Let's Go See the Branch Manager
Committing the entirety of Bigwanggeomhyeong to memory took only a single day.
That didn't mean he'd fully mastered it, of course. He'd only learned enough to deploy a few of the forms adequately—just enough to put them to use in actual combat. But even that was enough to leave Cheren stunned.
"......Remarkable."
It had taken her three full days just to manifest the first form. And Cheren was a prodigy who had risen to Master before she'd even turned twenty-one. Cheren marveled at Leon's talent, and Leon marveled at Bergopf's.
At any rate.
And so the day passed, and the next morning dawned—the eighth day since their arrival in the capital. Leon rose at first light, trained briefly, then headed for the dining hall within the Asonia estate. Aria, Celia, Carotin, Esabel, Riana...... There he met the others and shared breakfast with them.
With a full stomach and a single sword for company, Leon ambled outside. It was a moderately muggy day. The sky stretched clear and blue, and the sunlight on his skin was hot.
Now what?
Leon lit the cigarette between his lips and set off without much thought, letting his feet take him wherever they pleased. No one walked beside him. He was alone. The others were all busy.
Aria seemed occupied shuttling between the Imperial Library and the Magic Tower. Carotin was thoroughly absorbed in playing with her fiancé. Celia and Riana had announced they were going dress shopping today for the banquet. They'd asked if he wanted to come along, and of course Leon had refused. Bored as he might be, there was no way he was tagging along for that.
On a day like this, sparring with Esabel under the pretense of training would have been nice, but she had business in the First District today as well.
Billy said he was spending time with his little sister, too.
Billy doted on that sister of his to an almost terrifying degree. If Leon interrupted his time with her, he'd have to finish that blood-soaked rematch they'd left incomplete during the evaluation—and this time it wouldn't be in the Tower of Illusions. It would be real.
Ugh, that maniac. Upper Expert rank? Absolutely not touching that.
Leon shuddered and flicked away the cigarette butt.
Might as well enjoy being alone for once......
And so Leon set off alone to tour the capital. He'd always been the type who could amuse himself just fine on his own. In his previous life, hadn't he gone skydiving alone all the way in Switzerland—and met his next life in the process?
First, Leon left the central districts. The inner central districts—home to the Second, Third, and Fourth Districts—didn't suit his temperament. They overflowed with the antique, elegant, refined things that appealed to nobility. What suited Leon was the thrilling, the violent, the stimulating kind of entertainment.
"Mm. Now this feels a little more familiar."
Leon muttered as he crossed the Fifth District and arrived in the Sixth. Only up through the Fifth District had the capital been dressed up like a separate world, designed to showcase its grandeur. The Sixth District's scenery and atmosphere were no different from any other city.
Case in point:
Thud—!
"Hey, you bastard. You bump into someone, you apologize—"
Wham!
Leon's foot snapped out in a side kick. The burly thug went flying, his torso bent double. At the same time, without so much as turning his head, Leon reached back. His hand clamped down on the wrist of a boy who'd been sliding toward his waist.
"Huk!?"
Leon's grip tightened without mercy.
Crunch!
"Gyaaaaaaah!"
The boy clutched his dangling wrist and wailed. The thug who'd taken a direct hit to the ribs was rolling on the cold dirt.
Crack!
"Uwaaaaaah!"
Leon crushed the thug's shoulder blade as well. The man foamed at the mouth and passed out.
"Well, well. What a pair of idiots."
Leon snickered and kept walking. One draws the eye while the quick-handed other picks the pocket—a time-honored two-man con. They'd clearly been after Leon's expensive-looking sword. And so went the warm welcome that began the moment you entered the Sixth District.
"Haaah......"
Leon drew a deep breath. This familiarity, this coziness. It felt like coming home.
"Hmm-hmm~ hmm~."
Humming to himself, he strolled down the main thoroughfare. Leon expanded his sensory field to its fullest. Whether because of the two-man act just now or not, he could feel gazes pouring in from every direction.
Ordinary gazes mixed with curiosity, fear, interest. Gazes that tried to hide their presence, gazes disguised as ordinary, gazes so well-concealed they were nearly invisible. Gazes watching through magic tools and familiars. Even faint ones felt from very far away. Truly a rainbow of gazes, each one different.
Leon picked one out from among them.
Let's see...... That one looks like the best of the lot.
