I spoke quietly.
"I do need information about them."
Karen watched me without blinking.
"However, I can find it myself."
I crossed my arms.
"And as you know, I'm already close to my target."
The holographic screen in front of Karen still displayed several pieces of data about Green Serpent.
"Only one shift remains."
"Three names."
"Bram, Jax, and Harry."
Karen narrowed her eyes slightly.
"Of course."
She nodded.
"I'm sure you can find them."
Karen leaned back in her chair.
"Those three people."
"Your targets."
I remained silent.
Karen continued.
"However, the shift schedule you found is already useless."
I frowned.
Karen smiled faintly.
"Because they're hunting you now."
Inside my head, Reina spoke.
"Arche."
"What?"
"Ask her what she wants."
...
"If she really knows where those three are, there must be a price."
I gave a small nod.
Then I looked back at Karen.
"What's your objective?"
Karen smiled.
"What do you mean?"
"What do you want in exchange for information about them?"
Karen seemed pleased by the question.
She folded her hands on the table.
"As I said earlier."
"Our goals are quite similar."
I stayed silent.
Karen continued.
"They both involve Green Serpent."
Then her smile changed slightly.
"The difference is..."
"I'm not interested in killing field operatives."
She tapped the table once.
"I want to cut off the serpent's head directly."
I immediately understood what she meant.
Inside my head, Reina spoke flatly.
"In short."
"She wants you to infiltrate Green Serpent's headquarters."
"And kill its leader."
I let out a sigh.
"A suicide mission."
"Agreed."
I looked back at Karen.
"So you want me to infiltrate their headquarters."
"Just for information about three people I was already close to finding myself?"
Karen chuckled.
"Very well."
"What if we raise the price?"
She moved the holographic display.
The previous screen disappeared.
Another recording appeared.
A dark room.
Three people were tied to chairs.
I immediately recognized two of them.
My body stiffened.
Them.
The two bastards who had nearly killed me in Sector F-02.
Reina spoke immediately.
"Arche."
...
"Stay calm."
I didn't answer.
"She's reading your reaction."
"She's fishing for information."
I knew that.
But it was difficult to stay calm.
Karen watched me closely.
Her gaze was sharp.
As if waiting for the slightest change in my expression.
Then she spoke.
"Well?"
"Are you interested in my offer now?"
I remained silent for several seconds.
Then I slowly took Splitfang off my back.
Click.
The rifle rose.
And pointed directly at Karen's head.
The room suddenly fell silent.
Reina panicked.
"Arche!"
"Don't!"
I ignored her.
Strangely enough,
Elthea, standing beside the table, didn't move at all.
She didn't draw a weapon.
She didn't activate her augmented suit.
She did nothing.
As though she had expected this.
I stared straight at Karen.
"If I pull the trigger right now..."
My grip on Splitfang tightened.
"...wouldn't I be able to meet those bastards immediately?"
Karen continued smiling.
There wasn't even a trace of fear on her face.
She even relaxed further into her chair.
Then she answered.
"Why don't you try?"
The room fell silent once more.
Elthea stood beside the table without moving.
Karen remained seated calmly as if an assault rifle wasn't pointed at her head.
Then I pulled the trigger.
BANG!
The bullet shot forward.
But just in front of Karen's face, it stopped.
As if it had struck an invisible wall.
Thin cracks of light appeared in the air.
Reina immediately shouted inside my head.
"Arche! She's a mage!"
My eyes widened.
Magic?
In a place like this?
At that moment, Elthea, who was standing beside the table, spoke casually.
"Wall of Interwoven Mana Threads."
The bullet suspended in front of Karen's face suddenly trembled.
Then it flew off to the side.
With a casual motion, Elthea raised a hand and caught the bullet.
I immediately tightened my grip on Splitfang.
Reina sounded far more panicked than usual.
"This is bad..."
"I never expected a mage in a place like this."
Karen didn't seem bothered in the slightest.
She simply looked at me.
"So you actually pulled the trigger."
Before I could answer, Reina spoke again.
"Arche, bad news!"
"Elthea's magic is already around you."
I became instantly alert.
"What do you mean?"
"She's already sealed you inside this room."
I glanced around.
Nothing had changed.
But Reina's sensors couldn't be wrong.
I asked silently.
"Can you break through it?"
Reina was quiet for a few moments.
Then she answered.
"Yes."
I felt slightly relieved.
But Reina immediately continued.
"And then what?"
"Fight Elthea and every member of The Whisperer outside this room?"
I couldn't argue with that.
Their numbers were unknown.
Their headquarters was deep underground.
If a fight broke out now, my chances of getting out alive were nearly zero.
I shifted my gaze to Elthea.
"Elthea. You said earlier that you wouldn't deceive me."
Elthea's expression became slightly more serious.
"I didn't deceive you, Arche."
"But I never said Karen wouldn't."
Karen immediately sighed.
"How rude."
She rested her chin on her hand.
"I've never deceived anyone."
"This is part of the deal."
"From my perspective, it's a good offer."
She pointed at the holographic screen, which still displayed my three targets.
"You get to meet your targets."
"Erase the bounty."
"And eliminate the source of your problems."
"Green Serpent."
Karen smiled faintly.
"What exactly are you dissatisfied with in this offer?"
I didn't answer immediately.
Reina spoke quietly in my head.
"It seems we've been in their grasp since Sector F-05."
I knew that.
Every secret passage.
Every elevator.
Every route we had taken.
They had been in control from the very beginning.
I let out a long sigh.
Then lowered Splitfang.
"Fine."
Karen raised an eyebrow.
"I'll do it."
Her smile widened slightly.
"However."
I looked directly into her eyes.
"I won't do it alone."
The room fell silent again.
Karen watched me for quite some time.
As though calculating something in her head.
Then she finally smiled.
"Very well."
She leaned back in her chair.
"I'll send support."
"That support will extract you from Green Serpent headquarters after you've successfully killed its leader."
Reina immediately commented.
"She didn't say the support would go in with you."
I noticed that too.
Karen was clearly choosing her words carefully.
I narrowed my eyes.
"Who is the support?"
Karen answered without hesitation.
"An agent of The Whisperer."
I glanced at Elthea.
But Karen immediately shook her head.
"Not Elthea."
Elthea shrugged.
"I'm busy."
Karen continued.
"I can't deploy Elthea for this operation."
"She's my personal bodyguard."
"I need her to remain by my side."
Elthea smiled faintly.
"It's nice hearing that directly from the boss."
Karen ignored the comment.
"The agent accompanying you specializes in a different field."
"They're more than capable of helping you get out once the mission is complete."
Reina immediately commented inside my head.
"She's deliberately withholding both the name and abilities."
"Stay cautious, Arche."
I agreed.
Karen was clearly still hiding a lot of information.
And that meant I had to keep my own secrets as well.