Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 66

“The Siger Bang smuggles weapons in from the outside, the Platon Mercenary Office distributes them, and the Scavengers handle the sales. Among these, the most crucial core is the gang that imports the weapons, the Siger Bang.”

Two other photos disappeared, leaving only the photos of the gang members.

Along with it, a mountain of rifles appeared. Each one was marked with the Defense Force’s insignia, or they were military firearms that had been heated and had the markings rubbed off.

“They are bringing in massive amounts of weapons directly into the city through deals with soldiers nearing retirement. It’s practically a defense industry scandal.”

“It’s hard to believe the upper echelons of the Defense Force wouldn’t know about this.”

Just looking at the number of firearms in the photos, it’s impossible that such a quantity could go missing without any administrative oversight.

“Rumor has it that the gang’s boss has connections with a general in the Defense Front. This is why Siger Bang, despite being smaller than other major gangs in the 40s district, can hold a corner of this weapons industry.”

That’s also why we can target them, Panoa continued, immediately switching the screen.

“The conclusion is simple. The Platon Mercenary Office bears all the logistical costs, the Scavengers do the legwork, and Siger Bang takes on the most dangerous risks.”

“Effective.”

Jod, who was sitting with his arms crossed in front of Lennox, muttered.

Panoa turned her head at his words, her eyes flashing coldly.

“They’ve maintained that precarious balance until now, but this kind of money-making scheme can collapse at the slightest misstep.”

Railway Station

“With Paul Ackerman’s death, external investment funds have dried up, and this is the only source of money the gang can rely on. If we can target this place, Siger Bang will collapse in an instant.”

Beep.

The screen changed, revealing a photo of a remote location.

A dilapidated railway station where no one comes and goes.

A train, rusted and tilted, lay fallen between the completely closed tracks.

Panoa pointed at the photo and continued.

“I’ve heard that a deal with retired soldiers is scheduled to take place here at the end of the month. The location is in District 59. They’re bringing in the weapons by hand from the edge of the undeveloped area.”

“Is this reliable information?”

Panoa answered Lennox’s question immediately.

“It’s solid information obtained by paying a large sum to a Mirror Diver [a person who can access and manipulate information networks]. We’ve even cross-checked it through the gang’s internal network, so there won’t be a repeat of last time. Keep watching.”

Several more photos appeared on the screen.

All of them were headshots of people taken from the front.

“These are the identities of the gang’s weapons trading team and the retired soldiers they deal with. They seem to be living in satellite cities, receiving cash and necessities from the gang on a regular basis.”

Panoa continued with a cold expression.

“Retired soldiers dealing with the gang. The goal of this operation is to completely cut off the route through which they supply weapons. Once they’ve had a taste of the heat, they’ll be too afraid to deal with the gang anymore.”

A low silence settled over the room.

Lennox glanced at the other team members’ expressions.

He expected a rather strong reaction, but aside from Agria, who looked slightly displeased, the others were surprisingly calm.

It seemed they already knew who they were going to clash with.

At least, there didn’t seem to be anyone among the team members who would cause problems with their attitude.

Lennox raised his head slightly and asked,

“Who are the potential threats in this operation? If it’s a deal that the gang considers important, it wouldn’t be strange for a skilled person to be accompanying them.”

“There is one gang executive who regularly accompanies them, but he’s not someone we need to be wary of. What we need to be more concerned about is the whereabouts of this man, who is well-known as the boss’s closest aide.”

“……..”

Lennox’s eyes narrowed as he looked at the photo Panoa had displayed. It was a face he already knew.

“Beck Clinton. He’s said to be a highly skilled fighter, one of the best among the over a thousand gang members, and quite famous in that world. He’s currently away from Vulcan to establish a new trade network for the gang, so it’s unlikely that he’ll be a major problem.”

Did they completely dismantle the gang’s information network to thoroughly classify the dangerous individuals and calculate the probability of the operation’s success?

At this point, Lennox admitted that Panoa had come very well prepared.

He knew that she must have poured a lot of money into achieving these results.

