“Well, this is surprising.”
I had requested the Underworld’s assistance and assumed they would take their time, but it seemed that the Underworld, armed with plentiful funds, was faster than I could have imagined.
It was only the third day since I made the request when Ann contacted me for an appointment.
I had presumed she was coming to request necessary supplies, but it turned out she had more than just that on her mind.
“This information was obtained using connections I already had, so it’s only a superficial overview, but it’s better than nothing, right?”
“This is just a superficial overview?”
Even though the paper was of poorer quality than what we normally used, it was still good enough to read without issue. A single glance at the report, compiled on this paper, revealed a proliferation of significantly important information.
It was incredibly valuable to have information on the hobbies and preferences of the nobles who had survived and were managing their territories, especially how they were perceived by their populace.
They understood their duty: since it was difficult to immediately infiltrate the depths of nobility, they had investigated the more accessible aspects.
“You certainly set high expectations. I’m looking forward to your next report.”
“Are you not told that you’re dangerous for being able to laugh like that, even when I’m not just presenting good news?”
“I get told that sometimes. What is it? If you’re in the Demon Lord’s Army, you naturally learn to draw that line.”
“Is that… alright?”
Ann, who was being treated as a guest and was alternating between tea and sweets, looked at me with skepticism.
“Unfortunately, ‘alright’ isn’t a measurement I can use. Currently, I have many situations that can only be resolved by acting with a ‘can do’ mindset, rather than a ‘cannot do’ one. While it’s best to handle things safely, I wouldn’t be trying to gather this sort of information if I were held back by caution. Ah, please proceed with your operations with safety as your top priority. Your eyes and ears are invaluable. I realized from this report that regretting their loss as if they were expendable would be a certainty. I will discuss it with my superiors and consider increasing your budget.”
“What more do you intend to do with us if you give us more?”
“At least, you can rest assured that your body is not my objective. The woman working beside you is my wife. If I were to desire such a thing, she would get angry. Moreover, I have other wives, so I am satisfied in that regard.”
“I see. Sometimes, clients try to find weaknesses and do as they please with women. I’m relieved that my employer isn’t that sort.”
“In a way, I am attempting something even more problematic. Information is a weapon. Depending on how it’s used, it can leave any amount of damage. I must simply learn to use that weapon effectively.”
The report indicated no current dissatisfaction or signs of rebellion among the nobles.
While I could only imagine what they thought in their hearts, it was incredibly beneficial to gain information that allowed us to catch even the slightest preliminary movements.
“I’m glad you understand us well. In that case, let’s get right to it. Can you prepare this?”
It was a stack of paper, separate from the report, which could be considered the payment for that information.
Suella received it from Ann, confirmed that nothing strange had been done to it, and then passed it to me after reading it in an instant.
I, too, read through the stack of paper at a speed that was too fast to be called speed-reading.
“You require quite a lot. I understand necessities like clothing, food, and housing, but the number of luxury items is substantial.”
The contents elicited a wry smile from me. A minimum of housing necessary for a living foundation, food, and clothing required for daily life.
The amount of money needed to purchase these was itemized.
Up to this point, it was fine, but what caused my wry smile were the items listed below, which were requested for in-kind payment.
“They are necessary expenses. When men drown themselves in alcohol, their mouths loosen easily. And if there’s a beautiful woman dressed to impress beside them, men will boast about their heroic deeds even more. They flatter them and become overly familiar.”
The list was reminiscent of opening a hostess club. Dresses, accessories, expensive wine brands for evening drinks, perfumes, and several medications likely to be used at night.
Ann, with a vulgar smug smile at my bewildered words, spoke with amusement. I wondered how many men had boasted their heroic deeds for her to describe such things.
The outcome for those who indulged in fleeting pleasures was rarely ever good.
“As a fellow man, I understand that such tactics can be effective, and it saddens me. OK, I will have them prepared. However, I regret to inform you that I cannot provide a honey trap.”
If the instructor were to hear this, would he frown, disliking such underhanded tactics, or would he laugh heartily, thinking “a fool fell for a fool’s game”?
Which would it be?
He tended to dislike the use of underhanded tactics in battle, so I imagined he might allow it in a genre other than combat. However, I felt that a reverse-scale also resided nearby, so it seemed better for me, rather than having the instructor explain it himself, to explain it to him.
“Don’t worry, we have plenty of them on hand. Singers, barmaids, prostitutes – you name it.”
“…I see. This may be unnecessary, but I’ll provide plenty of medicine. I’m just saying, you understand the consequences if this is leaked, right?”
In this situation, while I sympathized with the male urge to engage in dalliances, I wouldn’t stop it, as our information warfare would become more active with the money from her lighter wallet.
However, I made sure to warn her against profiting from the aid provided.
“I understand. We’ll limit it to what we need. High-quality Potions are appreciated by us as well. I will gratefully accept your kindness.”
“I see, then that’s fine. These will be prepared shortly. Also, regarding the properties, you don’t need to prepare them on your end, do you?”
“Ah, if you were to prepare them, it would be like revealing our presence. Besides, we also have things we wish to keep hidden.”
“To say that to me, your employer, shows remarkable nerve.”
She seemed to be fully aware of that and shrugged, indicating her understanding, so I decided not to press further.
“Not showing our faces is the greatest defense. The key to surviving in this line of work is for as few people as possible to know your face.”
