Killing with a Borrowed Blade

Not long before Rein and Piscis entered the Hyacinth Tavern.

In a small house several miles away, a knight clad in heavy armor was intently watching the tavern's direction.

The heavily armored knight radiated the solid aura of a top-tier powerhouse. Any outsider would have recognized him at a glance as Rein Rutt, the Special Royal Retainer of the Oma Empire's Royal Retainer Corps and Captain of the Court Knights—a Magic Swordsman!

He was one of the Oma Royal Family's foremost combatants.

For some reason, Rein had felt unsettled all day.

Hailed as the court's foremost knight, his instincts were terrifyingly accurate.

"Your Highness the Princess, nothing must go wrong with these negotiations..."

He prayed inwardly, and his hand gripping the broad-bladed greatsword unconsciously grew damp with sweat. At the slightest disturbance, he would rush over immediately.

But just then, a breeze swept through the room, and Rein's brow suddenly furrowed.

Someone had entered the house!

With a sharp clang, the twin-bladed greatsword spun around in a reverse slash, wrapped in keen Sword Light.

The movement flowed without the slightest pause.

His sharp combat instincts made Rein draw his sword and slash backward like lightning, ready to cleave the intruder in two!

Yet abruptly, when the blade was only a finger's breadth away from striking the black-robed figure behind him, the greatsword stopped steadily in place.

From beginning to end, the intruder showed no sign of panic, allowing the Sword Light to rush toward his face.

Clearly, Rein had recognized the newcomer, and his killing intent instantly receded.

But the two of them did not seem to get along.

The captain of the knights asked coldly, "Metternich, why aren't you staying at the Empress's side? What are you doing here?"

"Captain Rein, your swordsmanship has become increasingly exquisite."

The newcomer smiled faintly. His face was concealed by a black cloak, making his features impossible to see clearly.

Only then did the playing cards dancing between his nimble fingers stop, and he drew a Jack of Spades.

Rein seemed to have no interest in catching up with him and immediately ordered him out. "I have duties to attend to and cannot reminisce with you. Please leave."

Though he said that, a bad feeling rose in the captain's heart.

Rein was extremely confident. Even if he faced White Wolf Bazel, one of the Top Ten Legendary Demon Hunters, head-on, he would not feel the slightest fear.

Yet this cold, viper-like fellow before him was the person he least wanted to encounter.

This man was like a Plague God. Nothing good ever happened wherever he appeared. And now he had come all the way from the imperial capital to Storm Lake in the south.

"Captain Rein, old friends meeting again, and you speak like this? How dull."

The cloaked man smiled.

Seeing that Rein had no intention of responding, he shrugged.

He did not intend to continue embarrassing himself and went straight to the point. "Since you don't want to speak with me, I'll deliver my orders and leave."

"Orders?"

Rein's pupils contracted sharply, and that ominous feeling grew stronger.

"That's right~"

A trace of amusement appeared in the black-robed man's eyes. Then he suddenly adopted a solemn tone and barked, "Rein Rutt, Captain of the Court Knights of the Royal Retainer Corps, receive your orders! You are commanded to immediately surround and kill White Wolf Bazel!"

"What?"

Kill Bazel?!

Rein's expression changed drastically. He thought he had heard wrong.

He stared uncertainly at the black-robed man, whose face still carried a relaxed smile, utterly unable to believe it.

Suppressing the chill in his heart, Rein sneered. "Hmph! You are merely an adviser at the Empress's side. Her orders cannot command me."

"Oh my, of course these aren't the Empress's orders."

The black-robed man spoke unhurriedly, as though he had anticipated this. As he spoke, he pulled a golden emblem from his robes.

The instant Rein saw it, he blurted out, "The Golden Griffin Emblem!"

Looking at the emblem carved with a golden vulture and encircled by three colored bands, he immediately knew something was terribly wrong.

This was the exclusive emblem of the Oma Royal Family's Spurglin line. To see the emblem was to see His Majesty himself.

This was the Emperor's command!

How could this be...

The black-robed man's lips curled slightly as he repeated the order, "By His Majesty's secret decree, immediately surround and kill White Wolf Bazel!"

With those words, there was no longer any room for retreat.

Even as Her Highness the Eldest Princess's personal guard, Rein had no choice but to obey the highest command.

"Damn it! How did you get the Griffin Emblem?!"

Veins bulged on Rein's forehead. He was clearly furious beyond measure.

No longer caring about secrecy, he snapped, "Metternich, you bastard! Do you know how much preparation Her Highness the Eldest Princess made to win over the White Wolf Gang? As long as Bazel is brought over, the bandit problem in the Empire's south can be completely resolved at once. What you're doing will destroy years of Her Highness the Eldest Princess's efforts!"

"Hehe, amnesty?"

The black-robed man seemed to have known the details all along, and a trace of disdain appeared at the corner of his mouth.

