Trapping a Trap, Laying Another Trap

Chapter 32

Inside a bustling, noisy cafe on Jeju Island.

Lisana sat facing her sister.

“Sorry to call you out like this when you’re busy, Lisana.”

Lisana shook her head to indicate it was alright, saying,

“N-no, it’s fine. I was thinking it was a shame that you left so abruptly yesterday.”

“I’m glad to hear you say that. Honestly, my little sister is just too kind.”

Her sister, wearing a gentle smile, tapped her teacup with her teaspoon, and Lisana, as if suddenly remembering something, opened the bag she had brought and rummaged inside.

“Oh, right. I brought what you asked for. Here, this is all the information about Oracle that the Director has gathered to date.”

A thick sheaf of documents landed on the table. Lisana pushed it forward, but for some reason, her sister didn’t reach for it.

“Sister?”

“Hmm?”

“You don’t need this?”

Lisana asked, a puzzled look on her face. Her sister responded with a bright smile.

“You little minx. So the suggestion’s lifted, is it?”

In that instant, all sound within the café vanished.

Simultaneously, a blade erupted from her sister’s chest, piercing straight through her heart.

Blood trickled from her lips as she craned her neck to look behind her.

A man wearing an owl mask stood there.

“To pierce a Lady’s heart in one fell swoop – what a callous fellow.”

“One wouldn’t call a Lady something that can be killed by a heart wound.”

“Heh heh, perhaps not.”

John extracted the sword, then swung it again, severing her neck.

The woman, who was pretending to be Lisana’s sister, her head tumbled down and rolled away.

That was the start of it.

“Gah!? Everyone, fall back!”

John, sensing the danger first, yelled. Undercover intelligence agents, masquerading as patrons, instantly created distance.

In that same moment, flames erupted from the woman’s body – the body that should have been dead – and exploded, engulfing the café.

Owl and his agents scrambled out, just clearing the blast radius.

Christina, dragging Lisana who couldn’t move as fast, pulled her outside and set her down, cautioning her.

“Stay back so you don’t get caught in the fighting, but don’t get out of our sight either. You understand me?”

Warned that she might still be a target, Lisana nodded quickly and retreated.

Meanwhile, the body that had triggered the explosion rose to its feet, picked up its severed head, and reattached it to its neck.

“Ooh, you people are even more ruthless than I thought? A hole through the heart, then you chop off my head? That’s just not sporting, is it?”

She chuckled, testing her reattached neck as she scanned her surroundings.

No sign of civilians. They must have evacuated them all, preventing them from becoming collateral or hostages.

‘Let’s see. The Owls are all here, focused on me, and the intelligence agents… judging by their numbers, it looks like almost their entire force is deployed.’

Exactly the best possible outcome, and a genuine smile stretched across her face.

“More. I need to have your full focus on me. So you can’t conjure up any other possibilities.”

With an elegant flick of her fingers in the air, her clothes transformed into a scarlet dress.

Having changed attire via magic, she bowed low to the gathering, her movements as fluid as a seasoned thespian.

“Pleased to meet you all. As you might have guessed, I’m a member of Oracle’s leadership. My name is Alina Reifenstahl. Let’s work well together.”

“…The ＜Mad Playwright＞? The mastermind behind the Reifenstahl Tragedy?”

“Oh, how lovely that you recognize me.”

A prodigy, yes, but still only nine years old when she turned her parents and siblings into specimens for her magical experiments.

That was the Reifenstahl Tragedy.

“I heard you were dead?”

“Things happened. Would you like to hear about it?”

“I think I’ll pass, for the sake of my stomach.”

Five owls lunged toward Alina in unison.

Thinking that taking on them all at once would be tough, she prepared to move, only to find her feet were frozen to the ground.

“What…”

“I usually prefer one-on-one, but I hope you’ll understand the circumstances.”

A woman emerged from the shadows among the agents.

A face she hadn’t seen before, but since there were only so many people who could wield such power, she recognized her immediately.

“Angela Barmut…!”

The owls’ weapons and fists rained down on Alina, a flurry of blows and strikes.

Alina managed to melt the ice and shake off the owls with a burst of flames, but the price was a body riddled with wounds.

‘So they cautiously brought out the ＜Ice Devil＞ as well. It’ll reduce the time I have, but all the better.’

The Director had intended to lure her out, a key member of Oracle, using Lisana as bait, with the aim of capturing or eliminating her. However, Oracle was using her as bait as well.

From the start, Oracle was certain the Director would undo the suggestion placed on Lisana Zimon.

It wasn’t that the suggestion was weak.

But human minds were inherently delicate and complex, and even a mage of Alina’s caliber couldn’t create a perfect suggestion, no matter how much effort she put in.

Therefore, Oracle was confident.

That the Director would notice Lisana Zimon’s strangeness and remove the suggestion.

