Ch.619Episode 22 – The Kazinsky Test

Above the head, an endless expanse of stars and the cold night sky; below the feet, the damp darkness of an alley lurking as if to swallow everything whole.

Fenrich suddenly realized.

That he, pushed off the rooftop, remained pathetically sprawled on the ground. A moment too miserable to even express in words. Something he couldn’t have imagined in the past.

His body had grown cold, his magic severed.

The stars remained far away, at a distance he couldn’t reach no matter how much he struggled.

All that remained was the cold sensation of the wet ground and the belated feeling of helplessness.

“……”

Fenrich, surrendering his body to the damp ground, looked up.

A girl surrounded by remnants of flame floated silently.

In the cold darkness, that light felt too distant and too hot.

There was nothing more to see, no will left to fight.

Fenrich’s eyes closed.

And immediately after.

Camilla, surrounded by a small light, descended coldly before him.

Episode 22 – The Kazisski Test

How fleeting is the dying spark of life.

The face of one facing death was strangely serene. Like embers about to vanish, it seemed ephemeral and light.

Despite having been such a fierce opponent.

Before him, the girl couldn’t completely erase a subtle sense of pity.

“…How did you do it?”

A thread-like voice, carrying a faint tremor, reached her.

Fenrich, buried in the mud, barely opened his mouth, and after a brief thought, Camilla offered an answer.

“You’re a river-type magic user, aren’t you?”

“……”

“Frost Caller, the arcane magic passed down only to the leader of the Shadow Rock Hill clan. That’s the magic you use, right?”

Frost Caller.

The unique magic that only the leader of Shadow Rock Hill could use.

While magic and spells are accessible to anyone with talent, that’s merely the human perspective of viewing magic as an academic discipline.

For non-human races, magic and spells are strictly inherited through bloodlines, serving as arcane techniques and means to maintain power.

In that sense, information about Frost Caller could be considered a secret known only to werewolves,

And even among the Shadow Rock Hill clan, only a select few knew about it.

“Frost Caller is powerful magic. It consists of unique techniques not found in other spells. But its weakness is also clear. Since it’s fundamentally based on river-type magic, its efficiency drops significantly if there’s no water source near the caster.”

Camilla calmly explained the weakness of Fenrich’s magic. Brief and simple, but all the more clear for it.

As she slowly raised her head, the wet alley came into her view.

The recent downpour had flooded the city, and puddles glistened on rooftops and in alleys.

But not anymore.

The heat storm she had unleashed had evaporated most of the moisture, causing Frost Caller to lose its foundation and disappear.

All that remained was the cracked asphalt holding minimal moisture and a silence devoid of any presence.

Camilla stuck her hands in her pockets and relaxed her shoulders in relief.

“Unless the surroundings were overflowing with water like before, you can’t properly use your power in this situation.”

“…You have talent.”

A voice like a dried riverbed flowed from Fenrich’s throat. A straightforward acknowledgment.

“Give up now.”

A brief silence descended.

The girl who had taken the egg as hostage put it away and added:

“Your plan has already been exposed. I have the egg, and the locations of the dynamite and the werewolves of the Canine-Feline Coexistence Alliance have all been discovered.”

“……”

“Even you must know by now? Fighting any further is futile. That’s enough.”

Camilla urged him to surrender peacefully. It was the last mercy she would extend to Fenrich.

It might seem arrogant, but it wasn’t wrong.

His appearance had been in tatters for a while.

His once-proud fur and hide were scorched and torn, and the ferocity of his claws and teeth had been broken.

Frost Caller, once powerful enough to push back a grand magician, had lost its advantage to a young magician’s simple trick.

The endless rain had clearly been a golden opportunity to take the life of the Archduke, his only obstacle.

But the priest’s barrier, the betrayal of the sky clearing the rain clouds, and the unexpected appearance of the girl had thrown everything off course.

Lying on the ground with a magician pointing a finger at him, Fenrich slowly sank into thought.

Who had whispered the weakness of Frost Caller to the girl? Who had whispered the secret of the “egg”?

Finding the thread to that question wasn’t difficult.

A silhouette of a woman flashed through his mind.

Fenrich’s lips moved at the face with a faint, indelible smile.

“Emily….”

*

A little earlier.

While the Archduke was fiercely clashing with Fenrich.

Camilla, having successfully met with Lucia and the rest of the group, began leading them down the main road.

“Where are we going?! This is the way back!”

“The apartment!”

At Veronica’s shout, Camilla turned a corner while touching the wall and raised her voice. There was urgency in her tone.

