Chapter 22: Campbell District

Upon opening the documents, he found numerous folded pieces of paper with a collection of dates, maps, names, and locations that seemed to be centered entirely around West Borough. They specifically detailed recent police activity in the Campbell district within the past year.

[4/01/22 -> 10:22PM -> Frank Harrow -> Increased police presence within Baroque street. ]

[4/28/22 -> 2:15AM -> Cell #01275 Extracted -> Shipped to Miro, PR of Sani -> Drop site T77]

[5/30/22 -> 7:49AM -> REPLACEMENT CASE -> Reed Rowley sent to B5(see attachment for reference)]

Reed Rowley? That's the name of the infamous scammer within Area 1! It seems that the real Reed Rowley had his identity stolen and was sent to a location within the city known as "B5". A replacement case likely referred to the act of stealing their identity and "replacing" them with another person.

Derrick scoured the map page in search of the "B5" location. It was located at the Brayworth Pharmaceutical building within the South Borough. South Borough was the second largest borough in Mathers City. It's primarily known for housing the upper-class population of Mathers City. The region also had a low amount of police stations in various neighborhoods. It was, at the very least, suspicious.

Brayworth Pharmaceutical company has a connection to the missing persons cases! I need to investigate the building to unravel this case, but I can infiltrate such a suspicious facility without allies. Going in alone is practically a death sentence. I'll ignore them for now and focus on gathering strength.

Derrick's first point of interest was the compensation owed to him by Naoto Gan, the mysterious private detective. The next gathering within Mr.R's manor is in 4 days, so he can collect his Rank 6 Wraith Factor relatively soon. He wasn't sure about the mythical item, as Naoto Gan had already expressed difficulty obtaining such an object.

The second point of interest was his current allies. Ying was a Rank 5 Wraith and Elizabeth's ranking is unknown to him. However, he could tell she was strong. By using Ying's knowledge and reputation of The Hole, Derrick could effortlessly form a hunting squad against Reed Rowley.

For now, he'd gather his strength for the next 4 days and retrieve the Rank 6 Wraith Factor. There was no need to rush, as Derrick Foster does not exist in any official database. The police couldn't hope to track him as long as he planned adequately.

___

Ying sat upon a mountain of trash in the MetaCorp Industry depository. He placed his hands placed together in prayer. The illusory flames that were once unrefined and sporadic had settled into a controlled flame. As he deepened his level of focus, his 'Authority' gradually increased in range. It expanded to a maximum of 100 meters before exhaustion forcibly interrupted his spirituality and canceled the technique.

"Damn…only 100 meters? My maximum range was 3000 meters back then."

Ying looked at his trembling palm with a pained smile. "There's no use. Even if you manage to pick up all the pieces, that doesn't mean you can bring back what's been lost. Isn't that right, captain?"

He pulled out a small emblem from his pocket consisting of a stylized red rose with thorny stems encompassing the petals. It was a worthless trinket, yet Ying kept it with him anyway.

After another hour of intense training, he returned home for some much-needed rest. Ying took a quick shower and left the bathroom in search of clean clothes to wear, but he stumbled upon a strange piece of paper on the living room floor.

The text on the paper was strange. It didn't appear to be a letter, nor did it appear to be a page from a novel. However, he recognized the specific structure of the text. He had only heard rumors about the mythical item during his youth. 

"These pages are records. They all seem to trace back to Brayworth Pharmaceuticals. They're a large company with no apparent connection to any politicians or lobbyists. What could Derrick be after with such a company?"

___

In the dimly lit room, an assembly of shadowy figures encircled a table, the air thick with an almost palpable tension as hushed conversations unfolded. The imposing silhouette at the head of the table raised a commanding hand, instantly quelling the minor discussions. This enigmatic figure was none other than 'The Leader.'

"Let us discuss the matter at hand. Frank Harrow is dead, and the Karma has been stolen."

A figure with an air of elegance, characterized by his long, black hair, raised a poised hand. "Why do we even need to deliberate? Can't we just eliminate that pest whenever we please? There's no conceivable reason we can't track down the perpetrator of this incident within a matter of days."

A woman with a bandaged hand replied to the comment. "It isn't something as simple as tag, Tilok. We've observed the records of every entry into the 1st Precinct and we've pinned the culprit's identity down."

The mysterious woman displayed the ID on a large holographic screen. She seemed young, a woman in her early 20s, with rectangular glasses and white hair that was tied up in a bum.

"This is Alice Nim. She is a well-known info-broken hailing from the western country Medora. She has been active in multiple nations and VIPs in the Western Continent, from the Vice-President of MetaCorp, to the king of the Venizuma Empire - Eil Irah. The amount of influence she wields cannot be understated."

The elegant man took note of her features. He would surely find her true identity. "Hm…this will be a great lead in the investigation, but what about physical samples? There surely must have been some DNA we can extract from the scene." 

"We have, and it's all nonsense. The properties of the blood samples change constantly, so we aren't able to track down whose blood it belongs to. At one hour the blood type is A, the next hour it is type O. There are a few possible candidate races who could be responsible."

"It could very well be a Colian like Frank Harrow."

"No. Colians can manipulate their hosts to a certain extent, but they can't create false information or conjure new data. This is likely the work of a Witch. A Witch capable of transforming their own physiology in order to fool others must be at least a Rank 4 Devotee."

Tolik clenched his teeth in frustration. "A Witch...those crafty bastards are quite the pain in our sides."

"It is not over yet. There is a high possibility that the fragment of Karma has already been accessed. If so, knowledge of the trafficking may be exposed. We will cease operations immediately and fortify Brayworth Pharmaceuticals. We will also track down the recent movements of Alice Nim from the past 3 years to the current day."

The imposing figure at the end of the table glanced at one of the guests. "It seems this is an issue perfectly suited for your people, head of Naraka."

The head of Naraka was a tall man with red hair and an eye patch covering his right eye. His neck was adorned with tattoos that ran down to his shoulder and upper chest. His image practically screamed 'dangerous'.

"Why should I help you? I have no stake in this ordeal, and getting involved will likely bring more harm to my organization than good. Maintaining balance in The Hole is already more than enough work."

Tolik stood up from his seat abruptly. "Know your place! We haven't eradicated your kind from the city because you provide value for The Leader. You have no right to refuse."

"Eradicate my kind? Is that a declaration of war, Tolik? I can assure you that the power of Naraka far outweighs the power of Metro-Innovate. Would you like to have a contest of strength?" The head of Naraka let out a sinister smile as a dominating aura spread throughout the area. Tolik responded with a malicious intent of his own.

"That is enough. N, have you forgotten the favor you owe us? I'm sure you haven't forgotten your humiliating defeat at the hands of the Rosalia Guild. If it weren't for my authority, Naraka would be yet another forgotten gang. I'm sure you don't want that to happen."

N, the head of Naraka, felt his throat tighten up. The Leader's absolute influence was too much for N to compete against. Naraka's foundation solely relied on The Leader's whims, so he can't oppose his authority.

"Tsk. Very well. We'll help you fortify Brayworth Pharmaceuticals, but only under one condition..."

"What shall it be?" The leader asked.

"Allow me to hunt down "