Just as they had hoped.

‘With this, the Director is left alone. Now is the time to seize that ＜Iron Blood＞ and bring him in!’

The Oracle’s true objective was a feint.

Erich Johann’s deliberate exposure earlier wasn’t only rendered meaningless by being discovered, but also intended to instill in the Intelligence Bureau the perception that “Oracle’s executives are powerful.”

To capture or eliminate such executives, the Bureau would have to deploy its maximum force.

Leaving the Director virtually alone in the meantime.

‘Alright, shall we buy some time with everything we have?’

With Angela Barrmut joining the fray, she wasn’t sure how far she could go with her current strength, but as she spread a magic circle with both hands, trying to buy as much time as possible,

Alina sensed something amiss.

“…Hey, weren’t there only five Owls?”

There was one more wearing an Owl mask.

If it stopped there, she could have just dismissed it as a new recruit Oracle hadn’t accounted for.

However, this Owl, for some reason, wasn’t participating in the battle, instead being protected by the other agents and remaining a good distance behind.

“…No way.”

The worst possible suspicion crossed Alina’s mind.

Sensing an impending doom, she ignored everything else and unleashed a barrage of fire and lightning magic towards the Owl waiting in the rear.

As expected, all the Owls and Angela rushed in front of him, blocking the attacks.

There was no need for further proof.

Unable to hide her despair, Alina spoke.

“Why… why are you here… just, why?”

The man, hearing her question, slowly removed his mask.

Seeing his face, Alina inhaled sharply, then screamed.

“Answer me! Why are *you* here, Director!”

“……………”

The Director said nothing.

—

Erich, feeling utter disbelief, leapt to the side to avoid the massive sword aura hurtling towards him.

“Seriously, aren’t you a little too strong?”

Francesca snorted in response to Erich’s bewildered remark.

“Maybe you’re just weak.”

Erich felt genuinely wronged by her words.

He had more combat experience than her, no matter how you looked at it.

Despite all, he was losing ground.

Simply outmatched by raw, natural talent.

‘Blast it all. It’s bad enough the plan lacks the minister, but to be stalled here like this…’

The men he’d brought from the intelligence division were already dead, cut down by knights of the Third Order who were waiting.

Only Erich remained.

By all accounts, it was time to run, but Francesca had no intention of letting him go so easily.

“Die regretting ever targeting us.”

“I’m not ready to die yet?!”

Alone for the sake of stealth and mobility, Erich struggled to survive, regretting his choices.

—

Judging it safe, I turned my gaze back to the battle unfolding before me.

Though watching wasn’t exactly revealing much.

I was mostly just marveling, without really understanding, “Wow, my subordinates and my sister are really going at it.”

The thing is, they’re all moving so fast, I can’t even see them properly.

Are we even the same species?

I suspect they might be something else entirely.

“Eeep?!”

While I was seriously contemplating the possibility of a new breed of human, the fight seemed to be winding down.

The one who had pretended to be Lisana’s sister…what was her name again? Ah, right. Alina.

Owls were tearing apart Alina’s torso, separated from her ice-encased lower body by Angela’s ice magic.

So gruesome, it makes me want to vomit. Guess I’m done with dinner today.

“Haa…haa…haa…”

“Still not dead?”

“Is she even a living thing anymore?”

Angela approached, holding swords crafted of ice in both hands, speaking from behind the owls who were muttering in weary tones as they looked at the panting Alina.

“That’s probably a Decoy.”

“A Decoy? You mean a fake?”

“Something like that. Even though it’s a fake, it’s a high-quality one, made using a homunculus that replicates her.”

The two ice swords pierced Alina, one through the center of her chest, the other through her head.

“I had all sorts of theories when she didn’t die at first, but after all this, if she’s still holding on, it has to be a Decoy.”

“So, what are we to do? We can’t just leave it like this.”

Angela shrugged at the owls’ query.

“What else? Sever the connection with the main body, of course.”

Angela, hands clasped, began to chant. The twin ice swords piercing Alina’s form reacted, beginning to emit light.

I couldn’t quite grasp what was happening, but as the light intensified, Alina seemed to be in greater agony.

“Keeeeeeeeaaa!”

“You think you can cause this ruckus and all it takes is cutting the connection? Can’t kill you, but it’s gonna hurt like hell for a good while, so brace yourself.”

With a *pop*, a blinding flash erupted, and both Alina’s torso, impaled by the ice swords, and her frozen lower body, dissolved into ash and vanished.

Was it over?

“Phew. All done now, Big Brother! Angela did good, right? Give me praise!”

Guess it was.

Though I didn’t do a thing, feels weird for me to say anything, but thanks for the hard work everyone. Let’s all go grab some shawarma.

“Uh, Chief. That…”

As I was pondering which place had the best shawarma, Kristina pointed to the sky.

A bluebird was flying towards me.