Mercenary I am the king

Chapter 1048 Insider
Persia.

The underground command center of the Revolutionary Guard headquarters.

The room was dimly lit, and a huge electronic map occupied the entire wall, with flashing dots representing troop deployments, radar coverage, and various intelligence markers.

The air was filled with the low hum of electronic devices in operation and a faint smell of ozone.

Afanti stood in front of the huge situation map, his back to Major Nassin, who had just reported to him on the attack on Song Heping and the possibility of a leak.

Song Heping's angry and bloodthirsty roar still seemed to echo in his ears, each word like a whip lashing his face.

"sieve…"

Afanti's deep, hoarse voice broke the oppressive silence.

“He’s right. Our ‘garden’ has been planted with more than one poisonous seed by the enemy.”

He slowly turned around, his face expressionless, but his eyes burning with rage.

"Nasin!"

"Here I am, General!"

Major Nassin immediately straightened his back.

"Song Heping is in Iligor, in the Eagle's Sorrow Gorge area near the Zagros Mountains. He is wounded and is evading US drone attacks."

Afanti's voice was like cold iron blocks clashing together, each word carrying an undeniable weight.

"Order: Colonel Zaharie immediately leads his special operations company to the Mahabad border crossing at top speed to assemble and await orders! Publicly announce: to receive an important figure! Operation codename: 'Return Home'! Security level: Top! Execute immediately!"

Mahabad town?
A barely perceptible hint of doubt flashed in Nassin's eyes.

That location is more than 150 kilometers away from the "Eagle Sorrow Gorge" where Song Heping was actually trapped, with steep mountains and several border patrol lines in between.

General, this is...

"What? Do you have a question?"

Seeing his stunned expression, Afanti's gaze became meaningful.

The two men's eyes met, and Nassin, Afanti's confidant, immediately understood his superior's intention—to use a feint to lure the enemy out.

“Understood, General! I will immediately relay the ‘return to the nest’ order to Colonel Zahari!” Nassin replied without hesitation.

"very good."

Afanti nodded, his eyes flashing even colder.

"Once the order is issued, I want you to use your highest authority to monitor all personnel who have come into contact with the 'Return to the Nest' operation order! From Zaharie himself, to his adjutant, communications officer, logistics coordinator, and anyone else who might have had contact with this operation, focus on monitoring all their communications, internet access records, and contacts with the outside world at unusual times! Especially all communications activities within one hour of the order being issued! Dig! Dig three feet into the ground, but find that 'rat' who dares to wag its tail at the Americans! I need to know who he is, how he passed on the message, and who his accomplices are! Remember, Nassin, Zaharie… I don't believe it's him. But I need evidence! I need solid evidence!"

Afanti's voice was resolute, carrying an unquestionable determination and a deep sense of sorrow.

Although Zaharie was a trusted confidant whom he had personally promoted within the Revolutionary Guard, Song Heping's attack was like a bucket of ice water poured over him, waking him up.

The mole is right next to you, and he/she is probably in a high position.

"Yes! General!"

Nassin's eyes were sharp; he knew what this meant.

A silent hunt has quietly begun within the highest levels of the Revolutionary Guard.

The order was conveyed swiftly.

Soon, a piercing alarm sounded at the Revolutionary Guard Special Operations Forces base.

Colonel Zaharie quickly assembled his elite company.

The soldiers silently and efficiently collected weapons, ammunition, and individual equipment, checked communication devices, their faces etched with the grim determination of battle.

Various models of Russian-made assault rifles, RPG rocket launchers, and sniper rifles were distributed.

The communications soldier was adjusting his backpack frequency-hopping radio when the roar of the engine began to fill the air.

"set off!"

Zaharie jumped onto the command vehicle, and his voice was clearly transmitted to every team member through the microphone.

The convoy kicked up clouds of dust as it roared out of the base and sped toward Mahabad in the northwest.

Meanwhile, deep within the command center, in a secret room filled with screens and listening devices, Major Nassin's technical monitoring team was already operating at high speed.

The powerful data capture and analysis capabilities of the Persian Revolutionary Guard's highest counterintelligence agency were brought to their fullest potential.

On the huge main screen, dozens of small windows are displayed:
Communications Spectrum Waterfall: Displays in real time the sources, frequencies, and strengths of all encrypted and unencrypted radio signals centered on the special operations base.

Any unusual new signals or high-intensity, long-term communications will be highlighted in red.

Internal network access logs: Records scroll rapidly, monitoring the internal system logins and file access records of all marked personnel, especially operations related to keywords such as "homecoming", "Mahabad", "border", and "reception".

Satellite phone activity monitoring: A separate encrypted channel monitoring screen displays the IMSI (International Mobile Subscriber Identity) status of all authorized and unauthorized satellite phones within the base.

Any device that powers on or attempts to connect to a satellite after the order is given will be immediately locked.

Personnel physical trajectory tracking: On another screen, the real-time location of all available monitoring cameras will be marked as a dot on the base map, and their movement paths will be automatically recorded and analyzed by the system.

External communication metadata analysis: The Revolutionary Guard activated collaborative channels with telecommunications departments. Although they could not directly crack the encrypted content, the system monitored the communication records, SMS sending records, and suspicious base station switching information of all registered mobile phone numbers of marked personnel after the order was issued.

