Original subtitles

ORIGINAL WORK BY TATSUYA ENDO SERIALIZED ON SHUEISHA'S SHONEN JUMP PLUS

Excuse me, please show me your ID and invitation.

Mr. Hamilton, correct? Please enter.

BEYOND THIS POINT IS THE HEAVILY GUARDED EDEN ACADEMY RECEPTION HALL

The Eden Academy Reception. Every six months,

Imperial Scholars and their parents along with select alumni members

gather together for this traditional event.

Bigwigs from the political and business worlds,

scholars, engineers, artists, athletes,

and other prominent figures gather together.

The security is tight as ever this year.

It's only natural, with all the VIP's in attendance.

It makes me nervous to think that the State Security Services are here too.

The security is as tight as a summit meeting.

It's beyond my expectation. Infiltrating the reception will be hard.

Yes, if I can enter the reception without becoming an Imperial Scholar,

nothing would be easier.

But if things were that easy,

Operation Strix would not have been put in place to begin with.

In the past, Western agents tried, but failed their infiltration attempts.

We cannot repeat such failure, since it only heightened their security.

The reception is held at the Tower of Wisdom.

Aside from the front entrance, there are only several fixed windows.

The roof of the tower is a garden,

but entering through there would attract too much attention.

There are no underground routes that can be used as a way to enter.

The sole entrance has strict ID checks, and everyone is thoroughly searched.

Not to mention the state-of-the-art detectors.

It'll be difficult to enter with a disguise, or to plant a bug on someone.

Buildings around the Tower are smaller, so surveying and lipreading is impossible.

There's the option of staking out at the Tower days in advance,

but that is very risky too.

There's no way to get inside the reception.

Well, it wouldn't be impossible if I take some risks.

But only if it was just a one-time thing.

For example, if my mission was to assassinate Desmond,

then that would've been possible.

But the goal of Operation Strix is to set up a continuous contact with Desmond.

I must get close to him, and withdraw information.

Even if I cleared all the hurdles,

and got close to him while disguised as someone else...

Thank you for the other day.

What? I didn't attend...

Disguising myself as a prominent figure will leave a trace

and it's even more difficult when attending with a child.

Dad, you're being weird today.

At the same time, disguising myself as a staff member or a server

won't get me anywhere at all. Anything that raises suspicion must be avoided.

There's a chance that cautious Desmond may never attend the reception again.

In the end, it's best for me to approach him as Loid Forger.

All I can do right now is observe and take notes for the next reception.

The chances of running into Desmond outside the Tower is slim,

but I should explore all of the possibilities for now.

That's it for class today.

There are no classes this afternoon due to the reception.

Head home right away if you have no reason to stay behind.

The reception, huh? I wonder what it's like there!

There are lots of celebrities, right?

The astronaut Yah Chaika will be giving a speech.

And Amy, the actress too!

Are you serious?

Hey Damian, will your father be attending too?

Because your older brother is an Imperial Scholar, right?

I'm so glad we have the afternoon off!

Are you listening?

I'm Damian, a first grader from the Cecile Hall.

I'd like to speak to Demetrius Desmond.

-What is it? -H... hey, Demetrius.

What do you want?

I'm sorry. It's about tomorrow. You'll be attending the reception, right?

Yeah.

Can you ask Father a question for me when you see him?

I want to know if he can meet with me for just a little bit after the reception.

I'll be in the inner courtyard of Library II.

I'll let him know. But don't get your hopes up.

Father is busy.

Yeah.

-Is that all? -Yeah.

All right, then. Bye.

Can we give our greetings to your father?

My dad is picking me up today, so let us greet him. Okay?

That's not fair! Hey Damian, I want in on that too!

Shut up!

Oh... Damian!

Second son is planning to meet with the bad boss today.

Hey, want to go shopping again today?

Anya failed the Fashion Strategy. What I must do now is...

There are tons of benefits to meeting my father.

Oh.

I'll follow the second son, and deal directly with the boss!

What's up with you since last week?

You're creeping me out! Stop following me!

Damian... maybe she's following you...

Wh... what...?

Maybe she's following us to get close to your father!

What?!

Yeah, she's just like the rest of them!

You stupid idiot! Short-legged idiot!

How mean!

Don't you ever come near me again, you creepy stalking gorilla!

Anya wants to punch him one more time.

No, you can't! You'll be expelled!

Darn it, her relationship with Damian is as bad as ever.

I guess Plan B is hopeless.

Oh! Father!

No, I guess she's doing her best to mend their relationship.

Good job, Anya. In the meantime,

I'll go with Damian who may get in contact with his father.

Wait! Anya wants to fight with the boss too!

What? Come on, let's go home.

You're already heading to the meeting place?

Your father is coming after the reception, right?

That's still hours ahead.

So the father and son are meeting together! I got lucky!

