Chapter 19

Vykada took a sharp breath as Ortes appeared suddenly before her.

She was disconcerted, but it wasn’t entirely unexpected. After all, the consensus was that high-ranking mages were notoriously temperamental.

Hadn’t he already announced surprise inspections without warning? In fact, compared to the eccentric old men of Proper Tower, Ortes could be seen as somewhat considerate for announcing his presence and starting the inspection so openly.

The unpredictable disasters who ransacked entire troupes without prior notice or reason were far worse.

“May I have a look at the members’ rooms, Director?”

“Yes…”

Ortes abandoned his initially intimidating demeanor and showed a rather gentlemanly attitude. Following the director’s guidance, he visited each member’s room, conducting one-on-one conversations with them while temporarily excusing the director from the room.

There was no sign of the magical interrogation methods Vykada had feared.

‘Does he have such confidence that he can discern everything just by looking? He might even possess an artifact recording Geryon’s magic for tracking purposes…’

Though thorough in checking each room and individual, Ortes wasn’t oppressive.

“Could you step outside for a moment?”

Again, he requested a one-on-one meeting with the room’s occupant.

“But this one is just an apprentice…”

Despite the mild protest, Ortes’ decision didn’t change. Realizing she couldn’t further provoke him, Vykada obediently nodded.

“You there, please tell everything exactly as it is. Absolutely no concealment!”

***

Most members of the Vykada Wandering Troupe embodied the average mage’s personality of this era.

They craved pleasure, were sadistic, and disregarded life.

Unaffiliated primitive mages indulged in the power and euphoria magic brought, losing control of their bodies – most members of the wandering troupe were like that.

But the member facing me now…

“What brings you here?”

Was completely different.

He looked rather naive, with short brown hair and a small build that gave an innocent impression.

His neatly combed hair and flawless skin showed no signs of injection wounds from classical drug needles or neural terminals for electronic drugs.

A human figure contrasting sharply with the overall atmosphere of the wandering troupe. This sense of alienation stopped my steps.

However, this alone wasn’t enough to confirm his identity.

Even beneath the seemingly ordinary physique, trained minor muscles were visible – they could have developed from doing errands for the troupe.

I slightly opened my eyes. Some functions of these heavy eyes revealed hidden truths.

The flow of magic beneath the skin became visible. Controlling the vision to focus only on the person before me, instead of the world’s magical energy flows.

Excluding the natural magic circuits humans possess, I searched for traces of artificial modifications.

While controlling the unruly vision was difficult, finding remnants of magic was simple.

Underneath the well-trained muscles, the finest physical enhancements were evident – each muscle fiber had been magically imprinted.

Not cheap enchantware that carelessly implanted magic circuits damaging the body, but top-tier enhancements directly inscribed onto living muscle fibers.

Too expensive for an apprentice-level income from a wandering troupe to afford.

‘Hmm. So it really exists.’

An undisclosed risk factor to Mecoonion. The unique physical enhancement method of Blasphemia, the decapitation force directly under the Ten Towers.

‘How should I use this one?’

Most Blasphemia members I’ve encountered so far were assassins targeting Carisia. They knew about Carisia’s abilities and appearance, leaving no room for deception.

‘But the situation is different now.’

This person doesn’t know who I am, nor that Carisia is behind me.

Plenty of room for utilization.

I spoke.

***

“To meet a comrade in such a place.”

“A comrade? What…?”

K17, a member of Blasphemia seeded worldwide by the Ten Towers to enlighten believers of superstitions, was perplexed by this sudden statement.

The man before him was said to be a newly arrived high-ranking official of the local magic tower in this small city. He shouldn’t have any connection with Blasphemia, whose specialty was combating superstition.

An old acquaintance?

No, that wouldn’t be possible. Before joining Blasphemia, K17 had remained alone in a burned-down village, having no hometown left.

“Pleased to meet you, Phlesion. I’m L13.”

Phlesion was the term Blasphemia members used to address each other, similar to “comrade.” The code name consisting only of numbers and letters was also typical for Blasphemia.

The atmosphere changed instantly upon being introduced as L13, prompting K17 to draw his concealed dagger near his thigh and press it against the man’s throat within less than a second.

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it? That’s our standard equipment, isn’t it? Anti-magic gear sharpened by Silver Iron Tower.”

“Shut up.”

As K17 attempted to push the blade deeper, the man pressed his fingertip against the tip of the knife, slowly pushing it away.

“I understand. This kind of action violates our confidentiality agreement, but hear me out, Phlesion.”

“How many agreements have you violated already? Commit suicide to preserve your honor!”

