Chapter 264

Chapter 264

Giselle was capable. However, the dangers surrounding her could not be overcome by mere competence.  

The Empire, Gilda, Ilay.  

To orchestrate a scheme while avoiding them all, one needed to be a monster that had already dipped into the darkness.  

‘Witch Barbara.’  

There was someone here who fit that description perfectly.  

Barbara was a talent meticulously cultivated by the Empire. She, too, was a monster who had long surpassed the level of being merely exceptional.  

‘Since the Storm Era, the Empire’s surveillance capabilities have significantly deteriorated. They’ve reached the point where they don’t even know how many spies they’ve planted or where those spies are.’  

The operatives of unofficial missions had correspondingly weak ties to their superiors. If a middle manager like Hemillas disappeared, the reporting system that connected the agents to the Empire would vanish along with him.  

‘Is Barbara still an agent of the Empire? Or has she broken free from their control and gained her freedom?’  

With the information I had, I couldn’t even make a confident guess. At her core, Barbara was a double agent. Her actions that seemed to defy the Empire’s control could just as easily be a deception.  

The Empire’s Blade—its leadership included Barbara. Whether she was its leader or merely a member was unclear, but she was undoubtedly at the core of the organization.  

‘Is Barbara still connected to Nemesis? Is the Empire’s Blade an extension of Nemesis? Or is it a subordinate faction? If so, did Nemesis organize the Empire’s Blade through Giselle?’  

My thoughts ran wild, fragments of information swirling in my head.  

If someone examined my brain right now, my neural waves would be flaring up like scarlet flames.  

My thoughts wouldn’t stop. Once the flow began, it surged like a dam breaking.  

Click, click.  

Barbara had approached me.  

She and I stood in a stark white space. In this virtual reality, she held the reins of control.  

In the real world, I could have snapped her neck in a single breath, no matter what kind of prosthetics she had.  

But this was a virtual reality simulation. How unfortunate.  

"You irritate me."  

Barbara circled around me. Twirling a kitchen knife in her hand, she brought it to the nape of my neck.  

It was fake, anyway. Even if she stabbed me, I wouldn’t die. The cold sensation was nothing more than an artificial signal. The immersion level was low, so it wouldn’t have much of an effect on my real body.  

A portion of my senses remained focused on observing the "real Lante." Through my auditory vision, I could see Lante, unmoving.

"A meeting of minds, huh? Funny, I feel the same way. Just looking at you makes my insides boil for no reason."  

I pressed my finger against the kitchen knife touching my neck as I spoke.  

Whoosh.  

Barbara swiftly switched the knife to her other hand and thrust the blade between my legs. Even knowing this was virtual reality, it was still unnerving.  

"You violated Giselle with this filthy thing? How disgusting! I feel like cutting it off and burning it right this second. Luka, can I take a slice?"  

Barbara pushed the blade even closer between my legs, as if she was genuinely about to sever something vital. Even in virtual reality, this was enough to make me break out in a cold sweat.  

'Barbara knows about my relationship with Giselle.'  

And yet, she hadn’t attacked me. Given her obsession with Giselle, it wouldn’t have been surprising if she had lost herself in irrational madness and tried to kill me.  

'When Ilay attempted to assassinate Gilda, it was Barbara who hacked the androids to warn me.'  

Barbara had been aware of my existence for some time but never struck.  

"Barbara, what deal did you make with Giselle?"  

"I have no reason to tell you. You're my rival in love. If you weren’t, I might have actually liked you. Ugh, disgusting. I hate you to death."  

Barbara muttered her insults in a sing-song tone and took a step back. The knife moved away as well.  

Hah, I felt a momentary relief despite myself. Even in virtual reality, I had no interest in experiencing what it was like to get stabbed down there.  

"You’re in a position where you have to work with me. Tell me the situation—for Giselle’s sake, if nothing else."  

I spoke without emotion.  

