Chapter I
Eron arrived on time, despite the traffic in Istanbul.
The building was luxurious; inside, the office was restrained, modern, discreet. Dark glass, simple furniture, low lighting. It didn’t feel like an ordinary company, but it didn’t feel clandestine either. It was one of those places where everything feels expensive without needing to show off.
A young man was waiting for him inside.
He stood beside the table, well dressed, possibly the owner of the building. Beside him, an older man clearly private security kept watch in silence.
Cassian was the youngest son of the Aurex family.
“Thank you for coming. My father sent me,” he said bluntly. “He wanted me to be the one to speak with you.”
Eron looked at him calmly and stepped closer to the table.
“Then tell me what is the job?”
Cassian crossed his arms.
“Before that, I’m going to be honest with you. I don’t know if all of this is real.”
Eron lifted his gaze slowly.
“What do you mean by real?”
“What people say about you. About how you work.” There was no mockery in his voice only suspicion. “You have to understand,” he added. “My father needs this done, and he asked me to handle it.”
“If you came to doubt, don’t waste my time,” Eron replied. “If you came to commission something… where and when?”
Cassian gestured to the man beside him. The bodyguard pulled out a folder and placed it on the table.
“This isn’t a job like the others.”
Eron opened the folder without hurry.
“Explain.”
“We need at least a month. Not immediately.”
Eron raised his eyes.
“That isn’t a contract. That’s an infiltration.”
“We know.”
“And it’s not what I do.”
“We know that too and we can pay up to twenty-five percent more.”
“It’s not about money. That’s not how it works. One time. One contact. And that’s it.”
Cassian exhaled slowly.
“We need the family involved. We need them worried. We need them to lose focus so we can do our work.”
Eron closed the folder.
“I don’t work as a distraction. What do you want me to become his friend?”
“We just need more of your time,” Cassian said. “That’s all.”
“No. I don’t do that, Cassian.”
The bodyguard stepped forward, visibly irritated.
“I warned his father,” he said, “that this was a myth. That no one can do what people claim he can do. That this is a scam.”
Eron approached slowly. No rush. Without saying a word. He stopped in front of him and placed a hand on his shoulder. The man went rigid instantly.
“Wait…” he murmured. “What are you doing to me…?”
His breathing turned uneven. Eron didn’t move his hand. Sweat ran down the man’s forehead. His hand went to his weapon, then up to his head shaking, unable to fire.
Cassian stepped back.
“What the hell are you doing to him?”
Eron removed his hand. The bodyguard dropped to his knees, gasping, with the look of someone who had seen hell and come back.
Eron looked at Cassian.
“Does it still seem like a scam?”
Cassian stared at his man on the floor, then back at Eron.
“I didn’t mean to offend you…”
Eron took a step back, turned, and walked toward the door.
“And that’s why I won’t do this for a second longer than necessary. No one stays at my side even five minutes more after something like that.”
He walked out of the office.
Cassian reacted almost immediately and followed him into the hallway.
“Wait,” he said. “Please.”
Eron kept walking.
“I’m not going to tell you again,” he replied without looking at him. “I’m not interested.”
“I’m not asking you for a favor,” Cassian said. “I’m offering you a deal.”
Eron didn’t stop.
“My father doesn’t accept no,” Cassian continued. “And I don’t have another option right now. Please.”
Eron stopped. Cassian stepped closer.
“I’ll close it myself,” he said. “I’ll pay more.”
Eron turned slowly.
“How much?”
“One million five hundred thousand.”
“Why so expensive? What did he do to your family?”
“It’s just business. Nothing personal.”
Eron watched him in silence.
“Clean,” Cassian added. “Direct transfer. No extra conditions. No future favors.”
Eron held his gaze.
“I’m listening.”
Cassian exhaled.
“The target is Elio Vorelli. Twenty-five. He doesn’t go anywhere without security even if he doesn’t know it himself. His father won’t let him move without an escort. The only opportunity is a polo tournament at the Kemer Country Club, here in Istanbul.”
Eron raised an eyebrow.
“He plays?”
“Yes. He loves horses. He has several. He’s competed since he was a child. It’s his only space without direct security. Private event. Controlled. That’s where the family lowers its guard.”
Cassian looked at him seriously.
“It’s the only window that exists.”
Eron was silent for a few seconds.
“One month… Fine.”
“Yes. Just this month. I’ll send half the money in advance today, if you want.”
Eron nodded slowly.
“Give me the full file.”
Cassian handed him the complete folder.
“So the deal closes today?” It sounded more like a question than a statement.
Eron took the folder, feeling the weight of the Vorelli family’s secrets under his fingers. He didn’t look at Cassian.
“Yes. The deal is closed.”
The elevator doors slid shut behind him, leaving the hallway in silence broken only by the guard’s still-labored breathing inside the office.
Two weeks later.
The polo club in Istanbul blended luxury and power into a single place. Only members were allowed in; the match was exclusive. Eron walked with a steady stride, wearing the official staff uniform: a white polo with the embroidered crest and beige trousers. He had studied the grounds, and moving through them felt as natural as any other job.
Before heading to the stables, he passed by the field where the game was being played. The match was underway. Number eleven cut across the field with firm control and clean movement, keeping the team’s rhythm with steady confidence.
