“Come on over! We have precious herbs found only in the southern mountain range!”

“Seafood from Calon just came in! It’s fresh and preserved with ice magic and salt!”

“We’ve also got silk from the Mclain mountain range!!”

Silk was a specialty of our kingdom, too?

Victor walked through the bustling market, scanning his surroundings.

The sudden realization that he was in unfamiliar territory settled in. Even his reflection in a mirror in the general store he passed by seemed strange.

Dark skin, brown hair, blue eyes.

He couldn’t quite get used to this face.

Unfamiliar environment.

Unfamiliar mission.

Unfamiliar face.

After spending the past week in Tahinan, the capital of the Duchy of Tahiti, comparing the information he had with the reality on the ground, he came to one conclusion.

‘Being a spy or an agent is definitely not for everyone.’

It all felt awkward to him.

If it was a relief, it might the fact that 90% of the skills required for this mission were martial prowess.

Had he not been in the guise of a rich foreign nobleman on vacation in the Duchy of Tahiti, he would have attracted suspicious glances in no time.

‘Well, it’s not like I’m not attracting any attention right now, either.’

While turning into an alley, Victor checked on the man who had been following him for about 20 meters.

Casually diverting his eyes, he walked on indifferently.

‘This is bad.’

It was the same man he had met a few days ago, posing as a merchant in the market.

They had had a fairly long conversation as the man recommended various items.

Although the man had changed his disguise, to Victor, who judged people by their energy rather than appearances, it only made him feel more out of place.

Disguised and following – that was troublesome.

‘And there’s no guarantee it’s just him.’

The man had incidentally made enough contact to leave an imprint of his energy in Victor’s memory.

As Victor deliberately surveyed his surroundings, two other suspicious figures, who were always near his accommodation, came to mind.

In a city where intermediary trade thrived and also served as a tourist destination, would outsiders be guarded to this extent?

‘That can’t be right.’

Had information leaked out?

As far as Victor knew, only his lord, himself, Damian, and Dwayne knew about this mission in Mclain.

Add to that one ally who was currently staying with him at the accommodation.

It was impossible for information to have leaked.

Those in Tria who had put up their national treasure as collateral could not possibly know who the executor of their request was.

There was no information leak on that end, either.

After eliminating all the less likely possibilities, only one remained.

“So, thugs trying to rob a wealthy tourist? Ha…”

He had chosen the identity of a noble precisely because he had heard Tahinan had its fair share of such scoundrels.

‘Don’t they say they don’t mess with nobles? Tsk. If I’m not careful, this whole thing might get complicated.’

Carrying a heavier heart, Victor entered the accommodation he had grown accustomed to over the week.

Suitably spacious and luxurious for a visiting nobleman, there was a foreign face inside, waving at him.

“Hey there. So, have you seen the royal castle with your own eyes?”

A handsome man in his thirties, blond hair and a pockmarked face. It was the transformed appearance of the magician Grik, who originally had brown hair, a skinny frame, and a tired face.

Victor responded half a beat late to the still-unfamiliar sight.

“I’ve seen everything there was to see with my own eyes.”

“…I’m not sure what exactly ‘everything’ means, but you’ve confirmed it, right?”

“Yes.”

“You’re familiar with the structure of the royal residence and the strength of the guard force?”

“Yes.”

Despite Victor’s firm response, Grik’s face betrayed a lingering worry.

Being a master mage and a disciple of the golem master Clayton, there was a reason he had come all this way. Though maintaining his transformed state was one reason, the more important one was to ensure this loyal young knight was well-prepared for his mission.

And in the few weeks of preparation, Grik had analyzed intelligence from the ‘Eye of Flame’ spy network created by Damian and realized that the defenses of the royal castle, which he had casually dismissed as being on par with a province, were far from easy to breach.

Even if Victor was an elite knight of the highest class and a prodigy of the century, Grik couldn’t help but worry.

“I mean it when I say this, but wouldn’t it be better to ask for reinforcements now?”

“I’m fine.”

“Really?”

Grik’s concern was evident, but Victor remained calm and nodded.

“You can go back, Lord Grik.”

“What?”

“It seems like flies have started to swarm around me.”

“Flies?”

As Victor mentioned that he had been followed recently, Grik’s expression darkened momentarily.

“Could it be that… the plan has been…?”

“It won’t be. They were utterly lacking in force. I sensed no aura or mana.”

“Hmm…”

Grik, aware of the young knight’s exceptional senses, finally accepted Victor’s explanation.

“Even so, wouldn’t it be better for me to stay? For any unforeseen circumstances?”

He was not keen on embracing that opinion, however.

“If something does happen, it will be easier for me to escape alone.”

“Th-That’s true, but…”

At Victor’s chilling words, even Grik had to concede.

“Didn’t you say the transformation magic would last for a week?”

“…Are you really planning to go alone?”

“That’s the case since I cannot use Lord Grik’s golems.”

As the nagging continued, a faint hint of irritation surfaced on Victor’s stoic face.

After almost a week of maintaining a fixed expression, his cold stare seemed to shrink Grik even more.

“I’m just… worried about you…”

“I will bring back good news. Please return first.”

Facing Victor’s determined gaze, Grik could only nod weakly, his voice dwindling.

