Chapter 10
Ding—
The midday bell chimed faintly in the distance.
Derek Baldwin, Special Forces Commander of the Empire and head of the Baldwin Dukedom, found himself repeatedly muttering a single name.
The name uttered last by those who had recently perished one after another.
“…Luke Richter.”
At first, he'd seemed like an ordinary official.
But the report that the corpses of Monstrous Beasts were piled up like a mountain in front of his office gave a strong conviction that the man was hiding something.
Of course, if that were all, he wouldn’t have bothered with him.
However.
“The Dark Shadow Society Leader is dead, they say.”
When he first heard the news, he couldn't believe it.
He thought he’d misheard.
Because the Dark Shadow Society was no ordinary criminal organization.
The Arkan Monarch Society, one of the two factions that divided the continent.
They were composed of six legions maintaining a balance of power, and their characteristic was that each legion operated its own directly controlled organization to expand its influence.
Among them, the most notorious was the Dark Shadow Society.
Centered around criminals gathered under the name of Kallen, a Gwonseong and the 3rd Legion Commander, it had grown to become one of the largest criminal organizations in the Empire.
The representative of the Dark Shadow Society was Katran.
She, widely known as Gwonseong Kallen's chief of staff.
“Exploded to death…”
Derek lowered his head and stared at the report on his desk.
According to the report from a spy planted within the Dark Shadow Society, Katran and several other executives had died, exploding like balloons.
Furthermore, before dying, they muttered someone's name as their last words, and that name was none other than Luke Richter.
It wasn’t just the Dark Shadow Society either.
Quite a few others had met the same end.
However, there was one noteworthy characteristic.
The identities of those who met the same end, surprisingly, were all criminals wanted by the Imperial Family.
“…Interesting.”
Derek Baldwin quietly curled his lips.
The corners of his mouth trembled as he suppressed his laughter.
The organization members who lost their powerful leader in an instant were enraged, and the arrow of their fury was directed not at the Imperial Family, but at one man.
Even the Arkan Monarch Society, the backing of the Dark Shadow Society, began to take an interest in him.
By now, he’d become curious.
Had all this been planned from the moment he’d first appointed him as Blackmore’s administrator?
“Ha…”
Whatever the outcome, it wouldn’t be bad for the Imperial Family.
The Imperial Family had eliminated the rats gnawing at the Empire without any effort.
He couldn't hold back the burst of laughter that escaped him.
It was an unexpected method that no one could have predicted.
“How did he do it?”
The heads of criminal organizations spread throughout the Empire had met the same end in an instant.
As if sending them a warning.
Then, was all this the work of a single Luke Richter?
“Impossible.”
No matter how strong he was, it was impossible.
The intelligence to know the movements of executives treated as confidential.
The overwhelming force to assassinate executives in a single moment.
The ability to carry out objectives without a hitch.
This was something only a group could do.
“Like a mastermind.”
At first, it was suspicion.
But watching the unfolding situation, suspicion gradually turned into certainty.
Just what—
“…what game is he playing?”
The administrator of Blackmore, the Empire's most Fierce Magical Boundary.
The man who commanded the unknown mastermind group that crushed the Dark Shadow Society.
High society was already abuzz with the name Luke Richter.
And when the resulting chaos, the flow of that enormous power, engulfed the Empire?
“…”
A chill ran down Derek Baldwin’s spine.
Finishing his thoughts, he rang the bell on his desk, and a man soon opened the door and entered.
“You’ve heard the news, I presume?”
“I have.”
“Investigate the group that destroyed the Dark Shadow Society.”
“Understood.”
“Don’t dig too deep, just get the outline. And don't forget to link the information with Luke Richter and spread the rumors as they come out. It's best to start with high society. Their loose lips make it easy to spread widely.”
“Luke Richter, you say?”
“Yes.”
“…Understood.”
The man bowed sharply and left the room.
Derek Baldwin reached out and slowly opened the window.
The sudden breeze gently ruffled his black hair.
Brushing back his disheveled bangs, he muttered.
“I don’t know what he’s planning, but…”
Whatever it was.
“…This time, I’ll cooperate.”
Derek Baldwin's eyes looked out the window.
“For the Sun of the Empire.”
His gaze was so intense, it seemed as if it could burn at any moment.
