[Blue Archive] I am the Trinity Checkpoint Chief – Chapter 67

7:27 AM. The Intelligence Office of Trinity General Academy.

A student was sipping tea, waiting for someone.

The girl’s name was Nagato Okura. Despite her title as the head of Trinity General Academy’s intelligence agency, the girl couldn’t let go of her tension.

The weight of a request from an endearing junior, which felt somewhat unreasonable, wasn’t insignificant. Though she had lived her life constantly hearing herself called a tomboy or a clumsy senpai, she prided herself on having a certain level of common sense.

At least, that’s what she thought. The food her junior had given her was practically a lump of food poisoning bacteria.

A few days ago, a request she received in the corner bathhouse of the Tea Party was—when put simply—straightforward.

“Deliver a fresh scoop to Chronos.”

The problem lay in the content. No matter how much it was framed as a lie or reassured as an effective breakthrough for the situation, it far exceeded her sense of normalcy. Even if she’d be criticized for being subjective, the girl was certain.

The line between a wise decision and a mistake that would go down in history was razor-thin. Her junior was practically walking a tightrope.

“…Sigh.”

But what could she do? It was her own fault for eagerly accepting and eating something that looked delicious. Having worked at the Tea Party for over three years, the girl knew well who bore the responsibility.

If she handled it smoothly on her own, how could she face her junior, who’d feel betrayed? She thought to herself: if she didn’t make a mistake, it wouldn’t reach the host’s ears.

Act natural, talk casually, and let it pass as if nothing happened.

That’s how I survive.

That’s how my junior survives.

And—

Trinity survives.

7:30 AM. The alarm on her phone chirped cheerfully. The door swung open roughly, and the student she had been waiting for entered.

“Wow, first one here today, too. So like you, Mitsuki. Always working hard in the morning.”

“Even so, I can’t compare to you, Chief. This place is starting to feel like a red ocean. Gotta hustle to catch something.”

“True that. How about a cup of tea?”

The student wearing a “press” badge also had a Chronos School student ID. It was a familiar sight, one she’d seen for months. A third-year veteran, considered something of an expert, this student acted as a liaison between the Intelligence Office and the press. Nagato liked how well they got along. She couldn’t help but wonder why such a capable student stayed at Chronos.

With a gesture from Nagato, the first secretary poured two cups of black tea and left. The two shared a brief tea time. Their teacups soon revealed the patterns at the bottom. The silence didn’t last long, as Nagato broke the ice.

“Big trouble at the Checkpoint, huh? A third-year, they say?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah… that’s right. The Checkpoint’s been way too aggressive lately.”

“Arius Branch, wasn’t it? That student?”

The reputation of a veteran reporter wasn’t for nothing. The student sensed something urgent had happened and latched onto it. Rushing could mean missing the thread, so she played along, acting as if she already knew.

“Oh, right. Yeah, Arius Branch.”

Arius Branch—the armed group that had joined Misono Mika’s coup a few days ago, wasn’t it? Since the reporter’s newsroom was in the main building, she had witnessed it vividly.

She had even snapped a few photos on the spot, but the higher-ups had blocked their publication for some reason. The chief had something. If played right, this could be a scoop.

“They were investigated after the coup, right? At the Tea Party, was it?”

“Nah, not the Tea Party. I heard it was the Checkpoint.”

The Checkpoint was located outside Trinity’s city area, near the border with Gehenna Academy. In other words, it was a place out of the Tea Party’s reach.

Was the student’s investigation deemed illegal, or was something else going on to make the chief look like that? As someone who had worked as a war correspondent during the SRT incident, the reporter’s instincts told her this wasn’t an ordinary story.

“What a waste of a life… The Checkpoint kids are way too reckless. Big trouble.”

“…”

A life, in what way? If the chief wasn’t speaking metaphorically, then—

Did someone die?

“People… can’t they just take it easy…?”

The reporter could only watch her trembling hands. Thinking the teacup might be too heavy, she set it down on the table.

Her hands were still shaking.

***

After leaving the Tea Party, the student immediately called the desk chief of the social affairs department.

“Hello, Chief? Do you know about Arius Branch?”

“The place that caused a big mess a few days ago? What’s up?”

“I heard… a student from Arius Branch died while being investigated at the Checkpoint.”

“What? That’s huge. Mitsuki, go to the Checkpoint and verify the facts thoroughly.”

The social affairs chief’s voice was trembling heavily.

***

A Chronos student walked into the Checkpoint and asked outright:

“I heard a student being investigated here died. Is that true?”

The surprising part was that she was waiting in my office. In the most secure, deepest part of the Checkpoint, an outsider could come and go freely. And not just any outsider—a Chronos student.

On top of that, it seems I’ll have to deal with a few students who’ve been sneaking around.

“Answer me. Did an Arius student really die here?”

“No.”

“But the intelligence chief said it’s true.”

