Chapter 227
Chapter 227
The little thief ran along the dark underground passage, carefully scanning her surroundings. She had taken a general antidote to neutralize the poison, just in case. Her breathing was unsteady, her eyes stung with unshed tears. The terrible image of her dear accomplices dying a heroic death flashed through her mind. These memories caused an ache in her heart. She just wanted to lie down and fall asleep. – {Is the sedative taking effect?!}
The girl immediately took out the sound transmitter and called her uncle. «Leon, save me, please! I’m in the secret underground passage, not far from the pier and the lighthouse… They are after me… The royal… Investigators…» – She whispered the last words. The sedative carried her just as far as that, and then she collapsed.
…
The little thief struggled to open her heavy eyelids and saw the familiar gloomy room in the headquarters of the assassins guild. A man was sitting next to her, his head drooping low.
When she saw her uncle, the girl perked up.
«Leon…» – Her voice sounded warm, fond.
Leon was tall and handsome. The slight stubble on his jaw only served to emphasize the masculine strength of his beauty. This man could be entrusted with raising boys because they would grow to be real men under his guidance. He was a man of unbending integrity and fearless courage.
When he noticed that the girl woke up, he breathed a sigh of relief. He squeezed her little hands, and she could feel a heat in them. – «Are you alright, my love? You aren’t hurt, are you?»
The girl was silent. Any memory of what had happened caused her physical pain. – «They sacrificed their lives for me…» – She said quietly and cried. It was for the first time in eight years. She had a deeply-rooted habit of hiding her emotions behind an icy mask of indifference. She had never shown weakness to the world or her accomplices. Only her uncle could see her tears after so many years…
Leon hissed through his clenched teeth furiously:
«The royal investigators are to blame! How dared they dared to hurt you?! I will destroy everybody for you! I will never forgive them!» – His little girl had created the guild almost on her own in the last five years. He knew too well how much effort she had put into her work, and how much she valued the guild. Leon could feel her pain and suffering.
The little thief closed her eyes. What’s done is done. She didn’t want to hear about reprisal he was going to take against her enemies. All she wanted now was a few comforting words and a hug. Unfortunately, uncle never hugged her. She didn’t think he ever would. He always kept his distance. A fool… So many years with her, and he never understood what she needed most.
A few minutes later, the girl wiped her tears, but they did not stop running down her pale cheeks. – «You shouldn’t start a war with the department, or we will perish. Only high-ranking investigators knew about the operation. Our people would have reported everything otherwise. I guess I know the true culprit…»
«Who is it?»
«The investigator in the black mask.» – Her eyes turned icy cold.
«Then I will find the bastard and throw him at your feet! You will avenge the guild and make him regret his crime…» – Leon man said fervently. His words sounded like an oath, like a sentence that he would inevitably execute.
«Thank you, Leon…» – The girl said softly. – «Bring me some hot mead, please… I am parched.»
He nodded understandingly. – «I will, the moon of my life.»
If only he had the willpower to hug her, without crossing the forbidden line…
…
The next morning in the analytics department.
«Fuck, novice, what the hell?!» – Charge yelled at Kyon, spraying spit all over the place. – «Why did you ordered them not to dive into the fucking hole?! Lanai, the bitch, was drugged out of her mind! They would have caught up with her in two seconds! Who do you work for, motherfucker?!»
Kyon answered calmly:
«I will never risk the best security officers to catch a fool who no longer has a guild or people. She could have taken them into a trap, or kill the daredevils on her own. She is powerful enough for that. The casualties wouldn’t have justified the risk. It was wiser to wait until sedative took effect!» – He finished and stubbornly rose his chin.
«Fucking… Shit! You’re a bloody idiot!» – Charge helplessly clenched and unclenched his fists, not daring to punish the promising neophyte who had acted quite wisely, guided exclusively by his cold-hearted calculations and logic.
