Terlo thought the man might refuse to answer his questions.
The way he had sneered and threatened the captive in the tent had made him look steeped in superiority.
He had seemed as though being a member of More was his true calling.
That sense of satisfaction would naturally lead to loyalty toward the organization.
Even so, Terlo had brought him here because of Connect.
Even if the man refused to speak, Terlo could still hear his honest thoughts.
‘But I didn’t expect him to act like this.’
It was an unexpected result.
The fact that he prioritized his own life was already proof that loyalty meant little to him.
The only question now was how much this small fry knew about the organization he belonged to.
Terlo could simply ask him from here.
‘Still, it’s better to be certain.’
It did not seem likely, but this might be an elaborate act meant to ensure his survival.
<Connect.>
Terlo connected himself to the black form beside the black mage.
The man’s noisy inner thoughts immediately began pouring into his mind.
[Why isn’t he answering? Was cursing really the problem? Damn it! How was I supposed to know someone would drag me here and stand guard over me?! I haven’t even properly spent the money I earned yet. I can’t die like this….]
“Do you want to live? There are a few things I want to know.”
“…….”
[Judging from the voice, he sounds like a brat…. Is he the subordinate of the bastard who ambushed me? If he’s alone, I might be able to take him.]
The man fell silent at Terlo’s words and immediately began entertaining other thoughts.
But anyone who had been captured might think that much.
“Don’t even think about trying anything foolish. Though you can try if you really want to.”
“F-Foolish? I have no intention of doing anything like that. What is it you wish to know from me…?”
“How long have you worked for that organization?”
“Why do you want to know— No, I apologize. A little over twelve months, I think.”
Twelve months meant it had already been more than a year.
Yet he was still handling the work assigned to small fry.
Either his ability was lacking, or he had failed to satisfy what the organization wanted from him.
It had to be one of the two.
‘Probably the former.’
Even so, hearing that he had worked there for a long time was welcome news.
Surely he had learned something about the organization during that time.
“From what I saw, you were threatening someone in that tent.”
“Don’t tell me you were after that man too…. If so, I’m truly sorry, but I’m only a low-ranking member who follows orders! You need to understand that I wasn’t acting on my own!”
From the way he spoke, it seemed more than one person had been after the bloodied man.
‘Is that herb really so extraordinary?’
Terlo found himself curious about the extent of its effects.
He was glad he had learned the location of the alchemist’s shop where the potion was being developed.
“Fine. Then what did you plan to do after learning what they were making?”
“What else would I do? Report it. Our organization handles everything through commissions, so the next task can only be decided after the information reaches the person who commissioned us.”
‘They were commissioned to do it.’
Terlo had assumed they were carrying out these deeds on their own.
Since More had been known in his previous life to act for money, he believed they simply chose profitable crimes to commit.
But when he thought about it, few things were more lucrative than accepting requests for vicious deeds and carrying them out on someone else’s behalf.
‘So that’s how it was.’
After discussing the day’s events in Hook’s office, Terlo had noticed that the things More did differed subtly in nature.
Even when the acts involved similar trades, threats, or collections, the outcomes they sought were all different.
He had wondered how they could carry out such a wide variety of work.
But it made sense if they were fulfilling commissioned requests.
Each client would naturally want something different.
“How do you receive commissions?”
“I don’t know. I only know when things belong to the same commission. Who placed it and why… maybe even the higher-ups don’t know. Anyone who reveals that much while commissioning shady work like this is a madman—no, an idiot.”
Terlo nodded at his answer.
“That makes sense. Then what about the shop workers imprisoned underground? Were they part of the same commission as the threat you were carrying out in the tent?”
“Y-You know about that too?”
The man’s previously relaxed body flinched.
His agitated inner thoughts began ringing out.
[Who the hell is this bastard? How long have they been tracking us? I heard that was a major job. If they learn it was exposed because of me… Damn. Even if I get released by some miracle, I can’t go back.]
‘A major job?’
Considering how many people had been imprisoned underground, it certainly deserved to be called that.
But Terlo still did not know how those people were connected to the alchemist’s potion development.
“I know where the man you were threatening worked. What district were the people imprisoned underground taken from?”
“If I tell you that, I’m really… Ah! You captured the other two bastards who arrived late at the tent too, didn’t you?”
The man asked with sudden hope.
In his thoughts, he muttered that he could simply blame the other two and claim they had talked.
Unfortunately for him, he had been brought here alone.
But there was no way he could know that.
Terlo decided not to crush his hope.
“You ask the obvious.”
The man cheered inwardly and began speaking with slightly rising excitement.
“I helped abduct those bas—no, those people, so I know all about it. I’m not saying this lightly. It was a major job. I’ll tell you, so could you keep the other two and let me go…? I won’t say a word to anyone! If I do, you can hunt me down and kill me then!”
“I’ll know whether it was a major job after I hear it.”
“If it is, you’ll let me go, right? Capturing someone like me again would be nothing for you. I swear I’ll never tell the organization…!”
“You’re being noisy. Just tell me which district.”
The man fell silent and cursed inwardly.
But his mouth offered an apology completely unlike his thoughts.
“S-Sorry…. To answer you, it wasn’t limited to any one district. The abductions spread throughout the entire shopping area centered around that alchemist’s shop. In other words, you should consider the whole area involved.”
“Why?”
“A-As I said, that is beyond what someone at my level would know….”
