Ch.12A Woman with No Eye for Men (7)

Anna unconsciously opened her mouth, then covered her lips with her hand. “Ouch.” Neither she nor Niki noticed.

“So that was his second daughter. Even if it was an unwanted marriage with his second wife, and an unwanted child… there was no need to treat her so cruelly. No matter what, she’s still his own child…”

“What did he say? What exactly?”

“Words that shouldn’t be spoken. Things that should never be said… things only a parent could say, which makes them all the more terrible. I only heard briefly, but wow. My God… professors and students who couldn’t bear to listen anymore, even his subordinates, rushed in to separate them. The Knight Commander was practically dragged away. But he kept hurling curses and insults until the end. The kind of abuse you wouldn’t even direct at infidels…”

“My God.”

Anna stared at her husband with a dumbfounded expression. Her hands were trembling.

“I… I didn’t know. I just… I just…”

“Darling. Darling. Wait.” Niki hastily stood up. “Even you can’t know everything about other people’s family matters. This isn’t your fault. If you had known, you wouldn’t have sent her, right?”

“That’s true. Of course… of course that’s true. Ah. Why am I so insensitive? I just, I just thought she would be happy to see her father after so long…”

“Darling. If the White Blood Knightly State had been an ordinary noble family, we would have known. But they’re the most closed-off noble group in the Empire. They’re the kind of people who settle grievances with swords, not words.”

“I should have noticed when she hesitated.”

“Darling. Darling. Anna.”

Niki wiped the sweat from his forehead.

“Please. Anna. You’re human too. Not a god. How could you always make the right choices? No one lives a life where they only pick correct answers. You know that. You do.”

“But regrets remain.”

“…That’s true.”

Anna lowered her head. Niki thought he should change the subject. As quickly as possible.

“Ahem. Well. Anyway. Did your meeting go well?”

Anna paused before answering.

“Yes. They accepted. Thank goodness. If the retirement process had gone through officially, I’d be in a carriage heading to some lakeside by now.”

The Imperial Security Bureau is no ordinary organization. It’s a place where one can access information before anyone else in the world. This means someone could gather valuable information for personal gain, retire immediately, and potentially harm national interests.

That’s why Security Bureau retirees, depending on the importance of their missions and positions, spend six months to a year “recuperating” at an undisclosed location in the Empire. After six months, the knowledge in their heads becomes outdated. During this period, all letters and visits are monitored.

For this very reason, a fake retirement without submitting a secret clearance certificate serves as excellent identity laundering. Externally, one is known as a retiree, supposedly confined at some “undisclosed location” in the Empire.

“I looked into that friend you selected. His background seems a bit strange.”

“Strange?” Seeing Anna’s curiosity, Niki felt relieved. Anna would stop thinking about Lily and turn her attention elsewhere.

“What’s strange about him? That he was the first commoner to attend the Imperial Academy, or that he was my student? Or perhaps that while his entrance scores were excellent, he barely avoided expulsion in his first and second years, but never lost the top position in his third and fourth years?”

“A good student doesn’t necessarily make a good agent.” Niki scratched the back of his head.

“His performance evaluations are good. The cross-verification reports weren’t bad either. He’s a Security Bureau agent. Don’t misunderstand. Rather, I thought it might be better if the Royal Guard Bureau handled such covert operations. But you even allocated Royal Guard resources to Agent Kain.”

“I did.”

“This isn’t just because his qualifications are good. What makes you have such high expectations for this friend? Of course, at the section chief level, they’re all skilled. But he’s not the only section chief. Why did it have to be him?”

“Let’s start with his career. What was strange about it?”

“He went to Venelucia four years ago and returned two years ago, right? The Dandolo family scandal. The collapse of the five eastern merchant guild alliance in an instant. That was his doing?”

“It was.”

“That’s what’s strange.” Niki shook his head.

“If those five guilds had united again, war would certainly have broken out. But far from that, the east is now on the brink of civil war. After accomplishing something of this magnitude, why is he still just a section chief?”

“Because it wasn’t perfect. Kain’s original mission wasn’t that. His mission was to recruit the Doge of Venelucia’s only daughter and lead her to defection. But he failed. The aftermath of that failure led to the Dandolo scandal. We certainly benefited, but it was a stroke of luck.”

Anna was cold. Even for a beloved student, her assessment had to be accurate.

“Such luck inevitably ruins people. Those who receive more than they deserve never touch the ground again. And… Kain himself requested a six-month leave. That’s when he learned to use the staff.”

“Why did he do that?”

Anna answered. Niki’s mouth fell open.

“Good heavens.”

That was all the Imperial Chancellor could say.

“My God. What a remarkable person.”

“Yes. Sadly remarkable. But my reason for choosing him isn’t just his loyalty to the Empire. You asked why I didn’t use someone from the Royal Guard Bureau? The Royal Guard is excellent. They work almost like machines, perfectly. However.”

Anna tapped the desk. The desk containing the letter from the Pope.

“What we need isn’t just someone who does their job well. We face an entirely new challenge. We don’t know what dared to do this to the Empire’s heroes, or who’s behind it.

This is something neither the Royal Guard nor the Security Bureau has dealt with before, something even the Pope couldn’t handle, something the Empire’s power alone cannot resolve.