'This is no time to waste energy in a pointless emotional exchange with Barbara.'  

According to Lante, we only had fifteen minutes for this communication. Any longer, and the forces tracking the Empire’s Blade would intercept or trace our call.  

"You still talk a good game. Damn half-wit."  

I’d been called all sorts of names in my life, but "half-wit" was a first.  

"Then explain it so even a half-wit like me can understand."  

I kept my composure, waiting patiently for Barbara’s response.  

"Giselle and I made a promise. That’s all, Luka. A promise that only she and I know. Do you really think I’d share my treasure with you?"  

Barbara’s cheeks flushed red. I had no time to mock her inappropriate desires.  

"Was protecting Gilda part of that promise? I know you were the one who sent me the warning through the androids."  

Barbara let out a sigh, narrowing her eyes at my mechanical tone. She must have found me terribly dull.

"That was one of Giselle’s requests—to protect Gilda, at least within the limits of my abilities."  

Giselle had embezzled funds from G&G Cybernetics. Protecting Gilda through Barbara was probably her way of atonement.  

"Alright, enough with the side chatter, Barbara. Where is Giselle right now?"  

Barbara scanned me from head to toe before her full lips finally moved.  

"You waking up… wasn’t part of our plan. Giselle’s location? Even if I wanted to tell you, I don’t know. And you shouldn’t know either."  

I wanted to grab Barbara by the neck and slam her against the wall. I wanted to rip open her stomach and crush her intestines with my bare hands, torturing her until she spat out everything she knew—again and again and again…  

I was fully aware of the sharp aggression and sadism rising within me. Barbara had a way of provoking my cruelty more than anyone else.  

"It’d be best if you didn’t test my patience, Barbara. I already have your trail. Finding you in the real world is just a matter of time."  

Barbara gave me a sly, unbothered smile, as if my threats meant nothing.  

"Giselle has a plan. If you truly love her… then drop all this nonsense and disappear, as if you never existed. I could lure you into a trap and kill you right here and now, but I’m holding back for Giselle’s sake. Because if you die, I have a feeling Giselle will die too."  

A flood of clues and information spilled from Barbara’s words. Even this much was enough to outline Giselle’s movements.  

'Her disappearance was staged, and my return wasn’t part of her plan.'  

And to maintain secrecy, even Barbara didn’t know Giselle’s whereabouts or current situation.  

'Or, in the worst-case scenario… Barbara has imprisoned Giselle and is lying about it.'  

But that worst-case assumption lacked credibility. If Barbara had locked Giselle away and claimed ownership of her, she wouldn’t be hesitating to kill me.  

'Ivan and Barbara, me and Giselle.'  

Ivan and Barbara’s obsessions were similar in nature. I recalled my secret meeting with Ivan.  

'Ivan said he didn’t want to restrain my free will—he wanted to have me entirely, as I was.'  

Barbara was likely the same. She didn’t just want Giselle’s body; she wanted the person—the consciousness, the identity, the soul that made up Giselle.  

If all Barbara wanted was Giselle’s outward form, she wouldn’t need to reluctantly cooperate with me.  

And one particular line from Barbara burrowed deep into my psychological defenses.  

‘If you die, I have a feeling Giselle will die too.’

No one else would understand how much these words comforted me.  

Everything I had done up until now had not been in vain or meaningless.  

No matter how Giselle had changed, I felt like I could still accept her.  

‘But if Giselle staged her own disappearance, then how do Kinuan and Valek’s involvement fit into this?’  

Because of Kinuan and Valek’s interference, Gabriel’s life had been ruined.  

‘Did Kinuan figure out Giselle’s plan and insert himself into it? Or… did Giselle make a deal with Kinuan as well?’  

That couldn’t happen. A deal with Barbara was one thing. But Kinuan was a monster that should never be allied with. Everyone who had ever cooperated with Kinuan had met an inescapable ruin.  

