"I see, so you will begin investigating Iarto Payse before Cen Toguil?"

  "Yeah……last night, I was out for a walk, and I happened to walk by a section of the west side of the wall, and I spotted Mr Payse climbing down from it. In other words, he was sneaking back into the country," I replied, tweaking the details to keep myself in the clear.

  Erhtaph Ragiu nodded and mulled it over for a minute.

  "Very well, I shall leave it to you. Like I already mentioned, I do not plan on telling you how to go about performing your investigations, you are free to act as you please."

  "I appreciate that……I'll start investigating his house tonight," I responded, before leaving as I finished my report.

  This one might take a bit longer than the previous two, they had both been living alone, but this guy lived in a fairly big house with his family.

  He was initially placed under suspicion because he was apparently a relative of the now-deceased Valse Darrte, he and his family were some of the former Goldway citizens who had managed to escape here.

  He had been an advisor of relatively decent standing in Goldway, and had landed a similar job after migrating here, and his current role certainly did give him access to sensitive information, it was an ideal position for a spy.

  For tonight, I'll focus on familiarizing myself with the layout of his house.

  I preferred to have a clear picture of factors such as building layout, sleep patterns, and habits, among other details, of my target before searching a place. The more information I had, the more efficiently I'll be able to search the house when that time comes……

  That night, I stealthily snuck into the suspects' home, getting in through an attic window, and observed below from inside the wooden ceiling, carving small peepholes into it so that I could observe the rooms below. The attic appeared quite dusty, indicating that no one comes up here that often, and hadn't for a while. Good, it should be the ideal vantage point.

  It was a fairly large house, but it was just the one floor with the attic and hollow space between the roof and ceiling, so memorizing the layout was easy. I kept my footsteps light and slow to avoid creaking the ceiling as I quietly moved around to get a good idea of the layout of the house.

  The suspect, Iarto Payse, lived here with a wife and two young children.

  His kids went to bed around 9 PM, while his wife went to sleep around 10 PM, he stayed up late in his study, writing stuff down in scrolls. He then hid them inside a safe in the wall, which was hidden behind a large bookshelf.

  After locking the safe, he moved the bookshelf in front of it to hide it. I had been able to see him open the safe from the angle of my current position, the unlock code was 3823……

  on second thought, this investigation probably wasn't going to take very long at all.

  He was practically emanating guilt, he kept glancing at the window, he was slightly sweaty despite the cool night air, and he fumbled nervously a lot. Well guilt isn't quite accurate, it was more like fear……fear of getting caught. It's not the same thing, guilt is when you regret what you're doing or what you did, but he wasn't regretful, he was just afraid of the high level of risk involved.

  And his demeanor definitely wasn't some natural nervous tick or condition or something……when he'd been having dinner with his family, he had made an effort to keep a normal expression on his face.

  That probably meant that his wife was not involved……and besides, she showed no signs of unusual levels of anxiety or stress. She did look a little worn out and drained, but their children were very loud and hyper, so that checks out.

  I silently waited and watched the man for a while longer from my vantage spot above him. He finally went to sleep around 2 AM, but instead of going to the bedroom, he fell asleep on a small couch in his study. He closed the curtains and locked the door, before dozing off on the couch.

  Even if I hadn't spotted him outside the walls last night, this guy was practically begging to be suspected. His temperament appeared to be rather weak, he'd probably crack pretty easily under pressure, so interrogating him would be a cinch.

  I usually took two or three days to observe my target when it came to information gathering, but given how blatantly obvious this particular case appeared to be, I'll have this done by tomorrow night.

  As he fell asleep, I crept back out, heading home for the night. Tomorrow should be pretty interesting……

  I was woken up by someone knocking on my door. I yawned and got out of bed, glancing at the clock.

  It was just past mid-day.

  I opened the door to see who it was.

  "Oh, Rai……what's up?" I inquired with a yawn.

  "Are you just waking up, dude? Anyway……wanna hang out or something?" He responded with a grin.

  "Pass……I want to sleep in today," I rejected, as I yawned again.

  Tonight was probably going to be pretty long, I wanted to be fully rested and ready.

  "Aw, come on, don't be like that! I'm so bored-!" He began.

  "Not my problem, find someone else. Go bother Key or Az," I cut him off, before shutting the door and locking it.

  I added some cat food to the bowl in the corner and went back to sleep.

  The weather was really cool and nice these days, and it made my bed feel a good ten times more comfortable.

  About an hour later, someone knocked on the door again. Was he back again?

  I irritably got out of bed and unlocked the door, before swinging it open.

  "Get lost, I said I-! Oh……hey, Persia. Sorry about that, thought you were someone else."

