Chapter 888
Episode 222: Yona’s Observation (Part 1)
Kinzello Divine Headquarters.
Ever since Orgal had lent his support to the barrier, Yona had slipped away from the Lutero Magic Federation and infiltrated the lands of Kinzello.
“Heh heh heh, Lord Ainas! Take a look at this! It’s a queen ant! The very queen ant we’ve been searching for has finally appeared!”
“Oh wow, Bubar. That really is a queen ant…! It’s huge! Almost as thick as an arm, isn’t it?”
Of course, the ant’s actual size was barely half a finger joint.
“Let’s report this to the commander right away.”
“Heh heh, good job, Bubar! I’m sure we’ll get a big reward for this!”
Watching the two of them sitting in the courtyard every day, gaping at ants, Yona couldn’t help but wonder.
‘What on earth do these dumb meatheads even do here in Kinzello?’
Bubar was straightforward. With his ability called ‘Sculpting,’ he crafted various artifacts, including demon stones, and no matter how foolish his actions, he always received special treatment.
But Ainas Caligo? He truly did nothing.
He was simply Bianca Caligo’s younger brother, a noblewoman of the Caligo family. Aside from that, Ainas seemed like nothing more than dead weight.
‘Heh, I hope I can find some info today that the youngest will like.’
As Yona’s spirits sank further, Bubar and Ainas carefully placed the queen ant into a glass jar.
“Kuh heh heh heh.”
“Heh heh heh heh. I wonder what kind of reward we’ll get.”
Unbeknownst to the two fools of Kinzello, Yona knew that Orgal was nowhere to be found inside the Divine Headquarters. Earlier that morning, she had seen Orgal and Zephyrin leave through the steel doors.
So right now, there was no one inside the headquarters who would recognize someone like her, who was hiding her presence to the extreme.
‘If I get into the meeting room, the only real threats would be Bianca, Baekranggogi, and Jeokho Gogi.’
Bianca, Berakt, Badley.
Yona thought briefly about the three before deciding to enter the meeting room. The risk was worth it if it meant gaining new information.
Naturally, Bubar and Ainas were completely oblivious to Yona trailing closely behind them. The many beastmen and demons they passed on the way didn’t notice her either.
“Commander!”
“We finally have the queen ant to show you!”
The two burst into the meeting room cheerfully. Vishkel immediately rubbed his forehead, and the other officers sighed and waved their hands in exasperation.
Yona took the opportunity to hide behind a pillar in the corner of the room—this was the most dangerous moment.
‘Heh, if those dumb meatheads hadn’t distracted them for a moment, I might have been caught. Looks like Baekranggogi and Jeokho Gogi aren’t here.’
Though most of the key superhumans, including Orgal and Zephyrin, were absent, Yona didn’t know the exact power levels of the officers gathered, so she remained a bit tense.
Fortunately, the officers were too busy scolding Bubar and Ainas to notice anything unusual.
“A queen ant? You brought a queen ant? What am I supposed to do with that? Bubar, how long do you plan to keep messing with me…?”
“Eh, Lord Vishkel, what a hurtful thing to say! Last time, you said there was no such thing as an ant as big as an arm, and if we brought one, you’d give us a reward.”
“That’s right, Vice Commander!”
“No… that was just you trying to cover for how frustrating the two of you are, Ainas.”
“What do you mean? You’re making decisions on your own just because the commander’s not here?”
“Hah, besides, that ant isn’t even close to arm-sized.”
“That’s just a figure of speech! Don’t you know what a metaphor is, Vice Commander? Where’s the commander, anyway?”
“He’s gone to meet with the Jeokmyeong tribe.”
That was valuable information.
‘Heh, so he’s gone to meet the Jeokmyeong tribe.’
Yona smiled slyly and listened closely. Vishkel was trembling and sighing repeatedly.
“Hey, Ainas. We’re in an important meeting, so get out.”
“Ranke, who do you think you are, telling me to get out?”
“Seriously, do you want a beating?”
“Hmph, is that a challenge? I’ll gladly accept.”
Ranke stood up abruptly but calmed himself down.
“Alright, alright. If I hit you, it’ll only cause problems…”
“If you’re backing down because you’re scared of my sister, there’s no need. I won’t tell her, so come at me.”
“Do you think I’m afraid of Bianca? If I hit you, the Hwanmajang will kill me.”
The moment Yona heard the name ‘Hwanmajang,’ she recalled what Jin had told Jin Leeet.
-[Understood. The Shagal Bahma subdued by Sogaju at the Divine Headquarters belongs to the Hwanma clan. I will look into information related to them.]
So the Hwanmajang was the head of the Bahma family.
Ainas, clearly wounded in pride, shouted angrily.
“I’m not even telling Dad! This is so frustrating!”
It was the moment the truth came out: Ainas Caligo was the daughter of the Bahma family head. Just then, the meeting room doors opened, and a new figure entered.
“Ranke, you wouldn’t dare bully my daughter, would you?”
