Atonement, For Your Cruelty — Chapter 10

THE ELITE AGENTS OF HOUSE REICHENHART

ARE KNOWN AS THE WOLVES.

BACK WHEN HOUSE REICHENHART WAS A FAMILY OF MARGRAVES,

THE WOLVES WERE THEIR PRIVATE ARMY.

THEY BEGAN TO UNDERTAKE MISSIONS OF ESPIONAGE, SABOTAGE, ASSASSINATION, AND RECONNAISSANCE.

THUS, THEY EVOLVED FROM A KNIGHTLY ORDER INTO AGENTS,

AND AT SOME POINT, CAME TO BE KNOWN AS THE WOLVES.

AFTER THE KING OF THEIR HOMELAND, LUXEN, BETRAYED THEM,

THEY SWORE ALLEGIANCE NOT TO THEIR COUNTRY OR PEOPLE, BUT ONLY TO HOUSE REICHENHART.

THE VERY EXISTENCE OF THE WOLVES WAS MEANT TO BE A SECRET,

SAVE FOR THE FEW WHOSE IDENTITIES HAVE BEEN EXPOSED.

SO THIS IS THE ONLY ONE LEFT.

WHO IS THE SECRET COLLABORATOR WITHIN THE LUXEN ROYAL PALACE?

THE ONE WHO SEES THE WORLD WITH THEIR EYES CLOSED.

DO YOU KNOW WHO IT IS?

I-IT'S...

IT'S... I MEAN...

P-PLEASE.

IF YOU JUST LET ME LIVE...

GAH!!

MMPH...

THAT'S ENOUGH.

CLEAN IT UP. BURY HIM.

YES, MY LORD.

I-I-I WAS JUST FOLLOWING ORDERS

FROM THE BETA MERCENARY CORPS—

I KNOW.

UGH, KERGH—

PLEASE, SPARE ME— MMPH!

THEIR MOVEMENTS ARE PRECISE, THEIR FACES EXPRESSIONLESS.

AAARGH!

THEIR LOYALTY IS ABSOLUTE.

THOSE WHO FAIL TO DEVELOP THIS LOYALTY

ARE EITHER NEVER CALLED WOLVES, OR THEY ARE ELIMINATED.

THE WOLVES' ONLY GOAL IS TO REMAIN LOYAL TO THE MASTER WHO TOOK THEM IN AND RAISED THEM.

THAT IS ALL.

WHATEVER FORM THAT LOYALTY MAY TAKE,

THEY SIMPLY FOLLOW THEIR ORDERS.

MY LORD.

WELCOME BACK, MY LORD.

GREETINGS.

?

A PRESENCE...?

I'VE KILLED SO MANY, AND THERE'S STILL ANOTHER ASSASSIN?

NO, THIS FEELS DIFFERENT.

IT'S LIKE...

A FAINT PRESENCE, LIKE A LIGHT PENCIL MARK.

AH...

WELCOME BACK.

I HEARD YOU COME IN...

RIGHT. HAVE YOU BEEN WELL?

DID YOU GO TO THE BANK?

I DID.

IT SEEMS IT WILL TAKE AT LEAST HALF A YEAR TO OPEN THE SAFE.

I ASSUME THE BANK TOOK YOUR IDENTIFICATION PAPERS?

YES. THEY SAID THEY NEEDED TO VERIFY THEM.

I ALSO WENT TO THE MARKET AND BOUGHT SOME THINGS I NEEDED.

INCLUDING... THIS DRESS...

IT'S ALL THANKS TO YOU. THANK YOU.

IT'S LOVELY.

GO ON, TAKE A SPIN.

HUH?

DON'T PEOPLE USUALLY TAKE A SPIN WHEN THEY GET A NEW DRESS?

OH...

I'LL SEE HOW IT LOOKS ON YOU.

ALL RIGHT, I'LL JUST...

?

SO,

IS THIS HER TAKING A SPIN?

HEH...

UM, YOU SAID TO TAKE A SPIN, SO...

NO... I MEANT FOR YOU TO SPIN IN PLACE.

I DIDN'T EXPECT YOU TO TAKE A TURN ABOUT THE ROOM.

THAT'S ENOUGH. YOU CAN GO TO YOUR ROOM NOW.

WE'RE LEAVING FOR LUXEN EARLY TOMORROW MORNING,

SO DON'T SLEEP IN.

ALL RIGHT.

WELL THEN, SEE YOU TOMORROW.

IS THAT WOMAN MY NEXT TARGET?

MY MISSION IS TO MAKE HER WANT TO MARRY ME?

YES.

SHE IS THE WOMAN

YOU ARE TO MARRY.

SUCCEED, AND I'LL DROP THE "VIPER" TITLE.

YOU SAID YOU WANTED TO STOP THAT LINE OF WORK, DIDN'T YOU?

IT FEELS LIKE I'M AGING A YEAR EVERY DAY.

AS YOU'VE HEARD,

WE'VE DUPLICATED THE KEY AND SECURED THE ORIGINAL.

I'M TOLD THEY COULDN'T REPLICATE THE PINS INSIDE THE KEY,

BUT IT SEEMS SHE HASN'T NOTICED THE SWITCH YET.

THIS IS A TEMPORARY MEASURE.

THE BEST WAY IS FOR YOU TO MARRY HER AND INHERIT OWNERSHIP OF THE KEY.

AND IT DOESN'T MATTER IF I HAVE TO SLEEP WITH HER TO MAKE IT HAPPEN?

AS LONG AS THERE ARE NO COMPLICATIONS.

1 MONTH.

JUST GIVE ME 1 MONTH.