156 – Return
Under Gadget’s leadership, the operation to arrest the phantom thief was quickly prepared.
As if I’ve been waiting for this moment for the past month.
The facial expressions of the team members busily moving under her were dead, but Gadget’s face was full of life unlike before.
The announced date is tonight. In order to set up an investigative network to catch the thief on time, he had to thoroughly prepare without a break.
In such a situation, Gadget received a call from the chief after a long time.
“Yes. Eventually, he came back.”
At the introduction mixed with a sigh, she just nodded calmly.
“Did you check the notice?”
“Yes. We are already building a response team.”
“Gadgets. You know best, but the right to investigate has already left our hands. It’s the executioner’s job to catch the thief, not us.”
I know. It was a long hiatus if it was long, but in fact, only a month had passed.
Since the raid on the palace, she had already been told to get her hands off her. She disobeyed and made a fuss in an attempt to catch him even by herself, and then confronted the princess, so there was no way she would forget it.
She still won’t have the right to investigate. But she also had a part where she believed in gadgets.
“Are you really okay? If we don’t step up this time, the distrust of the citizens toward the police will only grow.”
“Kuhmm…”
The chief rubs her eyelids with a pained sound.
As she said, public opinion towards the police was already quite bad. It was because she was not able to catch the phantom thief who was running freely and was perceived as an incompetent organization.
Under normal circumstances, a clean arrest by the enforcer would solve the problem. After all, the enforcer also belongs to the police organization externally, so it’s enough to announce that the police have caught it.
The problem is that the nasty phantom thief openly disclosed the notice.
In other words, everyone in Britannia knew when, where, and what they were aiming for.
Of course, onlookers will gather in crowds, and all the citizens will watch the process of arresting the thief.
What if, in such a situation, the cops can’t even see their noses and only see wizards in suspicious uniforms who don’t know their identity? But what would people think when the official announcement later came out that the police had arrested them?
I want to reveal that those wizards in uniform belong to the police organization, but I can’t say it openly because it’s a state secret.
In the end, there is only one way.
“We should conduct a joint investigation.”
Even if the executioner catches the thief, at least the police should be all over the scene.
That way, when the police announce an arrest, no questions will be raised.
If you have to mobilize police personnel anyway, it makes sense for the most experienced Gadget team to step in.
She can proudly raise her head in front of her chief like she is now.
“···Focus only on civil control if possible. The executioner will take care of the arrest anyway.”
“Yes. I won’t make an accident and I’ll stay calm.”
At the answer he heard, the chief let out a blank laugh.
One answer is very good. Everyone knows she won’t stay quiet.
But what can I do? For now, this was the best move.
“I just don’t care because my head hurts. You coordinate well with the enforcer and take care of it.”
“Thank you for trusting us.”
“You look so excited? Do you really like the return of the phantom thief?”
She prayed every night to say that she would never come back again.
What a headache that one damn petty thief gave me. Thanks to public opinion that was getting worse by the day, I could see my hair falling out due to stress.
“Chief. I will definitely catch you this time.”
“···Yes. Please.”
The chief waved her hand roughly at her, signaling her to leave her head.
Passion overflowed in Gadget’s appearance as he left the chief’s office with his head bowed moderately until the end.
After a while, an enforcer in a white uniform visited the police station.
“The team leader is waiting for you in the interrogation room.”
“Okay.”
I don’t know why he bothered to wait in the interrogation room when there was a meeting room, but Gadget moved to the executioner who was waiting for him.
She is a cold-hearted woman sitting in a dark interrogation room.
She was beautiful with her expressionless face revealed over her pure white uniform, but she felt more intimidated than that, and she involuntarily swallowed her dry saliva.
“Hello.”
“Please sit down. It sounds like you have a lot to talk about.”
She had a conversation as if her guest and host had been reversed, but Gadget sat right across from her.
She didn’t need to provoke the executioner now. Since she is in a position to cooperate with her from now on, shouldn’t she be as good as possible? She repeated that if she could catch the phantom thief, she would be able to let go of her ego.
“This is Gadget, the team leader who was in charge of Raven the Phantom Thief.”
