Chapter 759 — Intelligence

"Speaking of which, don't you plan to put those two special 'citizens' at Fort Saurin to some use?" Amber said after a moment's thought. "One is left sitting there doing photosynthesis, and the other's main job is tagging crystal jars dug out of the ruins and studying the photosynthesis of the giant tree. With their special status, it feels like a terrible waste."

Gao Yang knew what Amber meant.

There was Bardwindel, studying the photosynthesis of the giant tree in the Fort Saurin region, and there was Beira Augustus, doing photosynthesis all day long. These two were arguably the most special "citizens" of Cecil—and when it came to Typhon affairs, their identities were simply exquisite.

The former was the father of Typhon's current Wolf General; the latter was the ancestor of Typhon's current Emperor.

One felt that if these two were just pushed up to the border line at the right moment, Typhon's military and political leaders and a whole raft of important personages would clutch their chests and howl at the top of their lungs, "Noooooo—"

With luck, a few of them might even be struck dead on the spot by high blood pressure.

And the greatest difficulty in the whole process was that Beira would be very hard to push to the border. For the time being, the druid research institute at Fort Saurin probably still could not solve the problem of transplanting Beira's cuttings, and if Beira went herself, she might in one breath level the entire eastern corridor and the Twelve Fortresses of the Long Wind... assuming she could successfully pull her roots out of the ground.

But it was precisely because these two were too special in status—two cards of far too much influence—that Gao Yang was unwilling to play or expose them early, and instead kept all information about them hidden.

"These two cards are too big," he said, shaking his head. "Playing them now to shake the will of the Typhonians would only be a waste. Roan has countless ways to blunt the impact of 'rumors.' Better to save them for the future, when they will do far more."

Amber let out a soft breath. "I understand."

Gao Yang rubbed the space between his brows, letting his somewhat taut nerves relax.

"Is there anything from Office Twenty-Five that needs reporting?" he asked casually.

"The main work at present is still designing contingency plans for fluctuations of the mind. According to the intelligence Daniel has recently sent back, the worst case is a temporary or permanent interruption of the mind-link. We would then have to temporarily execute the 'Frozen' plan on Daniel's line, and afterward look for an opportunity to restore contact with Daniel and the intelligence personnel around him by other means. Fortunately, Typhon has by now developed a number of backup covert lines—Daniel's apprentice, the新兴 investment merchants of Typhon, and the minor Typhon nobles we encountered through the 'Trajectory Plan' all include people we have drawn in or whose weaknesses we hold. The intelligence network over there no longer depends entirely on Daniel's personal activity as it once did..."

Amber reported in clear, orderly fashion, and Gao Yang nodded slightly as he listened.

The "Trajectory Plan" Amber had mentioned was the collective name for a whole range of operations conducted in the course of exporting magitech trains into Typhon's territory: making contact with its lower-ranking nobles and impoverished knights, seeking opportunities to infiltrate and win them over, or dispatching personnel to befriend and monitor them, thereby establishing regular intelligence channels.

The plan had been running for nearly a full year now, and though it was still in its early stages, it had yielded a certain amount of results.

The power of capital is formidable, especially in an environment with weak oversight; those "investor nobles" of Typhon who had only just gotten a taste of the sweetness were all but powerless against its temptation.

In her report, Amber did not mention what was to be done about the intelligence network established within the Long Twilight Order once the mind collapsed. The reason was obvious: if the mind truly blew apart, then the Long Twilight Order... would presumably blow apart as well...

"Next... let us hope all goes smoothly on Daniel's end," Gao Yang said, leaning back in his chair, his gaze calm, his tone unhurried. "Let us hope the higher-ups on the Eternal Sleeper's side prove clever and alert."

……

Typhon Empire, Aldnan, within the mages' district near the Obsidian Palace.

In the season when thick fog was beginning to rise, the already feeble sunlight slanted into the room, blocked by half-drawn curtains, leaving the chamber dim and gloomy. In a wide armchair, an old mage dressed in casual indoor clothes sat with his head bowed, dozing through the idle hours of the afternoon.

Black-haired Mary sat at a square table near her mentor, head down, diligently working through a calculus paper.

Suddenly, the sound of the apprentice turning pages and moving her pen tip stopped completely, and for a long while did not resume.

Daniel opened his eyes at once and looked toward Mary. "What is it, a problem you can't solve?"

The next second, the old mage's leisurely, indifferent expression turned grave.

He saw the black-haired apprentice sitting at the square table turn her face toward him, and that face had at some unknown point become another face entirely.

The sunlight spilling into the room through the window, and the motes of dust dancing in that sunlight, all fell still.

"Daniel," the apprentice "Mary" said, looking at the old mage, her voice faint and flat, "we have come to ask you a few things."

(Oh my god!!!!!!

My stockpile of drafts is exhausted. I am at peace with my pitiful state.

I feel like my body has been hollowed out... For the next little while I'll be back to single updates. I'll adjust, then slowly build my stockpile back up... Rest assured, once I've saved up some drafts again, there will be another stretch of consecutive double updates like this.

Finally, in light of these days of double updates, those of you with votes to spare, please cast them =.=, and everyone spread the word—those who've been letting it fatten up can start carving into it now~~~)