Now Going Against the Tide - 2
I had definitely complained about it. I said there was no way I was going to turn myself into a lunatic just to understand a lunatic's point of view. And since I was hardly a gifted interrogator myself, I had no method of rooting out an inside spy.
Right. Those were absolutely my thoughts. Foreshadowing I had laid with my own hands.
Shit.
That didn't mean the foreshadowing needed to be reclaimed this damn precisely.
Two people who were skilled at investigation and thoroughly unhinged had just popped out at the same time. Wasn't this the literary equivalent of declaring you could die without regrets and then dying that very same day?
"Hehe, the Chief is moved."
"My, my. You must have been terribly lonely all this time."
When I stayed silent, voices that were clearly needling me came through. The way they slid through my ears and stabbed straight into my brain was enough to drive anyone insane. Why them of all people? Why, out of the four section chiefs, did it have to be exactly these two?
Well. It's not like there's anyone else.
No matter how crazy they were, they wouldn't be coming to the Academy for a casual visit. At this timing, it had to be Red Wave business.
Which meant that even if my heart refused to accept it, my head had no choice but to concede. In the present situation, these two really were the right fit.
The Second Section Chief, who excelled at intelligence gathering, and the First Section Chief, who finished the job once she got her hands on a lead. With no immediate need for raw combat power, they were the ideal personnel for the job.
"…Why are you coming?"
Still, just in case—just in case—I asked to confirm. For all I knew they had reached some critical singularity and were coming without orders.
"Ta-da!"
And that futile hope crumbled under a scrap of paper the First Section Chief held up.
Yeah. Figures.
Even a glance was enough. A cooperation request from the Minister of Special Affairs, stamped with the Minister of Finance's seal of approval. No doubt about it. An official deployment order.
Right. So you two aren't completely insane after all. That should have been good news—so why did it make me sad…
"It was originally supposed to be Intelligence's job, but they're so swamped they put in a cooperation request with us. And since the Chief happens to be at the Academy already, they said it would be better to send people who work well with you."
The Second Section Chief's follow-up nearly made me grab the back of my neck. That was exactly why you shouldn't be the ones sent. Work well with me? What part of this works well?
Damn it.
I could roughly guess why Intelligence was busy, too. They were probably so tied up grinding through the North that domestic manpower was running short.
Anyway, whenever something vicious happened in my life, seven times out of ten it was the North's fault. Useless parasites who contributed nothing positive to my existence.
"Then, Chief! We'll come see you soon!"
"Fine."
There was no stopping them anyway, so I nodded weakly. I knew well enough that knowing when to give up quickly was an important skill.
The moment I'd clung to that futile hope, I'd already drifted pretty far from "quick surrender," but still.
"I'm going to lose my mind."
Once I confirmed the communication orb had cut off, I muttered the words with pure lament. Red Wave was headache enough—and now the First and Second Section Chiefs were coming too?
No, this was personnel support specifically to prepare for Red Wave. Why did it feel like a burden? Objectively speaking they would be helpful—that much was true, it was definitely true.
I was probably reacting this way because I already knew the mental suffering that lay in my future.
Those two aren't normal either.
And, not for the first time, I felt anew just how abnormal they were. Most people didn't grin like that when they were coming to see their superior.
Truly incomprehensible creatures.
I hadn't set foot in the principal's office since the probation period. It was the kind of place where not visiting was itself a sign that peace reigned. Put that way, it sounded a lot like a company commander's office or a professor's research lab.
Regrettably, peace had now fled, so a visit was required.
"Red Wave, you say?"
"Yes, that's correct."
Unlike Third Glory, which we had handled during the last expo without involving him, I had informed the principal about Red Wave.
Back then, telling too many people would only have stirred up unnecessary noise, and we had been fully determined to intercept them before they ever approached the Academy. This time was different.
Alongside the external threat, there was a high probability of internal unrest as well. At the very least, the owner of a house ought to know when there was a spy in his own front yard.
"Support from the Audit Department will also be arriving."
And I had to say this, too.
"I see."
At those words, the principal's expression darkened somewhat. The thought of the Audit Department roaming freely through his front yard—
Is it just me?
Somehow he looked even darker than when I'd mentioned Red Wave.
In any case, unlike when we had captured and interrogated Third Glory agents loitering outside the Academy, this time we had to find a spy who was already inside. The principal's cooperation was essential.
If I simply waved the Audit Department's name around, I could bulldoze through anything without asking for cooperation—but if the investigation itself was that loud, there would be no point in investigating at all. Even a spy with an attention-seeking disorder would go to ground.
"We'll need to prepare suitable identities."
The principal seemed to share the thought, giving a light nod. Better to have a proper cover than to walk in as complete outsiders, or to flash an Audit Department calling card.
"Assistant instructor credentials should be sufficient. They change so frequently that neither faculty nor students will find it strange."
"That's a relief."
An absolutely horrific line delivered with total casualness—I forced myself to let it slide.
What kind of turnover rate is that?
"Personnel who get swapped out in no time," certified by the principal himself. Wasn't that a bit too cruel? Graduate students are people too!
