Chapter 153 - 101: The Long Wait

Chapter 153: Chapter 101: The Long WaitThe atmosphere in the room was somewhat oppressive, everyone remained silent, exchanging glances that silently conveyed messages. Kedening Caesar. A somewhat surprising name, but recalling Nolan’s prior intelligence, as the owner of the Gini Theater, his name appearing here seemed to pose no problem. Bologue kept his head down, hands clasped, fingers interlaced, resting on his nose, in a pensive manner. Logically, knowing the enemy’s identity, as a revenger, Bologue should be quite happy. Based on Geoffrey’s understanding of Bologue, he should be humming and sharpening his knife, pondering on the method to execute Kedening. However, Bologue didn’t look happy, as if faced with something complicated, somewhat perplexed, unable to find an answer. Lebius finished going through the documents that Ivan brought, glanced at the silent people in the office, and spoke. "Shall we wait for Palmer before starting?" "No, let’s start now." Bologue finally spoke, expressionless. "The Crow’s Nest has been tracking the traces of the ’Man-eater,’ but these people have hidden well, leaving almost no clues... I have to admit that being able to target the ’Man-eater’ was due to a series of coincidences." Ivan spoke slowly, while his gaze briefly lingered on Bologue. As he said, without Bologue’s persistent pursuit, it was truly challenging to notice the existence of the "Man-eater," or possibly, once they shifted their focus from the King’s Secret Sword to truly observe the "Man-eater," it was too late. "We followed the clue related to David, making no significant progress until last night when we discovered a key piece of information." Ivan glanced at Geoffrey and continued speaking. "Remember the intelligence we obtained when interrogating Norm? He mentioned the Gini Theater when connecting with the ’Man-eater.’" "Yes, afterward I even had Yas investigate it, but found nothing unusual," Geoffrey said. "So, these people hide so perfectly. Logically, they should be lurking in the shadows, yet they brazenly appear in the Agreement District, holding performances." "Interrogation? Investigation?" Bologue looked at the two with puzzlement and inquired, "Why am I unaware of these matters?" "Because it was only a suspicion at the time, a point of doubt. We thought there was no need to make a big deal out of it, but unexpectedly everything linked together," Geoffrey responded. He initially approached Yas with a try-and-see attitude, without deriving any result, assuming it would end there. Nobody assumed that now everything was interconnected. Ivan pulled a black-and-white group photo from the document folder. "This is a photo from David’s university days, the person standing beside him is Kedening Caesar." Bologue briefly glanced at the photo, and another figure in it caught his attention. "Who is she?" The woman in the photo held onto Kedening’s arm, her face beaming with joy. "She is Jini, Kedening’s wife, the name source of the Gini Theater," Ivan continued. "A few years ago, the three of them came to Opus, like many outsiders, trying to make a name for themselves here. From then on, Kedening began his acting career, but he wasn’t initially successful, playing supporting roles without even lines." "However, one day his life took a turn. This faraway outsider somehow got hold of money and managed to rent land in the Agreement District, establishing his own theater." Ivan knew well the exorbitant rent in the Agreement District and the financial resources needed to run a theatre, which was completely unaffordable for Kedening at the time. "Do you think he became a ’Man-eater’ from that time?" Bologue asked. "Not sure, but it’s certain he encountered a turning point," Ivan murmured, "such as making a pact with the Devil, exchanging his soul for the chance to realise his dreams. Thus Kedening got his stage, but as a soulless being, he had to plunder souls to sustain himself outside of performances." "Such stories are innumerable, as if every fallen soul into the demonic has such a tragic experience," Geoffrey agreed with a nod. "He doesn’t have the rotten stench of a demon," Bologue retorted, "I’m sure he is definitely not a demon." Bologue’s certainty caught the others’ attention, and Geoffrey asked seriously. "Bologue, do you know Kedening?" "More or less, met several times," Bologue took a deep breath, "That’s also what I find most troubling, being so close to the enemy, several times I could have snapped his neck, yet I merely passed him by." Listening to Bologue’s words, Geoffrey’s gaze turned worried. Bologue understood his meaning and continued speaking. "Don’t worry, work is work, life is life, I draw a very clear line." Bologue’s voice turned cold, devoid of any personal feelings, as he looked at Ivan and spoke. "Please continue." "As for the specifics, we can only