He shook his head indifferently and chuckled. "What the Empress and His Majesty want is the complete extermination of the bandit scourge, not an amnesty for this rabble. And after today, this campaign to eliminate the southern bandits will become the First Prince's achievement, recorded in history."

His tone was relaxed, yet it carried the killing intent of countless heads rolling.

"You!"

Victory had been within reach, only for someone to suddenly charge in and sabotage everything. These selfish people would ruin the Eldest Princess's plans of many years!

Though Rein was furious, there was nothing he could do.

The Eldest Princess, the Empress, and the First Prince—this obviously involved another internal struggle for royal power. As a royal retainer, he was not in a position to say much.

But he still refused to give up. Pointing toward the bandit groups gathering in the distance, he demanded, "Exterminate them? Do you see what's happening here? There are over a hundred thousand bandits. What are you going to use to wipe them out?"

The southern bandit scourge had endured for decades. If it could have been eradicated by force, would the Empire have allowed those bandits to run rampant until now?

"Oh, others really couldn't do it."

The black-robed man waved dismissively, as though the hundreds of bandit groups of all sizes before him were nothing but chickens and dogs.

After a pause, he grinned, revealing white teeth. A dangerous and supremely confident gleam flashed in his eyes as he said lightly, "But I'm here now."

Hearing that, Rein's expression froze completely.

He did not believe anyone could accomplish something so utterly impossible, but this man...

Had never failed before!

While Ymir, the Oma Empire's Eldest Princess, and White Wolf Bazel were holding secret talks in the tavern, another group quietly infiltrated the Black Market Trade Fair and secretly made their way toward the Hyacinth Tavern.

"Prince William, according to the contract, that woman is yours."

"Hehe, your Oma Royal Family really is lively. Which genius came up with this scheme of killing with a borrowed blade? Just hearing it makes my back go cold."

"..."

"And another thing—someone with such talent for command, and you're just discarding her? Could it be that old Dopler doesn't have much time left?"

"His Majesty is in good health. There is no need for you to concern yourself with that. Prince, please fulfill our contract as agreed. The rest is internal affairs of the Oma Empire and does not require your interference."

"Tsk, tsk. Don't worry. We Sid are naturally happy to help with this. After all, that woman ascending the throne would not be good news for us. But remember our contract. Once this is done, hand over the seven mines in the three southern provinces. And that filthy werewolf Bazel must die this time!"

"No problem! Leave Bazel to us. Four royal retainers have come from the court this time, and Lord Blackmoss has personally arrived. That man is as good as dead."

"Oh? Enma Blackmoss Zacharia is here too? Hehe, then Ymir Spurglin is ours. A pleasant collaboration!"

"..."

Rein followed Piscis to the tavern's second floor, completely unaware that undercurrents had already begun stirring beneath this trade fair.

There was a vast reception hall on the second floor. Rein focused all his senses and found no sign of an ambush.

Of course, aside from the thief on the ceiling who had been keeping watch on him for days.

Piscis said, "Rest here for a while. I'm going to meet a few friends. There'll be an exchange meeting for potion masters here soon, so don't run around."

"Understood, Teacher."

Rein could not figure out what Piscis was plotting.

But surely, he was planning something again.

After saying that, Piscis turned and left the room.

Once again, Rein was left alone in the room.

"Seventy-five steps, seventy-six steps, seventy-seven steps... Huh? Piscis didn't leave the tavern. He entered a room upstairs?"

Rein's ears twitched slightly. His exceptional hearing easily allowed him to distinguish Piscis's movements after he left.

So the "reinforcements" were upstairs!

Rein understood perfectly well that the old man Piscis was so comfortable leaving him alone in the room because of that veteran assassin hiding in the ceiling.

Hehe, he had shown weakness to lure the enemy in. Now he had finally found his chance!

"I have to strike now!"

Opportunities vanished in an instant.

Rein could not be sure what powerful reinforcements Piscis might call over once he reached that room.

But he was confident he could kill the assassin on the ceiling in an instant!

The moment he made up his mind, Rein shed the weak and submissive expression he had worn just seconds ago. A blade-like killing intent burst from his eyes.

The next instant, he bent his legs like a frog to gather strength, then violently kicked off the ground and shot upward.

With a boom, he moved so quickly that there was no time to react.

His heavy punch shattered the ceiling, and he brutally yanked a human leg through the hole—

With a crisp crack of breaking bone, the person's ankle snapped.

Then, under Rein's immense strength, a large section of the ceiling cracked apart, and an assassin with terror in his eyes was slammed heavily onto the floor.

The assassin had been severely injured by the sneak attack. His face drained of color as he screamed inwardly, Th-this guy only became Transcendent a few days ago, didn't he?!

How could his strength... be this absurd?!

Thank you, Fiery Song, for the reward and support. Thanks! And please send some recommendation votes too, everyone~