Episode 166. Assassination Order (2)
“… … .”
Rubin and the assassin stared into each other’s eyes. Both of them opened their eyes wide to check their surroundings.
Rubin led the visitor to a secret room hidden behind the bookshelves. He made sure it was safe to talk inside the bookstore, but he had to be careful.
“You are not surprised, my lord.”
An assassin who greets the children of the main family and starts a conversation.
“I kind of expected it. There aren’t many people around here who can eliminate Rosenthaler.”
“It’s been about a month since we last met.”
Naif Greas.
The head of the Greas family and the manager of the warehouse in Bayanegro. The help of the Greas family was crucial in getting Enzo out of the ‘Valley Prison’. He continued to help Rubin by telling him that Rosenthaler had eliminated Hitan.
“As you said, my lord, I came here on the orders of the imperial decree. The order to assassinate Rosenthaler.”
“There must be a reason why you came to me.”
Although he had expected it, Rubin asked subtly.
“Yes. It’s a mission to secretly eliminate the Imperial Command agent. That means we can’t get help from the Imperial Command.”
“You’re asking me to act as a messenger to help the assassin.”
“That’s right. This was also an order from the imperial edict.”
I think I know Rulfo’s intentions.
Rulfo is concerned about the suspicions Rubin may have harbored toward them. He is anxious about how much of the truth about ‘Operation Per-Enzo’ has been revealed.
In this situation, there were natural benefits to putting Rubin on the mission.
‘No matter what Rosenthaler tells me, it’s unbelievable to me. He’s just a target for assassination.’
Even if Rosenthaler were to reveal the truth about Operation Per-Enzo, his words would be nothing more than the ravings of an agent who had been excluded from the royal command.
‘You’ve used your brain, Rulfo. You’ve made Rosenthaler an object of distrust, and you’ve created a loophole for yourself.’
But this was Rubin, who knew all about Per. He even knew the fact that he was a ‘chosen wizard’, something that even the royal decree did not know. Even Rulfo’s tricks were all in Rubin’s hands.
At that moment, Naif’s voice continued.
“Your Majesty, no matter what the imperial edict says, I do not wish to put my family’s children in danger.”
“Thank you for your concern, but I’ll just do what I have to do.”
“Even if you are outstanding enough to safely take a wizard out of the valley prison, aren’t you still being trained by Roynenser?”
“The current Capotini situation is very complicated because of Rosenthaler. There is also the youngest daughter of an imperial noble in the city. She will inevitably need my help.”
It seemed like Naif wanted to give him only the information he needed, but Rubin had no intention of doing that. No, he was determined to do things in a way Naif absolutely did not want.
‘To deceive Naif and confront Rosenthaler alone.’
If removal is your only goal, it would be best to actively utilize Naif.
But Rubin wanted the fight to his death, not just to get rid of Rosenthaler.
He must become stronger. He must raise his level even higher than now. For him, Rosenthaler was a stepping stone for growth that he absolutely had to pass through.
If I couldn’t defeat him here, I wouldn’t be able to face Telmah later. So I couldn’t give this battle to anyone.
‘Still, it’s fortunate that it’s Naif.’
As we confirmed before, the Greas family is one of the many branches of the Assassin family. Naif himself even made a ‘secret pact’ with his mother.
If it had been another assassin, it would have been a headache cleaning up after the fight with Rosenthaler. But if it was Naif, it was clear that he would let it slide without making a big deal out of it.
“There’s a better way, Naif.”
“Are you already planning to take on the role of the imperial edict?”
“Your other identity is that of the head of the noble family Pallistine, right?”
Naif nodded. The Palistin family was a noble family with a strong reputation in Bayanegro and a reputation that extended to nearby cities. Naif had been living the life of a noble family under false pretenses since birth.
“There’s a banquet in ten days. It’s a joint celebration between the Ielos and Delrin families.”
“I’ve heard of their family. They’re quite famous as a magic family in the Kingdom of Nice. But why is their family’s banquet… ?”
“If it’s your fake identity, it wouldn’t be strange for you to attend there.”
“Will I be there? Or will Rosenthaler show up there?”
Rubin shook his head.
“The banquet is a means to attract him. It would be too burdensome to eliminate him there. So I’ll look for a place nearby where he can be eliminated.”
In any case, Rubin’s help was needed to eliminate Rosenthaler. In the end, Naif had no choice but to admit that he could not exclude Rubin from the operation.
“I see. If I want to kill that Rosenthaler, I guess I’ll have to get your help.”
However, Naif thought Rubin’s role was to replace the Imperial Order. In other words, he only wanted indirect help.
Not knowing Rubin’s true intentions, he thought he would be the one to cross swords with Rosenthaler.
As the story roughly came to a close, Rubin told Naif where he would be staying.
As a member of the Palais des Falsehood, I have a clear status as a noblewoman, so I cannot just wander the streets carelessly.
“I’ll just stay in the basement. It’s not exactly comfortable accommodation. But it’s my own place that even Rosenthaler doesn’t know about.”
“Thank you, Master. Are you going back to school now?”
“Yeah, I guess I should start heading back soon.”
Rubin leaves the bookstore, deciding to come here at the same time every day to prepare for Rosenthaler’s elimination.
“… … .”
After a while, Naif came down to the underground cave.