speculate. What truly confirmed the identity of Kedening’s leader was the intelligence we gathered from the factory ruins. After your raid last night, the Ferryman took over the area. During the cleanup, they found the ledger, with some crucial bills signed by Kedening. Inside, it detailed the business of the ’Man-eater’ selling Philosopher’s Stones. However, after comparison, it’s clear that the amount they sold is far less than the amount they’ve hoarded. It can be confirmed that currently, the ’Man-eaters’ still have a large quantity of Philosopher’s Stones." "I think they wouldn’t make such a rookie mistake, leaving behind evidence like this," Bologue said. "We think so too. Clearly, the Crow’s Nest has been investigating for so long without any results, yet last night, everything about the ’Man-eater’ was laid out clearly before us." Ivan understood Bologue’s implication, and he said, "It’s as if someone abandoned the ’Man-eater,’ revealing all their secrets." "King’s Secret Sword." Lebius, who had been silent, spoke up at that moment, noticing the intricacies within. "The ’Man-eaters’ have hoarded so many Philosopher’s Stones, far exceeding the Demons’ needs. More importantly, the Demons don’t have the funds to buy these Philosopher’s Stones... Their real buyer is the King’s Secret Sword, who is collecting Philosopher’s Stones through them." Hearing Lebius say this, Ivan’s expression became serious. Previously overlooked intelligence now connected together. "Recently, the extraordinary crimes related to soul collection have become increasingly frequent, someone is secretly gathering a large number of souls." All the points were connected, making subsequent events easy to predict. "What does the King’s Secret Sword want to do with so many souls?" When events involve the King’s Secret Sword, the group was no longer as relaxed as before. Facing this familiar yet unknown formidable enemy, everyone felt a heavy pressure. During this period, nobody had an easy time. The King’s Secret Sword lingered like an indissipable cloud above Opus, with no one knowing what they intended to do, what kind of conspiracy they were planning within that cloud. For a while, everyone’s thoughts focused entirely on the King’s Secret Sword, neglecting to think about the matter of the "Man-eater." "You don’t need to think too much about the King’s Secret Sword. I’ll report to the Decision Room later. For now, we must first deal with the ’Man-eater.’" Lebius reminded them, today’s discussion was about the "Man-eater," not the King’s Secret Sword. "Given the situation, I guess Kedening has already escaped, right?" Bologue asked. "Correct. After getting the intelligence, we hurried to the Gini Theater and his home, but when we arrived, it was empty, as if he had vanished into thin air," Ivan said. "He’s on the run, knowing he’s been abandoned, acting like a trapped beast, recklessly charging," Bologue stated. "From our intelligence perspective, King’s Secret Sword wouldn’t abandon Kedening without reason, unless they needed Kedening to do something, like drawing our attention." "Distract our attention? What are they planning to do?" "For instance, relocate a large quantity of Philosopher’s Stones." Ivan waved helplessly. "Regrettably, the intelligence we currently know is only this much, regarding the King’s Secret Sword’s movements, we truly know nothing." "Kedening missing, and the King’s Secret Sword’s movements unclear... Are we only able to wait?" Bologue’s voice carried some fluctuation, the simmering emotions hard to restrain. "That’s how it seems at the moment." Ivan said helplessly, currently the Order Bureau controls Opus, yet the King’s Secret Sword held the initiative, making this situation very uncomfortable. "We have no time, the longer we wait, the more likely these people will escape." Bologue’s voice rose, as if criticizing Ivan. The longer they wait, the more likely Kedening might escape the city, and the King’s Secret Sword, perhaps they are loading shipments now, with possibly a train taking all the Philosopher’s Stones away tonight. Once these people leave Opus, Bologue knows clearly, he will never have a chance for revenge again, and cannot accept such an outcome. Silence reigned, after a lengthy quiet, Bologue spoke again. "Sorry, I got a bit carried away." "It’s nothing, I understand." Ivan had heard Geoffrey tell Bologue’s story, somewhat understanding Bologue’s current feelings. "We’ve already locked down areas around Opus, they won’t leave easily. Though we don’t know what the King’s Secret Sword ultimately intends, disrupting their actions surely won’t be wrong." Ivan spoke of the Order Bureau’s actions, "We will continue to trace intelligence, and once there’s news, you can move out to pursue the enemies." Bologue was silent. He knew clearly that while a lockdown might stop Kedening, it can’t stop the King’s Secret Swords.