Hero’s Downfall Report

10 – A Woman Without Eyes Sees a Man (5)

Anna waited for the continuation. Cain cleared his throat.

“It wasn’t a coincidence that Lily happened to be analyzing that report.”

“Yeah. It was to make you and Lily aware of that matter. To tell you the truth, it was Venice’s suggestion. I don’t know the details to that extent, and I can’t ask. Just like I can’t stop your retirement. I’m not the Emperor.”

Anna’s finger lightly tapped the desk.

“And, I didn’t realize how deeply Lily held you in her heart. If I had known, I would have assigned that child to a different department. I couldn’t let you go through the same pain again. I’m not that heartless.”

Cain looked down at his staff. The oak staff gazed up at its master with watery eyes.

“Cain, can you tell me why the other agents didn’t capture Gots recklessly?”

“Fear of retaliation.”

It was true. The security system of the Imperial Security Bureau, which had to conceal even its origins, had become lax. Verneice’s second defense, showing only fragmented pieces, was a result of that.

But at least, even if one couldn’t reveal who arrested Gots, they could still disclose ‘which family’ did it. Knowing which family made the arrest would lead to inevitable retaliation.

However, it wasn’t Cain. Just being a commoner and the eldest son of an apple tree household was enough. No one bothered to dig deeper. The same went for Vom and Bom.

“Lily might be too afraid to ask, but at least she knows you aren’t the one who arrested Gots.”

“I see. In that case, you’ll understand why Verneice kept you busy. Verneice planned to entrust you with Gots’ arrest from the beginning. There was no one else capable.”

But the deal with the Pope didn’t easily come to fruition, and both Verneice and I… and my husband suffered greatly. If we arrested Gots too soon, our scheme would have been exposed.”

The Imperial Regent. The Emperor’s closest aide. Nicky Brien. His words hinted at the presence of the Emperor behind all of this. Anna blinked her eyes. It seemed like she was trying to hold back tears.

“But I didn’t know you were in so much pain. Maybe because I’m a woman who lacks the eyes to see men. Cain. Kyros… you’ve suffered a lot. Really, you’ve been through a lot all this time. I’m sorry. While you were wearing down like that, I just watched… I’m truly sorry.”

It felt strange. Something wasn’t right.

The moment Cain joined the Imperial Security Bureau, he pledged to do anything for the Empire. And indeed, he did ‘anything.’ Though he learned to wield a staff instead of a sword, he thought he did well enough without it.

Disliking being ignored for being a commoner, he ran twice or thrice as hard as others. Meeting cheerful and enthusiastic subordinates like Vom and Bom was lucky. Lily, though quirky and burdensome, wasn’t a bad kid. At least, not as bad as her skill with a sword was uncertain.

All of that was a journey. Behind all of that was a master, an Empire, and an Emperor. Like the sun looking down on the path of a traveler, so did the Imperial Palace.

However, at the same time, it was a well-crafted path. A complete gray, where one couldn’t gauge what was coincidence and what was fact.

Even at the time when he thought he wasn’t recognized, the Empire was watching him.

Was the oath to dedicate everything to the Empire still valid? Why am I here now?

Like a person waking up from a deep sleep, Cain slowly awakened.

Before him stood a woman burdened with the sun. She had dreamt as grand as the sun itself, but the dream had flowed away in an instant, soon becoming the burden of a lifetime.

“Cain. Anything you regret or find disappointing. Anything like that from your days in the Security Bureau.”

“…Yes.”

“Good.” Anna let out a faint laugh.

“There may not be much time left until your retirement, but if possible, I hope you leave nothing behind. Move forward confidently into a new life. Whatever path you choose, always remember and cherish yourself. Did you say you wanted to grow an apple tree?”

“Yes.”

“If it’s the apples you grow, they will surely taste delicious.” Anna closed her eyes, as if she had already tasted a sweet apple slice.

