Ancient City Arville (2)
Servio Viscount returned to his territory and immediately began gathering intelligence in earnest.
It was to verify if the intel he'd obtained from Gerard Millers was true.
But it ended far more anticlimactically than he'd expected.
All thanks to a report that had just come in from the execution squad.
[Encountered tracking target #22, but assassination failed. Tracking target #4 intervened.]
[Notable: Tracking target #4 estimated to have reached Class 4. Given her age, it's certain she's acquired a Mana Breathing Method.]
The tracking target numbers indicated how aggressively the execution squad was pursuing them.
#4 meant she was the fourth most important target.
And her identity was none other than Laila.
"That assassin bitch has reached Class 4? She's barely in her early twenties…."
Servio Viscount couldn't wrap his head around it. A Mana Breathing Method wasn't something you just picked up easily.
In the end, the most plausible explanation he could come up with was this:
'She played hard to get for a high price, but in the end, she fell for the sweet talk. Tsk! Well, becoming the count's heir's concubine isn't a bad deal. And that Calix brat—his face is pretty enough, at least.'
Having lived his whole life amid schemes and plots, he couldn't even conceive of someone handing over a Mana Breathing Method out of mere whim or kindness.
His thoughts drifted even further.
'No, maybe she threw herself at him first. Either way, those two are clearly close. In that case… I can use this.'
His reasoning was way off-base, but he'd stumbled onto the right conclusion.
Unfortunately for Calix and Laila.
"Who's out there?"
"Yes, my lord."
"Tell Tabar to come in."
"Yes, sir!"
Servio Viscount was a man of many innovations.
He'd evolved assassins into rangers—a new unit type better suited for field operations.
He'd organized them into the Shadow Corps and deployed them for various covert ops.
He'd even included women in ranger training.
One radical break from tradition after another.
Everyone had shaken their heads, insisting his plans would fail. Some had even schemed and slandered him.
"But no one who said that is by my side anymore, are they, Marquis? They're either rotting in some backwater village or gnashing their teeth in the grave. I trust a man who's grown fat on the blood of comrades understands."
Tabar nodded silently.
Among the countless rangers Servio Viscount had trained, he stood out as the absolute best—the commander of the 'executioners' who tracked down and punished deserters from the Shadow Corps during training or missions.
Servio Viscount handed him a sketch. It depicted a stunning beauty with deep brown hair.
"Laila, huh."
"You remember her?"
"She was an excellent student. Vicious with poison, sharp enough to know when to finish the job and when to pull back."
"High praise from you—unexpected."
He let out a light chuckle.
"I even considered pulling her into the execution squad once. Of course, she ended up a failed test subject I scrapped."
Cold killing intent flickered in Tabar's eyes.
"Can I kill her?"
"Something even more fun. There's intel we need to extract."
"Heh heh, torture… It's been ages since my boys tasted blood."
"Don't get too excited and kill her. This is important."
"I'm not some amateur like them."
"True. If even you can't get it out of her, then she really doesn't know."
"What's this super important intel?"
"The silver ingots' whereabouts. Stolen from us. Just find out where they're stashed. If it's the Szczecin County castle's underground vault… we'll go to war over territory if we have to."
The imperial road stretching from Poznyu to Szczecin County had been built ages ago by the Magitech Empire.
But Lock Kingdom lacked the means to maintain it, and years of neglect had reduced it to little more than a dusty dirt path.
Calix's group had been traveling that road diligently for days.
As they crossed a plain shrouded in thick sunset dusk, one of the escort knights approached the carriage and spoke to Krout.
"Nightfall's coming soon. Shall we overnight at 'El Black'?"
He glanced at Calix, riding alongside.
"Young master, El Black is the last proper town with an inn before entering Szczecin County. What say you?"
"No need to push through the night. Let's do it."
"Understood."
Krout issued orders to the escort knight waiting outside the carriage.
"Go ahead, secure rooms, and heat bathwater."
"Yes, Captain!"
Hours later, having unpacked at El Black's inn, Calix's group soaked in hot water for the first time in ages, washing away their fatigue.
The attendants, leaving only a minimal watch, gathered in small groups and headed to nearby taverns.
Yurin clung to him stubbornly, so Calix stayed in, sipping the wine Madam Hari had prepared.
He'd been clueless about wine at first, but now he could enjoy it decently. Wine was a staple at any noble banquet, and the only alcohol allowed to minors.
As he passed the time that way, someone knocked on the inn room door.
"Young master, it's Gordon. A messenger from the territory."
"From the territory? Send him in."
"Yes, sir."
The door opened, and a dust-caked knight entered, saluting crisply.
"It's been too long, sir."
"Yeah. I was on my way back anyway. What's up? Trouble in the territory?"
