Chapter 117
People panicked when sothing happened that they had not expected.
Assassins especially found it difficult to imagine that they themselves might be ambushed. Ambushing people was their specialty, after all.
That was why they kept their gear as light as possible and used short, agile weapons.
They were nimble enough to run freely across rooftops, but they were not so nimble that they could dodge bullets fired from a weapon they were seeing for the first ti in their lives.
“Guh......”
The fourth assassin collapsed, spitting blood. No more bullets ca out. With a dry tallic click, the gun ran empty.
I holstered the pistol and drew my sword instead.
Shing!
It was not because I was confident.
I was short on bullets.
If I had known this would happen, I would have brought a few extra magazines.
It could not be helped. I had needed to wear my uniform, so I could not throw on a robe, and that limited what equipnt I could carry. Even the pistol had only barely stayed hidden behind my tailcoat jacket.
“That doesn’t an I can just let them punch air holes through my lungs here.”
A true master did not bla his tools. If anything, this kind of corner would only raise my Level of Mastery even further.
I took my Sword Form.
The sword, steeped in soft mana like moonlight, began to glow blue. They already knew I was an Aura User anyway, so it was ti to face them head-on.
Then I heard the voice of a stranger.
“You really are as capable as I heard. I thought you were just so low-level Aura User, but you use a curious weapon.”
Pat pat!
The mont he finished speaking, two shadows sprang out of the darkness. They were the survivors who had avoided my pistol attack. Each held a sharp dagger in both hands.
Their faces were covered, and if I had to compare them to anything, they looked like Eastern-style ninjas. Their clothes were as black as pitch.
“What kind of bastards are you? By what right are you getting in the way of heading sowhere nice? I was planning to drink myself silly for the first ti in a while.”
“I think you’ve misunderstood where that nice place is. It’s over there. The Afterlife, isn’t it? Kkh.”
The man laughed as he pointed upward.
“I think that applies to you, not .”
As I answered, I slashed my sword through the air once. It was not enough to distort space or anything like that, but since it was steeped in mana, it would have been threatening enough.
But neither of them even blinked.
Instead, they began threatening .
“There’s a pretty price on your head. I heard you’re a Butler Apprentice of the Adeline House...... If you’re an apprentice, you ought to be quietly scrubbing floors. What exactly have you been doing with yourself?”
That single line carried a great deal of information. They had no direct connection to . They seed to be a group of killers hired for the job.
“What’s it to you?”
“I’m just curious. Even if you’re going to die, it’s not so bad to exchange a few words first, is it?”
That sounded awfully familiar sohow. Pushing the thought aside, I deliberately drew up more mana.
I could feel their presence.
That made it easy to see that the two assassins before were Aura Users. Their daggers were infused with powerful Aura.
At their level, they looked capable of devouring most ordinary Knights whole.
I knew it. So that was why they weren’t afraid.
“These days every stray dog and mutt can stir up Aura, and it’s becoming a real nuisance. But why bother talking with a man who’s about to die? Don’t resist! It’ll let you die cleanly!”
A killing intent sharp enough to raise goosebumps burst outward.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
With the sound of air being sliced apart, the two shadows before vanished from sight. It truly happened in the blink of an eye.
At the sa ti, killing intent closed in from both sides.
My heart began pounding reflexively. At the sa ti, an enormous quantity of mana erupted from within .
My muscles tensed, and my grip around the sword tightened. More than that, my senses beca so sharp that it felt as though every detail in the surroundings had been poured straight into my mind.
Then I saw where I needed to move.
Whoosh!
I swung my sword there on instinct.
To the right.
There was nothing there but empty air, yet just as my sword reached it, a dark figure erged.
And then—
Clang!
“Ghk!”
Blue sparks flew as the enemy’s dagger was blocked by my counterattack. The bastard let out a groan and looked at as though I was sothing else, but my focus imdiately shifted to the other side.
The left was the problem.
Stab!
A sharp dagger pierced my shoulder.
When you were on the receiving end, a coordinated attack was dangerous. No matter how sharp your senses were, it was not easy to block simultaneous attacks coming from both sides.
But I had a way to make up for what I lacked in experience.
The dagger struck my shoulder, but it could not pierce my tailcoat.
“W-what?”
The bastard who had attacked was rattled. He had clearly buried the knife into , but the tailcoat had not gone through.
I had been using mana to activate Protective Aura, and I had also been pouring pure mana into the tailcoat itself, giving it the sa effect as stab-proof clothing.
No matter how wildly they swung their Aura Swords around, they could not pierce equipnt coated in mana. Because mana was a power far greater than Aura.
“What do you an what? It’s stab-proof clothing, you bastard!”
I kicked with all my might, like Beckham stepping up for a free kick in a Champions League final.
Wham!
“Urgh!”
Crash!
The bastard went rolling across the ground and slamd into the wall.
If you got your chance, you had to finish the job.
Gripping the sword in both hands, I charged. But with the sound of rushing air, the other bastard behind cut in and blocked my path.
“Not so fast!”
A dagger ca stabbing viciously for my throat.
I angled my sword aside.
Clang!
Sparks flew. This ti the offense and defense had reversed. Ard with the reincarnation perk and the Swordsmanship Arthas had taught , I launched a fierce series of attacks.