‘They targeted the shops across the entire area?’
Were the businesses still operating properly?
According to the bloodied man, the alchemist’s shop where he worked was still open for business.
If the other shops also had people remaining to operate them….
‘Then they could still stay open.’
As the herb returned to Terlo’s thoughts, he suddenly remembered the fruit shop owner.
The fruit shop owner who had supposedly sold the herb to the alchemist.
‘Come to think of it, they said the owner of that shop had changed too.’
Should he assume that the shops with no remaining workers had changed owners?
If More was targeting the commercial sector as Hook suspected, then the replacement owners would be the ones who commissioned More to carry out the large-scale abductions.
The reason for the abductions would have been to seize control of the shops.
But the people imprisoned underground had not been limited to shop owners.
‘Ina said there were plenty of employees too.’
Abducting employees would not allow anyone to take over a shop.
If seizing the shops was truly the goal, they should have selected only the owners rather than abducting insignificant employees as well.
Terlo was certain there had to be another reason besides control of the commercial sector.
‘What could it be?’
It would probably be best to investigate the shopping area in person.
But going there without a plan would carry considerable risk.
It might affect their immediate plan to capture More, and the organization could notice that Terlo had come to investigate something.
‘Let’s put it aside for now.’
He had investigated because the connections were suspiciously tangled, but that did not make this matter more important than capturing More.
It would not be too late to consider it after their current plan was complete.
And even if it did become too late, that could not be helped.
One could not catch two rabbits at once.
‘There’s a time and place for greed.’
One thing was now certain.
There was nothing more to gain from the small fry before him.
‘Though he may be useful later.’
Terlo left the basement, abandoning the man who still expected to be released.
The captive’s scream of denial echoed behind him, but Terlo’s steps did not hesitate.
***
The first day of the operation had ended successfully.
After that, days continued that were alike in some ways and different in others.
What remained the same was that the plan continued succeeding.
What differed were the deeds More carried out and the vigilance that rose with each passing day.
The information and items they obtained also accumulated.
The things Terlo chose were valuable, and while their monetary worth was considerable, many were also difficult to obtain.
As always, he was selecting such items today.
“Hmm. I’ll take the box of elixirs and these raw gemstones.”
Hook glanced at the items, then looked sideways at Terlo.
“As expected, you have a good eye, Young Master. Very well.”
Hook showed a trace of reluctance, but since he had decided to take all the money, he could not stop Terlo.
After all, he had personally said Terlo could take any items he wanted instead.
But someone as greedy as Hook would never hand over everything without taking a share for himself.
‘He must’ve already set things aside behind our backs.’
Even so, Terlo had nothing to regret.
He was taking enough for himself as well.
What he regretted was something else….
He had not encountered another magic beast even once.
‘Is it because there haven’t been any major jobs?’
There had been the large-scale abduction in the shopping area.
After that, nothing particularly large had stood out.
Even so, More had strengthened its vigilance each day, which gave Terlo some hope.
But whether he searched places similar to the basement guarded by the caterpillar magic beast or transactions involving important items….
The only things he ever saw were members of More.
‘When I think about it, seeing a magic beast at all is unusual….’
Magic beasts appeared in the Empire and the kingdoms bordering it.
That made it difficult to encounter one in the Doiten Kingdom, which lay on the opposite side of the Empire.
Unless someone captured and brought one here for a specific purpose, there would be no reason to see one.
‘And transporting one doesn’t come cheap.’
No one would pay that price unless the matter was important.
But that meant the large-scale abduction in the shopping area had been important enough to justify it.
More had spent a great deal of money placing the caterpillar magic beast in the basement where the captives were held.
It had to be a commission involving an enormous sum.
‘How much did they agree to pay?’
By now, Terlo had grown even more curious about what those who commissioned the large-scale abduction were after.
What grand undertaking could make them spend such a fortune commissioning More?
Now that he knew this much, he could no longer simply ignore it.
His instincts were screaming that something was there.
‘I’ll investigate as soon as this operation is finished.’
They were approaching the final stage of the plan to capture More.
The time had come to assault the black-robed organization’s main building, the moment Terlo had waited for so long.
He clenched his fist at the thought of the day that would arrive in only a few more days.
Just then,
“Young Master!!”
Ina’s voice stabbed into Terlo’s ears.
Pulled from his thoughts, Terlo looked at her.
“Phew. You finally heard me. Boss Hook called you several times.”
“Ah.”
“What were you thinking about so deeply, Young Master? Is there perhaps something about the distribution that displeases you?”
Hook appeared to have misunderstood because Terlo had become lost in thought while choosing items.
“No. Of course not. I apologize, but why were you calling me?”
“I am glad to hear that. There are only a few days left until our final operation. We have therefore been watching the organization’s main building, and the number of people stationed there has steadily increased. They have begun concentrating their strength at the main building. At this rate, everything appears to be proceeding according to plan.”
A vile smile spread across Hook’s face.
But the news was welcome to Terlo as well.
If More made no preparations and the day of the assault on its main building was delayed, it would benefit no one.
Moreover, Terlo had already decided what he would do next.
The sooner they finish, the better.
“I see. Then we only need to endure a few more days.”
Hook and Ina nodded at Terlo’s words.
At a glance, all three appeared to be thinking the same thing.
But different desires burned in each of their eyes.
A brief silence passed between them.
The day of the decisive battle, once so distant, had drawn close at last.