitoring. He had personally added the note "Hoot."
V
"Hans!"
The man leapt to his feet. The barrel tipped over, and precious almonds scattered across the floor, but this was no time to worry about that.
"I told you to say 'Comrade'!"
That damned bastard, still going on about comrades even in this situation. The man swallowed his anger and shouted again.
"Comrade Hans! You need to see this!"
Leticia sat back down.
So that's why he said phone calls were difficult! It wasn't just to maintain silence!
Even as she thought this, her fingers moved quickly.
8qawsed8
V
"This bastard is definitely mocking us, right?"
Hans growled. The man nodded in agreement.
"What do we do? Should we just cut it off? We could still reformat it now."
"No. No. Leave it. Let's see what he's trying to provoke out of us first."
Though angry, a strange chill ran down one side of his mind.
A temporary pass was supposed to include a date of birth. But it was a recently changed regulation, so more people didn't know about it.
More importantly, very few people could even obtain a temporary pass in the first place. Those who needed to enter the Human Non-Protected Zone were either following government orders, biker gangs, zombies, or people like themselves who ignored such procedures entirely.
"Then this guy knew about the temporary pass format. And even knowing that, he pretended to be fooled. What the hell is this bastard's identity? What does he want?"
"...Hans. That idiot."
Leticia let out a hollow laugh. This was exactly why the radical Elza independence movement could never succeed. They couldn't even get official documents right, didn't know the requirements, and even got the name wrong.
Virginia Helford was the commander of the 8th Gendarmerie Special Task Force, not the "commander of the 8th Gendarmerie." It was as ridiculous as confusing a division commander with a platoon leader.
"But how did he know Commander Helford was being transferred here?"
"...Rats are everywhere."
Leticia shook her head. The fact that even a military officer's transfer had been dug up meant there was clearly a serious security breach. But there was something more important right now. She needed to focus.
But should I point out what's wrong?
Thinking about it, it didn't seem like a very smart move. According to what this V person said, Hans was definitely watching this conversation. In that case, correcting Hans's error would be tantamount to treason.
8qawsed8
V
Leticia had been prepared to offer anything. Food. Water. Shelter.
But now he was suddenly demanding information about Langbert.
Especially when she had just warned him that "they"—the Elza terrorists—were watching this conversation. Asking for information in this situation...
"Ah."
Sparks flew in Leticia's eyes. Like the elite officer she was, she understood what V wanted.
This V bastard—is he trying to drag both the 8th Gendarmerie and the terrorists into Langbert and make them fight each other?