Chapter 52

Chapter 52: Night of Assassination?

The lights in the city faded, and it became late at night. Due to the recent active movements of the "Death God," the night was under constant surveillance by the night watch around the noble residences. In addition to that, they often hired a mercenary group from the Magic Knight Guild for extra protection and patrols.

However, none of this mattered to the Dark King Shuu Arklight.

(Should be fine around here)

Floating in the air as a spirit, Shuu looked down upon the capital city of Draine from high above. With a map in one hand, he used water magic to create a lens and peer into the distance.

(Starting with the first one)

He launched a magical projectile towards a noble mansion he spotted, marking it. If they sensed this marker, it would lead to pinpointing the coordinates.

With security this tight, Shuu couldn't easily carry out an assassination. Therefore, he marked his targets from a distance with magic markers that wouldn't be noticed, and then eliminated them with death magic.

(Second, third)

He continued marking one after another, locking onto a total of twelve noble residences. Using sensory magic, he could identify the mansion of the targeted nobles. He would use this positional information to perform magic targeting.

Shuu's death magic was like an extension of himself. With the necessary information, he could use it freely. As if grasping an object with his hand, as if kicking a pebble on the roadside, he could take lives.

(All twelve locations. All locked on. Activate...)

The power of his magic was something that touched even conceptual abilities. He manipulated energy, taking everything away. This time, he completely deprived the area of thermal energy, transforming the space to absolute zero with a single strike.

Bringing about a quiet eternal slumber.

(Die, "Cocytus, the Frozen Breath of the Underworld")

In an instant, the twelve noble mansions were frozen solid. The freezing turned the air into liquid, and violent winds swept through. This caused such a strong gust of wind in the capital city of Draine that windows shattered.

Not only the targeted Fourth Prince faction noble, but also their families, servants, and hired mercenaries, all perished.

By converting energy into magical power, Shuu accumulated a massive amount of magic. For magical beings, securing magic is a matter of life and death. Therefore, being able to easily gather magic like this is quite convenient. Above all, it's the perfect ability for an assassin.

(Next is the Fourth Prince, Medrein)

Shuu had information about Medrein. Not only that he was inside the castle, but he also knew which residential area he was in. Having acquired information from the black cat, there was no doubt.

The recent extermination of the nobles was more of a massacre, but the assassination of the Fourth Prince Medrein would indeed be a true assassination.

(The castle is heavily guarded, as expected)

Observing through the lens of water magic, Shuu saw a large number of magic knights and guards around the castle. All this security was in response to the "Death God." They were likely maintaining constant magical sensory. Whether Shuu could conceal his magic presence was uncertain. Moreover, no matter how high he flew, if spiritual creatures approached, they would be visible to the naked eye.

(A direct approach is probably not feasible...)

No, it's not entirely impossible. If he used death magic, he could break through. He just needed to kill the approaching guards, as well as the magic knight mercenaries and servants, to pave his way.

Even as the "King's Monster," Shuu could bring down an entire nation. Toppling a castle was within reach.

However, if the guards, magic knights, and servants shielded Medrein, and he managed to escape, it would be meaningless. As a member of the royal family, he probably knew at least one escape route. If Medrein escaped through that route, Shuu wouldn't be able to track him.

While Shuu's combat abilities were top-tier, when it came to information, he had no choice but to rely on organizations like the Black Cat.

In other words, it was a very troublesome situation.

To avoid that, Shuu decided to eliminate his target as quickly as possible. Killing off the faction of nobles supporting Medrein, and then swiftly killing Medrein himself, served the same purpose. Even the Fourth Prince would likely feel in danger and flee once his faction of nobles was wiped out.

Assassination was an incredibly difficult task.

Especially when it came to those in power.

(Well, there might be a way)

He didn't necessarily need to locate and kill Medrein first.

It was all about changing the approach.

(Kill him first, then search. "Cocytus, the Frozen Breath of the Underworld")

The area where the Fourth Prince Medrein's bedroom was situated was determined. In other words, all Shuu needed to do was freeze that area. Then, after freezing it, he could find the body and display it in a suitable location.

While nobles, especially those of royal blood, were valuable, politically speaking, their life or death was significant.

For instance, whether the Fourth Prince died from being killed or from illness made a significant difference. If it were a natural death, at the very least, it would be mourned superficially, and his death would be managed. With a few appropriate speeches from other royals, it could be smoothed over.

However, if it were clear that he was killed, the loyalty to the royal family would drop. The citizens would become anxious and harbor strong distrust towards the royal family. People might wonder if it was safe to follow this royal family.

The royal family was the symbol of the nation, and they were not beings that could be casually killed.

Clearly, the situation of being killed was the best outcome for the revolutionary organization "Rebellion." Their order to the "Death God" was to make it appear that Medrein had been killed. Shuu had to comply with that order and display the prince's body in an easily noticeable location.

