Ding Dong Ding Dong
The sound of the tenth bell jolted Roan from his thoughts. The remaining food before him had long gone cold.
He had thought about waiting a bit and eating again, but his stomach was still full.
Sighing in regret, Roan decided to put the food on the main table. When they had returned, the food was already there.
He hadn't seen Shila anywhere. Although Boss had said not to worry, he couldn't help it.
He left his room behind and briskly walked toward Boss's room.
Boss was sitting there with her eyes closed. He carefully set down the plate, making sure not to make any noise.
"Sit. The battles should be over by now," Boss instructed.
So much for being careful. Sighing, Roan sat down. What had happened before came to mind. Though unsure, he decided to ask anyway.
"Was that wise? Strong-arming the beggars? They can just report everything to the House of Sha or the city commander."
And the question he didn't say aloud: why even bother telling them anything? They could have just done business as usual. The old man looked truly pissed—his body had been trembling with rage.
"They would've found out eventually. Just keeping a record of what we ask for is enough, even if you ignore the other facts," Boss replied. She seemed to know everything.
Letting out another sigh, Roan asked more directly this time, "What if they report us now? The thieves are already on their side. So are the Loan Sharks. And if things go like this, the merchant circle will take over the flesh merchants."
"They won't. The Lord doesn't feed them—same with everyone you mentioned. They give coins for information just like we do. But we're the only ones who supply the cheap stores in the outer city. We could starve them to death if we wanted to," Boss said calmly.
Roan licked his lips. The casual way Boss talked about killing thousands terrified him—but what terrified him more was that he wasn't even fully against such a strategy.
He looked at the dark sky through the window. It was cloudy tonight.
Turning back to Boss, he pressed further, "What if the Lord's men promise them food?"
Boss scoffed. "They can't. With the kingdom burning, they're already running low. Even if they do, the beggars know it won't last. We're the ones keeping them fed. And we're the only ones smuggling food. I became a smuggler for a reason."
It was true. Why hadn't he thought of that before? The smugglers had real power. Most of the outer city ate what they provided. No wonder the Lord of Sha had never tried to do anything about them. In times of peace, they were pests. But now? Smugglers like them fed half the kingdom.
"The kingdom will lose this war. The Cardinal Legionary is basically dead. The auxiliaries can only hold off the Principality for so long. The old Queen should've just ceded the Northern Alps. The Principality controls the rest of the mountain anyway—and it's practically useless to us," Roan said, changing the subject.
"Not true. While it might seem useless, it's very useful in wartime," Boss corrected.
Roan scoffed, "It didn't take them even a month to drive the Legionary back to the Northern Plains."
"That's what happens when you kill your finest general on suspicion and replace him with an arrogant fool," Boss said with disdain. Although officially it was an unknown assassin, everyone knew the Queen did it.
It wasn't the first time someone who disagreed with her had an "accident." This time, they hadn't even bothered to make it look like one.
"Besides," Boss continued, "that old hag can't just give up the Northern Alps. Her prestige would be stained. The nobles barely tolerate her as it is."
"How effective," Roan said dryly. "I'm surprised they haven't rebelled yet."
"Why would they rebel now? Better to wait until the war ends and blame her for everything," Boss scoffed.
"She should just resign," Roan said with exasperation. The old Queen was the longest-reigning ruler the kingdom had ever known.
She'd sat on the throne for almost half a century. In a way, that was an achievement by itself. He had heard that the average ruler lasted only three decades at most.
Boss was about to reply when she stopped.
The sound of footsteps marked Shila's return—wherever she'd gone.
Passing the doorway, she stopped. Her eyes flicked between him and Boss. Narrowed, judging. Then she resumed walking.
Was she misunderstanding something?
She bent slightly and politely handed a piece of paper to Boss. Too polite.
The corner of Boss's lips lifted as she read it.
She passed the paper to Roan and asked Shila, "Robber?"
"Finished. Coins are in the third warehouse. He went to get his 'trophy,'" Shila replied in a businesslike tone. Roan noticed the faint disgust when she said "trophy."
Roan wondered what that trophy was. But as Shila kept talking, he focused on the paper.
And the surprise he'd expected never came.
The paper listed twenty-eight names. Twenty-six of them were crossed out. Their affiliations were written beside each.
In just a few hours, years-old gangs had been destroyed. This was the power of the Assassin's Guild.
Roan shivered. Those two people had looked like anyone else—yet they'd ruthlessly killed twenty-six people.
He'd known what assassins did, but seeing the results up close had made him truly understand his place.
No matter how frightening they seemed to normal people, in the grand scheme of things, they were ants. And the only reason they were still alive was because no one had bothered to kill them.
"Dove?" Boss asked, breaking him from his thoughts.
"The slaves rallied with him and killed the slavers. The thieves surrendered. He's with his daughters now," Shila said, face unreadable.
"Tch. He went too far. We still needed those slavers to keep the business running," Boss said with a shake of her head.
A flicker of rage passed through Shila's face—but it was gone in an instant. Roan's hand slowly reached for the plate.
A flicker of resolve lit Shila's eyes. Boss looked exasperated.
"We discussed this. We can't get rid of slavery."
"I understand," Shila said. But she clearly didn't. Roan noted that too. He was curious about Boss's reasoning, but it would have to wait for another day.
Shaking her head, Boss asked instead, "Casualties?"
"Captain Zingshi died. Twelve more dead on our side. Fifty-four total among slaves and slavers. Eight confirmed deaths from the thieves. Thirteen missing," Shila reported, as if reciting cabbage sales.
"Gather everyone at the second warehouse. Bring people from all the guilds," Boss ordered.
Shila dipped her head and went back the way she'd come.
Roan waited a few moments before asking, "How can you be sure she won't rat us out?"
"Why wouldn't you?" Boss replied, her voice mild, like someone suppressing irritation.
The answer was simple: he had no other choice.
He nodded, understanding, and didn't push it further.
Boss sighed and pushed herself up from the table. "Come. We've got work to do."
Roan looked at the cloudy sky one last time before following her out.