****
A few days had passed since the Labyrinth exploration.
A thick layer of dust had accumulated in the mere few days I was away, so I spent a considerable amount of time just cleaning.
But even so, the smile wouldn't leave my face.
And why wouldn't it?
"Haha, freedom!"
Freedom.
That sweet, sweet freedom that only a salary thief, slacking off all day, could enjoy.
I hadn't left my office for days.
The Monstrous Beasts that attacked were taken care of by Rudine's auto-hunt, and the picky Fox Beastman had volunteered to prepare meals.
Every day was peaceful.
A honey-sweet daily life of doing nothing.
'This is the life.'
Yes, everything was perfect.
I was spending each day as if in a dream, when…
"…What's this?"
One day, a letter arrived from the Imperial Family.
It included a newspaper with the latest news from the Empire, and after reading it, I couldn't help but be shocked.
"The Dark Shadow Society Leader… assassinated?"
As I muttered blankly, Rudine, who was peeking at the letter next to me, asked.
"Isn't the Dark Shadow Society pretty big?"
"Just by sheer size, they're among the top ten in the Empire."
"But their Leader was assassinated? Just like that?"
"Apparently?"
The Dark Shadow Society was an assassination organization run by Kwonseong Kallen's, the 3rd Army Corps Commander, chief of staff.
To assassinate the Leader of such a place? Whoever did it must have some serious guts.
'Come to think of it, did the Dark Shadow Society Leader die around this Time?'
Honestly, I don't remember.
Who cares when some extra dies?
More importantly, the Dark Shadow Society Leader was a vicious criminal with a huge Bounty on their head from the Imperial Family.
Hmm. Maybe it's a good thing they died?
As I was offering a quick prayer for the suddenly deceased Dark Shadow Society Leader…
"They say it's likely the work of a new organization!"
"A new organization?"
"It says so below. A mysterious group of masterminds, shrouded in rumor, composed of a small number of people."
"What the hell is that?"
Rudine muttered as she continued reading the letter by herself.
"One individual is pointed to as the most likely mastermind behind it all!"
"Oh, who?"
I asked casually, too lazy to read it myself.
The answer that came back was…
"Luke Richter!"
"Whoever they are, they're amazing… Wait, what?!"
Hold on.
That's my name.
"Give me that!"
I snatched the letter from Rudine's hand.
And slowly read through the contents.
Dark Shadow Society Leader Katran was assassinated.
But not only him, numerous other wanted criminals were assassinated in the same manner.
And the name they left behind like a dead man's signature before dying, saying they wouldn't forget…
'Luke… Richter…?'
Huh?
Suddenly?
But I was innocent.
"I'm being pointed to as the mastermind behind the assassination of the Dark Shadow Society Leader and whoever else?"
"Seems like it."
"But I didn't kill them?"
"Indeed."
Fuck.
I was blissfully asleep when they died.
Rudine, who took back the letter I had snatched, started reading the rest.
"It says that while it's just speculation, everyone seems to believe it."
"…."
"On top of that, you're notorious in high society as someone to absolutely avoid!"
"???"
Countless question marks popped up in my head.
What the hell was going on?
This made no sense whatsoever.
"Kwonseong Kallen, the 3rd Army Corps Commander, made a statement regarding this incident…"
"And?"
"He said he won't let this slide…"
Oh.
That means he's openly declaring revenge.
And.
Their target of revenge.
"…Holy shit?!"
Was none other than me.
Just as my mental state was crumbling in real-time.
*Thud… thud…*
An irregular, eerie sound of footsteps could be heard in the distance.
The ominous sound quickly drew closer, at an alarming speed.
I turned my head to see a man in a robe approaching.
"Ah."
The man smirked as he looked at me.
As if he had been looking for me.
And then he said.
"Allow me to formally introduce myself. I am Cheong (靑), a successor directly under the Arkan Lord Council."
The man stared intently at me.
After a pause, as if building suspense, he got to the main point.
"I will convey the will of Great Lord Arkan."
I was dumbfounded.
And a fact I had forgotten flashed through my mind.
"Luke Richter, you are—"
The Arkan Lord Council.
The location of the Headquarters Meeting, the heart of that insane martial force, was none other than…
"—invited to Headquarters."
…Blackmore.