Chapter 171 : Chapter 171

Chapter 171

The ‍​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌‌​‌‍Bureau of Superpowers headquarters in Seoul's District 2.

In ‍​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍the office of Special Affairs Division Chief Baek Dojun.

Kim ‍​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍Seyeon, who was about to leave for the day, approached Baek Dojun's desk.

"Chief?"

Baek ‍​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍Dojun was besieged by piles of documents.

Both ‍​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍mentally and physically.

Even without this, it was a busy period, but the territory war of the Psychic Mafia had thrown public sentiment into chaos.

As a result, even Baek Dojun, who usually remained consistently optimistic, had no choice but to devote himself seriously to his work.

"What is it?"

His answer came only after a full minute had passed.

Surprisingly, this was a very natural reaction for Baek Dojun when he was focused on something.

"I am referring to the probationary investigator, Ji Seokhyeon, whom I mentioned this morning."

"I believe that discussion was already concluded?"

"No, the administrative processing has already been completed. However, I am curious as to why he is leaving the Special Affairs Division."

"Officially? Or personally?"

"It is a personal question. While it is true that he is an outstanding awakened being, I do not understand why he would leave the Special Affairs Division in the current situation."

"It seems as though you already know the reason?"

"Pardon?"

"It is only natural for an outstanding awakened being to jump out of the well. Is it not?"

"……That may be true, but."

"I would rather ask you in return. Why do you have a reason to be curious about someone else's career? Are you perhaps feeling regrettable because it seems that young man did not find his calling in the Special Affairs Division?"

"It is something like that."

"I am quite surprised. I did not realize you possessed such a strong sense of belonging."

His tone was slightly sarcastic.

Kim Seyeon did not react much and continued speaking indifferently.

"The more talented individuals we have, the better it is."

"I see."

"So, I was wondering, do you happen to know?"

"Know what?"

"The whereabouts of former probationary investigator Ji Seokhyeon."

Baek Dojun moved his gaze from the documents and looked up at Kim Seyeon.

"What makes you think I would know? Do you think I gave that young man some kind of motivation or influence?"

"It is not that. It is just that… since he is a talented person who could return at any time, I intend to keep an eye on any news regarding him."

"What a remarkable sense of company loyalty. I am sorry, but I do not know his whereabouts. Did you not inform me yourself that he took a leave of absence? If you wish to watch him that badly, find out for yourself. An aide to the Special Affairs Division Chief should have at least that much information-gathering capability."

"……."

"If you have no further business, please go home. Thank you for your hard work until late today."

***

I followed Bruno and moved toward Catalina’s hideout.

To be honest, I did not expect the prideful Bruno to accept my help so readily.

Of course, it was likely because he was that desperate.

"There is one thing I want to ask."

"What is it?"

"You do not seem to have any questions regarding my identity. Furthermore, you must have many things you are curious about regarding the Phantom Thief who appeared recently."

"I have no interest in you. That is all."

"Does that mean your mind is filled with nothing but the thought of getting revenge on me?"

Bruno did not answer.

"Well, I welcome that. A clean relationship is more comfortable than being unnecessarily entangled."

"Since the topic has come up, let me ask one thing."

"Anything."

"Are you truly of the Hyun Clan's bloodline?"

"That fact seems to be important to you."

"I simply wish to confirm it."

To confirm it, huh…….

I wondered what kind of narrative the Avid Reader had bestowed upon Bruno.

The moment I was about to answer, the sound of an explosion suddenly erupted from a distance not far away.

We quickly ran toward the source of the sound and encountered a mafia member running toward us.

"B-Big brother! The Camellia bastards are attacking right now……!"

"……!"

A Camellia attack?

Were they not satisfied with winning the territory war?

Bruno cast a suspicious glance at me.

"Did you perhaps lure me out on purpose?"

"It wasn't me. I have no reason to do that. Besides, if I were going to attack you, I would have killed you in that building earlier."

"……."

Coincidentally, I had come under suspicion, but I had no proper excuse.

Without letting go of his suspicion, Bruno ran toward the direction of the explosion.

When I arrived after following him a moment later, casualties were already occurring everywhere.

However, something strange caught my eye.

It was the fact that no one from Camellia could be seen at the scene.

Did this mean it was not a simple attack meant for extermination?

Bruno shouted.

"Where are the Camellia bastards! Is everyone alright!"

"B-Big brother! Those bastards! They……!"

"Calm down! What on earth happened!"

"They stole the boss's corpse!"

"……!"

As soon as I heard those words, I used my Demonic Eye and pursued Camellia.

If they had planned the attack specifically to steal the corpse, it was highly likely they had already mapped out an escape route.

Therefore, I had to pursue them right now.

Bruno also began to follow closely behind me.

He looked absolutely furious.

Before long, the hurried movements of Camellia and a single corpse came into view.

There were approximately thirty of them.

I released mana beneath my feet, leaped high, and nimbly got ahead of them.

"W-Who the hell are you!"

"Damn it, has someone already caught up!"

"Don't stop, everyone! There's only one of him anyway!"

Looking at their faces, they did not seem to be particularly skilled…….

However, every single one of them was someone who had undergone forced awakening.

Recently, Camellia had been significantly expanding their power by using forced awakening potions.

As long as the stock of potions was sufficient, there would be nothing better for increasing their strength to this extent.

By the way, did they really carry out an attack with only these low-level thugs?

Whatever the case, since I was wearing a human skin mask, there was no need to hide my abilities.

"Your plan ends here."

I expanded my shadow in all directions and bound the movements of the mafia members.

