Chapter 2 002

Later, inside the Armed Detective Society's meeting room.

"Well, that's the situation." Leaning back in his chair, Dazai Osamu casually spread his hands—"One blue and one brown heterochromatic eye, his special ability manifests as sand-like shapeshifting and instantly burrowing into and moving through soil and rocks, typical French appearance and accent..."

"This is a very famous figure among mercenaries, the kind that everyone knows—the master of infiltration, Romain Rolland."

“Eh, but,” Jun'ichirō Tanizaki raised his hand to indicate that he wanted to speak, “if he really is as good at disguise and infiltration as rumored, how come anyone knows what he really looks like?”

Naomi Tanizaki immediately caught up with Junichiro Tanizaki's train of thought and exclaimed "Ah!" in surprise.

"Right, if that's the case, then shouldn't it be a Faceless Man whose true appearance no one can know?"

"Oh, this is for reputation."

Raising his bandaged hand, Dazai Osamu mysteriously drew a circle in the air.

"For mercenaries, reputation is a very important thing. After all, it's the most basic prerequisite for a mercenary to get a mission."

"His appearance was just a signboard for him, the kind used to tell employers, 'You're looking for me,' and some have even speculated that this so-called 'original appearance' was actually something he deliberately altered to create a certain image."

As he spoke, Dazai Osamu let out a very exaggerated sigh.

"However, judging from the reaction this time, the face is indeed real. I had even imagined a mysterious person wearing more than twenty masks."

Who would believe that you never even thought that way?

Besides, who would go out carrying more than twenty masks?

“Dazai, no matter what, no one would go out wearing more than twenty masks.” Kunikida Doppo pushed up his glasses—“However, two or three is certainly possible.”

Ah, it seems Mr. Kunikida believes it.

Just as the Tanizaki siblings were trembling with fear at Dazai Osamu's increasingly unrestrained smile, Fukuzawa Yukichi suddenly spoke up, attracting everyone's attention.

"Grand Chancellor, what is the extent of the damage?"

"It's practically nothing."

The Tanizaki siblings shuddered once again.

"Huh?"

"Thanks to Ranpo, when I went in, Romain Rolland hadn't found anything useful yet—because the database was just too messy."

—When Edogawa Ranpo was going through his documents before leaving home, he messed up all of them.

"So Mr. Ranpo already knew all along?"

Unlike Tanizaki and his companion, who were still shocked by Edogawa Ranpo's prophetic abilities, Yosano Akiko, who was already used to it, was considering something else entirely.

"If we're talking about mercenaries, who hired Romain Rolland to investigate the Armed Detective Agency?"

“If he were hired, he wouldn’t have come over so casually. Romain Rolland isn’t some second-rate mercenary who relies solely on superpowers.”

"Even without superpowers, he's a top-tier infiltrator."

"Then what..."

The moment after Dazai Osamu so easily saw through the problem, Tanizaki Jun'ichirō found the answer for himself.

After all, he's Mr. Dazai!

"Well, because they were looked down upon, they probably felt that a small detective agency in such a small place was not worth paying attention to."

A true and irrefutable reason!

Jun'ichirō Tanizaki inexplicably became dejected.

"Judging from this, the perpetrator this time is UN, right?"

"UN" pushed up his glasses, Kunikida Doppo's expression serious—"I thought it was just an urban legend."

UN is said to be a pan-global criminal alliance, whose members are all high-risk fugitives who have not been caught, and is known worldwide as an urban legend.

It's roughly on par with Slender Man.

“Yeah, a global criminal alliance or something.” Naomi Tanizaki, who was also sitting in the conference room, scratched her face awkwardly. “What do you mean by being able to move freely all over the world, having members who are all the most heinous criminals, and having the combined power to destroy the world? That’s just a setting that only third-rate novels would adopt, right? Like the North American group or the Chinese Library Association, it’s just an urban legend, isn’t it?”

It doesn't necessarily have to be third-rate. For example, works like "Seven" have this kind of setting.

"The UN is not global; to be precise, it can be considered a European organization. However, because it often operates in other countries, it is mistakenly perceived as a global organization." Fukuzawa Yukichi, arms crossed, sat at the head of the conference table, his expression neither serious nor unserious—after all, he always was—"It's difficult to determine their specific strength, since their members and numbers are all unknown. But it's certain that they are all criminals."

"Also, the group and the library are real."

"Eh eh eh!!"

Naomi Tanizaki and Jun'ichirō Tanizaki were both stunned.

"In terms of members, the UN has two confirmed members, or at least two permanent staff members."

"A master of assassination and infiltration among mercenaries. A shapeshifter known as 'Hundred Faces,' said to possess the most sophisticated intelligence-gathering abilities, ensuring his abilities remain undetected even before he is sold."

"A deserter from the Clock Tower, a mortal with the power to grant death anything... 'The Angel of Death' Agatha Christie."

As he was introducing Agatha, Fukuzawa Yukichi paused involuntarily and looked at Yosano Akiko sitting to the side.

Yosano Akiko also noticed Fukuzawa Yukichi's action, and shook her head slightly to indicate that it was alright.

Fukuzawa Yukichi breathed a sigh of relief, then began to explain again.

"Everything about the UN is unknown. According to the information circulating outside, Agatha Christie, while still working as a Clockmaker, was once sent to hunt down 'something' and encountered Romain Rolland during that mission."

"What happened after that is completely unknown, but the generally accepted account is that Agatha killed the Clockwork's assistant and made some kind of agreement with Romain Rolland. After that, they all disappeared together, and when they reappeared... it was their first appearance in the UN."

Listening to Fukuzawa Yukichi's explanation, Tanizaki Jun'ichirō seemed somewhat at a loss.

"Isn't this just a case of the whole situation being unclear?"

“That’s just how it is.” Dazai Osamu took over the topic with a smile. “After all, the UN is a completely covert organization. If all the information could be laid out, there would be no need for discussion at all.”

Edogawa Ranpo, with a chocolate bar in his mouth, glanced at Dazai Osamu.

"You might as well explain it as 'after all, they're anonymous.'"

"Anonymous"

"UN! UN!" Naomi Tanizaki, realizing what was happening, excitedly tugged at Jun'ichirō Tanizaki's clothes. "It's UNKNOWN!"

Naomi Tanizaki is currently in a state of excitement upon learning that the urban legend has come true, and her tone has become much more excited.

"But why would an organization like the UN come here to steal data?"

"Of course, it's because they didn't come here specifically; they investigated all the major organizations in Yokohama."

Edogawa Ranpo, carrying a pile of snacks, remained as nonchalant as ever. However, what he said was, as always, certain and astonishing.

"Romain Rolland had already been to the Special Abilities Special Cosmos before coming here, so the Port Mafia is definitely next."

Should we warn the Port Mafia?

"No need, you might as well get me a manga instead." Edogawa Ranpo picked up a piece of chocolate and popped it into his mouth, then picked up a manga book that was almost finished reading and lying to the side.

"It's already too late."