Tsubaki

"Recovery Sword... Blockbracer... Eye of Grave... Eye of Grave, huh?"

Alex murmured to himself as he gazed at the holographic screen displaying the list of lost items from the storehouse.

Taking a momentary break before his journey to Lestia, Alex decided to examine the lost items, particularly paying attention to some familiar names.

Blockbracer and Drainbracer were two artifacts used during the military coup of Regulus.

The Recovery Sword was Lestia's national treasure, whereas the Eye of Grave was the artifact employed by a certain Yamamoto Kansukay during Touya's first visit to Eashen.

"Should I retrieve them?" Alex pondered.

To be honest, these artifacts held little value for him. Even if they belonged to the storehouse, there were countless other items more powerful and useful.

The military coup of Regulus was a significant event, but not for Touya. For Alex, however, it carried great importance.

Similarly, the Recovery Sword of Lestia held no particular significance. The Eye of Grave, on the other hand, had a different story.

The Eye of Grave, initially known as the Immortal Eye, played a role in bringing Touya and the Takeda's Elite Four closer, eventually leading to their invitation to Brunhild.

The Takeda's Elite Four consisted of talented individuals who governed the administration of Brunhild, playing a crucial role in its development.

It would be beneficial for Alex to recruit them for Arcadia. However, since the council had already been formed and was performing admirably, inviting all of them might cause friction and cultural differences could hinder their proper adaptation.

In the future, Alex might consider recruiting them, but for now, it would be unwise. Nevertheless, there was one person among them who was highly needed.

Tsubaki, an exceptional assassin under the command of the Takeda's Elite Four, and the future chief of the intelligence unit in Brunhild.

The assassination unit of Arcadia and the intelligence unit both fell under the command of Lilth, working as secret agents for Arcadia.

The military, on the other hand, was under the capable leadership of Aria, who followed Alex's direct orders and was performing excellently.

However, as a king, Alex still required a separate unit of trained assassins and intelligence gatherers who worked directly under him, akin to a king's guard or shadow guards.

With this in mind, Alex decided he needed to recruit someone capable for this task, and there was no one better suited than Tsubaki.

Though there might be more qualified individuals out there, searching for them would be a waste of time when he knew exactly where to find the right person.

In the novel, Tsubaki was portrayed as a diligent and loyal vessel for Touya, and she possessed the skills of an accomplished assassin, precisely the kind of person Alex desired.

Motivated by this thought, Alex rose from his seat and decided to teleport to the location where he had discovered the ruins for the garden.

"Search for Tsutsujigasaki."

[Understood... Searching for Tsutsujigasaki.]

Alex commanded his smartphone to find the stronghold of the Takeda clan. Once he received the directions to Tsutsujigasaki, he cast an invisibility spell on himself and flew towards it at full speed.

Lexi had previously mentioned that casting two spells of different elements simultaneously was not possible, but when it came to null elements, one could cast multiple spells at once with different element altogether.

Alex, in truth, could have easily teleported to Takeda's territory. However, since it was heavily guarded by thousands of soldiers, it wouldn't have been a wise decision.

While it was possible to teleport to other territories and then fly towards the base, relying solely on teleportation for travel became monotonous.

As the sun began to rise in Eashen, the night sky gradually faded away, its light reaching the surface.

After flying for half an hour, Alex finally arrived at the designated location and landed on the top of a cliff, overlooking the fortress city.

Surveying the surroundings, Alex noticed a figure swiftly leaping from one tree to another, moving across the mountains with impressive speed.

To attract the figure's attention, Alex dispelled his invisibility spell and utilized his heightened senses to trace the figure's movements while observing Takeda's stronghold.

Most of the soldiers within the stronghold wore red oni masks, which were worn by the undead in the nearby camps.

While examining the stronghold, Alex sensed someone with exceptional stealth skills approaching him.

The individual skillfully made their way towards Alex, holding a kunai, attempting to launch a surprise attack from behind. As the person entered Alex's attack range, he swiftly turned around, gripping the figure's hand holding the kunai with one hand, and with the other hand, he choked the person's neck, pinning them against a nearby tree.

"Ah!" The figure let out a feminine scream, but Alex paid no attention and invoked his [Paralyze] spell, rendering the figure paralyzed and causing their body to fall to the ground.

"Attacking from behind, huh? I don't think that's a proper way to welcome a guest," Alex remarked as he dropped to his knees and removed the black clothing concealing the girl's face.

As the cloth was removed, the face of a beautiful girl with dark purple hair was revealed wearing a red camellia hairpin.

Looking at the same features as described in the novel for Tsubaki, Alex raised one of his eyebrows in surprise while took a look at her belongings where he found a scroll addressed to Tokugawa Ieyashu from Kousaka Masanohbu.