13 (29)

Perhaps a typhoon was coming, for the wind and rain were fierce. The lamps that had lit the late night went out one by one. Since there was no night sky, Louis thought he would have to use those to relieve his boredom. Each one looked like the desires of men. Several streaks of rainwater traced lines across the window. Surely, among them, the greatest flame of desire was himself. In terms of timing, it was not a perfect moment.

There were still only three houses that could truly be called complete allies, and the king had soldiers. Since House Boarne would support the king, that number would again be doubled. The office was dark, and only the candle held by the attendant flickered. Louis suddenly leaned by the window and looked at the attendant’s profile. Her abundant black hair curved richly beneath the firelight, and her pale, long nape showed. Only then did he realize the attendant had been changed. At that moment the door opened and a man entered. Thick raindrops dripped from his wet cloak. Outside the window, rain poured down in sheets. He was wearing a hood, and soon removed it. The face that had been thoroughly hidden was gradually revealed. White hair, broad wrinkles spread here and there, stubborn eyes, and a sharp nose came into view. Kaban Ferdinand. Louis looked at him clearly.

“Whether I should call it boldness or overreach, no matter that you were handed a poisoned cup, declaring war on the king and even allowing me to come all the way in here, none of it seems like the duke’s usual self.”

“This is the real me.”

“Kinslayer.”

“That’s right.”

Kaban Ferdinand paused for a moment. Then he spoke bitterly.

“It seems I judged you wrongly. But does it not worry you? If I were to kill Duke Louis here, what do you think would happen?”

Louis curled the corner of his mouth. Then he asked, “Do you think you could?” Indeed, the room had already become grim. One of the five candles fell to the floor. It had failed to endure Louis’s force. Kaban Ferdinand also frowned. At least half of it was no more than bluff, but the only one who knew that fact was Louis himself.

Yet it was not merely bluff either. Even if Kaban Ferdinand attacked Louis here, it could be said he would not be able to subdue him easily. If the troops waiting nearby rushed in, the one who would instead die would be Kaban Ferdinand himself. Kaban Ferdinand let out a sigh on his own. The sigh that came naturally soon led to further words.

“There was a rumor that if a Sword Expert underwent remaking the body, he would rival a Sword Master. It seems that rumor was not false.”

Kaban Ferdinand’s bearing eased slightly. In Louis’s opinion, he was clearly wavering. The forces of the two men trying to occupy the space drew a certain line and then subsided after dividing it between them, and the attendants holding the candles unconsciously let out sighs of relief.

“As it was in the past, House Kaban, and I as well, are a glorious house that has served the king for generations, and as such I express deep regret toward you, Duke Louis. If I had dealt with you in advance while you were still a mere sprout, perhaps you would not have grown to this extent….”

Perhaps it was merely perhaps. Louis tapped the side of the table. Let’s endure a little longer, he told himself. In any case, except for recently, his life had always been one of endurance. He had always been used to such things with his father, his family, and his brothers. Kaban Ferdinand’s eyes narrowed.

“However……. I am old.”

Kaban Ferdinand answered irrelevantly. Louis considered what he meant. And then one thing caught at him.

“You are curious? About this body?”

“I am. More than anyone.”

“……………….”

“Even if I live on, I will not live another twenty years. I want to live longer. Since childhood, since youth, I devoted myself to only one path. I have lost much. That is why I always envied you, Duke Louis, for living according to your own convictions, even if only for a short time.”

“Interesting. Then if I were to tell you the secret, are you saying you would leave the king and come over to my side?”

Louis asked the question directly.

“That is so. I am tired.”

“And if I did not know it…?”

“Then I would fulfill my duty for the sake of the life I have lived.”

“I do not lose wars. You will die on the battlefield, your house will burn, and even Kaban Mary, your beloved granddaughter, will not live a peaceful life. Even so, will you still fulfill your duty?”

“Ha ha. Arrogant! Arrogant indeed. But fitting for a lion. Even Remitri could not say such a thing directly before me…. If you ask me that, then my answer remains the same.”

Kaban Ferdinand’s eyes looked somewhat different. To Louis, he seemed like a starving beast on the grasslands. He glimpsed a resolve that would finish something even if death awaited. It was slight. But that was enough. Louis smiled lightly and said,

“To be exact, I still do not know. But…….”

“………….”

“I know the process. I remember the change in mana when the body was being transformed. It may be only half a solution, but this is all I have. If you refuse, then only one thing remains. What will you do?”

