Chapter 276: You Are Like Sand (17)

Thirty-six hours. If I faced the marquis one-on-one, he'd effortlessly crush me. Yet here he was, exposed to my gaze. He was utterly helpless, unable to sense or strike at me in any way.

A strange exhilaration welled up inside. Merely watching the marquis stirred something deep in my chest. A swelling, sticky pleasure. What other weaknesses would he reveal next? I almost found myself looking forward to it.

Still, unlike the earlier twelve hours, the marquis no longer moved about actively. He merely sat and methodically reviewed documents one by one. Many had nothing to do with the stolen diamond, yet he sifted through them with ruthless focus, as though killing them with his hands.

Calculations had likely been whirring ceaselessly in his mind. No doubt, he was deciding on his every move with precision. The marquis's judgment was always exact. After all, he

did

find the stolen diamond in the end. He'd singlehandedly crushed the Thieves' Guild and recovered the Imperial treasure. Then, he persuaded the guild's young prodigy—Rayleigh—to join the Blue Lion Knights.

Perhaps due to his background, Rayleigh's instincts were sharper than any soldier's. Yet, even he failed to identify the true enemy. Where, exactly, was Leandro pointing his blade? How much did the marquis truly know?

I kept watching. He slept only three hours. Even then, he leaked mist-like energy through every pore, as if practicing some form of cultivation. When only four hours of Concealment remained, I worried my surveillance'd end without further discovery.

Upon waking, the marquis suddenly vaulted out of his chambers. He hadn't sensed me, yet I lost him because of his speed. I had to break into a sprint.

Where is he going?

The dawn sky glowed red as he moved swiftly through the alleys, scanning his surroundings with rare caution. He walked with the familiarity of someone who had taken this path many times before, almost as if it were a habit.

Detection. Tracking.

Only when I invoked my skills at full strength did I manage to track him through the winding alleys. At times, he blended into the crowd; at others, he vaulted across rooftops in a single bound. Keeping the right distance was grueling. I had to use leaps and focus to maintain the pursuit, nearly losing him at the end.

Judgment, activate.

[Do you wish to alter your setting?]

Yes.

[Turn left.]

[A white building to the northwest seizes your gaze.]

[Cooldown until next activation: 167:59:53...]

I barely managed to keep up using the pendant's intuition. Who was he going to meet, to require such secrecy? I didn't recognize this direction.

A massive temple came into view. Pale stone gleamed as starlight trickled down until the entire colonnade and walls glowed with celestial light.

That place...?

The marquis hid in the shadow of an alley near the temple, as if waiting. A short while later, someone emerged from the temple. They wore gleaming mithril armor, etched with dense geometric patterns, cuirass, vambraces, and greaves.

A powerful enchantment of pursuit was surely bound to it. After scanning the area, the marquis let slip a faint trace of his presence. He seemed to know the precise moment she'd emerge.

"Countess."

"Ah, my lord...!"

"May I intrude for a moment?" The marquis moved his hand. A thin wire unfolded, bent sharply in twelve different directions, forming a peculiar shape. "The Angel's Fleece. Do you remember?"

Isabelle Simone stared, then gave a small nod.

Leandro exhaled softly, straightening the wire and tossing it aside. "If ever you need to send a message, show that. Trust no one. No one at all."

"My lord...?"

He gave no answer. With that, the marquis vanished into the shadows.

Isabelle blinked, then bent down. "What... what was that...?"

She picked up the wire and, with remarkable memory, twisted it back into the pattern he had shown her. It was nearly identical to the Angel's Fleece. In that instant, old memories surged within me. I realized I had stumbled upon a crucial clue.

“The marquis is far from here, in safety. I come bearing his request.”

“Do you have proof?”

When Gith-Za-Rai had attempted to sway Isabelle during the emperor's assassination, she'd demanded a token as proof that I carried Leandro's words. So this was it, the twisted wire itself. I had uncovered a piece of vital intelligence.

I carefully memorized the method of shaping the wire. With this, the chance of pulling Isabelle out of the emperor's assassination had risen dramatically.

[Perk: Concealment.]

[Time Remaining: 00:42:14...]

Time was running thin. I withdrew at once, returning to the Necron Society's capital headquarters. It was unfortunate to break off my surveillance of Leandro, but the gain was sufficient.

"

Uuugh

! My lord!"

"

Hi-hi!

"

When I materialized from thin air, the Necron officers shrieked in terror, though some seemed almost to savor it.

One stepped forward to give a report. "Her routine is nothing but lodging, temple, training. It is uncanny, really... Hard to imagine a human living so. We couldn't confirm if she calls men to her chambers in the evenings..."

"The temple?"

I had left Isabelle too hastily to confirm the temple she had visited.

"She is a devotee of Ilien, the Goddess of Light. Her mother suffers from an incurable affliction, petrification necrosis. Parts of her body stiffen. Long ago, she was infected by spores spewed from a basilisk in the northwest. She now receives continual treatment at the temple."

"I see."

A sickbed visit, then.

