Wolves of Hader

Chapter 144

I stepped out of the tent to get some fresh air.

I had things I needed to say as well.

Donnie, who had been standing in front of the mansion, approached me.

"The intelligence squad truly worked hard."

"That's right. Everyone did well. Leave the retrieval of the bodies to the special forces, and come down, have a meal, and get some proper rest."

"Yes, but they're saying that Landan's son isn't among them."

"The disciple?"

"He's dead. It was a total of 29."

I was startled.

I had thought that, at most, there would be around 20.

"Did all of them come?"

"That's likely. So far, 45 have died. That's quite a lot as it is. Because of the nature of the organization, it's hard for them to go over 50 people purely due to security."

Donnie was right.

Intelligence squads favor being small and elite. The more people there are, the more likely the tail gets caught. Assassins also need natural talent to be properly raised.

"Draw Landan's disciple's face in detail and send it to the new members of the intelligence squad. If he wasn't always wearing a disguise, there might be a witness. Figure out who he was with."

"Understood."

There's a chance Landan the viscount's son is in Mouk. If the assassination squad was exactly 50 strong, then the remaining 5 are likely guarding that son.

If the assassins succeeded in their mission, they'd only return to Mouk by tomorrow morning. If they don't return, they'll be considered to have failed, and their people will flee Mouk immediately.

Ross and Russell also came out.

"You succeeded."

"Luckily, we passed by without anyone finding out."

"I heard it was 29. Though I didn't train them myself, I'm truly proud of the intelligence squad."

I had confidence that I could save the guests, but Ross and Russell had been quite worried. After all, if we'd delayed even a little, many people could've died.

But the intelligence squad did exceptionally well. Eight of them took down twenty-nine. The camouflaged robes helped a lot, but those only work when worn by the skilled.

I suspected how much they'd struggled last night, so I planned to give them a generous reward. Money can't truly compensate for their effort and their lives, but I'd do what I could.

"I'll be going by Mouk for a bit."

"All right, be careful."

"Commander Russell. Please look after elder brother Ross."

"Of course."

From now on, the knights and special forces would be guarding more thoroughly in close proximity. Even if there were assassins among our guests, they'd almost certainly already left.

Why? Because rather than kill Ross or myself, their first priority would be to hurry back to Mouk and save the 'young lord'. It's nearly impossible for an outsider to intercept a returning homing pigeon from Mouk.

/ / /

Two mornings later.

Looking disheveled, I headed to the inn restaurant. I was disguised, as was the squad leader who came with me.

We sat at a window-side table.

Soon, I let out a big yawn.

"Yaaawn~ Are you going to gamble at the exchange again today?"

"Gambling? It's clearly an investment."

"What kind of investment is that? You buy in the morning, sell in the afternoon, and pocket the difference. So, how much are you planning to lose today?"

"Just wait and see, brat. Your old man will make plenty for your wedding fund."

I grumbled like a foolish kid and took a sip of water.

In this high-class inn restaurant, the only guests were us—fake rich folk—and three men in their 30s.

Two nights ago, as soon as we arrived late in Mouk, I took a report from the new intelligence squad. They'd searched for witnesses using the sketch of Landan's disciple's face, but ultimately found none.

All of the assassins had entered Mouk in disguise. So, all eight new intelligence squad members were sent to search the exchange, inns, and harbor directly.

That's when, from the passenger ship manifest, they found suspicious individuals. Among the passengers scheduled to depart for Tris yesterday morning, a full thirty-five people didn't board.

Of those, only three got their reservation deposits back. The remaining thirty-two gave no word. In other words, all thirty-two were traveling together, intending to leave together.

Twenty-nine of them died, so of course they never boarded the reserved ship. If the operation succeeded, they'd depart together, not needing to wait for another ship.

The survivors couldn't board, either. Because thirty-two people failed to show or contact anyone, the departure was delayed by a day, until this very morning.

