Chapter 1 A Rainy Morning in Blierda

It was a drizzly morning in Blierda, and Charing Cross Road at Number 84, the Karky Art Gallery, was bustling with traffic.

The three-story building, built in the sixteenth century of the Solar Calendar, was ancient and elegant, its ivory-white walls adorned with intricate reliefs, and its brick-red roof, covered in layers of ivy, looming faintly in the mist.

The gallery doors were tightly closed, and the "Open" sign in front flickered with a cold light under the dim streetlights, making the surrounding streets seem particularly desolate.

This private art gallery, founded by Harrison Karky, a professor at the Royal Academy of Arts of the Krytian Empire, had been around for nearly a hundred years, changed hands several times, and still maintained the gallery business.

But today, the Karky Art Gallery was not hosting any art salons, but waiting for special guests at any moment.

Eleven o'clock sharp.

"This is the place."

Accompanied by the chatter of young women, the heavy oak door of the gallery with its bronze handle was pushed open.

"Before we knew it, it was already November 4th."

"The Krytian Empire's founding anniversary is at the end of this month. Not only will there be a national celebration, but the Twelve War Gods will also return to Blierda to receive the blessing of the God of War and Swords. I feel like something big will happen that day no matter what."

Hyberia, wearing a navy blue double-breasted trench coat and carrying a Birkin bag, walked gracefully into the gallery. She took off her sunglasses, revealing her noble amber eyes. Antanas and the others followed behind her, chatting casually as they entered the room.

The first thing that caught their eyes was a fountain statue in the style of the Elysia Sanctuary.

Passing through the foyer, the roughly five-hundred-square-meter high-ceilinged exhibition hall was filled with淡黄色 wallpaper with rose patterns on the walls, surrounded by the elegant and luxurious works of famous artists. A branched crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling, illuminating the entire space. A dark red carpeted staircase spiraled upwards, leading to the VIP room on the second floor and the office area on the third floor.

The air was filled with a faint scent of vetiver and cedar, fresh yet dignified.

"Welcome to the Karky Gallery, how may I help you?"

A young clerk in a black uniform with a name tag on his chest came up and respectfully asked the five guests.

"I heard you have two new works by Mr. Mallett here. I'm very interested."

Hyberia replied using translation magic and a standard Blierdan accent, while seemingly inadvertently tapping her left earlobe with her right thumb and forefinger.

"They are 'Return of the Sunset' and 'Melting Sky'. I believe they will become one of Master Mallett's masterpieces. The surrealist style is refreshing. Would you like to take a closer look?"

The clerk cleared his throat and replied in the same soft voice.

"Of course."

Hyberia's lips curled up slightly as she replied to the clerk.

"Please, follow me."

The clerk nodded knowingly.

He respectfully gestured "this way" and led the group through the exhibition hall to the staircase leading to the second floor.

Antanas followed silently.

Although she didn't know what the specific code in Hyberia's and the clerk's conversation meant, the clerk was probably using the paintings to imply whether a meeting was possible today, and whether the person she was looking for was upstairs.

If Hyberia refused, she would come back the next day. If she agreed, she would be taken upstairs to meet the Allied intelligence agent stationed in Blierda.

Stepping onto the staircase covered with a dark red wool carpet, the Ice Witch walked at the back, her slender fingers lightly stroking the carved handrail, her nose filled with a faint smell of old wood.

After thirteen steps, they were in the gallery's second-floor corridor.

On the brown walls, several copper sconces cast a dim halo, and the space became even more secluded.

The clerk led them through the winding corridor and stopped in front of an inconspicuous wooden door at the end.

He took out a mechanically crafted brass key from his pocket, inserted it into the lock, and gently turned it.

With a click, the heavy wooden door slowly opened, revealing the office behind it.

"Miss Unity has been waiting for a long time, please come in."

The clerk stepped aside and made an inviting gesture.

There were already forbidden enchantments here, so they could speak freely.

