Chapter 27: The Empire (1)

The sun was setting as the afternoon wore on. Every time the carriage jolted, the long shadows stretched and swayed.

It was a tedious journey. The distance from the Duchy of Brusek to the capital of the Empire was considerable.

Just as I was about to stretch to relieve my fatigue, the coachman knocked on the wall of the carriage.

"Get ready. We're almost there."

I slightly opened the window and poked my head out, seeing a faint white castle wall at the horizon.

Finally!

I felt a genuine sense of awe as the end of this tedious journey approached.

It had been a considerable amount of time, and there were many difficulties along the way.

We did stop in villages from time to time, but we took the fastest route possible, which meant frequent camping.

"Being in the carriage all the time was quite suffocating."

While mental training was possible, it was hard to use time efficiently.

There were times when even brushing my teeth was awkward due to the lack of water.

In such cases, the solution was simple: I just didn't eat.

Not eating and swinging my sword, the coachman sometimes looked at me as if I were crazy.

"Still, it was fortunate that I could ride in a carriage."

One of the good things about being a spy is that the activity funds are usually generous.

This is true not only in Haisen but also in other places. It's the same in games.

The harder the mission, the more convenience is provided in other areas. Otherwise, the likelihood of betrayal increases.

Thanks to this, I was able to travel by carriage.

"Have the kids already arrived?"

Denif would have arrived in the capital before I left Haisen, and Orhen would have arrived a little later.

Finding the branch might be a problem, but I hoped they had managed. The kids aren't stupid.

Suddenly, I remembered when I left. Orhen's eyes were red at the front of the duke's mansion.

While Denif was fine, I was a bit worried about Orhen, especially with recent events.

Well, I just hope they adapt well.

"That is the white wall of Chenarus."

While I was lost in thought, the distance to the capital had narrowed.

In the middle of the vast plain, the tall and sturdy white walls and the towering white royal palace beyond came into view.

That was the famous White City.

Chenarus, the capital of the Kayan Empire, where all the buildings are predominantly white, hence the nickname.

While I had felt it in games, seeing it in real life was even more overwhelming.

As the capital of the empire, quite a few people were trying to enter, though fewer were leaving due to the time.

The carriage gradually slowed down. The line was moving slower than expected, but it was bearable.

A guard with a bored expression soon appeared and scanned the coachman from head to toe.

"Pass."

He was brief, perhaps judging by our appearance.

I handed over the prepared pass, which the guard checked before looking at me.

"What is your purpose in Chenarus?"

It was a question he clearly didn't ask the people who went before.

The combination of a relatively young me and the coachman seemed unusual.

"To join a mercenary group."

While mercenaries are found all over the continent, the capital of the empire is one of the famous hubs.

High-level mercenary groups often participate in wars between nobles and countries, making it a central location on the continent.

Thus, it was common for intelligence units to operate under the guise of mercenary groups.

The guards exchanged glances and chuckled.

"You must have read a lot of novels, young master, bringing a coachman to become a mercenary."

"There are plenty of dreamers like you."

"This coachman is the bad one, bringing such a kid along."

The coachman cleared his throat at the comments.

While it was unpleasant to be openly mocked, I had intended to look this way.

In a world where having the right skills can easily turn a mercenary into a knight or noble,

noble families often used their own knights or armies as mercenaries.

In fact, it was natural for the guards to insult the coachman.

It was quite common for children from middle-class families to join mercenary groups in hopes of social advancement.

Still, I deliberately put on a disgruntled expression. It wasn't hard to act.

The guard handed me the pass.

"Be careful, kid. Real combat isn't like the world in your imagination."

"Mind your own business."

I deliberately snatched the pass.

"Hey, kid, you've got some nerve. I'm just worried about you."

"Leave me alone. I'll handle it."

I walked forward, ignoring the guards' laughter. The coachman, who still had some money owed, hurried after me.

The coachman suggested going to a place he knew, but I refused outright.

Our partnership ended here, as I needed to find the branch. I handed over the remaining payment and headed towards the square.

As befitting the capital of the empire, the streets were bustling with people.

In an environment where collisions were inevitable, even a quick glance revealed many pickpockets.

Suddenly, I remembered my first day in this world and chuckled.

"Anyway, where should I start?"

We each received a clue and went our separate ways, so I didn't know what the others had.

However, the clue I received was ambiguous.

-Imperial Capital. The crow caws above death.

I asked if this was the right clue, as it was the same one used in the last mission, but Marhan only nodded.

