Chapter 183
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 183
Chapter Title: Do You Know It's a Black Company?
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"Again today?"
"Yeah, seems like it."
"I have no idea what day it is anymore."
"It's been almost three months since the incident started. It got especially bad after that guy showed up."
"I'm worried."
"Don't think unnecessary thoughts. It's Her Highness's job to think and decide. We just follow orders."
"True enough."
As if straightening out their distracted minds with idle chatter,
the two knights clamped their mouths shut once more and stood rigidly like statues, vigilantly scanning their surroundings.
But they had no idea.
That in the brief gap while they were talking, a single shadow had slipped right over their heads.
[The security really is airtight. Even Hotel Leviathan wasn't this intense.]
'That's because the Leviathan you saw was just a branch office. If you'd been to the Black Dragon Palace, you wouldn't say that.'
[Eh, no matter how tight their security is, it can't be as bad as this place.]
'You think so?'
[Of course.]
Yuna Kyung answered immediately.
And as she gazed at the knights guarding every key point—from the corridors to the garden and even the corners of the walls—she clicked her tongue in amazement.
[Seriously, don't these knights ever get sleepy? How are they standing guard all night without even blinking?]
'They're elite from the Seven Dragon Society. They're not going to tire from one or two all-nighters.'
[Wailing unnie always had prominent dark circles, though.]
'That's because she pulls all-nighters all the time.'
[...Come to think of it, do you guys even realize the Guardians are a total black company?]
'This is nothing. Back in the day, they used to make you work several all-nighters on nothing but a loaf of sand-mixed bread and half-rotten wine.'
[That's not a black company—that's a black hole! Revolution would break out on the spot!]
'Just suppress it and make them work again.'
[You think logic like that would fly?!]
'It did in countries with a Sword Master. That's part of why the Heroes' Age was such a mess.'
Rimon chuckled softly but moved with utmost caution.
Not making a sound or even a presence as he stepped, hanging from the ceiling or scaling walls.
Having mapped out the sightlines of every guard around him, his movements—targeting only blind spots—were perfection itself.
A technique any spy would kill to learn.
But Rimon didn't let his guard down.
He knew the visible knights weren't the only security.
Pajing.
Proving it, two knights had just materialized out of thin air where Rimon had been moments ago.
They scanned the area, confirmed nothing amiss, then vanished through space again. Rimon inwardly clicked his tongue at the sight.
'That's the Blue Dragon Clan for you.'
Unless it was something major, using spatial jumps just for patrols was overkill.
A feat possible only for the Blue Dragon Clan, who rode psionic waves of space movement.
That was why Rimon couldn't move freely either.
Dodging stationary guards was one thing, but popping guards were impossible to handle.
It was only possible because he, as a Sword Master, could sense spatial distortions in advance.
Any ordinary spy would have been caught ages ago.
"Tch, looks like the main building really is impossible."
After wandering for hours into the night,
Rimon finally returned to his room empty-handed and clicked his tongue.
Yuna Kyung, who had pulled an all-nighter with him, grumbled briefly too.
[If we could at least use spatial movement freely, it'd be easier.]
"Don't talk nonsense. You want to summon every Blue Dragon Clan member in the castle?"
[I'm just saying, it's frustrating.]
Yuna Kyung grumbled.
As a spatial movement player herself, a place where using it meant instant detection was as suffocating as being underwater.
[So, what's the plan now?]
"Hmm... Guess we give up on sneaking all the way inside."
[Quitting surprisingly fast.]
"Wasting time on the impossible is just foolish."
Rimon shrugged.
He was a Sword Master, not a thief master.
His long experience made him stealthier than most thieves or assassins, but breaching security this tight undetected was impossible.
'My fiancée might manage it... but that's out of the question.'
The thought of Li Chingwei, the Black Dragon Clan's princess and infiltration expert, crossed his mind, but he dismissed it.
She was too busy to even come along, let alone for something like this.
"Looks like we'll have to pump an insider for info."
[You think that'll work?]
"Everyone has a mouth. And I overheard a few things wandering around tonight."
[Overheard what? Just scraps of chit-chat all night.]
"Even chit-chat adds up to treasure if you collect enough. Get friendly and guide the conversation—that's even better."
This was House Ciserpent.
