Lovers

28

Cherish Your Precious Life

What’s the worst situation to wake up to in the morning? It might differ for everyone, but for me, it’s when the door opens without me opening it, and people rush in and ransack my house. Even if this house belongs to the Security Bureau, isn’t this too much? I came out of the bedroom and glared at them with both eyes, but the Department 2 guys glared back with looks that said, “What?” “Why?” “If you don’t like it, come at us!”

Viviana, who was entering behind them, saw the atmosphere inside and came over to me, whispering quietly.

“Stop it. I heard the team leader is getting a lot of flak from the seniors because you went off-mission.”

I lowered my gaze sheepishly. Ah, I had forgotten about that vice. They’re even getting scolded? Present tense? …I should repent when I go to Romberg later.

Father, my sins are deep.

“From this early morning, for what reason are you…”

I was about to say “raising hell,” but seeing everyone’s cold stares, I changed my words.

“…experiencing such arduous suffering, my brothers?”

A priestly tone came out without me realizing it. Everyone turned their heads, but I heard someone snicker. Yeah, it’s fine if you laughed. You, I saw you laugh. You’re off the hook. Don’t pretend to be upset anymore. I’ve memorized your face!

A Department 2 employee who was avoiding my gaze tried to steal a glance at me, and our eyes met directly. At that moment, I made a V-sign with my fingers, pointed at my eyes, then at him, and this time laughter burst out from another direction. I quickly checked that direction too. Then laughter erupted from yet another place.

Eventually, a wave of laughter swept through. As the laughter died down, I clasped my hands together and bowed repeatedly.

“I’ll pray to Saint Volkari later to save you, my brothers. Trust me, my brothers.”

Laughter erupted again.

The mood improved. Ah, what a relief. Looks like I won’t need to repent after all. Honestly, I don’t like entering the confessional itself. It’s too stuffy in there.

But the problem is that the click-clack sound approaching seems to be the footsteps of the deity. Ah, is it already time to pray to the deity?

Everyone was looking at me with sparkling eyes. I just said it jokingly, but it looks like I might really have to prostrate myself and beg. As I rubbed my face dry, everyone burst into laughter again. I sacrificed myself to bring happiness to everyone, ah, is this what they call salvation?

While I was making lame jokes in my head, Nina Volkari entered my apartment. She saw me and raised her eyebrows.

“Why are you still like that! Viviana!”

“Yes!”

Viviana dragged me into my bedroom. Hey, wait a minute. I have something to pray for. Our brothers…

“Follow me right now. That ‘brother’ shtick absolutely won’t work on the department chief.”

Her warning was fierce. I was reluctantly dragged into the bedroom.

I didn’t expect to have a fashion show from early morning, but it became a reality. The reason Department 2 employees broke into someone else’s house and caused this commotion was because of today’s date. Of course, I mean the date of “Armin Schnieke, aspiring barista.”

Three clothes racks were brought in. Shoes, bags, and all sorts of accessories entered my house with overwhelming force, complete with wheeled drawers. And I had to repeatedly put on, take off, wear, and try various things as requested by both female and male agents.

“That’s too expensive like that. It doesn’t match the background.”

If the appearance looks good, the total cost of the items becomes a problem.

“The restaurant was expensive, how can you dress him like this?”

If the cost is right, then the date location and TPO (Time, Place, Occasion) don’t match, so it’s a problem.

“His face looks sickly. It’s turned yellow!”

If everything else was fine, it didn’t match my face.

And Nina Volkari, dressed like a fashion magazine editor-in-chief, stood with her arms on her waist, throwing out criticisms one by one. Does she know it’s rude for a white person to tell an Asian person their face looks yellow? Even if she knows, she probably doesn’t care. And it’s not particularly an attack on me being Asian. Because she also said things like my legs look short, my face looks long, I look stupid, and so on.

In my view, there’s no race in that person’s mind. We’re all just people to be used up. In a way, it’s fair and just.

Oh?

A diamond ring sparkled on Nina Volkari’s ring finger. It’s a common style, but somehow it looked familiar. Is it because I haven’t seen many women’s rings? No, they all look similar when you pass by. Is that why it feels familiar?

“The hat covers your face. What’s there to see? Your face is the best part, at least!”

Wow, it takes talent to compliment like that. I looked at Volkari, dumbfounded, and the female agent hesitated uncomfortably before speaking.

“Wouldn’t it be better to cover his face at the Colosseum, though?”

Then the male agent chimed in as if he’d been waiting for this.

“That’s right. I know there are quite a few former mercenaries there, so maybe…”

I could guess what the male agent swallowed. I pulled down the brim of the baseball cap to cover my face and checked in the mirror as I asked.

“There could be people from the same industry?”

“Yes, and there could be Canaris too.”

Canaris, huh.