The security forces descended into the hole a few minutes after Charge’s order, expecting to find Lanai sleeping nearby. They searched the underground passage and all possible exits up and down. However, the girl had mysteriously disappeared! It was a great loss to catch the guild but miss the root of all ills.
Charge understood that his anger was related to his hatred for Lanai. He was even ready to lose several elite security officers just to catch this bitch. Anyway, the neophyte did arrange a successful ambush. They had destroyed the thieves guild. The head of the department should rejoice at this news. But it didn’t get any easier for Charge.
Kyon didn’t care much about all this commotion. He wanted to save the little thief even at the cost of his job. However, everything worked out for the best. The girl had escaped, and he had handled the first “issue” of the kingdom. Vladimir had ordered to capture the thieves guild. He had never mentioned their leader. It was a different story with the robbers. He had to catch their leader by all means. Then the second issue would be solved, and he would get a promotion.
However, Kyon was restless. He was filled with self-hatred, bitterness gnawing at his heart. Lovr had never been a knight in shining armor. He didn’t become an investigator to make the world a better place. He had wiped the thieves guild from off face of the earth following his own ambitions and interests. It was his job, nothing personal. He had effortlessly destroyed something that was extremely important and valuable for the girl, the fruit of her years of hard work. He understood this at the moment when her accomplices started bravely sacrificing themselves one by one to gain at least a second of precious time, fighting the enemy beyond their strength. Their selflessness for the sake of their leader deserved admiration. He couldn’t even imagine how deep he had hurt the girl, he couldn’t save her from the torments. Kyon blamed himself for what he had done. A bitter lump of regret was lodged in his throat.
«Boss, get ready for another operation. It’s time to catch the second brother.» – Kyon said gloomily, rising wearily from his chair.
«The second… Brother?!» – Charge repeated, stunned.
The other investigators bulged their eyes in surprise.
…
Byron was sitting on a stump of the tree, skinning a wolf. He had a big bruise under his eye. He had recently arrived at the robbers’ camp, where Hans gave a “warm welcome” to his little brother. Outraged, Byron could hardly suppress the urge to shoot right in the scoundrel’s hideous face. As a result, they made him do the dirty job – to gut a beast. The other bandits gave the newcomer a hard time, making him a scapegoat. He was trembling with impatience. He couldn’t wait to get a signal from Kyon and finally make his old dream come true.
The sound transmitter vibrated and rang three times.
{FINALLY!} – Byron threw the carcass away and headed for the tent of his archenemy.
Everything was going to run smoothly. Strange as it may seem, the robbers trusted each other. Each of them had a clearly defined rank and responsibilities. No one would dare to do anything against the rules, especially barge into the leader’s tent without good reason.
When Byron entered the tent, he witnessed a most disgusting thing: the bastard was sweating on a badly battered woman who had no more strength to resist him. The former miner turned pale with rage and hatred. This cruel monster must die. It was time to clean up this evil world a little bit.
«What the fuck are you doing here?!» – Hans barked, turning to the intruder.
Byron immediately pulled out a gun and fired.
~bang~
Before Hans knew what had happened, his body tipped over. The fragments of the brain mixed with blood gushed from the hole in his eye. The hours of training had paid off: Byron would never have broken the skull otherwise. It was a perfect hit.
«What’s that noise?!» – The watchman yelled from outside. A second later, he let out the last scream, followed by the death rattle and the crack of broken bones…
A clap was a signal for the elite security officers to step in. They launched an attack, killing everyone mercilessly on their way. The robbers died like cowardly dogs, trying to save their miserable skin at all costs.
The investigator in the frightening black mask walked through the chaos of the massacre with a spring in his step.
Kyon drew aside the curtain and entered the tent, where he found Byron on his knees, his head thrown back. He was crying with happiness.
Kyon picked up the gun (the only evidence). He carefully covered the poor woman with a blanket, took off his mask and patted Byron encouragingly on the shoulder. – «How are you doing?»
