in a small room.
An elderly man who brought Lennok into a room where only simple artifacts and clothes were arranged, asked for a handshake.
“Call me Raul.”
“Half. I do freelance work.”
When Lennok calmly announced his name, Raoul’s eyes lighted up quietly.
“…..I’ve heard of that name before. I heard that he is a wizard who has been rapidly gaining popularity recently.”
“I was lucky.”
Raul did not give in to it even though he said something that was not in his heart.
“No, because a wizard’s skills are only proportional to his own enlightenment and skill. If it’s not fake, it’s proof that the quality is also unusual.”
Raoul seemed considerably less wary when he learned that Van was still somewhat recognizable.
Still, it must have been because I had the trust that anyone who was known to the public would not openly harm them.
Certainly, the notoriety of fame was not necessarily a bad thing.
“So you said you have something you want to say about the Falmouth Lab.”
“yes. Do you know what happened?”
“no. I couldn’t hear But seeing that you came to see us in person… that’s not necessarily good news.”
Saying that, Raoul rested his chin on his chin and slowly closed his eyes.
“I will listen.”
“…….”
Being able to maintain composure even while guessing what happened there is great mental strength.
How can you be patient like this, knowing that you could be the target of that massacre?
Lennok gave a small admiration for the fact, and spoke plainly of what he had been through.
It didn’t take long.
It was enough to tell you about the massacre at the laboratory and the outcome of the same warlock encounter there.
“That’s right…”
No matter how much I expected it, I couldn’t beat the shock of hearing it directly.
Unable to hide his confused feelings, Raoul shrugged his shoulders and slowly opened his eyes.
After being silent for a while, he suddenly opened his mouth.
“They are tied to the same warlocks, but they and we are quite different beings.”
“…”
“To the point where, to the extreme, they have nothing in common except for the fact that they use negative magic. The only thing that made it possible for us to communicate at least once in a while was the fact that we were helping each other in the business in District 44…” At this point, when the business was on the verge of extinction due to the city government’s inspection,
such a relationship is no longer has no meaning
Raul’s powerless words were implicitly referring to it.
“Anyway, thanks for letting me know. We have confirmed that they are coming out this far, so we should prepare in our own way.”
Raul, who had forced his sorrow away, looked at Lennok and asked.
“So what do you want? Please don’t say nonsense that you came to me to tell me this directly. I know very well what freelancers are like.”
“……..”
“Even if it was done with good intentions, everything needs a price. I’m old, but I understand the rules of this street.”
“Then I will not decline.”
Realizing that it was Raoul’s consideration that made it easy for him to speak out, Lennok took out the item he had brought from his arms.
An obsidian brooch you received from the black magician of Pandemonium.
The thing he said he would need if he wanted to know the truth, referring to the word world stopped.
Wouldn’t the black magicians know the origin of this object?
From the beginning, that was the only clue Lennok had in mind.
“I don’t know if you will recognize this brooch. I want to know the secret behind this object.”
“…Where is this…?”
“I got it from an unknown black magician. With words I could never let go.”
Raoul looked into it for a long time before opening his mouth with difficulty.
“It is not that there is no part of guesswork. But it’s hard to give you the right answer right now.”
“…….”
“The crest engraved on this brooch belongs to a very old wizard family. Now that the school has already gone extinct, only its legacy is handed down intermittently through sects.”
Raul didn’t bother to say it, but the wizard family was probably the ones who started with black magic.
If so, did the man in the pandemonium also have something to do with the family mentioned by Raul?
“Is there any way to save those heritages?”
“Well, I do have one of them, but…”
It must be difficult to hand it to Lennok willingly. Lennok understood.
It seemed difficult to receive such a ghost by merely telling them what had happened in the laboratory.
“If there is an item or condition you want, I would like to hear it.”
“Umm…”
Raul hesitated for a while, hesitant to say anything.
It wasn’t because he didn’t want to hand over the inheritance, but rather that he wanted something, but he didn’t seem to be able to say it easily.
Instead, he suddenly started referring to other topics.
“Actually, the practical faction sent me a call.”
“yes?”
“They said they were planning to hold an official protest centered outside the Balkans to stop the city government checks. In a rather rough way.” If you listen to the words
“…….”
in the official protest, isn’t it the same as saying that you will commit terrorism at all?
“We asked for cooperation and we refused. I thought I would have to pay the price, but I never thought that my friends at the institute would suffer first…”
Raoul closed his eyes for a moment and then opened them, looking directly at Lennok.
“I will not speak back. I hope you will use your hand to prevent them from harming civilians.”
“…Is that your condition?”