It was Elio Vorelli.
From the private stands, Eron spotted the Vorelli family. The father watched the match with focus. The mother sat calmly at his side. One of the sisters spoke with another woman without taking her eyes off the field. They looked like a happy, united family.
Eron didn’t stop. He continued toward the private stables, where only owners and authorized staff had access. There, he pretended to clean Elio’s horse’s stall, he already knew exactly which one it was.
Elio arrived about twenty minutes later with his horse, a jet-black stallion named Ares. He spoke to him in a low voice, smiling, relaxed. When he stepped into the stall and saw Eron there, he looked surprised. There was never anyone in that space.
“Hello,” Elio said.
Eron stopped cleaning a few meters away and adopted a mild look of confusion, as though he hadn’t expected anyone to come in.
“Sorry,” he said, lowering his voice. “They sent me to the North Barn to clean. I didn’t know anyone would be coming.”
Elio turned and smiled easily.
“This isn’t the North Barn. You’re pretty far off,” he said. “The North Barn is on the other side of the fields. But don’t worry it’s huge. It happens to everyone at first.”
In that instant, Ares reacted. The horse snorted violently, lifted his head, and locked eyes on Eron. He started pawing the ground hard, shaking his head as if he sensed a direct threat.
“Hey, hey… easy,” Elio said, gripping the reins firmly. “Easy, Ares.”
The animal was agitated, close to out of control. Eron stepped forward and positioned himself behind Elio, placing a firm hand on his shoulder as if seeking protection from the horse.
He waited for the usual response.
Nothing happened.
No reaction. No collapse. No break.
All he felt was something strange something he couldn’t describe. His eyes widened in astonishment.
“How…?”
Elio stayed focused on calming the horse, steady, without the slightest visible change.
“Sorry,” he said, managing to settle Ares. “He doesn’t usually react like that. He’s a good horse. Are you okay? He didn’t hurt you, did he?”
Eron withdrew his hand immediately. He looked at him. Nothing had changed.
“Yes,” he said. “I’m fine. My mistake. I shouldn’t have gotten that close. I’ll look for the North Barn from outside.”
“Sure,” Elio said. “Take the side corridor. It’s more direct.”
Before Eron could walk away, one of the team members hurried over.
“Elio, they need you now,” he said. “Second chukker’s starting.”
Elio nodded. He glanced at Eron one last time and walked off.
“Strange about Ares…” he murmured.
Then his teammate guided him back to the field. Eron watched him rejoin the match and slip back into place as if nothing had happened. Then he turned and walked in the opposite direction.
He left the club through a side service area and walked to a traffic zone near the main entrance. The street wasn’t crowded, but there was constant movement people walking, cars passing, ordinary city noise. The scene kept looping in his mind.
“What happened in there?”
He stopped beside a man waiting to cross and rested a hand on his shoulder without care or preparation just as a test. He needed to confirm his power still worked.
The effect was immediate.
The man blinked several times. His breathing went uneven, and without saying a word, he stepped forward without looking. A car hit him hard as he stepped into the road. The crack of impact, the screams, the chaos flooded the street.
Eron didn’t move. He watched for a few seconds, then stepped away with calm precision.
His power worked. It was still intact.
So it wasn’t him.
It was Elio.
He wasn’t sure what the next move would be. He might have to improvise. The match could end, and Elio could leave soon.
He went back to the club.
He slipped inside again, taking advantage of the distraction from the accident near the main entrance, and went straight to find Elio.
He found him near the outer corrals, speaking with a team member. Eron waited for the exact moment. When Elio was alone, he approached with a different expression duller, more neutral.
“Hey,” he said quietly. “I wanted to say goodbye before I left.”
Elio turned.
“Everything okay?”
“More or less. They just let me go. They said it was because of what happened earlier the horse incident. I guess they don’t want trouble.”
Elio frowned immediately.
“Let you go? That makes no sense. If you want, I can talk to the owner. My father is one of the club’s main investors. This can be fixed easily.”
“No, it’s okay,” Eron said. “It really isn’t necessary. They didn’t treat me very well.”
Elio studied him for a few seconds, weighing him.
“I’m sorry,” he said at last. “That’s not right firing you over something that small. What else can you do?”
Eron hesitated just long enough to make it believable.
“The only thing I know is how to work with horses.”
It was a lie.
“And you like it? You look young…”
“Yes. I like it. I take care of them. I also do some cleaning, basic training.”
Elio looked down for a second, thoughtful, then smiled naturally.
“Look… I have several horses at home not just Ares. If you’d like, you could come work for me. At least until you find something better. We can talk calmly about the schedule and a pay rate that feels fair.”
Eron held his gaze for a moment.
“I’d really appreciate that.”
“Yeah,” Elio said without hesitation. “It’s no problem. And that way you won’t be left with nothing overnight.”
Eron nodded.
“That sounds good. Thank you.”
“I’ll send you the address,” Elio said, pulling out his phone. “We can start tomorrow, if you’d like.”
“Tomorrow works for me.”
They exchanged numbers. Eron left the club through a side exit.
The plan had changed completely, but Elio was still the target.
Written by Ren Sato
佐藤 蓮
