Chapter 25: Assassin vs Assassin (1)
“……”
“……”
A narrow alleyway.
Though it was a secluded place where no one passed by due to the late hour, it was far too quiet even for that.
It was because of Harang.
At his abrupt question, not only the middle-aged man but also his ally Pale were left speechless.
Only the heavily drunk Eddy occasionally mumbled, ‘My money… GlenDron 33 Year……’.
‘That bastard, was he just saying words when he said he’d be careful earlier?’
The Eddy Gang’s Underboss, Pale, frowned.
He couldn't help it.
Barely half a day had passed since he was warned after carelessly mentioning the Portville Sword Family.
In the midst of that, not only did he scrape the boss’s pride by saying ‘whiskey less than 21 years old isn’t even alcohol,’ but now he was treating an ordinary passerby like an assassin.
Pale focused his eyes and looked at the middle-aged man.
An average build and average appearance.
Though his slightly thin chin gave him a sly impression, he was merely an ordinary person commonly seen on the streets.
‘This bastard, just because the Boss favors him, he keeps doing strange things!’
No matter how he thought about it, it seemed like he was acting out, trusting in the Boss.
However, Harang’s gaze didn’t waver.
And the eyes of the targeted middle-aged man began to tremble slightly.
Then, it was Pale who became flustered.
He felt cold sweat trickling down his back amidst the ensuing silence.
“How did you know?”
“……!”
The tension rising in his chest reached its peak when an answer close to a confession flowed from the middle-aged man's mouth.
However, there was someone more surprised than Pale.
It was the assassin whose identity was exposed by Harang, Daereon.
‘Really, how did he know?’
He was a fixer hired by a Swordsmanship Guild from another city, who somehow ended up drifting to the Commercial City Marzen and cleaning up after thugs.
But it couldn't be helped.
Money held immense power, capable of commanding even ghosts.
Daereon wasn't in a position to pick and choose jobs just because his pride was slightly hurt.
‘Besides, joining the thugs’ pretend play is easier than struggling to catch Monsters. And it’s not like they’re people I’d feel guilty about assassinating……’
Of course, that didn't mean he ever intended to do the job sloppily.
Although he had done various jobs over the past five years, this was his first time assassinating someone, and he was originally cautious and fearful by nature.
Thus, Daereon, who only acted once 100% of his suspicions were resolved, had secretly observed Eddy, Pale, and Harang for a whole day.
He saw them bowing and scraping before fledgling swordsmen who looked like nothing special.
He assessed their approximate skill level by watching them take out their anger on thin air with punches after they left.
Finally, after confirming they entered a bar and came out, with one of them thoroughly drunk, he became certain.
His skills were already far superior, but now, failure was absolutely impossible.
The moment they entered a suitably secluded place, quickly slaughtering the three and leaving the scene would be a perfect crime.
So he thought…….
“Weren't you watching us from the beginning?”
“Wh-What? Beginning? What beginning?”
“From when we first met at the Inner District fountain.”
“……”
“When we went to Willer’s Forge, too, and after coming out, eating dinner, and entering the bar. And since then, continuously until now…… At first, I thought our paths just overlapped, but it seems that wasn’t the case. And that……”
How on earth could this guy, who looked not just young but almost childish…….
“……The sword hidden behind your back, and the killing intent you failed to conceal completely are telling me. That you’re targeting us.”
“……”
“Am I wrong?”
How could he possibly see through his every move so accurately?
“Damn it.”
The middle-aged assassin, Daereon, stopped thinking.
And drew the sword hidden behind his back, inside his clothes.
It couldn't be helped.
If he ran away just because the opponent noticed, completing the request would become even harder.
Rather, the chance of success was highest now, with one person drunk and no one else around.
Of course, his confidence in his own skills also played a part in this judgment.
‘It’s a shame the hidden weapons and poisons I prepared so much won’t be needed…… but maybe it’s for the best. This might actually be the assassination method that suits me best.’
Finishing his thoughts, he focused his mind.
Woowoowoowoong-!
Thus, in the dark alley devoid even of lighting, a greyish-white energy bloomed.
Pale’s eyes widened as if they would tear upon seeing the Aura Sword enveloping the blade.
“……Sword Expert.”
And not just someone barely reaching the level like himself or the Boss, but a mature Expert, the assassin easily coated his sword with Aura.
As if proving that assumption, the assassin, standing far from Eddy and Pale, answered.
“Yes. It’s been quite a while since I reached Sword Expert.”
