114 THE UNSUSPECTING SPY
[Assassin Workshop Secret Entrance]
"Are you seriously going in?" Yun-Yun asked, glancing warily at Leo. "Bara got thrown out of here just a few days ago with that fake token you made for her. Grangya was furious when she found out."
Leo shrugged. "The token isn't just a simple piece of carved wood. There's magic bound to it—copying it is beyond any ordinary woodsmith's skill."
"And your fake token is going to work?" she pressed.
Leo gave a sly grin. "This one's different. It'll pass off as the real thing."
"Right. Just like that crafting you pulled with the Rose Demon's scepter?" Yun-Yun asked, raising an eyebrow.
He smirked. "Something like that, but I've learned a lot since then. My skills have leveled up. I can make an identical replica that can fool even the most wicked eyes."
They approached the hidden entrance, the air thick with the scent of damp stone and secrecy. A guard draped in a black cloak stood at the gate, his eyes glinting suspiciously beneath his hood.
"You're not trying to get past me with a fake token, are you?" the guard sneered. "Some bitch tried that two days ago and got her face smacked."
Leo held out the token confidently. "Check it yourself."
The guard inspected the token, turning it over in his hands. "Looks legit. But this only grants entry for one."
Suddenly, Leo slipped a pouch heavy with silver into the guard's hand. "This should cover the rest."
The guard's expression softened as he weighed the pouch. "Fine. Get in quick, before the shift changes, or you'll have to bribe the next guy."
"Thanks," Leo said with a curt nod, ushering Yun-Yun through the entrance.
They slipped into the bustling secret marketplace of the Assassin Workshop. Flickering lanterns cast dancing shadows across the cobblestone paths, and the air buzzed with murmured deals and concealed weapons.
"What are we here for, anyway?" Yun-Yun asked as they moved deeper into the labyrinth of hidden stalls. "Did you forget to buy something last time?"
"No," Leo replied, his voice lowered. "Activate the camouflage on your cloak."
A shimmer of magic enveloped them, blending their forms into the shadows. They moved stealthily through the narrow, dimly lit corridors, sticking close to the dark walls to avoid detection.
"Where exactly are we headed?" Yun-Yun asked, her voice barely more than a whisper.
"There." Leo pointed to a sinister archway shaped like a grinning skull. "I need to know more about these fuckers in the Assassin Workshop who might want me dead."
Previously, the Assassin Temple gave orders to check Leo about whether he had the demon constitution. If he was found to have it, the temple would have him killed.
Yun-Yun's eyes widened. "That's the entrance to the Temple of Assassins?"
"Exactly," he confirmed with a sharp nod.
They crept along the dark walls, inching closer to the temple's entrance. A single guard, tall and imposing, stood watch, his presence like a shadow given form.
"What's the plan? Can Grangya's token get us past him?" Yun-Yun whispered.
Leo frowned. "No, I doubt it. Grangya's just a minor clerk. She wouldn't have access to the temple."
"Then can we... poison him?" Yun-Yun suggested with a wicked grin.
Leo pulled a thick, ancient book from his magic storage space, its leather cover worn and cracked as he flipped through the book.
"What poison are you planning to use on him?" she asked, leaning over his shoulder.
"Give me a minute," Leo muttered, scanning the pages. "I need something quick and subtle. I can't afford to draw attention right now."
"Better hurry," Yun-Yun urged, glancing nervously back at the bustling marketplace. "Before the guards notices us."
As Leo and Yun-Yun hunched over the ancient tome, frantically searching for the right poison to slip past the guard, Yun-Yun nudged him sharply.
"Hey, look. Someone's heading toward the temple."
Leo glanced up, his eyes narrowing as he caught sight of the figure approaching the entrance dressed in a black cloak and her face covered with a mask, but it was clear who she was to Leo.
His heart skipped a beat. "Shit, that's Grangya."
Yun-Yun blinked in disbelief. "How could it be her? She's got no business here. She doesn't even have clearance to enter the Temple."
But the woman was Grangya. Even though she was wearing a mask, she couldn't hide her description over her.
Name: Lorelei, Battle Angel.
Leo watched as Grangya exchanged words with the guard.
"I have no idea. We're following her."
Yun-Yun hesitated. "What about the guard? He's still watching the door."
Leo snapped the book shut, his lips curling into a confident smirk. "Don't worry. I've got that handled."
-----
"You don't have an appointment with the Deacon today," the guard grumbled as Grangya approached.
She gave him a calm, steady look. "Something urgent just came up. I need to see him."
The guard frowned and flipped through his logbook, muttering under his breath. Just as he was about to protest further, he slapped the back of his neck. "Argh, damn insect!"
Grangya raised an eyebrow. "How are there insects down here?"
"Must be that damned beekeeper from the market," he growled. "That crazy woman must've let them loose again. Fine, go on through."
Without hesitation, Grangya slipped past him and into the shadowy entrance of the Temple of Assassins.
Meanwhile, the guard rubbed his eyes, blinking furiously. "What the... everything's gone blurry."
Moments later, his vision began to clear, but the frustration lingered. "I swear it's those cursed bees. That beekeeper's gonna pay for this."
Unbeknownst to him, Leo and Yun-Yun passed through his guard post while he was momentarily blinded. He was stricken with their poisonous bee.
-----
[The Temple of Assassin]
"Grangya, what is the urgency of this meeting?" the Deacon of Death asked, his voice a low, resonant whisper that seemed to reverberate through the darkened chamber.
Grangya knelt before him, her head bowed respectfully. "I came to report that our subject, Lilleo Gullee, is preparing to leave Sodom City. He's headed for the ruins of Sodom."