Rage, Valor, and Greed

Bang!

A shoulder-length brown haired girl loaded her gun with bullets as soon as one of the bullets fired landed in the middle of the aiming board. She closed one eye, steadying her aim before pulling the trigger.

Bang!

Her brows furrowed. With a sigh, she took off the earmuffs and lowered her handgun. Her gaze lingered momentarily on the five agents beside her, who were able to practice their shots while talking.

"Brissia Niverte."

She turned around, found a gray-eyed man staring at her flatly. He approached Brissia with normal steps.

"I see how Harris's disappearance puts you in distresses," the man said calmly. "Nevertheless, I hope you're still willing to hear my advice."

Slightly irritated, Brissia replied, "Whatever it is, it won't help until I know where he is, Drey."

The gray-eyed man, Drey, frowned. He also spoke with a slightly raised octave, "Don't you see that we have searched high and low without success for any sign of him? We may not appear as desperate as you because there are risks we must avoid."

Brissia glanced at him for a moment.

"So instead of being so melancholic about his absence, join your colleagues in the south field. They have waited," Drey instructed her firmly.

She put her handgun back in place while letting out a small sigh. As she walked past him, she said something softly, "Should you and your people be so reluctant to find him, allow me to perform as the bloodhound."

Drey's sarcastic laugh froze Brissia's feet.

"Aren't you curious about what awaits the SURVIVE agents who volunteer to become bloodhounds?"

Brissia stood straight to see Drey turned around with a cold expression. He stepped toward her, whispering in an icy, sharp tone.

"They'll die in misery. Just like the person who was once Fayrl's lover."

Brissia flinched. Drey gave her a cold glance before walking away with a firm steps and clenched palms.

***

"Ha!"

Agents roared as they practiced self-defense in the south field. Among them, Brissia was practicing her martial arts with a deft and precise technique.

A mix of red and blue seemed to fuel Brissia's attacking prowess, even to the point where she knocked out the most skilled agent after Harris—Hansen. She, who wasn't giving him a chance to stand up and fight back, causing him hisses at Debora and Fayrl.

"How come none of you warned me about this?!" Hansen glared at the dark ruby-haired girl and blonde-haired girl standing on the sidelines of the field.

"It was already a hint when we retreated, you clueless!" Debora shouted at him.

Hansen chuckled in displeasure, but then widened his eyes forward. He swiftly grabbed Brissia's wrist and switched their positions on the ground right when she was about to choke him.

"Hey, keep your head, Brissia!"

Brissia, whose movements were locked under Hansen, gave Hansen an astonished look before she pushed him aside and getting up. She walked toward the edge of the field with a frustrated look.

"Brissia! Do you still remember Fayrl and Hansen?!"

Brissia responded to Debora's question with a small nod, leaving the dark-ruby haired girl half dumbfounded.

"Don't tell me I'm the only one you've forgotten?!"

Several agents turned their heads at Debora's nag.

"I don't think so. The poison's effect causes me to forget random things," Brissia spoke quietly.

"Ah, what did I do wrong that made me chosen as the forgotten thing?!"

Fayrl stared flatly at Debora who pursed her lips. Then she asked Brissia, "You didn't break Hansen's bones, did you?"

Once again, Brissia nodded.

"Too bad."

Hansen glared at Fayrl, who stared at him indifferently as he approached them.

"What's that for?" Hansen asked, looking disapproving. There was a fog of exhaustion, frustration, and pain that obscured the lines of his calm and patient face.

Fayrl took a step closer to Hansen without taking off her level gaze at the man.

"So you can rest."

Her answer regarded Hansen, who was standing in front of her, speechless.

Debora sighed and glanced at the two agents before turning and approaching Brissia. There was an unimpressed look on Brissia's face as her gaze lingered on Fayrl and Hansen.

"Ignore those hummingbirds. Hansen is rarely spotted unwinding at the headquarters because he frequently has a lot of duties," said Debora, leading Brissia to the cafeteria. But as soon as Benjamin and they went by, Debora stopped and appeared flustered.

"Why is that aristocratic child still here?"

Debora turned in surprise at Fayrl who approached her.

"Drey could have scolded us if he knew you brought him," Fayrl said again coldly, causing Debora's eyes to twitch.

"Hey, hey, I think he came because his father's follow-up interrogation is scheduled today," Hansen said, hurrying between Debora and Fayrl with a nervous smile.

Debora nodded quickly and nudged Brissia's arm, motioning for her to nod too. Brissia glanced doubtfully at Benjamin, but what the man gave Fayrl and Hansen was a reassuring nod.

"Ah, is that so? Not because of Debora or Brissia?"

Both Debora and Brissia widened their eyes. Even so, it was Debora who immediately covered Fayrl's mouth.

"Stop touching people like that!" Fayrl hissed at her.

"You as well stop insulting people, especially him!"

"Why? Does that mean I was right, 'Young Master'?" Fayrl asked while glancing flatly at Benjamin, who was frozen in place.

Brissia and Hansen rushed Debora and Fayrl apart, making the agents passing by occasionally look at them in surprise. After staring at each other for a moment and nodding, Brissia pulled Fayrl to her side and Debora was pulled by Hansen away from them.

"Fayrl, please come outside with me. I need to... ask you something," Brissia said, making Fayrl who was fixing her hair take a deep breath.

"Fine."

Brissia turned to Benjamin as if asking for his availability to join her. Benjamin nodded firmly.

The three of them headed out of the headquarters toward a warmer location with a saltier water scent.

