Of Beauty and Intelligence

THE SITUATION WAS BAD. According to Akiko’s findings, the cyclical rise and fall of cursed energy levels in Tokyo had sharpened over the years, and she expected the next spike in particular to be much higher than usual.

“I’ve already warned the Bureau about this, but the stooges from the Red Thread have played it down. They keep pointing to the latest and greatest purification technology, and they’ve convinced the Bureau that everything is under control.

“The ACU is on alert and they promised to increase their presence during the Obon Festival, but I’m afraid it won’t be enough. I have moles of my own inside the Red Thread, and they’ve given me intel of unusual production quotas.

“Specifically, they’ve been churning out mana injectors like crazy, even though there hasn’t been a change in demand. These are typically used for soil enrichment, but I have it on good authority they can be repurposed to inject cursed energy instead. Doing so is illegal, of course, but the dual use is part of the game.”

“Plausible deniability, huh…” said Ryuuji.

“Exactly. Because the tools are civilian grade, the Bureau can’t complain about them until they’re actually misused. So, the Red Thread has the advantage of picking when and where to strike, and then pin the blame on someone else.”

“Have you picked up anything else?” asked Hotaru.

“There are a few other schemes going on, but the core idea is the same. Unfortunately, my moles are mid-level employees at best, so I don’t have anything about cursed artifacts or exotic tech.”

“That’s okay, we’ll make it work with this. For now, you’d better lay low and let us do the field work.”

“Thank you. I will.”

“Do you have any ideas on how to stop them, though?” Akari asked.

“We’re working on two stages,” Akiko replied. “The first is to gather enough evidence for the ACU to take action. If we can give something solid to Katsuro or his boss, General Kuroda, they might convince the Bureau to mobilize them against the Red Thread.

“If that doesn’t work, then we’ll have to take the nuclear option and raid them. I’ve been working to counter the resonance dampeners, so if it comes down to it, Hotaru can flatten their headquarters and draw them away from the Festival.”

“That’s… a bit extreme,” said Akari, looking nervously at her.

“Very. The ACU will chase her together with the Red Thread, but it’s better than letting them sabotage the Obon Festival. If something goes wrong while the spirits of the dead are here, it would make the Miasma Incident look like a walk in the park.”

“How certain are we that they’ll take action this year?” Ryuuji asked.

“Dead certain. Reigetsu read the stars; he said there’s no question about it.”

If the dragon made that prophecy, then it was as good as guaranteed.

“Why don’t we ask him to vouch for us? He might convince the ACU to help.” Akari suggested, but Hotaru shook her head.

“Reigetsu is a known associate of mine, and he’s in the Red Thread’s crosshairs. If he were to show himself, they would attack him with proxy forces and cause an incident. Besides, I can’t get close to the Bureau or the ACU’s headquarters. They’re too heavily guarded and full of moles.”

“So what’s the plan? Do we find evidence and send it to Katsuro anonymously?”

“We should contact him covertly,” Ryuuji suggested. “He's probably aware something’s up, but can’t prove it to the top brass. If we share our intel and propose an alliance, he might agree to work with us.”

“I think so too, but I can’t risk getting close to him,” said Akiko. “Director Hajime is keeping an eye on me, so a short meeting like this is all I can get away with.”

“Don’t worry, we’ll contact him,” said Hotaru. “I’m sure Ryuuji and Akari will come up with something.”

And with that, she tossed the hot potato at them.

“Hmm… Do you know how well guarded he is against Kotodama?” asked Akari.

“Quite heavily. He’s one of the strongest ACU officers; if we so much as whisper his name, he’ll realize we’re up to something,” said Akiko.

“Well, that might be true if you try to do something intrusive on him. But say, Hotaru-chan… could you get away with making him hungry?”

“Hungry? Well… If it’s something innocuous like that, it might be okay.”

“Great! You see, I have an idea…”