“exactly. Surely, if things go according to their intentions, the reputation of our magicians will fall to the bottom. Those of the practical faction intend to push forward even at the risk of confrontation with the city government, but our position is different.”
Black magicians from the necromancer faction could just leave the city if things didn’t go well, but from the Buyeo faction’s point of view, which mainly produces artifacts and items, it was a problem that could not be ignored.
“I don’t want to irreversibly damage the already bad reputation of black magic. We still need this city.”
“…”
Not yet…
There was a strange echo in Raul’s words, but I wouldn’t let Lennok dig into that.
However, whether or not he would accept the conditions as they were was another matter.
Now that his reputation and ransom have risen significantly, the price and amount Lenok can earn while doing freelance work will be incomparable to before.
Would it be helpful to confront the battle-type black magicians in order to inherit the legacy Raul is talking about?
It is difficult to blindly accept the deal because of Raoul’s favor.
At least, there had to be conditions and restrictions that were reasonable for the price.
‘The most certain thing is the way I did it with Dyke.’
Lennok, who was worried, opened his mouth slowly.
“Let’s set an upper limit.”
“The upper limit?”
“Exactly to what level do you have to listen to that condition? It’s hard to waste a lot of time when you don’t know how much the legacy is worth.”
Extremely speaking, it doesn’t matter if Lennok isn’t one of them.
It wasn’t impossible to go to a practical faction and ask about the origin of the brooch, as long as it was tied to the same category of black magic.
Of course, we have to get rid of the sediment that killed one of the warlocks in the lab… but shouldn’t we endure that much trouble?
“…twice. Under the premise that the other side really starts to move, until the two terror attacks are prevented or alternatives that are mutually acceptable are provided.”
It was a proposal thrown for further negotiations, but after hearing Lennok’s words, Raul nodded as if there was no need to worry.
“Let’s do that.”
Did he even read the truth from Lennok’s attitude that he had nothing to regret?
It was a smart choice.
“Then, a specific schedule…”
“Now, Elder..!!”
Just as we were about to discuss the deal further, a young man burst through the door and found Raoul.
“….. Isaac. Aren’t you talking to a customer right now?”
“This is not the time! Now those crazy bastards are on the streets…!!”
“…!!”
Did he even feel something in those words?
Raoul picked up the remote control that was lying on the table as if possessed and immediately turned on the TV in the corner of the room.
The scene of the city turned into a mayhem came into the eyes of the three people.
burning streets. People who run away like crazy. Holes here and there, collapsed buildings, and craters in the streets.
Beyond the thick smoke, people who seemed to be well over a dozen walked out all at once.
Those who wore black robes that covered their entire bodies and covered their faces with hoods pressed down.
Only one tall, tall, middle-aged man stood in the middle of the crowd.
Sharp eyes and a bushy gray beard.
Impressive with the shape of the roots of a tree carved under his eyes, he looked around with a firm expression and slowly approached the camera as if he had promised.
Lennok noticed right away.
“It’s directing.”
How could such a relay camera be placed at the site of an accidental terror attack?
From the beginning, he had made up his mind and made a plan with the intention of making this known everywhere.
“But the person who died over there isn’t the director.”
Raoul muttered in a heavy voice.
“………”
Perhaps because he represents the enchantment-style faction, he is too human for a black magician Lenok knew.
It is unknown whether this will help in the future, but… Lennok did not like it right away.
Meanwhile, the man crouched down in front of the camera and brought his face closer.
[Reisen and we made a promise.]
A heavy, thick voice came out.
His tone is heavy enough to draw attention even on a crowded street.
[As long as we try to blend into this city, we will not interfere with each other.]
As he said that, he reached out and grabbed the man who had fallen nearby.
The man muttered as he grabbed the young man’s head, which was being carried weakly over his thick forearm, clearly visible even through his collar.
[But you guys broke your promise. If so, there would be no reason for us to respect the order of this place any more.]
Uuuuuuu!!
The sticky black magic seeped in and at the same time flowed into the young man’s nose and mouth.
It was not difficult to guess what would happen next.
“Oh…”
Raoul turned his head with a weak sigh.
[And this……]
Wow!!
The fainting young man’s head swelled up like a balloon and then exploded.
[That’s our answer.]
The man slowly closed his eyes while being hit without avoiding the blood and brain that flowed from inside.
A cruel yet disgusting execution. However, what made that moment not look ugly was the strength of being a man.
There was a dead silence in the room.
And probably others who are watching this moment from other places too.
[I don’t think you can take away everything in the Balkans.]
The calm man’s voice echoed one after another.
[But it might break something you hold dear.]
