Cooperation

“I have a plan.”

This was the first sentence Lynch uttered after meeting Mr. V, the head of the Rhine branch of the Watchers. In front of Mr. V and Officer Natalie, Lynch recounted everything he had discovered that day.

“In summary, the material supply for the Norin-Rhine Railway project represents a massive profit. For the sake of this profit, this person is willing to trample on all order in this world.”

“I don't know the specific details, but he has sourced some kind of mystery for the sake of production progress, offering up the entire existence of one person every day to it. This has been going on for over a year, with at least three or four hundred people dying as a result, and they are forgotten after death. Just a few days ago, that mystery relic underwent an unexplained change and its appetite grew larger. I suspect this means the mystery relic has shifted from an active state to an uncontrolled state, and its threat level has risen significantly.”

“Even so, to ensure output, Grant still insists on continuing to use the effect of the mystery relic to reap his profits. I do not wish to comment on whether this trampling of order is right or wrong based on personal preference, but as a citizen who might be affected by such trampling, I oppose this act of destroying order. Furthermore, I believe that as guardians of order, you Watchers should also oppose such behavior. That is why I hope we can cooperate, at least to stop this inhumane slaughter first.”

Mr. V maintained his rigid, serious expression, his fingers interlaced and pressed against his chin as he listened quietly to Lynch’s statement. It was not until Lynch finished that V shook his head slightly and said quite earnestly:

“I acknowledge everything you have said, and your conjecture is very likely true. However, Mr. Levive, you must understand that this is impossible. If you could produce even one piece of indirect evidence, I could find a way to mediate, but everything you have said is pure speculation. If this were an ordinary person, it wouldn't matter, but you are targeting Speaker Grant.”

“Grant is no ordinary citizen. Among the identities you should be aware of, he is one of the leaders of Rhine City’s industry and a representative of all the wealthy people in Rhine, which is how he became the Speaker of the House of Commons. And in the identities you should not be aware of, he is one of the representatives of civil forces exercising the power of the council, a tool pushed forward by all the wealthy to counterbalance royal power.”

“You should be able to understand what kind of consequences would be triggered if we, as an agency directly under the royal family, were to storm his factory for a massive search given his status. At that point, the investigation results would no longer matter. Even if the evidence were ironclad in the end, this act alone would be enough to cause the Watchers to face a devastating blow.”

“That is why I said I have a plan.” Lynch said in a low voice, “Direct confrontation is meaningless. We know nothing, and we cannot interrogate them; they would never tell us, we cannot find the mystery relic, and we have no way to deal with them. But now, there happens to be a good opportunity.”

“Hmm?” The motionless Mr. V raised an eyebrow.

“Grant said at the meeting that he would contact the supplier as soon as possible and then send someone to handle it. He will execute this tonight, and the person sent to solve the problem will likely arrive as early as tomorrow. I suspect this person will likely be one of the Rangers. By taking advantage of this time difference and information gap, if I disguise myself as a Ranger, I might be able to fish out key clues.”

“It is just that it is truly inconvenient for me to disguise myself as a Ranger alone, and I am not familiar with official habits. It would be too easy to expose myself. I need my partner’s support so we can both disguise ourselves. Furthermore, even if we fish out the clues, with my status, it is impossible for me to stop them. I still need you to step forward and solve it.”

“But this circles back to the problem I mentioned just now.” Mr. V shook his head, “It is impossible for us to step forward.”

“Breaking in directly to investigate a case is, of course, out of the question, but what about a different approach?” Having seen plenty of similar tropes in police and gangster films, Lynch smiled strangely. “As Watchers, we receive a report from a concerned citizen, discover the problem as quickly as possible, and charge into the Grant Screw Factory at the risk of our lives, all just to deal with dangerous goods.”

Mr. V, who had been propping up his chin, narrowed his eyes and revealed a hint of a smile: “Preventing dangerous mystery relics from disrupting order is precisely the duty of us Watchers. Furthermore, since this dangerous item affects the railway project, in order to protect the normal production of the screw factory, there is simply no time to notify Speaker Grant in advance. We can only control the mystery relic as quickly as possible. I hope Mr. Grant will not blame us for not informing him beforehand.”

“So?”

