Chapter 136
"The Overseer serves His Majesty the Emperor, but it's an unofficial position…."
I explained calmly.
Giselle listened in utter silence, as if she had even stopped breathing. Every time my words trailed off, the sound of wind and rain hammered against the building.
"…In the end, I ended up becoming a spy meant to bring down the Custoria family and the military. This plan probably started when I first entered the Imperial Guard as a cadet."
It must have started when I used ballistic control techniques that I had never learned. Whether it was Emperor Yuri Accretia or Kinuan, they must have been watching me closely since that moment.
"Luka, you didn't betray your father, did you?"
Giselle clenched her fists and placed them on her knees as she spoke. I took a moment to gather my thoughts before responding.
"In the world we live in now, arguing over who betrayed and deceived whom is meaningless. The only thing that matters is whether something benefits me. Looking back, Hemillas never cared whether I deceived him or not. What truly mattered to him was whether the card named ‘Luka’ was useful to him. It wasn't even a situation where he could feel betrayed or not. Here, everyone is deceiving someone."
For a brief moment, I felt as if fireworks were exploding inside my head.
Twitch.
My eyelids didn't just blink—they trembled. Speaking the words out loud made me realize that my thoughts and perspective had suddenly aligned with those of the monsters.
The distinction between ally and enemy is nothing more than an emotional construct. Identification of friend and foe depends on location and perspective, shifting in real-time at every moment.
Hemillas, Kinuan, the Imperial Family.
To them, the boundary of friend and foe is blurred. They simply make optimal decisions based on their respective goals. If interests align, they cooperate; if not, they turn away.
'They don't hate betrayal itself—they hate what isn't useful. As long as something benefits them, they’ll even accept being betrayed. Because even betrayal can be used. If it's profitable, then it's good.'
That is a higher level of cognitive judgment.
'In our world, there is no reason to dislike someone just because they deceive you.'
Their way of thinking became even easier to understand. I had always feared that if my identity and secrets were exposed, others would dispose of me.
They even threatened to do so every time.
'There was never a need to fear those threats.'
They wouldn't discard a useful piece for something so trivial. If they truly intended to dispose of me, they wouldn’t have even spoken such words out loud.
'If only I had understood this sooner….'
If I had revealed myself sooner, I could have maintained balance more efficiently.
I needed to constantly shift my perspective. My thoughts had to become so fluid that they practically melted away.
“Luka, I don’t understand. So whose side are you on?”
Giselle’s pupils trembled.
Most people were like her. They demanded clear answers, separating friend from foe. That was how they achieved cognitive peace.
Hemillas, Kinuan, and the Imperial Family, who operated on higher cognitive judgment, seemed inhuman. That was because ordinary people found behaviors and speech that deviated from common sense and intuition to be inhuman.
‘That’s the same reason I saw them as monsters.’
But from a purely results-driven perspective, their motivations and goals were entirely human.
Now, at last, I stood on the same level as them. Too late—far too late. It was only thanks to witnessing Noel’s memories that I had reached this understanding now.
“…I’m on the side of those who do not despair.”
I murmured. Giselle looked at me as if she understood even less.
“Stop playing games, Luka! That means Father could die! And if our family is on the verge of extermination…”
Giselle squeezed her eyes shut. Tears she could no longer hold back spilled down her chin, dripping onto the back of her hands.
“Giselle, no matter how hard Hemillas and I try, the chances of overcoming this crisis are slim. That is an undeniable fact. But if Hemillas hasn’t given up… then there’s still a way I can help.”
A long silence stretched between us. The sound of rain and wind hammering against the building scattered like sparks in the air.
Giselle stood up. She walked toward the window, reinforced with metal plates, and peered through the narrow gap at the outside world.
“Why are you telling me all of this? You weren’t planning to say anything before.”
“I just wanted to. If things go wrong, you’ll know nothing about me. I wanted you to understand who I am and why I made the choices I did.”
I had made a different decision from Noel. Noel had told neither Katrin nor Agatha anything.
He had hidden everything from Agatha until the end, carrying the burden alone as he went to his death. Because of that, Agatha had lived a cursed life.
