The following evening, I went to the hospital because I needed to speak with Nia's mother.
"Do you understand why Nia came to Ohane City? Any news on her resignation?"
She became alert and suspicious of me. Only then did I bring up Nia being extorted by her coworkers, mentioning that I was one of her supporters and a friend of hers.
"No, I don't have a clue about why she was here. Nia never mixes her personal and work lives. However, she said that the lab was engaging in shady business and that she needed to meet Mr. Green when she resigned. I don't have any other information."
She had come here, it's true, to meet someone, but who was Mr. Green? Was he present here somewhere?
I instructed my scouts to track down Mr. Green and keep an eye on the activities of the Capital University Research Lab.
The mother-daughter teams were requested to maintain a low profile and instructed to phone me right away if they felt threatened. For their security, I hired several professional bodyguards.
"Please let me know before you leave if Nia wakes up shortly and is lucid. Please be careful."
Maybe my genuine assistance had an impact on her since she nods gravely. We exchange contact details.
Though I had no control over their lives, I did my best. I walked outside. I have to keep traveling. I have a sense that I'll soon discover something relevant to my mysteries.
<< But hold on, am I becoming chattier and more outgoing? When did I start becoming more friendly toward strangers, developing empathy for others, and lie so readily?
Is it a result of the liquid injection and the half-month disappearance, or am I again changing, or both? >>
*****
A whole week after departing from Horn Mountain, I finally made it to a port in the Weery City.
I was able to glimpse the ocean from this lovely city. (Are oceans truly as blue as they claim to be?)
The metropolis is more humid than other regions of the country, and life is busy. This city has unusually erratic weather because it could rain at any time. Even today, I can still smell the damp earth and see the raindrops on some of the leaves.
Actually, I was going to an island called Wega, not the city of Weery. The Wega area is also a part of Weery City, and it was roughly 2 kilometers away from the harbor.
It was my intention to go to Wega in order to fulfill a commitment I made to the woman there, visit a burial, and look for information regarding what the insane man had stated. Someone should at least be aware of it, right?
As just a small piece of the island was controlled by the military and the rest was retained by the Virtue Group, it is not accessible to the general public.
The Virtue Group was a secretive and formidable organization. The Wega branch provided intelligence, assisted in negotiations, and even had its own trained special troops to aid the military and the administration.
In addition, it has its own secret deals since how else could it make money?
Additionally, Virtue Group worked in business, innovation, and other fields. It was a strong organization that did not just exist in Ashpor; it also had branches in other nations.
According to reports, the headquarters was located in Wosmea (south of Ashpor).
The leaders of this group were mysterious.
However, the Wega branch's motto was "Protect goodwill and fight for injustice."
Not everyone adheres to it since some people have tainted hearts.
Beta, Gamma, and Del are the three vice leaders of the Wega branch. There were about 75 capable workers just behind them.
Around 25 workers are under each vice leader. Some people work alone, while others operate in groups because they can make their own decisions and take risks with them.
The equitable distribution served to keep the Wega branch in balance.
The Wega had a sizable number of undercovers working for them as commoners, so don't even consider how little human power and workers they actually have. The figure just represents the Wega core.
Some people could even be ignorant that they belong to the Virtue group. (Also referred to as a sleeper cell)
A new main leader of Virtue Group took over the post of the previous one three years ago. The new one has never been seen.
The previous leader was only witnessed by Gamma and Del. While some in Wega believed the opposite, there were reports that the new major leader was unsightly, vicious, and unworthy.
Unauthorized individuals are not permitted into Wega. Only a limited amount of permission was given to military and outer members in addition to the Virtue group and Wega core members.
It was a place with strict security. Only marine vessels owned by Wega may be used, and only those having authorization-issued IDs may enter; access by anybody else is prohibited.
And I'm here preparing to sneakily infiltrate the heavily guarded Wega without anyone noticing. Will I be capable? Wait and see, shall we?
I simply have to because I am without other options.
My belongings and authorized IDs have been destroyed ( thanks to the failed assassination for letting me be in one piece alive and breathing).
Second, I am unaware of the circumstances inside Wega, and third, I am unable to confirm my survival because someone might be watching me, spying on me, or working with others to kill me.
Who are they? The number? Their motivation is still a mystery.
Perhaps some people despise, envy, and feel jealous of me because I can't help them.
However, the unidentified ones make me feel like I'm being followed in a different way.
I detest it. Who in the world enjoys being stalked and followed in secret? Do you??
I choose to keep an eye on the situation from the shore as I can't enter immediately.
There are many new faces here.
I haven't eaten in more than a day, which made my stomach growl.
I made the decision to try some of the local seafood because it was well-known in these places. I noticed a senior couple opening the stall. The stall was clean, and there weren't many people there.
As I waited, I placed my food order. After waiting for around ten minutes, I finally got my meal, which was healthy and had a good balance of sour and spicy flavors. I often only eat to satisfy my hunger.
Eating my food as ordered I want to have a talk with them. At the counter paying the bill, I started my conversation.
"Hello!! Sir. Do you know anything new happening here? I can see a lot of faces near the port?"
"No, young lady nothing new but I heard a lot of people trying to enter Wega."
"Oh really. Who and why, do you have any ideas? Any news about Wega??"
"Lady I think some were armed military and some other, who knows who. But I heard something major happened a few months ago. During some of their missions, they lost some of their capable members. That's what the public says but who knows what's the actual situation."
"Hmm--; thanks sir for food and gossip."
"Don't mention lady please do come again."
He was correct; how could I possibly know Wega's true status from the outside given that I know it is highly sensitive and private information?
I must figure out how to get inside Wega, but how? I waited all afternoon at the harbor in hopes of spotting some familiar faces, but I saw nobody.
Dejected, I made the decision to take a break and look after myself, didn't wait till night because nobody went to Wega after sunset.
It was the law of Wega.