  "That startled me for a moment……I tried to use my key, but you left your key in, so I couldn't unlock it," She replied, as she walked in and hugged me.

  "Oh, my bad……I just feel extra lethargic today. I want to get as much rest as possible before my job tonight, so……," I explained, before carrying her in my arms over to the bed, laying her down and then got in next to her, wrapping my arms around her as I closed my eyes.

  "……wait, you just want to sleep? Is this why you canceled our training for today?"

  "Mhm. I sleep so much better with you here," I sighed contentedly, as I snuggled my face into her chest.

  "I-I'm not your security blanket or something, you know," She grumbled, but didn't show any signs of moving away, as her body relaxed and cuddled up closer.

  This is heaven……

  The following night, I was back in my target's house, hiding in the attic/ceiling.

  I had woken up at around 4 PM, got something to eat with Persia, and then just killed time till it got dark. It was around 8 PM now.

  I had showed up a bit early in order to observe the man's wife……okay, that came out kinda creepy. What I meant was, I wanted to see if there was any reason to suspect her. She hadn't seemed at all suspicious last night, but I had been mainly observing her husband, so I might have missed something.

  So, before I begin my search of their house, I'll keep an eye on her.

  Nothing of note happened for the next hour and a half or so.

  Then, right as she was about to head to bed……

  "Dear, I need to speak to you……you are staying up late almost every night now. And why do you always go to sleep in that study of yours? And I have noticed that you go out somewhere late at night every two weeks or so……is something the matter?" She asked her husband in a concerned voice.

  "Oh, I apologize for worrying you, my love. There is no cause for concern……I suppose I am still not over the loss of our nation, that's all."

  "That can't be all……if there is something that you are hiding, please tell me……I am growing quite worried."

  "I assure you that it is nothing……I lock myself in my study because my current work for this nation deals with some confidential information, I admit that I do feel somewhat paranoid at times due to the immense responsibility of safeguarding all this information. I promise, all that I am doing is for the good of our family."

  Except for that last bit, I could clearly tell that he was lying. Even his wife didn't look too convinced. With a disappointed look, she went to bed. And for the first time, the paranoia and fear emanating from the man turned into genuine guilt.

  That didn't matter to me though……

  Around 11 PM, I made my move.

  I crawled through the ceiling till I was above him in his study. I then flung a tranquilizer needle through the ceiling peephole I was watching him from, striking him on the shoulder and knocking him out, as he slumped forward in his chair.

  I then quietly snuck out of the ceiling and into the house by using the narrow staircase that connected the hall and attic. I then silently entered the rooms of his children, and then to the master bedroom where his wife was asleep.

  I pricked each of them with tranquilizer needles, knocking them out for a couple of hours. I then used a healing Spell Scroll to heal the area where I poked the needle into their skin, leaving no trace of any injury.

  Now, then……

  As my eyes adjusted to the dark, I began searching the house, going through every room from top to bottom. It was a fairly big house, so this'll take a while. I ran my fingers over the picture frames, searching for hidden clues or evidence.

  I quietly searched their closets and drawers, making sure not to leave anything out of place as I finished rummaging through them. After the bedrooms and hall were searched, I moved on to the bathrooms, looking for any loose tiles, searching behind the mirror, leaving no hair unturned.

  I found absolutely nothing……in the rest of the house, all that was left to search……was the study.

  I entered it and glanced at the clock.

  Hm, looks like the tranquilizer will be wearing off soon. I tied him to the chair he was on using my wire, before heading back to give his family another dose of tranquilizer.

  I then returned to the study, and began searching.

  Nothing in or on the desk, this house had tiles instead of floorboards, and they were all firmly planted on the floor, no signs that any had been lifted to hide something under. No hollowed out sections in the wall……nothing behind or along the picture frames……nothing inside the curtain poles or the hemlines……nothing inside the couch cushions……nothing inside the books on the bookshelf.

  Once I had searched everything in the room as thoroughly as possible, it was time to sink my teeth into the big fish……I finally moved the bookshelf and unlocked the safe.

  Several scrolls were inside.

  I unraveled them to take a look……information on the country's most influential and important people, information on some of the high ranking Adventurers, information on how the walls are guarded at night, among many other types of intel……the one that really caught my eye was a list of……location coordinates.

  Coordinates to the castle, the Guild, the Academy, and the stadium……and his wife had said that he had been going out late every two weeks or so, so there was a good chance that he had already leaked the coordinates of some other areas within the Rustlands.

  My chest tightened as I flashed back to the suicide bombers with Blood Crystal explosions during the destruction of Goldway, reminding of how Persia had almost died in an explosion.

  I went through the rest of the scrolls in the safe……no doubt about it, he was definitely a spy.

