167. Postprocessing (3)
During a conversation with Jane, I got a call from Forrest.
The reason we contacted is, of course, about work.
[Dave Nile. Let’s talk right from the start. The conversation with the city went well. There will be no such thing as ever… After the settlement was over, they decided to pay the remuneration, but they said that they wanted to meet you and deliver it in person… Yeah, I’d say it’s just to say thank you for your service to the poem, but maybe to poke it or something. But it’s hard to say no, so can you go to the place I mentioned? ····Yes, thank you.]
I can’t see through Forrest’s emotions because I’m talking through a communication device, but it seems that the conversation with the poem worked out really well.
Still, it was a bit difficult to understand.
It’s a story I found out by accident for the city’s mission, but it could put me in danger…
Well, worrying doesn’t mean you can do anything, so Oliver put his thoughts aside and headed to where Forrest said.
The meeting place wasn’t too far away. It was a cafe near the hotel.
“Thank you for coming.”
A table with a white tablecloth. City official Paul Carver greeted him in front of him.
He was having tea and pies.
“hello? City officials.”
“Just call me Carver. Would you like to sit down?”
Carver politely recommends a seat. Oliver sat down as he instructed.
“I purposely chose a place with a lot of people. I think that would be convenient.”
In fact, according to Carver’s words, there were a lot of people around.
Since the district is a district, most of the guests were well-dressed, such as old gentlemen and wives. They were eating on the table full of tea, coffee, cakes and scones.
“Thank you for your consideration. However, there are some, non-normal people around.”
Carver raised his eyebrows slightly in admiration.
“You said you have good eyes, but it seems to be true. Did you read your thoughts?”
“No, not that much. There are people who are just nervous and watch out for people around me. Everyone is watching Mr. Carver.”
“···· During special official duties, there are people who follow the rules, so please don’t feel bad. Isn’t it a rough city? On the other hand, I am an ordinary person with no other means of protection.”
Well····. Oliver doubted that.
It wasn’t that Carver was hiding some power.
Of course, there was such a possibility, but the amount of mana and vitality were at a level similar to those of ordinary people.
Still, it was his emotional state that Oliver doubted.
It may sound strange, but his feelings were really strong.
Even people who live in the back alleys, such as troubleshooters and gangsters, sometimes have emotions, but he is surprisingly calm and calm. It’s like a fortress wall.
It may be a cliché, but he seemed to have a strong heart.
“May I ask you a question? Forrest told me not to do it, but I was very curious.”
“You tell me.”
“Is there really a case where you get rid of the solvers you entrusted to you?”
A question that was suddenly thrown like a fist in the face.
There was no malice in Oliver, but his fists were fists.
A normal person would blush and say, ‘Big, big.’ It was a question to cough up, but Carver didn’t show much agitation.
“It’s rare, but I wouldn’t say it’s rare. I can count them by hand.”
Sincerity.
“Ah,” Oliver exclaimed. It wasn’t displeasure or anger, it was just a reflex exclamation of hearing the question.
“I’m doing this out of curiosity, but why are you doing this?”
“Well····. There is a saying in the East.”
“····??”
“Tengi Leak”
“What do you mean?”
“It means that the secret of heaven is leaking out, but it is usually said that the sky kills those who know the secret to prevent it.”
“Why is that again?”
“I do not know. Personally, I think it’s to protect the system.”
“A system?”
“Yes, let me give you a short example. Take a look around this store. Is it made up of employees and guests? Customers pay, and employees deliver services and products.”
Oliver looked around the store. As Carver said, customers pay when they leave, and the waitress brings tea and cakes.
“But what if, for some reason, customers don’t pay? The store is going to be a mess, right?”
“Yes.”
“So is the world. Although the scale is larger and the roles are more complex, the basic system is not much different from this store. The City of Landa does the work of the City of Landa, and the Royal Family and the Central Assembly also play their respective roles. It creaks from time to time, but in any case, the store stays because of each other.”
It’s not perfect, but I think I can understand roughly what you mean.