“Natalie is temporarily on leave this afternoon. I have no authority to interfere with what you wish to do. If you plan to play some roleplaying games, I remember there are some official insignias confiscated in the past in the storeroom, among which I believe there are some from special departments. I am not sure if I remember correctly.” Mr. V said with a rigid, serious expression, “If you encounter any dangerous mystery relics during your date that require support, Natalie knows how to contact us. We will arrive at the first moment to protect innocent workers.”

Tsk, this greasy middle aged man really knows how to be flexible; he is a good boss.

Lynch stood up, took off his flat cap, pressed it against his chest, and bowed deeply.

“Do not thank me. Hundreds of human lives are at stake; it has crossed the line.” Mr. V maintained his original posture, his voice exceptionally low. “Let’s see to what extent you can manage. Everything depends on you two.”

The reinforcements were arranged, and the next step was how to deceive the opponent.

The two first went to the storeroom to take out two Ranger insignias and relatively well fitting Ranger uniforms. At Lynch’s request, they also dispatched a carriage that had intentionally removed its insignias.

With full preparations made, before 3:30 in the afternoon, the carriage carrying Lynch and Officer Natalie appeared outside the factory gate. The coachman did not speak, driving the carriage straight into the factory. The three foremen on duty at the gate hurried out to stop the carriage, but before they could open their mouths to inquire, an indifferent voice drifted out.

“Go notify Frank. We are here.”

“Who are you people, wanting to notify our manager, I I I I... please spare my life.”

Just as the foreman leaned near the carriage window, he saw a pitch black muzzle pointed at him, which scared him so much his legs went weak.

“Do not ask about things you shouldn't. My companion is not as patient as I am.” The person inside the carriage spoke with a cold, flat voice, with no discernible emotional fluctuations. “Go notify him immediately. That gentleman has been informed; he knows who we are and is waiting for us to arrive.”

“Yes, yes.”

The foreman stuttered his reply. Seeing the muzzle move away, he immediately turned and ran into the factory. The carriage did not wait at the gate; the coachman had the horses take small, quick steps, moving slowly toward the small building. When they were nearly at the building, the gray haired Manager Frank hurried out with the foreman to greet them.

Inside the carriage, Lynch and Officer Natalie exchanged glances, lightly tapped their fists together, and then jumped off the carriage.

“Why have you arrived so soon? Isn't it too fast?”

Before they could reach the carriage, the questioning voice had already come to greet them. Manager Frank wore a look of confusion. The Speaker had left less than two hours ago; why had he sent people so quickly?

Mimicking the Ranger Walker, Lynch lowered the brim of his hat, his gaze shooting out from beneath it. He glared at Frank coldly, frowned, and flicked his fingers at the foreman, impatiently displaying an expression that told him to get lost. After the foreman ran off at Frank’s signal, Lynch raised his top hat, nodded slightly, and said with a touch of mockery:

“Good day, Mr. Frank. It is a pleasure to see you still exist.”

Hmm? Why was the answer unrelated to the question? Manager Frank was about to press for an answer when he suddenly realized something was wrong with that sentence.

“W, what do you mean?”

“At the very least, we know you still exist. Heh, it means you haven't been selected as today’s target just yet.”

Damn it, my worry really was true. Manager Frank could no longer afford to be suspicious. His expression stiffened as he asked, “Is it really possible for it to expand to us today?”

“What do you think? You should have guessed this possibility, right? Heh, congratulations, you guessed right. Otherwise, why do you think we rushed over today? Originally, Speaker Grant said it would be in a few days.” Officer Natalie made Lynch feel as he had during their first meeting as she sneered, “If it weren't to preserve your existence, we wouldn't bother working overtime. Even if we are paid, it is useless. You had best cooperate fully, otherwise, we cannot be sure if anyone will remember you tomorrow. Perhaps tomorrow everyone will be wondering why our factory has no manager. You should have seen such scenes often; we, however, have not seen them yet.”

I really am sensitive and clever enough; it really could threaten me. Manager Frank’s face turned pale. He could no longer afford to be suspicious of the two, and the smile on his face was uglier than crying.

“Don't make that expression. We rushed over precisely to save your life,” Lynch’s tone softened slightly as he looked Frank up and down and comforted him, “It seems that gentleman truly values you, fearing you might meet with an accident, urging us to take action today. He was even willing to pay us extra, which is not easy.”

