NOVEL NEXT Chapter 44: A K I R A
[Infiltrate huh.]
[That’s right.]
The man who had talked to “her” at the dimly lit bar counter raised his glass.
It has long been said in fictional novels that Japan is a spy paradise without an anti-espionage law.
In reality, espionage activities by foreign powers in Japan are monitored by police agencies such as the Public Security Police and the Foreign Affairs Office. Except for a few Asian activities, espionage activities in Japan aren’t active because the benefits don’t outweigh the costs of espionage in Japan, which is losing influence in the international community by the day as its economic and national power is in decline.
Under such an international situation and a solution to save scarce budgets, freelance agents like “her” are outsourced to do the dirty work locally.
As usual, “she” met and talked with the person in charge of outsourcing operations at a bar on a back street in Roppongi, where many foreigners frequented.
Considering the risk of communications being intercepted, in the end, talking face-to-face in a noisy place like this is faster and keeps the conversation confidential.
In fact, the person in charge of this place had changed three times, but “she” had never been caught by the authorities in the past 5 years and 14 maneuvering operations.
However, the subject that was brought to “her” this time was an extremely troublesome one.
[You want me to go into the field? You must be kidding.]
“She” specializes in face-to-face social intelligence gathering, in which “she” establishes a friendly relationship with the subject and extracts information from them without their knowledge.
When it comes to entering and directly infiltrating the field, the risk is an order of magnitude higher than dealing with a specific person on the street.
[If you want information, hacking should be sufficient, right? If you want something like analog information, you could bribe or blackmail an employee, or you could simply use a satellite to count the number of cars going in and out.]
Foreigners like “her”, especially beautiful women, stand out.
While their appearance is often useful for interpersonal maneuvering, it’s also a disadvantage when it comes to hiding or escaping.
For someone who is so memorable, infiltration missions are too risky.
[In the first place, why should I put my body in the line for people who will wash their hands off and pretend it never happened if I fail?]
If the operation were to be exposed, she would have to flee outside the country immediately, but freelance operatives must provide their own means of escape, and unlike in Europe, which is connected to other countries by land, it’s difficult to escape from an island nation.
And if “she” is caught by the Japanese authorities, she is aware that no agency would be so crazy as to negotiate with the government and take her into custody.
[The clients for this time’s mission are quite serious about this matter. The reward is great.]
[……How big?]
“She” had already lost interest in accepting this assignment, but “she” asked out of curiosity.
In the first place, the reason why “she” is continuing this dangerous business is because of “her” innate curiosity for information, which is also a part of her personality.
No matter how many times “she” made mistakes, this disposition of “hers” couldn’t be cured.
[200,000 Euros. Depending on the situation, they’re willing to offer up to 800,000 Euros.]
Hearing that the proceeds will be several times higher than the market price, she gasped.
[……Are they really going to bring out that amount of money? I don’t want to be set up as a stupid decoy, lured by a high fee that won’t even be paid.]
[I don’t know about that. However, if you accept the request, you will receive half of it, 100,000 Euros, as provisions.]
[……Is that so?]
[Moreover, they’ll back you up with information. They said they will provide maps of the area and the buildings, schedules of visitors, contact information for inside help, explosives for disruptions, guns for assassinations…… everything you need.]
[What about escape routes?]
The balance of “her” curiosity and willpower began to tip sharply when “she” heard the terms.
The man, perhaps sensing this, answered with increasing seriousness.
[……That would also be prepared.]
[I would need more than one escape route. Not only from the field, but also an escape route out of the country.]
[You’re very thorough, aren’t you?]
[It’s not just that. Ensure that I would also get legal protection in case of arrest.]
[……That isn’t something that would be easy. However, I will try to negotiate with them.]
Hearing the man’s response, a difficult expression on his face, “she” folded her arms and pressed for answers.
[Anyway, it’s not like I’m the only one mobilized that day, right? Let me use the others’ plan and route.]
[……Why do you think so?]
[This feels like a pretty big plan. The people who prepared these plans shouldn’t be so stupid as to leave everything to a freelancer like me.]
The man shrugged silently at what the beauty had pointed out.
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Louise was still alert as she followed the young man who lacked vigilance.
Eventually, the man led her to an open corridor that at first glance looked like a station ticket gate.
[From here, you can board the disposal facility’s loop line. Please apply your visitor’s pass to the ticket gate.]
[Loop line?]
[Yes. It’s a huge disposal facility, 1km in diameter and over 3km in circumference. And so, there’s a loop line that runs along the edge of the facility, circling the entire facility for ease of movement and transportation. Originally, the tracks were used exclusively for cargo to transport solid and liquid waste, but now, there’s also a passenger line to transport maintenance personnel and visitors.]
[It’s a well-established facility.]
Although it went just like the information she received, she couldn’t help but marvel at the scale of the facility when she actually saw it. Not to mention, she is on a mission to scout the facility and destroy a portion of it if possible.]
[Yes! Last year, we were finally able to get direct access to the line that branches off from the JR line, allowing us to pull in containers and tank trucks full of waste loaded in Tokyo Bay to the Loop line. Our company also invested in the Tokyo Bay port facilities and built a dedicated automatic gantry facility, so the waste is now sent here in a fully automated process. Ah, I got to join this company because of my research on automated container processing there! Ahhh, I’m sorry. I’ve been talking about myself a lot……]
[No, it sounds very interesting. You must be very talented, Nitta-san.]
The young man was especially elated when Louise gave him an exaggerated compliment.
[……Then, at the facilities at each station on the beltway, solid and liquid waste are sorted by type and size and distributed to temporary treatment facilities, or diverted to conveyors or pipes at branch taps. You see that group of facilities in the middle of the slope? The final processing takes place inside the central concrete dome. That is the heart of our company!]
[It feels like something out of a science fiction.]
Louise smiled with her most wonderful smile at the daydreaming man who was puffing out his chest, as if he were talking about something he owns.
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
[Feels like something out of a badly written science fiction.]
The photos provided in advance by the man included the group of facilities that MCTBH is proud of.
Inside the dome at the center of the kilometer-diameter piping and conveyors is the supposed dream machine that “breaks down and cleans up anything”.
It sounds ridiculous, but it seems to be true.
This dream machine is distorting the world’s economic balance, giving “her” the reality in the form of a job and a wad of cash.
[Yeah, I suppose it is. Because of the shape of the facility from a satellite photo, people on the internet call it AKIRA.]
[AKIRA? Is that based on someone’s name?]
[It seems like you don’t know much about Japanese subculture. That’s the title of a comic book here.]
[I have a doctrine to not associate myself with comic book nerds.]
The woman calmly dismissed the man’s words.
★ ★ ★ ★
While smiling at the dunce and shifting her gaze as casually as possible, Louise looked at her target in the center of that crater.
Housed within that concrete sarcophagus dome is the company’s technology, and whoever obtains its secrets will hold the world’s supremacy in the future.
T/N: I haven’t read/watched AKIRA, so I don’t get the reference.