Snooping around New York Harbor wasn’t particularly dignified, especially for someone of her rank, but Leila wasn’t one to delegate such important tasks to others.
Since her kids had just returned from their last dungeon run - and once again managed to get into trouble - she was now free from the Guilds’ surveillance, at least for a while.
It rankled her, having to move around so surreptitiously, but there was nothing she could do about it for the moment. As much as she would have liked to appear next to the Sensor she could feel observing the AA HQ from the Starbucks across the street, it would have ruined their entire operation.
Well, it might ruin both. The AA’s and mine. Because I have not forgotten what the Golden Sun was doing in that C-rank dungeon, and if I manage to get enough dirt on them, it’ll also help the Director’s plan.
Leila was a firm believer that a secret only stayed secret if just one person knew of it. She had been forced to share with the AA what she knew and yield on pursuing the major investigation on data falsification and corruption, simply because she wouldn’t have been able to tackle it alone.
But she had a matter that needed settling with the Golden Sun Guild, and she’d be damned if she gave it up.
It was why she was skulking between massive containers’ shadows, slowly inching closer to where she felt several powerful Awakeners.
Technically, being in the harbor without a permit was enough for her to intervene, but she’d look ridiculous trying to give a B-rank a ticket for trespassing. Especially since they’d be able to say they were investigating some mana disturbance, and she’d be forced to let them go.
No, she needed to gather much more information than the loose collection she currently had. No judge would seriously look at her speculations, and then these bastards would be wise that she was onto them.
The excessive riches she had observed them use could be explained away as simply bad purchases. Their use of subsidiary guilds to control entire boroughs of New York, as negligence in checking on them.
But what she suspected she’d find now… Well, that was a different game entirely.
[Wedding Dress of the Princess of Hell] was an extremely versatile skill, allowing her to meld within the darkness with nary a whisper of her presence, as well as granting her unmatched defensive capabilities within her rank.
It was the fruit of months and months of grinding in dungeons while at level 200 to bring her last skill to level 20, thus granting her a powerful evolution. Some had scoffed at her doggedness, but now she could avoid the notice of even the strongest B-rank sensors.
Thanks to her skill, she reached the waterfront undetected, hovering in the shadow world right next to the group of high-rankers she had come all the way there to spy on.
“We should really accelerate our relocation. No matter what your spies say, I know the AA has started waking up. We should not make it easy for them to catch onto us.” One of them was saying, which Leila recognized by the flashy purple suit as Marques Etoile, one of the Golden Sun’s elite front liners.
His companions, dressed in less ostentatious but equally expensive outfits, nodded in agreement. The small gathering was an odd mix, but each emanated a palpable aura of power.
“We have already begun moving the assets to the secondary location.” Another man, his hair slicked back into a sharp silver mane, replied. His tone was calm but carried an edge of urgency. Leila knew him as John Scott, an old special forces soldier turned Awakener in the early days of the Apocalypse.
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With so many B-rank elites present, she felt like she had struck gold. Of course, the danger was proportioned to the rewards, and if an A-ranker had been present, she would have had to flee the scene as fast as she could. Fortunately, the Golden Sun Guild only had one, and that man wasn’t likely to hang around in a place like this.
Only two other people were at the harbor, and she had met both more than once. Bradley Esposito was easily recognizable thanks to his pale blonde hair and well-groomed beard, while the other, a woman that only went by the name of Poison Snake, dressed in green and yellow, up to having well-manicured nails which she knew for a fact were strong enough to cut through steel.
“Your little power struggles don’t interest me. What about the artifacts?” The woman asked, her voice dripping with concern. Her amber eyes were sharp, scanning the dim lights of the harbor suspiciously. “We can’t just leave them here. They’re too valuable and too dangerous.”
Scott nodded, tapping a finger over his golden pocket watch. “We really should find a different system. I understand the importance of ensuring each shipment is handled well, but we all have pressing duties. We can’t have such valuables stay out in the open for so long. The consequences alone…”
“Agreed. This batch will be moved tonight by my men. I have already ensured the safety of the routes, and they will reach a new deposit soon enough.” Marques interjected with an air of authority, motioning towards the containers.
A thrill went down Leila’s spine. So far, nothing explicitly illegal has been said. After all, the Golden Sun Guild was known to take part in the trade of high-rank materials and artifacts. But if she could follow them to a deposit, she might be able to get her hands on something more consistent.
Bradley Esposito, who had remained silent until now, spoke up, his voice clear and commanding “We should make sure that the new location is more secure, and maybe look into hiring more trustworthy personnel. Your thugs might be loyal, but they are done if anyone above C-rank finds them.”
The purple-suited man took the insult with grace, merely smiling. “Need I remind you, my friend, that the entirety of this operation is only possible because of my men? Should I mention what happened the last time you tried using your family’s network?”
Leila giddily listened in. If cracks were already present, she might not need to do too much to bring their crimes to light.
The squabbling was interrupted soon by Poison Snake “I have connections in other guilds, people who owe me favors. They know not to ask questions, and it might make things easier on us if we have scapegoats ready.” She added, unbothered by the heated glares her two companions were throwing at each other.
The fact that they were discussing this kind of thing out in the open made Leila think they had been getting away with it for a long time. This kind of brazenness only came about in long-standing, successful operations, and she was increasingly sure this was one of those.
At one point, Poison Snake looked around as if sensing something off, her eyes narrowed and scanning the darkness. They passed over Leila’s hiding spot without stopping, much to her relief.
The woman was the most concerned about security of the group, being obviously wary of being found out, but Leila didn’t think it was because of any guilt or inexperience.
Rather, she seemed the most conscious of how badly things could go if they were found out.
Eventually, the meeting concluded, with the group agreeing to move the ‘artifacts' that very night. They dispersed, each heading to separate points of the harbor, forming a perimeter.
Leila waited a few more minutes before she resumed her hunt. The discussion she had overheard hinted at several interesting things, but they had been careful enough not to explicitly speak of criminal activity.
However, that didn’t stop her from looking for the evidence by herself. Entering the massive, reinforced containers would have been impossible for anyone without a spatial skill, and Leila was sure the Golden Sun wouldn’t have allowed such a glaringly obvious weakness to stand.
[Wedding Dress of the Princess of Hell], however, operated on entirely different rules. Although it had a spatial component, as long as she didn’t materialize she’d be able to snoop around without tripping any sensor, human or mechanical.
Thus, she entered the first container.
After listening in on the Golden Sun’s leaders’ talk, Leila had expected to find powerful artifacts and monster parts. Rare, to be sure, but nothing outside the ordinary. The information in her head painted a picture of smuggling valuable objects to avoid taxes and oversight.
Instead, she found something much worse, and suddenly Poison Snake’s words made sense. The danger here was not simply caused by high-level artifacts possibly being stolen.
The Golden Sun was smuggling mana stones in quantities large enough that they should have caused a B-rank Mana Sink all by themselves.
Leila observed with wide eyes the sheer level of wealth on display. There was enough in one container to pay for the entire AA New York Branch budget for a year.
The trade of mana stones, especially with this quantity and quality, was strictly forbidden and was one of the few things the Federal Government kept an eye on.
Too many times in the early days had people caused dungeons to appear because they had collected a critical level of the precious things.
In just one container, the Golden Sun had stuffed enough to cause half a dozen Mana Sinks, or, more likely, to forcefully increase an already present dungeon’s rank.
That’s what they were doing at the Bear dungeon. They weren’t using such powerful equipment without a reason. They had made that C-rank dungeon into a B-rank one!