Back Alley Gangs (1)
Edwin, who had spent the night in the office, rubbed his eyes and stood up. "Yawn."
The older I get, the more I feel my body slowing down. Back in my youth, I could go days without sleep on investigations and still feel fresh. Of course, if I whined like this in front of the Director or Chaplin, they'd tear into me about what right I had to complain about age. I'd been brutally dressed down for it once before, so I knew better. But... what can you do when you really feel the effects of aging? That's just how humans are.
"We're not demons or anything."
Hundreds of years—it's a unit of time that feels utterly unreal to us.
Flap flap. A crow perched on the windowsill. Its ink-black sheen made its owner obvious.
"You're back."
As Edwin turned, Ines entered the office right on cue.
"Team Leader, you look..."
"I can't even remember the last time I went home. Anyway, how'd the support for Team 3 go? I haven't checked the report yet."
"We dug all the way into that lord's dirty laundry at the eastern edge, dodging surveillance the whole time. Even though it's a bit far from the capital, he's been up to all sorts of nasty stuff—oblivious to the people dying in his own territory."
"The ones who have it all are always the worst. And sorry to dump this on you right after you get back—"
"The back alleys, right?"
Ines already knew, clearly having heard the news. Edwin nodded and gazed up at the clear sky outside the window.
"Yeah. Once Illine and Yufir get here, let's start the briefing."
"Hee, it'll be nice to see them after so long."
Ines smiled, looking forward to it.
"I-Ines senior!"
The moment we arrived at the office, there she was—the face I'd missed so much. I couldn't help rushing into her arms with joy. The events in Aken Village and the mines had been crucial for Iri, but Ines senior had been just as important to me.
"Haha, Yufir~you adorable little thing!"
She ruffled my hair wildly.
"I knew you'd come."
"R-really?"
Being acknowledged by the kind Ines senior made me feel so good.
"Ines, you already knew Yufi?"
Illine senior stared at us in surprise, saying she hadn't known.
"Sis... I told you when I went to the training camp last time."
"Oh, did I? Ahaha! Easy to forget~"
Illine senior laughed embarrassedly as she headed into the meeting room. We followed and took our seats.
"Oh, everyone's here."
Edwin the team leader, holding a few documents, waved casually in greeting.
"O-oh, good morning, Team Leader!"
"Yeah, yeah, get some good rest?"
"Yes!"
"Good. Our Yufir here's about to have a tough time ahead, so she needs that rest."
"Pardon?"
His words made me uneasy without warning. Why me, the newbie, for the hard stuff...? What could I even do!
The briefing kicked off right away.
"Our goal first: figure out who raided the lab. And our initial target is Tiger."
The materials Edwin the team leader passed around showed gang diagrams—a tiger going roar! And below the picture, info on known gang members.
"Combining what Intel had with what other teams dug up, we've got a decent picture."
"Uh... where else did you snoop around?"
Edwin shrugged with a "Who knows?" at Ines's question, then pointed to the middle of the documents.
"This is the guy currently leading Tiger Gang."
Dindel
"Huh?"
Illine senior voiced the confusion first.
"As far as I know, Tiger was definitely..."
"I remember too. It was Baiken leading them."
Ines senior said it like it was obvious. I'd recently learned the sisters were from the back alleys, which explained their knowledge.
"Right, same as what you know. But we've confirmed it changed recently."
The sisters exchanged glances.
"Something feels... off!"
"Team Leader, Baiken wouldn't go down that easily."
Edwin nodded at the sisters' words.
"I think so too. That's why I'm about to lay out the operation for you all."
Edwin the team leader glanced around at us, speaking quickly. As a newbie, I couldn't tell right from wrong, so I just focused on listening and memorizing. Illine senior dozed off halfway, leaving the real planning to Edwin and Ines senior.
"Then... Team Leader and sis will split from me and Yufir."
Ines senior nodded, satisfied.
"Ines, you good?"
"Of course. We've even got this newbie with killer breakthrough power."
"Ah~I heard that, heard it."
"Me? M-me?"
"Yeah, I reported everything about the mission you did with Yufir to the Team Leader."
Ines senior grinned and petted my head. Edwin started gushing about wanting to see it himself and joking if she'd steal his spot someday.
"Ehehe... what could I..."
But they say even a magpie dances for praise.
"I-I'll do my absolute best!"
I bit my tongue.
I entered the back alleys with Ines senior. The difference this time: no suits. Instead, we wore jackets with the Hyena emblem.
