One-Eyed Monster

Secrets are like a raging fire, its arrogant flames tormenting every individual.

Scorching heat, pulsating warmth, a deceptive comfort… This fire unleashes all the ferocity and allure befitting a flame, freely toying with everyone.

Everyone, to some extent, possesses their own secrets. These secrets might stem from painful memories or sweet experiences. At times, they reveal their inherent complexity; at others, they transform to become incredibly simple. Day after day, year after year, these secrets accompany us. Sometimes they make us as joyful as playful kittens, frolicking and leaping across a vast meadow. Other times, they fill us with shame and heartache, like a guilty hound cowering and whimpering in an unnoticed corner.

These secrets accompany every individual, warn every individual, and threaten every individual…

They consume your mind during lonely days and erode your strength through endless nights. They are your unutterable burdens, the shadows you desperately seek to escape.

Behind every secret lies a baffling story.

And the story behind Estev himself was, in essence, a secret.

As the Deputy Court Chief of the Imperial Local Court of Guards, he alone held many secrets unknown to most. He knew which river in Liuli City was the filthiest, which street was the quietest, and which tavern served the most fragrant and mellow wine.

Some people are born to deal with secrets, much like Estev. Capturing vicious fugitives taught him another purpose of rivers: a seemingly calm and clear surface might not mean clean water—who knew what corpses, weighted down with stones, might be lying at the bottom? Similarly, streets filled with clamor and curses weren’t necessarily dangerous; some people only shouted loudly out of fear. As for whether a tavern’s wine was truly mellow, a few more visits would naturally reveal its secret.

Estev had small eyes. Many said these small eyes possessed a magical quality, as they seemed to penetrate many things. If a criminal was caught by Estev, the case could be solved without any form of interrogation, because Estev’s small eyes could see through all secrets.

Estev, however, would disagree. He always insisted he merely liked to gamble on his luck, and it just so happened that his luck was consistently good.

Yet, no matter how he explained it, not a single politician from the Liuli City Administrative Office dared approach him, for they all feared Estev would see through their secrets.

Of course, the world possessed a certain fairness. For every anomaly like Estev, capable of unearthing others’ secrets at a glance, there also existed those who devoted their lives to fiercely guarding the secrets of others.

In the Yowein Continent, such people, who desperately protected secrets, were known as Soul Guardians.

And individuals like Estev, who could discern secrets at a glance, were called Gravediggers.

These two titles denoted two ancient professions, distinct from the six major existing professions on the Yowein Continent. Due to the rarity of these roles, those who had mastered such skills had themselves become secrets across the entire continent.

Soul Guarding, Grave Digging—these were not arbitrary titles. People with secrets always wanted to conceal them, some even going to the extreme of wanting to bury them.

Secrets would invariably be carried to the grave. Some secrets, even if not literally interred, were no different from those that were.

Thus, the Soul Guardian and the Gravedigger—these two ancient professions—were not baseless fabrications; they were supported by corresponding theoretical rationales.

However, Estev had no time to concern himself with such things. Since receiving the letter from his old friend Aevernan, he had grown tense. His cherished daily ritual of squinting, smoking, and trusting his luck no longer proceeded as usual. He spent his days in a daze, paying little heed even to the routine work of the Court of Guards.

His subordinates naturally dared not inquire further. After all, Estev was Liuli City’s renowned ”Gravedigger,” and no one wished to risk having their own secrets ”exhumed” by disturbing him.

This unusual state of affairs did not trouble the Liuli City Court of Guards for long, because their Deputy Court Chief suddenly vanished.

Estev’s disappearance was so abrupt it left the Chief of the Liuli City Court of Guards at a loss. In Liuli City, one Estev was worth half the Court of Guards. Now that half the Court of Guards was effectively gone, how could everyone not be anxious?

For a time, rumors spread throughout Liuli City: the Court of Guards’ secret ”Gravedigger” had vanished, himself becoming a secret.

Estev, naturally, was unaware of these rumors, nor did he have the leisure to bother with them. He seldom even smoked anymore, so how could he find the energy to care about others’ gossip?

But even if he had wanted to, he wouldn’t have had the chance, for by now he was far from Liuli City, drinking in an obscure tavern at the foot of Guru Mountain.

After replying to Aevernan’s letter, he began preparations to head to Guru Mountain. His knowledge of Guru Mountain surpassed that of anyone else. It seemed his small eyes truly could see through many secrets, even those of Guru Mountain. However, Estev’s small eyes were not quite so magical...

”Day after day, year after year, you’ve toiled, maintaining this disguise. It must have been taxing,” the tavern owner said, pouring Estev a drink. The owner was a hunchback. He hadn’t answered Village Chief Old Hamu’s summons that day, his excuse being that his tavern barely saw three customers in six months.

”Compared to you, I am nothing,” Estev replied quietly, finishing the wine in his cup.

”Are there signs the secret here is loosening?” the hunchback owner asked, raising his eyelids, his face a mask of indifference.

”Yes. And it’s connected to that fellow, Willem,” Estev answered, his voice weak.

The hunchback owner drew in a sharp breath. ”This complicates matters significantly.”

”Indeed. I wouldn’t be surprised by anything that traitor does,” Estev said, then tilted his head back and downed another glass of strong liquor.

”We hold no advantage against this traitor. How do you intend to handle him?” the hunchback owner inquired.

”Hmph. I have no plans for now. Willem is extremely cunning. The moment I make a move, he’s certain to detect it,” Estev said quietly. ”Therefore, for the time being, I can only hide here with you and observe how things develop.”

”Your presence here suggests you lack complete confidence regarding this matter. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have shown up at my doorstep so readily, would you?”

”You’re right. While drinking in other taverns, I’ve managed to get a general understanding of the current situation on Guru Mountain.”

”Any new discoveries?”

”Willem’s activities are quite significant. Even the Alchemy Workshop has been deceived by him and his associates.”

”And the secret? Has any part of it been compromised?”

”Not yet.”

”That’s a relief.”

Estev drained another glass of wine in one gulp, gazing at the scenery beyond the window and shaking his head repeatedly.

What was bound to happen has finally come to pass.

Secrets are eventually brought to light; there’s no such thing as an impenetrable wall in this world.