Deathbird Five Shadows (Second Update! Please Follow!)

The Middle-Aged Noble was named Bernard. His father had once been a baron in the North.

When he was very young, his gambling-addict father sold off his baronial fief, and the whole family moved to Icewind City.

That filled him with hostility toward his father. It was his father who had ruined his chance to become a noble landed aristocrat, forcing him to live in cramped Icewind City with these lowly commoners.

So, from childhood to adulthood, he had worked hard at training. He successfully became a Formal Knight, cultivated his family's ancestral breathing technique to its highest realm, and killed his gambling-addict father.

When he was young, Bernard accidentally came into contact with the faith of the Shadow Lord, and very quickly became a believer of the Shadow Lord. With his strength as a Mid-Rank Knight, he joined the Voice of the Deathbird, rising step by step until he became a Silver-Rank Assassin of the Voice of the Deathbird.

The assassin system of the Voice of the Deathbird was divided into bronze, silver, gold, and the transcendent Shadow-Level Assassins.

Bronze, silver, and gold-rank assassins all required examinations and evaluations, similar to professional titles. Generally speaking, one could become a Bronze-Rank Assassin by possessing the strength of a Low-Rank Knight and completing five successful assassination missions; silver required Mid-Rank Knight strength and fifteen successful assassinations; gold required high-rank, or even Peak Knight strength, as well as more than thirty successful assassinations.

As for Shadow-Level Assassins, there were only five in the entire Voice of the Deathbird. They were called the "Deathbird Five Shadows." They were the existences closest to the Shadow Lord, the Shadow Lord's agents in the mortal world! At the same time, they were also five genuine Great Knights! No one knew the true identities of the "Five Shadows," because the Organization Members of the Voice of the Deathbird and the Five Shadows always communicated one-on-one.

Their public identities might be great merchants rich enough to rival nations, or they might be some count, or even a grand duke. In short, they were incomparably mysterious.

"Phantom Demon has been a Bronze-Rank Assassin for so long, yet he still failed. That Baron Levi has some strength. He can't be underestimated."

Time gradually moved into night, and the stars emerged.

Bernard put on his night clothes. His whole body seemed to blend perfectly into the dark night. Using the intelligence provided by that Broker, he crept toward the place where Levi was.

Bernard's title within the organization was "Shadow Hunter." This was related to the breathing technique he cultivated. He did not cultivate the Siren Breathing Technique, but his own family's ancestral Bloodline Breathing Technique: the Shadow Leopard Breathing Technique. It was a breathing technique pushed to the extreme of agility and stealth.

In Knight Bernard's view, Phantom Demon Knight had most likely failed because he had been careless and underestimated his enemy. Otherwise, how could that Baron Levi, a mere teenager, possibly be a match for a Formal Knight skilled in assassination?

"Once I finish this mission, I can stop. I've saved more than three thousand gold coins. That should be enough to redeem the family fief."

Bernard murmured inwardly. He had waited far too long for this moment.

Shining Tavern.

Levi bought a cup of "Nameless Wine" commemorating the Thousand-Faced Knight.

The proprietress was still propping up her cheek in boredom, sipping her little drink.

The knights and swordsmen coming and going, as well as the masked nobles, were all chatting in twos and threes inside this small tavern.

Before long, a burly knight in armor also walked in. It was precisely the knight who traded with Levi.

In other words, the Boar Knight mentioned by Knight Fred, the leader of the Boar Gang.

He was now already a member of the Brotherhood of the Wilds, and his status might not be low either.

"Why was the supply a bit low some time ago?" The Boar Knight came over to Levi and frowned as he spoke.

"I was a bit busy some time ago," Levi said.

"I can tell. You seem stronger than you were before." The Boar Knight looked at "White Wolf Geralt" and spoke in a low voice.

Levi did not speak. Instead, he asked, "Did you bring the money?"

Seeing that White Wolf Geralt had no intention of chatting with him, the Boar Knight was not angry either. He took out the money and showed it to Levi. The gold coins in the bag made crisp clinking sounds as they knocked together.

Levi brought the Boar Knight to the delivery point outside the city and handed over the goods.

After all, there were now too many suits of armor and weapons involved. It was very inconvenient to bring them into the city, so Levi had later made an arrangement with the Boar Knight: the two sides would trade at a location chosen by Levi outside the city, and only meet up at the Shining Tavern.

With his current strength, he had no need to worry about being robbed by the Boar Knight at all.

The Boar Knight had people load these goods onto carts, then said, "Your armor is of very good quality. I can tell that you should be a very talented Blacksmith. If you join the organization I belong to, we will give you more helpers and give a Blacksmith like you a stage to display your talent. Perhaps you could become a Legendary Master Smith like Flame Hammer."

Levi shook his head. "No need."

Seeing that his renewed invitation was hopeless, the Boar Knight left in disappointment.

"You all return to the territory first. I still have some things to do," Levi said to the soldiers under him.

"Yes, Lord."

Levi returned to the Shining Tavern again. Just now, while trading with the Boar Knight, Levi could clearly feel that the Boar Knight, who had once given him an overwhelming sense of pressure, was now someone he could face with complete calm. If they really fought, he was confident he could kill him.

It was just unnecessary. Even if the Boar Knight was his enemy, this enemy could currently bring him profit. There were no eternal friends, only eternal interests.

After staying in the Shining Tavern for a long time, Levi still did not find the knight who sold Ambergris. He planned to stay in Icewind City for a few days. If that person did not come during these few days, Levi would have to think of another way to get Ambergris.

Levi did not know that he had already been targeted by a Silver-Rank Assassin of the Voice of the Deathbird.

Bored, Levi decided to look at the missions on the bounty board, wanting to see whether he could obtain Ambergris through the channel of posting a Bounty Commission.

Before long, he saw a mission related to Ambergris. A noble was also purchasing Ambergris. The commission had been issued three months ago, and no one had completed it even now.

Seeing this, Levi's expression turned ugly. Buying Ambergris through a Bounty Commission was most likely hopeless. These days, Ambergris was becoming harder and harder to get. It was all that damned White Horse Knight's fault. He was only advancing to legend, yet he had actually monopolized all the Ambergris! "If there's still none in two days, I might have to make a trip over to the Tuva Empire."

Unless he had no other choice, Levi did not want to go to the Tuva Empire. An unfamiliar environment always came with unknown risks.

Just when he was disappointed, Levi discovered a mission on a bounty board in the corner that made his eyes light up.

[Due to mission requirements, recruiting one Formal Knight. Excellent Archery required.]
[Commission reward: one bottle of Ambergris (may be converted into gold coins of equivalent value)]

(PS: In response to everyone at once, this book will have Breathing Technique Fusion later on, it just has not been written yet, so please don't be anxious. Also, I'm begging for Follow-up Reads. The author is putting out three updates today! Please! Tuesday's Follow-up Reads are vitally important!)