After two weeks of talking, persuasion and secret planning, the meeting was finally arranged and was predicted to occur in two days. In the meantime, Fuji and I scrambled with a plan of how to ambush the corruption officer by surprise.

As part of the deal, I soon was making my way to the Survey Corps Headquarters late in the evening, casually glancing over my shoulder every now and again to ensure no one was following me. My cloak was on, my MP uniform was off but my 3DMG still remained glued to my side. I hurried across the cobble-stoned streets and snuck my way into the Headquarters via a secret back way. As I squeezed through the underground tunnel, I breathed a sigh of relief as I reached the dead end. The tunnel was abruptly blocked by a large wooden wall, which I reached out and easily moved, revealing the inside of a broom closet. Moving myself among the cleaning supplies, I replaced the wall back and opened the closet door, poking my head out. I froze, cautiously swallowing against the sudden cold metal blade pressed up against my neck.

"Out. Slowly. If I see any type of weapon drawn, I can assure you it'll be the last you'll draw."

Funnily enough, I relaxed against the blade.

"How come I'm not surprised that you threaten officers of all levels of authority, Levi?"

The weapon was withdrawn and I stepped out of the closet to spot Levi rolling his eyes.

"Only those uninvited. What do you want, Hazura?" Levi began to move out of the hallway and towards his office and private quarters situated nearby.

"Can't I just pop in every now and again to see my good old friend?" I closed the closet door behind me and hurried after him.

"Not when I catch you sneaking in after the cadets are out of the halls and through the secret passageway no less."

I paused and made a face behind my best friend's back. Damn it, he really doesn't miss anything. Hiding this case from him would be a lot harder than what I initially thought. I shrugged.

"All right, you caught me. I'm here to pass some Military Police data with Commander Erwin."

"Via normal messenger wasn't enough?"

"What can I say? Classified."

"And the data?" Levi glanced over his shoulder at me as he stepped into his private quarters. I stopped outside of the door and crossed my arms.

"Also classified."

"Hazura, we've known each other ever since we entered the Corps together. You can trust me."

My mind blanked out as I stared at Levi's cool and composed face. I did trust him. With my life. Ironically though, I didn't trust him with his own.

"You seem to forget I'm Military Police, Corporal Levi." I gave him a wry smile and began to walk away to Erwin's office. "Mutual trust is a hard thing to find between the MP and Corps these days."

I knocked on Erwin's wooden door and waited impatiently outside.

"Name and purpose."

"Classified and confidential."

"Enter."

I quickly opened the door, slipped inside and closed it again. The Commander and I swapped looks before he cut right to the chase.

"I take it Levi caught you coming in. Should have been more subtle Hazura."

"You don't have to blatantly point my flaw out, Erwin." I smirked. "But nevertheless, I am here to give you a present update on data agreed to be shared between our departments." I pulled out a chair and sat on it at ease, leaning back into it with my arms on the armrests on the side. Erwin leaned forward on his desk, chin resting on his hands.

"So?"

"It seems that a certain Officer Rehardt has been observed to be recruiting and giving tasks out in relations to the corruption ring."

"Any conclusive evidence?"

"We just received his involvement a day ago and are in the process of bringing him in. Soooo that's my end. How did the conversation with the Underground thugs go?"

"Need to know." And Erwin looked down at the papers on his table. I raised a silent eyebrow and crossed my arms. I was the one risking my ass entering the MP and he answers with a Need-to-Know?

"Excuse me?"

The Commander cracked a small smile and glanced up again.

"Sorry, force of habit. I tend to forget that you're an elite of the Military Police forces now, Hazura."

My nose wrinkled involuntarily. "Don't remind me. However, back to the point, what did the conversation yield?"

"So the suspect admitted to being part of the Toria gang that was assigned to channel and distribute the weapons. He didn't know where the weapons came from, only how to deal with them once he got them. A quarter would be spread to the gangs down in the Underground City but the rest would be pushed back up to the surface and put to the highest bidder."

I cocked my head. "The highest bidder? Then there must be a venue and time that the black market comes together and bids for the weapons. Surely the Mastermind must be present in order to see his products get sold off at the right price. This is brilliant!"

"So was that the break you needed?"

I sighed in relief and stretched my arms out in front of me. "After two weeks of less-than-intensive sleuthing, I'm ready for some action. If Fuji and I can somehow get the time and location of the next bidding, we could finally find out who's behind this whole corruption ring."

"Then you better get back to work, Officer Hazura."

I glanced out the window and at the moon now high in the sky. It was late. I took Erwin's hint.

"I guess I should. I have a Military Police Officer to interrogate. Again, thanks for the help, Commander."

"Mutual respect between our departments is important to Humanity's survival." My friend answered and stood to see me off. I chuckled at the irony as we made our way to his door.

"And yet, there is hardly any."

"We make do with what little we have."

We bid farewell and I silently made my way back to the closet door. Out of the corner of my eye, Levi watched from around the corner. I glanced and nodded at him in acknowledgement, before disappearing back into the town.