Helmut: The Forsaken Child - H.F.C Chapter 87 (Part 1):
In a shabby building near the border of the Kinan Kingdom, several men gathered, their faces all battered and bruised.
There wasn’t a single person who looked unscathed.
Sitting at a desk in front of them, a middle-aged man, Anton, spoke in a cold voice.
“We lost a spy on the Baden side while trying to extract you.”
“Forgive us, sir. We deeply apologize.”
The men bowed their heads. Anton was the Kinan Branch Director of the Black Hawk.
Nobles needed individuals like them to handle their dirty problems.
Especially noble families like the Rugal, with high honor, required extra hands to take care of their secrets.
That’s why the Black Hawk had established quite a strong relationship with several nobles.
Their illegal activities were ensured by the backing of the nobles.
They had also put considerable effort into the request from Rugal, even though he was just a second-year student in the Gretna Academy’s Swordsmanship Department. It was a simple task, taking care of a commoner.
Nine of them should have been more than enough. They believed there was no way they could fail.
However, the moment he heard that they had been caught, Anton had to touch his forehead.
He couldn’t afford to lose nine people.
Baden was an academic city that didn’t allow the Black Hawk to operate openly. To be prepared, they had carefully infiltrated spies.
Anton felt bitter that he had to use those spies, who couldn’t even perform their missions properly.
Anton was a moderate. If he had been a hot-tempered branch manager, he would have shouted, “Get rid of those useless brats immediately!” But he didn’t.
Being called the Black Hawk didn’t mean they had an abundance of manpower. Just because they were thugs didn’t mean they could be discarded easily.
Lately, things had strangely taken a turn for the worse.
“Why did you fail the mission?”
After calming his anger, he asked calmly. One of the men stepped forward, stuttering as he spoke.
“Th-the commoner, he was surprisingly resistant and agile, and he escaped before we could catch him.”
“What are you saying? There were nine of you. Nine at the level of third-rank mercenaries lost a 15-year-old boy?”
“He was injured, and w-we… we managed to… capture him. But then, a helper appeared and caused trouble.”
If a helper had appeared, that could happen. Anton managed to suppress his anger for the time being.
“I heard that Gretna Academy students apprehended you. Were they upperclassmen?”
“No, it… didn’t seem like that. They appeared to be the same grade… There were two of them.”
Anton’s tone rose again.
“So, you’re telling me that you were defeated by 15-year-olds?”
“N-no! They weren’t kids! One of them… their skills… they’re definitely not kids!”
“They’re at least as second-level mercenaries! I’m sure of it!”
Anton scanned the faces of the subordinates who were defending themselves.
It didn’t seem like they were lying. Unless they intentionally tried to fail the mission, their opponents must have been formidable to overwhelm them so easily.
“No matter how much Greta Academy is a treasure trove of talent, you’re saying there’s someone at the age of 15 who has skills comparable to a second-rank mercenary? What’s his name?”
If the person was that skilled, their name would have become known.
Asuka, the commoner who had become the target, might have a bad reputation, but a person with a sense of justice from the academy wouldn’t just ignore the situation where fellow students were being attacked.
Anton contemplated for a moment. He didn’t have detailed information about the students who had enrolled in the academy.
The Black Hawk couldn’t operate openly in Baden, making it difficult to obtain information.
“What was that person’s name?”
“Uh… What was it?”
“I think they called him Helmut.”
The conversation they were having caught Anton’s attention.
‘Helmut?’ It was an unforgettable name.
“Tell me about his appearance!”
At Anton’s urging, they began to describe the person’s appearance. Anton then repeated it with his low voice.
“Black hair, black eyes. A pale face with a noble impression. A handsome young man. He’s a 2nd-year student at the Grete Academy…”
The person who had killed two rank 2 mercenaries who were supposed to be part of the Black Hawk.
He had taken out eight of the Black Hawk’s members.
He had disappeared somewhere, but he was probably in Baden.
Anton furrowed his brow. The Grete Academy, huh? They had chosen a hard-to-infiltrate place.
Then the opponent wasn’t just an ordinary 2nd-year swordsmanship student. If they had encountered those two after defeating the two rank 2 mercenaries, they were incredibly lucky to have survived.