Not just the guarding knights, but the passing maids and laborers were all Blue Dragon Clan or lived with them.
What chit-chat they shared, what interested them, what they hated.
All of it could be crucial clues.
Yuna Kyung made a dumbfounded face at Rimon's words, drawn from vast life experience.
[That's for smooth talkers. You can't do that, Team Leader.]
"...What the hell do you think I am?"
[What else? A straightforward swordsman who leads with the blade over words.]
"... ."
Ddak!
[Ow! Why hit me? I didn't say anything wrong!]
"Blasphemy gets harsher the truer it is, kid."
After that back-and-forth, Rimon shifted from infiltration to intelligence gathering.
But he didn't start scurrying around House Ciserpent accosting people that day.
That would scream "spy."
Besides, Rimon had other tasks beyond info-gathering.
"How is it, Ri?"
"Hm, not bad for something thrown together in a hurry."
"...You're probably the only violinist in the world who'd rate a Guarneri like that, Ri."
Julia lost her composure at the harsh critique of one of the violin world's "big three," priceless with auction values in the tens of billions and immense historical rarity.
But Rimon's response was nonchalant.
"Can't help it if it feels lacking compared to the one I used to play."
"Fair enough, I suppose."
Julia gave a wry smile.
She knew from broadcasts how phenomenal Rimon's performances had been on his pitch-black violin.
His words were no exaggeration or lie.
"Don't sweat it. I'm grateful enough for a loaner like this."
"Truly. Only Lord Ciserpent would lend a Guarneri to an unseen performer."
"I'll repay it with my playing."
"That's the right attitude."
Julia chuckled lightly, pulling out her own violin—a Stradivarius—and smiling faintly.
"Shall we prepare for that brilliant performance, then?"
"Whenever you're ready."
The garden spot had nothing but two chairs and violins.
No sheet music even.
Rimon nodded calmly in the middle of it all, and Julia took it in stride.
Julia assumed position, Rimon followed suit with violin to shoulder.
And from House Ciserpent's famed flower maze, a gentle melody began to ripple out.
In the main residence of House Ciserpent,
atop the top floor office, Rose spoke in a clear voice.
"Duke Carl really requested an audience with His Highness the Crown Prince?"
"Yes. They're likely meeting as we speak."
"I see..."
Rose pondered deeply, but the man in ornate armor, Lucas, spoke gravely.
"Don't worry too much, Your Highness. Even Duke Carl can't infringe on our clan's authority."
"I think so too, but the pressure from him must burden the royals as well."
Rose sighed.
An average player was one thing, but Carl was the Magic Lord who had grown Makers Guild into a power rivaling House Ciserpent in just thirty years.
If he pushed without restraint, even they would struggle.
"If he cuts donations now, over half of next month's planned charities would shrink or halt entirely."
"That's... certainly troubling."
Lucas furrowed his brow at her point.
The charities House Ciserpent and Makers Guild had run together for decades were massive.
Losing half the funding would leave a gap even they couldn't easily fill.
That was why Rose spoke after careful thought.
"Sir Lucas, allocate next month's budget generously, just in case."
"Even without Makers Guild donations, to keep charities on track?"
"Yes."
"That might require delaying or scaling back key projects like the Norway oil development. Is that alright?"
Lucas asked solemnly.
Big corporations grew by reinvesting massive profits continuously.
Diverting operational funds to donations might not cause immediate losses but would hurt long-term.
Yet Rose didn't hesitate.
"We can't let the hardships of the struggling go unaddressed because of our clan's issues."
"Wise words."
A normal executive might cry insanity.
But Rose stated it matter-of-factly, and Lucas smiled faintly, accepting the order.
It was a decision—and response—possible only for the merciful Blue Dragon Clan, who owned 100% of Seven Dragon Group's holding company shares.
But the moment passed.
Lucas's face hardened again.
"Your Highness, I heard you stayed up late again last night."
"Yes, couldn't sleep, so I wandered the city until drowsiness hit."
"...Until past four in the morning?"
"Not quite that late. A bit before four."
"So, barely an hour of sleep again."
As her close aide and guard knight—and a Blue Dragon Clan member—Lucas sighed involuntarily.
No Blue Dragon knew Rose's routine didn't start till five a.m.
She answered him calmly.