Chapter 60

Roar!!

A strong wind that resonated in his ears.

The fierce gusts racing between the buildings under the clear night sky roughly swept over Renok's hair.

Operation start.

The mission he had received from Evelyn was already on the verge of execution.

The rendezvous point was the Trade Center in Sector 41, on the 37th floor rooftop.

As the name suggests, it was a high-rise building of considerable height.

Sitting in a spot where he could overlook the night view of Balkan, Renok waited, and someone slowly approached from behind.

"You must be the wizard Ban."

A young man with a long scar across his nose. His appearance made it hard to guess his age.

He plopped down next to Renok and, seeing the cigarette in his mouth, asked bluntly.

"Can I have one?"

"70,000 cel."

As Renok said this, he took out a cigarette and threw it to him, and the man, instead of paying, immediately put it in his mouth.

A flame rose in the air, quickly igniting the tip of the cigarette and producing smoke.

After taking a few puffs of the cashburn, the young man said, somewhat surprised.

"It's stronger than I thought. Do all wizards smoke such strong cigarettes?"

Renok ignored his words and asked.

"Are you a psychic?"

"More or less. Nice to meet you."

"Is this all the people participating in this operation?"

"Well... I heard there were at least three. Ah, one more is coming up."

As soon as the young man finished speaking, a new person appeared.

A towering, muscular giant with a stern and dignified face that exuded restraint.

He glanced at the two of them but said nothing.

At the same time, a woman in a suit landed at the edge of the building's rooftop.

"Nice to meet you."

Pushing up her vintage silver-rimmed glasses with one hand, she spoke.

"Everyone is here now."

"Hmm? There was one more?"

Without a word, Renok pointed behind him.

A woman with a blank expression, covered in an old hoodie, was staring at them intently.

"I am Hina O'Neill, in charge of management and supervision for this operation."

"An agent, I see."

"We have already explained the reasons for hiring freelancers in advance."

"........."

Hina, who casually ignored the young man's words, said.

"Tonight. A terrorist attack by black mages is planned to target this Trade Center. It's not just a random crime, but a well-planned operation in collaboration with the professional terrorist organization 'Phalzion.'"

Behind her glasses, a cold gaze shone.

"Parasites that disrupt the peace of the city must be eliminated, as always."

New equipment

"A woman with a strong sense of duty."

The young man muttered indifferently and asked.

"So, are we supposed to go down to that rooftop and burn the black mage friends to death? That's all I know how to do."

Whoosh!!

As he spoke, a deep-colored flame rose from his fingertips and transformed into the shape of a wolf.

An astonishingly precise control of his psychic ability, far superior to the pyrokinetic he had met during the pharmaceutical company's commission.

Hina finally turned her gaze to the young man and shook her head.

"No, but that's also correct."

"I don't like riddles."

The heavyset giant, with his stern appearance, spoke for the first time.

"Let's get moving quickly."

".....The attack on the Trade Center is a decoy. The real target is right over there."

Hina's finger pointed to the building directly opposite.

A building slightly lower in height than where they were standing, about 20 floors high.

"A shared office for a medium-sized company conducting cloud computing business. They plan to steal an encrypted key hidden inside."

"You seem to know a lot. Is the information accurate?"

"We have cross-verified using an informant we planted in the terrorist organization. It's reliable information."

"That key must be very important."

"I don't know the details."

Although Hina replied calmly, no one in the room was unaware that she was lying.

Judging from what he had heard from Jenny, it was probably something closely related to the secret of Senator Rayson.

"The team will be divided into two for the operation. Three will go directly to the Trade Center to subdue the terrorists, and one will cross over to protect the encryption key."

A somewhat peculiar distribution of personnel for an operation to be conducted simultaneously in two places.

It was a plausible strategy only if the strength of the three and the one were assumed to be equal.

It was natural for objections to arise.

"So, who is that one?"

"Mr. Ban will take on that role."

The four people gathered there turned their gazes to him simultaneously.

Instead of responding, Renok silently lifted his head and looked up at the night sky.

The stars, obscured by the city's dust, were quite visible from such a height.

Renok found this fact surprisingly pleasing.

"I find it hard to accept."

The woman with the blank expression spoke for the first time.

"I know that this wizard Ban has been doing well lately, but it's hard to believe he can accomplish anything alone. Besides, isn't he specialized in rear support?"

"I agree."

The giant crossed his arms in agreement.

"It's hard to gauge if this is the best choice for the operation's success. I'm here for the success fee, not the advance. I can't follow orders I don't understand."

Despite Renok's recent rise in reputation, it wasn't strange to doubt his skills.

Renok was well aware of how many real and fake people were mixed in this line of work.

It was a tedious and familiar time to prove himself. Renok was always prepared for such moments.

How about starting by hanging that giant from the building's rooftop... Just as Renok was about to stand up, Hina said.

"If the success fee is the issue, you don't need to worry. The success of the operation will be evaluated separately for each location."

Even if Renok failed to protect the encryption key, the others would receive their fee if they eliminated the terrorists.

The woman with the blank expression seemed to understand and closed her mouth, while the giant muttered discontentedly.

"I don't understand why this wizard is being treated so well."

"That's our problem to handle."

Cutting off the complaint, she took out her phone, checked the time, and nodded.

"It's time. Let's get started then."