“……”
Underboss Pale was shocked once again.
The distance between the assassin and them was at least 20 meters by rough estimate.
It wasn't a short distance, so normally, his own voice, whispered very softly, shouldn't have been heard.
‘But he heard it. This abnormal hearing…… Damn it, such a high level of sensory Awakening?’
Grind, Pale gritted his teeth and reviewed the knowledge about Aura that naturally came to mind.
Accumulation. Storing Aura within the body.
Enhancement. Emitting superhuman strength with Aura.
Hardening. Increasing the body's durability with Aura.
Awakening. Acquiring the five senses surpassing ordinary humans with Aura.
Concentration. Concentrating Aura in one place to exert power beyond limits.
Manifestation. Succeeding in emitting Aura outside the body.
These were the generally known six techniques of Aura users, and the first three were relatively low in difficulty, enough for even swordsmen before reaching Expert to utilize effectively in actual combat.
However, the latter three were different.
Concentrating Aura in one part was boasted to be as difficult as pooling the muscles of the arm into the muscles of the leg, and Awakening was also not easy as it required handling Aura in the sensory organs, which were much more sensitive than muscles.
Therefore, while concentrating a significant amount of energy into the sword to 'Manifest' the 'Aura Sword', it was common for Experts to forgo the usually natural 'Awakening' and 'Concentration' in other body parts during a fight.
But the assassin before him was different.
Even while 'Manifesting' the Aura Sword, he hadn't given up on the 'Awakening' of his five senses.
That also meant there was a high possibility he had reserved the capacity to 'Concentrate' Aura in parts other than the sword.
‘I’ll die. If I fight, I’ll definitely die!’
Pale's heart began to pound madly with fear.
However.
“Run! Harang! Get away while I buy time!”
Despite that, Pale didn't betray his loyalty.
He stood in front of the assassin with the sole determination to protect the Boss, his Big Brother, even if it meant burning his own life.
‘If it weren't for the Boss in the first place, I wouldn't have survived until now!’
Memories of the past flashed through Pale’s mind like a panorama.
Big Brother had stopped him, a country bumpkin who knew nothing, from being dragged away by the guards.
He provided a sanctuary for him, who had nothing, to live.
He approached him, who could never trust people his whole life, as a closer older brother than anyone else.
The number of times his life was saved was too many to even count.
‘Therefore, now I must repay that debt!’
Grind
Pale gritted his teeth, drew the hidden dagger, and infused it with energy.
Then, Woowoong, along with the sound, an Aura like a heat haze bloomed from it, just like from the assassin's sword.
‘Of course, the output is vastly different, and unlike him, this is merely pouring all my strength into the Aura Sword……’
Somehow!
By any means necessary! He would protect Big Brother.
Although that Harang fellow was a bit unreliable, surely he was capable enough to take the Boss and escape while he bought time…….
Thwack!
“Kkeuleuk……”
Thud!
“……”
“……”
“Ah, I didn't kill him.”
“……I know that much. But why attack your own ally suddenly?”
With incredibly natural steps, thump thump, Harang approached Pale, moved behind him, and struck the nape of his neck with a chop.
Pale, who thought Harang had approached to take Eddy and escape, couldn't help but be struck defenselessly, collapsing like a marionette with its strings cut.
Watching Harang suddenly knock out his comrade like that, the middle-aged assassin wore a dumbfounded expression.
He thought he was a very strange guy from the beginning, but this was too much.
Why on earth would he perform such an impulsive action?
However, Harang didn’t think his actions were wrong at all.
He answered.
“Because he seemed like he’d get in the way during the fight.”
“Get in the way?”
“Yes. Uh…… Should I call you Mr. Assassin?”
“……Call me whatever.”
“Yes, Mr. Assassin. Anyway, this Mr. Pale, although he’s strong among thugs, he’s far from enough to beat you, Mr. Assassin. It would be troublesome if he needlessly charged in and died. Since I got treated to a lot of food today.”
“……Is that all?”
“Ah, that’s not all. Heave ho!”
Harang laid Eddy, completely drunk and unconscious, and Pale, knocked out by the blow, in a corner, then looked at the assassin.
Eyes devoid of any tension, filled only with interest and curiosity.
Just as the assassin flinched at his gaze, which didn’t fit the current atmosphere at all.
“I’m going to ask a question that might be a bit problematic for people of the outside world to hear.”
“Outside world?”
“Yes. Perhaps, do you know of the Village?”
That’s right.
This was the biggest reason Harang had knocked Pale out.
