I Became the Servant of the Blind Wicked Woman

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My mind became cluttered. The shy kid standing slightly behind the Auditor General, raising her hand hesitantly, was indeed the Niobe I knew.

But why is Salmosia, this old man, popping up here? The only time I've seen him before was in the personnel files I found when I infiltrated the Blasphemia archives.

Salmosia first inspected the layers of my skin tissue. The same procedure they performed when entering the Charlotte Branch. Since I had arranged with Divius to wear artificial skin in advance, there was no risk of being discovered.

"Do you remember the address you used to report Nardanit's betrayal?"

"It was a random number address hidden within the database at BS 52: 5. It's a dedicated address linked directly to the Auditor General's office and is updated daily, so it doesn't have a fixed format."

Salmosia nodded vigorously and extended his hand.

I accepted the handshake. Thankfully, the ring on Salmosia's hand didn't suddenly activate a curse meant for assassination.

"I've been eagerly waiting to meet you. It's a rare occurrence to reunite with an inspector whose whereabouts had become unclear… Truly befitting our Auditor Office's top agent."

"You flatter me. I've only managed to survive by sheer luck, barely tracking down the traces of the traitors."

A few things became clear from the current interaction. Either Salmosia knew about the excuse I fed to Niobe—that "this face is just a disguise for infiltration"—or the idea that secret inspectors often change their appearance during covert operations was so commonplace that he didn't question L13's altered appearance.

I also didn't sense any other presences aside from Niobe and Salmosia within my line of sight. This meeting wasn't a trap set by Blasphemia to capture me.

Salmosia took a seat in one of the chairs in the safehouse and motioned for me to sit across from him. I shook my head.

***

"Thank you for the offer, but I'll remain standing. This area is an Argyrion activity zone, and you, Auditor General, are a key figure. It is my duty to be prepared for any potential attack from them."

A rather heightened sense of caution. Salmosia appreciated L13's stance. This was also a kind of test, to assess whether the agent, despite working independently, had forgotten his responsibilities.

So far, nearly half of the information Blasphemia had gathered about Argyrion had come through L13. That level of vigilance might very well be the reason why L13 had managed to survive perilous espionage missions and return in one piece.

"Very well. Then listen while standing. As you mentioned to Niobe, the end-timers within the Ten Towers pose a significant risk. However, it's still within a manageable range."

Since L13 was almost single-handedly handling the collection of information on Argyrion, the other inspectors had gained some leeway to focus on new tasks.

Even when they responded to tips about Argyrion's presence and deployed to the scene, they often came up empty-handed, but it was far better than having to gather all the information from scratch.

Salmosia used that extra time to initiate an internal audit. It was a move to weed out the infiltrators hiding within Blasphemia. The audit was so widely announced that the traitors had been forced into hiding.

"The Auditor Office is fully committed to filtering out the undesirable elements. I know the burden of investigating Argyrion is heavy, but hang in there. The time for our counterattack is near."

"When you say 'near,' do you mean there's a threat in the 'unmanageable range' preventing us from launching an immediate counterattack?"

L13's response was swift. His ability to pick up on the double meanings hidden within the statements was impressive.

He had likely been tracking Argyrion for several years. It's a job that required more survival and combat skills than rhetoric or eloquence. I had worried that his social skills might have deteriorated, but that concern was clearly unfounded.

Salmosia, inwardly pleased, subtly lowered his voice.

"Yes. There are some we cannot deal with directly."

Orthes began to mentally sift through candidates that Blasphemia would find challenging to confront. Blasphemia might operate in the shadows, but its influence was by no means insignificant. Since its primary role was to hunt down superstitions, it couldn't exert much authority over mages, but on the flip side, if any organization even remotely connected to superstition was involved, even the most prominent magic towers would have to bow down.

'Because Blasphemia is a secret organization, it couldn't reveal its true identity in most situations. When public credibility was necessary, didn't they operate under the guise of Panoptes?'

Panoptes means "all-seeing," which is to say, observers. They are agents of the Ten Towers responsible for tasks akin to public safety or policing in the magical society.

In fact, within the true organizational structure of the Ten Towers, Blasphemia was a subordinate entity of Panoptes. Thus, the disguise of being associated with Panoptes wasn't entirely false.

There was another secret organization within Panoptes dedicated to maintaining the Ten Towers' system.

*Eidolons.* They were the ones who prevented extra-dimensional invasions and corrected the end-timers.

