The Security Bureau Chief Gets Goosebumps
The Security Bureau Chief Gets Goosebumps
Being investigated for something you didn't do was never a pleasant experience.
Just as he was wondering what on earth the man was talking about, Otto slipped a hand into his coat.
The hand that emerged from the coat held several photographs.
"You used remarkably humane methods, even when dealing with enemy spies."
The photographs showed a line of people lying with their eyes closed, as if they had simply fallen asleep.
Nearby electronic devices and scattered documents were captured in the frame alongside them.
Just as he was trying to figure out what this was about, Otto added a remark.
"From my assessment, you appear to have dispersed chloroform as a gas and then blocked the entrance until they lost consciousness. Am I correct?"
Daniel raised his head and stared blankly at Otto.
He wondered if this was some kind of joke, but there was sincerity in Otto's eyes.
Thinking he had to clear up this misunderstanding, Daniel let out a low laugh and shook his head.
"I have no idea what you're talking about. I have no connection to that incident."
"Is that so. Hmm."
Otto clicked his tongue as if puzzled, set the photographs down on the table, and lifted the briefcase that was next to the sofa.
Opening the briefcase, Otto rummaged around inside until he found a particular photograph and pulled it out.
"Then, do you perhaps know this person? This was taken before his disguise was removed, so you should remember."
The photograph showed a man, apparently elderly, lying down with a single bullet lodged in his forehead.
Both eyes were closed.
Daniel, who had been studying the old man in the photograph, nodded in surprise.
Because it was someone he had actually met.
"It's the old man I spoke with briefly in a shop called Beer Heaven. Don't tell me this man was an Allied Nations spy?"
Otto, who had been quietly observing Daniel with a smile, nodded.
"That's correct. Our investigation found that after conversing with you, Colonel Daniel Steiner, he returned to his safe house. Immediately afterward, he met with some kind of group and had a lead seed planted in his head. Additionally, what I've also discovered is......."
Otto gestured as if asking him to wait a moment, then pulled several documents out of his briefcase.
They were written statements containing the testimonies of the enemy spies who had regained consciousness.
Otto held them out to Daniel and spoke.
"As you'll see if you look, they strangely refuse to say who attacked them. They were all trembling in fear and reluctant to open their mouths. It appears you likely killed a few inside the bunker to keep their mouths shut, but......."
Otto shrugged.
"One question did occur to me. You could have ensured their silence by simply killing them all, so why deliberately keep them alive? Could it be that the person who ordered this operation valued the potential intelligence gained from keeping enemy spies alive rather than killing them?"
If you killed every spy you discovered, from the Allied Nations' perspective, the damage wouldn't be that great.
Losing spies would be a painful loss, but their deaths meant any information they might have revealed would disappear along with them.
However, if spies were kept alive and made to divulge information through persuasion or torture, the Allied Nations would inevitably suffer astronomical damage.
Daniel Steiner, who had fought multiple battles against the Allied Nations, would surely know this simple truth well.
On top of that, Daniel Steiner was operating a private organization capable of easily crushing a branch by itself.
After all, anyone who wasn't an idiot knew that Daniel Steiner had used his private organization to arrest the members of the Prince Faction in the past.
On the very day the Palentia branch was destroyed, that same Daniel Steiner had a certain conversation at a restaurant with their chief, Theobald.
After piecing together all the intel, Otto, as the Director of the Security Bureau, could not help but conclude that the person who had masterminded all of this from behind the scenes was Daniel Steiner.
That was why he had come here in person, meaning to say, 'At least tell me the truth.' But Daniel, who had not the slightest connection to the enemy spy organization, simply found the situation awkward.
"I don't even know that old man's name. I truly only shared a meal with him."
"You say you only shared a meal......."
Otto, who had been observing Daniel as if studying him, nodded as though there was nothing more he could do.
"If that is the will of Colonel Daniel Steiner, I will not inquire further. However, I would like you to know just one thing: the Security Bureau genuinely wishes to express its gratitude regarding this matter."
"......I don't think it is something you need to thank me for."
"Yes. That very fact is precisely what I'm thankful for. Because Colonel Daniel Steiner has chosen to remain silent, the Security Bureau can monopolize the achievement of having wiped out the enemy spies' safe houses in one fell swoop."
Otto, letting out a laugh, gathered up the photographs and documents he had spread across the table.
"There are many people who offer money to gain the Security Bureau's cooperation. Not a few also step forward offering power. However, people who hand us concrete results like this are extremely rare."
Having neatly organized the documents, Otto placed them back into his briefcase.
"As you are well aware, Colonel Daniel Steiner, it is no exaggeration to say that the Imperial Capital currently sits in the eye of a storm. I can feel on my skin that something unpleasant is about to happen."
