“Hii, hii…”
Linus ran through the back alleys, pressing his blood-soaked face.
The plan had been perfect.
To simultaneously obtain the ‘Spirit Tears’ that a certain high-ranking noble desired and a noble title.
He wasn’t just some guy languishing in a small guild in this Norf Barony.
He and his sister, who came from the slums, had spent years planning this. By rising in status within the guild in this district, gaining the backing of a noble who bought the Spirit Tears, and becoming a noble himself, they could show the Dandole Thieves’ Guild, who had been mocking their weak guild, what was what.
It was from Linus’s inferiority complex that he even considered obtaining not only money and status but also a noblewoman.
He knew that the Dawn Mercenaries were being targeted by the Assassin Guild. In the first place, it was the Thieves’ Guild of the barony that had lent the money for that commission.
From the start, Linus and his group intended to have the Dawn Mercenaries eliminated by the Assassin Guild.
Whether the Spirit Tears were sold directly by the Dawn Mercenaries, who had repelled the assassins, or returned to the hands of Baron Norf via the Assassin Guild, everything was supposed to eventually fall into their hands, but before they knew it, the situation had changed, and unbelievable information had come in.
The annihilation of the Assassin Guild’s northern frontier branch. Moreover, it was accomplished by a child assassin who had supposedly eliminated the Dawn Mercenaries.
He didn’t know what method the child had used to destroy the guild, but according to the Assassin Guild survivor who brought the information, the child was apparently a disciple of the Evil Race and had probably used some suspicious Magic Tool.
Moreover, the ‘Spirit Tears’ were apparently in the hands of that assassin—”Ash-covered.”
At that moment, Linus saw this as a perfect opportunity.
He didn’t know why she had betrayed the guild, but no matter how skilled she was, if she was just a child, he could talk her into anything.
He would hint at retaliation from the survivors and other branches, and under the guise of protection, he would obtain her strength and reputation.
Even if the actual ability of “Ash-covered” was not that great because she was a child, just the fact that there was someone who had destroyed the Assassin Guild would make this guild stand out in the Underworld.
The initial plan was perfect…
But Linus failed to realize that the mentality and ability of a child who could massacre all the guild members were beyond their comprehension.
Ash-covered was a beautiful girl who looked about twelve years old.
Even knowing that this girl had destroyed the Assassin Guild, the thieves who saw her were misled by her lovely appearance.
There was no way such a girl could easily kill someone…
The moment they turned hostile, his comrades were killed in an instant.
Even if they were thieves who were not good at rough stuff, that was “compared to Adventurers,” and this time, he had brought only rank 2 or 3 fighters just in case.
It didn’t even take a minute. Without a moment’s hesitation, she easily reaped lives as if picking flowers blooming in a field, and her figure was even beautiful as she danced.
In fact, she was beautiful. He was so captivated that he even forgot the pain of having his face slashed.
However, the way she unhesitatingly took lives with her seemingly lovely appearance looked like a grim reaper from another world, and Linus had abandoned his dying comrades and fled.
The sun was still high, and if he went out to the main street and appealed to the guards, Linus, who had the public position of a manager of a trading company, might be saved.
However, Linus also had the pride of someone living in the Underworld, and he understood that if he did such a thing in a dispute between people of the Underworld, he would not be able to survive in this world.
Such “excuses” crossed his mind, and he couldn’t go out to the main street, but in reality, he realized somewhere in his heart that “it would be useless even if he did.”
She will definitely come to kill him.
If necessary, she will come to kill him, even if it means massacring everyone who gets in her way.
The moment he saw Ash-covered’s eyes, Linus understood this with the instincts of a creature living in the Underworld.
“O-Open it, open it!!”
Returning to his trading company, Linus frantically pounded on the back door.
“L-Linus-san!? That injury…”
“Shut up, get out of the way!”
Pushing aside the man who opened the back door, Linus went inside.
This trading company was a front that the guild in this barony had been using as a hideout for a long time, and when they decided to trap the baron, they moved the guild’s base here, and now almost everyone has been replaced by guild members.
“Close the store!! ‘It’ is coming!”
Despite it still being evening, he hurriedly closed the store, chased out the few employees who didn’t know anything, gathered weapons from the warehouse, and began preparing to fight.
The dozen or so thieves who remained looked at each other in confusion as Linus, who was not being treated and was trembling while gripping his weapon in the back of the store.
Even if they were told to prepare for battle, Linus had taken those who were good at fighting with him, and all that remained here were people who were good at stealth or fraud, at most rank 1 or 2.
Moreover, the thieves were confused because Linus was not in a mental state to explain, and a burly, bare-chested middle-aged man appeared from the back, attended by half-naked women.
“What’s going on, Linus!”
“Father!”
This man was the head of the Thieves’ Guild in this barony, and also a parental figure who had picked up the siblings from the slums.
“H-Help me, Father! ‘It’ is coming!”
“What’s wrong?”
The head of the Thieves’ Guild sighed with an exasperated look at Linus, who was clinging to him with a frightened, blood-soaked face.
“It seems you’ve made a mistake… Well, send out a messenger to the Adventurer dropouts—”
“…Father?”
When Linus turned around to the head of the Thieves’ Guild, who had stopped moving midway, three knives were stuck in the head’s right eye, between his eyebrows, and in his throat.
