Chapter 24: Graduation (1)

"End?"

"End."

In the dark underground corridor, Denif's resolute voice echoed over the outlines of the fallen bodies, now visible in the darkness to which my eyes had adjusted.

Still, I checked the surroundings with the wind, to prevent any unforeseen incidents.

There was no one alive in this building.

"I've confirmed it."

The moment my words ended, we turned on our magical flashlights. The people who had fallen in the underground corridor were tangled together.

We pushed them with our feet to check their faces.

We had to see the death of our target with our own eyes.

It took less than a minute to find the middle-aged, overweight man with a large mole on his left cheek.

"Here he is."

"Found him?"

Denif approached and confirmed the face. It was the death of the man who had engaged in usury and human trafficking.

There was no emotional response.

'He was more despicable than the ones we've caught recently.'

Kill or be killed.

I had learned this harsh lesson over the past three years. Half-hearted consideration and leniency invite threats to one's life.

Now, it was a moment of numbness beyond familiarity. Reflecting on it, time had passed so quickly.

It had been over three years since I came here.

Sixteen.

By the standards of this place, I was now considered an adult. I had grown taller, and my face remained handsome.

"Let's wrap it up."

Denif and I stepped outside the building.

Denif, carrying a can of oil he had prepared in the alley, re-entered the building.

It was to erase the traces. Meanwhile, I climbed up to the roof by the wall.

I focused on my magic and expanded the wind.

Since I had already killed the scum who controlled the slums, I wasn't too worried.

The wind also prevented screams from escaping, and even if they were heard, how many people would dare to come?

As expected, the slums were quiet at dawn. Still, I didn't lower my guard.

I maintained my concentration and took out a handkerchief from my pocket. I intended to wipe off the blood that had stained my body.

'It always bothers me.'

Though the job had become familiar, this obsession with cleanliness was something I couldn't get used to.

After some time, Denif walked out of the door.

The smell of oil spread through my nose. Checking, I found that the smell was also strong on my body.

I frowned and scolded him.

"Got it on you again?"

"This can is weird. It seems to leak a bit."

"The can is fine. You just splashed it again, didn't you?"

"No, really. It's leaking."

Glaring at him, Denif opened his eyes wide and raised his hands in silent protest.

"Step back."

You might catch fire if you stay too close.

Denif would handle it well, but we always needed to act safely.

I lit a match and threw it into the building.

Whoosh—The small flame quickly turned into a massive inferno, rushing into the building.

"Let's go."

"Okay."

We followed the pre-planned route, kicking off the wall to climb the building and move to the roof.

With each step on the roof, our shadows danced under the moonlight, and the stench of the slums grew distant.

"Is anyone chasing us?"

"No."

Shaking my head in response to Denif's question, the wind conveyed information from all directions to me.

There was no pursuit.

We left the city walls through a hole we had used to enter, without any interference.

It was a trivial matter.

Assassination is like this.

If you don't kill in front of others or get caught, it's not hard to leave, even if the target is a noble.

"Can we take off the masks now?"

"Let's go a bit further, just in case."

Denif scratched his head, looking uncomfortable. Wearing masks was a given.

You don't want your face to be recognized.

But we hadn't been outside the city for long. We needed to go at least five more minutes.

There was no need to draw attention.

Actually, if it were daytime, we could blend into the crowd, but it was dawn, which was a problem.

Two strong men. They wouldn't look ordinary at all.

"It's uncomfortable."

"Just bear with it."

At that moment,

I felt a gaze from far away. It wasn't certain.

It was just the feeling that someone was watching me. But I couldn't afford to ignore this intuition.

I turned my head to the southwest.

"Shh."

Denif quickly crouched down. In the direction of the city wall, there was no visible figure.

The wind also detected nothing.

Tension rose. If it wasn't a hallucination, let's think about it.

Either they were out of the range my wind could sense, or they were hiding well.

Then, they weren't an ordinary expert. My head got a bit complicated.

Was there such a skilled person attached to those scum?

No. No.

If that were the case, they would have attacked long ago.

'Who is it?'

A spy from another country monitoring this place?