Although the city of Landa appeared to be in opposition to the royal family and the Central Assembly, it seemed to mean that it was needed at the same time.
“Can the system be in danger if I divulge what I learned during the mission?”
“It’s dangerous…. Rather, I will correct that it may be a little noisy. Don’t you know if you buy it in Randa? The truth is that it is weaker than you think. A powerful being has to speak to it.”
“Then there is no reason to worry about me in the first place, is there?”
“Because high-ranking people don’t want even a small risk. It’s bold, but at the same time timid.”
At that time, the store clerk brought a tray, poured coffee into a cup in front of Oliver, and gave him a Banopy Pie.
“have a good meal.”
“I ordered it. Let’s drink it. It’s a shop famous for pies.”
Oliver took a bite of the pie as instructed.
“… it’s delicious.”
“I am glad that you like it. I like pie… Anyway, what I’m trying to say is that our city has done something like that a few times out of necessity, but I don’t want to do any harm to Mr. Dave. We also have credit, so we don’t do things without thinking. It is a prescription drug that is only used when there is absolutely nothing to be done.”
Somewhat sincere. Oliver nodded.
“Yes, I understand.”
“·····Is that so?”
Carver said, illuminating a curious feeling.
“Yeah, it could have been a bit risky, but wouldn’t it be fair to say that it ended without any problems?”
“Well, it is.”
“Then that’s it. I’m fine. The story of the leak and the system you mentioned was interesting… Now that you have been taught, can I ask you one more question?”
“What?”
“Then, will coffee prices go down?”
Oliver pointed to the coffee in front of him.
“…you are a funny person.”
“is that so?”
“Yes····. Coffee prices will remain the same. I’m not going to use it right away, but I’m going to save it for emergencies.”
“okay. Arthur said he would.”
Carver looked at Oliver for a moment before opening his mouth.
“Thanks for listening to the story. So, can we move on to the next story?”
With those words, Cover held out a white envelope in his arms.
When I opened the inside, there was a passbook and a seal.
It was the same bearer passbook of Goldsmiths Bank as it was in Edith’s time, and, as at that time, the passbook had an exceedingly expected amount stamped on it.
“Mr Carver. Is this amount strange?”
“It’s not strange. The city is strict with money calculations.”
“Is that so? But wouldn’t that be enough for me to get? Too many.”
That was true. The success fee for this out-of-city mission is 1 billion won.
Aside from that, the bounty he received was less settled when he raided an abandoned incinerator.
Oliver also had a lot of money in these days, so he kept an account at the end of every job.
Of course, I also calculated the amount of compensation to be received. However, the amount on the bankbook seemed to be double that amount.
When asked about this, Carver said quietly.
“I heard from Arthur how good Dave was. From the search to the negotiation, to the last sacrifice to protect everyone… Without Dave, the work itself would not have been successful.”
“It’s overrated.”
“No, Arthur said that, so it’s hard to call it an exaggeration. He’s like a knife when it comes to things like that. Bonuses that take into account your contribution to work and the performance you bring. I’m not asking for anything using that as an excuse, so you can take it with confidence.”
At that point, Oliver didn’t ask any more.
I’m planning to move, so the more money I have, the better. There was no reason to refuse even to take care of it.
It certainly seemed like a move to a middle-class residence.
“Ah, that’s right. I have one thing to ask you.”
“ah····. What?”
“I don’t want you to tell anyone any more of the stories you heard during your mission. It can be dismissed as a rumor, but you never know what other variables will arise. Let’s call it a secret value.”
“Yes, I understand. Of course it is. I thought it would be difficult, but I’m glad. I will keep my mouth shut.”
When the story was over, Oliver tried to get up. I ate all the coffee and pie. As Carver said, it tasted good.
Just as I was about to ask for forgiveness and leave, Carver called me.
“Can I ask you a question too?”
“Yes? what·····.”
“It’s just a personal curiosity, why is Mr. Dave working as a solver?”
A question with a hidden meaning. But there was no malice. There are only computational calculations.
