The duty of a mother is to protect her children as she is the one who brought them into this world. Society has convinced itself that beyond a certain age, the children should be allowed to fend for themselves, whether financially or security reasons.
But there are some mothers who would go to the ends of the world to ensure their children have a bright future and never knows any kind of struggle, even well past the age of coming.
For 15 years, 1B has worked tirelessly to ensure her daughter has everything she needs to live a fulfilling life. She made sure her daughter is dressed and has enough clothes for outings, is fed and has pocket money, has an education at a prestigious academy, and never knows the dangers of the world.
But somewhere down the line, she began to turn to a part of the underworld that needs you to sacrifice your humanity for a lot of coin. She's been in said business for 20 years, and was recruited by a thief guild after she killed a baker just to get a loaf of bread. They saw her as an expendable tool that will get any job done so long as she gets to eat at the end of the day and her pockets are deeper.
Slowly but surely she rose through the ranks of the thief guild and before long she became one of the leaders. She found out later in this career that Serz has connections with many guilds, hoping to scout talent.
She caught their eye and was recruited as a member, serving under a Cadre, the second highest rank in a criminal organization. Said cadre was a much older woman than the young girl she serves under now but nevertheless, 1B had never disrespected either of them and always ensured her missions were completed smoothly.
Throughout the years, she kept her real identity hidden and used personas to ensure her father and daughter never finds out what puts food on the table and clothes on their backs.
That woman she served under retired and now her daughter took her place, the two of them being the only ones to know of their connection to Serz, a position every woman in their family line held since its founding.
1B has no clue as to why they were so connected to Serz. Then again, she'd never question it because it doesn't matter to her since the only important thing to her is serving her master to the best of her ability.
◊◊
She, Selara "1B" Mogalle, opened her eyes to the chirping of birds, the ceiling above unfamiliar. It looked to be a wooden cabin and the birds sounded different than the ones back home.
The bed she lay on was softer than the old bed she has back home that her daughter doesn't want to throw away. Yes, even as a big girl, her daughter still sleeps in her mother's bed despite having a room of her own.
Maybe it's a habit of hers or she seeks her mother's embrace at night because it gives her reassurance.
"—You are finally awake, Selara." A familiar voice echoed, followed by the sound of a book being closed.
Selara lifted her upper body and faced her superior, Celeste von Penston.
"My mother was worried sick and even wanted to come from the frontlines to check up on you."
"…I am sorry for worrying her so much."
"How are you feeling?"
"I cannot describe my discomfort as this is the first time I've felt this way in years…"
She couldn't remember when she became so strong but never once in the past decade or so had she ever been pushed or injured greatly.
"This came as quite a surprise to me as well. Maybe I was overestimating you too much since you are level 89. Maybe I should have sent 1A with you as well. Or the other Codes."
Codes refers to the other numbered personnel serving Celeste. Out of all of them, 1A and 1B are the strongest. Then again, there are hundreds of them so sending a few more as backup would have been better since it could improve the probability of success.
Selara lowered her head, brows furrowing slightly.
She admitted silently that she was a bit too arrogant, thinking she did not need reinforcements.
Celeste stood up, "Are you hungry?"
"…Yes, I am quite hungry. How long was I asleep?"
"Three days."
'It has been that long? I feel quite rested despite my aching body. Perhaps this is my body's way of telling me I need to stop missing out on sleep.'
"Where… are we?"
"It's one of my hideouts outside the capital city."
Selara tried to get out of bed but her body felt very sluggish. The moment her bare feet touched the wooden floor and she tried to stand, lightheadedness kicked in and she fell back down.
"Take it easy. I do not want you going back to work already. I've already arranged for special treatment so nurses and such will be on standby for the rest of your recovery."
"Thank you… Is Lord Arnold… safe?"
In this business, you don't ask "did I do a good job?" you ask if the mission objective is intact or if things went smoothly.
"Yes, he did not ask you anything personal, did he?"
"…Our exchange was quite short before I had to fight a monster… No, she looked human but it felt like I was fighting a monster…"
"Selara, we evaluated you earlier this year and found out you are level 89. You should be able to fight even monsters that SS-rank adventurers struggle against. So, whoever you fought was not an ordinary person, were they?"
"…" she nodded.
"I suppose asking if you know who they are is useless since all this happened in the dungeon. A few informants tell me nobles in the court are willing to cooperate with Guild Master Daraia and the Adventurer Guild to ensure the dungeon is destroyed. With this much attention and contempt toward the dungeon, it's safe to assume what lurks in there is nothing ordinary or what we've encountered and documented until now." She continued with a gentler tone, "As such, you do not need to feel guilty for recovering. Speaking of, someone brought you to a clinic in one of the border towns. I'm not sure if it was Al since the staff did not see anything and it was during the dead of night."
Hearing that, Selara had flashbacks. She remembers, albeit through a narrow lens of subconscious, seeing a man with silver hair sitting across her, the light of a torch touching his handsome face as the sound of a carriage driving across gravel and rocky paths echoed in her ringing ears.
After that, it just stopped.