It could be, or it could be one of our people.

Even if we were far from the capital, we were still part of the Haisen Kingdom.

It could be someone observing our mission.

'If it's the latter, it's fine, but if it's the former, it's a problem.'

Time seemed to pass twice as slowly in the tension.

I couldn't be sure, but it didn't seem like they were approaching immediately. Good that we didn't take off the masks.

"What is it?"

Denif whispered.

"There's something, but I'm not sure."

"When you're not sure, you should act as if you are."

Judgment should be cautious but swift.

Can we win in a fight? No, fighting itself is a bad option. We need to avoid it.

'Until their mind changes.'

I looked up at the sky and adjusted my direction. Making eye contact with Denif, I silently kicked off the ground.

* * *

As we moved away from the city, the feeling of being watched disappeared, but I didn't let my guard down.

We deliberately took a detour, frequently changing direction and crossing a small hill.

The only guide was the stars.

It took two hours longer than planned. Near the agreed location, I shook the trees with the wind.

It was a signal to Marhan.

The intervals between the shaking trees conveyed the possibility of pursuit and our location.

Marhan would make a judgment after a short wait. If the bell rang, it was time to scatter.

If there was no sound for ten seconds, we would head to the carriage.

"Ugh. I've been waiting for a long time. Kid, why are you so perceptive?"

A voice suddenly came from above my head, and I hastily drew my sword. A woman stood on the tree.

How? Confusion came first.

She hadn't been caught by the wind.

And she was so close, yet Denif and I hadn't noticed her at all.

"Stop. We're on the same side. Ravens cry over death."

The code phrase came, but I couldn't trust it immediately. Should I wait for Marhan? Or flee now?

While my head was in turmoil, Marhan's voice came.

"It's fine. She's on our side."

"…Is that so?"

"It is."

The woman answered for me. A woman in her mid-20s smiled as she came down from the tree.

She was a beautiful woman with long black hair.

"I'm Phiri, the deputy leader of the Haisen Empire's intelligence unit. I came to evaluate you before your graduation."

I nodded at Marhan's explanation, recognizing that she wasn't the person I had seen three years ago.

Had she been replaced in the meantime? The woman smiled.

"Anyway, I like you. Being perceptive is important. Kid, do you want to join the Empire's intelligence unit?"

I was already considering it, but…

Given the situation, there was no need to answer immediately. I replied that I would think about it, and Marhan interjected.

"Phiri, how did you get caught by the kids?"

"No, Marhan. This kid is amazing."

Phiri pointed at me and grumbled.

"How did he know the direction from that distance?"

Marhan smiled slightly at me. It was almost expressionless, but…

After a while, I could detect some changes in his expression.

"Shouldn't you have gone to tell them?"

"I was afraid it would complicate things if I chased after you. And I didn't think you'd believe me if I ran away immediately."

"Tsk. Disappointing. How did such an inadequate person become a deputy leader?"

Marhan clicked his tongue.

"Hey, I was complacent. Can I show you?"

"Enough. I can tell without seeing. Did I teach you to be complacent?"

"I wasn't complacent."

"Then, you are inadequate."

"Ugh, frustrating. Marhan didn't know I was here, either. This kid is amazing, okay?"

Phiri patted her chest.

I was secretly surprised. I had never seen anyone treat Marhan so casually.

Not even Denif treated Marhan like that.

Judging by her playful manner, she was probably a former student.

"Anyway, I'll be going now. I can't tell anyone where I am."

"Why?"

"It's embarrassing! You understand, right…?"

"I understand."

"Marhan, you're the best! I trust you!"

Phiri lightly hugged Marhan and quickly moved away, then disappeared.

She vanished right in front of us, even though she was within visible range.

'She didn't become a deputy leader for nothing, it seems.'

Actually, it was more luck than anything. I had relied on intuition rather than noticing her.

Phiri disappeared, and Marhan, hiding a smile, asked.

"How did it go?"

"It's done."

"…Good work. Tara."

I sensed a hint of regret in Marhan's words.

Thinking about the upcoming graduation, this was our last mission. Was that why?

'Well, I've grown quite fond of them over the past three years.'

