Ch.91The Fishing Hook Made of Gold (3)

Several weeks had passed.

During this time, Najin wasted time without taking on any special requests. To be more precise, he acted as if he was wasting time in the eyes of others.

A coward afraid of attackers who might come at any moment.

Najin pretended to appear “that way” to those who knew the internal situation. But during those weeks of pretending, Najin never truly wasted his time. He reflected, ruminating on the conversations he had with Charon, Roseline, and Merlin.

On his inner self and mental imagery.

For nearly half a year, Najin had undergone dramatic changes. His life had been completely transformed by a single event, and he had shattered the rules he had lived by for all of 18 years with his own hands, leaving his long-time nest to soar.

While his body had kept up with these rapid changes…

Najin’s soul had not.

The disconnect between soul and body. That was what held Najin back, and what he needed to overcome. What caused this disconnect? After weeks of agonizing, Najin had succeeded in reaching an answer.

The outline was roughly taking shape.

It felt like he could grasp it if he just reached out.

But at the same time, Najin knew.

That answers and enlightenment aren’t so easily obtained. One cannot simply gain answers by sitting cross-legged in a room and meditating. Human growth always requires dramatic situations.

“I’ll just be the beginning.”

“The Order has many hunting dogs at its disposal. Many indeed.”

“They’ll try to kill you tirelessly.”

As if on cue, a good opportunity presented itself. What had been a crisis until recently had now become an unparalleled opportunity, Najin was certain.

“Najin.”

Najin opened his eyes.

“Are you ready?”

When he opened his eyes, a girl with golden eyes was sitting before him. Dieta. Her lips curved into a gentle smile as she asked the question, and Najin nodded.

“I’ve finished my preparations.”

Kapman Theosis had said it.

That no one knows who will become the hunter and who will become the prey. Najin truly affirmed that one sentence he had left behind.

Preparations were complete.

Now, it was time to reverse the roles of prey and hunter.

2.

“First, Jerold Oton.”

Dieta spread her fingers.

“Originally a demon hunter active in the lands of demons. However, he retired from the battlefield for some reason. His whereabouts were unknown after retirement, but it’s confirmed that he’s now active as a bounty hunter.”

On the office table lay four documents. Each document contained a portrait along with brief information, which Dieta was pointing to as she spoke.

“His level is Sword Seeker. Weapon is a greatsword.”

She spread her second finger.

“Second, Klaus Aten. He was formerly the commander of the cavalry unit of the Prolea Kingdom, but disappeared after the unit was disbanded. Weapon is a lance about 3 meters long. Level is Sword Seeker class.”

Third finger.

“Third, Basaus Malek. A soldier who was active on the frontlines adjacent to the magical realm. Weapon is dual swords. Level is Sword Seeker class.”

Finally, the fourth.

“Fourth, Tyler Berkaniman. Leader of the Dissolution Unit, created to execute military deserters. Weapon is a great bow. Level is Sword Seeker class.”

After briefly introducing the four, Dieta exhaled shortly. She tapped the documents on the table with her finger and continued.

“These are roughly the personnel we’ve discovered so far. There are about a dozen others showing suspicious movements, but they’re not Sword Seeker class. Strong individuals who have reached the level of Sword Seeker ‘must’ report their level and information to the Empire… but there was no such reporting for these individuals.”

She handed Najin another document. The document contained a portrait of someone wearing a hood.

“This person is worth noting, but there’s no information about them. Both identity and level are unknown.”

Saying this, Dieta let out a long sigh, as if in disbelief.

“At least four Sword Seekers, ten Sword Experts? Even a noble family’s knight order moving as a group would be less than this? The Arbenia ducal family has three Sword Seekers, but this is just…”

She let out a hollow laugh.

“They’re determined to kill you. I didn’t expect them to make such an extreme move.”

Dieta shook her head. As if she had been quite surprised during her investigation, she clicked her tongue, and Najin also felt surprised watching her. However, the direction of his surprise was somewhat different from Dieta’s.

“…How did you find all this out?”

How did she find all this out?

Najin had also detected “suspicious movements” and gazes during this time, but they amounted to only a few Experts and one Sword Seeker at most. Even that was only possible because of his superhuman senses.

Yet Dieta had succeeded in catching more individuals than Najin, and more accurately. Despite not having the same sharp senses as him.

“I told you. This is my domain.”

To Najin’s surprise, Dieta showed little reaction.

“The greatest influence in Cambria is wielded by my company. The gold coins I scatter can circulate throughout the city in a single night and still have some left over. It took me 5 years to build such a distribution network and control the city’s resources.”

The net spread by the Snake that Swallows the Gold Coins.

“I gather rumors, cast bait, gather informants, and then release gold coins to them to create more rumors. After repeating this several times, things get filtered out. Roughly.”

She rolled a platinum coin on her palm.

“No matter how strong a Sword Seeker is, in this case they’re individuals not affiliated with a group. Even if they have means to communicate with the Order, it would be limited. No matter how excellent they are…”

Dieta grinned.

“They only have one pair of eyes and ears, right? Compared to that, how many informants do you think serve as my eyes and ears? Moreover, they probably don’t even realize they’re my informants.”

The entire city is her eyes and ears.

That’s what Dieta was saying. After hearing “how” she had caught them, Najin clicked his tongue.

-Najin.

‘Yes, Merlin.’

-You know I don’t say this often, right? But the girl in front of you right now—it would be better not to make her your enemy.

‘I think so too.’

Najin agreed with Merlin’s words.