Phiri might have added a bit of mischief, but there must be some connection.

I had pondered the map while traveling to Chenarus.

There were three primary targets.

"The crow caws above death."

When I heard those words, I imagined crows flying over a battlefield strewn with bodies.

It was too straightforward, but I couldn't ignore it.

Thus, the royal cemetery in the capital came to mind. I needed to find a place with a crow symbol.

Next, I thought of the execution square with the gallows, and the last place was the garbage incineration plant.

If human death was too direct, it could be the death of objects.

The incineration plant was in the slums, making it a good place for the intelligence unit to hide.

"Hmm. I'm a bit hungry, but should I eat dinner?"

No. Thinking about brushing my teeth, I should probably find a room, but the idea was tiring.

While the duke or Marhan would scold me, eating was a chore for me.

I had to brush my teeth, and I was tired, so I ate out of obligation even at the mansion.

It would be better to quickly find the branch and sort things out there.

"First, let's check the cemetery."

* * *

"Damn."

Where the hell is it?

I visited all three places but found nothing related to crows.

I had been thorough, so I didn't think I had missed anything.

Finding the branch of the intelligence unit was the goal. Checking every suspicious place was impractical.

The capital of the empire.

It's not just the Haisen intelligence unit here. Stirring things up isn't wise.

"They must have given a clue that's easy to recognize."

By the time I arrived, it was evening, and now it was well into the night. The sky was nearing midnight.

Being in an unfamiliar place, I had to act like a regular person, which took more time.

I was hungry and irritable from walking around. I felt a bit of regret.

Should I have eaten? My mind wasn't working well.

"Did I think wrong?"

At this point, I must have. I had made a mistake from the start. Let's rethink it.

The crow caws above death...

Is it related to the empire's culture or history? It's possible.

I learned about various countries from Lena, but nothing came to mind immediately.

"It's not a place with a lot of real crows, right?"

It was a more direct thought, but the intelligence unit is close to death, so it's not entirely wrong.

Hmm. This is too far-fetched. I'm grasping at straws.

"Or is it?"

Phiri might have done something like that. I didn't know her well, but she seemed playful.

She might have anticipated our thinking and twisted it. Should I check?

"Huh?"

As I thought, a faint memory surfaced.

I traced the vague memory and recalled something from Lena's class.

"The story of the crow that dislikes the sun."

It was one of the empire's folktales.

Long ago, the sun was always up, and the black crow, disliking this, flew to the edge of the sky and brought down the moon.

In the process, it didn't even realize it was freezing to death. Because of this, day and night were created, and time was born.

And...

There was a monument in the empire based on this folktale. It was the clock tower in the southern square.

"Ah... Why didn't I remember this?"

It was only briefly mentioned, but recalling it suddenly was still impressive, though I felt a bit disappointed.

The word 'caws' was a bit off, but I thought checking around the clock tower might work.

The curfew was approaching, so there weren't many people on the streets.

"Is that it?"

The massive clock tower in the southern square. It seemed familiar.

Denif had blown it up in the main story when he first appeared.

Wait.

If the Haisen intelligence unit's branch is here, does that mean something is connected?

For a moment, the clock tower caught my eye. I don't know why.

Something felt off.

Suddenly, the clock's hands caught my eye. The hour and minute hands were shaped like the sun and moon, respectively.

And the second hand... it was shaped like a crow.

The second hand ticked rhythmically. When the crow pointed to 12, the bell rang.

It was the sound of 11 o'clock.

The crow caws above death.

I hadn't thought about the bell, but it felt like the pieces in my head were falling into place.

"I found it."

In the brief joy, a new question arose.

But where exactly is the branch?

The clock tower itself couldn't be the branch. Should I search the square again?

No. Let's focus on the given clue. The clue has been pointing to the clock tower.

Let's go inside.

Why do movies often have bombs inside clock towers?

As the saying goes, the darkest place is under the lamp. The clock tower could be the branch.

If there's nothing, I can search later.

I expanded my senses and carefully entered the clock tower.

The first floor was empty, and there were no signs of anyone. The same was true for the roof of the clock tower.

Did I get it wrong?

While looking at the city from the top of the clock tower, I heard a familiar voice.

"Kid."

Turning to the familiar voice, I saw Phiri.

Against the backdrop of the white city under the dark sky, Phiri's long hair fluttered. She smiled with a shadowy face.

"I thought it would take a few more days, but you found it sooner than expected."