A Dark Fantasy Spy

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The smell of alcohol brought back old memories.

When I closed my eyes, all I could see was the funeral home. The scent of incense rising lamentably from the fallen ash.

My mother, crying with swollen eyes, and my grandmother softly patting her. My grandfather, silently bowing his head. My father, smiling brightly. A dark green soju bottle. An overflowing ashtray.

Occasionally, visitors would come, not even writing their names in the guestbook, but instead placing white envelopes into the condolence box. Then they would bow twice in front of the portrait and scatter to greet the family.

As I sat there, leaning against the wall with no strength to cry out loud, passing uncles would pat my head with bittersweet expressions.

When I was finally worn out from crying and sleep began to creep in, I would gaze at the small badge in my hand and close my eyes.

If I closed my eyes, I would see the funeral home. The scent of incense rising lamentably from the fallen ash.

When I fell asleep, exhausted from crying, what reflected in my retina was always a little torch.

—

Episode 6 – The Betrayer of the Revolution

The commonality between alcohol and cigarettes is that they are both harmful to the body.

Cigarettes damage a person’s lungs, reducing lung function, while alcohol damages the liver, leaving one haggard with fatigue. Alcohol and cigarettes even come with withdrawal symptoms. An alcoholic’s hands shake like they’ve got tremors, while someone addicted to smoking suffers from persistent headaches.

That’s why I don’t indulge in drinking or smoking. To be precise, I quit. Twenty-eight years ago.

Thinking back to the times when I would shout loudly in the early morning and fry pancakes on a telephone pole, a sudden wave of shame hits me, waking me from my sleep. Especially with cigarettes. I never knew it at the time, but when training began, I would quickly run out and beg my colleagues or juniors for just one more.

A rookie executive’s salary isn’t much, yet smoking every day left me with nothing to spare. The whole unit was filled with smokers; whenever we went out on long training sessions, everyone would become restless as our cigarettes dwindled.

Watching those people scrambling to find cigarettes resembled a kingdom of beasts. Of course, I was one of those beasts.

Looking back now, it was quite an ugly behavior.

“Honestly, there’s no one crazier than someone who indulges in both alcohol and cigarettes. Spending money to ruin one’s health—what are they thinking? And when a person gets drunk, they ought to get pleasantly tipsy, not rolling around in the sand like that.”

As I rambled on with my old-timer talk, Veronica sitting across from me sniffed and wiped her nose.

I clanked the frying pan, clicking my tongue.

“There you go. That’s what happens when a person smokes, you see?”

“…It’s just a cold.”

“You get a cold after sleeping outside when drunk.”

“…Shut up.”

Her voice seemed to drop, realizing her own embarrassment, a slight nasality creeping in.

Ignoring the whiny Veronica, I dished out food from the frying pan onto a plate. Today’s breakfast menu was simple.

“Eat.”

“What’s on the menu?”

“Toast, pancakes, fried eggs, sausage, bacon….”

I summarized the breakfast menu.

“Ah, I don’t know. Just think of it as whatever’s left over and eat it.”

Actually, that was the case. This was exactly the kind of breakfast served in the army around here, and I had eaten tons of it back in my military days. Although it wasn’t prepared by a cook or civilian culinary staff, but rather thrown together by a junior.

I plated the remaining food from the frying pan and took a seat.

“Eat.”

“Don’t you have to go to work?”

“After all this commotion, what work are you talking about?”

For reference, today’s schedule was considered a day off, and I had thrown everything out. The stitches on my gunshot wound had burst, so what was there to work for? The 73rd Business Division had never been so overwhelmed that my taking a day off would paralyze their operations.

Of course, it felt great to have a day off, but the rest was earned through enduring the whims of a drunken stupor, so I wasn’t feeling overjoyed. With an annoyed expression, I speared the sausage with my fork, when Veronica asked me in an exaggeratedly whiney voice,

“Why the long face?”

“Are you really asking that?”

“Ugh….”

Her voice was so annoying I felt like hitting her.

“I didn’t even invite you to drink, you know? Why the fuss….”

“Quit whining and eat your food, Saint.”

Veronica scooped her breakfast with a gloomy expression. Of course, her expression was just for show. Just for show.

Leaving the whining Veronica aside, I took out my prepaid phone and secure terminal to check the morning information.

The first thing that caught my eye was intel from other branches.

[12 agents from the Kien Empire Reconnaissance Command entered the Lushan Federation. Tracking failed.]

[5 presumed male agents of the Reconnaissance Command used the Warp Gate at 0830 local time. Destination unknown. Passport copies attached.]

[Unidentified cargo from the Kien Empire is moving towards the Magic Tower. Customs documents unavailable.]

[Decrease in confidential communications from the Kien Empire embassy stationed at the Magic Tower. Interception data attached.]

It seemed the empire was plotting something. However, I couldn’t be sure if they would venture to set up a business at the Magic Tower. The intel was simply too thin.

I pressed the buttons repeatedly, checking if any useful intel had come through.

Trends in military cooperation reports, election trends and situation analysis, military police armament introduction ROC (operational requirement specifications), newly developed military magic techniques, changed ocean monster habitat location data, international military and current affair intelligence, major trends in international terrorism, weekly key figures of the Kien Empire—all sorts of things.

Certainly, there was a lot, but not a single piece of information that I needed. Whether they are holding elections in another country has nothing to do with me. Whether a foreign military orders a rifle or a new magic is developed—none of that was important at all.

I kept switching between the prepaid phone and secure terminal, looking for any information pertinent to me.

