Even as Rui Daiken briefed the operation at the Inspectorate, intelligence reports kept coming in.
Wired communications back and forth.
Carrier pigeons back and forth.
As expected, the content confirmed that every member of the Red Fang was gathering tonight to flee Seiren.
I mulled over the intelligence report. Something struck me as odd.
With the Hashman brothers dead and their name splashed across the newspapers, they should've been scrambling to flee in every direction. So why would they deliberately gather in one place?
No matter how rigid the Inspectorate might be as an organization, it wasn't a group that couldn't tell right from wrong.
The Red Fang's crimes had crossed the line long ago. The evidence was more than sufficient.
They should have expected Knight-level agents to be dispatched......
'What's with this leisurely attitude......?'
To consolidate the organization?
To recover the illegal funds they'd been stashing?
There could be multiple reasons, but gathering at this point was essentially handing us the chance to wipe them out in one sweep.
'Is there a reason they can't pull out immediately?'
That was when Rui spoke.
"Then. Let us move. Maintain operational silence and monitor hand signals and your communicators."
An agent distributed small button-like objects to everyone. Compact communicators—the vibration patterns would dictate how the operation changed.
"I will now announce the subjugation squads."
Each squad consisted of five members.
Squad 1: Rui Daiken and four agents.
Following that, Knight Bwindol and Knight Bil each led four agents as Squads 2 and 3 respectively.
I was in Squad 1.
"This operation is not about capturing the Red Fang alive. Live captures will be few; the rest will be executed on sight. These are direct orders from the Director. Please commit this to memory."
Normally, the Inspectorate didn't simply subjugate criminal organizations on a whim. It was the kind of organization that, wherever possible, arrested suspects and sent them to trial—frustratingly so, at times.
But this time, the Inspectorate Director had personally ordered kill-on-sight. A truly unprecedented measure.
It spoke to just how vile the Red Fang's crimes had been.
'Then again, there are at least twenty confirmed kidnapped territory residents attributed to these bastards.'
The unconfirmed number would be even higher. Even now, one of their strongholds likely held kidnapped civilians.
"Fierce combat is expected, and life-threatening situations may occur."
The pre-operation speech.
A reminder of the dangers ahead.
But......
Was it just me?
It felt like he was speaking directly to me.
"This is a final warning. If there is anyone here who does not want to face danger, or who has been exaggerating their abilities—withdraw now. This time, no one will guarantee your life."
No doubt about it. That bastard was staring right at me.
Instead of answering, I pushed my horn-rimmed glasses up with my middle finger. Was that answer enough?
After staring at me briefly, Rui spoke.
"Then. The Red Fang subjugation operation begins now."
The agents moved stealthily and swiftly.
Some took taxis. Some rode horse-drawn carriages. Some drove personal vehicles.
It wasn't that the Inspectorate lacked its own vehicles, but taking one would have been the equivalent of advertising "the Inspectorate is here to subjugate you." No one took them.
VROOM—
I drove my own car as well.
The Northern night.
The outskirts of the capital Seiren.
I arrived at the Isra District.
Even on this cold night, many factories were running. Once the full winter set in, operating factories became no easy task, so during summer, they ran around the clock.
The standard was three eight-hour shifts, though factories with heavier workloads ran two twelve-hour shifts.
The agents, myself included, blended naturally into the crowds of workers and entered the factory zone.
The current operation plan was as follows.
1. Squad 3 proceeds first to the abandoned factory where the boss Jeffren is located. Under the direction of Knight Bwindol, they swiftly eliminate sentries and surround the factory for surveillance.
2. Squads 1 and 2 raid the strongholds of Red Fang's mid-level officers, reducing their forces and conducting rapid site searches to rescue any surviving hostages.
3. Assuming Phase 2 is complete, all squads converge on the Red Fang's main stronghold. Boss Jeffren and all remaining members are eliminated in one sweep. Jeffren is to be captured alive if possible.
Past the buzzing, active factories, abandoned ones began appearing one by one.
From here, I moved carefully, scanning the surroundings while searching for the factory marked on the operation map. Here and there I spotted workers loafing around with bottles, couples sharing intimacies in secluded spots, and people relieving themselves.
Whenever I crossed paths with someone, I walked as if I urgently needed the restroom. The other agents did the same.
By the time I reached the first operation site, I launched myself onto the rooftop. Rui Daiken was already there—though I couldn't tell when he'd arrived.
He seemed to flinch at the sight of me. The waver in his eyes said: How did you get here this fast?
Just as I raised my horn-rimmed glasses with my middle finger again, the other agents arrived.
A vein popped on Rui's forehead, but he quickly composed himself, raised his hand, and gave hand signals.
『Sentries first.
Two at the front entrance.
One at the rear.
One at the emergency exit.』
『Sion Karsen waits outside for support.』
What?
They were going to handle it all themselves?
I wasn't entirely without complaints, but I didn't push it. This stronghold had been confirmed to house kidnapped territory residents.
'Nothing's more dangerous than an assault with mismatched coordination.'
The agents nodded and leapt from rooftop to rooftop. True to their standing as Apprentice Knights or above, their footfalls were nearly inaudible.
The four agents assigned to each entrance exchanged glances, nodded, and dropped from the rooftops.
Under the faint light of a crescent moon, they landed softly behind the sentries.
SQUELCH.
Daggers pierced the sentries' backs. Simultaneously, handkerchiefs clamped over their mouths.
The daggers twisted once inside the heart, and blood welled up.
"......!"