"Turns out they finished it."

Fayrl turned to Benjamin, who was touching the cylindrical wall of the red lighthouse with diagonal white stripes.

"My father once stated that the construction of the lighthouse in the Deorsus District was stalled due to financial mismanagement. However, seeing its light finally reaches a great distance…"

The wind caressing Benjamin's face and blowing strands of his hair looked as peaceful as the smile on his lips.

"You must be relieved. If only my father had maintained his humanity and sense of obligation… perhaps everything would now appear as majestic as this lighthouse," Fayrl said as she fixed her gaze on the ocean, making Brissia turn to look at them for a moment.

"Speaking of which, what allows him to impose amnesia penalties?"

Fayrl turned to Brissia with a knowing smile. "So that's what you actually wanted to say?"

Even though Fayrl looked amused, the look in her eyes said otherwise, which made Brissia simply stare at her in silence.

"I'm so glad that someone has finally recognized the injustice of that punishment," said Fayrl, looking up at the sky.

"My lady, is it not premature to presume that Brissia feels the same way based solely on a question?"

Fayrl glanced at Benjamin, chuckling in a displeased tone. "No, Einstein. She truly gets how we feel when our friends depart. Isn't it, Brissia?"

"Yes… pretty much," Brissia replied, glancing the other way for a moment.

"Every year, SURVIVE strikes a deal with an unknown party to obtain power support. They would receive a tremendous amount of power to conquer, heal, and even eradicate," Fayrl explained.

A faint gleam of bluish light floated low above Fayrl's palm as she raised her hand to chest level. Benjamin widened his eyes at that.

"Magic?" he muttered.

"No. To be more exact…"

A roll of waves split into two as Fayrl directed her hand to the sea in front of them.

"…Your rage and every other oppressive emotion in your chest," Fayrl continued with a wry smile.

Drey's words rang in Brissia's mind like a sudden sea breeze. "Fayrl, did your past lover ever search for…"

Footsteps interrupted Brissia's words, causing them to turn. When they saw Debora and Hansen approaching, their eyes narrowed.

"What brought you two here?" Fayrl inquired, looking dissatisfied.

"You must have been so engrossed in the conversation that you forgot to turn on your HT," Debora scoffed. "We'll be visiting the Deorsus and Algor districts for three days."

Fayrl and Brissia immediately checked their watches. The flashing 'M' made them pause for a moment.

Benjamin turned to Debora and Hansen. "Then I'd like to excuse myself now."

Hansen blocked Benjamin, making Debora and Brissia look at him in surprise.

"Don't be bashful. Upon completion of our mission, it was our duty to get you home safely," Hansen said with a faint smile.

"Pardon?" Benjamin looked at him with slightly raised eyebrows.

"Haven't you heard Brissia garnered support from your actions at the party that night? Our deputy chief also invites you to join the discussion regarding the collaborative mission."

Benjamin and Brissia stared at each other for a moment. Only when Benjamin took a step back did Hansen stop blocking him again.

"Very well," Benjamin said.

"Wait!"

All eyes were on Brissia who was holding Benjamin's shoulders. "Let me come along."

The turquoise-eyed man glanced at Hansen, who glanced back at him as if nothing was wrong. Benjamin then smiled dignifiedly as he said, "I appreciate it, Brissia. But let's leave the pleasantries for the next meet"

With the two of them walking away with their backs to the shore, Brissia, Fayrl, and Debora stared at them in confusion and silence.

"What support have they given you, Brissia?"

Without taking her eyes off the two men who walked into the distance, she replied quietly, "Maybe when everyone, including himself, joined me into the woods."

***

At the central headquarters which seemed to be running as usual, Benjamin was pushed into a room by a male agent. He untied the black cloth covering Benjamin's eyes, causing the man to open his turquoise eyes immediately.

"Oh, Hansen," Benjamin chuckled in sinister while looking at the male agent's face, "you remind me of someone as perfidious as you."

Hansen, who was adjusting the golden crow emblem on his uniform's chest, replied nonchalantly, "I know who you are referring to, but don't compare me to that showboat."

Paper rustling caught their attention. A woman with long hair and a dark blue suit approached them, holding a piece of paper that she had taken from the pile of documents on her desk.

"Thanks for your exceptional completion of my errand, Special Agent Hansen," she said calmly. "As per our agreement, Fayrl will be safe."

Hansen gave her a slight nod, inviting a disbelief glance from Benjamin. However, the woman thrust a piece of paper in front of his face, causing his gaze to instantly shift forward.

"My name is Davina and I'm the deputy chief of this headquarters. As you can read, we've found out about your connection to a soon-to-be former ally, Benjamin Stuart."

Benjamin received the paper. He gulped as his turquoise eyes thoroughly examined the paragraphs in the document line by line.

He looked at Davina straight in the eye, maintaining his composure. "What do you want from me?"

Davina pointed the paper in Benjamin's grip and said firmly, "Bring that person here. No matter if it'll cost the lives of two or three."

"Doesn't matter... you said?" Benjamin asked in a suppressed voice. "She is after someone precious here."

"Exactly," Davina answered nonchalantly as she walked to the window. "We want a ruler who is more humane than the one currently ruling. But to overthrow the haughty man from his throne, we need someone even more greedy, don't you think?"

Her words did not change anyone's expression, but it gave off a palpable tension in the room that had its curtains slightly open.

Hands clenched into fists, Benjamin answered, "Fine. I have a request in return. And I'll take it as a down payment if you promise me you'll grant it."