After the clerk led Hyberia and her group into the office, he gently knocked three times on the bookshelf on the side of the wall, followed by two quick knocks.

"Come in."

A cold female voice came from behind the bookshelf.

The bookshelf mechanism opened, revealing another office connected to the first.

The clerk then took his leave.

Hyberia said goodbye to him, walked through the bookshelf, and Pranai, Antanas, Sinora, and Almis followed closely behind.

They found themselves in a room of about thirty square meters, the ceiling decorated with ancient marble carvings, the curtains drawn tightly, and only the ticking of an antique grandfather clock could be heard.

In the center of the room, a woman in a long black dress sat on a sofa next to a coffee table.

She had a graceful figure and a stern temperament.

Hyberia could tell at a glance that the other party was a powerful veteran.

Even though they were both at the peak of the sixth rank, the other party's combat experience must far exceed her own. If they really fought, she would probably be suppressed by this woman the entire time.

This woman must be Miss Unity—their contact in the Krytian Empire.

As a high-level agent of the Allied intelligence organization, Miss Unity usually used her identity as a gallery manager as a cover, but in reality, she was responsible for coordinating and directing the actions of the Blierda sleeper agents.

"Welcome to Blierda, Hyberia."

Unity looked up, her eyes staring straight at Hyberia.

"Did you encounter any trouble on the way?"

The news Unity received from Florence was that the new secret agent Hyberia would enter the Shadow World once in early October to complete her final upgrade, so Unity had no problem with Hyberia's disappearance after arriving last month.

Strictly speaking, Unity was not Hyberia's superior, but Hyberia's assistant in Blierda. Hyberia was only under the jurisdiction of Florence.

"Everything went smoothly, thanks to your meticulous arrangements."

Hyberia nodded gratefully.

"As your contact in Blierda, I will do my best to provide support in all aspects. This is your temporary contact point. If you encounter any problems or need intelligence, you can come to me at any time."

Unity stood up and motioned for Hyberia and her group to sit down.

"Miss Unity, I heard that you had a task for me last month?"

Hyberia naturally walked over and sat on the sofa opposite Unity, and asked.

Before coming, she had been thinking about what she had briefly chatted about with Unity's subordinates before entering the Shadow World.

This matter seemed to have a fairly high level of intelligence, and Unity could not inform any of her subordinates, only mentioning it after truly meeting Hyberia.

Three weeks ago, it might not have been urgent, just important.

But after so long, it may have become an urgent matter, and Hyberia still felt guilty about her late arrival.

"Yes, you might find this a little absurd when you hear it later..."

Unity admitted, her gaze gradually shifting away from Hyberia and falling on her four companions.

Except for the ice-like pure woman who sat beside Hyberia like a guardian, the other three stood behind the sofa like butlers.

The male steward stood on the far right, tall and straight at about 1.85 meters, with a well-proportioned figure and steady eyes, wearing a sophisticated black butler's suit. Although he exuded a hint of elegance in his gestures, his low-key and noisy, addictive aura seemed to indicate that he could strike and kill someone at any time.

The silent, closed-eyed lady standing behind Hyberia seemed to be the closest to Hyberia, leaning over at any time to put her hand on Hyberia’s shoulder and whisper in her ear. A fitted dress set off her snow-white skin, and the noble lady temperament that came from good breeding could be felt without words.

On the left was a medium-short-haired beauty whose facial features perfectly blended feminine beauty and masculine heroism. Her slender and well-proportioned figure was wrapped in a well-tailored black ladies' suit, undoubtedly making her a unique beauty that people would not forget. The enthusiasm and confidence bursting from those eyes made Unity believe that she was by no means just a vase-like beauty.

Unity secretly considered that none of the assistance sent by the Allied countries in the eastern region this time could be seen through.

The magic aura on their bodies was not strong, and they all seemed to be ordinary people.

But the composure and calmness of their expressions were obviously something that only absolute experts could possess, and they might even be far stronger than Hyberia, the apparent strongest member of the team.