“We need to retrieve the egg that Frederick mentioned!”

“But why are we going back to the apartment?!”

“Because we need to meet Emily!”

The logic was simple.

If werewolves are orchestrating the terror, then naturally, werewolves would have the most information.

This was a fact that Camilla had learned by working together with Veronica to interrogate both the therianthropes who had escaped from the Canine-Feline Coexistence Alliance and Emily, who was a werewolf.

Camilla continued her explanation as she leaped down steep stairs.

“The werewolf magic user’s weakness might be known to Emily! Maybe even the location of the egg! The werewolves with Emily might have it!”

“Wouldn’t the leader, that bastard, have something so essential for the terror attack?”

“I don’t think so!”

Fenrich is currently fighting the professor.

I’m not sure if he anticipated the Archduke’s appearance. But if he was aware of the presence of a grand magician operating in Bahar, he would have certainly entrusted important items to a safe location or trustworthy individuals.

Even without that, there were many suspicious aspects to Fenrich’s actions.

If it’s an item to be used for terrorism, it’s extremely important and must be protected. It’s strange that he would come to kill her and Veronica while carrying such an item, isn’t it?

It would make more sense if he had entrusted its transport to someone else or hidden it somewhere.

But they’re not in a position to hide the “egg” somewhere far away right now.

With the terror attack planned for tomorrow, would it make sense to hide the “egg” far away? Naturally, they would have moved it to a location close to the attack target, a place where Fenrich, the leader of the terrorist group, could make a final check.

And decisively,

The werewolf moving with Emily had clearly said it.

That Fenrich would soon come to the apartment.

If that’s the case, there’s a high probability that the “egg” is currently at the apartment.

“…Emily!”

Rushing into the apartment, Camilla frantically began searching for traces of the werewolf.

The scene was truly horrific.

Bodies felled by gunfire were scattered, and blood had splattered wildly, covering the walls and floor.

Francesca and Lucia momentarily frowned, but as Camilla was about to rush forward,

Veronica’s hand blocked her path.

“Stop. Something’s off.”

“Huh? What do you mean—”

“This wasn’t done by me.”

In the muffled corridor, a silver gun barrel gleamed.

Drawing her revolver, Veronica sensed an unfamiliar current and quietly began scanning the surroundings.

With her back against the corridor wall, she spoke in a low voice, almost whispering to everyone.

“I shot five, but there are eight bodies.”

“……”

Upon hearing those words, suspicious traces began to enter everyone’s eyes one by one.

Inside the room, there were clear signs of a fierce battle.

Walls gouged by claws, long streaks of blood, chunks of flesh that looked like they had been chewed and spat out.

Veronica carefully pointed to the bloodstains. The long, fresh-looking marks suggested that an injured beast had dragged itself somewhere, leaving an ominous trail.

Swallowing a dry gulp, Camilla cautiously approached the spot. Following the bloodstains leading to the bathroom, and after a brief moment of breathing, she kicked the door with a resolute expression.

-Bang!

The moment her glowing fingers and the silver gun barrel illuminated the dark interior,

Camilla and Veronica had to withdraw their extended finger and revolver simultaneously.

“Oh no….”

“So you were here, Emily!”

As the bathroom door creaked open, feet soaked in blood walked out from the darkness. One step, then another. Staggering.

Emily, whom they met again, was in tatters.

Her shoulder was torn as if mauled by a beast, and blood continued to flow like a flood from below her waist.

Her clothes were shredded to the point of resembling rags. Her skin was burst and covered with dried blood, making her look grotesque, and her breath was shaking roughly.

Veronica supported Emily with the hand holding the revolver. Emily leaned her head against Camilla on the opposite side, barely maintaining her balance.

As her dragging feet crossed the bloody puddle with a splash, the shadows of the three were cast long on the corridor floor.

Beyond her swaying head, Emily’s gaze caught the form of a man collapsed in the blood.

“…Shakan.”

The name that escaped from her cracked lips was clear and transparent.

It was a murmur filled with emotion that hadn’t yet cooled.

As Camilla carefully looked at her, Emily grabbed her arm.

And almost as if nestling into Camilla’s embrace, she handed over something round and heavy.

An egg, with a faint pulse emanating from within its opaque shell, holding a warm life.

“…I have something, to give you.”

With a voice as dry and rough as an injured livestock, she entrusted what seemed like a final legacy.

“Fenrich is… Frost Caller. In human terms… river-type, magic…”

Camilla and Veronica’s eyes simultaneously turned to her.

