The Low-Ranking Civil Servant Wants to Achieve Success - Chapter 133

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 133
“I… I… I don’t know…”
“I think you’ll remember if I poke around here a bit.”
Even in the darkness, the oppressive aura and chill unique to Dragon-kin persisted.
“If you can’t remember, I’ll just try poking somewhere else.”
Before threats could be repeated, the Guardian screamed while trembling violently.
“T-the basement! It’s in the basement! The Western Basement…”
Kiaros struck the Guardian’s vital point, rendering him unconscious.
Then he quickly changed into the Guardian’s clothes.
‘If it weren’t for this darkness, I could dismantle an organization like this alone in an instant…’
As merely a strong human now, I had to resort to such disguises.
Glancing at a mirror, I saw a young man with black hair and dark eyes wearing the black suit of a Gaejofa Faction Guardian.
‘Hurry. Quickly.’
No one paid attention to me as I moved through the building. In fact, the eastern side of the structure was in complete chaos.
‘Namia, I…’
Even as I moved with composure, my heart trembled. The thought that Namia might be here set my blood ablaze.
‘I miss you so much…’
The warm body heat pressed against me in that narrow storage room, the relaxed smile meeting my gaze, the secret desire that surged each time…’
‘It’s been far too long since I’ve seen you…’
It had only been two days since we last met. Yet those hours felt impossibly distant, a consequence of how inseparably we’d been bound together.
I understood only after it passed. Even that time was insufficient—my thirst remained unquenched.
Kiaros headed straight for the Western Basement. He easily subdued two Guards, rendered them unconscious, then began descending the long, dark staircase.
* * *
At that moment, in the Eastern Conference Room of the Grand Temple.
“Give me back my daughter!”
With a tremendous crash, a wall shattered as an elderly man forced his way inside.
“My Aran is such a good-hearted child! She’s so kind-hearted!”
The executives who had hastily begun their meeting regarding the intruder from the Maze were completely blindsided.
“She just made bad friends! So shouldn’t I crush those friends first?!”
The Gaejofa Faction executives, unaware that the Tower Master was pursuing them, were all flustered.
Logically, had the Tower Master known Aran was here, they would have sought help from the Dragon-kin.
But the Tower Master was a selfish human who transcended common sense, defying their expectations.
“Block the Scroll Department! The magic… Gaaahhh!”
One executive who tried to snatch the Tower Master’s bag containing scrolls was struck by the staff and collapsed.
The Tower Master was as skilled with physical combat as with scrolls.
“My Aran is such a good-hearted child! She just doesn’t put in the effort!”
“Gaaahhh! Cough, cough!”
The executives began falling one by one.
Meanwhile, the Tower Master’s scrolls activated, creating a protective barrier around him.
Though not particularly effective on their own, the synergy with the Tower Master’s superior physical abilities was remarkable.
“Stop them!”
Biberus barked the order to the Guardians while retreating backward.
His mind raced through the possibilities in those brief moments.
‘If that old man managed to breach our headquarters, then the Dragon-kin must know its location too. After all, the Magic Tower and the Imperial Palace are cooperative allies.’
In truth, if a Dragon-kin arrived, it would be over.
But the Emperor was gravely ill, and Kiaros was in his dark period. There was still room to plan for the future.
‘The Southern Region’s forces will arrive soon, but…’
What that old man wanted was just Aran.
Biberus’s eyes darkened as he grasped this fact.
He quietly slipped out of the devastated Conference Room.
The Gaejofa Faction had many executives, but Biberus alone knew all the secret passages of the ancient, labyrinthine Temple.
* * *
The Underground Prison, situated in the depths below.
Aran came here often—a place reachable only by descending through darkness and countless staircases.
Ever since the High Priest conveyed that he had “obtained the blood of Kiaros Polariud,” she visited the Underground Prison with increasing frequency.
“The Empire is finished now. War has begun, and the Gaejofa Faction will be victorious.”
Wearing her mask, Aran looked down at Cedric and spoke.
“Change your mind now. Join us. If it’s difficult to join with your sanity intact, we can erase your memories and you’ll cooperate anyway.”
Cedric stared at Aran while bound in restraints. His silence seemed to frustrate her, so she pressed on.
“I told you. Until now, the Empire has entrusted everything to the Dragon-kin. But now they’re finished, and all that remains is chaos.”
“There aren’t only Dragon-kin in the Imperial Palace. There will certainly be capable people there as well.”
Cedric countered quietly.
“And why are the Dragon-kin finished? Does the High Priest truly believe he can kill the Crown Prince? Do you really think assassinating the Crown Prince in the heart of the Imperial Palace will be that easy?”
Behind her mask, Aran bit her lower lip. She swallowed a groan internally.
When Cedric fell silent, her chest ached. When he spoke, her head throbbed.
“Of course, the High Priest would have made it sound easy. After all, even if one High Priest dies, the Gaejofa Faction won’t be greatly shaken. That’s your way, isn’t it?”
“….”
“Why do you bind yourself to such an organization? An organization should be built on mutual trust and cooperation, growing together toward what is right….”
“Ah, please shut up. Even if the assassination fails, the outcome is the same.”
Aran cut off Cedric’s words with a weary gaze.
“Do you know why the Emperor abandoned the Capital? He’s ill. It wasn’t announced publicly, but he’ll soon be on death’s door.”
“….”
“He doesn’t even realize it himself, but that’s because we conducted experiments using the Emperor’s blood. We saw exactly this phenomenon when experimenting with reptilian-type monsters.”
Her words grew increasingly desperate.
“As long as we’ve secured the Crown Prince’s blood and are planning experiments, Kiaros will end up the same way.”
Cedric, who had been listening quietly, stared at her.
“Why are you explaining all this to me in such detail?”
“…That’s because, as an experimental subject, you’re too valuable to waste….”
“And if that happens, what about Namia?”
“….”
“Will Namia be alright? That’s all I’m worried about.”
“Why are you asking me?”
“Isn’t it obvious?”
Cedric sighed once, hesitated briefly, then spoke.
“…Because she’s our daughter.”
Aran, who had been wearing the mask, flinched in shock. She couldn’t hide her astonishment and stumbled backward.
“What, what?! You, how did you know? Huh? How did you figure that out?!”
“…Logically speaking, just covering one’s face doesn’t conceal everything about a person….”
“When did you find out? Huh? Exactly when did you….”
That was when a deafening explosion echoed through the deep Underground Prison, and the ground began to tremble.
“…Hm?”
Aran’s eyes snapped upward.
“Something’s wrong. Wait. An intruder?”
“It could be the Dragon-kin. Because of a trap set by a certain capable person in the Imperial Palace, the High Priest’s been completely exposed.”
“The Emperor can’t come here because he’s ill, and the Crown Prince is in a period of darkness.”
“But thanks to a certain capable person in the Imperial Palace, that might have been resolved.”
“Don’t say such horrible things. If that’s true, we’re all dead now.”
But Cedric’s words had indeed unsettled her. Another explosion followed, and the ground shook even more violently than before.
“…Sigh.”
Aran hesitated for a moment, then rummaged through her pocket. She tossed a key and a dagger into the prison cell.
“If an emergency happens, escape on your own.”
She knew what Biberus would do in a situation like this.
“This place might collapse into chaos soon.”
After that, she discarded the now-useless mask onto the floor and began sprinting back up the staircase.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————