‘Why!? What is the Knight King of Valvas doing here…?!’

Number 3 was struck with massive shock and fear as he ran away as fastest as he could. He had been so shocked to see the Knight King that he forgot to utilize an irregular technique to hide his presence, instead choosing to flee instantaneously.

‘I cannot believe I made such a stupid mistake… Keugh!’

It was a rudimentary mistake that no assassin should ever make. He felt regretful, but he knew he would have made the same error even if he was sent back in time. The shock he felt seeing the Knight King in an unexpected place was truly great.

In addition, although it was still far, he could feel a sharp spirit stabbing him in the back.

‘Dammit! Dammit! Dammit!’

Number 3 shook his head while searching his pockets.

Fwooosh!

Grey powder blossomed behind him and soon formed into a thick fog.

Fwoosh!

Number 3 jumped as hard as he could, then hid behind the roof of a building and held his breath. He heard the sound of someone’s hurried footsteps reverberate in the night street. As the sound grew louder, Number 3’s heartbeat rapidly increased as well.

Then he quickly took out several needles from his pocket. The needles were about the length of two fingers. He poked the sharps into his left chest without hesitation.

Although he felt an electrifying pain, Number 3 held back a moan. It was much better to endure it than to come face-to-face with the Knight King.

Thump! Thump… Thump…

The rapid heartbeats quickly subsided little by little. Eventually, it was beating at a rate ten times slower than usual, and the sound became incredibly faint. In addition, his skin took on a blue hue as if he were a corpse.

His mind and five senses were still intact. It was one of his irregular techniques that allowed him to place his body in a static state for a period of time. It was a dangerous technique and he could really die after using it for a prolonged time, but it could not be helped.

There was no other way to hide from the monster, since it was clear that the opponent could detect his presence, breathing, and even the heartbeat.

The loud footsteps soon came to a stop. 

However, the spirit of the Knight King remained as ferocious as ever.

‘Go away. Please, go somewhere else…’

Number 3 begged in his heart. 

However, he still couldn’t hear the sound of footsteps. It was obvious that the Knight King was searching for traces of himself on the street.

‘Ugh…’

As time went by, his vision started to blur, and his mind went blank. If he continued maintaining this state, he would soon…

Tap.

Then, he heard a footstep. Soon after, the figure started running away from Number 3’s hiding place at a high speed. 

As the sound of footsteps faded into the darkness of the streets...

“Huagh…”

It wasn’t until the footsteps couldn’t be heard until Number 3 finally pulled out the needles with a loud breath.

“Huagh… Hugh…”

However, he remained vigilant even while catching his breath. He was worried that the monster was searching in the vicinity.

“Hoo…”

Soon, he finally recovered fully, and he poked out his head before observing the street. It appeared it was safe now.

Swish.

“Phew…”

Number 3 jumped down from the roof and turned around with a sigh of relief.

“…..!”

However, his eyes were instantly filled with shock.

“I came because I felt a severely threatening spirit… But what do you know?”

“Number 2…”

Although the newly arrived figure was as frightening as the Knight King of Valvas, Number 3 felt an indescribable relief as he looked at Number 2’s toothy grin.

***

“What happened?” 

Number 2 asked. They were located in an old, dark room brightened by several candles.

“Phew!” 

After taking a swig of cold water, Number 3 collected himself before speaking. 

“That is what I should be saying. What happened?”

“Hmm? What are you talking about?”

“Are you feigning ignorance? Elkin Isla, the Knight King of Valvas was much stronger and more dangerous than the organization expected. Even though there were three of us, he managed to cut off Number 9’s legs and rescued the princess.”

“Hmm.”

Number 2 narrowed his eyes. He was a man in his mid-20’s with long sideburns running down the sides of his head.

“Then that menacing spirit was…?”

“It was him. I do not know how, but the Knight King of Valvas tracked us all the way here.”

“Hmm…”

Number 2 took on a serious expression. Number 3 frowned at the unexpected response.

“Don’t tell me… You did not know either?”

“If I had, I would have personally taken the commission.”

“Huh? I thought you classified all the commissions, do you not?”

“Yes. However, this commission was directly received by Number 1. He personally assigned the members as well.”

“Number 1…”

Number 3 became wide-eyed. 

Number 1 was the head and the strongest member of the Shadow Brotherhood. He rarely stepped up personally to take commissions, and his existence was extremely secretive. Anyone beyond Number 10 had never seen his face.

But he had personally taken on a commission?

“So are you telling me you failed the missions? Because of the Knight King of Valvas?”

“Well, that’s… Sigh! In fact, we ran into someone even worse than him. That man took the prince of the Pendragon Kingdom.”

“Hmm? What are you talking about? There was another person?”

“Although I was injured by the Knight King, that person managed to destroy a joint attack by me and Number 7 in a single strike.”

“What?”

Number 2 took on an expression of disbelief at Number 3’s words. Number 3 continued bitterly.

“Would you believe it if I told you he burned away my poison powder with a single strike? I had never seen such a person in my life.”

“What about Number 7?”

“I do not know. Maybe he was caught or killed. His arm was severed by a single blow…”

“Number 7…”

Number 2 muttered with a serious expression. As one of the very few people who knew Berna’s true identity, he knew of her hidden abilities as well. If she revealed her true powers, even he would find her quite troublesome. 

