Hugo’s brows furrowed slightly, and Ardel hurried to speak, terrified another ice spear might come flying at him.
“There was a mage who set fire to the land where the monsters were buried... but this person isn’t him.”
“Then who is it?”
“He claims to be Leonardo Blaine, but... he’s not the real one. I don’t know his true name.”
At Ardel’s words, Hugo questioned him, puzzled.
“He says he’s Leonardo Blaine, but he’s someone else?”
“He insists that’s who he is, but he’s completely different from the Leonardo Blaine I know.”
Hugo’s eyes flashed sharply.
“The Leonardo Blaine you know? You’ve seen him in person?”
“Yes. I served briefly in the military... I saw him then. Isn’t the man in this photo Leonardo Blaine? But the one who set fire to the mountain is someone else—a fake using that name.”
“...”
Hugo felt like he’d been smacked in the head. The sloppy methods, the pitifully weak mana—it hadn’t added up for the elusive Leonardo Blaine, who had always slipped through their grasp so cunningly. Now it made sense: a different man entirely.
He’d considered the possibility that his target’s whereabouts were based on false rumors. But to have it confirmed so bluntly—it left him bitterly disappointed.
Chasing Blaine always meant sorting through rumors and impostors, but realizing that this was just another fake left Hugo with a deep sense of fatigue.
Sighing quietly, he rubbed the bridge of his nose and muttered, “So, the fire mage you worked with is someone impersonating Leonardo Blaine.”
“From what I saw... yes, exactly.”
“Does the Count know?”
There had been clear traces of mana inside the Count’s mansion—the kind the fire mage likely possessed. That’s why Hugo had assumed the man was hiding there. But would they go to such lengths for a fake, not the real Blaine?
“...No, he doesn’t know.”
“He doesn’t? You work for the Count. Why wouldn’t you tell him?”
“That’s... even if I did, there’s nothing he could do about it. That man does as he pleases, and the Count’s too timid to rein him in.”
“...”
“And the Count... he’s a coward. Even if he learned the truth, once a contract is signed, he wouldn’t dare make a move. I figured there was no point making him worry more than necessary.”
“A timid man, yet he readily agreed to illegal activity? Using his own territory to store monster corpses?”
Hugo pressed the contradiction, and Ardel fell silent. Despite carrying out the Count’s orders, it was clear Ardel held some loyalty to his employer, mixed with concern.
“Then who told the Count that outsiders were looking for Leonardo Blaine? If the man he knows and the one in the photo I showed are different, how did he know the name?”
“Ah... that was me.”
“You? But this is your first time seeing the photo. Explain. In detail.”
“Yes.”
Ardel exhaled a small breath and began, “While tailing you under the Count’s orders, I saw you questioning the villagers. Afterward, I approached a villager to ask what was said. I didn’t see the photo myself, but when they mentioned ‘a young man with blond hair and golden eyes,’ I suspected you were looking for the real Leonardo Blaine.”
“You thought we heard rumors about the fake, and came looking for the real one.”
“Exactly. So I didn’t reveal he was a fake, but I warned the Count that outsiders were after Leonardo Blaine. If that fake got exposed, the whole operation could unravel.”
“You warned the Count...”
The Count had claimed he heard about it from the Delberg merchant group’s grand master, yet Ardel said he passed on the information.
It was impossible to tell if the Count had lied or genuinely heard something from the Delberg group.
Still, this made it less likely that the two low-ranking merchants Hugo questioned at the tavern had recognized Blaine but pretended not to. That lead was probably false.
At this point, it hardly mattered who relayed the information. But Hugo couldn’t shake a lingering unease about the process.
It could’ve been someone like Ardel, who’d briefly seen the real Blaine... or someone deliberately hiding him in plain sight.
Hugo stood, opened the door to the interrogation room, and stepped outside. As he exited, his communication device suddenly rang.
Mana signals couldn’t pass through the interrogation room walls, but now the call came through. The caller was Flynn.
“What is it?”
—Commander, where are you right now?
Flynn’s voice was tense, clearly agitated, while Hugo replied coolly.
“I’m at the interrogation room, Northern Branch headquarters.”
—C-Commander, I need to tell you something, urgently!
“What is it?”
—The fire mage at the Count’s mansion... it’s not Leonardo Blaine!
“I know.”
—You... knew?
“I interrogated the Count’s water mage. Good work finding out yourself.”
—Ah... I see. Oh, and one more thing! The monsters—they’re all buried underground!
Flynn’s voice boomed loud enough to burst an eardrum. Hugo held the device away slightly, then spoke with rare praise in his tone.
“Good work, Flynn. Now it’s time to finish our job, isn’t it?”
****
Clang!
All entrances, gates, and teleport zones leading into Frost territory were sealed with heavy iron bars. Dozens of Council members stood guard, blocking entry and exit. This was standard procedure for large-scale Council suppression operations.