I didn’t want Giselle to bear that same curse. Even if I failed and died, I wanted her to move forward.
“Am I someone special to you?”
Giselle’s voice wavered.
The sight of her in such sorrow sent my hormones surging. A wild part of me wanted to surrender to that instinct completely.
Romantic feelings between a man and a woman are fleeting impulses. And yet, at this moment, I wanted to believe that this would last forever.
That, too, was a sign of my immaturity. I was being swept away by emotions more intense than anything I had ever felt before. Even knowing that, I couldn’t help it.
“Giselle, if you want to escape all this chaos… I’ll take you away right now. Not just from Akbaran, but from the Empire itself. I still don’t know if you’re special to me. But if you want something, I’ll do whatever it takes to make it happen. Even if it goes against my values, I don’t care.”
I never thought I would say something like this. I used to think only fools spoke this way.
“…That is what it means to be special, Luka. Because I feel the same.”
Giselle smiled as if relieved. I widened my eyes slightly, taking in her expression.
She had gone through so many things she hadn’t wanted to—because of me. Even though she complained, she never refused. She endured it all with unwavering resilience.
The reason was simple. She liked me.
999
We—or rather, I—needed at least one full night of rest.
Because of Noel’s memories, my mind was a complete mess. Even when I tried to focus, my thoughts creaked and groaned like an ungreased machine.
Whooosh! Boom!
Occasionally, noises came from outside the building. Debris, carried by the wind, banged against the outer walls. Or maybe it was people. If I listened closely, I could hear distant gunfire now and then.
Lying on the bed, I stared at the ceiling. My wet clothes, hung on the wall, dripped water drop by drop.
‘We’re going to see Hemillas tomorrow.’
It was going to be a direct confrontation. I would ask him what he planned to do next. If he knew I was the Emperor’s Overseer, he would find a better way to handle the situation—one way or another.
I should have planned for an alliance with Hemillas much sooner. Just because he found out I was an Overseer didn’t mean he would turn against me or try to kill me. The only one who had been afraid was me.
With my current state of mind, this was as far as my thoughts could go. After a good night’s sleep, I would come up with something better.
‘…Do we still have hope?’
I narrowed my eyes as I lay in bed. The dim red lighting flickered faintly.
Rustle.
I heard Giselle stir. She must have woken up from the sound of the wind. It was a difficult night to sleep soundly.
I turned my head to the side. Lying beside me, Giselle blinked rapidly before opening her eyes. Startled, she abruptly lifted her upper body.
“Ah, L-Luka? Why are you—? Ah… Ha, haha… So it wasn’t a dream….”
Giselle let out an awkward laugh and turned her flushed face away. She slowly lifted the blanket and checked the condition of her lower body.
She exhaled a deep sigh and grumbled.
"……Damn it, so this place is our special memory now? Seriously, this absolute pile of crap? A memory that’ll last a lifetime?"
"You made the choice. I’ll say it again—I suggested we go somewhere nicer. I had a feeling this might happen."
"What did you just say? Y-you planned this all along, didn’t you?!"
Giselle narrowed her eyes.
"I'm joking. Do I look like I came prepared for this?"
Even as I spoke, Giselle shot me a doubtful glare. But then, as if something had suddenly occurred to her, she averted her eyes in a hurry. It seemed she had remembered what happened four hours ago.
"I-I mean… I don’t really know much about this kind of thing, but… Luka, for your first time, weren’t you a little too good at it? Are you sure this was your first?"
That was thanks to Noel’s virtual simulations. Much appreciated, Noel. And for the useful tricks—thank you, Chad.
Giselle’s praise made me as happy as winning a fight. Not that I’d ever say that out loud. Comparing this to battle? Even I had to admit that was ridiculous.
"Get some more sleep. We might not get a proper rest for the next few days."
"But this might be our first and last time."
Giselle reached out and tapped my sternum with her finger. Her hand trailed down my chest, past my navel, and stopped just below.
"That’s true."
The first time is the hardest. The second and third are easy.
…Which is to say, we did it two more times.
999
Finding Hemillas’ whereabouts wasn’t difficult. A figure of his stature couldn’t just disappear and plot in secret.