That’s because I, the one who asked Nagato-senpai to feed you false information, am the mastermind.

A letter went missing from the wireless communication network between the Sisterhood and the Tea Party. There’s no issue with the base stations at the Tea Party or the Cathedral, and I confirmed this morning that I sent Sakurako-sama’s letter from the Cathedral’s base station.

There are about five or six base stations in between. Given the distance, it’s understandable, but this is inconvenient. With the political situation already sensitive, if a large-scale arrest operation were launched, the Tea Party would see it as another rebellion.

As I racked my brain, a light bulb went off.

Spreading fake news—wouldn’t that be effective?

Spread a story about Arius Branch that they can’t ignore, and see how they react. I asked Nagato-senpai to lure a Chronos School student, and I waited.

But I didn’t expect senpai to say a student died. That’s not my fault.

Still, the plan hasn’t fallen apart, so that’s a relief. For now, I’ll play dumb and send her to the Sisterhood. A rumor about a student’s death is serious enough to require fact-checking, so we might even send a message to the Tea Party.

“Say something. Don’t I deserve an answer to clear my doubts?”

“Look, no student died at the Checkpoint. If you’re curious, go ask the Sisterhood. Arius students aren’t our jurisdiction.”

“Why’s the Sisterhood involved? Is there some connection between Arius Branch and the Cathedral?”

“No, it’s just that the Sisterhood handles funerals for deceased students.”

By answering ambiguously, I confuse her logic. If she can’t tell whether I’m telling the truth, she’ll carry her doubts to the Cathedral.

What she’s suspicious of is whether there was torture at the Checkpoint. Of course, the gentlemanly border Checkpoint doesn’t do torture. It’s completely different from its public image. Torture? I handle most of the interrogations myself.

“Really? No one died?”

“That’s harsh. Look at my hands. Do they look bloodstained?”

“No, but why did the chief…?”

I’m trying to figure that out myself.

In the end, the student left the Checkpoint without a solid lead. Unless it’s confirmed, she likely won’t write an article, so I expect she’ll head to the Cathedral.

The Intelligence Office’s surveillance team is monitoring all communication records from Trinity’s city base stations and the Cathedral’s—with Nagisa-sama’s permission, which I’ll need to get later. I hope we see results within a couple of days.

I turned on my phone and called Nagato-senpai.

“Hey, Hikari-chan. What’s up?”

“That Mitsuki or whatever student just came by. I think she’s the Chronos student you mentioned.”

“Oh, Mitsuki! She ran out before I could even finish talking.”

“But senpai, you told her an Arius student died at the Checkpoint? I didn’t ask for that.”

“I only said what you told me to, Hikari-chan.”

—What?

“No, no, I didn’t say that. I told you to make it up roughly.”

“That’s not it. You said if we’re dragging Arius into this, we need to kill off one of them, so I said exactly that.”

“Uh… okay. Okay, fine.”

Did I say that?

I do recall a metaphor about how to catch a picky eater, you need to bait them with a small fry.

…Same thing, isn’t it?

***

It’s been about two months since I infiltrated the Sisterhood.

The mission has been going smoothly.

Trinity’s incompetent counterintelligence agency hasn’t been doing its job, and sending communication records to the Chapel has been a piece of cake.

When all our efforts for Misono Mika’s coup collapsed, I was filled with rage, but that’s in the past.

Since I haven’t received any other orders, Madame still wants me to keep working.

So, right now, I have value.

Even in a world where everything feels futile, I have enough reason to stand tall. If I keep sending Trinity’s classified information from the Cathedral to the Chapel, if I earn Madame’s approval, one day, I too could be like the Squad—

Clunk!

The door to the communication room swung open, and a nun I worked with rushed in. What’s going on? She said she was going to meet the Mother Superior.

“Oh, Rinko-san.”

“What’s wrong, Miaki? You look startled.”

“I just heard shocking news from Sakurako-sama.”

As the head of the communication room, she was often summoned whenever the Mother Superior had urgent matters to send. Usually, it was about interpreting scriptures, but today felt different.

“They say a student from Arius Branch died.”

“I’m sorry, what?”

“A student being investigated at the Checkpoint died, and they were from Arius Branch.”

What does that mean?

The Checkpoint is practically Yamatsu Hikari’s domain. A student from the Branch died there?

“Is that confirmed?”

“No, Sakurako-sama said it’s just a reporter’s suspicion… but just in case, she told us to contact the Checkpoint.”

“I’ll do it.”

“…You will, Rinko-san? If you’re taking it on, thank you.”

—Oh no.

I messed up. It was so shocking that I volunteered without thinking.

There could be Arius students infiltrating the Checkpoint. But if they were caught?

Caught and—what happened to them that their Halo broke?

This needs to be reported to the Chapel too. My instincts are certain.

Beep.

With trembling hands, I turned on the transmitter.

The static was unusually loud today.