Chapter 6
As always, hearing people badmouth a colleague was uncomfortable.
“What might have happened?”
“Perhaps the elf made some sort of mistake.”
“Or perhaps His Highness the Prince made a mistake.”
“Now, watch your words.”
When Iseria and Blanc came to a stop, the people watching them began to whisper.
Though only a minute or two had passed, the nobles couldn't wait and tore into the pair.
Hyenas.
Vieta's fists trembled with anger toward the nobles and resentment at her own helplessness.
Once the Emperor and Empress appeared as well, the banquet officially began.
Vieta could no longer keep watch over the banquet hall.
Since high-ranking nobles were attending the banquet, an array that distorted sight and hearing had been activated.
‘Should I make a hole?’
Vieta wondered what the sly Emperor she hadn't seen in a long time would say.
It had been the same seven years ago, and two years ago.
The Emperor was something akin to an enemy, though not quite one.
But then she remembered Fulcare letting out a deep sigh when he saw the torn magic array, and Vieta lowered her dagger.
‘I might as well stand guard for a change.”
Laurent, who tormented her whenever he saw her, was away on assignment, and Fulcare already knew that Vieta was nearby.
Since she wasn't harming the imperial family, there were no restrictions on using her power.
When Vieta concentrated, countless red magic circles flashed and vanished beneath her.
Soon, her mana became thin threads that enclosed the entire building and banquet hall.
The sound of insects leaping among the blades of grass.
Flower seeds swaying in midair.
The moist air against her skin.
[Unique Formula: Dominion]
Like a spider on its web sensing prey through the slightest vibration.
Within Vieta's domain, no one could conceal their presence.
When Vieta had first acquired this ability, she had often passed out because she couldn't handle the endless flood of information.
Munch, munch.
Maintaining the spell, Vieta took out the jerky in her pocket and began chewing.
She'd get tired of it if she ate it all week, but Vieta loved jerky's intense flavor.
“Come to think of it, why hasn't the consort come?”
Only the Emperor and Empress had appeared at Roseville. She mentally went over the seating arrangement several times, but there was no place for the consort.
The other day, she'd told Countess Gasco that
she never missed a banquet hosted or attended by her other son, Third Prince Charles,
so it seemed that, just as the Empress and the consort were on bad terms, the consort and Blanc weren't on very good terms either.
“It's not my concern, anyway.”
How did they manage to survive among those vicious hyenas?
Vieta thought Fulcare and Laurent were truly remarkable.
Thump.
“What a waste.”
Vieta muttered toward where the jerky had fallen.
It was so tough that she ended up dropping it while tearing at it with all her might.
“!!”
Just as she was smacking her lips and reaching for another piece of jerky, Vieta stopped.
Something was disturbing her domain.
Vieta concealed her presence as much as possible, then approached the source of the vibration.
“Why did this fall from midair?”
A black-haired woman was tilting her head while holding the jerky Vieta had dropped.
Judging by her clothes, she was a maid of the imperial household.
It was only natural for there to be maids in a banquet hall.
‘But would a maid have any reason to come all the way here?’
Rather than crouching near the main entrance used to enter and leave the banquet hall, the black-haired woman was sitting in a very narrow passage between the buildings.
Vieta's large eyes sharpened like those of a predator that had spotted its prey.
***
“Hello?”
Hearing an unfamiliar voice behind her, the maid swallowed.
‘…Could I have been discovered?’
At the same time, she carefully unrolled the cuff she had kept tucked away.
The worn brown leather wrapped around the sharp blade slid smoothly into her hand.
As she slowly breathed in and out, the maid envisioned severing her enemy's windpipe in a single stroke.
‘It has to end in a single blow.’
Given the nature of the assignment, the witness absolutely had to die.
There could be no commotion, either.
The maid focused her mind, turned her upper body to the right, and swung her dagger in one swift motion.
Clang-.
A sharp scraping sound rang out, creating a small but powerful shockwave,
and the maid's eyes widened.
There should have been a crunch, soft flesh tearing, and blood spraying out.
But the blade was stopped by a single finger.
Grin.
The small lips visible beneath the black hood curved into a smile.
At the same time, a cold yet intense sensation touched the nape of her neck. The maid lost consciousness and collapsed to the ground.
Blink.
Blink.
Even with her eyes closed, the glaring sunlight hurt her eyes.
“Hello?”
Hearing the same greeting as before, the maid's body trembled involuntarily.
By then, her hands and feet had been tightly bound,
and although she wanted to say something, even that was difficult with a gag in her mouth.
“Oops, I suppose you can't talk like that.”
The person standing before her removed the gag.
“…Who are you?”
Her voice trembled as the breath she'd been lacking suddenly rushed out.
“Do you really need to know who I am?”
The voice emerging from beneath the black hood, silhouetted against the sunlight, was unbelievably beautiful.
‘A real woman?’
The maid's mouth fell open.
Honestly, when she had first heard that greeting, she had thought she had misheard it.
She wasn't the foremost assassin on the continent, but she had more than ten years of experience.