The sentries couldn't even scream. Not until the blood had run down through the punctured flesh and the last breath had left them.
The agents laid the bodies in dark alleys. They assessed the interior—headcount, positions, presence of hostages. Then they breached.
Their movements were clean. Not a wasted motion.
I stood outside watching, then dropped down to where the bodies lay.
I examined the corpses. On the off chance something useful turned up, I searched their clothes.
All I found were tobacco and used tissue. The tissue smelled foul. The thought "What could they even wipe with this?" crossed my mind.
From inside, sounds of battle rang out.
CRASH! BANG-BANG-BANG! SLASH! SHINK!
Then. I sensed someone approaching. Reinforcements? I calmly tracked the newcomer.
In urban operations.
The two biggest concerns are:
1. Civilians getting caught in the crossfire.
2. The operation being compromised.
But. The footsteps were too deliberate for a civilian. At some point, the newcomer had suppressed their presence entirely.
'Red Fang.'
Probably one who'd slipped out of the main stronghold before Squad 3 set up surveillance. When he was almost at the factory, he suddenly stopped.
SNIFF. SNIFF.
He'd caught the scent of blood.
I could feel him deliberating. Go check? Or turn back? He seemed to waver.
Then, as if something occurred to him, he started walking again. Perhaps he lacked the courage to return empty-handed. He chose to investigate.
Just as he was nearly at the factory.
THWACK.
I struck the back of his neck.
He dropped unconscious.
'Better capture at least one alive.'
I bound his hands and feet with rope and stuffed his mouth full of tissue. The very tissue I'd collected from the corpse moments ago.
I waited briefly for support. Soon, rank-and-file agents—not Knight-level—arrived. I immediately asked them to stand guard, then entered the factory.
The first thing that caught my eye was heads and bodies scattered across the floor. Blood soaking everything.
The metallic tang of blood stung my nose. The agents were searching the area with neutral expressions.
'As expected.'
No matter how formidable the Red Fang's evasion or combat skills might be.
They couldn't compare to Knights—called "humanity's sword"—who were never supposed to be deployed against other humans in the first place.
Rui Daiken approached me. He looked somewhat irritated.
"I thought I told you to wait outside."
I didn't even look at him, walking toward the documents strewn beside an apparent officer's body.
"Someone came looking for this place. I dealt with him and handed him over to support agents before coming in."
Rui's brow furrowed. Sure, someone could have come. But you dealt with him? This quietly? That seemed to be his thought.
"If someone they sent doesn't return, what do you think happens?"
Suspicion.
In other words, a time limit had been imposed.
"Assuming a fast runner. It's roughly thirty minutes from here to the main stronghold. We need to hurry. Especially if there are hostages. Don't you think?"
"......Will it make a difference if you investigate?"
"Who knows? I was going to try [Mana Detection]."
[Mana Detection].
In simple terms, it meant dispersing mana to survey the surrounding environment.
Not just anyone could do it. It required exceptional mana sensitivity and exceptionally pure mana.
"What kind of nonsense—"
"What if it's not nonsense?"
"Bullshit."
"Hey. Rui Daiken."
"......"
"You always judge people based only on what you've seen. But is that really right?"
He screwed up his face as if I'd asked the most obvious thing in the world. If you don't believe what you see, what are you supposed to believe? That kind of expression.
'Fair enough. That's a reasonable way to think.'
I'd been the same. I hadn't even known I was a being beloved by flame domain mana. I thought the world had abandoned me.
So I resented the world. I never tried to look further, to consider more. I never tried to verify the facts.
I just shoved myself into a prison and spent hellish years there.
It was the same with relationships. Father. Guseto. Roman. I believed and judged only what I could see, and I fell straight to the bottom.
"No matter how hard you try to see clearly, you can't watch a person's every move. So you go and ask. You listen. You look deeper."
"......"
"Sounds crazy, right? I know. But even if it's tedious, exhausting, and uncomfortable, you have to make that effort."
Rui wore an expression that said, "What the hell did this guy eat?" Regardless, I continued.
"What if the Lord assigned me special tutors, and they taught me unique magic alongside special artifacts?"
"......"
No rebuttal. House Karsen was House Karsen, after all. There was no guarantee it hadn't happened.
"If you can't be sure, then shut up and watch. Stop jumping to conclusions and getting in the way."
Rui was left speechless, his lips barely moving, but he took no further action.
I ignored him and placed my hand on the floor. I began spreading mana vibrations outward.
Before the regression, I'd been terrible at [Mana Detection]. At best, I could find mechanical devices.
For finer detection, you needed pure mana, and the mana packed into my Core and Star Ring had been impure—or so they'd said.
But now.
THUMP, THUMP—
My heart pulsed, and the mana I'd built from the flame dragon vein—purer than anyone's—resonated. It swept through the impurity-laden factory and snapped right back.
The factory's layout came through with vivid clarity.
'Unbelievable.'
Viewed through pure mana, the level of detail was this fine?
I could see it.
A door leading underground.
And.
How to open it.
"Over there. Take the alarm clock mounted on the wall and place it under the fifth light from the left. A cord will drop from the light next to it. Pull that, and a door to the basement will open."
Before I knew it, the other agents were listening intently too, and they looked to Rui Daiken.
Rui gave a nod. An agent followed my instructions.
Moving the clock really did make a cord drop from a light fixture. He pulled it, and—
RUMBLE—
A section of the floor rose upward.
Everyone was stunned.
Rui Daiken looked at me, unable to mask his astonishment.
At that exact moment, I pushed my horn-rimmed glasses up with my middle finger.