“Water… essential. Without a water source, he weakens… So please, don’t take him near water… Never…”

“You shouldn’t speak anymore.”

Her condition is serious.

Veronica reflexively tried to stop Emily from speaking, but she didn’t stop. Even with her breaking breath, she squeezed out her last strength to spill out words.

“Hatching… *gasp* must be, prevented. Definitely… White-faced people… behind this…”

As if this must absolutely be said.

With eyes that, even as her body crumbled, showed an unbroken will.

“…Fenrich, pitiful.”

Her last strength was spent. After exhaling a labored breath, Emily’s head dropped like a crumbled bonfire.

Lucia, who had approached, checked her pulse. Then, with a dark expression, she spoke.

“She’s alive. For now.”

“…Treat her wounds.”

Veronica requested treatment with a hardened expression. A pure white light descended upon the brutally torn wounds.

The egg had been recovered.

And information about the werewolf magic user had been obtained.

Watching Emily disappear with support, Veronica turned her gaze to look at Camilla. The magician, examining the egg and her blood-stained hands, wore a somewhat dazed expression.

“Hero. What’s your plan now?”

“……”

Camilla silently turned her head.

In the distance, ice and fire danced.

Beyond the window shattered by gunfire, a battle was unfolding. In the chilly air, two figures clashed fiercely.

The werewolf, lunging ferociously, swung his claws, and the Archduke skillfully wielded his longsword to parry the attacks. Frost and flame, roars and metallic sounds mixed to create a harsh cacophony.

The gaze watching the battle passed through the blood-filled apartment interior and ended in the corridor.

Cruelly torn wallpaper, bullet marks on the windows, a blood-soaked sofa.

In the midst of it all, the brief sight of Milo’s corpse crossed her vision.

Strength entered the tips of her clenched fists.

She couldn’t let anyone else get hurt.

The end of this fight.

She had to mark it.

“Let’s go fight.”

*

Camilla said,

“Give up and surrender. This is your final warning.”

Put down your weapons and surrender peacefully. She couldn’t promise to mitigate the punishment, but if he gave up resistance here, she would do her best to provide assistance.

“Don’t you want to save your kin at the very least? Surrender and cooperate with the Rushan Federation’s investigation. Then I’ll also request leniency from the authorities.”

Would the federal judiciary show mercy to werewolves? That’s something no one could be certain of.

They are magical beings outside the framework of law, illegal immigrants, and terrorists. Even if severe punishment were imposed as an example, they wouldn’t even be in a position to express their grievances.

Camilla wasn’t unaware of this.

But persuasion and punishment were clearly different domains, and she wanted to resolve the issue with as little bloodshed as possible.

“There are many werewolves still alive. As the leader, as the commander, you should at least take responsibility for what you’ve done.”

“……”

Fenrich looked at Camilla with dry eyes.

A brief question was spat out towards her.

“You want something.”

The leader’s sharp intuition shone. The girl was now wanting something from him. Beyond simply giving up resistance, she wanted something more.

To this, Camilla nodded readily. She spoke in a calm tone about what she wanted.

“I’d like you to answer my questions.”

Fenrich laughed, as if to say “do as you please.”

Then, taking her hand out of her pocket, Camilla slowly began to speak.

“First of all… what were you planning to do with the ‘egg’?”

“To hatch it.”

“Hatch it?”

“Yes.”

According to Fenrich’s plan, the moment the ‘egg’ cracked, Bahar would be in chaos. More precisely, ‘something’ that would emerge from the ‘egg’ would turn the city into a wasteland.

However, he didn’t reveal what it was or specifically how it would devastate the city.

He just mocked her, as if telling her to find out for herself.

Camilla looked at the ‘egg’ in her arms with a suspicious expression. It seemed like a bluff, but somehow it also looked ominous… Maybe she should just boil and eat it.

“Second question. Who are the ‘white-faced people’ who gave this to you?”

“White-faced people… Kuh… Literally, those with pale white faces.”

Spitting out a mouthful of boiling blood, Fenrich gave a bloody smile. His description of the white-faced people was quite vague.

“Faces without a drop of blood, and terribly unlucky ones. They have a lot and like to wander around. In that sense, they have a lot in common with dark elves.”

“White faces… White-faced people… Could it be referring to elves?”

Fenrich didn’t answer. He just maintained his silence, still smiling. Because of this, Camilla had to suppress the urge to give him a good punch.

Anyway.

