Chapter 80
The Custoria estate was as solemn as its old architectural style. Even the maids passing by kept their mouths shut and their gazes lowered, as if silence was a virtue.
In the estate, if one had something to say, they did so behind closed doors. Even among family members, there were many secrets. It was probably not much different for other noble households.
Hemillas and I waited after summoning Giselle.
Creak, thud.
Giselle opened the door and entered Hemillas’s study. When she saw me, her expression flinched in surprise. She hadn’t expected me to be here.
"Sit down first, Giselle."
I spoke in place of Hemillas.
Hemillas was lost in thought as he stared out the window. He was likely formulating plans and devising strategies, accounting for variables we weren’t even aware of.
Giselle approached me and whispered,
"What’s going on? Father looks serious."
"There’s a mission. A family matter."
I kept it brief. Only then did Giselle, her face now stiff, take a seat.
"Because of Nikolaos?"
I nodded silently.
Swish.
Hemillas turned from the window and looked at us. Fixing his gaze on Giselle, he spoke carefully.
"Giselle, Luka and I are tracking down the one who ordered Nikolaos’s assassination. We’ve already gotten quite close."
"…Isn’t that Nemesis’s doing?"
Giselle’s words carried a lot of meaning.
‘Eradicating Nemesis is impossible.’
Even the Empire had failed to wipe out the terrorist group. On top of that, their decentralized cell structure made a sweeping purge difficult.
"We need to make sure they never touch the Custoria family again… We need to demonstrate our power to them."
At the very least, we would track down and kill those involved in Nikolaos’s assassination.
‘It’s a matter of the family's prestige, as well as our safety.’
I understood why Hemillas was investing so much time and effort into this.
"Wasn’t the instigator Rick Silva Núñez? Luka killed him."
"Rick was an officer of Nemesis, but everyone knows he wasn’t the one planning and giving orders. He was just following orders from above."
That was true. If Rick had been the mastermind, he wouldn’t have shown up at the scene so often.
Rick had been a skilled warrior, but to Nemesis, he was replaceable. The ones truly irreplaceable were those hidden away, surrounded by people like Rick, ensuring their protection.
"So, I have a role in this as well?"
Giselle read the situation and went straight to the point.
"We need to lure out Barbara from Nemesis, Giselle. The same girl who attended Kracia Academy with you."
Hemillas spoke calmly.
The fact that Barbara was an 'Imperial spy' remained classified for Giselle. As far as she knew, Barbara was nothing more than a psychotic terrorist.
"Barbara…"
Giselle flinched. Her trembling hands, which had been barely noticeable at first, started to shake more visibly. I placed a hand on her shoulder as if to suppress her trembling.
She jolted slightly at my touch, but it seemed to help. Her agitation gradually subsided.
'Giselle is still afraid of Barbara.'
Barbara was an unnerving person—a woman with a nature far too overwhelming for Giselle to handle.
"Luka said you could be used as bait to lure out Barbara. Do you agree with that?"
Giselle’s gaze turned to me. I didn’t avoid her eyes. She bit her lower lip slightly.
At first, I expected her to lash out in anger or frustration. But her emotions… were sorrow.
"…It’s true that she was strangely obsessed with me. I don’t know if she’ll show up just because of me, but Luka is probably right. He has better instincts than I do."
Giselle raised her thumb to her lips for a brief moment before lowering it. Even in such small gestures, I could sense her anxiety and unease.
But Hemillas remained unfazed by his daughter’s emotional turmoil. Whatever he felt inside, outwardly he was as unyielding as steel.
"We need to make contact with Barbara, Giselle."
Hemillas looked down at her as he spoke.
No further explanation was necessary. The three people gathered here were all sharp-minded. Even including myself—though I found it a bit embarrassing to admit.
Giselle closed her eyes as if sorting through her emotions. When she slowly opened them again, the sharp light of intelligence had replaced her uncertainty.
"Tell me the plan, and I’ll prepare accordingly."
* * *
The plan was simple.
Find a plausible reason to send Giselle outside of Akbaran. If Barbara was still keeping an eye on her, she would attempt to make contact—either personally or through an intermediary.
'Whoever shows up, we’ll interrogate them about Nikolaos’s death.'
Of course, Giselle couldn’t give off any hint that she was being used as bait or walking into a trap. But at the same time, sending her out without protection was out of the question.
If I were assigned as her escort, it would strongly signal that this was a Custoria family operation. And on top of that…
"If I officially assign you as Giselle’s escort and send you outside of Akbaran… there will undoubtedly be an assassination attempt. They’ll come after you—the one who killed Rick. Rick was well-liked. They’ll want revenge just as much as we do."
Many were after my life. If anything, I was in a more dangerous position than Giselle.
But I couldn’t send her out without an official escort. Hiring private mercenaries would be an odd choice for a military family led by the Commander of the Imperial Guard.
It was difficult to find the right person to guard Giselle.
"I’ll assign Ilay Carthica to escort Giselle under a cadet mission. This is something I can authorize at my own discretion without an internal meeting. It won’t seem suspicious."
