Twilight Shadows and Silent Whispers
The sun was slowly setting far off in the distance, and the twilight light was beginning to redden the earth.
Arteon, wearing a thick cloak, passed through the gates of Almers and entered the city.
"This place... hasn't changed much at all."
The time when Arteon first arrived in Almers during his previous life had been about two years ago.
He had come with his superior for supplies, so his memories were vague, but...
Arteon scanned his surroundings.
The breeze carried the cold northern air, and merchant carriages could be seen moving through the streets.
It was a city where commerce flourished, so spotting merchants was easy enough.
"A merchant caravan from the south has arrived."
The bustling atmosphere suggested that a trading guild had come to Almers.
He didn't particularly enjoy the noise, but perhaps this situation was better.
If a caravan had entered...
"They'll provide a solid base for the gangsters to operate from."
But since the sun was already setting, finding an inn for lodging came first.
Arteon dismounted from his horse and looked around.
There were quite a few inns, but Arteon moved to the outskirts.
And when he found one...
"This place too."
He walked toward an inn tucked away in the memory of the past.
Clang!
With a small bell ringing, the old man sitting behind the counter turned his gaze.
The first floor was a small restaurant, and the second floor was a simple lodging with rooms.
Arteon approached and said,
"I need to entrust my horse."
"Tie it up outside, and we'll put it in the stables. Rather... you look like you might be in trouble. That cloak isn't the usual one for soldiers, is it?"
Following the old man's words, Arteon nodded.
"Yes, I'm on short-term leave."
"Hohoho, Almers doesn't have much alcohol or women. But it looks difficult to enjoy those yet... No, if you're from the First Legion, even if you're a man, that might be fine."
"Your eyes are sharp."
"That armor... It's supplied only to the First Legion. Light and warm."
"You seem to know a lot about the military."
"Hoho, what else would it be? If you're going to do business in the north, you need to see people properly."
A slight smile tugged at the corner of Arteon's mouth.
He had come to a place where he could dig up old memories.
"It looks like I've found the right one."
He needed people right now.
Arteon took a small pouch from his pocket and placed it on the table.
Clink.
When the money pouch was set down, the old man's eyebrows twitched.
No, the old man soon said calmly.
"For just lodging, five silvers. For meals, six silvers. That pouch seems to contain too much money."
"I have a favor to ask. I've been here for a long time..."
"Hoho, are you looking for information? Or a person you're looking for?"
"Just one small clue."
Following those words, Arteon's continued.
"...An order from the military?"
"It's a personal matter."
"Hmm..."
The old man looked unconvinced, frowned, and opened the pouch Arteon had placed on the table.
Inside were quite a few silver coins.
"Refusing this much money is quite difficult."
"Will you investigate?"
"Just one clue. Nothing more."
"That should be enough."
"Rest for now. I'll tell you tomorrow morning."
"Thank you."
"Pay the lodging fee separately. If this includes lodging, it's troublesome."
Arteon had to pay an extra six silvers to enter the second-floor room.
The next morning, when Arteon came out to eat breakfast in the restaurant, the old man personally brought the food.
Whoosh.
And a folded note beneath the plate.
Arteon quietly placed it in his pocket and...
"...Ha?"
Arteon, who had been reading the note the old man gave him, showed a surprised expression.
It was because the old man's information-gathering ability was far beyond what he had thought.
Giving that much information in just one night...
"It's difficult unless he had already stepped onto this side from the beginning."
But he soon focused on the note's content.
The note contained a slightly different content from what Arteon had initially thought.
"No way... this is the current state of the conflict."
He had assumed Lisiven held the reins, but...
"I may need to slightly alter my strategy."
No, perhaps things could resolve more easily depending on the situation.
Of course, the danger level would rise a bit.
"Still, I have to."
Because it's something that must be done.
Arteon went to a nearby clothing shop and changed into plain clothes.
With a robe added to hide his weapons, he looked like any ordinary traveler.
"Then... shall I move?"
Arteon's reason for coming to Almers.
It was to gather the enemy's information in preparation for the battle that would come ahead.
"I killed Moldrek, but I need to thoroughly investigate who is behind him."
Because I can't move when I don't even know who the target I must revenge is.
It would surely lead to a very deep place. And in the process...
"There will be a tremendous number of things needed."
After regaining his life and returning.
He had thought about killing Moldrek and seeking revenge in the pursuit unit.
He needed to build up his strength, but he had to accurately find those who must have their blades turned back.
To do that...
"Too many things are needed."
He had to enter the empire's center to obtain information and have a tremendous amount of money to support him.
He had one hundred gold in his possession, but compared to what he needed, it was only the level of a mosquito's tears.
There were truly many things to do.
"But now... this comes first."
He had come to Almers to start with the things he could do first.
If well done, he might handle two things at once.
Whoosh.
It was daytime with the sun high, but when he entered the back alleys of Almers, a thick darkness descended.
A feeling that was both unfamiliar and familiar.
Very long ago.
A fragment of memory from before he was dragged into the military suddenly resurfaced.