A dark space without even a single ray of light. Of course, this was no problem for someone with the 5-star darkness.
Naif, who was checking the space where he would have to stay for a while, stopped for a moment. His eyes became tense.
“Mr. Naif?”
When I looked back, Kuze was standing in front of me, holding a change of clothes and bedding.
“What’s wrong?”
“Kuje, what is this place used for?”
“yes?”
“I’m saying this because of the sword marks all over the walls. It looks like there was a huge battle here.”
The walls were covered with marks of swordsmanship. They were all traces of Rubin’s training. Even without the light, he could tell that these swordsmanships were not ordinary.
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At that time, Kuze’s answer continued.
“There was no battle. This is Lord Rubin’s training ground.”
“Wow… That’s incredible. It feels like you’ve been training for over a dozen years. It’s only been two years since you came to Capotini.”
There was a kind of pride in Naif’s eyes as he looked at Kuze. It was his intention to acknowledge him as a Roinenser who serves the children of his family.
As for Kuzero, he couldn’t help but worry about whether he should correct the misunderstanding.
‘Young Master, I have hardly ever trained with you in swordsmanship… Well, it might be better to know it that way.’
I thought it would be better for the young master to misunderstand this in a positive way rather than to practice swordsmanship alone.
“The trajectory of the sword is unique. Aside from the Assassination Sword style, there are also unique sword styles… … .”
“I’m going to go now, Naif.”
“Okay, let’s do that.”
Kuze left Naeph, who was muttering while observing the marks of the sword, in the underground cavern and hurried up to the surface. He thought that if he stayed there, he would be bothered by unnecessary questions and interrogations.
Meanwhile, Naif felt a thrill involuntarily as he watched the traces of swordsmanship becoming more evident as the darkness grew more familiar.
Suddenly, Killian’s words came to mind again.
‘You said you might surpass the Siren family. Maybe… really maybe… … .’
* * *
Several more days passed after that.
Rubin and Naif set about changing the atmosphere of Capotini.
‘A magic professor murdered during the semester by a five-star drone.’ This fact alone makes the atmosphere in the city gloomy as if martial law had been declared.
“First, to change the atmosphere of the city, we need to create a plausible reason to kill. A reason to focus on ‘Gaizen’ rather than ‘Professor of Magic’.”
“According to information our family has obtained, Kaizen was once involved in gladiator gambling in the commercial city of Avern.”
Rubin also knew this. The Imperial Edict had used this fact to blackmail Kaizen and used him as a scapegoat to find Per.
“Then let’s spread that rumor and make it seem like the warrior who killed Kaizen was involved in Avern’s gladiator gambling.”
If that happens, the Royal Army of Nice will be able to relax its guard. The Magic School’s closure will end on time without being extended, and the city’s atmosphere will be restored.
‘It’s important to change the atmosphere of the city.’
As rumors about Kaizen spread, Rosenthaler, who had been cowering, will slowly start to move.
“Rosenthaler is currently hiding somewhere in the city. He is unsure whether he has been betrayed by Rulfo or not. Once he hears the rumor, he will accept that Rulfo has forgiven him.”
Rosenthaler was a senior member of the Imperial Order, so he knew about the assassination. He must be hiding somewhere in the city, fully prepared, and lying in wait.
Of course, it wasn’t impossible to find the hidden Rosenthaler by using the vassals of the Greas family.
But in the current environment, it was a burdensome method in many ways. It could easily cause Rosenthaler to shrink even more.
It was a time when a way to draw out Rosenthaler was needed.
“That’s a good method.”
Naif couldn’t help but nod at Rubin’s strategy. Even if he had to devise a strategy himself, he would have done so.
But Rubin, who had only been away from home for two years, was too experienced and clever for that. He surprised me in many ways.
“A relieved Rosenthaler might come to the bookstore here to look for you, my lord.”
“It’s not that he might come, he’ll definitely come. To this place.”
Rubin continued.
“Nap. If he shows up, we shouldn’t attack him. He knows Capotini well. The place to eliminate him should be the territory of the Ielos family.”
Naif nodded. When the stakes are high, it is best to assassinate someone at the best possible location.
“Besides, it wouldn’t be beneficial for your life if Capotini becomes more confused.”
Then, Naif’s gaze turned downward. There was the map of the territory of Ielos that Rubin had given him.
A place far enough away from where the banquet was being held. There was an X marked on it. It was the place to lure Rosenthaler and kill him.
“The key is to lure him. I wonder if we can lure him to the magicians’ banquet.”
“I’ll be on guard. But he’ll have no choice but to come.”
“I guess he trusts you that much.”
Naif said so, and Rubin just shrugged his shoulders.
If Rosenthaler followed Rubin to the place where he would die, it would be for reasons far from trust. It was a relationship that could not be built on trust in the first place.
He will come for a reason he has to come. However, the place will not be the X-marked place that Naif is looking at.
The moment Naif realizes that Rubin has tricked him, Rubin will begin a battle with Rosenthaler not far away.
‘You can hear the music of the banquet and the firecrackers too.’
Rubin quietly anticipated that day.
On one side, there will be a celebration party for the magic students, on the other side, there will be a bewildered collateral head looking for the young master of the assassination sword, and on the other side, there will be a fierce battle.
Rubin was convinced.
‘Before the banquet is over, Rosenthaler will die by my hand.’
