The Regressed Son of a Duke is an Assassin

“We were originally vagabonds wandering around Lamusta. Without homes, without parents, just kids who had nothing at all. At that young age, the only thing we could do was steal.”

In fact, it is very rare for a normal family and normal children to be born in such an abnormal city.

Mostly, they were kids who had come from other regions or were abandoned in the entertainment districts, some even ran away from slave markets. It’s unlikely they even had parents, let alone a home.

It wouldn’t be any different for this manager.

“Do you remember Gunther, whom the customer killed? He wasn’t always such a troublemaker. Since fighting was all he knew, he didn’t hesitate to loot and rob, but thanks to that, many kids including me managed to survive, at least getting enough to eat…”

“Were you siblings?”

“How could that be? We didn’t resemble each other at all! Just friends! Friends! But that’s all in the past now…”

It was an unexpectedly sharp response.

“Anyway, it wouldn’t have been strange for us to be caught at any time, or to die at any time, that was exactly who we were. Even then, I was foolishly hoping that tomorrow would be just like today. But Gunther wasn’t like that. He wanted to end this miserable vagabond life, and the means he chose for this was to loot the Lamusta cage.”

“So, you joined him?”

“I couldn’t let Gunther go by himself. Eventually, a kind of gang was formed to loot the cage. What do you think happened?”

It was a question with a predetermined answer.

“You failed.”

“That’s right. We failed. We got caught right at the entrance before we could even try anything. What do you think happened next?”

Unlike the quick response before, this time, it was hard to give an answer immediately.

It’s not that I didn’t know.

Teenage boys who came to loot the cage,

To the cage, they were just unsightly thieving cats with no value as guests.

It would be a big mistake to think that they were nicely persuaded to leave.

It would be one of two things.

Either they were beaten so badly they couldn’t dare come near again,

Or they were mercilessly killed on the spot.

“They all died…”

The latter was the correct answer.

“Exactly, except for me and Gunther, all the kids who were waiting outside died too. They said they had to dry up the seed of thieving cats. Just like that, I lost all the friends who seemed like family I could rely on in an instant.”

I wasn’t particularly surprised, as it was expected.

“Do you know? I actually felt a great sense of relief back then.”

“Relief?”

“Yes. I thought there was no need to foolishly continue living. Somehow, I felt relieved. Life wasn’t going to get any better anyway, so I thought it might be better to die sooner rather than later.”

A bitter smile formed on her lips.

“It was Rinze who saved me. People live to avoid death, but I looked like someone who couldn’t die and had no choice but to live. Then, she offered me her hand and asked if I wanted to live for myself this time.”

Grabbing that hand is probably why she is here today.

“It wasn’t just me who survived. Gunther, who had been cursing and struggling to the end, somehow made it too. From then on, we just started working as employees in the cage. Gunther, who had always been good with his fists, was soon recruited as a fighter, and I ended up doing menial work in the lodging facilities.”

Her eyes, which had been on the body, suddenly shifted to the dagger in her hand.

“But that was just a side job. The moment I was taken in by Rinze, I had to become a sword for her. Since then, I’ve been training with the sword every day.”

A sword, after all, does not grow naturally just by being held in one’s hand.

Rinze must have seen potential in this woman for swordsmanship, and perhaps even for the art of assassination.

Indeed, the movements she demonstrated could not have been achieved with just a short period of effort; there was a notable talent.

“At first, I was purely happy. I was earning my keep in a rightful manner by using my body. But it seems Gunther didn’t feel the same. After dominating the arena, he left the cage before long. Rinze didn’t particularly try to stop him. It felt like she was letting him go because she had used him enough…”

“Why did you stay?”

She couldn’t immediately continue speaking.

“The truth is, before he left, Gunther told me. He said let’s leave together, that he would protect me, and that we should escape this dreadful place as soon as possible. But I couldn’t do it. The Gunther at that time wasn’t the Gunther I knew anymore. He was just a cruel murderer who argued that anything useless must be disposed of…”

I had anticipated some connection with this guy named Gunther, but their relationship seemed deeper than I thought.

The person himself may not realize he has changed, but those around him are all too aware of it.

It must have been heartbreaking to see an old childhood friend gradually becoming corrupt through violence and fighting.

Well, looking into her eyes now, it seems like she no longer harbors any of those emotions.

“There’s no need to look so sorrowful. It’s been messed up for a long time now.”

“Don’t resent me……”

“What’s there to resent! If anything, you did well to end it! Him living any longer would’ve been useless to the world anyway!”

She seemed to genuinely empathize.

“Did we get off topic? You were asking why I told the guest to leave, right? When I first saw the guest, I immediately thought of us. Before we even reached the cage, thinking we were happy to be together… When Ms. Rin first said she would kill the guest, I immediately thought of my friends who had died before. That’s why I told the guest to leave. I didn’t want to see any more deaths like that.”

“Was that also why you didn’t want to send me to the arena?”

“Yes, that’s right. But it seems it was an unnecessary worry. I never imagined an assassin from Mist would come…”

I smiled silently.

Her gaze returned to Rin’s corpse.

“It’s strange, isn’t it? Your master is dead, but there’s no sign of sadness?”