He thought it was truly fortunate that Dieta was an ally, and his first friend. Najin was convinced that if he turned Dieta into an enemy, he would face extremely troublesome and eerie consequences.

“I’m really glad Dieta is my friend.”

“Suddenly?”

“Yes, suddenly.”

Dieta chuckled.

“Well, anyway… once I’ve caught them, getting the next piece of information is simple. Getting information about Sword Seekers is actually quite easy.”

“Easy?”

“Sword Seekers are powerful individuals who could become threats. From a country’s perspective, even if they don’t manage them thoroughly, they need to ‘know’ about these powerful individuals. If a Sword Seeker decides to cause havoc, they could ruin an entire territory in an instant.”

“So whether it’s a knight commander or a unit leader, they try to put them in some position and keep them under management,” she said with a shrug.

“By the time someone reaches Sword Seeker level, there are huge records of their activities, identity, and personal information everywhere. Dig a little and it all comes pouring out. Well, the Royal Guard of the Empire, the Special Forces on the frontlines, and Rangers are exceptions…”

Dieta said nonchalantly.

“But even they are no exception once they retire. Kapman Theosis had all his information disclosed as soon as he retired, right? It’s a kind of check. A warning not to try anything funny. And active Royal Guards and Special Forces… that’s an area the Order can’t approach no matter what they try.”

She explained that while it took time to set the fishing hook, everything after that was quickly wrapped up.

“So what are you going to do?”

“……”

“Even if you reach Sword Seeker level, you’re facing at least four Sword Seekers and a dozen Experts. That’s an extremely difficult opponent to face alone.”

Najin had to admit it. The Order had sent more people than he had thought, and he couldn’t face them all.

“That’s why we made a plan, didn’t we?”

“Right. If you had answered that you’d face them alone, I was ready to grab you by the collar.”

Najin smiled bitterly.

When Dieta had cast her fishing hook and started fishing, Najin had worked with her on several plans. And now, which of those plans would be best in this case?

The two looked at each other and smiled. They were confident they were thinking the same thing.

“Of course, it’s still dangerous even if we do this. In the end, it all depends on how you handle it.”

She flicked the platinum coin she had been rolling in her palm.

“Still, isn’t it a gamble worth taking?”

Najin caught the platinum coin Dieta had flicked.

“Anyway.”

Dieta shook her head as if she couldn’t help it, looking at Najin. In the end, the fact that Najin had to risk his life remained unchanged. All Dieta could do was increase his chances of success a little.

Dieta and Najin rose from their seats.

Now it was time to move according to their agreement. Before doing so, Dieta took a step closer to Najin. After tidying Najin’s disheveled clothes, she pressed the back of her hand firmly against his chest.

“Try not to get hurt, okay?”

“Considering the opponents, that might be difficult.”

“Sigh, how did I end up with someone like this…”

Dieta grumbled. After exhaling deeply, she looked up at Najin and said:

“Don’t die. You can promise that, right?”

“I think I can promise that.”

“Then that’s enough.”

Dieta took a step back.

“Come back safely. And don’t forget to say hello when you do.”

3.

“He’s moving.”

The Order’s hunting dogs hidden in the city whispered. They were scattered throughout the city, moving along its outskirts and gathering information.

Though there were twenty of them acting as the Order’s hunting dogs, they never all gathered in one place. They chose to meet in groups of two or three to share information and then pass that information down.

Five powerful individuals controlling the hunting dogs.

A naturally formed hierarchy and chain of command.

Those who held command had accumulated extensive experience in various battlefields and knew well how ambushes and assassinations should be carried out. That’s why they stealthily waited for an opportunity.

“The date is the night of the 12th, the target is heading north along Ahmeti Road. It’s presumed he’s fulfilling a request, and though there are adventurers accompanying him, they won’t be a hindrance.”

Because they had obtained the list of participants in the request. And there were no dangerous individuals on that list.

“We’ll attack at this location. There must be no variables. The Order has warned us. He’s an individual with variables that could overturn the power difference.”

A youngster who hadn’t even reached Sword Seeker level.

To capture this youngster, five Sword Seeker-level personnel had been deployed. However, those five did not distrust the Order’s judgment. Whether bound by bad blood or some other connection… they knew well how terrible a person High Priest Orlang was.

If he had judged it so.

There must be a reason for it.

They cross-verified the information they had obtained, and above all, carefully checked for any intervention from Dieta’s company. According to the information provided by the Order, the target had formed a friendly relationship with the head of Dieta’s company, so…

“Nothing.”

“Same here.”

But no intervention from the company was confirmed. The request had been issued from the central guild, and the young man named Najin had ventured outside the city to fulfill the minimum number of requests required to maintain his “red grade.”

A request he had to take reluctantly. And based on inquiries about Najin’s range of activities so far, there was no point of contact with the company head.

Though they couldn’t approach the center of the city, Najin was a celebrity in this city, so it wasn’t difficult to grasp his movements. Information about him poured in from all sorts of places, and they collected it.

Of course, one shouldn’t overly trust the flood of information. That’s why they periodically gathered to cross-verify and confirm the information they had collected. And when it was confirmed that all twenty of them had obtained the “same” information, they prepared to move.

The prey had come out of its nest.

Now, it was time for the hunters to move.

They considered themselves hunters and didn’t fundamentally doubt this fact. They weren’t careless, but they thought they had the upper hand.

Therefore, they didn’t know.

That all that information had been fabricated.

That they were being swept along in a flow created by someone.

That golden fishing hooks were threaded through their necks.

And thus, that the roles of hunter and prey had been reversed.