How To Gather Intelligence

After Carolyn followed the children into the church, she quickly noticed Mike groaning on a blanket. In the length of time he had spent ill, the other children had recovered from the withdrawal symptoms, so Carolyn judged that this difference was caused by Mike's high level of addiction to the drug. She saw that Bryan was on care duty this time and considered talking to him about Mike after she spoke with Benedict. She was worried about him, but she knew there was little she could do to help him overcome this hardship.

She also searched for Lety and Derrick, but surprisingly both of them were missing. This observation made her a little anxious as she headed for Benedict's office. Carolyn was just about to knock on the door, but Benedict's voice reached her first.

"It's open. You can enter."

She was used to Benedict anticipating her arrival by now, so she opened the door without thinking much of it. However, she paused upon seeing who was inside Benedict's office.

"Lety?"

"Hi, Carol."

Lety waved at Carolyn while seated across from Benedict, and Carolyn waved back at her. Carolyn saw a chair next to Lety with a cup of steaming tea, but she looked at Benedict before sitting down.

"Good morning, Mr. Benedict. Should I give you two more time?"

"Good morning. No, I called her here because our conversation will greatly involve her."

While recalling the new task Benedict had assigned her, Carolyn nodded in understanding and took her seat.

"I assume your move went well."

"Yes. I've moved to The Fruity Breeze."

"Good choice."

Carolyn felt a sense of accomplishment from hearing Benedict's praise, but she didn't let it inflate her ego.

"Thank you."

"Is The Fruity Breeze that place that only accepts people who work at big stores?" Lety asked.

The description wasn't entirely wrong since the inn only admitted those with a stable source of income, and that group largely overlapped with employees of medium and large businesses. Still, the way Lety phrased it made the inn sound pretentious.

"Well, yes. You know about it, Lety?"

"Just a little."

Sensing a hint of grievance in her tone, Carolyn was puzzled, but Benedict moved on.

"Letira, I'm already aware that Ms. Carol is assisting you, but I've made a similar request of her as well, so feel free to use her as you see fit."

"Yes, Mr. Priest."

"Before I share any advice, give me an update on the progress of your current projects."

"Okay. I've settled on a place inside the slums district to use as the office of the organisation. I don't plan to store anything important there; it'll just be a location to tell clients.

Three of the kids have agreed to join us, while two are still considering it. I haven't given them a deadline, but I plan to limit their privileges compared to the first three if they join later. Even if they both refuse, I don't plan on recruiting anyone else for the time being.

I'm still looking into what type of information to gather and who to sell it to. I know the best opportunity is while the city is still a complete mess, but I'm having trouble settling on a relatively safe yet profitable direction..."

By listening to Lety's report, Carolyn realised that Lety was doing far more than she had anticipated. She was able to follow along, but it was surprising that Lety had accomplished so much while Carolyn was unaware. Carolyn acknowledged the girl's brilliance, but when Benedict told her to assist Lety in creating her intelligence network, Carolyn thought that she would have to handle the bulk of the work. Now, however, it appeared she might not be good for much more than manual labour.

Once Lety was done with her report, Benedict nodded and added his comments.

"There are some areas you can work on, but you're on the right track. The specifics will differ, but for any newcomer trying to enter a stable industry, it's essential to provide a product that people want at a price that no one else can compete with. However, in this case, even with such a product, you won't be able to establish yourself in the market. Ms. Carol, can you tell me why?"

Briefly surprised to hear her name, Carolyn answered, "They won't be taken seriously?"

"Close, but not quite. Letira?"

"Because we lack deterrence."

"Correct. Being an information broker means inevitably stepping into the underworld, a place where might makes right. As it stands, although Ms. Carol is strong, she doesn't possess the type of strength or appearance that will scare off your competitors or other threats. Do you have any solutions for this issue?"

"Yes. If we can't scare them off with our strength, then we'll have to ensure that their strength can't reach us."

"Staying hidden, then? But how will you do business with your clients?"

"As long as we decide the setting, then there should always be a way to escape."

"It doesn't solve the lack of deterrence, but, hmm, Ms. Carol, what do you think?"

"Well, if it's just escaping, then yes, it should be possible to ensure our safety as long as we maintain control of the situation."

Though she was still somewhat stunned by the level of this discussion, Carolyn was ready to contribute wherever she was needed.

"Staying in control of the situation will mainly rely on the accuracy and recency of the information you have, but I suppose it's a fitting method. Next, what timeline do you have in mind, Letira?"

"I intend to be ready for our first client in 2-3 months. Preparing our office shouldn't be difficult, so it should be ready for clients before the end of next month. Since I've already decided on the starting members, most of the time will be spent on training and intelligence gathering."

"I see. That's a tight deadline, but indeed there's not much time to spare. Do you have a plan for how to attract clients?"

"That's, it's still a work in progress."

For the first time since the start of their discussion, Lety failed to give a confident response. Although her business strategy had many unknowns in the specifics, for the most part she knew what direction to take, but advertising was different. Being mysterious was almost synonymous with being an information broker, so she couldn't make signs to promote her business. Other independent brokers would use their connections and reputation to spread the word of their services, but she had neither of those. She considered handpicking the first few clients, but she hesitated to choose that method because it would mean giving the client the advantage.

"Hmm, what about your means of interaction? Do you plan on seeing the client yourselves, communicating through messages, or perhaps hiring an intermediary?"

"I..."

Once again, this was a question that she had asked herself but wasn't able to determine a solution for. Each method the Priest offered had its pros and cons, but Lety knew she lacked experience interacting with adults, so it was even more difficult for her to choose the right method. With the Priest's guidance, she felt confident that she could create a competent intelligence network by using the children, but using that network to earn money left her puzzled in many areas.

Seeing the downtrodden expression on Lety's face, Carolyn used every bit of knowledge she had to come up with an answer.

"I think a mixture of the last two methods would be best. If we need to pass a message, then we can pay a random person to do it or send a letter. And if there needs to be conversation, then once we decide the location, we can disguise a puppet to take our place while staying close by."

Lety turned to Carolyn with surprise in her eyes, while Benedict had a pensive look as he took a sip of tea. Carolyn didn't feel much pride in her answer since she had borrowed a page from Anthony's book, but she hoped her suggestion at least showed promise.

"Keeping your identities hidden is definitely important, and it does reduce the possibility of falling into a trap, but there are still technical flaws. For instance, even if you could disguise a puppet that looks realistic, staying close enough to participate in a conversation while concealing your presence is something even you can barely manage to do. Still, it is a good starting point. I see you've learnt from this recent incident."

"It certainly made a strong impression, to say the least."

While Carolyn showed a wry smile, Lety held mixed feelings. On one hand she was surprised and grateful for Carolyn's help, but it also seemed like she was being reminded of how difficult it was to overcome the chasm of difference brought by age.

Their discussion continued for about an hour, with both Lety and Carolyn sharing their thoughts. Sometimes neither could come up with a suitable answer, but Benedict would simply give a word of advice before moving on. Though the two knew it would be difficult, delving into the details made it clear that entering the information business wouldn't be easy.