Chapter 1456

<Chapter 1456> 1456. Dark Moon

The Invisible Blade was trembling when suddenly a whirl of water erupted around her.

I was pushed back by the rising water and fell over.

I quickly got back up, but she had already put some distance between us. Wrapping herself in the waterproof cloth that covered the machine, she prepared to leap through the window frame. In her two hands, she held a ninja sword and a fox mask.

My mistake. A perfect moment of carelessness.

“Both her hands were in my sight, and I truly believed she had completely submitted after her consistent compliance. Was she just pretending to give in while waiting for her body to recover?”

I clicked my tongue as I prepared for battle. The situation… was bad. While she focused on recovery, I kept using mana to create and move tentacles. On top of that, I hadn’t rested properly after continuously exhausting myself, leaving my body utterly fatigued. My condition was at its worst.

Still, I couldn’t show any weakness in front of the enemy.

Invisible Blade glared at me with deadly intent. Despite her serious expression, her lower half was shaking violently as she squirted love juices from her pussy, making her look rather ridiculous.

“I’ll get you for this. You’ll pay!”

The ninja left behind a clichéd villain line before leaping through the window and escaping. Her figure, wrapped in the waterproof cloth, quickly disappeared from view. I slowly approached the window. There was no way I could chase her now.

On the windows, traces of the fluids she left behind remained.

“This time, she used ninjutsu without forming hand seals again.”

Ninjas don’t have astral magic like wizards. This wasn’t about channeling astral energy to perform ninjutsu.

“If it were just a simple shadow clone, there’s no way I wouldn’t have sensed its presence. Ninjas form hand seals primarily for stealth.”

I moved my fingers around experimentally.

The basic concept of hand seals is rune letters. By expressing runes with hands and fingers, one completes the magical formula. It has clear strengths and weaknesses. The advantage is being able to conceal mana fluctuations and cast spells covertly. The downside is that using hand seals limits spell adaptability.

Another drawback is that practice is required to master hand seals.

“My fingers won’t obey me. Even for a simple first-tier spell, it will take time to activate it with hand seals.”

I know theoretically how to form the seals, but these damn fingers won’t follow my commands.

Then it hit me.

Tongue.

Invisible Blade’s tongue was longer and far more flexible than an average person’s.

“Did she form seals with her tongue? Expressing the magical formula with her tongue isn’t entirely impossible.”

However, it was impossible for me.

My tongue isn’t as long or as flexible as hers.

There’s the option of using mechanical tongues enhanced by skill, but that would be meaningless. Most machines lack mana sensitivity. Even if they did possess it, their limitations as machines would still be evident.

“I guess I should abandon that method. As for hand seals… maybe I’ll practice them whenever I have time. They might come in handy later.”

I discovered Invisible Blade’s secret. Just as I felt satisfied, another concern struck me late—her retaliation.

“She probably won’t come looking for revenge recklessly… but there’s no telling when she might target me. First, I’ll need to set aside half of the money earned from this job…”


“I guess I need to invest in security.”

I have to let Yuria know too. She lives with me, so she could become a target of the Invisible Blade as well. If she decides to leave me because of this, I’ll respect her choice.

“When the time actually comes… can I let her go without any regrets?”

I wasn’t sure.

I gathered my scattered clothes and left the factory that was soaked in all kinds of liquids.

After resting at home until the next day, I headed to X Personnel Agency. Since the job had been successfully completed, my steps were leisurely.

Rose was sitting in front of her desk as usual, glaring at the monitor. But her right arm had changed.

The mechanical arm she used before… no, the crude design of the mechanical prosthetic made me wonder if it even smelled like oil.

But now, her right arm was sleek silver with a futuristic design.

“You’re here? How’s your body holding up?”

“Not bad.”

“Did you get paid?”

“The money hit my account right after the mission ended.”

“With a rich client like that. And said client is satisfied with you. Well, the job wasn’t perfect, but since there was no damage to them in the end…”

“30 million credits just came in.”

“That’s a bonus from the client. Think of it as a tip. It’s rare, but sometimes these cases happen.”

“It’s probably because of the Invisible Blade.”

“Yeah. With the Invisible Blade betraying them, they must’ve had extra funds… and they seemed pleased that you tracked down the Invisible Blade, even though you didn’t catch them.”

Rose told me about the situation that day.

While I was chasing the female ninja, the group that attacked the casino destroyed the building and disappeared.

“A black mage, huh? Everyone underground died. Apparently, they had machines planted in their hearts from the start. When the machines exploded… Anyway, just in case, I’m telling you it’s not your fault.”

“Of course it’s not my fault.”

“Anyway, this matter is over, so don’t worry about it.”

“It’s over…?”

It wasn’t over.

The Invisible Blade is still after my neck.

“Worried about the Invisible Blade?”

“…The job didn’t end well. I’ve made an assassin of this caliber my enemy. My neck gets cold every night.”

I told Yuria about the current situation. She seemed unconcerned. In fact, she was more worried about my stamina. That day, we only ate food that was supposed to boost stamina. And by nightfall, I was squeezed dry.

“Ah, you don’t need to worry about that.”

“Hmm? Did something happen to the Invisible Blade?”

