Chapter 2
The island of Heukrin was only accessible through a water gate.
Once inside, it was much better fortified than it appeared from the outside.
Large ballistae lined up by the hundreds along the ramparts, and trebuchets were installed on each tower.
If an enemy fleet invaded, thousands of flaming projectiles would be fired from there.
‘The location selection is killer. No wonder only we who settled in the city center got hit.’
Past the ramparts, small fields connected to waterways were established here and there.
These were farms built to enable self-sufficiency for a certain number of people.
The place was run by the labor of children from the agent training center.
‘Ugh! So sick of it.’
Suddenly, memories of being deployed to crop cultivation after every training session came flooding back.
Even as a direct descendant of the family head, one couldn’t skip the ten years of hellish training and external missions.
However, there were some benefits, one of which was being able to report directly to the family head.
Passing by the somewhat ominous-looking dark stone buildings, I headed straight up to the family head’s office.
Then I handed the mission order to the agent standing guard at the entrance.
“Return report.”
“Please wait a moment.”
The agent checked the mission order, then knocked on the office door to announce my arrival.
Soon, a blunt voice flowed from inside.
“Tell him to come in.”
CLACK. CREAK!
I opened the door, entered, moved to the center of the office, and gave a casual bow.
Still, she was an elder of the family, so I had to show some courtesy to avoid problems.
“Enough. Stand up.”
When I raised my head to look at the woman, a sharp feeling seemed to sweep across my heart.
Snow-white hair like snowflakes, slightly upturned eyes, tightly pressed lips.
The epitome of a strong woman called the Iron-Blooded Empress, Acting Family Head Kairam.
She was my stepmother.
She flipped through the approval documents, then flashed her red eyes and asked a question.
“You completed thirty Level 2 assassinations.”
“Yes.”
“It was an unreasonable schedule, but you handled it well.”
“Well, it wasn’t particularly difficult.”
Despite clearly being words of praise, Kairam’s tone was like arctic wind blowing.
However, whether the other party’s reaction was cold or not, my response was extremely calm.
It was as if I had just come out for a stroll.
Kairam also knew that I normally acted like this, so she didn’t particularly take issue with it.
Lantzvalger had very strict discipline, but valued skill more than that.
Moreover, this was a private meeting, so there were no observers.
“You completed all Level 2 missions as assassinations, but you are given a choice.”
“I know.”
“I’ll give you three days’ leave, so make your decision. Once your path is decided, I’ll give you Level 1 Training Hall access privileges.”
“Is there anything to delay? Let’s go with assassination.”
When I answered with a calm expression, a gleam appeared in her eyes.
Since the assassination group aimed to train specialists, they didn’t recognize previous experience at all.
If a Level 1 or higher agent changed paths midway, they had to start from the bottom again.
“Is that so? If that’s your decision.”
Acting Family Head Kairam’s response was concise.
It felt like she was only granting this private audience because I was the family head’s offspring and she had no choice.
Since we didn’t share a drop of blood, this was a natural reaction.
I was someone who might become a competitor to her own children in the future, so it was fortunate that she wasn’t openly rejecting me.
In that regard, she was surprisingly fair and just.
“Here’s the Level 1 Training Hall access pass.”
THUD. THUNK.
Kairam took out a thumb-sized red object from the drawer and placed it on the office desk.
I immediately picked up the red pass.
This metal pass was not only for Training Hall access privileges but also to prove one’s identity as a Level 1 agent.
Now I would receive quite good treatment wherever I went to any branch in any region.
“Your mission will resume at the Empire’s Eastern Branch. The grace period is three months, so make sure you can go without being late.”
“The Empire? That sounds interesting.”
She began looking into a thick bundle of documents as if all business was finished.
She was about to devote herself to her duties as acting family head.
I shrugged my shoulders, opened the office door, and came out.
Now it was time to move to the Training Hall.
However, in the corridor in front of the office, I encountered an unexpected person.
“Level 1 at eighteen years old? That’s a bit fast, isn’t it?”
Slightly upturned eyes and lips, reddish pupils.
A young woman with an overall appearance similar to Acting Family Head Kairam, except her hair was light brown.
The woman’s identity was my half-sister Isabel.
There were three daughters between the family head and Kairam, and Isabel was the third among them.
Since the age difference wasn’t that great, we often encountered each other on missions.
She had also recently become a Level 1 assassin.
“The Alexei assassination mission where we worked together was the last time?”