I skimmed the Necron Society's compiled reports. They even included notes on the sigils etched into Isabelle's armor and shield, along with their functions. The officers were worthless as warriors, yet sufficed for information-gathering, they sufficed. Perhaps because their tendrils reached into groups like T&T.

"You've uncovered much in so short a time."

The man reporting grinned. "

Heh heh...

demand for flesh puppets is insatiable. Enforcement officials are especially eager, but lack coin. Once they deal with us, though, we hold their leash. That's the Necron Society's strength."

Flesh puppets... human husks stripped of self.

I glanced at the group, these sadists who lived to indulge their cruelty. "Can't petrification necrosis be cured with holy power?"

Isabelle was captain of the imperial guard. She ranked among the highest of the humans in the capital.

"She receives healing constantly. But..."

"But?"

"It only suppresses the symptoms. Once basilisk spores invade the spine, they linger for life, periodically reactivating."

"I see."

Another officer interjected, "Who can say? Priests can cure it completely, but more often than not, they only suppress symptoms. Easier to leave patients dependent. A single treatment, and it's over."

"And better for them to keep bestowing blessings than to heal outright."

"That is so..."

Their investigation of Isabelle had gone smoothly, but there wasn't one mention of the marquis. Meaning the Necron Society hadn't known Isabelle was his weakness. If I seized Isabelle, shook her hard enough, Leandro could truly bend.

There was nothing more to hear. I'd only be dragged into their sick entertainments if I stayed longer. Moreover, if I set these men to spy on the marquis without Concealment, I'd more likely find their corpses in an alley. Hence, I gave no further orders.

"I'll be going."

I left and made my way to the residence of Duke Biblio. Through dealings with the empire, he'd amassed countless titles and privileges, carving a demonic realm beneath the sewers as Botis's proxy.

Whether he had once been a mere man twisted by possession, or had torn open a path from the demon realm himself, I didn't know. Either way...

Creak.

The Concealment still lasted when I reached the desolate house, yet the door opened on its own. So, I was being watched. The thought I was suffering the very thing I had done to the marquis made my skin crawl, as though insects clung to me.

Had he left his massive body behind in the sewers? The same frail, gaunt old man from before gazed at me. "Well? Did you uncover anything?"

His expression was gentle, like a god looking upon his creation.

***

[Botis is watching you.]

Those words on my status window weighed heavily upon me. I confessed everything: the token from the marquis, his affection for Miyu, and even what he had said about Isabelle.

The old man only nodded with a warm expression, never judging. The Angel's Fleece. If I told him about that token, I couldn't imagine how it'd be twisted against Isabelle. She would be exploited without mercy.

Yet, I felt no pity for her. I was numb, hollow. Something stirred within those dulled senses, as though trying to break free, fading before taking shape. No light seeped through.

"

Heh heh...

" The old man slowly blinked, his every movement clearly showing his satisfaction with my report. "You carried out your task magnificently. Now, the chance to sway him to our side is far greater."

"..."

Of course, the marquis would never betray himself. Still, this wasn't my failure, so there was no need to object.

Clearly pleased, Duke Biblio said, "You have proven your worth..."

[The Demon King's trust in you grows stronger.]

[Demon King Botis is watching you with a vile smile.]

[A corrupted mind is revealed.]

[Your everyday speech is affected.]

[The Blessing of Concealment is extended by 30 days.]

[Perk granted: Insect Tongue Lv. 1

— Even the most worthless of humans, if gnawed by the Duke of Filth's insects, could at least claim they lived a life steeped in pain.

— Summon Tiki. Tiki crawls into a target's ear. It is a delicate creature, indispensable for extracting the truth.

— Tiki can divide itself, multiplying into more. Entrust them to a subordinate and raise them well!]

The detailed instructions and effects stretched further down. From what I read, it seemed to be the same insect that had tortured the innkeeper in Yublam.

I had no idea how I would use it, but it appeared that as the Insect Tongue leveled up, I'd gain control over a variety of insects. Still, the greatly extended concealment time was a welcome reward.

"As you continue to contribute, you will receive ever greater powers... I am pleased to have found one so useful."

I asked the old man the question that had lingered since the start, "Why not act directly yourself?"

The Snake that Swallows the Night. Such a title alone made him an object of terror.

"I must minimize my movements in the capital..." He gave no time to wonder why, instead smoothly shifting the subject. "Now I shall grant another reward. I will make certain that the human you were so concerned about becomes a lord."

From the beginning, the very reason I had come to the capital and sought contact with Biblio was for this. It was proceeding more smoothly than I had imagined. The method mattered little to me. Rubia would become a lord, and by raising her lordship level, we would move steadily toward clearing the scenario. A fair exchange.

"Then, will you come with me to Erast?"

"Of course."

There was no reason to refuse. I wanted to witness Rubia's rise to lordship with my own eyes. Even as my heart grew darker, that much remained certain.

Knock knock.

A knocking sound came, not from the door but from outside.

A secret passage?

I had not even sensed it...

So this place, too, must be part of the barrier.

Clack!

One of the tiles flipped upward, and a sweat-soaked bald head emerged. The man, barely able to manage a knock, burst out with a frantic expression.

"My lord! Something terrible has happened!"