Chapter 437

Chapter 345: Analysis

Misha displayed a large map in front of everyone and then turned her attention to it, continuing to speak.

“Before you all arrived in Tivyán, Prince Harold had already entrusted me with investigating the mole within the Bureau. I spent considerable time conducting investigations in the Secret World of Tivyán and eventually obtained crucial intelligence.” As she spoke, Misha carefully scanned the city map of Tivyán and continued, “I utilized my personal connections in the Secret World of Tivyán to gather any unusual clues. Not long ago, I learned that a secret society called the Eight Pinnacle Nest was selling information related to our Bureau through very covert channels.”

Listening to Misha’s words, Gregor paused slightly. Nearby, the woman Jive asked, “The Eight Pinnacle Nest? So this secret society is infiltrating the Bureau?”

“Yes, I have reason to believe that the Eight Pinnacle Nest is indeed infiltrating us. I paid a hefty sum through private channels to obtain the names of smaller societies purchasing information. I found that the Bureau has faced numerous setbacks recently, with one particularly severe incident leading to the destruction of a search party and the escape of an important prisoner. However, thanks to joint actions with the Church, we managed to minimize the damage.”

Misha continued, and Gregor frowned slightly as he asked, “So these people are stealing information from us just to sell it? Is the Eight Pinnacle Nest essentially just a broker for information?”

“No, they are more than just brokers. According to the intelligence I’ve gathered, they seem to be plotting something sinister over a long period. Being brokers is just a recent development.”

Misha responded to Gregor, then touched her chin thoughtfully and said, “From what I know about the Secret World of Tivyán, the Eight Pinnacle Nest did not sell any information to other societies before October. They do not have a tradition of being brokers. For them, this is a new sideline. I suspect their finances encountered some problems recently, causing them to sell information. This gave me the chance to uncover their traces.”

Misha concluded, and Gregor and everyone else present became curious about what could have caused the financial difficulties of the Eight Pinnacle Nest.

“So… why does the Eight Pinnacle Nest now face significant financial burdens?” Gregor asked further, and Misha nodded in response.

“Yes, I think they might have engaged in a divination battle with another major society. Recently, the price of ‘Enlightenment’ storage items in Tivyán skyrocketed, which is related to such unusual price fluctuations. Unfortunately, we cannot obtain specific transaction details from the Artisan Guild. Otherwise, we would have gained more intelligence.”

As Misha spoke, she shifted her gaze toward the East District, where the White Stone Craftsmen Guild had a branch in Tivyán. He knew it was impossible to extract intelligence from those merchants.

‘A divination battle… Does it refer to an intelligence war where they use ‘Enlightenment’ resources against each other? To use so much ‘Enlightenment’ resource, the Eight Pinnacle Nest must be a significant society. I wonder who their opponent was?’

Gregor pondered, recalling how in Igewent, the entire branch did not have a single ‘Enlightenment’, which he considered a rare treasure always denied by Director James. Yet, this thing was possessed by multiple members of the society, making it hard for Gregor to imagine.

“So, Ms. Misha, you want to track down the Eight Pinnacle Nest through their information trafficking?” John, the oldest person present, sitting next to Gregor, asked. Misha continued, “This is indeed a direction, but their process of selling information is extremely cautious and secretive. It’s difficult to find any leads. The clues I mentioned earlier are not about this aspect. The greatest gain from investigating information transactions is understanding who is attempting to infiltrate us.”

“In summary, we still have too little intelligence on the Eight Pinnacle Nest. The clues I previously mentioned pertain to someone who might hold key information about the Eight Pinnacle Nest.”

Misha said, then picked up a small wooden stick resembling a teaching rod and pointed to a certain area on the map. The location she indicated was in the northern outskirts of Tivyán.

“This place is the King Campus of the Royal Sacred Crown University in Tivyán. In late September, a serious crime occurred here, where fourteen college students were found contaminated by poison. Our observer stationed at the university also perished. Members of the Eight Pinnacle Nest once held a ceremony of unknown purpose in the ruins beneath the school.”

Pointing to a region in the northern outskirts, Misha said. Hearing this, Gregor couldn’t help but think to himself:

‘The Royal Sacred Crown University… If I remember correctly, Dorothy attended the affiliated high school there, which is nearby… That means so many extraordinary crimes happened around Dorothy? Thank goodness, nothing happened to Dorothy.’

Hearing Misha’s words, Gregor felt relieved. Meanwhile, Misha, standing in front of the map, continued speaking.

“At first, we couldn’t confirm the activities of the Eight Pinnacle Nest or the purpose of corrupting students and holding ceremonies. We didn’t even know there was a problem until a few days before the incident when someone reported two denunciations through the Artisan Guild’s channel to the Bureau.”

“Denunciation?” Gregor asked in confusion, feeling as if he had triggered some memories. On the other side, Misha continued, “Yes, denunciation. The first one denounced a cult gathering point in the King Campus. The Bureau sent two teams and successfully cleared out a nest of the Eight Pinnacle Nest, but unfortunately, they encountered a powerful figure from the White Chalk and barely managed to retreat.”

“The key is the second denunciation. It directly forewarned of the corruption ritual held by the Eight Pinnacle Nest underground at the school. Perhaps due to the work of a mole within the Bureau, this denunciation was ignored for some reason. Only after the incident did we realize that someone had forewarned of this event beforehand.”

After finishing, Misha looked at everyone present and continued. Leo then directly interjected.

“Both denunciations accurately predicted the movements of the Eight Pinnacle Nest… This means… the informant has exceptional knowledge of the Eight Pinnacle Nest! We might be able to use him as a breakthrough!”

With a serious expression, Leo said, and Misha nodded slightly in agreement.

“Yes, the key lies in this informant. His ability to predict the Eight Pinnacle Nest’s actions is extraordinary. If we can make contact with him, we might gain some insights.”

“This informant contacted us through the Artisan Guild, signing his letter as… a detective.”

Misha concluded, and at that moment, Gregor, who was seated below, froze momentarily. At that instant, he recalled the person who had come to help him on the train to Tivyán, following the command of the dream dragon Patunax. That person also called himself a detective.