"Are you referring to Eidolons? I thought they wouldn't interfere since Argyrion's traitors are from our faction."

"No. They are actively cooperating. Even in the Panoptes meetings attended by the elders of the Ten Towers, they've thrown their support behind us. The problem lies with Argos."

*Argos* was in charge of tasks typically associated with law enforcement and public safety. Unlike Eidolons or Blasphemia, Argos was an officially recognized and non-secret police force.

They were responsible for identifying and issuing warrants for magical criminals and officially punishing massive acts of treason that exceeded the covert operations capabilities of Blasphemia or Eidolons.

When people think of Panoptes' surveillance and criminal apprehension duties, it's usually Argos's work they're envisioning.

"Argos? Isn't this all within the scope of duties approved by the Ten Towers? How could they possibly dare!"

"Of course, they cannot interfere openly. But…"

Salmosia threw a black cube onto the table. It looked like a die, but a hologram unfolded above it. It was a map marking recent areas where Argyrion had been reported to appear.

"We've uncovered a troubling fact while re-investigating these reported Argyrion sightings. Several ruins that Blasphemia was monitoring have had their seals damaged."

Orthes's expression stiffened. Was it Hydra Corporation? The Divine Cult? It was inevitable that their looting attempts would eventually be discovered, but he hadn't expected it to be this soon.

"Continuous sabotage has occurred during the periods when our forces were diverted to track Argyrion, leaving gaps in surveillance. It's clear that Argos is behind this."

Salmosia didn't notice Orthes's change in expression. He was too focused on his own narrative, and Orthes's slight smile remained unshaken.

Not many people could discern the emotional shifts hidden within Orthes's narrow-eyed gaze.

"Do you have any reason to suspect Argos instead of the superstition followers?"

"Isn't it obvious? How could the superstition followers know the details of our operations and systematically sabotage the sealed sites near our operation areas?"

It was a confident reply. Orthes sensed Blasphemia's underlying conviction regarding the Cult of the Vanished Gods. They were certain that the cults, which had been hunted for the past century, couldn't possibly challenge them.

Argos, Eidolons, and Blasphemia were all part of Panoptes. To prevent clashes and ensure smooth cooperation, high-ranking officials shared operational information, albeit selectively.

"Our internal traitors can't move freely due to the audit, so they're excluded. Eidolons are focused on other issues and don't have the resources to conduct such widespread sabotage. That leaves only Argos."

Orthes paid close attention to the high-level information Salmosia was sharing. If Eidolons were mobilized, it meant that there were significant developments in the extra-dimension. It could even indicate magical signs pointing to the Mage King's return.

"I hesitate to ask, but does Argos have any reason to undermine us?"

"Ha. They've always been greedy bastards. They probably want to seize control of all of Panoptes for themselves. Some of the end-timers even helped incite the chaos during the Elysion terror attack. They likely want to pin all the blame on us, considering that Argyrion's eroders were once part of our ranks."

"I see…"

'It was either the Divine Cult or our company that investigated the ruins.'

It was a rather forceful assumption. Although internal power struggles within Panoptes were intense, they were all ultimately part of the Ten Towers. It was unlikely they would blatantly obstruct each other's operations.

However, since Blasphemia's suspicions were now directed elsewhere, Orthes decided not to argue.

"Or perhaps…"

At that moment, Salmosia's voice dropped even lower, to the point where it was almost inaudible.

"There might be internal traitors within their ranks as well, much higher up than the low-level guards at Elysion."

'Aha.'

Salmosia was deep in suspicion.

Blasphemia had discovered high-ranking traitors within its ranks, such as Branch Manager Nardanit.

This revealed that Argyrion's influence was powerful enough to sway

not just low-level members but also high-ranking officials.

At the same time, the security personnel at Elysion, who were under Argos's command, had also betrayed them.

It became evident that Argyrion had managed to plant traitors not only in Blasphemia but also in other parts of Panoptes.

So how should one interpret the current situation, where precise sabotage has been occurring at a level that could only be possible with Blasphemia's operational information?

Salmosia concluded that "end-timers operating as high-ranking officials within Argos are moving to obstruct Blasphemia."

"I understand why you wished to meet me. I'll do my utmost to uncover the infiltrators."

A new opportunity for chaos had presented itself on its own.

To read over 260 fully translated episodes, patreon.com/Denji02