But to think there was someone capable of severing her arm with a single stroke…

“Anyways, both Elkin Isla and that mysterious man are monsters I never want to encounter again. In addition, there may be more of such figures in the Pendragon Kingdom. This commission failed, so let’s leave here as soon as possible.”

Number 3 urged. He felt fear towards Isla and the man with black hair. However, Number 2 shook his head after contemplating something.

“That is not going to work. Number 1 received this commission personally. We must complete it at all costs.”

“But you saw him too, did you not? Even Elkin Isla alone…”

“Who said we were going to face the Knight King in a direct confrontation?”

“Then…”

“The Pendragon Kingdom’s princess is currently staying at the official residence of Edenfield’s governor-general.”

“Huh? Are you planning to attack the residence? They have dozens of knights capable of utilizing the spirit, as well as the Knight King himself.”

“Of course not. Even if it’s you and me, that would be suicide.”

“Then what are you planning to do?”

Number 3 frowned in frustration, and Number 2 replied with a cold smile.

“I obtained interesting information from inside the governor-general’s residence. One of Count Elven’s kin is…”

The eyes of Number 2 twinkled in the swaying light of the candles as he continued in a whisper.

“Hmm?”

Suddenly, Number 2 stopped his words and jerked his head.

“What’s wrong?”

“The barrier… is broken?”

“Huh?”

Number 3 became wide-eyed with disbelief. Number 2 was the strongest fighter he knew, as well as a fairly outstanding wizard. He had cast a barrier around the place that cast an illusion upon anyone possessing a certain level of spirit who approached the place. If they attempted to forcefully break the barrier, it would reflect half of the force back at the person.

“N, no way…”

Number 3 stuttered without realizing it. The images of two figures naturally came to mind.

“We’re getting out of here.”

Number 2 stood up after quickly blowing out the candles, and Number 3 followed suit. The room was plunged into darkness without the lights, but the two people opened the door and ran up the stairs with quick, familiar movements.

“Hmm!”

As they opened a window leading to the roof, Number 3 flinched with a groan. 

He could feel it. 

Although it was very faint, a spirit was being emitted from a place not too far away… Moreover, it was a spirit that was unforgettable for him.

“That is him. The one who defeated me and Number 7 and took the prince with him.”

“Hmm…”

Number 3 spoke while running on the roof, and Number 2 narrowed his eyes. There were no more than 10 people capable of breaking his barrier, and more than half of them were wizards fit to be called Masters.

However, the figure emitting a strange spirit was approaching them after breaking the barrier with ease. The opponent’s strange spirit was different from mana. 

He was the one who defeated Number 3 and 7 with ease.

‘This is truly something extraordinary.’

Tension began to brew in the eyes of Number 2 as he crossed the rooves like a bird.

***

“E, excuse me, master, are you all right?”

“Do not call me master. And why would I not be okay?”

Raven responded in a cold voice, and Berna shrank back before continuing.

“The… the barrier created by Number 2. If you break it forcefully, the insides of your body will be…”

“You call that clumsy little thing a barrier? Are you really an assassination organization to be considered the top three in the world?”

“W, well…”

Berna wanted to scream that he was just a ridiculous monster, but she held it back while bowing her head.

“In my family… I mean, there are two more people that I know off the top of my head who are capable of breaking this barrier.”

“What…?”

Berna became filled with shock, and Raven gestured with his head.

“Stop saying useless things and guide the way. Is that the right building?”

“Yes.”

Berna nodded hurriedly, and Raven squinted as he observed an old, three-story building.

‘They are truly foolhardy. To think they would place their hideout in the middle of a large city like Edenfield.’

But perhaps that was even more effective. No one would imagine that one of the most secretive assassination groups would be so bold.

“Hmm?”

Raven narrowed his eyes while looking up at the building. 

He felt something.

His senses briefly captured the presence of a wizard, or at least, someone emitting mana and spirit similar to a wizard.

“Tsk. They must have noticed that the barrier was broken. Follow me.”

Raven clicked his tongue before jumping up.

Fwoosh!

“What? Master! Wait for me!”

In an instant, Raven climbed to the roof of the building, and Berna hurriedly followed along.

“This is cumbersome.”

“Why are we stopping?”

Number 2 suddenly stopped crossing the rooves, and Number 3 followed along while asking in surprise.

“I do not think we can get rid of him.”

“Hmm…”

The expression of Number 3 darkened rapidly, and Number 2 continued.

“I will try to stop him, so you must put the plan we discussed earlier into action. There will definitely be a chance. Well, at least, we will have an excuse for Number 1 and the client.”

“Okay.”

Number 3 nodded before quickly continuing to jump over the rooves. Soon, he disappeared completely into the darkness.

Number 2 stroked his beard while turning around.

“Now, then. Shall we take a look? The skills of the great person who easily toyed with two high-ranking members of the brotherhood…”

His eyes shone coldly in the darkness. In the distance, a person was quickly approaching him over the rooftop of several buildings.

“Are you the one? The scumbag called Number 2?”

Fwoosh!

A spark of fierce spirit soared into the air through the darkness. The figure’s expression and voice were as cold as the winters of the far north.

It was fueled by a father’s anger towards his son’s kidnappers.

“Now, now…”

A twisted smile came to Number 2’s lips. His throat felt dry, and he unknowingly clenched his fists, which were adorned with leather gloves embedded with pieces of grozing iron.