An enraged client who got betrayed probably hired someone else to kill the Invisible Blade. A plausible scenario formed in my mind.

“There was. The broker who introduced the Invisible Blade immediately cut ties with them. As a broker, that was their only option. If they protected the Invisible Blade, their career would be ruined. And since the Invisible Blade is new, there’s no reason to protect them forever. Who knows if this will happen again?”

“…So the female ninja had a falling out with the broker. Got it. Then what?”

“It was Arcotex that handled the cleanup. You know Arcotex, right?”

“No way I wouldn’t. They’re a fairly famous company in Neo London, specializing in magical engineering and mechanization, and they supply products to the military too, right?”

A company I naturally learned about while studying magical engineering.

“The Invisible Blade has ties with Arcotex. Arcotex provides her with products, and she gives them combat data in exchange. At least, that’s the official relationship. To me, it seems like more than that… but I don’t know the details.”

“…”

My gaze went to her right arm.

The futuristic mechanical arm. Though I lack the eye for machinery and can’t make exact judgments, I can tell it’s high-quality.

“Hehe. This is an Arcotex-made mechanical arm. It has tons of functions. Like this!”

Rose grinned foolishly and spread her mechanical hand toward the documents. The papers, which were over 2 meters away, floated into the air and flew toward her mechanical hand. Telekinesis.

“There are other functions too, but this one’s really convenient. No need to get up to grab documents.”


“You really think I’m gonna fall for that? With the psychic amplifier built into my arm, conjuring a simple barrier isn’t even tiring.”

She seems awfully pleased about something. If I let her be, she’d probably keep talking for hours.

“You got it from Arctech, huh? What’s the catch?”

“…I’ve been assigned to oversee Invisible Blade.”

“You’re taking responsibility for that troublemaker?”

“It might get intense to manage her, but wasting such talent would be a shame. Besides, she’s fresh out of training and everyone makes mistakes once in a while, right? Most importantly, she has ties with Arctech. Having connections with a major corporation isn’t bad.”

“What if that woman takes on another double contract?”

“Then all bets are off.”

Rose gave a chilling smile.

She’s not someone to underestimate. Her network holds enough sway to influence the council, at least to some extent. It’s possible Arctech vaguely guessed Rose’s identity and entrusted her with overseeing Invisible Blade for that reason.

“That woman seemed to hold quite the grudge against you. What exactly did you do?”

“…”

“If you don’t want to talk about it, fine. She won’t go as far as trying to kill you, but if she wants to mess with you… well, that’s on you to handle.”

“She won’t.”

Just knowing I don’t have to resort to killing relaxes me already.

“This 130 million we just earned—what’re you planning to spend it on? Isn’t this your first big payout?”

“I already spent it. Bought a factory. I barely have ten million credits left.”

“What kind of factory?”

“A food factory. I plan to produce and sell instant Korean food. Relying solely on chicken has its limits.”

“Korean food? From the ancient Great Korea?”

“Bingo.”

“…Hmm. Do your best, I guess.”

Rose waved her hand with an expression that clearly said she had no expectations whatsoever. She thinks my business will fail.

After exchanging a few casual words with Rose, I left the office.

‘Neo-London citizens aren’t too familiar with Great Korea, huh.’

But wait and see.

I’ll definitely make this work.

‘The problem is that I need more money.’

It costs money to maintain the factory, and it costs money to upgrade it. There are other issues too—taxes, licensing problems.

‘Everyone knows Neo-London’s bureaucrats move slower than molasses unless greased with cash. I’ll need to grease them properly if I want to start producing and selling food within a year.’

For that, I’d need hundreds of millions more credits.

‘With the profits from Youyou Chicken, it’d take years before I can expand the factory.’

Thankfully, I have combat skills.

With this mission completed successfully, lucrative bounty contracts will come rolling in.

‘I need money. Magic research requires money, and so does expanding my business.’

Every penny I earn goes straight into investment—in myself and my business.

If I keep growing like this, one day—I’ll become a major player in this city. No, I *will* become one.

I clenched my fists tightly.

Battle Mage Project.

That project is over. Instructor Venus, the head of the project, had their head chopped off and cryogenically preserved.

But I don’t consider my revenge complete by just taking down Venus.

There are bigger fish higher up the chain that I want dead.

‘Venus couldn’t have carried out a project of that scale alone. The real mastermind is further up the ladder.’

And then there’s the other culprit.

Alpha Tier Pharmaceuticals.

The military of the Frisell Kingdom and a globally influential megacorporation.

Right now, I’m too small to take them on.

‘Those bastards deserve to suffer every bit of pain I went through.’

My vengeance isn’t over yet.

While wandering through the twisted alleys of District X, lost in thoughts of revenge, someone stood in front of me.

A sleek silver cyber-suit covering her entire body. A voluptuous chest, mesmerizing hips and thighs. Her dark brown hair tied into a ponytail, along with a Japanese-style fox mask.

Invisible Blade.

After confirming my barriers were still up, I asked her:

“I heard from Rose that our business is done… What’s going on?”

“If you don’t know, why ask? Remove that thing you embedded in my ass, now.”

“Ah.”