In the mirror, my face was mostly hidden in the shadow created by the hat. In my mind, I imagined myself walking like this somewhere crowded. And far away, there are those Canaris bastards. If I’m lucky and people are a bit distracted, maybe I could try something interesting?

Some things only need a moment’s opportunity.

“Are you saying the Canaris guys know my face?”

When I asked without taking my eyes off the mirror, all three of them suddenly fell silent. This confirmed it. Department 2 currently thinks Canaris will recognize me. Why?

Optimistically thinking, it could mean Canaris is monitoring me because I’m quickly forming a connection with Sebastian Riegel. But pessimistically thinking, it could mean that my information, that is, the information of “Security Bureau Agent Armin Schnieke,” has been leaked to Canaris.

Eventually, Volkari nodded. With just that faint gesture, the two agents immediately withdrew from my room. The door closed, leaving only me and Volkari in my dressing room. I looked at her in the mirror. And she was meeting my gaze in the mirror.

“Our analysts are somewhat suspicious that it might be the case.”

“What about Department 1 analysts?”

“They’re not doing anything about Team Leader Schnieke right now.”

Nothing?

I was puzzled. Nothing, she says?

“Are there no requests at all for information about me?”

“None.”

“Not even information access?”

Someone at Layer’s level should be able to access some level of information about Department 2’s current operation. Overview-level information is generally shared at the department chief level. It’s to prevent conflicts between agents.

“A little bit at the beginning. Nothing at all now.”

This is strange.

Something felt off. Nina Volkari’s face in the mirror seemed to reflect my feelings. It was a face that looked uncomfortable and annoyed, unable to shake off something that felt like it was caught on her finger but wasn’t quite there.

“Do you know why our team became a target for elimination?”

At my question, Nina’s eyes blinked for a moment. Each time, her perfect mascara-coated eyelashes fluttered like butterfly wings. Eventually, she said,

“I heard Team 9’s identity was exposed in Maderke.”

The day we returned to Lumaier from Maderke, Otto threw photos at me in anger. It was because of photos captured by the media. Yes, we were exposed. There were several photos, and more than half of our team’s faces were quite clearly visible in them.

My expression probably wasn’t visible due to the hat’s brim, but Volkari seemed to understand my silence and added in a somewhat sympathetic tone.

“Department 1 is special, isn’t it?”

“That’s a nice way of putting it.”

I couldn’t help but smile bitterly.

The Security Bureau’s hunting dogs. The dogs of those in power. That’s what our Team 9 was. No, to be precise, that’s what all of Department 1 was. We particularly got called that a lot because we did the actual shooting. The faces of those who cleaned up after those in power were exposed. They cut us off when there was a risk of exposure. I thought this too. I survived thanks to Lee Martin.

Yes, I thought this too, but something feels off. What is it? My mind was in turmoil. As I remained silent, unable to say anything, Volkari sighed.

“Layer has to eliminate you.”

That’s right.

He stabbed me in the back. He eliminated all my team members and tried to eliminate me too. I barely dodged the bullet he fired with Lee’s help. And here I am, still alive. Would I let Layer live? I have more than enough skill to kill Layer. Even though I might be behaving now because my family is held hostage, I hold a grudge against Layer. Layer has earned the enmity of a special forces team leader. Moreover, I can freely enter and exit Layer’s office, so the threat he feels must be considerable.

Yet Layer was strangely calm. In a situation where he should be frantically insisting that I need to be eliminated within the Security Bureau, he seemed more like he was just going along with things.

Why?

Does he think I won’t be able to kill him?

That can’t be it.

“Layer isn’t trying to eliminate me. Because,”

Yes, Layer isn’t trying to eliminate me. Because he can’t eliminate me. He hasn’t received permission to eliminate me. Isn’t the Director protecting my identity and safety? The only method Layer, who needs to kill me, could take was…

“Layer leaked my information to Canaris, didn’t he?”

As I turned to look at Volkari, she frowned.

“For now, we’re just suspicious.”

I’m trying to approach Canaris through Riegel. And Layer leaked my information to Canaris. And he left me alone to approach Canaris. My death in the line of duty would be the best scenario for him.

Volkari saying they’re “suspicious” means they already have circumstantial evidence.

Ha, as I let out a hollow laugh, Volkari tried to reassure me.

“We’ll provide some protection from our side,”

I gritted my teeth without realizing it.

“Cherish your precious life.”

Who’s protecting whom, really? I hope they don’t get caught in the middle and die for nothing.

The Canaris bastards are coming? I’ve fought those bastards for years. Many of them have died by my hand or been arrested by me, but I also have team members who I can never be with again because of them. Mortal enemies, as they say? Those guys and I can’t coexist under the same sky.

And Otto Layer is no longer off-limits either. Him eliminating my team and trying to eliminate me could have been within the scope of his job. But selling me out to the Canaris bastards can’t be part of his job description.

My teeth clenched.