Vows and Bullets
Chapter 96: Tension and Revelation (Part 1)

Chapter 96: Tension and Revelation (Part 1)

***

[The following day...]

News of us going straight to Yoon-Ah’s place last night immediately reached Mythos as soon as we went out of the house. It wasn’t that hard to detect given our devices—smartwatch, phone, brooch, etc.—all had trackers in them. That, plus Mythos had access to any public CCTV and could easily access any cameras everywhere. Tracking us was child’s play for them.

Despite that, we only got notices on our devices of the protocols we broke instead of them stopping us before we did it. And that was because of the "free will" right that each agent had. Mythos could only suggest the best ideas, routes, options, and whatnot to any scenario, but the action itself lies with the agent. Whether they decide to follow or not was solely up to them, and if they don’t, of course, demerits and other repercussions would follow.

Because of that rule, we woke up the next morning from a call directly from none other than our chief-in-charge, Assistant Chief Athena. Her tone was as calm as ever however, a hint of dissatisfaction could be heard from her voice—something she probably deliberately did, so we would understand the gravity of what our actions last night on a much deeper level.

"Good morning, agents," she greeted us from the other line.

Even if she wasn’t with us, it felt like she was smiling at us, but not the kind or happy smile—more like... an evil smile with suppressed anger inside.

Agent Helios and I glanced at each other. He looked calm. Meanwhile, I’m a little nervous. I don’t regret my decision, though.

"Good morning, ma’am," we greeted back in an awkward manner.

"Being the top 1 and 2 agents, I believe you already know the reason for my call?"

"... Yes, ma’am."

"As you should," she chuckled. "You were able to pass the exams for an S-rank mission, which only means you already memorize every single one of our laws and protocols by heart. And yet, I am baffled as to why you still decided to break them despite knowing them? Especially you, Agent Helios. I didn’t think you would let a simple matter smear your clear record and reputation. For Agent Selene, I would understand since her past couple of years’ performance stated her values clearly."

"Please put all the blame on me, ma’am," I interjected, feeling guilty for Agent Helios. "It was all my fault. I forced him to go with me. If you give us any demerits or punishment for what happened, let me receive all of them. Please don’t let this affect him in any way."

"... How noble of you, Agent Selene. However, the fact that he didn’t stop you and got persuaded instead of him influencing you to do what is right was also a mistake on his part."

"But I insinuated it. I’m the one who..."

"It’s alright," Agent Helios butted in. "Assistant Chief Athena is right. I am equally guilty for what happened so I will accept any consequences it holds—be it a consequence from Mythos, or from other factors."

Huh? Other factors?... Don’t tell me my speculation last night was correct?

"I’m glad you understand the depth of the situation, Agent Helios. I would appreciate it if you shared your knowledge with Agent Selene. This is a partnership, after all."

Assistant Chief Athena’s tone turned more serious. Was there something Agent Helios hadn’t told me yet?

"I already hinted the possibilities with her last night, which I’m sure, you are already aware of. And since you are, I believe you are already doing your best to catch the snitch in your department, right?"

Oh my goodness! There really was a mole in Mythos’ Intelligence Department?

"Hmm... I’m afraid it’s more complicated than that, Agent Helios. I understand why you think that way, but I assure you, it’s not a mole inside my department. I am quite thorough, you see. Before a mole even exists in my department, I already uproot them."

"Then why did Agent Selene receive the emergency notification when we are still on a long-term mission?" Agent Helios replied as sternly as Assistant Chief Athena.

Wow. I could never imagine myself speaking toward my superior in that manner. I’m not sure if I should call such behavior rude or... wise. As agents, we do have the right to question our superiors should we notice something amiss. But his approach was a little... aggressive. On the good side, he had already turned the situation around. His manipulation skills were truly top-notch. Even Assistant Chief Athena falls prey to it.

"That notification actually came from me," Assistant Chief Athena confessed. "I have many reasons as to why I did it—something that agents like you shouldn’t be entitled to know. But I’ll let you in a little secret since I trust the both of you are wise enough to understand."

What the... she’s the one who sent it to us?! What in the world—then, the delay in rescuing Yoon-Ah, was it her instruction, too?!

"And what is this secret?" Agent Helios asked.

"You see, while your enemies are already watching you from afar, I am already ten steps ahead of them—or more."

"Enemies?" I blurted out in my surprise.

F*ck. I knew it! They’re already watching us!

"Do you mean... Kraken?"

"Yes, Agent Selene."

"B-But how did they..."

"This is an S-rank mission, after all. Our enemy this time is not a bunch of stupid people. They have their ways, technology, and connections just as we do. As to how they figured you two out despite our flawless approach, I still need more evidence though I have a couple of deductions myself. But one thing I am certain of is that they already know who you two are."

"I don’t understand. How—"

"Last night’s emergency situation with your friend, Yoon-Ah, was nothing but a plan laid out by the enemy. From the people who blocked her path to the thugs in the park who acted like they wanted to assault her—everything was a trap."

...

Agent Helios grunted, "I knew it."

"We found pieces of evidence of their relation towards each other, and with another smaller syndicate which happened to be a tiny portion of Kraken’s people. The good news is, that not all their members know, or else Mr. Choi could have avoided you two. It seems like the head of Kraken was the only one who knew. Whoever that head is... he’s a very meticulous person. Just look at how he uses his pawns. Mr. Choi was nothing but a ’test of waters’ for him—a sacrifice to prove his theory. Anyway, we already caught some of them for interrogation except the one who saved your friend since he is a civilian."

"Mr. Seo-Hyuk?"

"That is correct. Still, he could be a suspect, so I placed people to watch over him and observe his actions. There are a lot of things happening in the background, agents. That is why it is VERY crucial that both of you follow protocols moving forward. Agent Selene, I believe you are aware that the safety of the people who are important to you is now compromised. This is why you must be more careful in the future. Do you understand?"

"... Yes, ma’am."

"Good. There are two reasons why I let you receive the emergency notification. One is to test if you will follow protocol over your emotions. Two, to catch the enemies watching you red-handed if you ever decided to go with the route of breaking the protocols."

"What would have happened if we didn’t break it?"

"We will have other ways to check."

"Ha-ha. How nice of you to treat us as bait," Agent Helios scoffed.

"You should know that some situations require us to do so in order to gather more intel."

"Yes, I know. That’s how you managed to get this much info after all, and evidence, apart from us doing the mission and keeping our facade."

"...That is correct."

"In that case, I believe we shouldn’t be getting a demerit or punishment for what happened, right? Let’s consider this as a sub-mission where you put us as bait to prove your theory about the enemy. How’s that?"

"I’m afraid that is not how this works, Agent Helios."

"But I’m also afraid you are giving us more reason to doubt your intentions. How can I trust that you’re not the mole, Assistant Chief Athena? What if you’re the one who set it all up?"

’What the—what is he saying? How could he say that to her?’

"Me? A mole? Ha-ha-ha-ha!" Assistant Chief Athena laughed. "How funny, Agent Helios. If you didn’t trust Mythos, you shouldn’t have filed the mission about Kraken in the first place. You know that I am the head of the Intelligence Department and therefore will be the one in charge of the mission."

"I know," he shrugged. "I didn’t file it because I trust your knowledge, though."

"... What did you say?" Assistant Chief Athena replied, sounding a little pissed.

’Oh no... What in the world is happening here? We’re supposed to be getting reprimanded for what happened, but Agent Helios is now questioning Assistant Chief Athena! And worse, his arguments make sense to the point I’m not sure who’s side to take!’

Alas, Agent Helios said in a tone more stern than earlier.

"I want to speak with Chief Zeus."