So, we checked the new list of passengers leaving today. There were no names matching the previous list. The three out of the original thirty-two, excluding the twenty-nine, had reserved again using other identification plaques.

We nearly let them slip by.

But one of the new squad members contacted the squad leader. This was the member who had initially spotted the assassins.

The squad member reported that, among the twenty-two people scheduled to board this morning's ship, three had stayed in this inn. Of those three, one was the very person who had revealed the assassin 'step'.

Because of that one careless man, their operation was ruined. And it was obvious who he was—a noble's son, raised with nothing in the world to fear.

Warm soup, bread, and tea were served.

"What's this? The same breakfast again?"

"The soup is different, what's the issue?"

"Still, it tastes good."

After speaking, I turned away and sat with my back to the room.

The man eating soup stared fixedly at me. Even the two with their backs to me turned around to look.

"Hey. You put on way too much cologne. Do you really think you can hide the stench of blood lingering on you with that?"

The three men in their 30s just stared at me.

Then—

"Kuhlk!"

Thud— flop.

Clatter—

The one sitting alone slammed his face into his plate. The other two stood up hacking up blood, collapsing as they tried to rise. One died instantly, while two convulsed and soon perished.

The squad leader immediately got up and tore at the face of the one who'd collapsed. He had been using a flesh mask—masking himself with the peeled face from a corpse.

It was Landan the viscount's son.

His real face had turned pitch black in death. So too the two assassins who guarded him.

They had never actually set foot in Mouk.

They had come with fake identification, using different faces, so the viscount's family was never officially in this place.

Soon, all eight new intelligence squad members rushed over.

The squad leader gave an order.

"Move the bodies discreetly and incinerate them."

"Yes, sir."

The squad members carried away the three corpses.

The squad leader sat down again.

"They died to their own poison."

Nodding, I continued eating.

We had used the assassins' own poison. I wanted to make sure they had to taste what they'd done so many times.

It was all over.

Now, I expected a peaceful stretch for a while.

For the Grand Duke, things would be quiet for the next six years.

Six years isn't a long time to devour the Empire. We destroyed nearly half the power their house had raised for twenty years. We cannot afford to look away, not for a moment.

Would we just idle about in those six years?

We would become strong enough for our house alone to stand against the Empire's army. Money wouldn't be enough to defeat us, either.

But if we were to find the Emperor's bloodline—

Those six years could shrink.

At the very least, time was on our side.

/ / /

About a month had passed.

During that time, I spent half a month in Mouk, and the other half in the mansion.

I had personally checked all the matters that required my hand. Afterward, I handed business over to Johnny. The guy had shockingly mastered the operations.

The priests went to the new territory, and Roman the priest said he wanted to look for his teacher's acquaintance, so he traveled to Tris. He seemed adamant, so I couldn't stop him.

Therefore, I simply told him not to reveal himself as a priest. With his hair grown out now, he didn't look like the same slave from the arena anymore. He'd gained weight, too.

Ross and Jena were enjoying a sweet newlywed life, and even the Berserkers were resting for the first time in a while. The officers spent their time training in the house's sword technique.

"Time for your meal, young lord."

"All right."

Lana's family, who'd served as retainers for Viscount Drian and now worked as my household's butlers, was living a happy life. Johnny seemed happier for it, too.

I entered the second-floor dining hall.

Lana's family and Johnny were there waiting for me.

"Why don't you start eating first?"

"There's proper etiquette that must be upheld. It would be a problem if the children picked up bad habits."

"Johnny and Lana aren't that sort, though. Let's eat. Elin's group is eating too, right?"

"Yes. When food is prepared, they get it for themselves and eat. It seems we still make them uncomfortable."

"We'll get closer, slowly."

We ate together.

Mrs. Rune's cooking was exceptional. I found myself looking forward to every mealtime.

"Haven't seen Allen around lately?"

"He's outside the ramparts."

"What's he doing there?"

"It sounds like he heard the Berserkers ride wolves. He's determined to try it himself."

"What?"

