Chapter 139 TA's Secret
[Anti-fraud expert #11: Why be pessimistic? We clearly have such a strong foundation this time.]
No, it's just a habitual way of wanting to have a backup plan. This is a serious matter; what if it fails...?
[Anti-fraud expert #66: -- It might be difficult to enter the next cycle then.]
Number 66 suddenly appeared, with a dark cloud hanging above the alpaca's head.
How so?
Morofushi Kagemitsu was somewhat puzzled. After all, Anti-Fraud King had been reminding him to avoid falling into the time loop trap, so why was he saying he couldn't enter it now?
Is it because there isn't enough energy?
[Anti-Fraud King #205: Pretty much, because activating the time loop also requires energy. But according to current calculations, we still need to complete more than a dozen large-scale procurement tasks like that.]
As he spoke, the anti-fraud expert visualized the energy he had accumulated. It looked like a considerable amount, but according to No. 205's calculations, it was still not enough.
...That's a bit strange. Since I succeeded before, why didn't it work this time? Could it be because I received the information in advance this time, thus missing the mission trigger?
[Anti-fraud expert #11: Actually, we're not entirely sure either, but whether it's to have a backup plan or to get through smoothly, we now need to manage our finances like you did in the organization.]
Are we sure we want to manage our own energy like we manage an organization's finances?
Morobuchi Kagemitsu absolutely disagreed.
Over the years, he racked his brains to spend money on the organization, finally finding a way to slowly shift the money to those currencies in line with the greedy desires of capitalists. But these methods were bound to backfire eventually.
It's one thing for the organization to fall into such a trap, but why would you want to get yourself caught in it? Instead of trying to replicate the luck of getting rich overnight, you should think of ways to get more missions.
[Anti-Fraud Guru #214: These kinds of things aren't something we can control. We can't exactly hope our undercover agents get into trouble. To maximize our mission completion, we've been using incidents where people were only injured but didn't actually get into trouble to boost our KPIs.]
[Anti-fraud expert #148: Yeah, even those small tasks that used to be easy to complete are now too numerous for us.]
Is there really no other way to increase energy? If I remember correctly, I used to gain a lot of energy after coming out of those dangerous places.
[Anti-fraud expert #198: That's because the pressure or challenges you faced were far greater than what you were experiencing at that stage. The saying "the greater the risk, the greater the reward" applies here.]
[Anti-fraud expert #26: You can also consider the final settlement as "work injury compensation." After all, you were injured because of it... uh, I mean, it's a clean break! Fate has to settle things eventually.]
Work injury compensation.
Morofushi Kagemitsu discovered another way because of these words; perhaps he could use this to get more "subsidies"?
Poor number 26 got surrounded and given a beating again.
Several alpacas even came over to persuade him.
[Anti-Fraud Guru #11: This is too dangerous! You were lucky before, and it didn't significantly impact the future situation, which is why you didn't get into trouble. But now it's different; you've become involved in events that will influence the future.]
[Anti-Fraud Guru #66: Yes, escalating an incident requires fate to be watching you. At best, it will subtly inflict a dangerous debuff; at worst, it will easily attract the shadowy figure.]
[Anti-fraud expert #214: Haven't you heard the old saying, "There's always a way out"? Who knows, maybe we'll encounter some unexpected event in the future and make a fortune!]
Zhu Fujingguang looked at the little alpaca.
The little alpaca looked at him.
They looked at each other in bewilderment.
After a while, Zhu Fujingguang rubbed his eyes.
As it turns out, there's really no need to compete with inanimate artificial intelligence by staring at it.
...Forget it, I can't argue with them, so I'll try to find a way to increase the chances of triggering the mission.
Speaking of which, arranging a rendezvous on a similar mountain road last time could be a useful reference, but I wonder what kind of effect we'll achieve in "replicating" the scene...
[Anti-fraud expert #148: Yes, yes, yes! We can give it a try! Maybe we can spend more time in accident-prone areas, like airports, which is exactly three days later... no, forget it, what if something really happens to the plane and it can't be repaired? You'll really be stuck in the sky...]
[Anti-fraud expert #66: Why don't we wait until we get back to Japan? You and Sherry were on the same flight, both codenamed members of the organization. Who knows what kind of assassination attempt might happen after you land? The FBI is watching too closely in the US, making it difficult to act, but things could be different in Japan.]
Assassination... Have you forgotten about the police? Besides, although I'm going back to delegate power, I wouldn't act so soon after taking over. The boss is still here; they wouldn't dare to be so blatant.
[Anti-fraud expert #26: Huh? ...Wasn't Melo always unhappy? You stole her Tokyo this time!]