Currently, battalion-level forces from the Northern Branch were deployed within Frost territory. Temporary tents dotted the area, serving as makeshift investigation headquarters, and civilian movement was strictly controlled.
Ordinarily, a lord’s permission was needed to surround an entire territory. But since Count Servia was directly implicated in illegal activities, the Council exercised its authority to lock everything down.
The sudden military presence left civilians shocked and unnerved.
“Illegally distributed monster corpses are buried near Frost territory! For a swift resolution, we ask for your full cooperation despite any inconvenience! I repeat—”
A Council agent broadcast the message through a massive, mana-powered voice amplifier, the announcement echoing throughout the region. Hearing this, residents gathered in small clusters, their anxiety mounting.
“Monster corpses? Is that for real?”
“See, I told you something shady was going on!”
“We’ve been walking over land filled with buried monsters!? Is that dangerous?”
The bearded man and the nervous, thin man who’d been drinking with Hugo and Flynn the night before were also startled.
Suddenly, Council agents had flooded the village, declaring no one could leave until the investigation ended. Now, the rumors of buried monsters seemed all too real.
Tension rippled through the isolated mountain community. Just then, someone approached them, speaking calmly.
“Don’t worry. Monster corpses nearby won’t harm you directly.”
“...Who are you?”
The smiling newcomer was Flynn. The men blinked in disbelief, studying him.
Gone was his casual look from the tavern. Flynn now wore a pristine white Council uniform, the gold and deep blue insignia gleaming. His silver epaulets sparkled under the light, and his white cloak billowed behind him.
“Allow me to properly introduce myself. Flynn Levernil, Central Branch of the Council.”
“C-Council...?”
The men’s eyes widened as if they might pop out of their heads. Flynn’s black hair and rare silvery green eyes made him unforgettable.
This was undoubtedly the man who’d casually introduced himself as a private investigator the night before.
As they stared in stunned silence, Flynn scratched his head, looking sheepish.
“I was ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) undercover. Couldn’t reveal my identity due to the mission. But don’t worry—we’ve nearly wrapped up the monster corpse investigation. The Council will ensure the residents’ safety.”
“To think young Flynn... a Council officer, no, practically nobility...”
“Oh, no need to call me ‘lord.’”
“Wait, if young Flynn is with the Council, then—”
The bearded man suddenly sensed a chilling presence. Slowly, he looked up to see a man approaching, exuding an overwhelming aura.
The newcomer’s snow-white uniform bore insignia even more ornate than Flynn’s. His dark blue hair shone, and his sharply defined brows framed piercing blue eyes that radiated icy charisma.
Despite the uniform, his broad, powerful frame and decorated shoulders marked him as a high-ranking officer.
The men had sensed his dangerous presence back at the tavern, but seeing him now—fully uniformed in daylight—his authority was even more striking. His cold, noble aura and flawless appearance left even men gasping in admiration.
As Hugo approached with long, steady strides, the men instinctively stepped back. Noticing their reaction, Hugo shifted his gaze to Flynn and spoke curtly.
“Flynn, no time to slack off.”
“Commander, slacking off? I was fulfilling my duty, reassuring the locals.”
Hugo eyed the tense men before him. They hardly looked reassured—but he focused on the task at hand.
“Reassuring civilians is fine, but you have work to do.”
“What work, Commander?”
“I’m delegating part of the command to you. Round up every member of the Delberg merchant group across the territory. We’ll interrogate them one by one, on-site.”
“Yes, understood!”
Flynn snapped a crisp salute and dashed off. As he disappeared, the men left standing near Hugo exchanged nervous glances.
Drunk the night before, they hadn’t grasped the danger. Now, they realized how unreachable this man truly was.
Sensing their discomfort, Hugo glanced toward where Flynn had gone, then fixed his icy gaze on the men, offering a faint nod. Without another word, he turned and strode away.
The suffocating pressure he left behind made the two men instinctively huddle together, only to recoil in awkward embarrassment.
“That guy... also Council. No wonder he felt dangerous.”
“Young Flynn called him ‘Commander.’ With those epaulets, he’s at least a battalion commander, maybe higher.”
“...Battalion commander or higher?”
The thin man thought back to the icy demeanor, his eyes widening with realization.
“Could it be... the rumored Kazad of the Council?”
“...”
A chilling silence descended.
They couldn’t shake the feeling that guess was correct. As they stared in the direction Hugo had walked, their words caught in their throats.
As if ‘he’ had heard them from afar, Hugo’s fierce, frigid eyes locked onto theirs.
The thin man flinched, hand covering his mouth. He vaguely remembered hearing that the man behind that nickname hated it.
Then, in the blink of an eye, the Council officer with the piercing stare vanished—leaving only an oppressive chill behind.
The two men stood frozen in place, unable to move, suffocated by the lingering cold.