I almost burst out laughing.

Riding wolves, he says.

He'd be lucky not to get mauled to death.

"Tell him to come in at once. We're leaving soon."

"Yes."

"How about the officers?"

"They're asking to know the exact date you're going to Beltern, young lord. They seem pressed for time since they have less than two months of leave left."

Originally, I was planning to go to Beltern with them, but since I'd already taken down a Guardian, there was no longer any reason to go with the officers. This wasn't a trip for fun or adventure.

"Give them a false date. I'll only be taking the squad members, Allen, and the Tuji brothers. Once they find out I've already left, they'll just return to the Goon."

"Understood."

In three days, we leave for Beltern.

There, I'll meet Eilin to discuss the trade situation, then go to the ancestral village to obtain the 'Eternal Flame'. After that, I'll head to the southernmost part of Beltern.

Originally, the plan was to hunt a Guardian there and then go to Yan, but I revised the schedule. First, I need to track Viscount Drian's whereabouts and look for the Emperor's bloodline.

I was also curious about why my father and two friends went there. There must be something in that place, which is probably why Viscount Drian tried to settle there, too.

"Johnny. You can manage on your own, right?"

"I am a little worried. The elders might ignore me and refuse to follow your instructions, young lord."

"Just do as I trained you. Besides me, you're the one who knows the business best."

"Yes."

I continued with a smile.

"They won't be dismissing you—rather, they'll be desperately trying to curry your favor, bringing expensive gifts just to get on your good side."

"Why would they do that?"

"You'll see soon enough."

Anyone who tried to snub my secretary Johnny would be in for a rough surprise. He's the one who gives final approval to key expenditures. People will line up to bribe him, not ignore him.

"So should I accept those gifts?"

"Use your own judgment. Figure out where each person's from and why they came. Whether to accept or refuse depends on their motives."

"I'll try my best."

Johnny will manage. He lacks experience, but he wouldn't get cocky and arrogant just from standing in for me; I wouldn't have hired him otherwise.

I returned to my room.

I took out my magic pouch and packed most of my things into it. Only clothes and emergency rations went into my backpack.

There were gold bars in the space connected to the pouch, but still, no one had ever touched them. The bars were cold, which was proof they were still inside the subspace, I suppose.

After putting everything away,

I took out all the mana crystal shards. These were the heart fragments of Asgard, brimming with great magic power.

Who could have broken such a tough material?

The mana radiated so fiercely that ordinary people couldn't even touch or approach it.

I filled nine small leather pouches with the heart fragments of Asgard, thinking carrying them would help with mana increase. The rest went into the larger pouch.

Now, it was time to set sail once more.

I wondered what we'd meet this time.

/ / /

I walked to the port with my squad members.

The third trade fleet was lined up in the sea, and the Tuji brothers looked at the ships with emotion clouding their faces.

"We're finally going home."

"How many years has it been?"

"Eleven years."

But Allen was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's Allen gone this time?"

"He said he was stopping by the bank."

"The bank?"

Speak of the devil...

"Hey! Have you all been waiting for me?"

Everyone gave a baffled laugh.

Allen arrived, lugging a big sack.

"What is all that?"

"What do you think? My money."

"You withdrew all a thousand gold coins?"

"Of course. Who knows when I'll come back here again?"

Frankly, we also intended to leave Allen behind on our return trip. We may open a bank in Robe's east branch, but I doubt he'll ever use it.

"Young lord, um..."

"What is it?"

At Donnie's words, I looked toward the pier.

A woman, smiling as she took off her straw hat.

My heart thudded with joy at the sight.

"Eilin?"

"It's been a while."

Eilin was waiting for us.

Her bright smile made my heart race, too.

"How did you get here?"

"Well... I got a letter from my father. He said it would be too dangerous for me to go alone, so..."

"Go where?"

Eilin replied awkwardly.

"To a place called Hairopro."

"Hairopro?"

What's going on here?

That old man in my dream had told me to go to Hairopro.