In person, he moved like a ghost. He was getting closer and closer, yet even while I watched him with my own eyes, °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° I couldn’t feel his presence at all.
In the original story, Noance was the greatest assassin in the setting. He approached his targets without anyone noticing and was infamous for a method of killing that left no trace. Because of that, the kingdom considered him Rebel Number One—its highest-priority threat.
Only now did I understand why neither Varen nor I had heard his footsteps.
I swallowed hard and faced Noance. I couldn’t tell whether meeting him at this point was luck or disaster.
When Noance came within a few steps, he lifted his chin at a slant. He was much shorter than me, yet it didn’t feel like he was looking up.
"Never seen your faces before."
Up close, the impression that he was boyish because of his slight build shattered completely. His face was worn with fatigue, and his suspicious eyes carried the weight of experience.
Morpha’s plan hadn’t included us running into a Rebel executive the moment we started looking. And with no professional negotiator here, Varen and I couldn’t open our mouths carelessly.
I meant to bluff that we were passersby looking for a bar and slip out of the alley. I was still picking the right line when Varen did something that hadn’t been agreed on.
"When the third bell rings, sit in the twenty-first chair."
I didn’t know when he’d taken it out, but he held up the Rebels’ note and recited the sentence written on it.
My heart dropped at Varen’s sudden move, but I couldn’t show I was startled. I forced my face to stay blank.
At the appearance of the note that proved we’d seen Rebel evidence, Noance’s eyes narrowed.
"Where did you get that."
"Found it."
Varen’s one-word answer made the back of my neck tighten. I suddenly wanted Morpha here so badly it was unbearable.
Noance stared straight at Varen in Margon’s face. Varen stared down at him without yielding.
The two men—dressed so wildly differently—quietly sized each other up. Then Varen opened his mouth in a rough voice.
"We came to help you."
At that single sentence, both Noance’s eyebrows and mine twitched.
I wasn’t sure whether it was safe to reveal Varen’s identity to the Rebels yet. Tonight’s goal was to assess the Rebels’ strength, nothing more.
If it looked like we could work with them, we planned to build trust slowly and make contact step by step. We couldn’t let Varen’s overeager, rash action ruin that plan.
Then Noance’s eyes flashed coldly as he asked Varen,
"Where are you from?"
"Belze—"
I drove my elbow hard into Varen’s side as he tried to blurt out his hometown. Before the reckless dragon could finish, I cut in first.
"We’re from Beldrop. Reinforcements."
"...Reinforcements?"
The water was already spilled, so I hurriedly recalled what I knew from the original story.
The Rebels operated underground while hiding their identities, organized into cells. They mainly fought guerrilla-style.
Since they specialized in hit-and-run operations, it was common for Rebels not to know one another’s identities. Because of that, joining forces with reinforcements they’d never met wasn’t unusual.
That was why the Rebels always communicated with codes and used code names instead of real names.
"I’m White Shadow. I’m a scout."
In the original story, code names were usually made from two words that made no sense together. They probably thought it sounded cool, but back when I was a reader, I had snorted at it.
I hadn’t expected I’d end up using one of those ridiculous code names myself.
As expected, Varen frowned at me like he had no idea what I was saying. I clamped down on his thick forearm with one hand.
"And this is Blue Lemon."
"......"
"As you can see, he’s the one who does the fighting."
Varen kept opening his mouth like he wanted to protest. Each time, I squeezed his forearm harder with my fingertips to warn him.
After hearing our introductions, Noance stepped back once. With his hands clasped behind his back, he scanned Varen and me again.
He examined Varen—wearing Margon’s face—especially closely. With that blatant stare sticking to him, a murderous edge gathered in Varen’s gaze.
"...I’ve been waiting. Follow me."
Fortunately, Noance turned and led us before the dragon’s eyes could flare.
I didn’t like that he’d accepted my clumsy lie, but either way, it eased my mind, and I let out a tense breath.
Part of me considered taking Varen and running right then, but once Noance had seen us, that wasn’t an option.
I could practically picture Morpha grabbing the back of my neck and launching into a full lecture, but for now, I decided to go with the flow.
