The chamber lay deep beneath the city, hidden so well that no sunlight could reach it—a place unknown to the people above.
At the center of the room stood a rough wooden table.
A man sat beside it.
He looked to be around forty-five. His white hair was slicked back neatly, and a long vertical scar ran down his left cheek, reaching all the way to his jaw. On the table lay a document sealed with House Bloomward’s mark.
“Look here, man. We don’t know anything about it.”
The man tapped the document with his finger, speaking irritably to the person sitting across from him.
“I’ll ask again,” the man across the table said in a cold voice.
“Tell me everything you know.”
“Man, you said it yourself—it was four years ago. How am I supposed to remember something that old?” the white-haired man snapped.
Then he continued, leaning back.
“I don’t even know how you got your hands on these documents. If you already have them, then why the hell are you asking me? Why don’t you just look into it yourself?”
“They’re useless to me,” the other man replied calmly, leaning forward slightly.
“There’s nothing in them that helps me. That’s why I’m asking you—who gave these documents to you?”
The white-haired man had reached his limit.
“You don’t understand, do you?” he growled.
“I already told you—I don’t know. So get the hell out of here while I’m still telling you nicely, man.”
“You don’t know who we are.”
“Of course I know,” the other man replied.
“You deal in illegal trading, slave trafficking, and killing for money. You commit any act, no matter how vile, as long as it turns a profit.”
The man’s fingers stopped tapping the table.
His jaw tightened, the faint smirk on his face slowly fading.
“You are the head of the underground group called Vipers—one of the most notorious criminal syndicates in the Dravaryn Kingdom.”
“And you’re currently being hunted by the Imperial Knight Order.”
“Isn’t that right… Rohkan?”
said Elion.
Yes—
the man who had been speaking all this time was Elion Goldleaf.
He was in the Dravaryn Kingdom for a reason still unknown.
He was wearing shin-length leather boots, black pants, a gray vest full of pockets, and a brown coat over it. His presence was calm—too calm for a place like this.
And the man sitting across from him was Rohkan, the leader of the Vipers.
The Vipers were a criminal syndicate disguised as a guild, operating deep within the shadows of the underworld. They would commit any act—no matter how vile—if it promised profit.
And such creatures deserved no mercy.
After hearing Elion, Rohkan’s lips and throat went dry.
He stared at Elion seriously now.
“So you knew who we were,” he said slowly,
“and you still came here asking questions?”
A cruel smile spread across his face.
“Even if you pay double the money now, I won’t let you leave this place alive, man.”
Elion smirked faintly.
“Looks like there’s a misunderstanding here,” he said.
“Who said anything about money?”
Rohkan’s eyes narrowed.
“Then let me say it again,” Elion continued calmly.
“Tell me who gave you these documents—
and I’ll only break one or two of your limbs and spare your life, man.”
Rohkan leaned back in his chair, confidence bleeding back into his posture.
“You really have a death wish, huh?” He sneered.
“You think you can mess with us and walk away?”
He raised his hand.
“Kill him.”
Hearing that, two men lunged toward Elion with knives—
But before they could reach him,
two beams of light shot out from his side and pierced straight through the middle of their foreheads.
BAM! BAM!
Without even being able to scream, the two men collapsed on the spot.
It happened in the blink of an eye.
A stream of cold sweat flowed down Rohkan’s cheek—the man who had ordered the attack.
Before he could decide whether to retreat or fight, footsteps echoed from the passage.
More men flooded in—armed with knives and daggers. One of them especially stood out, as he was heavily armed.
“Just who do you think you are?” one man shouted.
“Killing two men doesn’t mean you can take all of us down—”
“Die—urk!”
Elion jabbed a dagger straight into the mouth of that noisy man using telekinesis. When he pulled it out, blood splattered, and the body fell sideways with a thud.
The heavily armored man stepped forward.
His reinforced armor, crafted from black synthetic metal, moved slowly but was incredibly sturdy—armor used by elite great knights.
“DIE!” he roared.
The big man in reinforced armor rushed toward Elion with his arms wide open.
His stomping steps gave off a sense of intimidation, as if he were a rushing tank.