The head of the Thieves’ Guild fell backward as if making an earth-shattering sound.
…What happened? Unable to comprehend the situation due to the sheer shock, even the women who were next to the head were dumbfounded, and everyone in the room turned around as if drawn by the faintly flowing wind.
Outside the only open window… against the moon floating in the dark blue sky that was beginning to darken, a girl with her hair dirtied with ash stared at the thieves in the room with freezing cold eyes.
“I’ve come to kill you.”
＊＊＊
A large number of murders occurred in the town of Norf Barony.
First, nine bodies were found in the back alleys. Several of the guards who examined the bodies testified that eight of them were employees of a certain trading company, and when the soldiers went to that trading company, they found more than a dozen people, including the president and the manager Linus, dead inside the store, which had not opened even in the morning.
The total number of dead was over twenty. It was the largest murder case in this barony, but documents related to crimes within the trading company and documents related to the Thieves’ Guild were found, and since everyone was killed almost instantly, it was dealt with as a conflict in the Underworld before it became public.
Even if that trading company was the Thieves’ Guild’s base in this town, thieves would flock from all over again, and a guild would be created somewhere in the town again.
Among them, there must have been lucky ones who had not shown their faces at the guild that day, and they would say to the newly arrived thieves with frightened faces.
‘Don’t get involved with the “Ash-covered Girl”‘—
＊＊＊
Several months after the Thieves’ Guild in this town was destroyed, the wedding of Nora, the only daughter of Baron Norf, was held at the Norf Baron’s mansion.
Her partner was not the manager of the trading company who had recently become her fiancé.
She was finally able to fulfill her feelings with the third son of the Baron family, who was her original fiancé and with whom she had been in love with each other.
He would enter the Norf Baron family as Nora’s adopted husband and would learn governance from the current baron as the next Norf Baron.
Baron Norf, who was deeply moved to tears at Nora in her bridal attire, did not have his wife by his side.
Baron Norf was holding a small portrait of his wife, who had died several years ago, and the second wife who had entered the family after that was divorced at the same time as her parents’ house, which was a merchant family, “went out of business,” and she, who had been in a state of confusion from fear even before that, was said to have escaped this barony at the same time as the divorce and was attacked by Bandits in the mountains on the way to Dandole and lost her life.
Around Nora’s neck, who was smiling at her childhood friend at the wedding, was a ‘Spirit Tears’ necklace that was decorated just a little so as not to be noticed.
According to the servants who had secretly heard about it, the necklace was a keepsake from her mother, and it seemed that her mother’s grandmother, who was a Spirit User, had received it from a Spirit, and it was not an abominable item taken by killing a Spirit, as forbidden by the Holy Church.
“…………”
I watch the happy Nora and quietly turn my back.
Because of everything I did in this city, I worried about how to repay it all, but in the end, I simply snuck into her room while she was sleeping and left it by her pillow.
I left a note saying, “Revenge is complete,” but now that I think about it, that might have been unnecessary.
Nora-san looks happy. The words I left behind will probably mark a turning point, but she shouldn’t look back anymore.
I glanced back one last time, and by chance, my eyes met Nora-san’s, who had also turned around at that moment. Even though we were quite far apart, she seemed to recognize me, her eyes widening slightly, and she waved with a radiant smile. I lightly waved back and left the place.
In these past few months, I’ve finally turned nine.
My body has grown a bit too, and even though I was able to crush the Assassin Guild and Thieves’ Guild branches, I can’t say I’ve truly become strong yet.
I still lack the strength to fulfill the promises I’ve made to various people.
I still haven’t settled things with Grave, who attacked me and could harm Elena-san.
I’m still estranged from the organization Sera-san is in, and I don’t know if they’re enemies or allies.
Sporadically, remnants of the Guild still attack. Because of that, I still can’t return to my master’s place.
I’m not yet strong enough to repel everything that tries to bind me.
But I’ve stopped running away. I’ve stopped hiding.
If you’re going to attack, then attack whenever you want. The stronger you are, the stronger I’ll become.
I will fight. For the sake of my promises to my master and Elena-san, I will gain strength that isn’t bound even by noble obligations, and I will become someone feared by the people of the Underworld.
It might be the delusions of a cocky child, but I will obtain “that.”
To that end, I will live not as an “Assassin” but as an “Adventurer.” Because I want true strength, not just skill in combat against people.
Therefore—
“Come out.”
When I spoke those words on the darkened street, a black-clad figure appeared as if seeping out of the darkness.
Probably an Assassin from some Guild. I can’t make an accurate assessment because they’re hiding their entire body, but from the atmosphere they exude, I can sense they’re about Rank 4.
The Assassin drew a black one-handed sword, and I drew my Black Knife, our blades clashing simultaneously.
“I won’t run from ‘anything’.”
With this, the Assassin Arc, “Ash-Covered Assassin,” is complete.
Starting next time, we will begin the Adventurer Arc, “Ash-Covered Princess.”
Some of you readers may have been looking forward to the academy arc of the Otome Game, but the next Chapter 4 will be an important part that transitions into the academy arc in Chapter 5, and the elements of the Otome Game will gradually increase.
Aria will become even stronger. With that strength and fame, she will move on to the academy arc.
This work is quite intense and may not be for everyone, but I’m very grateful that so many people seem to have read it.
Well then, next update is scheduled for Sunday.