“How can you remember this older sister in connection with missions? That’s really too much.”
“Is there anything else worth remembering? Our relationship and memories… fighting tooth and nail during the ten years of training?”
“What are you saying? Erase those kinds of memories.”
“Sorry, but unlike you, I have a good memory.”
When I answered carelessly and tried to pass by, Isabel blocked my path and brought her face close.
“No matter how hard you try, you won’t be able to beat your eldest sister, right? She’s already become a Transcendent-level agent called Mitra.”
“So what? Isn’t your competitive spirit too intense?”
“Hmph! You’re not conscious of it?”
“It shows a lot. Don’t chatter noisily and move aside.”
Being of similar age, I had no choice but to grow up competing with her constantly.
Moreover, since I was born out of wedlock, there was a feeling that it was a bit awkward to get close.
Of course, this tomboy didn’t seem to care about the gazes of those around her.
At my slightly irritated voice, Isabel flinched and cleared the way.
However, she didn’t stop following me and chattering beside me.
“If you act unpleasantly, women will dislike you.”
“Can’t you tell by looking at my face? There are countless agents who are dying to get just one look at me. Listen to some rumors.”
“You! The way you talk keeps becoming like Wendy, so it’s annoying.”
Wendy was the second daughter born between the family head and Kairam.
She had just been promoted to Special-level agent.
Isabel began to list her complaints about Wendy.
It was roughly content about how annoying it was that her younger sister acted pretentious.
Naturally, the nonsense I had just spouted also received harsh criticism.
Not wanting to hear that tedious chatter, I pointed to the office door and changed the subject.
“Weren’t you going to report to the Acting Family Head?”
“Right.”
“It would be good to go quickly. She’s not in a very good mood after meeting me.”
“I can go a bit late. Mother probably doesn’t care much whether I give a mission report or not.”
“Go quickly. Don’t bother me.”
“Where do you get off speaking informally to your older sister like that? Huh?”
“……”
When I didn’t respond and quickly left the main hall, she screamed from behind.
“If you get close to Wendy, you’re dead!”
I shook my head at Isabel’s unpredictable behavior.
‘Would I get close to women who are like enemies? Ah, not ‘like enemies’ but actual enemies.’
***
After escaping from Isabel, I headed straight to the Level 1 Training Hall.
‘Oh! The quality looks good? Level 1 is definitely different somehow.’
Unlike what I had seen so far, the Training Hall facilities looked quite good.
The walls with fish scale patterns and the dome-shaped roof were like looking at the exterior landscape of the island of Heukrin.
THUD. THUMP! THUMP!
Approaching the entrance, I grabbed the handle and pulled it, then released it.
It meant to open the door, but there was no response from inside.
Just as I was about to grab the handle again, a voice came from somewhere.
“What business do you have?”
Looking up, I saw a figure in night clothes sitting on the gate.
I hadn’t felt the slightest presence until now.
That meant the opponent’s level was much higher than mine.
That person was probably a Special-level or higher agent guarding the Training Hall and armory.
On average, they were Tier 4 level, and usually served as commanders of military units.
Of course, that didn’t change my attitude.
“I came to use the Level 1 Training Hall.”
When I said this while dangling the red pass, the gatekeeper immediately disappeared into the inside of the gate.
Soon, the large iron door moved soundlessly and opened just enough for one person to pass through.
“Please come in.”
SWOOSH. THUMP!
The gatekeeper received the red pass from me, then narrowed his eyes and examined it carefully.
It was a procedure to check whether it had been forged.
“It’s genuine. Please follow me.”
The interior structure of the Training Hall was quite simple.
In the center were four large bookshelves, and dozens of rooms could be seen around them.
“Since you must have used other Training Halls before, I trust you know the method.”
“Yes, thank you for your trouble.”
Passing the gatekeeper, I immediately moved to the central bookshelf.
Some books were missing, apparently taken by those using the Training Hall.
However, since there was one more copy of each, it wasn’t enough to interfere with training.
I ran my fingertips along the bookshelf as I walked slowly to the side.
‘This is……’
But among them, a familiar cover caught my eye like it was drilling into me.
It was a secret manual of Riverrun that now had only its shell remaining.
My gaze stopped there briefly, but soon moved smoothly to the side.
‘There’s no need to take this out and create unnecessary misunderstandings.’
I took out two secret manuals from another bookshelf and immediately entered the assigned room.
WHIRR. THOOM!
With the sound of machinery moving, the stone door closed heavily behind me.