…Are they?
A flicker of doubt crossed my mind, but I decided to go with yes.
"Please notify me when the support personnel arrive. I'll have everything ready by then."
"I'm grateful for the consideration."
"This is for the Academy's sake, is it not? If anything, I should be the one thanking the Audit Department Chief."
He said it with a light smile, and I smiled back.
Once I confirmed the Audit Department Chief had left, I sank into the sofa.
A sudden visit. A sudden request. And not just any matter—Red Wave. An incident that was bound to keep things noisy for some time.
What a headache.
Red Wave, which dared to reject order itself and sow chaos, was a public enemy not only of the Empire but of the entire continent. Even nations that were otherwise bitter rivals would cooperate when it came to suppressing Red Wave.
And of course they would. Lose a conflict between states and the vested interests still remained. Let Red Wave gain the upper hand, and you wouldn't even keep your head.
That was why every nation—the Empire in particular, standing at the apex of the established order—had adopted a principle of absolute ruthlessness and zero tolerance toward Red Wave. And the vanguard of that principle was the Audit Department.
The Audit Department existed to keep the nobility in check for the sake of His Majesty the Emperor's authority. How, then, would they deal with those who denied the very existence of His Majesty?
I only hope the students won't be too frightened.
There would be a bloodbath. The Audit Department had, in the past, wiped entire villages and cities off the map to purge Red Wave.
Of course, none of that had happened under the current Audit Department Chief. But would the present Chief truly be any different?
Hardly.
Two years ago, when a nineteen-year-old had been appointed Audit Department Chief, there had been no shortage of talk. Now there was none. The reason was simple: anyone who objected had been eliminated.
He was a man who showed no mercy even to those who challenged his own authority. Would he deal gently with those who denied His Majesty the Emperor?
Having observed the Audit Department Chief for some time, I had a grasp of his personal character. I knew he was far removed from cruelty and cold-heartedness in his private self.
But the private face and the public face were different things.
I hope they come quietly.
I didn't know who the spy was, but even that thought crossed my mind. More than anger at the fact that a traitor’s agent was inside the Academy I managed, I feared the catastrophe that would unfold if that agent thrashed and struggled.
Surely they wouldn't be so vindictive as to put a head on a pike outside the main building or the front gate.
…Surely not?
I periodically called the two section chiefs to check how far they'd gotten.
I wasn't a parent making sure my kid had gotten to cram school safely. What was I even doing?
The one who needs something has to put up with it.
Still, it beat having them get distracted and then barge into the clubroom as a surprise. For all I knew they might wander off somewhere bizarre.
"Chieeef~ Do you miss me that much?"
"Shut it."
She'd somehow managed to interpret it that way. The sight of the First Section Chief twirling her hair was deeply irritating. Miss her? Like hell. This woman was out of her mind.
At my firm reply, the First Section Chief stuck out her lower lip and smacked the Second Section Chief, who had been laughing beside her.
"Hey, why me?!"
"How should I know. Who told you to stand there?"
I liked this part a little. Hit him more. More.
After that scuffle—or rather, after taking a one-sided thrashing—the Second Section Chief let out a pained noise and got shoved out of the communication orb's view.
"Why's he gotten so weak?"
The Second Section Chief wasn't combat-specialized, but he wasn't the type to get handled that easily by the First Section Chief either.
"He says his strength still hasn't come back properly."
"Ah."
The reason was sadder than expected. Apparently the aftereffects from the North still hadn't fully cleared up.
Right. The North was rough. Surviving a sudden encounter with the Chaujid tribe at all was already something.
"So. How far have you gotten?"
Three seconds of sympathy for the Second Section Chief was plenty, so I moved on quickly.
It couldn't be that serious if they'd been cleared for deployment. The Empire preferred to work its civil servants at a moderate, sustained pace rather than grind them into early ruin.
"We're in Baron Libec's territory, so if we ride hard for about two more days, we'll be there."
"That's soon."
I wondered whether the identity preparations would be finished within two days, but it was the principal himself handling it—not just anyone. It would be done quickly enough.
I nodded with that thought, and caught the First Section Chief grinning slyly.
"What."
Two years of living with these people was no joke. I had reached the level where I could roughly tell why she was smiling just from the look of it.
The smile right before she teased me. The empty, thoughtless smile. The smile that came out when she was angry.
This one was the thrill smile. The look she got when she wanted to do something so badly she could barely stand it.
"I've never seen Red Wave since becoming a section chief!"
And nine times out of ten, that meant she had discovered a new collection piece.
Beaming, the First Section Chief reached to the side and thrust a pouch into view.
"I made sure to bring it this time!"
"Ah. Right."
At the appearance of that familiar object, I quietly averted my eyes. So she had gone and brought it after all. She hadn't for Third Glory.
The torture diary…
The First Section Chief's preferred torture tools, plus a record of particularly memorable sessions.
"Hehe. How many spies do you think there are?"
Looking at her, I had a sudden premonition. Whether there were several spies or only one, they were all going to get separated into Exodia pieces first.
She must have been really bored lately.