Between Your Letter and My Reply

Chapter 150
『 Translator – Divinity 』

“What? Why the boring reaction again?”

Lilliana narrowed her eyes, then, seeming to understand why Damian was acting that way, crossed her arms and turned away.

“Forget it. I’m going in.”

Lilliana walked into the atelier without even acknowledging Damian’s goodbye.

After seeing her enter, Damian found a payphone nearby. He inserted a coin and made a call.

—Bluebird Service Center, how may I help you?

Hearing the operator’s voice on the other end, Damian said in a business-like tone, “Customer number 18999. Code: Mike, Bravo, Delta, Romeo, Hotel. I’d like to request a background check on someone. Is it possible to get it done today?”

—Confirmed. Hello, sir. Please tell me who the subject is, and I’ll guide you after checking.

“Eugene Loud. Age 22, red hair, green eyes, height approximately 180cm. Place of birth is probably Kelta in Noster County… I think.”

—Ah, someone from the Loud family?

“Is it a family you know?”

—They’ve relinquished their title now, but they used to hold the rank of count, so those in the know would recognize the name. Alright, I understand. If it’s the Louds, it won’t be difficult to investigate. When do you need the information by?

Damian glanced at his wristwatch and replied, “Within four hours.”

—…Isn’t that a bit unreasonable?

The person on the other end complained that the time constraint was too tight, but Damian replied in an indifferent voice,

“Why would I pay you a hefty sum if you can’t even do this much?”

Damian had contracts with three different informants.

Among them, ‘Bluebird Service Center’ was the one Annette had introduced him to.

It originated from the intelligence activities of the independence activists. During their activities, they had already planted informants in various fields, and that network had continued to this day.

So, with their nationwide network, they had the advantage of being able to obtain the desired information quickly.

Besides that, there was ‘Tinkle’s Encyclopedia,’ which Soliel had introduced him to. They mainly investigated mythical creatures, wizards, and other beings from the mythical age.

However, to obtain information from them, he had to pay double the price compared to other informants. And they had so many restrictions on what information they could provide…

Damian wanted to switch informants, but he didn’t have the nerve to ask Soliel to introduce him to another one.

The last one, ‘Verus,’ was a company established by one of Damian’s comrades from his military days. This was the informant he had been dealing with before Annette introduced him to Bluebird.

Verus was still a small company, so it didn’t handle a wide range of information, and its information capabilities were inferior to Bluebird’s, but its area of expertise was a bit different. It mainly dealt with military intelligence.

However, since it was still in its early stages of business, every request was precious. Perhaps because of that, they did whatever Damian asked and provided him with information on various subjects.

Anyway, the ‘Bluebird Service Center’ was a highly competent company, and despite their complaints, they would bring Damian the information he wanted within four hours.

—Understood. We’ll do our best, but some information that takes time to investigate might be omitted. Is that okay?

“That’s fine. Please gather as much information as you can within four hours.”

—We’ll try our best, sir.

“I’ll be waiting at the outdoor cafe in Gilbert Square.”

—Then we’ll see you within four hours, sir. Thank you for your continued patronage.

Damian rubbed his eyes after ending the call.

Although he maintained a calm composure in front of Lilliana, after the kidnapping incident, everyone who approached her seemed suspicious to him.

And hearing that the Louds were nobles made it even harder for him to stay still. So his nerves were on edge.

This was also a kind of illness. But he had boasted to Lilliana that she could trust him, so he had to appear unconcerned. That would put her mind at ease.

Damian ordered a coffee and sat down at the outdoor cafe he had mentioned to the informant.

With Lilliana not in front of him, he drank his coffee with a clearly unpleasant expression.

After some time, someone sat down across from him.

“Excuse me, mind if I join you?”

“As you wish.”

Damian checked his wristwatch. Four hours had already passed.

“Today’s a good day for bluebirds to fly, isn’t it?”

At the other person’s words, Damian raised his eyes and looked at the man sitting across from him. The man, with his fedora pulled low, tapped the table three times with his finger.

Damian mimicked him and tapped the table three times. The man had ordered iced tea, as a glass with ice and a drink was served to him.

The informant from Bluebird that Damian met was always the same person. A man in his 40s with short straw-colored hair and brown eyes. He looked so ordinary and nondescript that he seemed like any other citizen, completely unrelated to the underworld.

That was the outward appearance of ‘Tilman Fissler.’

But his true identity was an informant with a mind packed with information, rivaling anyone else.

Most of his work involved gathering information. As a result, he also had to do things like tailing, surveillance, and infiltration, and he was an expert in those areas.

This was the man who was close to Annette and provided her with information.

“It wasn’t Eugene Loud or his parents, but his uncle who held the title of count. As I explained over the phone, they’ve relinquished their title now, but the Loud family was originally of the nobility.”

Damian looked at Tilman with cold eyes. He was still unable to hide his displeasure.

“Is there no possibility that he’s a royalist?”

Tilman shrugged at Damian’s question.

“There were no signs of that. In the first place, they’ve relinquished their noble title, and they seem to be the type to go with the flow of the times without any other ambitions.”

“Then you’re saying he’s not part of the ‘Lion’s Heart’? There were no signs of him deliberately approaching Lilliana? Or the possibility of him being bribed like in the previous incident?”

“Ah… about that. The Loud family’s trading company is involved in a business venture with Marquis Sutton. It seems like Marquis Sutton invested in it.”

“So you’re saying they’re on the same side and up to something?”

“Well, on the surface, they just seem to be business partners, but we’ll have to look into it further.”

“…”

Damian stared at Tilman, who flinched and hurriedly spoke, “No, I mean, I told you that information that can’t be found within four hours might be omitted. Until all the information is gathered, I can only tell you what I don’t know based on speculation.”

“Is that so? Then do you think it’s safe?”

“Eugene Loud’s parents are merchants rather than nobles. They’re not the type to benefit from the revival of the caste system. And there’s no significant interaction between Eugene Loud and his uncle. Of course, this family gathering was organized by Eugene Loud’s uncle. But this doesn’t happen often, so it’s unlikely that Eugene Loud is involved with the royalists.”

“But if they’re in a business relationship where Marquis Sutton is an investor, wouldn’t there be a hierarchical relationship?”

“Marquis Sutton has invested in more than one or two businesses. It’s unreasonable to assume that all those business owners are in his pocket, wouldn’t you agree? So, to give you the conclusion… he’s clean.”

“So it’s safe to let my guard down for now?”

“Based on the information I’ve gathered, he seems to be nothing more than Miss Carnell’s friend. I think unnecessary vigilance will only waste your energy.”

“I understand. Thank you for letting me know. For now, please gather as much information as possible and let me know, in addition to what you’ve already given me.”

Damian handed him folded bills across the table, and Tilman gladly accepted them and put them in his pocket.

“Then I’ll come back if there’s more information after further investigation.”

“Please do.”

After Tilman left, Damian sipped his coffee, organizing his thoughts.

He had heard from the informant that Eugene Loud wasn’t suspicious, but Damian still felt uneasy.

He had disliked that Eugene Loud guy from the start. Why? He just disliked him. Just because.