The place commonly called the Village. Where about twenty administrators and the Godoks, who started as a thousand… Now only 28 remained, were mixed together.
That organization which relentlessly and persistently taught assassination, especially killing techniques focused on swordsmanship…… Would a fellow assassin possibly know about it?
It was a thought that occurred immediately upon grasping his gloomy atmosphere, and information he wanted to find out by any means necessary.
‘Ultimately, the Village… will probably try to find us again.’
I didn't know with what intention they raised us.
But I didn't think they would have made such a large investment just to release us like this.
Then what should be done?
Prepare. Even if the process is bothersome and tiring, I need to make preparations bit by bit.
‘Silver Plate Mercenary Carlson said so…… To avoid what you dislike, sometimes you have to do something you dislike slightly less.’
Recalling the teachings of his true master after a long time, Harang nodded and looked at the assassin. His eyes glinted with a brilliance rarely seen.
“What an absurd person. A village is a village, what’s so special about it that you’re asking?”
However, the middle-aged assassin easily betrayed Harang's expectations.
A reaction as if he didn't know what nonsense he had been spouting from the start.
Of course, it could be a lie, so Harang asked once more.
“Do you really not know the Village? I’m talking about the Village that raised the Godoks.”
Kiiiiiing-!
And simultaneously, he poured a massive amount of Aura into his sensory organs.
Concentration, and Awakening.
Feeling as if time was slowing down, information such as the assassin’s expression, gestures, and intonation flowed into Harang’s eyes and ears.
“Iiii haaaave noooo iiiideaaa whaaaat yoooou’reee taaalkiiing aboooout……”
The assassin’s actions and voice dragged on as if time itself had been stretched out.
Harang frowned. It seemed it wasn't a lie. That person genuinely seemed to know nothing about the Village.
Disappointed, he let out a deep sigh.
“This bastard…… I let you off easy because I was watching, but now!”
Of course, Harang's disappointment was something the assassin could never know.
Rather, he was gradually getting angry, thinking he was being continuously ignored.
No matter how much of a novice assassin he was, wasn't he still a skilled fighter who had reached the intermediate level of Expert?
In contrast, the opponent was a thug. Though they seemed like capable guys among thugs, one was drunk, and the other was knocked out by his comrade's attack.
‘Then the only one I have to deal with is just one thug. If I lose in such a situation…… it doesn’t make sense!’
Woowoong! The middle-aged assassin’s Aura grew stronger. The energy that flickered like a heat haze thickened like a wave, and the blade, pointing diagonally downwards, became parallel to the ground.
His form shot forward, towards Harang.
Tong-!
Terrifying speed.
Underboss Pale’s guess was correct. This far surpassed the speed limit an ordinary Aura user could achieve, a peerless technique impossible to display without concentrating Aura in the feet. Surprisingly, he was a swordsman of considerable level, capable of distributing Aura to his sword, body, and sensory organs all at once.
However.
Shushuk
“……You dodged?”
“Yes, I dodged.”
“……”
“It hurts if I don’t dodge.”
‘It’s not about hurting, you’d die!’
The middle-aged assassin, about to refute Harang’s words, took three steps back with a tense expression.
He couldn't help it. The previous strike, launched in a considerably angry state, lacked precision, but its speed and destructive power were substantial. It meant it wasn't an attack that could be dodged by a mere thug or a typical Mercenary or fixer.
Of course, it could be luck.
Just once with good timing, maybe even twice, he could dodge. Thinking so, the assassin decided to swing his sword twice, just two more times. If he dodged all of these too, he would revise his strategy. Gritting his teeth ‘Budeudeuk’, he held his breath ‘Hoo-eup’, and swung his sword.
Hwik-!
Hwiiik-!
Shwaaaek-!
Tong!
He swung once, and swung twice.
Harang dodged them all by a paper-thin margin, and upon confirming this, the assassin threw his sword away and fled without looking back.
That wasn’t all.
Chwaaak!
He spread his Robe.
Then, countless hidden weapons tucked inside were revealed. He felt he had prepared a bit excessively since it was his first time assassinating someone, but in this situation, he felt fortunate.
‘Let’s not hold back.’
‘Let’s not regret it even if they’re expensive.’
‘He’s a cut above me. This is an unavoidable investment!’
Thinking this three times inwardly, the assassin unsparingly threw the hidden weapons behind him.
And Harang, facing this.
‘Reminds me of the old days.’
Recalling old memories once again, he wore a faint smile.