Time moved to the next day, and Jeanne arrived at the gates of the Lungmen Guard Department early in the morning to wait. As for Lemuen? She was far too conspicuous in a crowd, so it was decided she would coordinate with Swire and the others to provide backup.
Thinking about it, it made sense. If a Sankta suddenly appeared in an LGD search team in Lungmen, it would be impossible to keep a low profile!
But even so, it wasn't quite appropriate for Jeanne to participate in this operation either. Since they already knew the enemy was hiding inside Rhine Gold, her involvement might "startle the snake" if she were recognized.
She was able to participate in this mission largely thanks to Swire's exquisite makeup techniques. Using various cosmetics that Jeanne had never even heard of, Swire successfully transformed her face from Jeanne into Artoria.
Jeanne looked at herself in the mirror, now appearing exactly like Artoria, and couldn't quite understand how Swire had done it. Was it really possible to become a different person just by applying makeup?
"How is it? Now, even if that person has seen your photo, you won't have to worry. I must say, your facial structure is truly miraculous; I only applied a tiny bit of makeup, but the result looks like a complete change of identity."
Swire praised her work as she looked at the transformed Jeanne in the mirror. She hadn't expected it to be this easy; just a few strokes had achieved such an effect. Looking at the Jeanne in the mirror with her hair tied up, Swire felt as though Jeanne now looked like a knight straight out of a Kazimierz novel—her temperament had completely shifted.
"Perhaps it's because my face is, to some extent, a very common type? I feel like there are quite a lot of people with a similar facial structure to mine."
Jeanne didn't want to say much more about the fact that she fell within the "Artoria-species" category. People with poor eyesight indeed found it easy to mix up the various Artoria-types. For example, that Knight of the Lake, or her old comrade-in-arms Gilles. She truly didn't know how they managed to see people so wrongly.
"Are you two finished? We're about to set out!"
Ch'en, who had just finished speaking with the other officers outside, walked in. Seeing Jeanne looking like a different person, she was left speechless. Had this "Char Siu's" makeup skills actually reached such a level of precision? No wonder her handbag was filled with so many strange things every day.
In her current state, someone extremely familiar with Jeanne might find a few clues in the details, but for someone who had only seen her a few times, recognizing her would be difficult. Others seeing the current Jeanne would only think they were two people who looked somewhat alike; they wouldn't imagine they were the same person. And looking similar wasn't a rare thing in Terra.
"Then let's go! Everyone has prepared the necessary items!"
With that, Ch'en was the first to leave the room, waiting outside for Jeanne and Swire. Not long after, the disguised Jeanne and Swire walked out. At Ch'en's command, the LGD's safety investigation of Rhine Gold officially began!
This time, the LGD had deployed the vast majority of its elite forces. No matter who the enemy was, they were determined to bring the high-level Ursus agents lurking in that company to justice!
Cars carrying LGD officers dispersed at different intersections, but only the one driven by Ch'en bore the LGD insignia; the others were inconspicuous, off-brand vehicles.
"Pink Sausage, Pink Sausage! This is Char Siu, do you copy?"
Swire's voice came over the radio, though this time there was no tone of provocation or ridicule when she addressed Ch'en. It was simply because that was Ch'en's code name for this operation.
While it's true that code names can be chosen at will, the way you two just used your nicknames as code names is truly baffling.
"Char Siu, Char Siu, this is Pink Sausage Dragon. Report any situation immediately!"
When Ch'en spoke her code name, the corner of her mouth twitched visibly. It was clear she didn't much like her code name, especially since it basically only appeared in her communications with Swire. However, out of professional police discipline, Ch'en didn't argue. She realized she shouldn't have left the task of assigning communication codes to Swire; she should have handled it herself.
"My subordinates have reached their designated positions. You may enter! However, there are many surveillance cameras in the vicinity, and we cannot get too close to the target for the time being. Please maintain contact!"
Swire had already deployed sufficient police force around Rhine Gold. Beside her, Lemuen stood with several guns; this time, she could use live ammunition with peace of mind.
However, although their police deployment was very thorough, the problem was that there were almost no blind spots in the surveillance cameras around the company. They could only observe the changes from a distance.
This meant that unless Ch'en actually found evidence of illegal activity inside, they would have to stay put. Furthermore, Ch'en and the others acting as inspectors could not carry weapons.
However, no one felt dissatisfied with this roundabout way of catching spies; it was clearly the way to follow Lungmen law. Though it came with many inconveniences, this was something the Lungmen Guard Department had to endure. If they didn't follow the law, who else could be expected to?
"I have acknowledged the situation. The three of us will remain vigilant after entering. You all watch the surroundings outside to ensure no one barges into this company to do anything."
After saying this, Ch'en clipped her walkie-talkie to her chest pocket and stepped on the gas, driving toward the company. Because safety could not be guaranteed, the fewer people entering for the investigation, the better—and the more elite, the better. Thus, including Jeanne, there were only three of them.
In the enemy's territory, trying to use human wave tactics was unrealistic. More people meant more people who needed protection; if a fight truly broke out, it would only tie their hands. But if there were only the three of them, they could hold out for a while even against superior numbers. And that time would be enough for Swire to lead their LGD colleagues inside for support.
Before long, the LGD vehicle driven by Ch'en arrived at the main gate of Rhine Gold. Had it not been to give Swire enough time to set up, Ch'en would have arrived much sooner.
"Eh? Are you officers here to find someone or for business? Please register, and I'll call to notify them right away!"
The security guard at the gate, seeing it was an LGD vehicle, naturally didn't dare to be disrespectful. After exchanging a few polite words, he quickly dialed the company manager's phone.
Ch'en, Hoshiguma, and Jeanne simply stood there without saying anything. They observed this lavishly decorated company, remaining 1000% alert.
The manager of this company didn't keep them waiting long. When he saw it was the LGD, he wasn't surprised at all; it seemed he had received word long ago. Ch'en and Hoshiguma didn't have any special reaction to the fact that the company knew about the LGD's operation in advance. These companies had their own networks; they had seen this sort of thing many times.
"Welcome, three LGD officers. I wonder what brings you to our company? Has one of our employees committed a crime?"
The person who came to greet the three of them was an Ursus man as solid as a brown bear. To what extent was he robust? Let's just say that among the three, only Hoshiguma could compare to him in terms of physique.
At this moment, even if he knew exactly why they had come, he had to pretend he didn't know what was happening. His acting skills were a perfect match for his massive frame.
"By order of the Governor of Lungmen, due to recent serious security issues, the high-level officials of Lungmen have decided to conduct a general safety search. Today, the LGD needs to conduct a safety investigation of your company. Please cooperate."
Ch'en handed the investigation warrant signed by Wei Yenwu to the Ursus man. He took the warrant, looked at it for a short while, and then opened the tightly closed gates to welcome the three inside.
"Since it is an order from Lungmen, we will naturally comply honestly. Rest assured, we are a law-abiding enterprise."
As the man spoke, he stepped aside to make a path. He stood to the side to welcome the three into the company, behaving quite like a gentleman.
Ch'en said nothing, only exchanging a few official pleasantries before leading the other two into the company. At this moment, she didn't want to say much to this Ursus man; every extra word could be a clue that exposed them. Because this person's race was Ursus—and this time, their target was Ursus spies. This executive was a prime suspect!
Jeanne looked at the overcast, flickering sky and thought of the name "Rhine Gold," feeling that the waters of this company must be very deep indeed. She wondered how many people had met with misfortune here.