Chapter 26

The person who had looked at the rising black smoke and turned on his heels was a middle-aged man.

He was dressed like any other citizen there.

And while he was probably doing his best to hide it, I could see it clearly from above.

He was starting to walk faster and there was a franticness in his movements.

“Well, better chase after him then.”

I had my target now, and so I melted into the shadows.

As I followed him in the shadows, the man entered a narrow alley.

Then he stopped at a corner and looked around.

It was still a little early to be night time, but it would be dark very soon.

The man turned and walked back several times and always picked narrow streets to walk through.

I continued to follow him silently.

It wasn’t until the sun was gone completely and there were barely any people on the streets, that the man finally started to slow down.

It had been a whole hour now.

He was being very careful.

He now walked with the kind of casual air as if he was going out for a drink. He was headed in the direction of the shopping district.

Then he stopped partway and entered a back alley, looked carefully around, and then entered a house.

“So, that’s where he lives.”

It was a small two-story building.

He sat down on a chair and drank some water.

In the meantime, I went to the second floor and searched the two rooms.

As the man was downstairs, I could not act too boldly, but I was able to look at the documents that were on his desk.

The papers suggested the likelihood that this man was from Makoku.

“He could have bought this stuff here.”

There were some small items that were clearly from Makoku.

But as they were insignificant items of little value, they were not things that a merchant would bother to bring.

And so they were likely just personal possessions.

This wasn’t very wise. And so I was doubtful someone like him would be carrying any important secrets. However, I at least knew where he lived now.

Perhaps he had finished resting. The man left the house again.

He still hadn’t noticed that he was being followed.

He started to walk on the outskirts of the residential district, where there were fewer people around.

It was a lonely area with just a few houses that were far apart.

Then he entered a house that was surrounded by trees.

From what I could tell, he didn’t even suspect that someone could be following him.

However, the same could not be said for the others in the house.

When he was inside, he quickly went up the stairs.

I could sense the presence of four people on the second floor. So there were five in all.

This must be their base.

The sound of someone standing could be heard just before the man reached the second floor.

“What?”

“What is it?”

The others stood up as well.

“…He’s been followed.”

A man muttered. Then all of them turned to the man who had just arrived.

“N-no, I couldn’t have… I wouldn’t have made such a mistake…”

“No, there is someone here! Below!”

“Scatter!”

At the same time, I heard the sound of the second-floor window opening.

So, they really had noticed me.

This was the first time that anyone outside of my father was able to sense me while I was diving in the shadows.

I tried to think of why, and couldn’t see how I had made any mistakes.

I heard bodies landing on the ground and the sounds of running.

However, there were people left as well. Two.

And so I moved out from within the shadows and slowly climbed the steps.

○

“How did you know I was here?”

I said out loud from under my black clothes. But no one answered me.

Hmm. Two against one. What should I do…

“It’s just one person. Are there any others?”

“I haven’t detected any. This one must be very confident.”

“He looks young.”

“But don’t let your guard down, Double.”

“Okay. Let’s deal with this.”

One of them was apparently called ‘Double.’ The younger one.

How about the other one? I hoped it was Through.

But I was not likely to get any answers by trying to strike up a conversation. I wasn’t sure how to move from here.

Provoking them was always an option.

“Well, I heard there was some idiot playing in the castle recently.”

No answer.

I inspected them carefully.

Both of them were wearing normal civilian clothes.

The older one seemed to be about forty…no, maybe older. There was white in his hair.

The other appeared to be in his mid-twenties. Close to my brother in law.

He had a fine face that was rather long.

And his eyes had the ice blue color that was often found in pure-blooded Makoku people.

Perhaps he came from a long line of magicians.

I continued to provoke them.

“I suppose you’re too scared to talk. Why don’t you just surrender while you can?”

“Shut up. You’re just the she-monkey’s dog.”

The older man spat.

Yes, he was the one had detected me and raised his voice.

“You found your way into the castle but got scared and ran away. It’s rather adorable to see you here now, shivering with fear.”

“I left because I had accomplished my goal. You’re one to boast, with such a pathetic barrier.”

“I don’t know about that. I’m quite sure you were driven out. You couldn’t go any further than you did.”

“That’s ridiculous. I could have easily broken through the other barriers.”

He was biting.

“So, you are Through, after all.”

“…!”

That’s when he realized that he had said too much.

I felt the anger well up within him, as well as the will to kill.

“I came to kill you, Through. Care to make this easy for me?”

I unleashed my own murderous aura.

I thought he would run, but he moved straight towards me.

Well, then. It was time to fight.