TMLH 16

Chapter 16

For a while, none of the four spoke in the basement—hidden more secretly than any other place, its entrance disguised as a bookshelf.
Caron, Shasha, Perel, and Edith sat in heavy silence.

It was Caron who broke the tension first.

“Take a look. These are the candidates I narrowed down.”

Edith quietly lowered her gaze to the documents Caron slid across the table. They were simple profile sheets.

Caron continued his explanation.

“I filtered among the Stifts for those who basically share my hair and eye color, and focused on newcomers who aren’t widely recognized. Among them… here. This one.”

Caron extended a hand and pointed to a single file spread before Edith.

“Gross Günther. He’s from a small provincial town, not Bern, and he’s older than most rookies, so he doesn’t have many close acquaintances. His build is similar to mine as well.”

As he said, the man in the black-and-white photograph bore a vague resemblance to Caron.

“I’ve already scoped out his residence. I plan to make arrangements the night before and infiltrate while disguised as him.”

Despite Caron’s confident tone, Edith couldn’t shake the heaviness in her chest. A long sigh drifted across the table.

“…Alright. Please keep monitoring him until the operation begins. No unexpected variables.”

“Yes, understood.”

Edith’s gaze shifted toward Perel sitting opposite her. On the way, it briefly brushed past Shasha. When their eyes met, a stiff smile appeared at the corners of Shasha’s eyes. She was clearly forcing it—far too fragile to conceal the worry beneath—which only made it more painful to see.

Sensing the atmosphere, Perel cleared his throat once before speaking.

“The priest-bomb we’ve acquired has an effective blast radius of about fifty feet. After activation, it detonates roughly ten minutes later.”

“Hm… The radius isn’t as large as expected. To be certain, we should install it near the podium. How big is it?”

In response to Edith’s question, Perel raised his hands and gestured a rough circle in the air.

“About this big?”

“Got it. The auditorium is scheduled for cleaning for the next two days, which is essentially the final inspection before the event. I’ll go check if there’s a place to conceal something of that size. I think we should install it the day before.”

“Understood.”

Lastly, Edith unfolded a map she had been sketching little by little over time. It was the interior of City Hall.

“I’ve checked several times, and this seems like the best escape route.”

“But didn’t you say we’d have to pass through an inspection point to go that way?”

The anxious voice belonged to Shasha, who had remained silent until now. Edith’s golden eyes blinked slowly in acknowledgment.

“That’s right. Since it connects directly to the rear exit leading outside, guards are always stationed there.”

“Then how do we—”

Edith’s finger pointed not to a door, but to the outer wall.

Shasha wasn’t the only one who frowned—Caron and Perel did as well.

“You’re suggesting we go over that?”

A wall nearly eight feet high?

As everyone stared in disbelief, the corner of Edith’s lips tilted slightly.

“Of course not. It’s not like we have wings.”

As she spoke, Edith drew a small passage onto the map. It was a drainage sluice she had discovered while cleaning the perimeter the other day. Only then did understanding dawn on them, and small exclamations escaped their lips.

After confirming their routes and individual roles one final time, the meeting came to an end. Thanks to the long preparation, everything was proceeding smoothly according to plan.

Edith returned to her room and opened the window. A cold wind rushed in, scraping against her cheeks. A hazy sigh slipped from between her slightly parted lips.

There were five days left until the operation.

＊＊＊

Zekart, seated at his desk and deeply engrossed in reading, suddenly sensed movement beyond the door.

The sound of the lock disengaging, the front door opening and closing, someone wandering briefly through the living room—then footsteps heading this way. His keen hearing informed him of the uninvited guest’s arrival without needing to look. He closed what he had been reading just before the study door opened.

“…Zekart?”

The familiar voice belonged to Rachel.

Zekart briefly glanced at her standing in the doorway with an indifferent expression, then pulled out an entirely different stack of papers from beside his desk and opened them. As he flipped through a random page without meaning, Rachel walked over, grumbling.

“If someone comes in, you could at least look at them.”

“……”

“Are you busy? I came because I have something to ask.”

He remained silent until she reached the desk, then lifted his head. Instead of answering, he extended his hand toward her.

“Give it to me.”

“…Give you what?”

“The key.”

“Ah… Zekart, that’s—”

Up until then, Rachel had been glaring at him in displeasure, but now she started feigning ignorance. Her dark green eyes dropped and wandered aimlessly over the floor. Of course, Zekart had no intention of letting it slide.

“I’m pretty sure I told you not to come in without permission.”

“I thought you weren’t home. You usually aren’t at this hour.”

“Then you shouldn’t have come in at all. Hand over the key.”

“I really won’t do it again—”

“Rachel.”

His lowered voice carried a warning. In the end, Rachel pulled the key from her pocket and placed it in his palm.

“Don’t you think you’re being a bit cruel?”

“Not really.”

“I told you. We weren’t just partners.”

Zekart let out a low laugh at her protest. Of course, he knew. Ever since he regained consciousness three years ago, she had consistently claimed to be his lover. Someone he loved passionately enough to promise marriage once they completed their ‘cause.’

It wasn’t that he entirely disbelieved her. In fact, he had vaguely wondered if the faint, tear-soaked voice lingering in his memory might have belonged to her.

But—

“I told you too. Let’s just be partners now.”

Unfortunately, Zekart no longer felt anything for Rachel. That was why he had cleanly broken things off immediately after leaving the hospital.

Perhaps it was because his memories were gone. Their first attraction, their kisses, the times they shared each other’s bodies, the longing and yearning—all of it was time that no longer existed for him. It lived only in Rachel’s words.

That was the part Zekart found most ridiculous. Emotions bound to nothing more than memory—how shallow could that be? That was why he had coldly rejected her suggestion to try again. He had no desire to pour effort into reviving feelings that amounted to so little.

“So. What did you want to say?”

Zekart asked as he put the confiscated key into a drawer.

Rachel’s green eyes lingered on the key as it disappeared, then returned to meet his black gaze.

She spoke in a slightly sharp tone.

“What could I possibly say to you as ‘just a partner’? The progress report, obviously.”

“……”

“Is it still not done?”

Though she asked, Rachel had assumed it was already taken care of. Whenever he received an order, he devoted himself to it immediately, and no one handled jobs faster than he did. So surely he had completed it and simply hadn’t told her—he was never the type to volunteer information.

However, after a brief pause, the short answer she heard was completely unexpected.

“Not yet.”

Rachel’s eyes widened.

“Why not? It’s been weeks since you received the order.”

Zekart’s brow tightened slightly.

“Do I need to explain myself?”

Rachel stared at him in disbelief. Sharing mission details was basic protocol between partners. They were paired by the organization to monitor and support each other. No matter how independent he was, he still had a duty to answer, at least regarding the situation.

“Of course you do.”

Zekart remained silent with a dry expression until her gaze began drifting across the desk. Only then did he speak.

“The target moved.”

“Where to?”

“Hasmal. They moved extremely discreetly—it took quite some time to pinpoint their location.”

“Oh.”

Only then did Rachel nod, as if it made sense.

“Well, you could’ve just said so. Making it sound like some big secret. Where in Hasmal—”

“I’ll let you know when it’s handled.”

Rachel, about to ask more, pursed her lips slightly. She understood the implication behind his casual tone.

“Yeah, yeah. I get it. Basically telling me to shut up and leave, right?”

“More or less.”