“You haven’t yet provided me with a detailed account of how exactly you feel about the members that you just met.”
I was still in the company of the president, but rather than the couple's cafe, we were currently inside a modest restaurant. The fact that it was getting late meant that I had no choice but to have dinner with her; however, fortunately, she chose a location where we wouldn’t be able to draw too much attention to ourselves.
"If I'm being completely honest with you, I didn't have very high expectations, but I was really surprised when I saw Inglis Baxrel. I’m still attempting to gain a better understanding of the specifics of how you were able to secure the services of an assistant instructor. My understanding is that all of the employees working within the academy went through the process of signing a contract that prohibited them from being affiliated with any other organization without prior authorization.
"Yes, you are right. Every single person who works within the academy has signed a contract, and Inglis is not an exception. To my good fortune, I was able to find a loophole in the contract. Why do you think I haven’t told you the name of the organization yet?”
In my head, everything started making sense all of a sudden, and I was even able to make an educated estimate about the loophole that the president was talking about, despite the fact that I had no information about the specifics of the contract. “It’s not that you haven’t provided me with the name of the organization yet; rather, it is because the organization does not have a name that is officially recognized, is that correct?”
“I just gave you a little hint, but it seemed that it was enough for you to figure everything out on your own.”
“The question is, however, how exactly did you manage to persuade an assistant instructor to join your side? When I first met him, I noticed that he did not show any interest in the hierarchy of the organization. As a result, my best opinion is that the only reason he is supporting the organization is because of you alone.”
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“Once again, you are exactly right. To tell you the truth, everything happened by pure coincidence. Two years ago, I met a really sick child while I was traveling outside the academy. She was suffering from a rare infection that wasn’t well known at the time. I already knew that someone would be able to develop a cure after a few months, but seeing the girl's condition, I didn’t think that she would even be able to survive for a month. So, I decided to do my best to create the cure myself. After a few days, I was able to make the cure, and the child's condition started improving after the treatment.
“And that child was the daughter of Inglis Baxrel.”
“Yes. However, it wasn't until her recovery that I discovered her father was serving as an assistant at the academy. Since that day, Inglis has been forever grateful to me, and after I explained the purpose of the organization, he promised to help in any way that he could.”
***
“I can clearly see how difficult your life has been over the course of the past week, Veiled Moon. Stop being so on guard and put away those daggers. It is imperative that you get a sufficient amount of rest before starting your mission.”
“What do you mean? Are you unable to detect the presence and killing intent coming from within the hole?”
“Where exactly do you think you are at this very moment? This is a base for assassins. Do you think anyone could come here whenever they want? For the reason that this location is reserved exclusively for expert assassins like yourself, it is only natural that everyone who visits would emit some killing intent.”
Veiled Moon, upon coming to the realization that he had made a mistake, carefully hid his daggers back inside this clothing, and shortly after, a thin man emerged from within the hole.
“You are late.”
“Sorry about that. I got into an unexpected predicament before coming here.”
Veiled Moon could smell fresh blood emanating from the new individual clothes. He could easily guess what type of predicament the guy was alluding to.
“It’s not a problem. I was just explaining to Veiled Moon the content of the mission, and since you are already familiar with the specifics, you didn’t miss anything important. By the way, I forgot to mention this earlier Veiled Moon, but this guy here will be your partner. His name is Savage Serpent, and I’m sure you have already heard about him.”
Veiled Moon's face immediately became perplexed. It was because of the name he just heard. Savage Serpent. It was the name of a notorious criminal across Ephiosa. Even as an assassin, he was repulsed by all the violent crimes that Savage Serpent committed. At least all the individuals Veiled Moon has been assigned to kill died a fast and painless death, but unlike him, Savage Serpent was a real psychopath. He always took pleasure in torturing his targets before killing them slowly.
So, the mention of such a psychopath being on the same mission as him was a little disturbing. “Wait, why do I need a partner? I can easily complete the mission without any assistant.”
“Don’t question me. It’s an order from the higher up.”
Before Veiled Moon could argue back, he found Savage Serpent's hand in front of him, asking for a handshake. “Wow, Veiled Moon, it’s an honor to work with one of the best assassins of Ephiotas.”