"Ilay? What if…"
There was a chance things might require silencing. Ilay being my friend was already an issue, but worse, I wasn’t confident I could handle him if it came to that.
"Luka, doesn’t Ilay owe you a great deal? He’ll keep most secrets for you. I won’t say any more than that."
Hemillas spoke as if it were nothing. I barely held back the words rising to my throat.
‘How much do you actually know?’
The past resurfaced in my mind. Ilay and I had committed anti-imperial acts to save Lilian Lamones.
Even then, Hemillas had prodded at me as if he knew something.
‘Is he testing me again?’
I forced myself to stay composed and opened my mouth, sensing the need to change the subject.
"Then I’ll keep my distance and follow after Giselle and Ilay."
"No, that won’t do. This mission requires immediate response. I’ve already prepared another identity for you."
There was a tinge of excitement in Hemillas’s voice. My unease grew.
…This felt familiar.
I had been in a situation just like this before.
‘Back when Hemillas sent me to Kracia Academy…’
Hemillas handed me a document. The electronic ink glowed faintly.
"This is—sigh."
The moment I saw the document, I scrunched up my face with every muscle I had. A curse almost leaped past my teeth but got caught on my tongue, circling there instead.
"Are you serious?"
I barely kept my emotions in check and forced myself to speak as politely as possible.
"I don't joke about family matters."
"No, fuck, what kind of bullshit operation is this…?"
Ah, I let it slip. If I had said something like this in front of the Commander of the Imperial Guard three years ago, I would have been executed on the spot.
"Hm, it's not a bullshit operation, it's a dickless operation. This is the most foolproof disguise, Luka."
Hemillas grinned, the wrinkles on his lips deepening in amusement at his own joke.
That's right.
I had to pretend to be a woman.
As Giselle’s handmaiden.
* * *
I want to die.
I stared out of the window of the airborne vehicle in motion. My thoughts turned more specific.
I wanted to open the door and jump out. If I went headfirst, I wouldn’t feel any pain.
"Hmmm, open your eyes wider and look this way, Keisa."
Giselle spoke in a voice laced with amusement. Inside the automatically piloted airborne vehicle, it was just the two of us.
‘Keisa.’
That was my alias. On paper, I was a servant employed by the Custoria family.
"The mission hasn't even started yet. If you call me Keisa one more time—ugh."
Before I could finish my threat, Giselle clamped a strange tool onto my eyelid.
"If I call you that, then what?"
She rummaged through a bag filled with makeup tools, completely unfazed. Holding another peculiar instrument between her fingers, she continued.
"And I need to get used to saying the name so I don’t slip up later. Unlike you, I’m not used to these kinds of missions. Isn’t thorough preparation what being a soldier is all about? Or are you the kind of person who increases the risk of mission failure just because you're in a bad mood? Hm? Keisa?"
Giselle spoke smoothly, leaving no room for argument.
"…Fine."
I surrendered.
"You have decent features, but you're still too masculine. I’ll have to be meticulous if we want you to pass as a woman."
She spread a cool liquid over my face. The unfamiliar sensation made me frown.
Swish.
The liquid, warmed by my body heat, adhered to my skin, solidifying into a texture that closely resembled flesh.
"This will compensate for the lack of fat on your face. It’ll soften and slim down your sharp angles. Since your features are naturally sharp, it works really well."
Giselle’s makeup skills were impressive. I could see my face changing in the mirror.
Swish.
Like she was painting a portrait, Giselle moved the brush across my face.
My lips turned red, my eyes looked significantly larger, and thanks to some unknown liquid cosmetic, my forehead, cheeks, and jawline formed smooth curves.
"I can’t change your build, so I prepared loose-fitting clothes that don’t reveal much. You’ll need to cover your Adam’s apple, so here’s a choker…"
She pulled out the outfit she had prepared and tossed it onto my lap.
"A skirt? Women wear pants too, you know."
"And what part of those legs looks even remotely feminine? Shut up and put it on. Are you gonna keep whining like a little brat, Lukaus Custoria?"
Ugh. No comeback for that one either.
Giselle hadn’t prepared just one outfit. She held each garment up against me, eyeballing the fit.
Honestly, to me, it all looked the same.
"Giselle, I get that you’re enjoying this, but this is a mission."
I was starting to get annoyed.
"Oh, I know that. Says the brother who came up with a plan to throw me out as bait."
Her sharp words hit me right where it hurt.
"There wasn’t another way. And besides, I owe Nikolaos. Tracking down the one who ordered the hit and settling that debt is the least I can do."
"Right. Tossing me in as bait is the most efficient method, isn’t it? How noble. Truly befitting of a decorated soldier. Should I give you a round of applause?"
She raised her hands to clap, but I caught her wrist before she could.
"I’m just as much at risk. If we ever end up in danger, I’ll die before you do—so don’t worry. I won’t ever let you die alone."
I spoke firmly.
I wasn’t the only one acting immature here. Giselle was smart—she knew she was being childish.
She let out a sigh, her voice softening.
"…You don’t have to go that far, Luka. Ah, this should do. Don’t forget to attach the signal jammers to your arms and legs."
Giselle placed the clothes beside me and moved to the front seat.