As we started walking after Noance, who was moving farther away, Varen stuck his lip out with a sulky face.
"I don’t like it."
After confirming Noance was far enough ahead, I dropped my voice low. I pressed in close to Varen and whispered,
"Even if you don’t like it, endure it. That man is a Rebel executive. For now, we follow and—"
"Why am I Blue Lemon? It doesn’t suit me."
"...It’s refreshing, so it suits you. Come on."
Blue Lemon felt better than dragon peddler, but Varen seemed dissatisfied with the code name I’d slapped onto him.
I patted the shoulder of the unpredictable adolescent dragon and hurried after Noance.
After looping around the building, Noance led us to a side door that connected to a basement. It was hidden in the shadow of the neighboring building, and with stacks of wooden crates piled around it, it wasn’t a noticeable entrance.
Noance opened the door like he was used to it.
"It’s a long walk. It’s dark, so watch your step."
Surprisingly, Noance spoke with a hint of kindness. Varen and I nodded, then stepped inside.
What opened up was a long, narrow corridor. It was only wide enough for one person to pass, so the three of us had no choice but to walk single-file.
There was also damp moisture, as if there were an underground waterway nearby, and the air smelled of stagnant water. A narrow, long corridor reeking of filth, with occasional lights along the way—it reminded me of the underground prison where Varen had been held.
I wasn’t the only one who felt it. When I looked back, Varen was swallowing hard with tension written all over his face.
I didn’t want to touch Varen while he looked like Margon, but I faced forward again and reached my hand back. Varen took it without hesitation.
The rough, crude texture didn’t feel like Varen at all. But the way he grabbed my hand like a lifeline was unmistakably Varen.
I twitched my fingertips and soothed the back of his hand. Right then, the end of the long corridor finally came into view.
"It’s bigger than I expected. I did request reinforcements, but I didn’t think you’d arrive this soon."
Noance spoke as we stopped in front of an old wooden door. I kept my expression stiff.
Unexpectedly running into a Rebel executive and getting swept into the site like this wasn’t necessarily bad.
Tonight’s goal was to assess the Rebels’ strength. Morpha had gone in disguised as a customer, so it would be difficult for them to grasp the Rebels’ size and their operation in full.
But if we infiltrated while playing reinforcements, we could obtain far more information.
"Ceryl, there’s nothing to be nervous about. I’m here."
At Varen’s voice echoing in my head, I let a small smile slip.
Morpha had ordered me to behave and just observe, but with a solid dragon at my back, I wasn’t afraid.
Even as I plunged into the middle of Rebels whose identities I didn’t know, a careless sense of security settled in—thinking it would be fine as long as Varen was with me.
But the moment the closed door opened, the heat in my chest turned to ice.
"Kahahah! That’s it—run! Run for me!!"
"Look at it wobble! I’ll bet a whole bottle of rum it falls right there!"
"Hey, you still don’t trust the master? Like he’d put something that pathetic on stage!"
The reason we hadn’t heard a single sound despite there being enough people to require a line was magic. The instant Noance opened the door, the uproar slammed into me so hard my ears rang.
We had arrived in a wide, empty hall. There were three more arched entrances, but instead of doors, each was covered by a black curtain.
And at each entrance stood one broad-shouldered man. I flinched at the sight of the guards, but relaxed when they acknowledged Noance with a look.
Loud voices spilled from beyond the curtains. The noise was so chaotic I couldn’t even guess whether it was dozens of people.
And at the same time—damn it—I could feel the presence of living things that were not human.
"Hk... hkhek...."
"Kiing... ngg, kiing...."
Panting breaths, as if exhausted. Whimpering cries, trembling with fear. Between them, the intermittent crack of a whip.
My grip tightened on the hand I was holding. When I looked back, Varen was staring beyond the curtain with icy, sunken blue eyes.
"We were short on hands. This is perfect."
Noance didn’t spare even a glance for the circus happening beyond the curtain. He crooked his finger at us and headed toward a door on the opposite wall.
Varen stood there like he’d been nailed in place, so I gave his hand a small shake. Only then did those blue eyes turn toward me.
"It’s okay. You said it yourself. We can save them all tonight."