I could not knock them unconscious by restricting their mana.

It would be troublesome if they turned into Chimeras like last time.

"M-My body won't move!"

"Damn it! Who the hell is that guy!"

In the midst of the commotion, gunshots rang out.

Not once, but several times.

The bullets ruthlessly pierced the heads of the mafia members bound by the shadow.

It was Bruno’s handiwork…….

I wondered if there could be any curved shots more perfect than this.

He landed near me shortly after.

"My apologies. I am sorry for doubting you."

"Let's talk about that later. The job isn't finished yet."

"Hm?"

According to the settings, Catalina possessed military power superior to Camellia.

Even if they were defeated in a war of attrition due to forced awakening, it made no sense for them to have the corpse stolen by a mere thirty awakened beings.

As expected, another presence of mana was discovered through my Demonic Eye.

A person hiding and waiting for their moment.

Unlike the previous mafia members, this was an awakened being who possessed very dense mana…….

No sooner had I discovered them than hailstones as sharp as needles began to fall overhead.

If there was one thing different from ordinary hail, it was that they were excessively thin and sharp.

Furthermore, it was a wide-range magic that covered half of a field.

In terms of Hunter ranks, they would probably be a B-rank.

"Be careful! That one is quite a tricky opponent!"

Bruno shouted urgently, as if he knew the identity of the enemy.

He quickly moved out of the range.

"What are you doing! Hurry and dodge!"

"There is no need for that."

"……?"

I immediately expanded my shadow and bound the countless falling shards of ice rain.

Then, as soon as I restricted that mana, the magic vanished without a trace.

"I don't know how tricky they are, but most magic doesn't work on me."

At least not in Seoul, which is covered by my shadow.

"You……."

"Let's suppress the opponent first."

As soon as the enemy realized that their magic did not work, they fled the spot.

Seeing how they fled after recognizing the difference in skill, it seemed they were not an ordinary mafia member.

Well, it did not matter who the opponent was in the first place.

Beneath this Seoul sky, on top of my shadow, it was safe to say there were almost no individuals who could oppose me.

The distance to the enemy who was currently fleeing diligently was approximately 800 meters.

This much was within the effective range of my shadow.

Without hesitation, I used my shadow to bind the opponent's movements.

Since the results from the Demonic Eye showed they were not a forced awakened being, I restricted their mana immediately.

The opponent then lost consciousness and collapsed due to mana depletion.

"So, what should we do now?"

"What?"

"I'm asking who is going to carry who."

"……?"

Bruno furrowed his brow, as if asking what I meant.

Realizing my mistake, I added more words.

"Ah, I just knocked the opponent out."

"What did you say?"

"It would be better for you to take the boss's corpse, right? I'll take this mafia member and head back."

"……."

"Do you understand?"

"Well, for now……."

***

As soon as we returned to the hideout, I examined the boss's corpse.

Seeing as there were no marks on the skin, the method Camellia used for the assassination was not external trauma or bleeding, but an internal cause.

More importantly, to think they could kill the boss of Catalina so easily…….

Something felt a bit strange.

"Did you find a clue?"

"I have a suspicious part, but I'm currently debating whether I should believe it or not."

"What does that mean?"

What did it mean? It meant I was confused because of the results that had diverged from the original work.

"Until that unconscious mafia member wakes up, there's nothing I can state for certain. However, that icicle-like magic from earlier is bothering me."

"Hmph, I find that strange as well."

"Attacking to steal the corpse, yet using wide-range magic that could damage the corpse……."

"It is highly likely to be one of two things: either a misjudgment, or they did not care if they left a wound."

"What do you think?"

Bruno shook his head.

"I am not sure."

"What's even stranger is that they didn't collect the corpse when they succeeded in the assassination."

"The situation must have been urgent. The target was the boss of an organization, after all."

"Can you explain the situation back then? When exactly was the boss's death discovered, and when was the body found?"

"……Unfortunately, it was immediately after the territory war was declared."

I knew it.

It was strange from the start that Bruno, who could track mana, knew nothing about the assassin.

"Then, does that mean the boss was alone?"

"As always, at the same time and in the same place."

"In the end, it means the assassin possessed the skill to not be detected even by you. They would have had plenty of time, too."

"……."

"Exactly why would an assassin with sufficient time and skill not collect the corpse?"

I threw the question and waited for a moment.

However, Bruno only made a troubled face as if he truly did not know.

"If we consider only the possibilities based on the given situation, we can only conclude that the assassin killed the boss without even approaching your territory."

"What? The boss's room is not structured in a way that can be accessed through a window or anything like that."

"Why are you acting like this now? This is Seoul. It's a society where the impossible does not exist."

"Then just how……."

I looked back and forth between the boss's corpse and the unconscious mafia member and said.

"That's probably because there is an important clue that must not be discovered from the corpse. That's why they attacked to recover the body."

"Fine, then I should beat that fellow awake right now."

"Sigh……. It's a kind of mana depletion. If his mana doesn't recover to a certain extent, he won't budge."

"Then are you saying we just have to wait until he wakes up?"

"That's the standard way. Since the hideout has already been exposed, it's obvious that Camellia will send other troops anyway."

"Damn it."

"Well, that doesn't mean I'm going to just sit still."

"Are you saying there is another way?"

"We can find the clue ourselves, from the corpse of your boss."

"……You, don't tell me!"

I fixed my gaze on the boss's corpse.

"Since there are no other marks on the skin, ……how about we simply perform a partial autopsy on the vital areas?"