To be able to hide one's strength in front of Unity, one would have to be at least a seventh-order expert or higher.

Unity was a little unsure.

It shouldn't be that exaggerated. It couldn't be that the higher-ups sent four seventh-order reinforcements, right?

She had basically never fought such a luxurious battle.

"Do you need to talk to Miss Hyberia alone?"

Pranai seemed to have read Unity's observation and asked.

Before talking about the next important matter, this Allied Miss Unity might want to ask the four of them to leave for a while.

"No, there's no need. I was just thinking about how to put this in a nutshell. You are reliable assistants guaranteed by Lord Florence. I trust you."

However, Unity did not show any suspicion or wariness.

"And if I'm not mistaken, Miss Hyberia is only responsible for coming forward. You are the real decision-maker, right?"

Unity stared at the Ice Witch beside Hyberia and asked.

Since these four mysteriously documented followers were Hyberia's people, and were guaranteed by Florence, the eldest son of the Artlred family, the Deputy Speaker of the Kingdom United Council, Unity absolutely trusted them.

"That's right."

The Ice Witch sitting next to Hyberia did not deny it.

Although the Ice Witch was also a cleric, she was actually an extra-territorial person from the Northern Continent relative to this Southern Continent war, and it was not easy to explain her identity and position.

The Allied intelligence elite stationed in Blierda had excellent vision and saw at a glance who was truly in charge.

The Ice Witch knew that Florence, the Paladin Commander of their Goddess of Fate Church, mostly had to dress up as a man in her hometown of Canberra, so Unity probably thought of her as a young man.

This was all because Florence was born into the Artlred family, a family of martial arts achievements in the Kingdom of Canberra on the west side of the Southern Continent. After Florence's younger brother was born, Duke Artlred, her father, found that his eldest son had no combat talent, so he identified his eldest daughter, Florence, as the next head of the family to be cultivated.

The only thing the Ice Witch didn't understand was that Loren and Florence, like brothers, didn't have many ways of avoiding suspicion in their interactions.

Obviously, Loren and Florence had lived and died together for so long.

Unfortunately, if the misunderstanding between Loren and Florence was not resolved, there would be no more chance to resolve it.

The Ice Witch was now more willing to believe that Loren was an honest and good-natured person, rather than a mastermind who calculated everything just right.

"Actually, this task still needs to be entrusted to Hyberia, because her identity is that of a chamber of commerce Miss from the Northwest Nixasander Territory, and she is also the only Northwestern Nixasander Territory upper-class female identity that has recently been put to work, and during this time I have done a lot of necessary modifications to her identity."

Unity told the woman in front of her in detail.

"Are there any special things about the upper-class women in the Northwest Nixasander Territory?"

The Ice Witch asked doubtfully.

She couldn't analyze a cause and effect, so she said.

"Have you heard of Professor Landry, who has recently emerged in Blierda?"

Unity threw out another question.

If they knew Professor Landry, it would be easy to explain. If they didn't know, they would have to explain the information about this target figure first.

"Of course, we saw reports about this imperial lackey on the way here."

Hyberia clenched her fists and said fiercely.

She looked at this imperial lackey with great disgust.

"..."

Unity saw Hyberia's attitude and fell into a brief silence.

"Professor Landry is a declining nobleman from the Northwest Nixasander Territory. He currently needs a well-trained woman who can serve as his fiancée, to help him gain the Empire's trust more easily. Your identity is very suitable to be his fiancée from his hometown. I have a way to let you approach him."

Unity picked up the black tea on the coffee table, took a sip, and said in a solemn tone.

The task was certainly dangerous, but it was also an excellent opportunity.

"Miss Unity, do you want me to get close to him and then find a chance to kill him?"

Hyberia asked the question, making a tentative gesture of wiping her neck.

She was a little eager to try assassinating Landry.

"...No, it is to truly play the role of his fake fiancée. This is a cooperation. We want to monitor him. He can't die for the time being."

Unity's dislike for Landry was sincere.