Did he… bring her back safely?
This is quite embarrassing as someone whose job was to protect him. But in the end, he protected her.
She was… useless. This might be the first time she had failed a mission. In Serz, that is something that won't go unpunished.
But it seems her main objective didn't need her support after all...
**
The two sat at the table, silently eating. Selara's hands were a bit shaky but there wasn't any pain in her body. Her bones were probably broken all over after her confrontation with that red-haired knight.
A recovery seems to be a long road.
"—When you leave this villa, I think it's best if you focus on your family for a while."
Hearing Celeste say that, Selara's hand stopped moving.
Normally, hearing your superior in this line of work say that isn't a good thing. In fact, they may want to get rid of you, making you think you're going on a short vacation but then killing you to avoid the organizations' secrets from getting out.
"Don't look at me like that. I'm saying this because I care about you." She put down her fork and knife and looked at Selara straight in the eyes.
"…You care about me, Milady…?"
"You have been with me ever since I succeeded my mother and have been like an elder sister to me. I may be cold towards my subordinates but when it's my most trusted and closest subordinates, I care a lot about their well-being. The rest are just fodder since they are replaceable."
"…"
"Focus on caring for your ill father and spending time with your daughter. The academy is closed for the rest of the week so you three can go to any place you wish to enjoy yourself. I will cover the expenses."
"I assumed you are here to take me back to one of the organization's bases to recover there…"
Then after that going back to work.
"No, I need you and the rest of my forces away from the empire as far as possible. I don't want my forces to get caught up in what's been happening lately, especially when we are not at our strongest currently."
"…Ah, so they have begun to move?"
Celeste nodded.
"Yes, but unfortunately, Wistorina is still on the run. if we don't get our hands on her soon, one of the Cadres will bring her father to the emperor directly and threaten to kill him. Such extreme measures are inevitable since she might flee the empire as well."
"But why have you decided to not help them? You need not show your face, only direct us to wherever she's being kept."
"…I did not say I won't get involved directly—only that my forces won't be part of it all."
"May I… inquire what you plan on doing?"
Celeste is a non-combatant, which means she always moves behind the scenes, using her intelligence, experience, cunning, and the few dark arts she learned throughout the years, to get a job done. 1B is a brute on her chessboard that only needs to use bruteforce to prove its worth.
If Celeste is moving while telling her forces to back off, it means it's something only she can do.
"No." she gave that short answer before continuing eating, "Focus on your family. The fate of Serz may be in jeopardy so I suggest you look for other means of employment as well."
What could she mean by that? With how large Serz is and how widespread they are across the world, disbanding or destroying the entire organization will prove to be difficult for even the military powers of the world.
What in this world could do such a thing...?
Though she pondered the question, it sounded too ridiculous to think of any further so she focused on other things.
"Do we know the whereabouts of the Mystic Princess?"
That was a term given to Wistorina, princess of the former Kingdom of Zrek. Her soul translation is needed for their future plans. Only 1B and a few other high-ranking subordinates know this is the reason why they invaded the Republic, taking the chance when the dragon lords are away.
"…Yes. But more importantly, Hessinia, one of the Cadres that were sent in to lead the invasion, has been captured."
'Surely no one can hold that madwoman…'
Celeste's eyes furrowed slightly, "Arnold has both of them."
"That means—"
"Yes, Serz is planning to kill him. But word of his newfound or rather, hidden strength, spread far and wide so they are approaching him with the same level of caution as they would our primary target, the vampire lord, and the dragon lords."
"…Lady Celeste, you don't seem angered by this."
She ordered her strongest subordinate to support him from the shadows, believing he was still the weak boy from before. But what Selara in the dungeon was completely different. He was able to overcome many things by himself.
"I knew something like this could happen so my anger has diminished greatly. I just did not know when or how. Frustration is all I feel right now. Did he get involved because he has an altruistic heart? Doubtful. I can't just ask him the questions I have because it would seem strange that I am so interested in his feud with some organization."
'Perhaps her mysterious plan involves him somehow.'
That said, Selara has no clue how Celeste would stop the clash between her beloved and the most powerful criminal organization in the world.
Why does she not just leave the organization and persuade him to hand Wistorina over? Maybe he'll understand and do it for her? Then again, no one who left Serz ever lasted that long since you're basically putting a target on your back by leaving like that.
Certain individuals who hate you spread the rumor that you were part of the organization, which allows rival organizations to hunt you down and kill you.
But even if Celeste were to leave, it's well known in the criminal underworld that her mother is an immensely powerful warrior (rumored in the underworld to be level 91 and more powerful than all the Great Nobles) so not many would have the guts to actually hunt Celeste down since her mother killed any pursuers and assassination attempts on her life, even bringing down several organizations by herself.
"Please let me know if there is something you need me to do, Lady Celeste."
"I will keep that in mind. Now eat up, you'll need the strength." Celeste said with a small smile.
The future of Serz, huh? It's not impossible for even the strongest villain to fall from grace. But what could threaten them?
Could it be the thing they seek to obtain could lead... to their downfall?