“I’m already starting to miss it. White flowers, buzzing bees sipping on sweet honey. Over time, the apples will turn red. How proud and satisfied will you look during the harvest season…

For me, it’s just a distant imagination. The joy of harvest. The happiness of living the life I wanted. I, throughout my life… envied those who achieved such a life. In reality, I still do. That’s why I envy you.”

Anna stood up. She extended her hand for a handshake. Cain quickly stood up and held the mentor’s hand. Anna’s hand was warm. She still carried the passion within.

“Now, you can go. Be happy. Always live happily. Leave your work here as memories. Walk away. Don’t hold onto regrets.”

Like this? Is this the end? Sweat formed on Cain’s hand. Anna didn’t let go of his hand. Should he break free? Is he clinging on? Anna seemed a bit awkward in this situation. She approached Cain, gently placing her hand on his waist.

“There will be many challenges, but remember this at least. You faced the test here and passed proudly. You graduated safely and became a member of the Security Bureau, one of the best of the best. It might be a career you can’t boast about openly, but wherever. Whatever you do. Your abilities are more than enough. Don’t forget.”

Whenever Cain struggled, these were the words Anna habitually said. Whenever Cain wanted to give in, these were the words that lifted him up. And these were the words he had told Lily.

When did he say them?

‘If you knew where to find the answers. If you knew who to ask, you surely did that. What you don’t know is where to seek the answers.’

The words he had said echoed back to him.

Cain wanted to find meaning.

The meaning of all the things he did in the Security Bureau.

Was it a worthwhile endeavor, or was it just a mundane task?

The answer is undoubtedly clear.

“One.”

“Huh?”

“Just one. I will undertake one more incident.”

Anna let go of Cain’s hand and stepped back. Cain’s body was trembling slightly. His words were stuttered.

“Professor, I… want to know the answer. The meaning of what I’ve done. Not the aftermath of my actions, but what it meant to myself.”

“Like a pebble finding its own answer at the bottom of the lake?”

Cain couldn’t make such a metaphor. He didn’t know how to express it that way.

“Yes.”

Anna closed her eyes and clasped her hands together. It was a familiar gesture. A praying posture. If you were from the Empire, if you were a follower of the sect, you would know.

But Cain had never seen Anna pray. Of course, he hadn’t spent that much time with Anna, but this was the first time he had seen her pray.

“Truly, the gods have not abandoned the Empire.”

Anna’s chest swelled. She took a deep breath, inhaling and exhaling. Her words seemed like the kind that even she couldn’t easily articulate.

“Cain, there is one thing I hope you would take care of. In fact, it was something I had in mind when I heard about your retirement, and I was worried.”

“What is it?”

“Something only you can do.”

Anna was not one to exaggerate. She disliked attaching unnecessary grandiloquence. So, her words were a simple truth.

“Only you, in this vast Empire, can do this. It involves the past, present, and future of the Empire. It is something that carries the hopes of everyone, dark and painful as it may be. But I couldn’t imagine anyone else but you. No one else in the Empire knows your homeland until you speak it aloud.

Your experience, your wisdom, and a person I know I can trust. You are the only one who meets all these conditions, Cain. However, the final decision lies with you. Once you hear it, there’s no turning back.”

It was the word I heard when I was trying to issue a secret certificate. If you submit it, your life as an agent will end. Lily ran away with it. Godfrey provoked him, and all these things… Is it someone’s design? Or is it just a coincidence?

“I’m listening.”

Anna bit her lower lip. Blood came out slightly, fiercely. Anna did not hide her hesitation.

“Take a seat.”

Cain said so. Anna took an envelope out of the drawer. It was filled with the Pope’s letter, the artist’s sketch, and thick reports.

“I believe you already know the story of the seven heroes who defeated the Demon King. It’s a story that even appears in children’s fairy tales. You won’t say you don’t know.”

“I know.”

It is a famous story, and a recent popular story. Isn’t the story of a hero always a source of dreams and hope for people in difficult situations?

“Two of them were attacked. When it was one, I thought it was a coincidence because the Pope concealed it deeply. But when it became two, the Emperor’s Guard captured the incident, and the Pope could no longer hide it.”