Oliver answered frankly, thinking that there would be no problem.
“I want to know the world.”
***
After work, Carver returned to work in his car.
Landa’s civil servants get pretty decent salaries and benefits, but in return they can’t even dream of leaving work early and taking vacations.
So, sometimes it was fun to go outside like this.
It can be dangerous, but the tea and pies we ate outside during working hours were exceptional.
Upon arrival, Carver went not to his office, but to the mayor’s office at the top, where the head of the Department of the Interior was located.
The minister’s office, located in the center of the top of the building, was positioned like the king of a chessboard.
smart-
Carver knocked on the door.
After a while, I heard a voice telling me to come in a bit late. His voice was as unmistakable as his reaction.
“hello? Minister.”
Carver entered the door and greeted a middle-aged man who looked helpless.
He was, surprisingly, a spectacle of the greatest city in the world.
As an old man whose biggest goal is to keep his seat without any major issues… I really didn’t like it.
“·····I’m here?”
“Yes.”
“Work?”
“Well done.”
The minister did not respond. After a while, he spoke again.
“Well·····. No matter how much you think about it, don’t you feel anxious?”
“········.”
“Are you a black magician? I know it’s dangerous… huh? Do you need it?”
He pressed Carver without direct expression. I was wondering if something bothersome would happen and spark a spark on myself.
Carver responded, controlling his expression.
“I think it would be better to watch for now.”
“·················ogue.”
“We’ve been scouring Dave’s tracks for the past few days, but nothing has been done that could be considered a dangerous person.”
In fact, it was half the lie.
There were some things that weren’t dangerous, such as handling a corpse doll, as well as the contaminated area thing, but it was suspicious.
But apart from that, it was also true that he was a person who was not worth throwing away.
With a mission success rate of 100%, he didn’t seem like a man with a chin like these floor gangs.
Fortunately, the minister nodded slowly. It was natural to leave everything to the working staff and not even understand it.
“That’s right….”
“Yes, it is. Minister. Although a warlock, there are no other visible hazards. In particular, in this case, it is said that he was fighting the war wizard and wasting time.”
“A war mage?”
“Yes····. I don’t know the details, but according to Arthur’s report, he grabbed the war wizard’s ankle and even escaped on his own. That alone is worth the risk. City councilors will want it too.”
city councilman. When the magic word was spoken, the minister took a step back.
They were the ones holding the chain of their own lives.
“That’s right…. So, how about putting it into the project altogether?”
“I already tried luck, but I refused.”
“okay? dry army. The subject of street life.”
“Don’t drink too much. It’s a pity, but it’s not like putting a warlock into a public institution, and it doesn’t fit the nature of this project, so there’s nothing to regret.”
“·················ogue.”
“The key to the project is not to bring together great individuals, but to build a strong organization. It would be cheaper to leave it to the solver’s guild and ask for it when you need it.”
“Well····. okay?”
“yes. Minister.”
“Well, then, I have nothing more to say. If you guarantee so… Good work. Get out.”
Carver nodded politely and walked out of the secretary’s office.
He was an incompetent person overall, but he took good care of what he saw. Meanwhile, Carver is driving Oliver to be endorsed.
Perhaps, if there was any problem there, he would blame it all on himself.
Well, what’s the point? All we have to do is be careful and pray that such a thing does not happen.
Oh my god…
Carver returned to the office and cleaned out all the paperwork.
When I was at work, I was so busy that it was not easy to organize.
“By the way, what are you really doing?”
Carver mumbled involuntarily.
Out of curiosity, I asked Oliver why he was a solver, and he brazenly replied that it was to know the world.
He talked about the reasons why colonies were formed and why the poor were created, something that only scholars could do.
An answer that can never come out of the floor that kills people by giving them money. But it didn’t sound like a lie.
“…well, if you stay in this city, you’ll find out.”
Carver pushed his complicated head to one side and finished organizing the paperwork.
Tack-tak, he gathered the papers and lined them up, and Carver read the first page once more.
＜City Project: Landa Special Security Agency＞