Since we're here, should we go near the Tower?

Whoa, how impressive.

Wow, they're the Imperial Scholars. I'm about to wet myself!

It's so amazing. Your dad is a VIP even among these groups of people.

And so are you, Damian, since you're his son!

Damian?

I'm not going to meet up with Father.

Huh?

What? This is not good!

You're right. Father is an important person, and he's busy.

He has no time to waste on someone like me.

I'll go talk to my brother,

and cancel the meeting...

I won't let that happen!

What is it? You're still stalking me?

Second son is scared.

-Anya knows. -Huh?

What's up with her? Can she read my mind?

Oh... A... Anya knows that

you only got 50 points

on the language arts test.

H... how do you know that?!

That doesn't matter right now.

I peeked over your shoulder.

Anya has turned into a real stalker...

You're scared that your father will find out about your test score.

I understand because I only got 17 points.

We're not on the same level!

I'm a little scared because I don't know if my father cares for me.

He's always scolding me too.

Anya...

But I believe in him.

Because I love Father. That's why...

I proudly show him my test results even when I fail!

-What were we talking about? -Not sure...

Damn it.

Damian, where are you going?

All of this seem so stupid now.

I'm going to the courtyard to wait for my father.

-Damian! -I'm not scared!

I have no idea what happened, but good job, Anya!

She provoked him, but it worked out well!

What? Anya, you're going to wait here too? Why?

My ride is already here. Let's go.

Does she want to greet his father because she's thinking of marrying him?

You're serious. You're really serious about this, aren't you Anya?

Okay, Anya. I will wait with you!

I'll stand by you as you make your decisive move!

I was wrong. She wasn't serious at all.

Martha, please carry Anya to the car. Let's go home.

As you wish.

Anya is so free-spirited.

Goodbye, Professor!

Goodbye.

And then Anya said...

I'm glad I made a replica of this.

HANDMADE BY TWILIGHT COST OF MATERIAL 10 DALC

The reception ended smoothly.

Guard positioning, the in-and-out of equipment and personnel, transitions...

I gained a lot of information today.

He's finally here. Desmond. Let's see where he's headed.

All right.

The reception should be ending soon.

Excuse me, kids.

Have you seen a sheep keychain around here?

It means a lot to my daughter,

but she apparently dropped it around here. She cried and asked me to look for it.

Oh, are you looking for this? I found it over there.

Yes, that's it!

-Thank you. You're a lifesaver. -That belongs to that girl, right?

Hey old man, are you Anya Forger's dad?

Old man?

Yes, I am. Oh, are you guys her classmates?

I'm sorry if I'm wrong...

but are you, Damian Desmond?

Yeah...

I'm very sorry!

My daughter behaved very badly on the day of the orientation.

Oh... ah...

I went to your house the next day to apologize,

but I couldn't meet you or your parents, so it's been bothering me.

Well, I live in the dorm here.

I must take responsibility for what my daughter has done. I'm very sorry.

It's fine...

I would like to offer a formal apology to your parents as well...

Damian, look! It's your father!

I'm really sorry, Damian. I'm going to interrupt your father-and-son moment

for the sake of my mission.

Father...

Master Damian, who is that man?

He's my classmate's father.

You must be Chairman Desmond.

Back off. Please leave.

It's fine. What is it?

I'm here regarding my daughter's inexcusable conduct toward your son,

and I wanted to offer my apologies.

Oh, please allow me to introduce myself.

My name is Loid Forger.

MISSION 25: FIRST CONTACT

Council secretary Byron, Lieutenant Colonel McNeil of the Armed Forces,

prosecutor Farnham, and astronaut Yah Chaika.

And from the leading party of Ostania,

Donovan Desmond, of the National Unity Party.

This reception is an intel gold mine!

We should send in more agents to support Twilight.

Do you want to go test the waters?

Five minutes after you set foot in there,

you'll be caught by dozens of State Security Service agents,

and 30 minutes later, you'll be tortured in the interrogation room.

Sending inexperienced fools will only be feeding the enemy.

Don't forget that we're in the middle of enemy territory.

Right now, that school

is the frontline of the cold war.

I work at the Berlint General Hospital.

My name is Loid Forger.

My daughter used violence against Damian,

so I wanted to apologize to you.

I apologize for upsetting not only Damian, but his family as well.

Desmond, Chairman of the National Unity Party.

I looked through past newspaper articles, TV appearances,

literary works and anything else that would help me profile this man.

But it's been impossible to find out more after he stopped appearing in public.

How can I get close to him?

How can I get him to become interested in Loid?

What will cause him to sympathize, and what will anger him?

I have to search and find out with this conversation.

And eventually, I will expose all that he's hiding,

including his plans for warfare!

I'm very sorry.

Please allow me to visit your home for a formal apology.

Oh, that was you?