But Kain can do it. If Kain can’t do it, no one in the world can. As far as I know.”

Like a thorn caught in her throat, Anna swallowed her words. She knew what her words meant. She knew these were words she shouldn’t say about a cherished student, how painful they were. Words she wouldn’t dare say to his face. The kind of words easily said about others.

“Why is that?”

“Because he’s someone who constantly breaks through his own limits. He’s always been that way. Despite being a commoner, he entered the university. Though he struggled in his first and second years, once given proper support, he immediately jumped to the top ranks. When he could no longer use a sword, he captured Goetz with his clumsily learned staff techniques.”

Niki nodded as if he finally understood.

“True. He’s not a perfect, meticulous, flawless Royal Guard soldier. But he’s flexible. He gets knocked down again and again but grits his teeth and stands back up. Exhausted and worn down, but for this last time. This final time, he’ll endure.”

Though her lips felt like they were tearing, Anna continued. Her heart ached more than her lips.

“Niki. Being intelligent and overcoming adversity are clearly different. If you’re wise and smart, you might not face many crises. But is that how the world works? Even when I do nothing wrong, sometimes my wings are unfairly clipped. Like how the heroes are falling, like how something unknown walks the Empire’s lands.

This task is difficult. It’s unprecedented, and no one can easily solve it. The possibility of failure is higher. That’s why I’ve played my most dangerous card with the highest chance of success rather than settling for a safe failure. I’ll give him everything he needs. Even if he fails spectacularly, at least… at least he’ll bring back something. That’s how he is. That child is.”

To Niki’s eyes, Anna seemed to have returned to her younger days. Anna from when she was younger and untamed. Anna who would press her forehead against his and whisper about becoming Emperor together.

But it was only for a moment.

The Anna before his eyes now had less confidence than back then, but was much wiser. Countless failures had broken her, but in exchange, she had found another path. Like a plant growing in the shade that eventually finds its way toward the light.

Perhaps the nickname “woman with poor judgment in men” was now a thing of the past. That description belonged to the Anna of those days. In the end, Niki Brien, the husband who had betrayed his wife, tried to convince himself of this.

Perhaps. Even if Anna lacked judgment. Even if things didn’t go as planned, or rather, precisely because of that. After everything has burned to ashes.

Doesn’t just one truly precious thing finally shine?

“I understand. I’ll look for ways I can help too. I’m meeting with the Holy Grail Knights again this afternoon. Any message for the Pope?”

“Yes. Many. I have many, but my brother has even more. Truly.”

Anna clenched her fist. Niki wasn’t particularly surprised that Anna had already communicated with the Emperor.

“But just tell him this. A surgical knife that saves lives is smaller than a greatsword that takes them, but it’s sharper and keener. I’ve given my most cherished blade, so let this be the Emperor’s final patience shown to the Pope.”

Niki saw Anna’s fury. He also saw the mocking sun not daring to raise its head, hiding behind clouds.

Siblings, despite their quarrels, are inevitably siblings. The reason their differences seem so great is because they have so many similarities. And these siblings have more than enough reason to hate the Pope more than anyone else in the world.

An eagle may occasionally fly lower than a chicken, but a chicken can never fly as high as an eagle. Though the Empire may have momentarily lowered itself, those who underestimate it will be torn apart in mid-air.

‘By the Emperor’s will, so shall it be.’

The Imperial Chancellor steeled his resolve once more.

* * * * *

After leaving the building, Kain struck his staff on the ground a couple of times. It was to relax his face.

Just because he was handling a serious case didn’t mean he needed to look like he was carrying the weight of the world. No one is more easily mocked than someone who looks overly solemn. That means being conspicuous, and a Security Bureau agent should avoid such attention.

Kain wandered around the campus, looking for Lily who had disappeared somewhere. Though unlikely, if she had pretended not to know and left, abandoning the document bag, that would be troublesome in its own way.

Since it was after lunchtime, he was hungry. It’s an unchanging truth that eating well leads to working well. Though he thought Verneith might be waiting, Kain knew him well. He was the type to take care of his own meals.

And the bureau chief disliked offices just as much. Most likely, he’d be pretending to be a drunk coachman, sleeping with his hat pulled down at the east gate.

‘So predictable. But where on earth did she go?’

A group of university students passed by. They looked quite serious for their age. Kain caught familiar words. ‘A tall, pretty blonde woman who ran away trying to hold back tears.’

‘She cried?’

Wasn’t she going to meet her father? Kain was puzzled. Suddenly, he remembered the handkerchief Lily had thrown at Godfrey’s feet when challenging him to a duel. Fortunately, it was still neatly folded in his pocket. Though slightly soiled, it looked fairly clean after he shook it off.

Walking toward the cypress pavilion, old memories surfaced.

Universities always have quiet people who don’t fit well into groups. Such people are good at finding secluded spots on campus. As if they’ve received special invitations meant just for them.

Kain was such a student, and fortunately, the campus hadn’t changed much. In this case, it was the small park behind the art gallery. Though not very large, it had many beautiful columns, making it a popular spot for couples seeking privacy away from prying eyes.

And it was also suitable for a woman to hide while trying to hold back tears.