‘If Giselle worked with Kinuan, no matter what her plan was, she might not have made it out unscathed.’  

My mind whirred even more fiercely, as if my very hair would catch fire.  

‘My awakening disrupted Giselle’s plan. My return was also part of Kinuan’s scheme.’  

It was the worst possible situation.  

‘Giselle being in Kinuan’s hands.’  

If Kinuan had intercepted Giselle mid-act while she was trying to fake her disappearance…  

I didn’t want to think about it. Please, let it not be true.  

"Barbara, did ‘Kinuan’ take Giselle—"  

Before I could even finish my sentence, Barbara burst into laughter, shaking all the way to her shoulders. She seemed to relish the fact that she was ahead of me in information.  

"That’s not it. I know Kinuan too. He’s extremely dangerous. But I blocked his interference. That much is certain. Kinuan didn’t get his hands on Giselle."  

Barbara spoke with unwavering confidence. I wanted to believe her. But the massive shadow of Kinuan that had grown inside me wouldn’t disappear so easily.  

"How?"  

"I called in Mushir al-Kashura to stop him. The forces under Mushir al-Kashura aren’t just what you faced. There’s a reason he’s called a legend. Because of Kashura, you need to disappear. If he returns in full force, you won’t be able to handle it."  

This time, I thought it was reasonable for me to be surprised.  

The legendary mercenary, Mushir al-Kashura. I never expected to hear that name here.  

‘Just how many conspiracies and schemes have unfolded while I was asleep?’  

It was almost impossible to catch up in such a short time. Barbara had even clashed with Kinuan before.

Just as I had pushed forward through countless incidents and accidents in Akbaran and Border City during the Storm Era… Giselle and Barbara had spent years navigating through darkness and fog.  

"Luka, if you truly care about Giselle, listen to me. I’ll cooperate with you too. Everything is for Giselle."  

Barbara slightly raised her eyes, as if checking the time. Our fifteen minutes were almost up.  

"Our conversation isn’t over yet, Barbara."  

But Barbara ignored me and continued speaking on her own.  

"I’ll tell Lante that the condition for joining the Empire’s Blade is completing a mission. For now, contact me through Lante for the next transmission. But before that, cut ties with everyone and prepare to leave Border City. According to Giselle’s plan, you were supposed to stay asleep for another ten years."  

Barbara’s form was starting to blur. I resisted the futile urge to reach out and grab her.  

Static. A harsh, crackling noise.  

My consciousness and senses were pulling away from the simulation. Lante’s figure was becoming clearer in my perception.  

'Lante hasn’t moved an inch since I entered the simulation.'  

That alone was enough to gauge his skill. His control over his prosthetic body was so precise that he could suppress even involuntary reflexes. Despite his ragged appearance, he was still an active force.  

Just before my consciousness fully exited the simulation—  

Beep!  

A sharp signal burst through, and Barbara’s ghostly form flashed onto my retinal display. Her eyes burned with fury as she gripped a kitchen knife.  

—Of course, I can’t just let you go. How dare you violate my Giselle with that disgusting hunk of flesh?  

…Virtual reality was Barbara’s domain. There was no way to win.  

I accepted my impending fate. Damn it all.  

Stab.  

A searing pain, like a deep laceration, spread between my legs.  

Damn it, calm down, Luka. This is just a simulated experience.  

I knew that logically. But it was still horrific. Anyone who hadn’t been trained to separate simulation from reality would probably develop a trauma so severe they’d become permanently impotent. No, even I—someone who had been trained—might…  

"Khht… ugh."  

I let out a short groan and opened my eyes. A tattered ceiling came into view.  

"You’re awake. I just received a message from ‘the Head’—"  

I ignored Lante’s words, my hands urgently feeling between my legs. Cold sweat was trickling down my body.  

…Of course, everything was still intact. But it had shriveled up as if I’d dunked it in ice water.  

I could only hope that when the time came, that function would work properly again.

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