Hemillas was locked in a marathon meeting with the military’s top brass. Even the Imperial Guard’s internal network listed his schedule.
Officially, it was an emergency countermeasure meeting for the storm season. The reason it dragged on for so long was that they were staying on standby in case of any sudden developments.
Even though high-ranking military officers were involved, the meeting was taking place at the Imperial Guard headquarters. That alone made it clear—this was about the Guard and Hemillas.
Beep.
I sent a message to Hemillas, letting him know I was coming. He must have already known that Giselle and I had left the Custoria estate.
‘He’s probably been waiting for me to show up.’
Giselle and I stopped in front of the Imperial Guard headquarters.
Whoooosh.
The rain was still pouring relentlessly. Our clothes had been damp since yesterday and never fully dried. By now, they even carried an unpleasant smell.
I was used to harsh conditions, but for Giselle, this would be sheer misery.
"It’s been a while, Luka. And Giselle."
Iskan stood at the entrance of the headquarters, waiting to greet us. He was one of Hemillas’ close aides.
Giselle seemed to know Iskan well—she greeted him before I could.
"It’s been a long time, Uncle."
"Ah, you’ve grown a lot. I didn’t recognize you for a moment."
Iskan held the door open, waiting for us. With his consideration, we stepped inside the building.
Squeak.
As the door shut, the sound of the torrential rain disappeared. Giselle and I removed our hoods and masks, taking a moment to catch our breath.
"The Commander is expecting you."
I spoke to Iskan, observing him closely.
"Does he seem angry? I did disobey orders by coming here."
"Since when has that man ever shown his anger?"
Iskan simply shrugged with a smirk.
"That’s true."
Following Iskan’s lead, we slowly made our way up to the meeting room. Even though Giselle wasn’t a soldier, Iskan didn’t say anything about her presence.
"The timing is bad, Luka."
"I know. I’m prepared for that."
The elevator came to a stop. As the doors slid open, a quiet corridor stretched before us. At the end stood a set of double doors leading into the meeting room.
I sharpened my senses. I hadn’t gotten much sleep last night, but my condition wasn’t bad. In fact, after moving around in just the right way, my stress levels felt lower than usual. I probably owed Giselle for that.
Chhhhk.
As we reached the entrance, the automatic doors slid open to either side.
‘How many people?’
The moment the doors parted, I took in the room. My five senses swept across the space like a second layer of perception.
Seventeen pairs of eyes turned toward me.
But the most important pair of eyes in the room did not belong to Hemillas. There was someone completely unexpected.
Flinch.
I didn’t step into the meeting room right away. My hesitation lasted only a fraction of a second, but for someone as skilled as Hemillas or Iskan, it would be enough to seem suspicious.
'Ivan Accretia.'
Seated at the head of the table was Ivan. He sat with his legs crossed, exuding absolute confidence, a faint smile on his lips.
Murmur.
Ivan leaned over to Hemillas and whispered something in his ear. Hemillas responded with a glance toward Iskan, issuing an unspoken command…
…Damn it. I moved to react immediately.
Whoosh!
Iskan snatched the Graken Vuth from my possession and pressed it against my neck. As expected of a high-ranking Imperial Guard—his skill was impeccable.
Slide.
I quietly raised both hands in surrender.
“Lukaus Custoria is his father’s spy. He came here to bring you all down from the inside.”
Ivan’s smooth voice echoed through the room. The generals and high-ranking officers in the meeting did not even flinch. They sat motionless, like machines.
‘Well played, Ivan.’
I locked eyes with him. My mind, jolted awake like a bucket of ice water had been poured over it, began working at full speed.
‘From the moment I chose to protect Francec… Ivan abandoned me. He made a new plan.’
The excitement he had shown when agreeing to my plan to kill Kinuan had been a lie.
I wasn’t even surprised. There was no reason to be. I was used to this by now.
I wasn’t even given a chance to defend myself.
“Luka, don’t say a word. No matter what. I don’t want to kill you.”
Iskan whispered. And he meant it. Both the part about not wanting to kill me—and the part about doing it if he had to.