First Form: Diagonal Slash.
The tip of my sword traced a graceful curve, carving out a new Blade Path.
The Horizontal Slash and Turning Slash that followed were both blocked by the bastard’s dagger, but the final Fifth Form: Rising Slash landed at exactly the right mont.
Claaang!
With a harsh sound, the assassin lost his grip on the dagger.
“Ugh.”
There was an opening. I swung again and knocked the remaining dagger from his other hand as well.
Then ca a fine finishing move, driving my foot deep into his stomach.
Thud!
“Gah!”
He rolled across the ground and crashed into the wall beside the first bastard.
“Hoo.”
I took a deep breath.
Mana was pouring out of beyond control. It felt as though my heart might burst. Was it because I had finally had a proper fight again after so long? The exhilaration would not leave .
I returned the sword to its scabbard and walked over to them. They seed to have suffered serious internal injuries. Both were coughing up blood and groaning.
I crouched down, t their eyes, and smiled.
“Looks like your friends got to that nice place before you. So, how does it feel?”
“Just...... kill us.”
“That’s not happening. I went to the trouble of spending this much strength, so at the very least I ought to know which fearless bastards dared co for my neck. Talk. Who sent you? Was it Mannheim?”
Crunch.
A bad sound rang out, and the two assassins collapsed at the sa ti with foam spilling from their mouths. Their skin turned blue as if they had been poisoned. Their breathing stopped soon after.
“They killed themselves?”
I had heard that assassins carried things like poison pellets in their mouths, so they could take their own lives if captured alive. It seed to be a fairly systematic organization.
I checked their corpses, but got nothing useful. Other than their weapons, everything had been left clean.
“And the driver ran away. It really does seem like Mannheim was behind this...... Huh?”
When I went over to the driver’s seat, I was startled.
“He didn’t run?”
Soone was there who should not have been.
The driver who had brought here lay slumped over, bleeding, a dagger lodged in his chest.
I checked his pulse.
He was already dead.
The situation had just beco a little more complicated. I remained there for quite a while, unable to leave.
***
After handing the scene over to the Capital Guard, I was questioned briefly and then released.
I finally made use of the necklace the Young Lady had given before. Inside it was the House Insignia, which let prove my identity.
Once I left the alleyway, I looked around. Then I made my way toward a larger street where there were still people around.
“The proper thing would be to ask that bastard Mannheim, wouldn’t it?”
If he really had sent assassins after , then he had a motive. After all, I had beco an obstacle to his plan.
But I could not stop thinking about the driver who had co to fetch .
He had truly been innocent. Had he not lost his life because of , because I had accepted the invitation?
Mannheim would know everything.
“Maybe not. But that’s still the proper order.”
I asked around for the location of the Blackstone rchant Company, and it was not difficult to find their headquarters. It was late at night, but the building was brightly lit.
The n standing guard outside blocked my path with their spears.
“Halt.”
“I’d appreciate it if you could send word inside that Dilen of the Adeline House has co.”
“Ah!”
Perhaps they had been given orders in advance, because the soldiers’ attitude suddenly beca respectful.
“The company master is waiting inside. We were told you would arrive soon...... but why have you co alone?”
“I’d like to ask the company master why I ended up coming alone myself.”
It seed so of the anger I had been suppressing slipped out. The soldiers flinched.
“......Please wait a mont.”
The senior soldier hurried inside. A short ti later, Mannheim ca out with a rigid expression.
“Sir Dilen! What in the world happened? What beca of the carriage I sent? Why have you co alone?”
“Let’s go inside first.”
My cold response made Mannheim flinch, and he led in at once. Judging by the attitude he had shown so far, he truly seed to have no idea what had happened.
Even so, I did not let my guard down.
I had already t two geniuses at acting in the Adeline House.
A mont later, we entered a magnificent office. The rchant company must have been making quite a bit of money, because all sorts of valuables were on display. It was dazzling just to look at them.
Mannheim gestured toward a chair adorned with jewels.
But I did not sit.
“Could you dismiss your n for a mont?”
“Ah, of course. All of you, leave!”
The n who had received the order stepped outside. Now only Mannheim and I remained in the room.
How could I get this bastard to open his mouth easily?
Thinking that, I clasped my hands behind my back and slowly walked around the office.
“What in the world happened? Why have you co alone without saying anything?”
“I was attacked on the way.”
I smiled.
Perhaps because of that, Mannheim looked even more horrified than I expected.
“A-attacked? Are you all right?”
“As you can see, I’m perfectly fine. But the driver you sent is dead, and the carriage is ruined.”
“My heavens!”
“Soon soone from the Capital Guard will co. They must still be investigating, since no ssage has arrived yet......”
I slowly approached Mannheim.
At the sa ti, I moved both hands.
They were not ordinary hands, but hands infused with mana.
The gestures were hand signs, and as the spell completed, fire sprang into being.
Whoosh!
The Fire spell unfolded.
“H-hurk!”
Mannheim, apparently seeing magic with his own eyes for the first ti in his life, toppled backward. Grasping the floating fireball in my hand, I approached him.
“From now on, you’re going to answer every question I ask properly. Because I’m very serious right now.”
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