[Reisen.]
The man, who began to look like he was weeping blood, said as he brought his face closer to the camera.
[Wait.]
Kwajik!!
Evelyn Marcia
A midday bar.
Off-peak hours when there are not many customers.
According to Jenny’s taste, the bar has a strong aroma of coffee.
Lennok hadn’t bothered to tell her, but he liked this idle time in its own way.
“Whoa…”
Jenny sighed in satisfaction as she briefly touched her carefully brewed Americano.
Feeling the gaze of the two men staring at her, Jenny spoke slowly.
“There will be no official response from the city government.”
Dylan replied bluntly.
“No surprise.”
According to Dylan, has there ever been a time when the city government has actively responded to the incidents that have occurred so far?
The city government never reacts according to the intentions of others, unless it happened by their own will, as in this inspection.
Lennok was able to calmly tilt his mug because he now had a rough idea of what the Balkan city government was up to.
“And to be honest, it’s not like it doesn’t work.”
A mega city where all sorts of crimes happen every day.
Although the inner district is relatively less, it would not be enough to call the outer district, where Lennok works as a freelancer, a hotbed of conflict.
What should the city government do to stabilize the citizens in such a place?
Comforting people with mouth-watering words, giving out relief goods, and strengthening security by releasing police forces… There are many ways, but the city government has chosen one.
In any situation, to refrain from actively speaking and responding, and to hide the agitation shown on the outside.
Citizens who have already given up on security and stability to some extent are relieved and suppress their agitation just by the fact that the city is not shaken.
It is safe to say that the government is just letting go, but in fact, it is stabilizing public sentiment with the lowest cost of consumption.
Moreover, the area where the black magicians carried out the terror this time was Area 43.
Although it is attached to the neighborhood of District 40, where the clubs are located, it is not common for ordinary citizens to go there.
An outer area that was almost abandoned in the city government’s urban development plan.
Since the incident took place in such a place, it was natural that it did not touch the skin well apart from the anxiety felt by the citizens.
“Do they have the will to solve this problem? I don’t know.”
Dylan asked, leaning his upper body against the bar with his chin resting.
After Operation Power Plant, Dylan increased his visits to Jenny’s bar more often.
In the meantime, he didn’t stop flirting with Lennok, so he was slapped by Jenny more than once or twice, but he didn’t seem to care.
Rather, is it a way to reassure the other person by doing something that is openly visible?
If it was intentional, it could be said that it was quite deep… Lennok didn’t believe in the slightest that a man who was honest with this desire would make such a plan.
However, Jenny’s answer was quite different from before.
“Perhaps you will try to solve it unconditionally?”
“what?”
“You saw that warlock calling Reisen. Then it’s obvious.”
“Reisen…isn’t he a senator on the city council? I think I’ve heard of it.”
As Dylan said, the name Reisen is quite famous in the Balkans.
This is because among the members of the city government, he is a person who often shows his face in the media and makes efforts to communicate with citizens.
Unlike the members of the House of Representatives, who appear relatively often, the senators rarely even show their faces once a year, so there was a feeling that they stood out even more.
The nobles who were born holding the edge of this huge city power.
Amidst the bizarre rumors that he does not consider citizens the same person, he is a person who constantly communicates with each other, so he is bound to stand out.
Even Lennok remembered hearing the name often while going to and from news sites.
Instead of answering that question right away, Jenny looked around.
Lennok recognized the gesture and immediately put soundproof magic around him.
Still not feeling relieved, she slightly lowered her head and whispered to the two of them in a low voice.
“It’s highly likely that the warlocks know where Reisen’s money is hiding.”
“Give me money?”
“Every member of the city council has a hole where the money can come in, so they probably targeted that one and did this.”
“Stealing money from a senator…”
Dillon muttered seriously, grinning.
“It’s an attractive proposal just by imagining it.”
“……..”
“Even if your stupid delusion is like that, the problem is how the city government comes out.”
“Hasn’t it already been declared that there will be no official response?”
If Jenny had made such an affirmation, it would have been normal if the official document had been passed around.
“yes. But unofficially, it’s completely different. I wanted to tell you that beforehand.”
“Um…”
In the end, it’s a wait and see, doesn’t it mean that there will be intervention in this matter in some way, even to protect the senator’s money?
The Dominion’s visit and the Ascendant’s death. The city government’s inspection and the terror of the black magicians that followed.
Events that lead to a clear cause and effect to think it’s just a coincidence.
….Maybe the mainstream of this world has already started a long time ago?
While the troubled Lennok was silent, someone sitting next to him suddenly opened his mouth.