"You don't have to force yourself. You have the right to decide whether to accept this task."

Unity added.

But she seemed to be hiding something again.

"Huh?"

Hyberia frowned slightly, her eyes moving left and right, analyzing this information-filled speech.

Cooperation?

Landry, this imperial person, needed a fiancée. Could it be that he actively sought help from the Allied Unity...?

Hyberia thought carefully for a while, and understood a lot of things in an instant.

The research content of Professor Landry in the Krytian Empire would always be stolen by the Allies, but the Empire could not find out which link was leaking the information.

So, Landry sold the intelligence himself?

"Landry's reputation in the academic circles of the Krytian Empire is growing day by day, and there is a great opportunity waiting for him in the near future. His status and position are likely to jump to become the leader of the new魔能 organization committee to be established by Krytian. At that time, our negotiating position will be completely different. Now is the best opportunity to tie up his interests."

Unity continued.

If Landry became the head of the Krytian New Magic Organization Committee, then he would have extremely high authority in the future imperial military industry.

At the same time, Landry had a good relationship with Director Dex of the Imperial Special Operations Department. After coming to Blierda, he repeatedly made outstanding achievements. He also made great contributions to magic fission. He can be said to be Dex's capable subordinate in his official career. In addition, Landry was able to enter and exit the Imperial Special Operations Department and had a small probability of accessing some rather special information.

Unity felt that Professor Landry was an old fritter with extremely deep plans. He could easily gain the trust of the imperial people around him. He was probably also doing well in the Imperial Special Operations Department and was valued by Director Dex.

Unity, based on her personal judgment, did not want the precious secret agents to go to Landry's side, but if the secret agents were willing, selling Landry a big favor might have even greater rewards.

Landry himself was always sharing information with her, making Unity a little unsure of what Landry was seeking to balance.

"What exactly is Landry thinking?"

The Ice Witch tapped her slender fingers lightly on her knees, lost in thought.

She obviously understood the general situation as well.

"There are also great contradictions within the Krytian Empire. Since the 'Day of Bloodshed,' the aristocratic faction and the civilian faction have often had actions. Landry is undoubtedly a righteous imperial person, but he is suspected of being closer to the nobles. It is likely that he is also an extreme person and wants to start a revolution in the Empire."

Unity spoke of her deduction.

The mysterious man she met on the train that day replaced Landry, and since then Unity had been observing the movements of that mysterious man.

She was very sure that this guy's imperial soul and his enthusiasm for the imperial cause were definitely not acted out.

But he obviously had his own plans as well.

Currently, there was a brief overlap of interests with their Allies.

"I don't know what the force behind Landry is..."

The Ice Witch probably understood Unity's explanation.

Many years ago, the power of the Krytian Empire nobles was too great, and they could even cover the sky with one hand. Most of the power, wealth, and even media resources were in the hands of the nobles.

In addition to oppressing and exploiting the people, some nobles even began to treat civilians as less than human, killing them if they wanted to, and robbing them if they wanted to.

At that time, the most extreme nobles were able to escape punishment constantly, which finally ignited emotions.

The current conflict between the Krytian nobles and the people can be described as very intense. It is said that in addition to some civilians who are very hostile to the nobles, there are even nobles who are hostile to the civilians.

All this was because a large riot really occurred in the Botswana Province of the Krytian Empire many years ago. Many nobles were killed, and that day was called the "Day of Bloodshed."

Desperate, enraged civilians, armed and organized, rushed into the nobles' residences to burn, kill, and loot. In the nobles' homes that were captured, the men were killed directly, and the women were better off dead.

Some of the aristocratic descendants who were lucky enough to escape disappeared, and some inherited the family. The psychological shadow still remained in their memories, and they placed their hatred on all civilians.

It was not until the emperor later established a charter to restrain the nobles, appease the civilians, investigate the nobles involved, and punish the rioters that the completely erupted contradictions at the time were resolved.

For a long time afterwards, the conflict between the Krytian Empire nobles and the civilians improved.