“I’ll keep that in mind for the future. Now, based on the content of the report, I have additional work for you.”
“Yes, yes. If the pay is this good, I’ll gladly work like a workhorse. But if it turns out to be a dangerous case, I’ll pack up and run immediately.”
“I will permit your right to refuse, but I would prefer you to cooperate with us as much as possible. What I need you to investigate is related to religion. There appear to be unfavorable movements near the Church of the Sun God. I need you to handle information gathering and disruption.”
“Ah, so it’s related to that after all. The smoke usually rises from around here.”
Instead, she requested detailed information on areas of concern.
Our biggest enemies in the Demon Lord’s Army currently are the Empire and Tris.
And the most active entity, in terms of movements, is Tris, who shelters the Church.
Churches are typically established in the capital of a country.
There, priests connected to Tris are stationed.
We have suppressed those locations and are buying time by submitting fabricated reports.
However, believers exist everywhere, and even among churches operating openly, there are many who harbor doubts.
Even when doubts are sown, there are still a certain number of people who continue to believe in the Sun God.
This tendency is particularly strong among households with financial余裕.
This demographic is troublesome in our current situation, where we can only improve the Demon Lord’s Army’s image through gradual efforts.
“It would be disastrous if they were to engage in guerrilla warfare and that triggered a rebellion by the nobles. Understood, I will instruct them to allocate personnel to that area as well.”
“Please do.”
“Certainly. We received good compensation, so we have no complaints. Oh, I almost forgot.”
We must detect and extinguish these flames before they spread.
Ann, waving her hand casually, took out a paper-wrapped object from her pocket as if she had just remembered.
“Here.”
“What is this?”
“It’s a drug to make you cheerful.”
“Isn’t that a dangerous substance?”
“The church is distributing it. They call it, the ‘God’s medicine.’ It hasn’t spread widely around here yet, but it’s starting to disseminate slowly. It’s said to increase the will to fight. Thanks to it, there are people with the delusion that they should kill the Demon Lord, enlisting in the war. Even the training content is peculiar. The next time we have a battle, a large number of desperate soldiers will likely be produced. Are you alright?”
“I’m not alright now. Are they fools? No, they were fools. What do they think humans are? Indeed, religion mixing with war never leads to anything good.”
The matter of the casually handed-over item that couldn’t be casually handled.
It was information that didn’t even exist in my mind.
I signaled Suella and asked her to send it to the institution within the Demon Lord’s Army that researched drugs.
“By any chance, has this appeared before?”
“Who knows? At least, it seems like even our elders don’t know about it, so I doubt it’s been widely distributed. Also, it’s spreading from poor villages where life has become difficult, and priests seem to be making rounds.”
“They’re becoming desperate. Are they even considering the post-war period? With no one left to work, a world of absolute poverty awaits them. However, if we don’t know what this drug is or where it comes from, an unknown substance is dangerous. If it’s addictive, it’ll be unmanageable. A war of attrition with sheer numbers would be hell.”
If an antidote or treatment could be developed, that would be good, but generally, there is no cure for highly addictive drugs.
All one can do is endure it mentally and convince oneself that their body doesn’t need it.
They are gathering soldiers even by using that.
A worst-case scenario: militiamen of all ages and genders, with crazed looks in their eyes, taking to the battlefield with spears.
“…Haa.”
“The employer is quite kind, isn’t he? To worry about the other party as well.”
“I just want to avoid unpleasant jobs as much as possible. That’s all. I’ve understood about the drug. Please continue to gather information on that as well.”
“Understood. Well then, I should be going soon.”
“Ah.”
Just the thought of the nightmarish scene was enough to cause a headache, even with this Magic Crest-enhanced body. I watched Ann leave, waving her hand casually.
“Jiro-san, the Oni King has arrived.”
“Understood.”
“Hey, Jiro.”
As Suella returned, announcing a visitor, the visitor barged into the room, radiating anger.
“Prepare for war. I’ll annihilate them, you hear?”
“I can guess the reason, but did you see it?”
I had a vague idea of what the reason was.
He hadn’t reached the peak of his rage yet, as he had come to inform me first.
“Ah, I saw it. They’ve fallen to the lowest depths. That’s unacceptable. They must not do that. Those are not soldiers.”
I could find reasons to restrain the instructor, but if I were to stop him, who was clenching his teeth, clenching his fists, and suppressing his anger at the scene he had witnessed, trying to maintain at least a semblance of military discipline, it would be counterproductive.
“…Please grant me a week. No, three days. In that time, I will gather and organize an elite troop. We will repeatedly use hit-and-run tactics from a distance to destroy the drug production facilities.”
“Three days, you say?”
“Yes, three days. Sharpen that anger of yours. In return, promise me one thing.”
“Huh?”
“The safe return of everyone. We have no lives to give to such despicable individuals.”
“Tch, Hahahaha!!!! Alright! I understand. Yes, alright, we’ll all return safely!!”
In that case, I should manipulate the flow. I must create a momentum here.
Today’s word: Those who are capable, go ahead.
Thank you for your continued feedback and corrections of typos.
If you find this interesting, please leave your comments, ratings, bookmarks, etc.
I am also serializing another work: “Pandora Pandemic Panic” – The Pandora’s Box has been opened again, but we are fighting back with various things in secret bases and more!!
Please give that one your attention as well!!