“The young lady has considerable knowledge. It’s as you say.”
A clear voice that pierces your ears even without raising your voice.
However, the concentration of magic power mixed in between them is by no means ordinary.
Realizing that something was wrong, Lennok turned his head and opened his mouth slightly.
black short hair. dark green eyes.
A black blazer slung over his shoulder and a shirt with slacks on, as if he were going to a business partner.
A young woman with a calm yet expressionless beauty was shaking the glass in her hand lightly.
It’s only a handful of times that we’ve met face to face properly, but there’s no way we’ll ever forget that impressive figure.
City government agent. Eveline Marcia.
There was a guy with a unique sense who could have a face-to-face conversation with the Croken Asilus and ran a vegetable shop as a hobby.
It was only then that Dylan, who properly recognized Ibelin’s appearance, jumped up from his seat in fright.
“Agent…!!! Since when are you here!!”
“………”
Jenny quickly cleared her surprised expression and glared at her, as if she didn’t know Evelyn’s face.
At the moment of commotion, all eyes were focused on this side in an instant, and all the guests who recognized her flinched in fright.
“Mr. fuck… what is that?”
“It’s the tongue hyeongung… the hyeongung is here.”
“Since when have you been here?”
“Did Jenny make deals with the agents too?”
In that brief moment, Lennok picked up the sounds around him without missing them.
Hyeongung… That would most likely be a reference to her fighting style or symbolic abilities.
Considering the power she showed at that time, it wasn’t strange at all to have a plausible nickname attached.
But Lennok was more interested in her ghostly stealth ability, which she hadn’t noticed until just now, than her other name.
‘I knew someone was sitting next to me. And yet, to be completely unaware of the fact that it was Evelyn…’
It wasn’t that Evelyn completely fooled Lennok’s sense of magic and sat next to him unwittingly.
Lennok was obviously aware of a customer entering the bar sitting next to him and ordering a drink.
However, it was undoubtedly her own skill that did not notice that the customer was Evelyn Marcia.
In addition, it was tantamount to saying that she was a superhuman who could perfectly fake her own magical patterns.
The atmosphere in the bar instantly turned chilly at the appearance of a powerful superhuman beyond imagination.
Everyone was unaware that the woman sitting at the bar, leisurely shaking her glass, was a monster incomparable to anyone in the room.
Even in that chaotic atmosphere, Jenny, who regained her composure in an instant, slowly opened her mouth.
“I never thought I’d see a celebrity like this at my bar.”
“okay? I’m surprised We know brokers like you well.”
“………”
“Moderately competent, moderately quick-witted, moderately popular, and moderately ruthless. It’s a very suitable attitude to survive on this floor for a long time. Looks like you learned a useful lesson from Kaise.”
“I don’t know what you’re trying to provoke me with.”
Jenny, who didn’t even flinch when she heard the name, smiled.
“I want you to tell me why you were overhearing our conversation like a rat. Could it be that Agent-nim didn’t come here to enjoy a trivial fight?”
“…….”
I couldn’t hear anything, but for some reason it seemed like sparks were flying everywhere.
It is not enough to say that the power gap between the two was overwhelming, but Jenny was responding to Evelyn’s words as if she were ready to die at any moment.
To the point where Dylan trembled and tore off Jenny’s shoulders.
“Here, Jenny. You didn’t put some strange medicine in today’s shaker, did you?”
“Don’t be afraid, Dylan.”
Jenny said in a firm voice.
“Why is the city’s agent here? At least, they don’t want to directly intervene in this case, so they’re looking for a useful freelancer.”
“………”
“And there’s no way a person like that could vent his anger just because of an argument like this. On the contrary, it doesn’t matter if you break it to your heart’s content right now.”
“You know very well what civil servants do.”
Evelyn replied with a wry smile.
If those who knew her had seen this, they might have been surprised to see a rare expression.
But she was really the only one who came to this place now.
Lennok checked once again the sound barrier he had unconsciously placed around him.
Clearly, Evelyn was not within the range of the barrier, but she was naturally conversing with Jenny as if it didn’t matter.
In the end, Lennok sighed, widened the range of his noise magic a little more, drew Evelyn in, and asked.
“Is what Jenny said true?”
“Sorry, but that’s correct. Do you have a very sharp sense?”
“If you know the problem, why don’t you take care of the agent line?”
“Because the higher up doesn’t want that.”
Evelyn replied in a flat tone, but Lennok knew from the look on her face that he couldn’t expect any further response.
You can tell just by looking at him with a faint smile and a terribly inorganic gaze.
She was not here as a woman with a unique hobby of running a vegetable shop as a hobby, but as a public servant.