But that was only temporary.

As the huge disaster left over from the "Day of Bloodshed" slowly fermented—the seeds of hatred began to take root and sprout, the internal contradictions of the Krytian Empire have rapidly intensified in recent years.

This is precisely the contradiction between the noble faction and the civilian faction in the Krytian Empire today, so great that it has to start externalizing and transferring the contradiction, indirectly promoting the outbreak of war.

It can be said that the "Day of Bloodshed" in the Krytian Empire twenty years ago has thousands of threads and tens of thousands of connections with the Empire's turmoil, but it is difficult to dig deeper into it again. It is even more difficult for them foreigners to investigate the detailed history of the Day of Bloodshed.

"No matter whether Landry is an extreme person belonging to the noble faction or the civilian faction, for him, we Allies are the best partners. He is engaged in internal strife in the Empire, and we can't wait for internal strife in the Empire."

A pair of eyes in Unity's eyes flashed with a firm light.

For the sake of victory and protecting the compatriots in her hometown, she could use any means.

"Hyberia, I think it's too dangerous. If you want to get close to Landry, he will definitely not allow the four of us to live in his house with you. At that time, we will not be able to protect you. Definitely not."

The Ice Witch shook her head.

She knew the benefits of this task.

But both publicly and privately, she would not agree to let Hyberia take the slightest risk.

"I'm sorry, Miss Unity, I can't accept this task."

Hyberia seemed to have already had an answer.

First of all, it was impossible for her to get engaged to other men, even if it was a fake engagement.

Secondly, she knew very well that her responsibility was to do her best to help the Allies on the premise of ensuring absolute safety.

However, seeing the Ice Witch's attitude, Hyberia was still very touched.

It was different to have her mother love her.

She could clearly feel the Ice Witch's selfishness.

Even if her real mother, Ephathea, was not by her side, Hyberia no longer felt a chill in her heart.

She secretly, and smoothly, grabbed the Ice Witch's hand.

The Ice Witch wanted to take her hand back as a conditioned reflex, but slowly realized Hyberia's thoughts, so she held Hyberia's warm palm in return.

"It doesn't matter, I'll just refuse Landry. If a new task comes up during this time, I'll contact you again."

Unity also breathed a sigh of relief with relief.

This way, she didn't have to let the excellent sleeper agents take risks.

She had a very good impression of this child, Hyberia. She was just like her younger sister in her hometown. She was unwilling from the bottom of her heart to send such a young child into the tiger's mouth.

"Of course, if you change your mind, I can send you to Landry's side at any time, such as if the situation changes... we need to kill him."

Unity exhorted, her voice lowered, and her eyes became sharp.

She had made all the preparations during this period. The identity of this chamber of commerce Miss could become "Landry's fiancé" at any time.

In case Landry's threat began to become greater than the benefits, exceeding their Allied estimates, and was uncontrollable, Unity would consider entrusting Hyberia to take these four powerful men to sneak into Landry's home and take Landry down.

"Of course, if it's to kill him, we won't give him a chance to resist. We will definitely bury him here."

Hyberia nodded knowingly.

She understood the meaning of Unity's hand preparation.

If she were to assassinate Professor Landry from Professor Landry's home, Unity also made a plan for her, which could be acted upon at any time.

For assassination work, Hyberia had the help of four great demons, so she was confident of success.

"Then during the next period, you should rest well in Blierda and familiarize yourself with the environment. If I need you to take action, I will send a painting to your residence. Then I will notify you to come to the gallery to meet."

Seeing Hyberia so confident, Unity also confirmed that her four companions were the kind of experts she had guessed.

As long as they created an opportunity for them to escort the Miss to visit Landry's home, Landry would definitely be dead.

She stood up and thanked these reinforcements.

"No problem, Miss Unity, I was originally a killer."

Hyberia stretched out her hand and shook Unity's hand, once again revealing the coldness that was born from her blood.

She seemed to have already seen Landry's miserable death in her eyes.