NOVPUB
Chapter 66: Intelligence Organizations
"How do you know?" Kayn’s voice, laced with anger and disbelief, rang out as he released his aura. The invisible pressure from his body slammed into the walls of the bar like a crashing wave.
Bottles cracked. The ceiling began to tremble slightly. One by one, the regular people screamed and bolted for the exit.
As always, whenever a fight broke out between Climbers, it was the civilians who paid the price.
"Calm down. We can talk," Daniel said, looking at him with indifference.
But Kayn only intensified the pressure. His aura grew thicker, heavier—like it was suffocating the air itself. Eva instinctively took a step back.
Daniel lowered his head and took a deep breath. Then, he unleashed his own aura like a storm—cold, heavy, and controlled.
"I told you that’s enough... or do I need to spell it out for you like you’re some beast?" he said in a cold, steady voice.
Kayn froze for a moment. His brows furrowed, his gaze locked onto Daniel’s aura.
He let out a sigh. Slowly, his aura receded, like a light dimming into the night.
"The existence of the wanderers isn’t a secret. But who’s a wanderer... now that’s not exactly public information."
’Is my mission compromised? No... If not, then how the hell does this guy know about me?’ The thought stirred unease inside him.
’His power... it’s equal to mine. No, maybe even more dangerous.’ But more than that, something else gnawed at him.
"I’m an Otherworldly Climber. Before I came here, I asked a few of my peers about certain things. The wanderers... were one of them." Daniel, now sitting back down, relaxed his body slightly.
Kayn said nothing.
"According to what I was told, wanderers usually visit bars around noon. Not the fancy ones, not the really run-down ones either. Something right in between. Since this place fits that, I thought I’d take my shot," Daniel continued.
In truth, Daniel had gotten all of his information from the Online Community.
There were only a few surface-level posts about the Drifters. They were a famous intelligence and espionage organization, but because of his access level, Daniel couldn’t dig any deeper.
He had just read a single comment under a post that hinted at how to find them.
Of course, the wanderers weren’t the only group. There was another even more famous one called the Beggars Guild. But strangely, Daniel hadn’t seen a single beggar in the city.
"Makes sense." Kayn let out a long sigh, then glanced at the wine glass in front of Daniel.
"You gonna drink that?" He reached out and grabbed it without asking.
"No. You can have it."
"I didn’t plan on coming to you first. I wanted to find the Beggars Guild. But when I realized there weren’t any beggars in the city... I went with plan B."
"By order of the Duke, they were all rounded up. There’s a major event about to happen in the city, and to keep appearances, they’ve decided to ban all beggars for now," Kayn explained.
"What event?" Daniel’s eyes lit up slightly. He had heard Marxil mention something about an event too.
"A combat tournament between the empire’s top talents—and a bunch of other geniuses from surrounding regions." Kayn set the glass back down.
"For what?" Daniel raised an eyebrow, clearly surprised.
"To find a husband for his daughter." Kayn gave a faint smirk.
"Didn’t expect that..." Daniel fell silent. Then, in a low voice, he said,
"I guess I can see average people participating. But why did you say geniuses?" Eva finally joined the conversation.
She couldn’t understand why true talents would take part in such a competition.
"Most geniuses just want to be seen. The Duke’s invited a few top mages to judge. Even a Divine Mage and a Divine Swordsman from the World Academy are coming," Kayn leaned back.
Eva’s eyes went wide.
"Geniuses don’t care about marriage. They just want exposure. And if they’re lucky, maybe even catch the eye of one of those judges," Kayn added.
"I see..." Eva murmured.
Daniel quietly listened to their conversation. Now he understood why Marxil had said city security needed to be at its highest.
"That’s it? That’s all you wanted to know?" Kayn asked with a crooked smile—it was hard to tell if he was mocking or being genuine.
"I usually charge for information. But well... these weren’t anything special. I’ll accept these two drinks as payment," he reached for another glass.
"No. It’s not over yet. I’ve got a problem," Daniel said seriously, ignoring Kayn’s joke.
"I’ve been banned from leaving the city because of a few bandits got killed..." He paused, then added firmly,
"Okay, so what? What’s that got to do with me?" Kayn shrugged, clearly not expecting that.
Daniel explained the whole situation—everything that had happened, even his theory about a certain item those bandits had carried.
Kayn scratched his chin a little. Like he was weighing things in his mind.
"Alright. Not a big deal. But it’s gonna cost you."
Daniel silently dropped a few gleaming gold coins on the table. They hit the wooden surface with a dry, heavy sound.
"Money’s not a problem."
"I’ll take the money... but there’s one more thing. You’ll have to help me with something, too." Kayn smiled as he slid the coins into his hand.
"What is it?" Daniel asked, a bit suspicious.
"You know what wanderers do, right?" Kayn’s tone got more serious as he looked Daniel in the eyes.
"Espionage?" Daniel replied.
"No. That’s the Beggars Guild—they handle pure intelligence. Us? We do assassinations too. Sabotage, target elimination, clean-up. I’m here on an assassination mission. And I need your help." Kayn chuckled, but it was cold and emotionless.
"Assassinate who?" Daniel didn’t hesitate to ask.
"One of the prodigies from the Lionheart family," Kayn said bluntly.
"Who are they?" Daniel asked, confused.
"One of the most powerful swordsmanship clans in the world. My mission is to eliminate one of their young masters. He’s currently in this city."
"And what can I do?" Daniel asked, unsure. This bastard didn’t really expect him to go kill someone for no reason, right?
"The only way I can kill him is if I face him in the tournament. But before that, he needs to be weakened. You fight him first, wear him down, and I’ll finish him off in the next round," Kayn said seriously.
"First of all, I’m not even in the tournament. Second, that plan is dumb. How are you even gonna make sure the matchups work out like that?!" Daniel frowned, tilting his head.
"Don’t worry. I’ve got my ways of staying off the radar. Just weaken him. I’ll handle the rest. And I’m not the only wanderers in the city—I’ll make sure the draw is rigged right." Kayn smiled.
"Thanks... but I still refuse." Daniel gave a slight nod of respect but declined.
"What? Why?" Kayn looked shocked.
"The tournament doesn’t benefit me. And I have no intention of marrying that princess," Daniel replied.
"Opportunists, huh... Hah. Even if you win, marriage isn’t mandatory. The Duke just wants to link his family to a powerful one. Even if you come out on top, you can reject the offer."
"In return, you can ask for Immortal Gold." He smiled and added in a tempting tone.
"Immortal Gold?" Daniel blinked.
"It’s used to craft A-rank and S-rank weapons. A material every rare blacksmith dreams of," Kayn said with delight.
"Haha... well then... I guess that’s fine. I hope we’ll work well together." Daniel’s eyes lit up, a faint smile touched his lips. After a brief pause, he added in a playful and calm voice.