Kaban Ferdinand made an ambiguous expression, as if saying, ‘Until now you insisted you did not know, and only now you are giving me a clue.’ Then he strode toward Louis. With his lips tightly pressed together, his hand reached out to Louis before any words did. It was a handshake.

“Welcome.”

Louis whispered softly. A firm handshake. Mana connected, and when their hands parted, it broke away leaving traces behind. Without saying a single word, Kaban Ferdinand simply left the office. The raindrops on his cloak had already dried completely. Looking at his retreating figure, Louis muttered. Now it was 7:3.

Compared to the other houses that had granted 10,000 points, the alliance with House Kaban gave an additional 10,000 points.

Gridio Orpendius was frowning. It looked as though he had aged another ten years in just a few days. The person before him was Boarne Gregory. He too wore an equally grave expression. Orpendius loosened the hand gripping his chin. Somehow the situation was flowing in the worst possible direction. According to Gregory, the worst-case scenario should have been a war between their territories. But Louis had instead drawn his sword against Orpendius. Orpendius let out another sigh. To begin with, it was questionable how Louis had managed to avoid the assassination. Yet, as Gregory had said, perhaps it was better that things had burst open now instead. In the end, Louis had always been a sprout that would one day point a blade at him.

“Your Majesty, please do not worry. In the end, please do not forget the simple fact that the essence of the matter is merely that Duke Louis must be removed.”

“The poison failed. So by what means do you intend to get rid of him now?”

“There is another move. My friend is a man of very great power in the far south.”

“………”

“Enter.”

As soon as Gregory finished speaking, five unfamiliar figures entered one after another. All of them wore masks. Their heights and builds varied greatly. One of them was even a woman. The force each of them emitted was no joke. Their appearance was enough to make even the king shrink back. In truth, if Gregory ordered them to kill the king here and now, they looked capable of immediately slaughtering all the troops present and killing the king. Their weapons were all distinctive as well.

“…….”

“They are assassins from the south. People who have honed the techniques of assassination all their lives. My friend selected only the finest among them and sent them to me. If it is these people, they will certainly be able to kill Duke Louis.”

“Is… is that true…?”

The man standing in the center spoke to the king in an emotionless voice.

“Yes. But you must pay us properly. If you do not pay….”

“Of course. Not only money, but if you succeed, I will give you territory as well!”

“We have no need of territory. And we have already sent the finest among us. He should have arrived by now.”

“………!”

The territory was busy. By Louis’s decision, the entire city was preparing for war. Louis was in the hot spring. The water was suitably soothing Louis’s loneliness, and he had his eyes closed for quite some time. He could only assume that no small amount of time had passed. He lightly stretched out his hand to the right, grabbed the red wine that should have been there, and poured it straight into his mouth.

A hot sensation swept through his whole body. Something sweet went down his esophagus, but it was subtly different from usual. An extremely faint, bitter taste. By the time he realized it, it had already gone into his stomach. At the same time, his legs grew heavy, and his shoulders drooped. Louis instinctively opened his eyes.

‘An assassin.’

His chest felt a little tight. That meant he had suffered a slight injury. At most one minute. After that, he would recover. The extremely subtle high-grade poison Louis had drunk clearly possessed astonishing effectiveness. This remade body ignored and was immune to most poisons. Even if affected, if a brief period of rest could be secured, it would regenerate.

Louis narrowed his eyes. In his blurred vision, the attendants who should have been there were nowhere to be seen. When he glanced down to the lower right, he saw that the woman who had just been beside him was floating on the water. He could see her white skin gradually losing its warmth. Since no bubbles were rising, her breathing had already stopped. Through the pale steam, the women who had now become cold corpses could be seen here and there. When he naturally took his next breath, the information window sounded.

Twenty seconds passed while confirming these facts, and the body that had taken damage began recovering at a terrifying speed. Grim mana spread from Louis’s body like a spiderweb. A beast-like force searched for the opponent, trying to find it. There was no sign. By some trick, the assassin was thoroughly hiding his own body. But after another ten seconds had passed, Louis’s even further recovered body finally detected a certain presence through instinct. Then he turned his body precisely in that direction and said quietly,

“Come out.”

Step, step. In the extremely silent space, clear footsteps spread out, and then something shot toward him. Louis turned his neck and avoided it. A sharp dagger lodged itself into the edge of the marble. Mana remained on it, and Louis thought it had respectable power.