Byron’s face radiated endless gratitude. He came up to Kyon and grabbed him in a big bear-hug. – «I am immensely grateful to you, brother! You gave me this powerful weapon, taught me how to use it, and helped me kill Hans… Thanks for everything… You are the best… You are my guardian angel…»
Kyon let out a half-strangled sigh. He could feel the bright part of the nucleus grow increasingly: 10, 30, 50, 60… 70. One more percent, and it would be full. His supporting Byron had paid off! He gave him the whole 70%! It was too much. The nucleus must be less demanding of positive emotions.
After the rush of bright emotions, Kyon found peace in his soul. He had restored his emotional balance. The sudden leap in the light half of the nucleus inspired him to do good and bring happiness.
Synergy helped him restore his mental state to normal. But he had to maintain it at this level because his heart kept wanting what his soul demanded…
«Byron, they are coming after you, but there’s nothing to worry about! I will you out soon. Just tell them that you work for me. It’s all according to our plan. Get it?»
«I get it.» – Byron replied joyfully, finally letting go of the boy.
Kyon absorbed Hans’s soul, left the tent, and began to reap all the advantages of his victory. The second brother’s gang turned out to be very powerful. Their developed souls had quickly filled his nucleus from 60% to 100%.
At the last percent, Kyon felt his whole being infused with unexplainable sensations. They evoked a feeling of omnipotence and omniscience. The strange sensation passed as instantly as it appeared. Now his nucleus was one hundred percent saturated with souls. At the same time, an attempt to absorb additional souls was successful, which means there was still some “place” for them.
Kyon wondered if they wouldn’t be wasted. What would happen to the souls that he had absorbed beyond the norm?
Now, Kyon only needed to get 1% of light and 20% of darkness to complete the first stage of the unique body of the Void. It had to be ready for the tournament! It was a little less than a week before the start.
Meanwhile, the security forces had finished their job. They had destroyed the robbers. The hostages had been given first aid and sent to the department. The only survivor was also sent there as a suspect.
The evening had come.
Kyon called the little thief a couple of times, but she didn’t answer his call. Her silence only aggravated his guilt. His conscience tormented his soul with sharp, poisonous claws. It was unbearable! He should have guessed before that the icy cold girl was somehow connected with the thieves. He could have asked her, after all. He could have made up another beautiful lie, something along the lines of “a gift from his mother to see prophetic dreams” or some other nonsense that would have made her cancel the meeting and begin to trust him completely…
But he had no time for mental self-flagellation. Kyon was working on getting ready for the ambush to capture Sauron.
The head of the analytics department, together with six high-ranking investigators, listened carefully to the neophyte’s plan and nodded sternly. – «I get you, colleague. We all must retire, and you will work alone for the entire department.»
The investigators looked at each other sourly and gave a self-disparaging laugh.
«I mean it. You have destroyed the thieves guild and all the brothers of this slippery bastard! And tomorrow, you are ready to organize an ambush for Sauron himself. Without you, we wouldn’t get rid of this pain in the ass for many years to come. You can fulfill the ten-year norm in a couple of weeks! All these years, being the head of the department, I’ve considered us the best. I thought we’ve been effectively solving the issues in the kingdom. But it turns out that we are inept monkeys compared to you. Damn it!»
«Calm down, sir… There’s no one to blame. Our neophyte is really monstrously talented…» – Rasya gave the boss a reassuring pat on the shoulder.
The high-ranking investigators’ self-esteem had been decreasing since the brilliant new investigator had come. However, the huge rewards that the department kept receiving were gratifying.
«No offence, Charge.» – Kyon said absent-mindedly, his hands crossed behind his head. – «I won’t stay here for long. I am going to build my career and leave you pretty soon. Then everything will return to normal here…»
«I need a drink.» – The head of the department head grunted and left.
Kyon continued to think over the ambush for Sauron. The bastard was always on alert.
At some point, the little thief called. Kyon’s mood instantly soared into the stratosphere. The girl told him that she would be free at three in the morning.