With a calm face devoid of any distortion, he pulled over a chair in the room and sat down casually. There was no trace of caution or hostility in his relaxed posture.

K17 felt a sense of futility from his completely unguarded stance. Such a lack of tension! Such disrespect for the great mission entrusted by the Ten Towers!

“Please sit down too. Here, I go by the name Ortes. And you?”

“…Niobe.”

“Glad to meet you, Niobe. It must be tough work for comrades out here?”

“Tough? While holding such a prestigious position in the magic tower?”

Niobe glared at Ortes as if he were absurd. From Niobe’s perspective, Ortes was an irreverent person who abandoned the Ten Towers’ mission to live comfortably in an outer magic tower.

“Listen carefully. I had my reasons too. If you search my serial number in the Blasphemia branch, you won’t find anything.”

Ortes recounted an old story. An ancient order to investigate suspected believer Caike in Pythos Tower.

Memories of past events flashed through Niobe’s mind. Caike…

“Decades ago?!”

“I came to this city chasing Caike but failed to bring him out of hiding. Isn’t it against our policy to leave a genius who passed through two of the Ten Towers unattended?”

He narrated the operations he conducted over decades to lure Caike out – hacking into Pythos Tower, covertly supporting Lerna or Geryon.

“Who do you think spread rumors about the Artificial Tenth Rank in this city back then?”

But despite all these operations, Caike never appeared.

“I eventually requested to return to headquarters about fifteen years ago.”

“That period…”

Ortes solemnly nodded.

“There was a sin committed by our most radical adherents that we couldn’t capture.”

The lightning magician once designated as the top elimination target for Blasphemia.

He left massive scars throughout the organization during years of clashes and was never captured.

It’s rumored that elite forces of Blasphemia perished together with him in the Screaming Desert, but his body was never found.

“The branch I submitted my return request to was one of those destroyed in that chaos. There was no way to get a reply.”

“So…you continued performing your original mission in Etna City?”

“Exactly. With no response from headquarters, I assumed it meant to continue my work. I only recently learned about that tragic incident.”

The repeated attempts to lure Caike escalated in scale until it resulted in establishing an entire magic tower. Though Ortes’ explanation sounded absurd…

‘It’s convincing!’

Niobe herself was recruited after the lightning magician incident when Blasphemia lost significant manpower.

Blasphemia still hasn’t fully recovered, and it’s common for field operatives to lose contact with branches due to their destruction.

Though it took some time, it wasn’t impossible.

“I’ve lost all means to contact headquarters now. Could you kindly relay the message for me?”

“Hm…hm…”

Niobe hesitated. She had her own assigned mission.

After pondering, Niobe noticed something odd.

“Wait. How did you know I’m from Blasphemia?”

***

The most troublesome question has come up. What excuse should I give Niobe? After brief consideration, I decided to mix truth with lies.

“Because I know our organization well. Niobe, weren’t you sent undercover to verify if this Vykada Wandering Troupe are Bacchus worshippers?”

“…That’s right.”

“I naturally assumed Blasphemia would dispatch a Phlesion to supervise such superstitious activities. And Phlesions always maintain clear minds amidst such hedonism and decadence.”

This answer combined Blasphemia’s behavioral patterns with flattery towards Niobe personally.

Though I know quite a few signals among Blasphemia members, they might have changed due to various incidents.

A mage’s age cannot be judged by appearance, but judging from Niobe’s actions, she clearly belongs to the inexperienced newcomers.

Especially those newcomers who haven’t received proper mental training. A properly trained Blasphemia operative wouldn’t disguise themselves in such an obvious manner revealing their alienation.

Given how humane this young woman appears compared to typical Blasphemia members, she would surely appreciate this answer that satisfies the recognition-seeking nature of new recruits.

***

“Um, um-hum!”

Niobe nodded. It was a pure joy rarely obtainable amidst nightly drug indulgence and sadistic sexual desires satisfied through androids.

“Yeah! Even in this pit of decadence, I tried not to forget my duty as a Blasphemia agent. I really worked hard!”

The pleasure of being acknowledged by a senior in the same field dulled Niobe’s thinking.

An experienced Blasphemia agent might have read between the lines in Ortes’ words – “maintained clear mind” implying “didn’t disguise properly”.

“Remarkable. Is this your first mission?”

“Yeah. This is the first one… Someday, I’ll become one of the purifiers of the Ten Towers!”

Niobe was merely a novice who had just completed her training.

Watching Niobe’s innocent expression, Ortes was confident of success.

‘Blasphemia is one of the organizations with the most knowledge about divine matters. Therefore…’

They were the most suitable candidates for relic tracking.

***