Otto, having also tucked the photograph away into his coat, straightened his attire.
"What will be immediately necessary at that time are tangible results. No matter who becomes the master of the Empire, as long as I can demonstrate that the Security Bureau is not incompetent, my head will not go flying."
From Otto's words, Daniel sensed something amiss.
The coronation should have already been concluded, so he couldn't understand why someone holding the position of Security Bureau Director would say such things.
"......The master of the Empire is solely His Majesty the Emperor."
Otto nodded as if in agreement.
"Yes. You are not wrong. As I also agree."
"For someone who agrees, the statement you just made seemed rather unusual......."
"Of course, it must sound unusual. Because this is a gift I am giving to you, Colonel Daniel Steiner. If one has received something, shouldn't one also give something in return?"
"I'm not quite sure what you mean."
"I understand. In that case, allow me to express my intentions more clearly."
Otto, who had been pretending to glance around nervously despite knowing no one else was there, leaned forward and whispered softly.
"Be wary of Duke Belvar. He will stir the storm."
At Otto's words, Daniel's eyes narrowed sharply.
'If it's Duke Belvar.......'
He was the old fox who had sided with the Prince when the Emperor's children clashed over succession rights.
'I know he admitted defeat and withdrew his support for the Prince. Could that old man be the head of the Noble Union that was pressuring me?'
He had vaguely anticipated it, but hearing it from someone else's mouth was a different matter entirely.
Of course, Otto might be lying.
But words coming from the mouth of the Security Bureau Director, who was privy to countless pieces of intelligence, could not simply be dismissed as a mere lie.
"I will engrave your advice into my memory."
After hearing Daniel's answer, Otto smiled and closed his briefcase.
"I hope the information I provided was to your liking. Well then, I shall take my leave now."
Just as he was about to turn and walk away, Otto paused as if he had suddenly remembered something and added a remark.
"Ah. By the way, do you perhaps know a man named Hamtal? A rare black businessman......."
Hamtal? The name sounded vaguely familiar, but he didn't know the details.
"I don't know him. But why do you ask?"
"Nothing major. It's just that he was the businessman who had planned to invest in Theobald's textile factory—Theobald being the chief of the enemy spies. We investigated whether he was connected to this incident, but his alibi was so utterly perfect that he was excluded from the suspect list. However......."
Otto raised a hand and stroked his chin.
"Do you know that feeling when an alibi is so perfect it actually makes you more suspicious?"
"Even if you say that to me......."
"I suppose it is so. Understood. I hope we may meet again next time."
Otto extended a hand toward Daniel.
Seeing this, Daniel rose from his seat and shook hands in farewell. Otto concluded the parting with a slight bow of his head and then made his way out.
Once he emerged through the entrance of the General Staff Headquarters, an aide who had been waiting nearby approached him.
"Director. Did your conversation end well?"
At the aide's question, Otto had a peculiar expression.
"Well. It didn't seem like I was talking to a person."
"What do you mean by that?"
"He was just like a machine. At least, the Daniel Steiner who was answering my questions, that is."
Otto recalled the reception room where he had conversed with Daniel.
Circumstantially, it was definitely correct that Daniel Steiner had used his private organization to crush the enemy spy organization.
But Daniel Steiner had denied Otto's questions without a moment's hesitation.
Denying the truth was something easily predictable, but the real problem was what came next.
"Because he was clearly lying, yet I couldn't tell at all that he was lying."
During his rise to the position of Security Bureau Director, Otto had dealt with countless swindlers.
The swindlers had spun numerous lies to Otto, but he had seen through them almost every time.
This was because when a person lies, discrepancies occur in their behavior or physiological responses.
It was normal for breathing and mana to also become subtly disturbed.
For Otto, who had been adept at discerning other people's lies since childhood, noticing such trivial discrepancies came naturally.
But from Daniel Steiner, he hadn't felt even the slightest sign that he was lying.
It was as if he were speaking nothing but the truth.
"It gives me the chills. Chills......."
Shuddering, Otto rubbed his arms.
Because he was so taken aback by Daniel's demeanor, which seemed capable of deceiving even himself.
"He might just have sociopathic tendencies. Anyway, aide. After having that conversation, I feel quite certain about something. Let's adjust the direction of our operations a bit."
"In what way, sir?"
"From now on, if Duke Belvar's side requests cooperation, do not provide information beyond what is necessary. Deploying our personnel is also forbidden, effective immediately. On the other hand, should Daniel Steiner request cooperation, respond above and beyond his expectations."
At Otto's words, the aide replied with a slightly surprised tone.
"You mean...?"
"Yes. Perhaps the one who will bring a storm upon the Empire is not Duke Belvar......."
Otto smiled as if amused.
"But might just be Daniel Steiner."