[Francesca Ranieri is not staying at the hotel. Presumably on duty at the Secretariat.]

[Magic Tower Information Police Camila Lowell missed while on duty. Attempted wireless report to the commander, but received no response.]

[Lucia is out. Reason for outing: medical volunteer work. Security by Magic Tower Information Police and local security companies. Details on activities and security attached.]

The alchemist was too busy working late to come to the hotel, and Lucia had gone to volunteer in the slums. Camila had tried going out, but the Magic Tower police missed her. What a bunch of idiots. How hard can it be to keep track of a single civilian?

“…Tsk.”

Clicking my tongue, I put down the prepaid phone and secure terminal. Then feeling a presence beside me, I turned my head slightly to see Veronica, now sitting close, eating a slice of bacon while peering at the screen.

Nom.

“What are you looking at?”

“The terminal.”

“……”

Suddenly, my neck went stiff. I raised my hand and smacked the back of Veronica’s head.

The view of the blue sea and sky filled the entire living room.

The sky was high, and it was the season for fattening horses.

It was autumn.

—

“I almost had my eyes pop out!”

“You’re perfectly fine.”

After cleaning up after breakfast, I sprawled out on the large sofa.

Though it wasn’t my home, technically, this wasn’t even Veronica’s house (it was under a disguised contract), so I didn’t need her permission.

I had notified the embassy that I would take a day off, and I could check the business reports or intel reports through the secure terminal, so I decided to relax today.

The view from the living room was simply outstanding.

The magic regulated the indoor temperature to optimal conditions, and the high-end sofa was soft and plush.

This was the perfect house for a day of rest. And best of all, it cost me nothing.

Really, the conditions were just right. I thought about it again, but only if that chattering person wasn’t around.

“Colonel, why are you sleeping and causing such a ruckus?”

“Can’t I just get some sleep? I’m injured.”

Last night, the stitches from the gunshot wound I had were bursting, and I had trouble with that. I have lived for a long time and have been shot at but never shot. How the hell do you re-stitch a gunshot wound when it bursts?

Anyway, it was all Veronica’s fault. Why in the world was she getting so wild after drinking?

Tsk.

“Excuse me? When someone’s talking, you should get up and look at their face!”

“Oh, just go away. Do you have any idea how hard it is to carry someone around? I’m exhausted, so just leave me alone.”

I waved my hand dismissively and Veronica looked at me shocked.

Her attitude reeked of confidence. I was so dumbfounded by it.

“Hey. Are you planning to drink again?”

“…No thanks.”

Veronica plopped down next to the sofa, sulking, while pulling out her mobile phone and tapping away, mumbling to herself.

“Why isn’t he picking up?”

“What’s going on?”

“Ah.”

As I wondered what nonsense she was talking, Veronica shook her phone at me. It looked like an ancient 2G phone model.

In South Korea, it’d be useless junk, but I’d seen many phones like that. Out on the streets of the Third World, those old models were everywhere, and sometimes spies working in the field would be on the hunt for those exact models. They provide some level of security and are throwaways anyway.

But here, that was a brand new phone model. This was a place with no internet, after all.

“I’m supposed to meet someone. Well, more accurately, I was going to introduce you to someone…”

“To me?”

“Yeah.”

I was momentarily speechless.

“Why on earth would you introduce someone to me? I never asked for such a favor.”

“Oh, you know, the last time we talked about it.”

Veronica was my informant.

And recently, the story she had passed on to me was only about the coup happening at the Magic Tower.

“……”

An informant’s informant.

He hadn’t asked for an introduction, yet suddenly here she was, not feeling great about breaking the rules. Had the Imperial Guard HQ spoiled her, or was she originally this way?

While lounging on the sofa, lost in thought, Veronica’s chattering voice broke through.

“Originally, I was supposed to introduce you yesterday, but suddenly he’s been out of contact since last night. I wonder if something happened.”

“……”

From a handler’s perspective, if an information asset suddenly goes radio silent, it’s a disaster. A day’s absence is okay, but if they don’t show up at the meeting point, that’s a cause for concern.

Suddenly, a ringing bell interrupted my thoughts. Veronica, who had been mumbling to herself, glanced my way.

“What’s that ring? Are you expecting a call from someone?”

“No, unless it’s an urgent call, I wouldn’t have any appointments.”

Who could it be?

I checked the ringtone and saw it was a call coming in through my prepaid phone. That meant it was for work. I uncomfortably lifted myself off the sofa, reaching awkwardly into my left pocket to grab the prepaid phone with my good right hand.

The small screen displayed a familiar yet unfamiliar number.

“……”

Without saying a word, I stood up and moved to answer it.

Beep.

“Hey! Long time no see, Sophia?”

– ‘Nice to see you, Merlo. How have you been?’

“Where are you?”

The call was from Sophia.

– ‘Me? I’m just outside the Magic Tower for a bit.’

“Not with the Empire, right? You didn’t get tapped?”

– ‘Calling from the Magic Tower doesn’t count as international, you know. Don’t worry.’

That’s right.

But still, I wondered why someone who had gone silent would be calling.

“What’s the reason for the call?”

– ‘Do you have some time today?’

“What for?”

– ‘We picked up something interesting on our intel network today. Someone from the Magic Tower contacted an executive from the Private Enterprise of Abas.’

“And?”

– ‘That person’s a Magic Tower bureaucrat. You probably know who it is?’

The investigator from the National Security Agency, Sophia, said.

– ‘Francesca Ranieri, she just popped up here.’

“…Where are you right now?”

– ‘I’ll send you the address, so come if you can.’