Elion was not panicking or frightened at all.
Until now, his hands had remained tucked casually in his coat pockets. After finally withdrawing them, he took out two Karambit daggers, which had the form of crescent moons, from his waist and held them tightly.
“You’re really going to fight me head-on?” the armored man scoffed.
Then, in the next moment, a terrible pain ripped through his forearm.
Blood gushed from the gap between the plates of his armor.
“Aaaaargh! Wh-what?!”
A dagger pierced between the joints of his armor.
I didn’t even see him move—
Before the thought could finish, a cold brushed against his neck.
“H-help—”
Slash.
Elion slashed his throat cleanly, and the body collapsed onto the ground.
“Get out of the way! I’m gonna fight him!” someone shouted.
But before anyone could reach Elion, chaos erupted.
With a mere thought, invisible force twisted through the air. Daggers rose, flashed, and moved as if alive—guided by his will alone.
Steel sliced through flesh. Throats were pierced before screams could fully form.
One body fell… then another… and another.
In moments, the shouting turned into choking gasps—
until silence claimed the underground hall.
Soon—
Only Rohkan remained.
“Damn it…!” Rohkan shouted.
“Surround him! Kill him!”
But there was no one left.
Realizing that, Rohkan clenched his teeth and charged at Elion himself—
Slash!
A dagger hovering mid-air sliced through his ankle.
Rohkan screamed and collapsed to the floor.
Elion attacked again—
tables, chairs, and debris slammed into Rohkan under the force of telekinesis.
Each impact stole the air from his lungs.
By the time it ended, Rohkan was barely conscious, his body struggling to stay upright.
A dagger shot forward, streaking through the air toward his throat.
“I—I’ll tell you!” Rohkan cried, his voice shaking.
“Please—stop!”
The dagger froze just inches from his neck, humming softly as if waiting for his next breath.
“Speak,” Elion said coldly.
“I-I don’t know who he was,” Rohkan gasped.
“B-but he was from House Bloomward’s… Dark Party.”
“Dark party?” Elion asked.
“Isn’t House Bloomward known for herbs and medicine?”
The dagger drifted closer, its edge grazing his skin.
A thin line of blood slipped down Rohkan’s neck.
“L-looks like you’re… not from this kingdom, are you?” Rohkan muttered weakly.
“That’s why you don’t know…”
“Yes—House Bloomward specializes in herbs and medicine,” he continued.
“But they also have mages in their family.”
“They keep mages in the shadows—handling things no one else ever sees.”
“But the Dark Party is different…”
“It handles the things House Bloomward doesn’t want tied to its name.”
“Only a handful of people even know it exists.”
“So,” Elion said,
“just like the Knight Orders recruit knights, House Bloomward recruits mages—
and the one who gave you the documents was from the dark party.”
“Y-Yes,” Rohkan nodded desperately.
“That’s all I know. Please… let me go.”
Elion stared at him.
“If you had told me earlier,” he said calmly,
“I might have considered letting you live.”
His voice didn’t change—but something in the air did.
“But that option…”
“doesn’t exist anymore.”
The dagger glided across Rohkan’s throat.
As blood spilled onto the floor, Elion turned away.
The underground chamber fell silent.
“So… House Bloomward,” he murmured.
***
As Elion came out of the underground place, a car was already waiting outside.
Veronica stood beside it, her gaze fixed ahead.
Elion approached without slowing.
“Let’s go,” he said.
“Yes, Master,” Veronica replied.
She took the driver’s seat and started the car.
Through the rearview mirror, she stole a quick glance at him.
Elion sat in the back seat, staring thoughtfully out the window.
“Is everything alright, Master?” she asked.
Elion gave a slight nod.
“Yes.”
“I think we should head straight to the manor,” Veronica said.
“You told Lady Evandria you’d be going with her to the event at Flower Castle.”
“Oh… that,” Elion replied, glancing at her through the rearview mirror.
“I completely forgot about it.”
He let out a quiet sigh.
“Alright, let’s go to the manor.”
“Yes, Master.”
The car drove off—
Heading toward Goldleaf Manor,
as shadows slowly swallowed the road behind them.
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