“Hwanmajang, no, it wasn’t like that. Ainas started the fight, so I just stood my ground.”
“I see.”
“Welcome, Lord Pirops.”
Pirops Bahma—that was the name of the Hwanmajang.
“Yes. Thank you for your hard work, Vice Commander.”
“Lord Pirops’ recent efforts are incomparable.”
Yona’s excitement grew. Just one entry into the meeting room, and high-level information was pouring out.
But as soon as Pirops entered, the tension in the room skyrocketed.
‘I’m pretty sure that Hwanmajang will recognize me soon.’
The only saving grace was that Pirops looked exhausted. If he were in full strength, Yona would have been exposed immediately.
‘All I can do is hope he doesn’t stay long in the meeting room. Heh, my heart’s racing after a long time.’
Soon, Yona overheard why Pirops was so worn out.
“I do have a lot on my plate. Those outside our clan wouldn’t understand, but peering into someone’s dreams is a painful task… If you’re not careful, you can get lost inside their dreams. In fact, this time, three Hwanma have entered the dreams of the Ziphl leaders and still haven’t returned.”
The moment Yona heard that, she realized how Kinzello had recently obtained information about Ziphl.
-It seems they learned about Elona through means other than trade, Your Excellency.
-I think so too. The Jinma realm’s invasion has eased somewhat… Let’s gradually find out what tricks they have. Jet, contact Mumei and request that Yona be dispatched to Kinzello. Since we can’t break through Elona’s side, it’s better to keep an eye on Kinzello.
-Yes, sir!
-One thing’s for sure: there’s something in Kinzello right now that must not be seen by the Jinma realm.
This was the conversation Jin and his comrades had after Orgal decided to support the barrier.
At the time, Jin had wondered how Orgal had found out about Elona’s injury. Yona was now eavesdropping on that secret.
“Will those three never regain consciousness?”
“Not unless I personally save them. Dream users are rare even among our clan, so they must be rescued. That means I’ll have to enter Elona Ziphl’s dream once more soon.”
“I’m sorry I can’t be of more help.”
“You have nothing to apologize for, Vice Commander. Ainas, I just hope our beloved daughter awakens her dream abilities soon to help her old man.”
“Ah, I like the Caligo family. Swords are way cooler than dream powers! Like Bianca unnie.”
“Oh, Ainas… You don’t have a shred of Bianca’s talent with a sword. Honestly, even an average human who’s trained for ten years could probably beat you with a sword. But if your dream powers fully bloom, you’ll far surpass me.”
“Ugh, how can you say such harsh things to your own daughter?”
“For the sake of our great cause, your dream powers are essential. With my abilities, it’s tough to infiltrate the dreams of the Lokia Ganesto. So stop being stubborn and follow your old man. Since ancient times, our demons have treated dream users with the highest respect.”
The potential to surpass even the Hwanmajang with dream powers—that was Ainas Caligo’s true value.
“Tch, last time Dad practically begged me to enter Kelliak’s dream. I didn’t want to, but I did. It was so boring. How am I supposed to do that forever?”
“You’re the only one born with such abilities, Ainas. If you keep refusing your father’s requests, the commander will have to order you. I hope it never comes to that between me and our daughter. By the way, Ranke… that bastard! How dare he threaten my daughter?”
“No, Lord Hwanmajang, it’s not like that!”
“Die, die, you bastard!”
For a moment, Yona heard Pirops hitting Ranke. She widened her eyes and reviewed the information she’d just heard.
‘So Kinzello has already made contact with Kelliak Ziphl through dreams.’
Just then, Pirops suddenly narrowed his eyes and stopped his fist mid-air, aimed at Ranke.
‘Heh, did he sense me…?’
Yona couldn’t see what happened behind the pillar, but she felt the atmosphere shift.
“Lord Pirops?”
“Shh. Somehow… I feel like there’s a rat hiding somewhere.”
“A rat, you say?”
“Hmm, maybe not? Everyone, freeze. Don’t even breathe. I need to inspect the conference room.”
Pirops began slowly scanning the room. Yona was hiding behind a pillar about fifty paces away—any movement, and he’d be spotted immediately.
Even if he stayed perfectly still, it was only a matter of seconds before he’d be found. Yona’s hand instinctively went to the sword tucked inside his coat—Death.
Just as Pirops took a step toward the pillar where Yona was hiding—
Suddenly, someone burst into the conference room, breathless.
“What’s going on?”
“Deputy Director! Pirops! Miss Margiela is going berserk!”
Without hesitation, Pirops spun around the moment he heard the report. It was clear there was no time to waste.
“Ainas, come with me!”
“I’m coming too!”
As Pirops and Vishkel hurried off, Yona relaxed his grip on Death.
Ranke and the other officers shrugged and searched the room thoroughly, but their skills weren’t enough to find or capture Yona.
‘Phew, that was close… I better go tell the youngest right away.’
About twenty minutes later, Yona whistled a tune as he slipped out of the headquarters.