I also realized that Marhan was a good person, despite his outward appearance.

A sudden whim came over me.

"Can I drive the carriage?"

"Enough."

Marhan, chuckling, sat on the driver's seat. I had a feeling it wouldn't work, but it was a gesture of goodwill. A way to say, "You've worked hard tonight."

As I boarded the carriage, the smell of oil spread. I frowned. It was because of Denif.

He had spilled oil on the floor, so it was inevitable.

"Can't you take your shoes off outside?"

"Why?"

"It smells like oil."

"Block it with the wind."

"You can't do that while sleeping."

After a moment of thought, Denif, unable to find a counterargument, grunted and nodded.

Denif, who had hung his shoes outside the carriage, leaned back and asked.

"Remember that time?"

"When?"

"Our first mission. When you got stabbed and I got stabbed too."

"Hey, you got stabbed? It just grazed you."

"What? It was a deep cut."

Seeing Denif talk about our first mission, it felt like this was really our last mission.

I also felt a bit sentimental.

'Similar to a high school graduation, maybe.'

Anyway, the time at the duke's mansion was coming to an end.

Maybe it felt more so because the future would be even harder.

"I miss Orhen."

"Well, there's nothing we can do."

"Yeah."

Orhen was supposed to come with us, but three days ago, we received news that his nanny had died of a chronic illness.

So, Orhen had temporarily left the mansion, and it was just Denif and me.

Since the graduation was scheduled, we couldn't take on another mission, so this was our last one.

'I was a bit surprised.'

It was the first time I heard about Orhen's nanny. He rarely talked about his past.

I only knew that he wasn't an orphan and had entered around the same time as Denif.

'If he had a nanny, was he from a noble family?'

Fallen nobles were common in this world. The duke probably found him.

Denif put his feet up on the seat next to me.

I frowned involuntarily.

Where are you putting those dirty feet? You took off your shoes, but it's still unpleasant.

"What are you doing?"

"Why? No one's here."

"Put your feet down."

"Ah, why?"

"It smells."

"Block it with the wind."

"Put them down."

After a moment of eye contact, Denif subtly put his feet down.

He was playful but surprisingly obedient to me.

Maybe it was because I had led for the past three years.

Or, maybe it was because he hadn't blackened yet, like in the game.

'I'm worried.'

I didn't know exactly why Denif became an imperial terrorist.

But it was definitely related to the decline of Haisen.

It was likely that something happened to the duke during that process.

Whether stopping the decline of Haisen was possible, the duke's death had to be prevented.

To unite the empire against demon worshippers, it would be difficult with an imperial terrorist.

And having the duke around was much better for me.

'I've gained some trust, and it's easier to connect with the princess this way.'

If everything failed, I had to find the main culprit of Haisen's decline and tell Denif.

I hoped the empire wouldn't be his target.

The current Denif might listen to me, but certainty was dangerous.

I closed my eyes, ending my thoughts. I didn't sit in a lotus position, but focusing was enough.

"Practicing again?"

"Got to, don't I?"

"Tch."

Glancing over, Denif was closing his eyes, apparently trying to practice like me.

It was a good sign. I closed my eyes again and focused on the flow of magic.

The inner moon had grown to a crescent, thanks to reaching three stars on a good day two months ago.

Reaching four stars would likely take more time.

The duke, who had practiced for a long time, was at six stars. Five stars was a half-moon, so it was probably a bit larger than that.

'I need to work harder.'

Given my current worst condition, I had to practice constantly.

Actually, the reason I could keep up this effort for three years without rest was due to practical experience.

'The future is important, but it also felt distant.'

The duke wasn't a random intelligence chief.

He chose suitable opponents for me to grow. Many were close calls, naturally making me work hard.

I observed the crescent moon within me, circulated my magic, and began to focus on martial arts.

I didn't just copy the Moon Shadow style.

There is no perfect martial art. It's a simple truth. The user's body is different.

Since the martial art wasn't made for me, I had to expand it based on the basics to make it my own.

I visualized a battle in my mind.

The carriage jolted as it ran through the night, but my inner world was as calm as the moon.