“Come to think of it, isn’t that the first time I’ve seen you at the factory?”
“…….”
“Honestly, I was a bit surprised. I didn’t expect to see the faces of the two kids who were close to dying by the old man again like this.”
flat tone. However, the meaning of the words contained sharply stabbed Lennok’s lungs.
“Especially you. Did you say half? It seems that the ransom has increased rapidly recently. A monster who almost took down a gang all by himself. Certainly, it was impressive to see him enduring without being killed by the old man.”
That’s why I’m remembering you, and Ibelin’s gaze became more blatant.
“But you two. Don’t you think you owe me something?”
momentary silence.
Dylan scratched his sparsely-grown chin with a quizzical expression.
“I can’t… say no.”
“Dylan.”
Jenny called him by name in annoyance, but Lennok understood a little.
She doesn’t know what kind of monster the Croken Asilus is.
No, to be precise, I don’t know how terrifying the death he presents is.
If Evelyn hadn’t intervened at that moment, the two would have truly died on the spot.
That’s why the two couldn’t easily turn a blind eye to Evelyn’s words.
It’s not because of unreasonable loyalty.
It’s because she knows that if she doesn’t return the favor she received in time, she will have to pay more than that.
You have to pay back what you received. whether it be favor or resentment.
If you reject Evelyn’s offer here, you may have to pay her a bigger price someday.
Whether it was Lennok or Dylan, they knew it all too well without having to say it.
Isn’t it a situation where even Lennok is stepping into this case even though he is not
?
At Evelyn’s words, Lennok calmly calculated the profit and loss and realized that the offer she gave him was no loss at all.
‘I have no reason to refuse. It would be better if I could pay off the life debt I owed to Evelyn right here.’
Of course, there was no reason to tell her that, so Lennok put on a look of helplessness.
After looking at Lennox’s expression, Jenny realized that the two were thinking the same thing, and let out a deep sigh.
“Ban… you’ve already become a person on this side.”
Jenny shook her head as if she had lost, took a step back and picked up the shaker.
Recognizing the meaning of the gesture, Evelyn’s lips spread a faint smile again.
“Then, I’ll make a formal request to the wizard class and Dylan O’Casey here.”
“I take it off.”
Dylan raised his hand.
Evelyn turned to him with a displeased expression on her face. He shrugged and said,
“You know our office, right? For the time being, it will be difficult to go outside for activities.”
Hearing that, she let out a small exclamation as if she had finally realized it.
“Ah, you… that’s right. good. I need to talk to Antares separately.”
“………”
Lennok looked at Dylan, who was slipping right in front of his nose, with unkind eyes, but he shook his head with a helpless expression without avoiding his gaze.
Apparently, there are circumstances that cannot be said at this point.
The purpose is to clear the debt owed to Ibelin, so Dylan’s existence itself doesn’t matter much, but… Lennok let out a small sigh and said.
“Tell me the specific purpose and cost.”
“I don’t want a complete solution to this case from just one freelancer. According to the rumors I hear, it seems that I have that ability, but… I can’t handle things like that and report to the upper level.”
The wine glass in Evelyn’s hand rotates slowly.
Looking down at it quietly, she drank the rest of her drink at once and stood up.
“I will deliver the details through the princess of Kaise there.”
“…”
“Then see you later.”
As she first appeared, she walked out of the bar with a very leisurely pace.
Lennok pursued her with magic detection until the end, but as soon as he left the bar, he realized that he had missed her presence and smiled.
It was because he recognized the fact that even with his magical power perception, which had recently dramatically increased, he still couldn’t follow her movements.
I thought I had come a long way, but there was still a long way to go.
“jenny.”
“Haa…. Let me gather the relevant information.”
It wasn’t my intention, but since I received the request, what the broker had to do was fixed.
After contacting the agent, gathering information, informing them of the work to be done and the pay, they begin the operation.
The beginning was for Lennok’s personal purpose, but ironically, after moving around, it was here that he eventually returned.
“If you can, I would like you to gather information about her as well.”
“You mean Hyeongung?”
“okay. From my previous career fighting style to my personality… anything is fine.”
Any information that would be of any help in dealing with her.
He swallowed the last words and turned his head.
Lennok had no intention of idling away while working with such a monster.
Since he had no idea what kind of person Evelyn Marcia was as an agent, Lennok had to be prepared for the unexpected.
As soon as I finished thinking, I immediately got up from my seat.
“Are you going?”
“I won’t give you a long time to prepare.”
Lennok replied as he packed up his coat that had been hung on the side of the bar.
“It’s better to hurry from now on.”