I didn't expect the Speaker, who is so stingy... so fond of money, would be willing to spend extra for me. Hmm, I can still generate huge profits for Speaker Grant after all; the Speaker still values me. The manager unconsciously revealed a smug smile and pointed to the small building, “Please come in, two officers. I must trouble you this time.”

Whew.

The two let out a breath without drawing attention, following behind Frank into his luxurious office on the first floor. Lynch glanced around; every piece of furniture was exquisite. No wonder he valued his life so much. As long as one grabs the weakness of such people, they are very easy to fool.

With a plan formed in his mind, Lynch sat on the sofa with Officer Natalie, stopping the manager’s attempt to pour tea. Both of them pulled open their collars to reveal the Ranger insignias hanging on their undershirts.

“Having seen them is enough. Do not ask why it is us who came. If you know, you know; if you don't, it is better.”

Frank immediately revealed a look of sudden realization, wearing a knowing smile, though it was unclear what exactly he had understood:

“How should I address you two officers?”

“I am Number One, and she is Number Two. Addressing us like that is sufficient.” Lynch said indifferently, “If you are still alive tomorrow, remember that you saw no one today.”

“Understood, understood.” Manager Frank said with a pale, fawning smile, “I will certainly be alive, heh heh.”

“Let us hope so. Tell us first, what exactly is going on?”

“Hmm? That gentleman did not notify you beforehand...”

Officer Natalie cut off the manager’s rising question with a straight face, her cold voice filled with severity: “What do you think? Do you want that gentleman to explain the details to you?”

Before the doubt could even rise, it was blocked back by the policewoman’s righteous indignation. Manager Frank laughed awkwardly: “Of course not. My apologies, it was my oversight.”

“Contacting those things is a very dangerous job. Even a slight deviation in information can multiply our danger, so much information must be double checked to successfully save your life.” Lynch took out his pocket watch to check the time and asked with a teasing tone, “What time does the night shift end? Six o'clock? There are two hours left. I remember the people who disappeared were mainly concentrated in the night shift, right? You really are not in a hurry. But we are. If something happens to you, we won't get our bonus.”

“I am in a hurry, I am really in a hurry.” Frank was almost crying, only then realizing his life had not been saved yet. These two were the lifelines the Speaker had spent a lot of money to invite; if he missed them, the Speaker would not lose his head and hire someone again.

“If you know you are in a hurry, cooperate a bit. Do not waste your own time. How about this: you take us there, and on the way, explain the specific situation.”

“Two officers...” Seeing how righteous the two were, and how everything they mentioned involved secret details that had been reported, and since it concerned his own life, which he valued most, Frank set aside his doubts after a brief hesitation and stood up attentively, saying, “Very well, please follow me.”

Exchanging a glance with Officer Natalie, Lynch pressed his top hat to cover his face, revealing a smile in the shadows.

Step one, success.

Without avoiding their sight, Manager Frank opened the door to look left and right, confirming that his attendants were not around. Only then did he quickly pull out several books from the bookshelf by the wall. There was a clicking sound inside the wall, and the bookshelf moved, revealing a pitch black staircase spiraling downward.

However, Manager Frank did not go down. Instead, he looked back at Lynch and Natalie. Seeing that the two were still sitting steadily on the sofa, he nodded with relief: “Very well, please follow me, I will take you there.”

Hiss, insidious.

Lynch narrowed his eyes and followed him behind the sofa with the policewoman, walking all the way to a warehouse at the end of the corridor. He watched as Frank pushed open several empty boxes with his own hands, and then the floor split open to reveal a hidden door, with the gas lamps on both sides lighting up as well.

“Please rest assured, Speaker. The entrance is completely designed according to his instructions. If the bookshelf just now is not opened, this place will be locked directly.”

Good thing I tricked him into leading the way; otherwise, I might have really been fooled. This fellow Lynch is truly more insidious than they are.

Officer Natalie secretly glanced at the straight faced Lynch, using her gaze to inquire. Lynch nodded very covertly.

Yes, the automatic hidden passage opened, and he had already sensed obvious mystery filth coming from below.

Finally found the target.

And the more critical issue was that the filth contained heavy violence and chaos, clearly not in a normal state.

The mystery relic had gone out of control.

And these people were still using it; they were simply a group of demons.