"Yes. A special investigation team led by Antonio Marquis has been formed, and they've officially dispatched an investigator."
"Who?"
"Do you know Orsel Tiggrim?"
"Wasn't he the proxy for our territory's noble council back in the day?"
"Correct. He's been granted a barony and appointed as the investigator."
"Hmph… I figured it was just bluster, but they're really going through with this hassle? Guess I pissed them off good. No word from the First Prince's side?"
"Nothing notable."
"That dog prince is back to his old bad habits."
"Pardon?"
The messenger stared at Calix in bewilderment for calling the prince a 'dog.'
"Never mind. What about Russell?"
"Ahem! Viscount Regent Russell said he'll drag it out as long as possible. And he asked me to relay this."
"What?"
"Don't return to the territory until you've reached Class 4…."
"Ugh, Krout's gonna crank up the training intensity again."
The situation seemed far from easy. Russell's order was clearly tied to the last royal decree.
Antonio Marquis will form a special investigation team to continue the probe. Should any decisive counter-evidence emerge, the case will be fully reviewed via ordinance. However, this is limited until Calix reaches the User stage. If he proves Class 4, the team disbands immediately, and succession is granted.
Recalling the decree's contents, Calix's mind grew complicated.
Truth be told, he hadn't worried much when it was issued.
Szczecin County had accepted the First Prince's offer and joined his faction.
That's why he'd just cursed the prince out loud. If the First Prince had seriously reined things in, Orsel Tiggrim wouldn't have been appointed investigator.
With Orsel—Szczecin-born, privy to internal affairs, and well-connected—it would be several times harder to handle.
That was probably why Russell told him not to come back.
'I thought they'd just go through the motions and drop it, but why the sudden aggressive shift?'
As Calix pondered, the messenger continued.
"Also… a group of women claiming to be a special task force arrived at the territory. They had Laila's letter of introduction, so we took them in for now. What should we do?"
"Hm? Give them lodging and keep them there. They'll be useful when I set up a similar intel network later."
"Understood. But we learned something during their questioning. Many stated that Laila saved them from pursuers. And that her skills had skyrocketed in the short time they hadn't seen her…."
Calix nodded.
Good—she'd successfully acquired the Mana Breathing Method he'd tipped her off about.
"That's all?"
"No. The important part: they have a secret way to exchange news among themselves, but they haven't heard from Laila recently. They asked if we could help her. Her last contact was from around here."
Only then did Calix piece together the chain of events.
'Damn, the silver ingots!'
Servio Viscount had clearly never stopped hunting for traces of the silver, deploying people relentlessly.
'Makes sense—with that much silver, disposal or even management is no joke. They'd figure some trail must've been left during transport.'
Of course, no such trail existed. The ingots had been moved via Calix's inventory skill and still slumbered there.
'But an artifact with enough sub-space for all those crates is a national treasure. No way they'd imagine I have something like that. So they're endlessly tracking the silver's path.'
Dispatching the investigator was probably less about new evidence and more about locating the silver.
'And naturally, one person pinged on their radar. Laila—they're hunting her again.'
Among the ruin expedition group, she was the only one they could touch without qualms. She wasn't officially part of House Szczecin.
In cold terms, abandoning her wouldn't cost much.
She didn't even know where the silver was—or that Calix had an inventory skill.
But.
'She might suffer pointless torture because of me. And….'
A cold smile curled Calix's lips.
'Whittle down the enemy's numbers whenever the chance arises. It's good for the long game.'
The Shadow Corps weren't mass-produced snacks. Training people required no small fortune and time.
They'd likely committed just enough force to hunt Laila. Hit them there, and the gains would be substantial.
He immediately pulled up his minimap. He zoomed in on the surroundings as much as possible, scrutinizing nearby markers one by one.
'First, think like I'm Laila. If contact cut off around here, she's probably not far.'
Calix put himself in her shoes.
'What's her goal? Head back to Szczecin County? Nah, too obvious—they'd nab her at the choke points. Based on what I've heard, she's definitely hit Class 4 now. For someone of her caliber, a place easy to erase traces… has to be here.'
The spot Calix zeroed in on was the rocky zone near El Black.
Known as Trem Canyon, it was a labyrinth of thousands of massive boulders—perfect for hiding.
It was also where decent spirit herbs would be found in the future.
'Not top-tier, but enough to hugely aid reaching Class 4. Only downside….'
The regret was that a high-difficulty ruin lurked nearby in Trem Canyon—one currently impossible for them.
And it held exactly what Calix needed most.
An S-grade Mana Breathing Method.
He shook his head.
That place was at least five years off.
'For now, focus on cutting off Servio Viscount's limbs and rescuing Laila. That'll do.'