"This feels... tense!"
"Haha, first time on a mission like this?"
"Yes..."
Disguise, I guess. Luckily, back alley gangs had simple ways to tell each other apart, so it wasn't too hard. Ines senior pulled off the tough Hyena vibe perfectly, but I looked like a kid awkwardly playing delinquent.
"We won't get caught, right?"
"Just stick close to me. I'm the most requested for support in Team 8, you know."
"Yeees!"
Ines senior spoke with brimming confidence. I took a deep breath and followed my reliable senior. We took narrow alleys instead of main streets—no need to expose ourselves even in disguise.
"Around here..."
After a few turns, a familiar face waited for us.
"Senior, that's him."
I pointed ahead quietly. A man in the same jacket: Gahed.
"That's Gahed?"
"Yes."
Gahed spotted us, glanced around warily, and approached cautiously.
"You..."
"Call me Linne."
Ines senior gave a fake name smoothly.
"Ah, yes. Linne. As planned, we'll link up with the Spider guys soon."
Maybe roughed up by Edwin the team leader, Gahed was extremely polite to us.
Our mission with Ines senior was this: Gahed had accepted Tiger Gang's alliance offer, so we'd infiltrate Tiger disguised as Hyenas. First step: meet the contacts. And as expected, Spider Gang—who'd already allied with Tiger—were the contacts.
"Who's the kid?"
"K-kid? I'm Lumi...!"
"Huh? Oh, right."
My fake name trailed off awkwardly. Gahed bought it, but anyone sharp would sense something off.
"Hoo... hoo..."
My heart pounded. Deceiving people was exhausting.
"Then, Linne, Lumi... you're family now."
We nodded together. Following Gahed out of the narrow alley onto the main street, people saw him and cleared a path. Even a minor gang commanded respect.
Soon, we reached an area thick with gang members. Gahed stopped and pointed.
"That's them."
He said quietly.
"Spiders all dye their hair bright red and have spider tattoos—that's their mark."
Three Spider gangsters, hair obviously dyed red, spiders tattooed on necks or arms, proudly displayed. Right below the tattoos: [SPIDER].
SPIDER
We approached with Gahed.
"Yo, Spiders."
"Huh? Oh, you showed."
The gangsters bickering among themselves turned to us. A tall one with short red hair stepped up to Gahed.
"Gahed... cute little Hyena pup."
"Shut it and guide us to Tiger, you Spider bastards."
"Puhaha! One beatdown and now you get it? Know your place in the back alleys."
They led us underground. Dim corridors lit by orange magic stones. An exit appeared, opening to a vast space—like a plaza packed with people, a makeshift ring where fights raged.
"Wooo! Crush him!"
"That's it! See that straight? Killer punch."
"Damn it, shoulda bet the other side!"
Tiger emblems everywhere, most people here Tiger gang.
"Other gangs mixed in here and there."
Ines senior whispered, scanning around.
"Some festival today or what?"
We passed multiple rings, watching fights. Open betting. Some bare-handed, some with weapons. Weapon fights splattered blood even to us.
"Eek?!"
I yelped involuntarily. Nearby gangsters snickered.
"A-hem."
Embarrassed, I stuck tight to Ines senior. Deeper in, booze stalls everywhere, then... only Tigers.
"Stop."
We halted before a room. Tiger-jacketed guys surrounded us.
"Y-yes..."
Their stares bored in openly. How could people look that scary? Scars all over.
"Gahed, you alone."
"Uh... okay."
A Tiger opened the door.
"Y-you guys... just look around."
Gahed glanced at us. His bad acting sparked odd kinship. He went in. Spiders vanished somewhere, leaving us.
"Hyenas got some fine ladies."
"Lil' sis too?"
Ines senior grinned at them.
"Watch out. My sis goes berserk when mad—no holding back."
They clutched their stomachs laughing.
"Hahaha! Funniest joke I've heard."
"Anyway, Bull vs. Eagle's on."
"Ooh, I bet Bull. New guy's huge, right?"
"Let's go. Loser buys."
Satisfied with the banter, the Tigers grabbed booze and left.
"Well then~"
Ines senior stretched her arms, looking around. No one watching or bothering us.
"Time to get to work~"
"Ooh, yes!"
Now I was a full spy, ready to uncover Tiger Gang's secrets.
Maybe... I'm kinda cool right now!
Not in a tux, but I swear I heard epic spy BGM from somewhere.