Tracking Down the Goodwill Delegation
December of X373
More than two months had passed since the prisoner exchange. During this time, all the wounded soldiers had recovered to full health, and the food supplies lost by Sordil and his men had been adequately replenished. With their fighting strength restored, Sordil began to arrange for personnel to engage in skirmishes with the Western Continent forces, using this opportunity to probe the enemy's combat capabilities in order to find a chance to drive the enemy out of Ishgar.
But the enemy seemed to have become much smarter overnight. No matter how Sordil tried to lure them, they wouldn't step out of the camp, let alone risk venturing into the heart of Ishgar to get food.
Left with no other option, Sordil had to send men through the Teleportation Array to ambush the enemy's fishing fleet in the sea. However, the enemy seemed to have a knack for predicting their moves, always deploying a large force to wait for them. After several such attempts, not only did they fail to disrupt the enemy's supply lines, but they also allowed the enemy to make a fortune, truly a case of losing both their resources and their lives.
By this point, Sordil gradually realized something was amiss. If this had happened once or twice, it could have been a coincidence, but it happened every time, which couldn't be explained by mere coincidence. The only explanation for this phenomenon now was that someone was tipping off the Western Continent.
Having figured this out, Sordil immediately summoned the members of the special operations squad and instructed them to conduct a private investigation of the troops on their respective fronts to see if they could uncover any traitors. He himself, along with Yelibell, conducted a covert investigation of the central battlefield, focusing on the soldiers who had been captured, as well as members of the Seventh Squadron and the 1st Division.
However, after everyone compiled their investigation results, it turned out that there was no traitor within the military. After ruling out the possibility of an inside job, Sordil shifted his focus to outsiders. At this point, the only group of people who had been to the front lines became Sordil's next target.
So, Sordil led Diphiya, Murellia, Mevajena, Yelibell to Philiers to investigate the whereabouts of the comfort delegation and their true purpose in going to the front lines.
Philiers, Silver Moon Bar
underground Secret Room
Looking at the files stacked neatly ten meters high in the Secret Room, Sordil praised Murellia beside him, "Sister Murellia, you are really amazing. You can handle so many things in such an orderly manner."
"Young Master, these documents were not compiled by me alone, but by everyone in the Silver Moon Society. It is the result of everyone's joint efforts."
Hearing Sordil's praise, Murellia's cheeks remained rosy as she proudly spoke.
"Haha! That's all thanks to Sister Murellia's excellent management; that's why everyone is so efficient at work."
"Not at all! It is because you, young master, are good at recognizing and employing people that the Silver Moon Society has reached its current scale."
Just as the two were about to continue their mutual flattery, Mevajena, unable to bear it any longer, interrupted them.
"Gentlemen, I recall that we came to Philiers this time to investigate the matter of the condolence delegation, not to award prizes to outstanding groups, right?"
"Yeah, bro!"
With the atmosphere ruined, Sordil had no choice but to stop his praise and change the goods to a guide for investigating the traitor.
"Sister Mevajena is right. We should now focus our attention on the investigation and condolence mission. So let's talk about the next course of action."
"Brother, what's there to talk about? Let's just storm into the palace, pin that king to the ground, and give him a good beating. I don't believe he'll dare deny the real purpose of sending the delegation."
Upon hearing Diphiya's simple and direct method, Sordil broke out in a cold sweat, with several dark lines appearing on his left temple, revealing his current state of mind. Considering various factors, Sordil immediately rejected the idea and turned to ask Mevajena and the others for their opinions. Suddenly, his vision blurred, for he realized that Mevajena and the others seemed to appreciate the method.
In order to ensure that their actions would not be discovered and would not disrupt the stability of the United Front Alliance, Sordil had no choice but to bring out the method he had prepared, so as to prevent everyone from being led astray by Diphiya.
"While Diphiya's method might get the king to answer our questions, we can't determine whether what he says is true or false, so we can't use it." (Why explain? If we reject Miss Diphiya's plan without explaining, even if Sordil had nine lives, he wouldn't survive!)
"Oh, I understand! Young Master, you want me to join forces with Sister Mevajena to secretly investigate this matter through the Silver Moon Society and Drunken Sky Snow."
"Heh! This is only part of my plan, not the whole thing!"
"A part of it?"
"You heard me right, it's just a part of it. Actually, I plan to split into three groups this time, to gather information from three different channels, and then compare the information to confirm its authenticity."
"Brother, what exactly should we do?"
"First, my two sisters, Mevajena and Murellia, will mobilize all the forces of the Silver Moon Society and Drunken Sky Snow to attack the Black Robe's Vitus Restaurant, capture Black Robe, and extract information about the comfort delegation from him. Second, my sister Yelibell and I will infiltrate the Prime Minister's residence to obtain information about the comfort delegation from the Prime Minister. Third, Diphiya will go to find Gould and then go with him to the palace to try to get information from the Queen and Belmod."
"After dark, we'll return here to gather information and uncover the true nature of this delegation!"
"Young master, rest assured, my sister Mevajena and I will definitely capture the Black Robe alive, pry open his mouth, and get the information you need."
"Brother, I won't let you down either!"
"Alright! Let's get started!"
"Clear!"
Vitus Restaurant, second floor
"Bang"
The door was violently pushed open, and the next second, a man dressed as a waiter rushed into the room, shouting loudly to the startled Phile, "Lord Black Robe, something terrible has happened! The Silver Moon Society and Drunken Sky Snow have suddenly gathered all their forces and are attacking us here!"
Upon hearing the newcomer's words, Phile, who had been looking shocked and angry, turned pale. He strode up to the newcomer, grabbed him by the collar, and pulled him up.
"You mean, the Silver Moon Society and the Drunken Sky Snow Society have joined forces and are coming to attack us?"
"Yes... yes! Even the leaders of those two families came, saying they want to destroy our Wundest Guild."
If anyone else dared to say that, Phile would definitely turn them into a pile of minced meat, because he, Phile, could do it! But now it was the mastermind behind the Silver Moon Society and Drunken Sky Snow saying it, so Phile could only run away with his tail between his legs, because that person... no, that being, was someone he could not afford to provoke.
"Old Seven, go down immediately and tell all the brothers to come back and hold the restaurant. I'm going out to get reinforcements right away!"
"Yes, Lord Black Robe!"
After the Old Seven left, Phile took out all his hidden stash from the secret compartment and put it into a black bag. Then, he slung the bag over his shoulder and jumped into a secret passage hidden in the wall.
"I have to get out of here quickly, or I'll be caught by that scoundrel!"
After muttering something to himself, Phile quickened his pace, hoping to break through the encirclement and escape Sordil's clutches. However, this was merely wishful thinking, not harsh reality. So, as he emerged from the secret passage, he ran right into Mevajena was blocking his way.
The shock was so intense that Phile's nerves snapped. He collapsed to the ground, screaming in terror, "You... you... how did you get here? This... this isn't real! This isn't real!"