Chapter 17: The Night Owl’s Shadow

“Dead?” Hilvyn asked, disbelieving. “But this morning, they were still…”

Serene explained, “That’s right. The Windwhisper City trade station sent a message this morning, briefly describing the A-rank assassin you encountered on your journey and requesting an increase in the mission reward.”

Serene paused.

“By noon, Mr. Cole was found dead in his room.”

“Was it that assassin?”

Elara’s tone was displeased, her eyes clouded with irritation.

“As for this,” Serene said, gesturing towards the stairs, “President Sevia is waiting for you.”

As they ascended the stairs, Elara glanced at Hilvyn, observing her state.

For Elara herself, this outcome was bearable.

However, it was a different story for Hilvyn.

“Are you alright?”

“Not really,” Hilvyn replied, her voice muffled.

Detecting the sadness in her companion’s tone, Elara reached out, gently cupping Hilvyn’s face and making her look at her.

“You tried your best,” Elara began, “The ice wall, the ice spike cage—you deployed them perfectly.”

“But… but Cole still died.”

Elara’s voice softened further. “Our mission was to escort him into the city, and you and I ensured his safety on the journey.”

Hilvyn pursed her lips, remaining silent.

“We even killed a formidable enemy together,” Elara continued. “But what happened after he entered the city was beyond our control.”

“Both of us did our part, and we did it exceptionally well.”

Hilvyn remained silent for a few seconds before weakly emitting a soft “Mm…”

Elara released her grip and continued walking upstairs, Hilvyn’s footsteps following close behind.

“Knock, knock.”

“Come in.”

“President Sevia, you wished to see us.”

Sevia set down her pen, her gaze sweeping over their expressions—the atmosphere felt somewhat heavy.

“You two shouldn’t dwell on it too much; try to look at it differently.”

Her first words, unexpectedly, were comforting.

“Thank you, President.”

“Have a seat,” Sevia motioned for them to sit.

Elara and Hilvyn sat side-by-side.

“That assassin…” Elara began, getting straight to the point.

“Would you like some tea?” Sevia poured two cups from the pot. “It’s infused with wind chimes fruit; it’s quite delicious.”

“President, what do you mean by this…” Elara was perplexed, realizing the vice president was avoiding the topic.

“It means nothing.”

Sevia refilled her own cup, took a sip, and then continued.

“You two possess great potential and are still young. You shouldn’t waste your energy on such matters.”

“Is the assassin organization very powerful?” Hilvyn asked in a small voice.

“Extremely powerful,” Sevia replied without hesitation.

“They are called Night Owls, spread across the world. You can hire them if you have enough money.”

“How many of them are there?”

“No one knows. Perhaps even those at the very top don’t know themselves.”

Sevia took a sip of tea. Seeing that neither of them moved, she subtly lifted a finger, summoning a gust of wind to carry the teacups to their hands.

“Thank you,” they said in unison.

Leaning back in her chair, Sevia’s tone was as calm as if she were simply chatting.

“One of their rules is absolute extermination. If one Night Owl dies, the next one sent will be even stronger.”

“Moreover, their internal communication relies solely on the magical marks on their bodies. Aside from the top management, no one knows anyone else.”

“Don’t major powers try to rein them in?” Hilvyn asked, fiddling with her teacup, clearly indignant.

“If you betray the organization, that mark transforms into a new magical imprint, and you are hunted by all Night Owl members. After death, not even a corpse is left behind, as you’ve both witnessed.”

Sevia’s tone was filled with helplessness.

Elara felt a surge of powerlessness. Such an organization was impossible to even begin investigating.

“If one is targeted… are they certain to die?”

“That is usually the case,” Sevia paused. “Unless you can withstand three waves of Night Owl assassinations. After three waves, the Night Owls will cancel the mission.”

Seeing the somber mood, Sevia abruptly changed the subject.

“High-ranking Night Owl assassins are referred to by code names. Based on the trade station’s magical description, the one you two dealt with this time was likely Owl 21.”

Her voice softened. “You won a beautiful victory.”

Elara looked at Hilvyn beside her. “Thanks to my companion.”

“No, Sister, you did most of the work.”

Sevia watched their interaction, smiling with satisfaction, choosing not to interrupt as she casually took another sip of tea.

Elara still had a question.

“Why would such a high-ranking assassin take on a mission of this level?”

Cole and his butler were completely defenseless, so sending an A-rank Night Owl seemed like overkill.

“Their missions are not like guild commissions. In the eyes of high-tier Night Owls, safe and simple tasks are actually more sought after. For them, it means they can easily acquire money with a single strike.”

This implied that if a target’s strength and influence were weak, high-level Night Owls would still accept the mission. There wasn’t a direct correlation between a bounty’s difficulty and the strength of the assassin assigned.

Sevia paused, then added, “Only when a mission fails for the first time will management dispatch a stronger Night Owl, like in this instance.”

After explaining, Sevia set down her teacup and looked at the two of them with solemnity, repeating her purpose for this meeting: “So, Black Rose, White Angelica.”

Both sat up straighter.

“You are excellent adventurers. Let this matter end here; there’s no need to pursue it further. Focus on improving your strength and living your lives well.”

“Understood, President,” they replied in unison.

Elara glanced at Hilvyn, noting her composure had significantly improved.

It seemed she had recovered. After all, the vice president was a powerful individual, and a strong person’s guidance inherently carried a sense of security and credibility.

“One more thing, Black Rose.” Sevia pulled out a record book.

Elara snapped out of her thoughts.

“Excluding two over-quota mission records and one special merit, your regular mission records alone exceed five times the requirement.”

Sevia closed the book and looked at Elara.

Elara felt a slight embarrassment.

“When will you break through to A-rank?”

Previously, her lack of breakthrough was due to Hilvyn’s undeveloped abilities, which was a valid reason. But now, Elara had a new, subtle agenda.

“Hehe, about that… President.” Elara chuckled awkwardly. “That’s not mandatory, is it?”

[Tactically sips tea]

“Theoretically, no,” Sevia calmly replied.

Before Elara could rejoice, Sevia added, “However, I can make it theoretical.”

Hilvyn hadn’t understood what they were discussing. She only found the tea in her cup delicious and, having finished it, eyed the cup in front of Elara.

“Hey! I’ve already drunk from that one.”

“Cough, cough.” Sevia cleared her throat twice.

Elara’s back stiffened.

‘Damn it, what is this overwhelming pressure, like a teacher’s?’ she thought.

“I’ll take the A-rank assessment in one month.”

Sevia remained silent.

“Half a month?”

Sevia took a sip of tea. “Before the dungeon, ideally tomorrow.”

‘Blast it, the President knew everything all along!’ Elara wailed internally.

“As you command, President…”

“This mission was A-rank standard. Go collect your reward shortly, and then you may leave if there’s nothing else.”

“Goodbye, President,” they both responded.

Once downstairs, Elara purchased another magic scroll.

It was a high-tier dark magic, ‘Shadow Strike.’

Compared to ‘Shadow Concealment,’ the direct effect of this magic was the ability to instantly vanish and move within a mass of dark shadows.

This was her preparation for the A-rank assessment.