Three days later, worrying that street thugs might meddle with his plans, Victor took action at once.

* * *

‘I’ve conducted all the investigations I can do here.’

Wearing a deep navy stealth suit that blended in with the dark night sky, Victor quietly slipped into the shadows.

Now familiar with the shadowy movement techniques of the Ghastly Shadows, his own movements were markedly silent and swift.

He recalled the words of his lord, who had taught him this technique, echoing in his mind again.

– Retreat immediately if things get too difficult. In the worst-case scenario, I can step in myself. Just maintain your disguise.

– Officially, I am recuperating from a serious injury. If I decide to play the assassin, I could be second only to my master. Well, excluding those damned spirits, of course.

He half-smiled.

A king who talks about becoming an assassin was quite unconventional in his initiatives, be it in policy or war.

‘Even if it’s a joke.’

He couldn’t bear the shame if his lord had to get involved in such a mission.

Even if the words were true, if there were even the slightest chance of failure, it was something the king should never do.

Digging deep for resolve, Victor moved through the alley shadows with a small sigh.

The best route he had gathered over the past ten days.

Beyond entering the royal castle, he would need to rely on the information provided by the Eye of Flame, but he had one more ace up his sleeve—the clothes he was wearing.

This stealth suit, enchanted with identity confusion magic, had been worn by those ‘ghosts’ themselves.

Of course, there was a downside.

– For some reason, the magic has been slowly dissipating since its original owner died. I never knew such a thing was possible. The problem is the magickal pattern… Ah, you’re not interested, are you? Sorry about that. Sometimes I mistake you for Lia… – It’s a fascinating artifact that needs study, but with ten samples, we can spare one… It should retain its potency for at least a month. Take it.

According to Clayton, while the effect had a limit, fortunately, there was still enough potency left.

‘Maybe it won’t be as dangerous as I thought.’

As complacency started to creep in, his resolve caught fire all the more.

It wasn’t just out of loyalty—there was personal ambition too.

Facing a certain limit and barely glimpsing a new world beyond, he was left with a severe thirst.

In that brief moment, feeling freed from all limits, it was as though his soul transcended his body, embracing the entire world in an exhilarating rush.

The indescribable omnipotence made him crave more of that fleeting sensation.

Moreover, he felt even more urgency after seeing the queen, who had been on par with him, surpassing those limits before him.

‘I can do it too.’

At the end of that longing, Victor remembered his lord’s, who was effectively his mentor, teachings.

– Your beliefs and life experiences will be reflected in your abilities. If you only wish to become stronger like most knights, you will receive a typical attribute.

– Looking at my own master, this is not necessarily a bad thing. However, having unique attributes can offer more significant potential for strength, and even my master agrees with this fact.

– Furthermore, since you have led a life unlike any other, focus on understanding what you truly desire. This understanding is a precursor to designing your own attributes.

– What if becoming a superhuman doesn’t work out? Ha-ha. You will definitely become a superhuman. I’ll bet on it.

Following these teachings, Victor was able to fully comprehend his beliefs and identify the core thread that ran through his life experiences.

– To influence the timing and the type of your attributes. After seeing His Majesty, I thought everyone could do this. I was convinced I had established a theory of the century.

– But then, I realized something was odd. How can one control the spontaneous emergence of attributes? I started to question it. Mastering the knack for generating aura and yet, regulating the exact moment to break through limits? Just to design attributes? Does that sound like self-restraint? Not a chance!

– It’s like a caterpillar evolving into a person. Can a caterpillar pick when to evolve? You experienced it momentarily, didn’t you? It’s unusual, right? You would want to do it right away if it were possible, right? There you go. His Majesty is the real oddity.

He also deeply resonated with the words of his lord and master, Luther Kyle, the commander who devised the concept of attribute design.

Furthermore.

– By the time this becomes possible, you are already surpassing human limits. However, my theory and His Majesty’s reality led me to one certainty.

– A firm understanding of one’s life and convictions, and a strong desire for them, can be the impetus to exceed human limitations.

– And the more precise this understanding, the clearer the direction beyond those limits will become. Even if you can’t create attributes like His Majesty, it’s possible to enhance whatever attributes you’ll inevitably gain. Teaching the clear path that one must follow – that’s the most significant value of my theory.

According to the explanation provided by Luther Kyle, Victor was the perfect candidate for this theory.

‘Ronian would have only wished to grow stronger. To surpass our lord. But I… I have a dream from childhood.’

And he had a current dream.

He was grateful to the one who helped realize all his dreams and wanted to protect them with all he had.

Victor understood the convictions that had steered his life and knew the path he needed to take. Get full chapters from nοvelfire.net

Thus, what was needed was clear.

‘A life-and-death battle. If I fail… no, no. I won’t fail.’

If it weren’t for this mission, he might have thrown himself into a battlefield or a cursed land to confront a dangerous challenge capable of breaking his limits.

Perhaps he had been a madman in a past life, someone who’d died bursting with frustration from not fighting.

‘Or perhaps a deranged killer.’

Entertaining such whimsical thoughts, he kept moving forward, and soon, the royal castle came into view.

From this point on, a single mistake could be fatal.

He shed the distractions, tightening his senses, when suddenly a cold shiver ran down his spine, a foreign sensation invading him.