In the past, when the Emperor’s power was stronger than it is now, the royal family operated the “Guard Corps”.

Espionage. Security. Counterintelligence. Assassination and murder… It was so powerful that it was called the “Emperor’s Dagger”. But when the era of the nobles came, the Guard Corps was reduced to a guard only for the safety of the royal family, and instead, the Security Bureau was newly established.

The Guard Corps and the Guards are loyal to the royal family. But the Security Bureau is loyal to the empire. The difference was subtle but decisive. However, if the Guards wanted to, they could operate more secretly than the Security Bureau.

Even the materials Anna showed were like that. These materials were collected by the Guards, not the Security Bureau. The difference in level was still vivid.

“The first one is Apostle of Temperance, Aries, the head of the monastery. The Pope never revealed where he was found, but it is presumed to be in the eastern city of Mocheo. You know… It seems almost certain that it was the ship at the Venetian Pearl Dock.”

It sounds like a ship, but it is actually a pleasure boat disguised as a ship.

“I know.”

“Of course, this is the Guards’ estimate. The time is six months ago, on a Thursday night. If you look at the records of arrivals and departures.”

And recently, also on a Thursday night, near the estate of Count Laurence, Sir William, the Knight of Chastity, was attacked. Count Laurence became disabled in the Eastern Conflict five years ago and his wife is taking care of his affairs. There is testimony that the Countess confessed her faith to the Bishop.

Unlike Aries, the situation of the Bishop is clear. There were 30 members of the Pope’s Knights, including 17 guards, servants, and employees, two diocesan priests, one monk, and two nuns, and the Bishop himself.

Late at night. Seven heroes. It’s not a coincidence. It’s an attack by someone. But it doesn’t make sense. Venetia is a foreign country, and we can’t know what happened on the pleasure ship in detail, so let’s assume that’s the case. However, the Archbishop’s group exceeds fifty people. Furthermore,

“I don’t understand.” Cain gripped the desk with his fingers.

“If more than fifty people were attacked, there must have been a similar military group involved. But they are noisy and careless. Someone should have escaped and testified about the situation. But the fact that the Guardia caught on to something that even the Security Bureau didn’t know means that this was also concealed. As far as I know, there is no such exceptional group of assassins.”

“Because it’s not the work of assassins.”

Anna clenched her fist.

“Manager Cain. There are no casualties. They are all alive.”

“…Did you say they are alive?”

“Yes. They are alive.”

Anna unfolded some documents and showed a sketch by a painter. To Cain, they all looked strange.

“Crushed grass? Or dismembered animals? Or perhaps a sketch of the crime scene?”

“They are people.”

Anna was furious.

“Manager Cain. They are all people. Their eyes were gouged out, their tongues were pulled out, and lead was poured into their ears. After breaking all their bones, they were forcibly put back together. According to the doctor, even if their bones are broken again and put back together, recovery cannot be guaranteed.”

That can’t be true.

That can’t be true. Crushed grapes. A discarded bag. A broken ink bottle on the floor. Chopped wood fragments. Even if a dog was hit by a carriage and died on the road,

It can’t be a person.

“Bishop William said something incomprehensible. He laughed or cried, and the doctors diagnosed him as having the mind of a three-year-old. He couldn’t control his bladder or bowels… With his ribs stuck in his lungs like wings… he is alive.”

The heroes.

The heroes who are the dreams and hopes of the people.

The heroes who are the torches of the collapsing empire.

Trampled miserably.

“Whose deed is this? Why? For what reason? How, with what, and why did this happen? Uncover the truth. That is your duty. The cruel, demonic being… why it deceives the past heroes. The last hope of the empire should not be further damaged. Dare to reveal who is trying to break the empire’s final resolve.”

Blood dripped from Anna’s burst lips. She endured. She persevered.

“Protect the empire. The faith of ordinary people. The hope in the trivial everyday. Guard them.”