That meant that she and her faction within the company were betting everything on this project.

“Now, let’s move on to the specific operational details for that goal. As I mentioned beforehand, the conversations we have here must never leak out. Please keep that in mind. Now, let’s start by looking at the list of retired soldiers coming to Vulcan this time.”

#

Looking at the dim night sky visible through the office window, Panoa took out a cigarette.

Chiiik–

“Hoo…”

The time it took to convey the specific operational outline and deliver the necessary supplies to the newly formed freelance team, led by the mage Ban, exceeded six hours.

More than half of that time was spent making them memorize the points they absolutely had to know during the operation, and it was true that Panoa and the other staff members had broken a sweat in the process.

Ban had just glanced over it once, memorized everything he needed, and left, but it was her job to take care of the rest.

Manya, who had been watching her from behind, asked.

“What did the president say?”

“About what?”

“When you received additional funding this time, he must have said something. I thought he would have said at least one thing.”

“He didn’t say anything.”

“……..”

Panoa smiled wryly at Manya’s silence.

“That means he doesn’t need to say anything.”

It was a project started by taking risks to seize the initiative in the company’s management.

If it succeeded, the board of directors would take over the management rights with the support of the shareholders, and if it failed, the board of directors would take over the management rights with the support of the shareholders.

It was impossible to turn back now, as they had pulled personnel from each department to form the project and poured a huge amount of money into the planning stage.

Whether it succeeded or failed, Dyke would undergo a major upheaval.

At least, she should be grateful that she was in a position to directly decide that upheaval… Panoa thought, shaking her head slowly.

It wasn’t the time to be lost in idle thoughts.

“Where’s the security agreement?”

“I’ve taken it out and put it in the company’s underground vault. It’s a space used by the president personally, so it should be safe at least until the shareholders’ meeting.”

Although she hadn’t told Lennox separately, Panoa was putting a lot of effort into preventing a betrayal like the first operation.

She thoroughly investigated the candidates’ identities and affiliations, cross-checked them using the Mirror Diver’s information-gathering abilities, and created grounds to hold the team members’ organizations accountable legally and privately if they broke the contract.

The freelancers’ complaints that arose in the process were suppressed with massive compensation.

It was a grand statement, but she was deliberately trying to buy trust with money.

All of this was done with the private funds of the board of directors who were currently supporting her project.

“If we fail, I won’t be in a good position either…”

“Is it just the team leader?”

Panoa let out a wry smile at Manya’s calm reply.

Wasn’t it the current team members who had gathered in one place to climb higher, knowing that very well?

“Still, I did my best. All that’s left is to rely on that mage.”

She had started from a hopelessly disadvantageous position and had come this far.

She could only be grateful that she had managed to find someone as skilled as Ban and was able to continue the plan somehow.

“After this operation is over, I’ll have to give Ban something substantial again. Should I search the VIP auction house again?”

“I don’t think you need to worry about that already.”

“I’m not worried, I’m comforting myself.”

Panoa replied, stubbing out the remaining cigarette.

“Because now that we’re hoping for the plan’s success, that’s all we can do.”

#

As the promised day approached, Lennox headed to the designated location.

The process wasn’t that different from when he first accepted the deal with Dyke.

The only difference was that now, the other team members were not just waiting for him, but waiting for his command.

Five team members, standing against the backdrop of the setting sun, looked up at Lennox.

A plateau covered with reddish-brown, tough reeds. Cold barbed wire surrounding it.

It was a common sight in the undeveloped areas where civilization had tried to take root but had stopped.

“Captain, nice to see you.”

A man with a plump face smiled warmly and extended his hand.

“Let’s do our best today.”

Heizer. Close-quarters vanguard. His weapon of choice is a thick mechanical hammer. It’s a very exhilarating piece of equipment with a booster on the back.

He was a mercenary who had recently become a freelancer, and he had been working under the same broker as the quiet young man standing next to him, Jod.

After greeting Heizer and exchanging a brief nod with Jod, a young woman with a hood pulled down over her head snapped at Lennox.