Number 26 awkwardly peeked out from the encirclement, not wanting to be constantly underestimated.
Melo wasn't so displeased as to want to harm me. Compared to the organization's power, she was probably more concerned about a certain characteristic being replaced...
Morofushi Kagemitsu silently shook his head. Having worked under her for so long, he knew exactly what kind of person Melo was. She'd turned a blind eye to all my actions; how could she be so intolerant?
[Anti-fraud expert #26: But after I made my speculation about Ethan Bentang's case a few days ago, you didn't refute it!]
What did you say at the time?
Number 66 stepped forward and repeated what Number 26 had said that day: "[Feeling your position is insecure? But you don't dare touch anyone else, so you're so eager to make a name for yourself?]"
Huh? Isn't that what you ramble on about when you watch political dramas?
Morofushi Kagemitsu still pretended to be surprised.
His performance was so realistic that even number 26 himself was somewhat shocked.
The alpaca was tiny, but it immediately split open on the spot.
[Anti-Fraud Guru #26: Did I misunderstand?!]
The other alpacas ignored him and went about their own business. Morofushi Kagemitsu smiled kindly on the surface, while you were thinking about how to better spend your money and get more missions after returning to Tokyo.
However, while No. 26's idea was outrageous, it also served as a reminder to herself that sometimes, teaming up with a former boss to cause trouble, especially when she had a disliked brandy interfering in her life in Kyoto, could often have unexpected effects...
The moment he had this thought, Melo called.
...?
He specifically calculated the time difference; it's 5 PM in New York now, but in Tokyo... it's 3 AM!
Melo would actually call me at this time!
He immediately became alert. The last time this woman called him late at night was because Ethan Hondou's identity and background had become problematic. Could she have stumbled upon some clue again this time?
Amidst the tearful background music of "It was all for nothing in the end," Morofushi Kagemitsu answered the phone with a grave expression.
"Hello, this is Asakawa Sora."
"Hey, we just talked a few days ago, is it necessary to be so polite to me?" Melo's voice came through, still in that familiar tone, "You don't need to put on that fake serious act in front of me."
Morofushi Kagemitsu quickly recalled the persona he had cultivated in front of Melo, and considering that he now held real power, it would be good to act a little arrogant. So, he adopted a more formal tone: "Is that so? I thought you had forgotten that there is someone here waiting for your call."
"Heh." Melo scoffed at this, leaning back on the comfortable sofa and saying, "Kong-kun, it seems you haven't finished investigating the matter I asked you to..."
Did Melo give any other instructions?
Morofushi Kagemitsu quickly recalled his conversation with Mello. Apart from Ethan Hondou, there seemed to be nothing else. Could it be that the information about Black Guest hadn't fooled her?
[Anti-fraud expert #205: That shouldn't be the case. If she could see through the information we provided, she wouldn't be calling you now.]
I think so too, but aside from mentioning those two things, she didn't...
Wait, she did mention others, including Vermouth!
Although Morofushi Kagemitsu had grasped this glimmer of inspiration, he couldn't be completely certain, and tentatively asked, "That? I mentioned it in the report, don't you think that's enough?"
“Of course not.” Melo was too satisfied, his tone lowered. “Both reports were written exactly the same, with no new breakthroughs at all.”
It seems it really is Vermouth. Of the two reports, only the description of Vermouth remained unchanged.
Sure enough, this woman was always on Melo's mind.
As for why Melo didn't explain herself clearly, he could only assume it was just her way of teasing him.
Fortunately, he happened to have some new information about Vermouth. However, he planned to use this information to elicit more secrets, so he switched to riddle mode: "The information about her, like these other things, is just a trivial little secret."
He deliberately emphasized the word "secret," both to indicate its connection to Vermouth and to subtly remind Melo that it was time to redeem the "big secret" he had promised to tell her.
Melo stretched on the other end of the phone and said casually, "Go ahead and say it," seemingly not taking the information he had obtained as a prank seriously.
But he knew she was very interested.
"She's probably about to meet her Angel."
"...? Ha, hehe~ haha..."
Even through the screen, Morofushi Hiromitsu could feel Mello's surprise and...mockery?
Before he could even process whether her reaction contained any deeper emotions, a casual remark from the woman made his eyes widen in surprise:
"I thought you found out she had spent some time on the island..."
Vermouth, it turns out she used to live on an island.
However, considering her unusual physical condition and attitude towards experiments, this conclusion is not surprising.
He silently calmed himself down, just about to press further, when Melo's drawn-out second half of her sentence delivered another blow:
"However, she's different from someone like me who was born on an island~"
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