“Lastly, the third…”

The lips about to ask the question closed. An uncomfortable silence descended on the area.

As if choosing her words, she stared at Fenrich for a while, maintaining her silence.

“…I’d like you to answer this question carefully.”

“Speak.”

“A family living near the resort. I heard you took werewolves and killed them. Why did you kill those people?”

No answer came.

Fenrich slowly, very slowly, tilted his head.

His blood-stained mouth corner twisted, spreading a deep sneer.

In his eyes, there was neither resignation nor fear. Only mockery, as if everything was laughable.

“Because I was hungry.”

“……”

“Those women… they made a mistake. The barrier set by the grand magician was too strong, and I got angry because I couldn’t get in.”

Camilla’s lips formed a straight line.

“…For such a trivial reason?”

“Lives are lost for such trivial reasons all the time.”

A metallic voice mixed with laughter echoes in the alley.

The werewolf, clutching his nearly severed windpipe, began to laugh loudly.

“War, robbery, murder. Humans kill each other every other day, attaching all sorts of reasons to fulfill their desires. Yet they treat us Lycans as criminals for eating humans because we’re hungry.”

“……”

“You didn’t object to the slaughter!”

You objected to ‘Lycans killing humans’!

Fenrich’s mouth corner twisted.

“Look in the mirror, human. People die every day. What matters isn’t that. It’s not who died, but by whose hand they died.”

“……”

“My father, not understanding this, talked about living among humans. But I’m different.”

We can never become human.

Neither human, nor Lycan.

Living under the same stars.

We’ve come too far to accept each other.

“……”

Fenrich’s words came to an end. The leader of the Lycans laughed, shrugging his shoulders.

It was mockery. A sharp, ice-cold sneer.

Hearing that sound, Camilla slowly raised her head.

Above her head was an endless expanse of stars and the cold night sky; below her feet, the damp darkness of an alley lurking as if to swallow everything whole.

The shining stars twinkled clearly, equally for everyone.

“…Any last words.”

Camilla extended one final kindness.

To her ears, as she looked up at the night sky, Fenrich’s voice clearly flew in.

“I am a Lycan.”

Fenrich rose, growling as if squeezing out his last strength.

Remnants of frost scattered and a roar echoed. A final strike, gathering even the last drop of blood, responded to Fenrich’s call.

Camilla quietly inhaled.

And with that breath,

She drew the final period.

The flame that spread from her fingertips grazed the air and pierced the Lycan’s heart.

Between fire and frost,

Silence finally settled gently over the dying embers.

*

It was around the time I had been sitting for three or four hours after barging into the Royal Intelligence Agency-Military Intelligence Bureau joint undercover office located in downtown Bahar.

-Knock. Knock.

After the knocking sound ended, the office director, who looked quite annoyed, opened the door and came in.

“Well, the federal investigation agency has just gone in.”

“You said that even the magic department here has no way to penetrate the high-risk barrier that appeared in the middle of the capital, which we’ve never heard of before.”

“Well, that’s true. But do we know anything about magic? This isn’t even a department that deals with magic…”

The office director scratched his dark beard and responded in a grumpy tone. Either he was irritated from having to come to work in the middle of the night, or he was annoyed by an outsider visiting and staying in the office.

Maybe both.

Departments tasked with special technical work typically have staff with special backgrounds, unlike other departments. There were many such departments within intelligence agencies.

Even among military personnel, there wasn’t much mixing with this side. That’s why the Military Intelligence Bureau employees working here weren’t particularly welcoming to me.

Plus, coming in the middle of the night to assign work, no wonder the office director was showing his displeasure.

“Director, you’re being too much. I told you during the last directive inspection that it’s problematic to assign work in the middle of the night. With the office staff already short-handed, proceeding like this makes it difficult to carry out operations—”

“Please bear with me, Director. What can we do? The quadrilateral talks are ongoing.”

“Ah… Really, I don’t know why so many incidents are happening during this damn conference period. It’s unbearable.”

“Haha.”

I gathered the surveillance data secured by the Royal Intelligence Agency-Military Intelligence Bureau eavesdropping office and moved to the vehicle.

To attend the emergency meeting at the embassy.

And that morning.

Amidst the breaking news and extras that stirred the entire country, I received a message from an informant.

《I’ve completed everything you asked.

And the priest wants to meet.

Plus, Camilla too.

– Veronica.》

Immediately after confirming the message.

I deleted all the conversation content I had with her.

Then, after breaking and disposing of the pension record card, I even cleared and got rid of the mobile phone.