Men were another matter, but there were very few women who surpassed her.
…And yet.
This petite woman standing before her had stopped her attack with a single finger.
The maid knew all too well what that meant.
“More importantly, what were you doing there, maid?”
The relentless, piercing gaze coming from her half-hidden face inspired fear even when she stood perfectly still.
Was this how the targets she had watched until now had felt?
She had never imagined she would experience that feeling herself.
“You're really not going to talk?”
The maid lowered her head.
She was an assassin: her assignment might fail, but she could never leave behind any evidence.
“Really?”
‘So this is the end.’
The maid swallowed hard.
The tension of someone facing death spread from her throat through her entire body.
She had known she would have to use it someday, but now that the moment had arrived, she was nervous.
“This is a problem.”
Just as the maid, having steeled herself, was about to bite down on the object hidden in her mouth,
Thud-.
An immense pain shot through the back of her head.
“Kuhk!”
Plop.
A half-crushed wooden capsule flew out of her mouth.
“If you try anything foolish one more time, even death won't end your suffering.”
Having failed even with her last resort, the maid curled up tightly from the pain radiating from the back of her head.
***
‘What do I do now?’
Vieta scratched her head.
She had managed to catch an assassin, but this was a problem.
Extracting information from a highly trained assassin required torture techniques such as magic or hallucinations.
Unfortunately, those were skills possessed by her other companions.
‘No wonder people always say I'm nothing but brute strength.’
While Vieta hesitated, the assassin's cheek moved slightly.
It was obvious. Now that she had been discovered, she was trying to take her own life for the sake of her client.
Vieta stiffened her hand into a blade and brought it down on the maid's head.
Kuhk!
With a short scream, a wooden capsule wet with saliva flew out.
“…Don't think this is the end.”
After a long while, once the pain had subsided, the assassin said through clenched teeth.
Vieta was almost amazed at how assassins all seemed to say the exact same things.
“Can't you just tell me everything and make this easier? I won't kill you. Of course, you won't be able to do this sort of thing anymore.”
Perhaps to preserve her last bit of pride as an assassin, the maid closed her eyes and kept her mouth shut.
“I suppose it can't be helped.”
Vieta drew her dagger and cut the back of the maid's calf.
She meant to sever a vital muscle so the maid could never do this again.
“Foolish. Do you really think I'm the only one who came to ruin this banquet?”
With a small groan, the maid's pained voice escaped.
“Of course not.”
Vieta staunched the bleeding with a bandage, then slung the assassin over her shoulder.
“But I'm not worried. There are frightening people in the banquet hall too.”
Sure enough, a tremendous explosion sounded from the direction of the banquet hall.
***
The attack began with Countess Verte.
“What is this?”
A shower of black objects fell from the air onto the table where Countess Verte was seated.
At first, they seemed like someone's malicious prank, but the fist-sized black objects spun in circles and began spewing smoke.
Just as the people at the table sensed the danger and started to rise,
Bang-.
An explosion erupted.
The tremendous impact made the air tremble, and the ground shook violently and split apart.
Acrid fumes and screams rose through the thick smoke.
It had all happened in a mere few seconds.
While everyone else was thrown into confusion,
the people seated at the most lavish table remained utterly calm.
No—to be precise, half of them remained composed, while the other half lost all noble dignity and scrambled out of their seats.
The moment the suspicious black objects appeared in the air, Iseria summoned her tree.
Crack.
Tree trunks that sprouted in an instant curled around the table, shielding it from every scrap of debris around it.
“Your Majesty, are you all right?”
“I'm fine.”
The Emperor maintained a stern expression, but unlike him, the Empress couldn't hide her emotions.
“What is going on? How dare anyone attack a banquet hall where His Majesty is present!”
As she spoke, she glared viciously at Blanc.
“It must be that bitch.”
“Empress. Watch your words.”
“But Your Majesty, isn't it obviously suspicious that the consort is the only one absent?”
Blanc, wiping tea that had spilled onto his clothes, was dumbfounded.
It was absurd.
Blanc's mother had been so meticulous in maneuvering to secure her position.
There was no way she would use such an obvious ploy.
“Empress. For now, I believe it would be best to wait for this situation to settle down.”
The Emperor's gaze stopped as he looked around.
Chief Fulcare and the elf were calmly drinking black tea despite everything.
He had felt it during the war with the demon realm as well, but those two were always so relaxed.
“When will this be resolved, Chief Fulcare?”
Click.
Fulcare set down his teacup with a measured motion.
Countless magic circles repeatedly appeared and vanished over both his hands.
“I think everything will be settled in five minutes.”
“Chief, did you know about this incident in advance….”
The Emperor hurriedly cut himself off.
There were seven people seated at the table.
It was not a large number, but it was still best to be as cautious as possible.
When the Emperor fell silent, the minister in charge of finances, seated at the least prestigious place, spoke.
“How did you come to that conclusion, Chief?”
“A mage's intuition.”
Fulcare said this while gazing at the magic circle orbiting his wrist.
He could never say, ‘Because there’s a hero outside.’