Time passed by minute by minute.

The only sounds in the sealed room were the clatter of keyboards and the analysts' rapid, hushed conversations. "Report! Colonel Zaharie and his core command team are communicating normally, all using internal encrypted channels, with content related to operational deployments. No unusual external communications detected!"

"Report! Screening of the target personnel's mobile phone communication records has been completed. One hour after the order was issued, no suspicious outgoing or incoming calls were found!"

"Report! No abnormalities found in internal network access! No sensitive files were downloaded or accessed abnormally!"

Nassin's brow was furrowed.

Was the judgment wrong?

Or was the mole exceptionally cunning, circumventing all conventional monitoring methods?
His sharp gaze swept across each screen.

"A discovery!"

An analyst responsible for monitoring the physical trajectory of the armory area suddenly shouted.

"Captain Beyan Hussein, supervisor of the third armory. Fifteen minutes after the order was issued, he left his office and headed to the main warehouse! System records show that he swiped his access card to enter the 'Special Equipment Storage Area,' staying for 8 minutes! That's almost twice as long as the inspection time for regular equipment distribution!"

Captain Bayan!

Nassin immediately recalled the man's file: a clean background, a good service record, and responsible for the safekeeping and distribution of some special equipment for special operations forces.

"Retrieve all internal surveillance footage from the special equipment storage area for that period!"

Nassin commanded.

A few seconds later, a somewhat blurry surveillance video was enlarged on the main screen. In the video, Captain Beyan, dressed in military uniform, appeared to be routinely inspecting rows of neatly arranged equipment boxes. He walked to an area storing spare communication equipment and individual electronic devices, stopped in front of a box, and, with his back to the camera, seemed to be bending down to organize the contents. His actions seemed harmless, but the time he lingered was unusually long, and the angle of his body cleverly obscured the specific movements of his hands.

"Zoom in! Slow down! Analyze his hand movements!"

Nassin stared intently at the screen.

The technicians zoomed in and sharpened the images frame by frame.

At one point when Beyan bent over, his right arm made a very brief, slight movement toward his lower back before returning to its normal position.

"What did he do in the defensive midfield position?" Nassin pressed. "That area isn't where the equipment box is!"

"Report! There are minor blind spots in the surveillance cameras in this area! The view isn't completely clear!"

"I can't help it," the technician said helplessly.

"Check what equipment he received!"

Nassin turned to another analyst who was in charge of the equipment management system.

"System records show... Captain Beyan, while entering the storage area, took..."

The analyst stared at the screen, his voice tinged with disbelief, “…two ‘backup’ satellite phone encrypted batteries? And…three special forces-issue individual tactical terminals and GPS modules…the registration reason is ‘equipment maintenance and testing’.”

Satellite phone battery?

GPS module?

What happened after Zahari Company received their full set of equipment and set off?
Is the reason merely maintenance and testing?
This is so unreasonable!
These items are small in size, valuable, and...

They all have independent electronic components that can be tracked or activated externally!

Nassin's eyes suddenly flashed with a cold light.

All the doubts instantly converged on the armory captain named Bayan.

The timing and reason for his acquisition of these tiny electronic components, and the suspicious action observed during surveillance—he likely smuggled some kind of miniature beacon into those batteries or modules, or used them as cover to transmit intelligence!

If he does this, he can obtain the movement trajectory of the special forces at any time.

"Lock up on Beyan Hussein! Surveill him in all aspects! Including his every move after get off work! Check all his communication records, financial transactions, and contacts over the past three months! Pay special attention to whether he is using any unregistered encrypted devices!"

Nassin sternly ordered, "Furthermore, notify the general immediately!"

When Nassin reported his initial findings on Captain Beyan to Afanti, the Revolutionary Guard commander showed no surprise, only a cold and ruthless expression.

"Beyan? The armory?"

Afanti's fingers tapped lightly on the table, producing a dull sound, like the prelude to a war drum.

“He was just a captain. How could a captain know in advance that Song Heping would come to Persia? And how could he know about the secret route arranged by Nura, the time and area of ​​which even I only know the approximate location? Nassin, this ‘poison seed,’ is just the first one to surface. There must be someone behind him who has access to higher-level, more core information.”

He accessed the internal system, and an encrypted list was projected onto the screen.

The list is short, with only a dozen or so names, each representing a key node in the Revolutionary Guard's intelligence system or special operations command chain.

At the top of the list were the names of several high-ranking generals and staff officers.

"Investigate everyone on this list! Start from Beyan and trace back! Find out who has recently been briefed on Song Heping's itinerary! Find out who has had unusual contact with Beyan! Find out who has the ability to bypass regular surveillance and conduct secret communications!"

Afanti's voice was like steel that had been tempered.

"I'm upgrading your investigation privileges to the highest level. If necessary, you can utilize all available resources! Remember, I don't want a little mouse; I want the venomous snake behind him!"

"Yes! General!"

Nassin felt immense pressure.

Having followed Afanti for so many years, Nassin had seen many storms, but it was truly rare to see his superior so angry!
　Asking for a monthly ticket! Asking for a monthly ticket!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)