“Right. I got a new life from that person, so there might be a sense of emptiness, but not really any sadness.”

That must mean her emotions have dulled.

Not that it’s a bad thing.

After all, for assassins and all who wield swords, emotions are just unnecessary distractions.

With the job done, there’s no reason to stay any longer.

I turned away from her.

“Are you leaving?”

“The job’s over.”

“Can I ask you one more thing?”

I nodded without turning back.

“Your name, Cyon, it’s not your real name, is it?”

“……”

I nodded again as my answer.

“Could you tell me, if it’s alright? The guest’s name…?”

I wondered why she was curious about that now and looked straight at her.

“It’s nothing special! Most guests who come to the cage register with a pseudonym, not their real name. You don’t have to tell me if it’s difficult! It’s just my own desire to remember at least the real name of the guest in my mind.”

I have never, in all my past life, left my name behind after a purification job.

Not that I deliberately didn’t tell.

But after the job, there’s no one left to tell anyway.

Truthfully, there’s no benefit for me in telling, so there’s no need to bother,

“Cyan. Cyan Vert……”

It wouldn’t really hurt.

Somehow, I feel that this won’t be the end of my relationship with her.

I left Lambusta then.

* * *

“Your face has changed a lot, hasn’t it?”

I frowned at the somewhat unexpected remark.

“Did you get hurt?”

“One doesn’t need to undergo a physical change to have changed. It’s natural for a person’s appearance to change when they gain enlightenment.”

As if you care?

Since I wasn’t here to exchange pleasantries about a comfortable reunion, I quickly moved on to the main topic.

“The homework you assigned was a bit too much for a holiday task…”

“If you gained something from it, isn’t that what matters?”

She smiled lightly, as if wondering what the problem was.

I snorted and quietly pulled out an item.

“Rinze Nihalov… She seemed to have quite a dislike for you.”

The clan leader’s face became strangely distorted upon seeing the item.

“Could it be, she had this?”

What I had presented was a dagger.

While it’s important to know who the owner of the sword was, it’s more crucial at this moment to focus on what kind of sword it is.

A black blade, as if swallowing the dark night sky.

Such an unusual sword is not available on the market, nor is it made to order.

It is an exclusive dagger that can only be possessed by senior members of Mist.

Likely, the clan leader herself possesses the same kind of dagger.

“Rinze was a descendant of a fallen noble who had escaped from the slave market. The surname Nihalov is probably a pseudonym. She entered Mist to throw off every shackle she had.”

The clan leader leaned her chin on her hand and smiled strangely as if reminiscing about the past.

“She was more passionate about the future Mist aspired to than anyone. Almost as if she was born for that purpose.”

“Didn’t you think to dampen that enthusiasm?”

“Of course, I tried. I told her to be patient, that her time would come if she waited. But it was no use. Her desire burned brightly, showing no signs of extinguishing.”

The clan leader examined her sword with interest.

“But in the end, she couldn’t wait and left the organization. I never imagined she would still have Mist’s sword.”

The clan leader’s gaze returned to me.

“Tell me directly. Was she really the only person you killed?”

“…How could that be the case?”

She smiled satisfactorily.

“As I’ve said before, you’re so perfect that there’s nothing for me to teach you. But the more perfect you are, the more you have to realize. What you can and cannot do with your power. Only then can you use your strength without regret.”

Using power without regret…

That does make sense.

This life, I vowed to live without regrets.

Naturally, I should use all the power I possess without any regrets.

“Well, it wasn’t exactly a difficult task, was it? Even if she was an assassin from Mist, she wouldn’t have had the power to threaten you.”

“…Do you really think so?”

“Think so? There wasn’t any other problem, was there?”

It seems you were unaware.

I’ve changed my mind.

Originally, I didn’t plan to reveal this, but it seems better to show it.

I took another item out of my pocket and boldly placed it on the table.

“…A Ring of Absorption?”

Being an academy instructor undercover, she couldn’t be unaware of such an artifact.

“Do you know what’s contained within this?”

Judging by her expression, she seems to have realized what it contains.

“…”

Her lips quivered like waves, and her brows narrowed like a valley.

It’s been a long time since I’ve seen such a vivid reaction from the clan leader, who could outdo a poker face.

“This too was in possession of the target. According to her, she infused the power of the mist into this place when she left the organization.”

Black mist, feeling like the power of Aer, was slowly rising from the ring like smoldering smoke.

“When did she…?”

“Since she was a member of Mist, she would have freely traversed the subspace of Aer, wouldn’t she?”

Indeed, divine power isn’t as common as the air floating around, but it’s not difficult to encapsulate it in such an artifact.

Even now, if I wished, I could capture the energy of the subspace where the clan leader and I are sitting into the ring.

Let’s think about it.

Would there be any human who could ignore a mosquito that lands on their arm and starts drawing blood?

Even if one chooses to let it feed, being unaware of it happening is unlikely.

Moreover, in a space permeated with one’s power, how could someone not notice if someone else was siphoning off that power with a straw?

The foolish deity allowed this to happen.

If unknown, it’s a problem; if known, it’s an even bigger problem.

“Aer’s breath!!”

The mist that had been approaching us until a moment ago suddenly fled far away.

(To be continued)