The alley where people were facing each other on a path of only a few meters was showing another side of Almers.
Thud, thud.
Not long after Arteon entered the alley, the people sitting here and there in the alley glanced at him.
His outfit looked like an ordinary traveler.
Moreover, although not clearly visible, the face inside the hood carried a somewhat very young feeling.
"Hey, are you here to play?"
"Hahaha, you've got guts."
Not long after going further into the alley, Arteon saw the guys blocking his path.
Two men with decent builds were smiling vilely, thinking of the money they could steal from Arteon.
But...
"There's nothing for you here, so just step aside. Don't make your already difficult lives even harder."
Arteon warned in a low voice.
He knew the characteristics of the guys living in these back alleys, but out of caution.
But as expected.
They soon laughed sinisterly and said to Arteon.
"First beat him thoroughly, then rob him."
"Think you're unlucky!"
The two guys simultaneously rushed toward Arteon.
Because they had done this many times, their breathing was decent.
It was just that the opponent wasn't good.
Whoosh!
The fist of the guy with the black hood on the right split the air.
It was clearly aimed at Arteon's face...
"Eh?!"
When the Arteon in front of him suddenly disappeared, the guy couldn't hide his startled expression.
But...
Boom!
"Gulp!"
The fist of Arteon, who had bent his waist down, struck the guy's abdomen as it was.
It looked as if the abdomen had been pierced, but Arteon's fist went deep.
"Ugh!"
The guy whose waist was twisted like the Korean character 'geuk' spewed and collapsed forward.
The guy kneeling on the floor, trembling uncontrollably and unable to scream...
"This bastard!"
The guy next to him who had also aimed at Arteon had a similar result.
Crash!
With a sound like breaking stones, the guy whose neck was twisted fell like a puppet with cut strings.
Fortunately, he was not dead and was foaming at the mouth and trembling.
Arteon approached the guy who had been vomiting and said,
"Hey, there's a person I need to find."
"A, a person to find...?"
The guy seemed to have come to his senses somewhat and looked up at Arteon with a tightly scared face.
Following that, Arteon said to the guy,
"Shadow..."
But at that moment.
"There! He went that way!"
"Get him!"
Suddenly, a voice came from the opposite side of the alley. Arteon's gaze turned toward it.
And with that, a figure flashed past beyond Arteon's gaze.
It was too fast for him to clearly see.
A smirk rose on Arteon's lips.
"I found him."
It seemed the situation was going better than expected.
* * *
"Hahaha, you fools."
Milo shook the pouch in his hand and burst into laughter.
The guys who had chased him were Almers' guards, but catching him in this alley was not easy.
Of course, the traps set up at intervals, and places to hide his body as well.
After confirming that he had completely outmaneuvered the guards, Milo opened the pouch.
"Ooooo!"
As expected, aiming for that bald head was the right answer.
The clothes he was wearing looked appropriate, but above all, the jewelry he wore was very expensive.
"I can't stop the thrill."
With this money... he could live comfortably for at least two months.
But then.
"Shadow Fang."
"...?!"
Suddenly, a voice from behind made Milo instinctively draw his dagger.
"Who is it?"
The outfit looked like an ordinary traveler.
But from his mouth came Shadow Fang.
The name of the thief guild Milo belonged to.
A guy daring to mention the name of Shadow Fang in this back alley.
Milo's gaze sharpened.
Although young, Milo was skilled enough to be a formal member of Shadow Fang.
Just one traveler like this...
But before Milo could move, something covered him and gripped his throat tightly.
"Gulp!"
It was clearly more than ten meters away...
"Dying... dying."
The world before his eyes darkened. But at that time, the guy wearing the robe said,
"Where is Lisiven?"
"...What?"
Milo's pupils shook violently.
How did this guy know the name of the deputy guild master...
"Could it be...?!"
Milo bit his lip tightly.
Recently, the atmosphere between the guild master and deputy guild master, Lisiven, had been strangely flowing.
Because the directions they were pursuing did not match.
There was a rumor that the guild master was trying to kill Lisiven, the deputy...
"Ah, an assassin...?"
Milo bit his lip tightly.
"Dying... dying..."
"...?"
Look at this guy.
The young guy seemed to have quite a bit of backbone.
"Guys in regular thief guilds are too busy saving their own lives."
It was a rare guy with decent camaraderie.
Arteon chuckled. Following that, Milo crumpled his face and said,
"What, what's so funny? I won't say a word from my mouth... Don't waste time and just kill me..."
His face flushed red as if he had made a desperate resolve, and tears welled up in his eyes.
He could be certain of this.
"This guy is definitely on Lisiven's side."
Following his appearance, Arteon loosened the hand gripping the guy's neck.
Thud.
Soon, Arteon extended a single sheet of paper toward the guy who had sat on the floor.
"Deliver this to Lisiven."
"...What?"
"It's better to hurry. Otherwise, something dangerous might happen."
With those words, Arteon immediately turned his body and left.
Following the disappearance of Arteon...
"What the hell is this."
Milo simply stared into the air with the expression of someone who had seen a ghost.