  Now, then……

  "Time to wake up," I remarked, zapping him.

  The tranquilizer in him had definitely worn off a while ago, which meant that he was just asleep.

  I covered my face with a face-mask and pulled up my hood as his eyes slowly opened.

  "Wha-!?" He began to yell, before quietening down as I moved a needle towards his neck.

  "Mr Iarto Payse……why don't you just relax……alright, I'll get straight to the point. You're a spy, and I've got questions. Don't make this harder than it needs to be," I stated bluntly, putting away the needle, "And don't bother struggling, this wire won't break too easily."

  I don't need to bother with indirect psychological tactics, if he refused to talk, I had the perfect card to play……

  "Wh-who are y-you? I, er……I h-have no idea what you're talking about, what d-do you mean by spy?"

  Wow, I had never seen someone play dumb in a less convincing way.

  "Oh, please……if you're not a spy, then I'm Narut- anyway, let me make this simple……if you refuse to answer my questions, scream for help, continue to play dumb, or piss me off in any way……I'll kill your family."

  That was a bluff……I wouldn't actually do that, and he'd have the upper hand if he figured that out……but given how much he was shaking and blubbering, I doubt he was thinking too logically right now.

  "……a-alright, fine. I-I'll tell you whatever you want to know, j-just please don't hurt my family."

  Good, it was crucial that I carried this out without having to resort to torturing him……unlike with the last guy, it'll be hard to cover up the bloodstains left by a mutilated body when he lives with his family.

  "Alright, first off……can you confirm that you are indeed a spy for The Valaque Empire?"

  "……yes. I had been leaking information about them for three months now."

  "Mind telling me why?"

  "……I……wh-what choice did I have? I-I saw what happened to my country……d-devastated in a matter of hours, and apparently was completely wiped off of the face of the earth soon after……I was approached by someone from The Empire……they offered me and my family a safe place after they take over this world……I……I was only doing it for the sake of my fam-!"

  I get it……anyone who had been in Goldway that day and survived would undoubtedly consider The Empire to be unstoppable. After all, Goldway had the reputation of being the second strongest nation in the world, and it had been brought to its knees in a matter of hours and completely wiped out without even being able to put up a fight.

  But, then, here's the thing……none of that would have been possible if it wasn't for the spies and inside men who had been supporting and leaking intel to the then-Magic Research Group. Valse Darrte's manipulations, sending out the majority of their S-Ranked Adventurers into an ambush, the location coordinates for the suicide bombers to teleport to……none of that would have been possible if Goldway didn't have rats and traitors in its midst……not to mention that they wouldn't have been able to set the Zombies free without the location coordinates……if they didn't have the coordinates, they couldn't have teleported the bombs to destroy the walls that were covering the Forbidden Zone barriers, let alone teleport in with the scrolls to deactivate the barriers.

  "So, that's their goal, huh……they want to take over the world. Talk about generic, amiright? Tell me, exactly what kind of information have you leaked so far?"

  "I……I've given them information on how the alliance negotiations with Silvland are going, as well as information on the abnormalities occurring due to the leak in the Vampire Forbidden Zone."

  "Anything else?"

  "……yes, the names and ranks of the recently graduated new Adventurers, all decisions made by the king and governing body, and……and schedules for when merchants and traders head out to export their wares to other countries."

  "I see……now then……what information can you give me on The Valaque Empire?"

  "N-nothing, I swear! I-I only give them information, I d-do not ask them any questions, they would be unlikely to tell me anything even if I did!"

  That, I could definitely believe.

  "What about the location coordinates……I saw a few areas listed in one of those scrolls, have you leaked any other coordinates to them?"

  "N-no……I was planning to give them the location coordinates during my next report to them, fifteen days from today."

  "Hm……so, they tell you when to next meet them and give them intel beforehand. How exactly do you leak the information? And do you know of any other spies besides yourself?"

  "No, I am not aware of any other spies……but I would assume that there are others. A-as for how I leak the information……I……I sneak out by climbing out the walls, they instructed me to walk about a kilometer into the road that leads to Goldway……I must then stand out in the open, and the person who collects the information I gathered stays hidden somewhere close by. He……he then knocks me out, takes the information from me, and when I wake up……I'm left with a scrap of paper with the next meeting date and time written on it."

  Hm, that was pretty cautious of them……so that meant that he had no idea what the person he was leaking the intel to even looked like.

  "Alright, that about covers everything……now, what to do with you?" I inquired, raising an eyebrow as I drew out a poisoned needle.

  "N-no, please don't kill me……I n-need to take care of my famil."

  "Shut up for a second, I'm thinking……"

  Time to set aside my emotions and think from a purely logical perspective……I closed my eyes and suppressed my emotions, my state of mind turning increasingly cold and calculating.