Whoosh—!
Heavenly Escape Steps. Leon's form vanished in an instant. Everyone who'd been watching him flinched in unison. Leon tore through the dense crowd, surging in one direction. His target: roughly a hundred and fifty meters ahead, a big-nosed man pulling a rickshaw into an alley.
Tap, tap—!
Covering the distance in a blink, Leon hopped lightly onto the rickshaw. The big-nosed man felt the added weight and glanced back.
"Where to, sir?"
Remarkably composed for a passenger who'd appeared out of nowhere. Leon studied the man's energy flow, then spoke.
"Take me to see the branch manager here."
"I'm sorry, but I'm not sure what you mean......"
"Cut the crap."
"......"
The big-nosed man's eyes flickered for a moment. After a brief silence, he sighed and turned his head forward again.
"Right away, sir."
The Rumel Canal, which cut through the capital.
The rickshaw arrived at the stretch of Rumel Canal that ran through the Sixth District. Across the leisurely flowing waterway drifted rowboats, freighters, transport ships, yachts, and tourists out for a pleasure cruise. Leon pointed to a grand arched bridge spanning the canal.
"What's that bridge called?"
"Baekhyang Bridge, young master."
"Drop me off in the middle of Baekhyang Bridge."
"Yes, sir."
The big-nosed man hauled the rickshaw, sweating profusely. Upon reaching the center of the bridge, Leon stepped down. He pulled a silver coin from his coat and flicked it to the big-nosed man.
"Good work."
"Thank you, sir."
After sending the man off, Leon rested his arms on the bridge railing.
"Well built."
His view opened up into a vast expanse of blue. A wide, deep canal that brought the Han River to mind. Countless vessels plied the glittering sunlit surface. Leon stuck a cigarette between his lips and watched them in silence.
By the time the cigarette had burned down to nothing—without any warning, Leon vaulted over the railing.
Whoooooosh—!
Wind whipped through his hair, baring his face fully. Body upright, arms spread wide in free fall—he looked for all the world like an eagle. Leon landed lightly without a sound. And it wasn't the water.
"......"
"......"
Silence settled over the small rowboat. Wordless gazes passed between them. Two men were on the boat. One was an ordinary-looking fellow, a bit on the thin side. The other was a young boatman built entirely of muscle.
Splash— splash—
The oars dipped. The boat moved, water slapping against its hull. The man who'd been staring blankly at Leon let out a hollow sigh, then cracked a faint smile.
"Young master, may I ask just one question?"
Leon nodded readily.
"Go ahead."
"How on earth did you find us?"
Leon answered flatly.
"Everyone in the area was funneling sound transmissions straight to the two of you. How was I supposed to miss that?"
"......!"
The boatman's oars stopped. The man's mouth fell open. Both were struck speechless with shock. He made it sound simple, but detecting sound transmissions in the first place was difficult—and sensing where they were directed from a distance was harder still. Especially in a place this densely packed with people. Leon's senses had grown even sharper since his visit to the Dragon Heart Palace.
"......Your accomplishments at such a young age are remarkable."
"I do all right."
With an impassive face, Leon pulled out a fresh cigarette. He lit it, took a drag, and continued.
"I came for some information. You two looked like the most competent operators around here."
"We pride ourselves on that, yes. Are you familiar with our organization?"
"No, never heard of it. I just followed the best informant I could find."
"Oh. Looks like I'll have to give Malik a bonus. Getting the chance to sell information to the Swift Hero, after all."
"?"
Leon's brow furrowed mid-exhale. He'd just heard something extremely grating.
"......Hold on. What did you just say?"
"Pardon? About what?"
"What's 'Swift Hero'?"
"Ah, you hadn't heard? That's the epithet currently spreading through the information networks for you, young master."
Leon's face crumpled like a stomped-on tin can.
"Swift? Hero? How the fuck did anyone put those characters together? Which bastard stuck me with that brain-dead epithet?"
"......Oh."
As Leon snarled, the man looked thoroughly flustered. Clearly he hadn't expected him to hate it.
"Y-you don't like it? I'm not sure who coined it, to be honest. Shall I dig around and find out?"
"You damn well better."
"Yes, sir."
"Moving on."
"Yes. Allow me to introduce myself first. My name is Tool. I'm the Second Branch Manager of Guris, an information organization operating primarily out of the capital."