(...Frozen)

The living quarters of the Fourth Prince Medrein met eternal death through "Cocytus, the Frozen Breath of the Underworld." As a spiritual entity, Shuu was unaffected by the extreme cold environment.

Since he had cooled it to absolute zero this time, the air had turned to liquid and was blowing in with the violent storm.

Riding on that storm, Shuu headed toward Medrein's living quarters. Transparent, he passed through the walls and entered. Other than the frozen servants turned into ice statues, there were shattered glass windows scattered around due to the violent wind.

The room was filled with liquidized air, releasing white mist as it evaporated.

As the field of vision gradually turned white, Shuu needed to quickly find Medrein.

(The bedroom is... was it this way?)

Shuu, with his translucent form, vanished through the wall.

◆◆◆

Suddenly, after a night assaulted by strong winds in the royal capital, morning arrived.

Glass shattered and light objects flew not only among the residents but also among the servants of the nobles, causing irritation. However, those emotions were easily brushed aside.

"Screammm!"

A scream echoed through the central plaza of the first district.

Shu and Iris, who were sleeping at the inn, woke up.

"Ugh... what's happening?"

"It seems like the exposed corpse has been found."

Shu stretched as he got up. On the other hand, Iris rubbed her eyes and twisted on the bed.

"Is the corpse referring to the Fourth Prince?"

"Yeah. We froze him completely before recovering him. Then we displayed him in the plaza. With the prince's attire and accessories still intact, there's no room for deception. The request is complete now. We can enjoy ourselves for a while."

"That's true."

"Even though they were working to suppress the Revolutionary Army Rebellion, the nobles have fallen apart. And even though it's the Fourth Prince's faction, losing twelve nobles will make it tough for the Eldorado Kingdom to maintain control."

Nobles play a part in the country's governance. Even if they were from an opposing faction, losing nobles was painful. Moreover, situations where successors and blood relatives die along with their estates being wiped out, like in Shu's case, posed significant problems. This was because the tasks that these nobles undertook would be left with gaping holes.

Already, Shu had undertaken numerous killings of nobles on behalf of the Revolutionary Army Rebellion.

Furthermore, the tasks left vacant by those who disappeared were being taken up by nobles aligned with the Revolutionary Army Rebellion. Specifically, by Count Bold, who was Rainwald's grandfather and a member of the Revolutionary Army Rebellion faction. As time passed, the advantage increasingly shifted in favor of the Revolutionary Army Rebellion.

"With this, the Revolutionary Army Rebellion will likely gain more power, both externally and internally."

"Then, will it turn into a full-fledged civil war?"

"It won't become a civil war. If the Revolutionary Army Rebellion goes all out, they could take the capital in a day. If any problems arise, it would likely be when the Imperial Army intervenes afterward. The Grand Empire has far more military strength than the Eldorado Kingdom. No matter how much the Revolutionary Army Rebellion grows, they'll be crushed in no time."

"Really? Then we're not so good at this."

"It's not our concern, anyway."

Hearing those words, Iris nodded in understanding.

Since they weren't citizens of the Eldorado Kingdom, it wouldn't be their problem if the Grand Empire decided to meddle. While there might be some inconvenience, they wouldn't be significantly affected.

"Well, if there's a request to deal with the Grand Empire's army, we might consider it, but unless such a request comes in, I don't plan on doing anything special."

"What if you run out of money?"

"I won't run out."

"Why?"

"The Revolutionary Army Rebellion has no choice but to rely on me. To defeat the Grand Empire's army, they have to use my power. It's almost guaranteed that requests will come in. At most, I'll take my cut."

In the first place, there's a reason why Shu declines requests from the Eldorado Kingdom and only takes on jobs from the Revolutionary Army Rebellion. The reason is to pit the two forces against each other and increase the number of requests.

The Revolutionary Army Rebellion has acquired a taste for "Death's" flavor. They can't let go of it anymore.

And their performance, such as the simultaneous assassination of nobles and royalty, is impeccable.

If a formidable enemy like the Grand Empire's army were to come, they would undoubtedly make a request. In other words, money would come pouring in.

The occupation of assassination work is unstable. If the work is uncertain, then one strategy is to disrupt the world to ensure a steady stream of work. The Eldorado Kingdom, which receives the brunt of this manipulation, is left helpless.

"You're quite cunning, Shu."

"I'm a monster. I can't be fitted into human conventions."

"You live among humans, yet you act so freely. It's fine, though."

"You're different. I'll make sure to protect you. Well, you're an immortal magic user, so you won't die, but still."

"Seems like you're just bragging."

While Shu's not aiming to harm Iris, it's easy to forget that Iris possesses an incredibly potent ability: immortality. As long as her magical power doesn't run out, she won't die or age.

(Saint Knight Cellestar, an awakened magic user, might be able to nullify Iris's immortality. Can't let my guard down.)

Anyway, Shu decided to go back to sleep, listening to the commotion outside.