“This is Catherine. There is no need to reveal her affiliation, right?”
Of course. Her true identity was revealed by her pure white uniform and emblem.
Moreover, she had heard that executives were not divided into detailed ranks except for manager. It is because each of them is out of standard power, so there is no need to divide up and down.
“By the way… Does the enforcer support only one person?”
“No. There are two of them, including me.”
Gadget asked directly, frowning her eyes.
“Isn’t that too little?”
In fact, there were times when she fought a war of nerves with the executioner over the right to investigate. This is a problem she will solve herself, but she suddenly thinks that a rolling stone is trying to take her place.
But she is not now. As I thought before, I will put my petty pride aside and do anything to catch him. Seriously, the best way is to make the most of the Enforcer.
“Other Enforcers already have their duties, so we can’t move recklessly. And maybe two will suffice.”
“Maybe…. Is he coming the same way as last time?”
“No. Manager Evan is not coming.”
Sorry lingered in the prompt reply without hesitation.
Evan Reginald. I knew very little about the Executioner, but the man I had met in person was certainly unusual.
He was an extraordinary person to the extent of proposing a scout to the phantom thief Raven, but it was also known that he was a strong man backed by overwhelming power.
I was hoping that if the man went out again, he would definitely catch Raven.
“No need to worry. Because no one else is strong enough to fall behind the manager.”
“Is that so? Then what about Catherine?”
Catherine responded calmly to Gadget’s bold question.
“That must be above average among Enforcers.”
“Above average…”
I don’t know exactly how many Enforcers there are, or how strong they are. All I know is that they are incredibly strong. How much is above the average in such a group?
Lost in her thoughts for a moment, she shook her head.
Actually, force wasn’t that important in catching her thief. After all, the cops didn’t fight him squarely and lose.
What’s more important than strength is the speed to chase after him.
More important than that was the wisdom to see through his tricks.
She took a breath and calmly started talking.
“First of all, there is one thing I would like to say before planning the detailed strategy.”
“Yes. Please speak comfortably.”
“Phantom Thief Raven is no ordinary thief. He’s a vicious guy who enjoys fooling everyone around using magic-like magic. The process of arresting him will not be easy.”
A sassy enforcer might snort at her, but Catherine nodded calmly and took Gadget’s warning lightly.
“Yes. I see what you mean. Because we also investigated to catch the phantom thief.”
I guess so. The Executioner’s reason for being is to deal with all issues related to the mysteries, but there is no other issue that’s as noisy as the phantom thief in Britain these days.
“Good. Now, let’s start the full-scale strategy meeting.”
“First of all, you must have a complete understanding of the place where the crime was foretold.”
Gadget nodded and put the notice sheet on the table.
“This time he will appear here.”
“…The Central Bank of Britannia.”
It is no exaggeration to say that all of Britannia’s money goes through this place.
That’s why security is so thorough. Even if Raven hadn’t sent a notice, it wouldn’t have been easy.
However, the idea that gadgets are still lacking did not leave my head.
Even though the bank’s own security, the police’s manpower, and even two enforcers were attached.
The reason was so obvious.
Because she had to be there to catch the phantom thief.
“I am trying to ask for help from the outside.”
“Are you a security company? Or a wizard?”
At the executioner’s question, the detective answered with a smile.
“I am a detective.”
***
It’s a feeling I haven’t felt in a long time.
All of London is whispering. Everyone talks about one topic.
My heart pounds every time I hear the word ‘Danger’ coming out of their mouths.
“As expected, I think this time is the best.”
[Then you’re lucky.]
“It’s a comeback after a month. Can you do well?”
[Of course. You will succeed wonderfully as always.]
I looked down while giggling at the support of the goddess.
Today’s stage, the Central Bank of Britannia. Around him, he could see a large crowd of people flocking to watch and the police stopping him.
The root of a place where thieves break is the bank after all.
Therefore, there could be no better place for the phantom thief’s splendid comeback.
Since the warning notices were scattered, the police must have prepared well this time.
Perhaps somewhere in the bank there is an enforcer waiting to catch me.
But I wasn’t worried.
I also prepared as hard as I could for this day.