Chapter 77

Salmosia slowly exited the safe house. Though the word “slowly” applies only up until the moment she stepped outside its entrance. Her form began to dissolve into thin air from the moment she crossed the threshold.

“Space magic….”

Manipulating space is a high-level magic that calls upon interference from other dimensions, making it dangerous to use recklessly. It must have been enabled by a special artifact issued to senior officers of Panoptes.

“Hey, long time no see, senior.”

Niobe, who remained inside the safe house, greeted her awkwardly. She responded in kind to avoid creating any discomfort.

“Yes, if an agent returns with all limbs intact, that qualifies as doing well. And you, Niobe?”

“I have some documents to deliver after the chairman’s return. You’ll understand once you’ve read them.”

“Yes, I will handle them appropriately.”

The bundle of papers Niobe handed over contained a list of suspected traitors among the senior staff of Argos.

‘Salmosia wanted me to open this in her absence—I see why now.’

While there’s suspicion of betrayal, it’s based on intuition rather than concrete evidence. Wouldn’t this be tantamount to the inspector general of Blasphemia illegally leaking personal information about members of another organization?

Officially delivered through Niobe, this setup allows for plausible deniability should anything go awry.

Even in a situation where external leaks are highly unlikely, Salmosia prepared this contingency measure. Is this caution or habit?

“Will you be immediately redeployed to the field next, Niobe?”

“Huh? No. I report to the inspector general about my predecessor’s activities. Not by choice, but I was rapidly promoted directly under the inspectorate. I’m technically listed on the Argeyirion tracking operation roster, but I’ll be back soon.”

Salmosia addressed Niobe by name instead of her codename K17, indicating her recognized standing within Blasphemia.

Though different from what I imagined, it seems we have an accessible source of information within Blasphemia.

I should ask her a few things while I have the chance.

***

A respectful conversation with her senior began with gentle teasing.

“Niobe, it appears you’ve already reported my status directly to the inspector general.”

“Huh? Yeah, it was the information you found, right?”

L13 let out a soft sigh. While Niobe might not have noticed, this was a deliberate pose.

“I provided the information to help you ascend to a position where you could effectively root out dissidents. Reporting directly to the inspector general was risky.”

“Risky how?”

“If a low-ranking individual suddenly meets with the inspector general and the very next day a purge begins, wouldn’t anyone familiar with the circumstances find it suspicious?”

Ortes pointed out how dangerous Niobe’s actions were. It would have been safer to secure the authority to speak with the inspector general before taking such steps.

But at the same time, he added:

“It was a courageous move. Few people choose the right path over their own safety.”

“Th… thank you?”

Niobe’s shoulders, which had tensed slightly, relaxed again. A sense of pride welled up within her. Ortes waited for the right moment before continuing.

“How many trustworthy individuals do you think there are within Blasphemia, according to your judgment? People whom both the inspector general and you can rely on?”

“Hmm… everyone inside the inspectorate seems reliable…”

Ortes carefully memorized the list of “trustworthy individuals” Niobe mentioned. These were people to avoid recruiting when infiltrating Blasphemia in the future, but also potential allies when acting as L13.

“Are there no clear opponents to the inspector general within the organization?”

“Yeah, the director is currently in seclusion, and the deputy director position is vacant. There’s really no one equal to or above the inspector general in authority.”

The sequestered director reminded Ortes of the former deputy director of Blasphemia he had faced.

The highest commander of the Golden Desert Operation—wasn’t his name Haltos? Apparently, Haltos didn’t return from the Golden Desert Operation.

‘Was no successor appointed after Haltos? Or was one appointed and then vacated the position? Either way…’

A sudden realization struck Ortes. The core leadership of Argeyirion consisted of Blasphemia operatives turned eroders during the Golden Desert Operation, whom Ortes and Carisia had sent into the outer dimension.

If they had transplanted their original command structure into Argeyirion, it was likely that Haltos was also the leader of Argeyirion.

‘Maybe I can use this somehow?’

Salmosia’s suspicions about Argos and Haltos possibly being part of Argeyirion’s leadership lingered in Ortes’ mind.

Ortes composed a closing statement to wrap up their conversation.

“Please share the information I gave you only with those you trust. However, if a situation arises where even they must be suspected of betrayal, don’t hesitate to contact me.”

Niobe nodded solemnly. It was difficult for her to imagine the feelings of L13, who once fought alongside the Argosians but now stood closest to Argeyirion.

“Well then, take care. I hope we meet again in good health.”

***

“Both Director Neuro and Director Divius have safely completed their sacred investigation and returned. However, it seems Blasphemia has become aware of the sacred investigation. We will devise a countermeasure.”

Upon returning from the investigation, Ortes reported privately to Carisia as usual, adding details about the contact with Blasphemia during the sacred investigation.

As speculations about Argeyirion’s leadership emerged, the meeting lasted longer than usual.

“Haltos…”

Carisia began twirling a lock of her hair around her finger, a sign that she was reflecting on past memories.

“The information we gathered from Blasphemia’s branch offices was limited regarding high-ranking officials. I don’t recall fighting him in the desert either.”

“I didn’t actively fight Haltos either. He merely interfered whenever I tried to approach the chairman.”

They prolonged the time until the arrival of the extraterrestrial storm using the spatial magic Carisia had prepared in advance.

The imbalance in space caused by the magic made the extraterrestrial storm arrive much sooner, forcing the Blasphemia pursuit team to retreat.

It worked too well, leading to the unexpected appearance of Argeyirion.

“There doesn’t seem to be a way to bring Haltos out right now. What do you plan to do about Argos?”

“Yes, I received a list of suspects accused of collusion from Blasphemia.”

“To create discord between the two groups, we shouldn’t interrogate someone obviously suspicious, right?”

Carisia asked.

Arresting someone who clearly looks suspicious isn’t unfair. But arresting someone who appears diligent, hardworking, and honest would make others feel it’s unjust.

To genuinely stir conflict between Argeyirion and Argos, Ortes needed to target someone completely unsuspected, provoking Argos’ anger over a wrongful accusation against a comrade.

However, Ortes shook his head.

He believed Salmosia overestimated Argeyirion’s capabilities. The reason Blasphemia’s executives could interact with Argeyirion was because Argeyirion originally came from within Blasphemia.

“Just like military corruption usually happens within one branch—Army, Navy, or Air Force—and rarely involves joint misconduct across branches, Argos and Blasphemia are separate organizations. They probably won’t align easily.”

Unless the extraterrestrial force had implanted some sort of hypnotic app into Argeyirion…

“Detaining just one person won’t be enough. Even if we hold a couple of people, Blasphemia has the means to smooth things over.”

Once a suspect is secured, Blasphemia can fabricate countless reasons for suspicion. Unless an immediate execution occurs, Argos’ protests would be dismissed as reasonable precautionary measures.

“The best way to cause conflict is the existence of a secret itself.”

Ortes slowly introduced the seed of discord. Concrete facts have clear limits on the impact they can create.

“Blasphemia’s illegal surveillance attempt on Argos… That makes for a good headline. If we inform Argos that such an ‘attempt’ existed within their ranks, how furious would they be?”

However, suspicions are different. Since no one knows exactly how far Blasphemia planned the surveillance, it leaves room for exaggeration.

“Attempting to conceal the secret will provoke even greater outrage. While I hesitate to inform Argos immediately due to the risk of Salmosia suspecting me, we need to refine the execution strategy.”

Ortes began devising a method to disseminate this information to Argos.

His plans began to unravel when urgent news hit the Ethereal Network.

『List of Magic Towers Affiliated with the Argeyirion Alliance』

This revelation shook the social order of the magic towers.