"The ’Thorns of Sin’ Club."
"Scope of operations—bridge, Imperial Military Chess..."
Shiayar waved the dossier in Zieg’s direction.
"A chess and card games club occupies almost half a city block, and your Military Department has classified it as top-secret intelligence?"
"Of course, there’s more to it than that."
Zieg approached Shiayar, glanced at the intelligence on the dossier, and couldn’t help but frown slightly.
"Nominally, it’s a card games club, but in reality, ’Thorns of Sin’ is a colossal casino."
"Moreover, unlike those casinos purely after profit, indirect evidence suggests that ’Thorns of Sin’ is directly involved in certain illicit industries."
"Including, but not limited to, organ trafficking, false imprisonment, the slave trade, and so on..."
Shiayar raised his eyebrows in astonishment. "So you just stand by and watch them engage in illicit activities in the Empire Capital, right under your noses?"
"I thought the St. Roland Academy incident was an exception... But now it seems, is everyone in the Military Department and the Jurisdiction Bureau just incompetent fools content with doing nothing?"
Colonel Zieg gave a wry, helpless smile. "The Military Department and the Jurisdiction Bureau are essentially products of a compromise between the Empire and the Great Nobles."
"On paper, they have law enforcement powers across the entire Empire, but in practice, there are numerous constraints. Even the higher echelons of the Military Department and the Jurisdiction Bureau have figures appointed by noble factions—"
A hint of coldness flashed across his stern face. "The owner of the ’Thorns of Sin’ Club is Viscount Lori."
"According to the Third Amendment Act, enacted forty-one years ago—"
"Without concrete evidence and a search warrant approved by Parliament, the Jurisdiction Bureau and the Military Department have no authority to enforce the law on the property of any noble ranked baron or higher."
"All we currently have are indirect leads, not enough to apply for a search warrant. And even if we did apply..."
"Even if the application were successful, by the time we received approval from Parliament, where the nobility holds a majority of seats, those criminals would have long been tipped off, cleared out the evidence, and fled."
Shiayar raised the dossier in his hand, completing Colonel Zieg’s unfinished sentence.
"Wow, you guys are really something. It’s a complete protection racket, an entire underground industry chain. Now I understand why Her Royal Highness the Princess wants to re-establish the ’Swordbearers’."
"There’s no other way."
Colonel Zieg, of course, detected the sarcasm in Shiayar’s words but could only nod in agreement.
Although Shiayar’s words were harsh, they were true.
If they continued to rely on the current Jurisdiction Bureau and Military Department to maintain order, it likely wouldn’t be more than a decade before those vampires completely drained what little national strength and public trust this country had left.
At that point, even if the Fresta Empire hadn’t officially collapsed, it would exist in name only.
He looked at Shiayar and spoke earnestly.
"That is why I swore an oath of allegiance to Her Royal Highness Princess Isadella."
"Among the current imperial princes, only Her Royal Highness Princess Isadella, with her decisive methods, has the potential to eradicate these malignant tumors and dispel this gloom."
"To make Fresta, to make Camelot—"
"Once again the city of order and ideals it was at the nation’s founding, a place where the hearts and minds of all people converged."
"Having ideals is certainly a good thing," Shiayar said noncommittally, setting down the dossier. "But there’s more to this casino than meets the eye, isn’t there?"
"The crimes of a mere viscount wouldn’t warrant a top-tier secrecy classification."
"Indeed, that’s true."
Colonel Zieg spoke again, "Mainly because the owner of this casino, Viscount Lori, has another identity."
"Oh?" Shiayar paused, accepting the tea Enola had brewed for him.
Tea was also one of Shiayar’s business ventures. He promoted it as a healthy alternative to alcohol, focusing on its wellness benefits, and it was quite popular among middle-aged and elderly people.
He took the steaming porcelain cup, blew on it, and asked, "Who?"
Colonel Zieg hesitated for a moment before slowly saying, "’Scarlet Rose,’ of the Borgia family."
"This casino is one of the Borgia family’s key revenue funnels and transit hubs in the Empire Capital. Every day, vast sums of money and resources are channeled through it to various locations on the Western Continent."
"And Viscount Lori is merely a front for the Borgia family."
Shiayar paused, then sipped his tea. "It feels like the Borgias are involved in everything."
"Within the Empire Capital, most clandestine industries, aside from behemoths like the Dark Shadow Council that can operate independently, have the backing of Great Nobles."
"And the Borgia family is a prime example of these Great Nobles," Colonel Zieg explained. "If ’Thorns of Sin’ could be taken down, it would deal a significant blow to the Borgia family’s financial network and could, to some extent, destabilize the current situation in the Empire Capital."
He shook his head somewhat helplessly.
"So, you’re saying that if we could dismantle that casino, it would also alleviate Her Royal Highness’s worries?"
"Of course. The Borgia family is currently the most powerful noble alliance in the Empire Capital and Her Royal Highness’s greatest obstacle."
Zieg nodded. "However, their network of connections runs deep, making it extremely difficult to penetrate through standard law enforcement procedures."
"And if we circumvent normal procedures and resort to force, it could very well provoke a united backlash from those Great Nobles..."
Zieg’s words trailed off.
Because he saw that Shiayar had, at some point, stood up.