  Now, then……

  Could I use him as a double agent and leak false intel to The Empire through him……?

  Possibly, but……he clearly cracks easily under pressure, this was the most effortless interrogation I'd ever had to perform. And he was obviously a lot more afraid of The Empire than he was of me or anyone else in the Rustlands.

  The risk of him revealing that he had been compromised was far too high. And even if he tried to hide it, he was so easy to read that they would definitely be able to tell that he was hiding something. He was too unreliable to be used as a double agent, it was a risk that's not worth taking.

  Hm, what if I use him as bait to draw out the person from The Empire who was getting the information from him? No, that was highly risky too……at the moment, it was unlikely that The Valaque Empire would be making any significant moves against the Rustlands, at least not for a while.

  But if one of their members was suddenly taken out, it might provoke them into attacking us sooner……at least until the the ongoing negotiations with Silvland are finalized, this country needs to play it safe and stay on the defensive till things are settled on that front.

  I had made my decision.

  "I'm sorry to say……I'm going to have to kill you."

  "N-no, p-please……I-I'll never betray this country again, I swear……I s-see that I made a mistake, but I was just trying to protect the people that are precious to me-!"

  "So am I. And unfortunately for you, you protected the people precious to you by putting the people precious to me in danger……if you had continued to leak intel, this country and the people in it could potentially suffer the same fate that the people of your old country did……including the people who are important to me. Therefore……you're a liability, and must die. I have carefully considered it and thought it over……and the drawbacks of letting you live far exceed the benefits. Don't worry……I'll make your death a painless one," I remarked in an emotionless tone, staring at him with a blank expression as I swiftly inserted the poisoned needle into the back of his neck.

  As the life faded from his eyes and his body slumped, I unwound the wire around him, used a healing Spell Scroll to close up the tiny wound from the needle and a few scratches from the wire. This poison doesn't leave any traces in the bloodstream……there would be no way for a coroner to identify his cause of death.

  Since he lives with his family, it would attract too much attention if his body suddenly went missing, therefore……I'll leave it here. Since there wasn't so much as a scratch on his corpse, they would likely assume he had died of stress or something.

  I made sure I left no traces of my presence before leaving, sneaking out through an unlocked window in the hall……

  I arrived at the Ragiu mansion, and headed for the back. Once again, it looked like Erhtaph was awake, despite how late it was.

  I climbed up and tapped on the balcony glass door, before he opened it and let me in.

  "I was not expecting you for another day or two……are you already done investigating Mr Payse?"

  "Yeah……the investigation on him is complete."

  "And, how did it go?"

  I began to answer, before I heard footsteps approaching the room. I quickly snuck into the shadow of a large bookshelf by the corner of the room.

  The door then creaked open, and Misen poked his head it.

  "Father? I thought I heard multiple voices coming from in here," He yawned.

  His bedhead was kinda hilarious to look at, he had like five cowlicks. It looked especially funny with his black and white striped hair.

  "Er, no……I was simply muttering to myself. Return to your room……and I have told you many times, do not enter my study without knocking."

  After he left, I emerged from my hiding place.

  "Impressive, you noticed his approach well before he arrived, I can see why you are so efficient with the missions I assign you. Now, then……let us get down to business."

  I nodded and began reporting everything that had happened. I handed Erhtaph the scrolls containing intel I had found in the safe and taken.

  I doubted his wife or kids knew about it, so they wouldn't know if something was missing from it.

  "Hm……I agree with your decision to eliminate him over using him to leak false intel or as bait. The risk is far too great at the moment. It is quite fortunate that you were able to eliminate him before he could leak the location coordinates. However, we must remain vigilant, there may still be other spies lurking within our walls."

  "Yeah, I agree……it's hard to imagine that they have just the one incompetent spy. I'll start my investigation on the last current suspect tomorrow night. Let me know if you find anyone else worth investigating."

  "Indeed, I shall keep you informed."

  After I wrapped up my report, I excused myself and made my way back home.

  Tonight's investigation had been reminiscent of some of my old missions……the target had been guilty, but I hadn't enjoyed taking him out.

  In my old life, I always avoided missions where the target was a completely innocent person, but there were plenty of missions that I accepted where the targets were not really evil, they had just made some bad decisions, and taking them out had always been slightly conflicting……it had been the same with this job.

  Ever since the Rewind incident, I had definitely become more violent and sadistic, but……I was glad that part of me hadn't changed. Though, I suppose it doesn't really matter……it doesn't change the fact that I killed him……

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  Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to vote, and feel free to leave a comment, I appreciate any and all feedback and criticism! Also, check out my Instagram account @aimdaqs for posts relating to this book.