“When are we going to start? If we want to increase our chances of success, we should start taking our positions.”

Lennox glanced at her and immediately replied.

“We’ll go in after Siger Bang has finished deploying their personnel. Agria will disrupt the communication network, so even if we cause a commotion after the gang makes contact with the soldiers, there won’t be a big backlash.”

“…I don’t know if it doesn’t go as planned.”

She turned her head away and chewed the gum in her mouth.

Kainey. A freelancer who, as she appeared, was not yet twenty years old, and a psychic with high-speed movement abilities.

She was making a name for herself with her excellent combat abilities and efficient use of her psychic powers, and surprisingly, she seemed to be taking jobs from ‘Madam’.

As soon as Lennox learned that fact, he had to be careful not to mention Mount or Trisha’s names by mistake.

Especially since Trisha wouldn’t be out of the hospital yet.

“Let’s not be so negative. After all, Dyke specified all the detailed plans, didn’t they?”

Allen, the smiling curse mage, interjected slyly.

“The captain only decides the timing of the entry and the detailed tactics after the operation starts… That’s something we can all handle.”

“That’s right. We’re the ones making the first move, so there’s no need to be intimidated!”

Heizer shouted loudly, and Jod shook his head from behind.

“…In the end, the only thing we can plan in advance is the first collaboration where we use our individual skills to stir things up. After that, we’ll all be too busy fighting to communicate properly.”

Jod’s voice was very quiet, but his point was very sharp.

It was impossible for a team that had gathered for a single goal in a short period of time to fight in perfect harmony.

He had noticed this simple fact from the beginning.

Of course, if the team members were much more skilled than they were now, and if they were all experienced veterans, such a magical thing wouldn’t be impossible… But Lennox didn’t expect such perfect teamwork from them in the first place.

Lennox smiled and responded to Jod’s words.

“That’s why we have to do as much as possible in the first move where we can work together.”

“……..”

“The most important thing isn’t choosing the entry timing, or sneaking in there. It’s the first attack we can land when the enemy isn’t aware of our presence. The victory or defeat will depend on whether we succeed in that or not.”

Lennox whispered softly, making eye contact with each of the other team members.

“I’m not asking for much. Let’s just not get in each other’s way.”

“…Is that all it takes?”

Kainey grumbled, but none of the team members objected to Lennox’s words.

They all understood their roles and what they had to do after that.

There was no need for unnecessary words.

Lennox immediately turned his back and started walking.

“Let’s go.”

#

The abandoned railway station located in District 59.

This area is the most remote undeveloped area on the outskirts of the megacity of Vulcan, and it is no exaggeration to say that it is the most neglected area in Vulcan, excluding the extra districts.

It was a bit far from the area where the ruins where the pollutants roamed, but the large railway facility that was originally planned to be located here only had its remains left, revealing the failure of the policy.

All that remained were the corrupt customs officials who managed the imports from the outside, and the vagrants who lived day by day in this abandoned area.

Therefore, if they could only bribe the customs officials, it would not be difficult to bring in goods from the outside, and the city government was aware of this and tolerated it.

In this rotten city, that was the only way for government employees to survive.

As they approached the railway station, a sharp tension was already palpable.

The Siger Bang gang members who had arrived first were taking their positions and watching the surroundings.

The group hid themselves at a distance that was not noticeable to the gang members and observed their movements.

Patoh.

There were plenty of hiding places around.

Lennox also chose a collapsed container nearby and hid himself appropriately.

[…It doesn’t seem like the soldiers have arrived yet.]

At Jod’s words coming through the earpiece, Lennox touched the watch on his wrist and immediately transformed it into a telescope, bringing it to his eye.

It was a multi-tool he had obtained in exchange for taking Agria as a team member.

Indeed, as he said, there were at least dozens of gang members loitering near the railway station, but there were no weapons visible.

It was proof that they were thoroughly trying to avoid suspicion, at least on the surface.

That meant that the deal with the retired soldiers was currently important to the gang.