I heard about that incident from my staff.

I was busy, so I wasn't able to respond. I apologize.

Father... you were concerned about me...

Allow me to visit with a token of apology...

That's not necessary.

-It's just a little squabble between kids. -But...

Father, a member of the Desmond household was punched!

That doesn't bother you?

Your son is absolutely right!

No matter what the situation, my daughter raised her hand against him.

I must make amends...

It's not necessary. But I appreciate the gesture.

It's a clear refusal, huh.

That's so gracious of you. Thank you.

If I push too hard, it will only backfire.

If he suspects me even a bit, everything will all go to waste. I'll be careful.

F... father...

You don't care for me after all.

I was humiliated! My face was swollen too!

And yet...

Why?

Why can't you be angry for me?

It's nothing... I'm sorry.

No, you have every right to be angry, Damian.

I'll make sure that something like this never happens again.

But honestly, my daughter is so reckless

that I have no idea what to do.

This old man is having a hard time too.

Of course I'm responsible for her,

but I've realized that it's impossible to fully control your child's actions.

It's wrong to think that I can control her just because I'm the parent.

I'd only create unhealthy expectations and disappointment.

Raising a child is so difficult.

You're right.

Even if they're your biological children, in the end, they're just strangers.

It's impossible to fully understand such strangers.

Humans will never be able to understand each other.

Is that why you use force to make the other countries yield?

Are they your true colors, Desmond?

You're absolutely right.

I work as a psychologist,

but I'm always afraid that

I'm not understanding even 1% of what's in my patient's mind.

Yes, understanding each other through communication is too idealistic.

It's arrogant to think that things are that easy.

But...

It's important.

To continue trying despite everything.

In my case, I can never understand what my daughter says and does...

I'm going to the candy store today to make a hostage exchange.

I see. Good luck.

I may not understand, but I want to accept her for who she is,

so I try to create opportunities to interact with her.

Sometimes it goes well, and sometimes it doesn't.

I will never stop gathering information and trying to understand...

Because I'm a secret agent.

And Chairman, isn't that why you took time out

of your busy schedule to meet up with you son?

You may be right.

I understand why you respect your father.

Anya told me...

Remember that homework you did about your parent's occupation?

Anya was really impressed with your presentation.

That's all she talked about when she came home.

Really? She did...?

IT'S A LIE

Chairman, did you read his report?

No.

Oh, that's a shame.

I only know what I heard from my daughter,

but it was filled with respect and knowledge toward your work,

and I was moved.

He's an intelligent child who loves his father.

Is that right?

Forgive me for being rude,

but I was very critical of the policy by the National Unity Party,

but after hearing Damian's report, I decided to reconsider it once more.

Since I learned that you are working hard for the interest of the nation.

I'm thinking of attending one of your lectures soon.

Maybe I'm too simple-minded. But that's how wonderful

his report was.

That's enough. Stop it already.

-I'm sorry. -You're an interesting man.

You said your name is Forger?

I enjoyed my time with you.

I guess that's it for today.

I got him to remember my name, so that's good enough for now.

I was able to remember the guards' faces and features.

Thank you for sharing your precious time with me.

Oh, that's right... That thing I told you about Anya...

Please don't tell her that I told you.

She's not honest with her feelings.

Despite how it may seem, I'm sure she doesn't hate you.

I hope you will be friends with her.

I... I don't... hate her...

-Huh? -What?

Ah... oh...

Shut up! There's no way I'd befriend that commoner!

Oh, that stings.

I'll try hard to make her a lady.

Well, I'll be going now.

Why did you want to see me?

Oh... um...

Nothing...

What's important is to continue trying despite everything.

If it's nothing, I'll be going.

I'm a little scared because I don't know if my father cares for me.

But I proudly show him my test results even when I fail.

Chairman, we must be going soon.

Father!

I got a Stella Star from my midterm exam.

I only have one, but I was pretty close on the other subjects too.

But I got 50 points on the language arts test the other day...

And...

and my Griffin art piece won the gold medal.

And... um...

Is that right? Good job.

Father... why did you come all the way here today?

It was purely on a whim. Don't think much of it.

Damian...

Continue working hard so as not to bring shame upon the Desmond name.

Yes!

It wasn't much of a conversation,

but I was able to grasp the relationship between Damian and his father.

As long as their relationship is favorable,

it will be advantageous for me to carry out Plan B.

But in any case, that Donovan Desmond...

He's very hard to read.

It might be best to lay the groundwork first.

I must take the information I gained today to the office and analyze it.

Stella!

Stella!

Stella!

-I'm home. -Welcome back, Loid.

She was sleeping when she came back, and she hasn't woken up since.

You have a delivery!

Father, Anya will fight with the boss.

It seems like she has no worries on her mind.

And I don't understand what she's talking about.

Subtitle translation by: LiliMorita