Chapter 28
Chapter 28
Goddess Dike(Dike).
I clearly remembered her as a goddess from the Greek mythology lineage.
Her specialty was law and justice.
Later, she was an indispensable key figure in opposing the demonic legions that would descend upon this land.
And she was also the very one who had transferred Alice to Artenia.
“When you first met me, the academy cafeteria had plenty of empty seats. Even so, was there really a reason for you to come sit right in front of me?”
Aside from stories of Earth, she was the only element that connected her and me.
How should I naturally carry the flow forward? After much deliberation, the conclusion I reached was the position of ‘a guy who knows a thing or two.’
If I casually mentioned the name of the goddess who had sent her here and gave off the impression that I knew something, her interest in me would inevitably be piqued.
“…….”
Sure enough, at my meaningful words, a light that hadn’t been there before began to gather in her eyes.
The flame of life burned within them—only now did she look like someone truly alive.
“Those chosen by the goddess each have a mark left somewhere on their body. For some it’s on the neck, for others the chest, and for others the back of the hand. If the two ever face each other, those marks resonate.”
This story was true.
Since Alice was also in the position of a protagonist, there would surely be a token of the goddess engraved somewhere on her body as well.
According to the original work, I thought it was probably around the shoulder.
“…What about you?”
“Want to see?”
At her question about the location of my mark, I grinned and glanced slightly downward.
Fortunately, she seemed to understand, and in an instant her face turned bright red.
It was a relief that she was an innocent girl.
If she had rushed at me demanding to see, I wouldn’t even have dared to tell such a lie.
I should get a tattoo later.
“I didn’t feel anything.”
But it seemed she hadn’t completely believed me.
She spoke in a slightly distrustful voice, so I shrugged and replied.
“It was written in the records that if there’s a big gap in ability, the weaker side can’t feel it.”
“…You know a lot.”
“You made me your target, so you must know at least that I’m a prince. Because of that, I’ve had more opportunities than you to come across things like this.”
At my words, she hesitated.
She opened and closed her mouth several times as if trying to say something, and only after about a minute did she finally continue.
“…It might sound ridiculous, but I came from another world.”
‘There it is.’
At last, the story she had kept hidden came to light.
It was proof that Alice trusted me to some extent now.
For an on-the-spot fabrication meant to avoid holes in the setting, it had been quite persuasive, so with no information to go on, she had no choice but to fall for it.
This was the experience of an editor at work.
Even if it hadn’t been half a year yet.
She poured out her circumstances.
Her ordinary life on Earth.
Being suddenly swept up in an accident, and falling alone into this world.
At the loneliness seeping into her voice, my chest felt slightly heavy, but from now on, I would be her support by her side.
She never once mentioned that she was a hero.
But aside from that, she told me almost everything.
With a relieved expression and a noticeably brighter look, she asked,
“What should I do now?”
A hollow laugh slipped out before I could stop it.
Those were words I had uttered to the point of exhaustion myself, back when I first crossed over into this world and still hadn’t adapted.
In a way, it meant I had lost my bearings, but it also expressed a desperate longing to return to my original world.
“Then.”
I spoke with a light smile.
“Let’s enter the academy together.”
It had been a harsh life.
Even if we left someday, it was okay to enjoy ourselves a little before that, wasn’t it?
“Has there been any word from Alice?”
“Regular contact was cut off a long time ago. Since there’s no emergency signal either, it looks like she got taken out.”
“Don’t spout nonsense! Would Alice get taken out just dealing with one measly thug?”
Crescent Moon’s Footsteps was the third-largest assassin guild in Polfoardel, the capital of the Ribera Empire.
Altar, the guild master who bore the title of Assassin Master, harbored the ambition of someday surpassing the two guilds above his and standing as the empire’s greatest assassin guild.
To do that, the most urgent need was a high-level assassin who could serve as the guild’s calling card.
Other top guilds possessed multiple Assassin Masters and put them forward, but Crescent Moon’s Footsteps had a relatively small number of upper-tier assassins.
The reason it had been able to grow into the third-largest guild was entirely thanks to Altar’s own strength.
But that inevitable limitation had now come back to hinder him.
“Damn it, what the hell is that bitch Alice doing at a time like this, not even making contact!”
With their lack of force something that could only be resolved over time, he was fretting when, by sheer luck, they seized a chance to leap forward in one stroke.
One of the high-ranking nobles had commissioned the assassination of Leios von Ribera, the Third Prince who was soon to enroll in the Academy.
That was why Altar had deployed Alice, the guild’s greatest assassin, on the mission.
Although Alice had not quite reached Assassin Master level, among upper-tier assassins she stood at the very top.
Since she could take a life the moment she locked eyes with some mere thug presumed to be a sword user, the assassination itself would pose no difficulty.
‘Other guilds might shy away because of bearing the crime of killing royalty and getting dragged into power struggles among nobles, but this is an opportunity.’
Since a prince had been assassinated, it was obvious that a large-scale investigation would follow.
But they were assassins who lived in the shadows.
If they lay low for about half a year and then returned, they could fire the opening signal of a glorious debut, along with the honor of having assassinated royalty.
“Master, the client has arrived.”
“What? How long have you been at this to be reporting even that to me?”
At the sight of his subordinate looking for him, Altar frowned in disbelief.
He had left most routine matters to be handled autonomously.
Now was not the time for him to be worrying about trivial things.
“Th-that is, the client isn’t an ordinary person……”
But the subordinate, wearing an aggrieved expression, pointed outside.
“What, is he some kind of high-ranking noble?”
“He identified himself as the Empire’s Third Prince, Leios von Ribera. We told him to wait while we verified the truth of it, but…….”
“…….”
The moment those words ended, Altar’s face stiffened.
What did it mean for the target to come directly to the guild’s headquarters?
“Call everyone who’s outside back in.”
“There’s no one out. You told us not to take any jobs for a while, remember?”
“…Right, that’s true.”
Altar fell into thought for a moment.
At a time like this, the Third Prince came in person?
‘We’re fucked.’
It was clear that Alice had failed the assassination.
Whatever variable had occurred, the fact that the Third Prince had come here meant there was a strong chance he was genuine.
“How many came with him?”
Altar desperately hoped that a large escort had accompanied him.
If they were middling fighters, he could overwhelm them with the guild’s assassins and personally step in to deal with them.
But what if it was only one or two?
Coming in small numbers meant confidence in one’s own ability.
And the imperial palace was crawling with such monsters.
‘At the very least, I’ll escape somehow.’
“We’re checking his identity now and also whether anyone followed him, but it seems he came alone.”
“…Alone?”
Altar asked with a look of disbelief.
The subordinate nodded in reply.
“Yes. What should we do?”
“…If he’s real, let him in. If he’s fake, beat him half to death, throw him out, then go somewhere secluded and really kill him.”
Five minutes later, unfortunately, Altar was facing Leios in his office.
Distinct blond hair and blue eyes.
At the unmistakable proof of Ribera royalty, he let out a deep sigh inwardly.
“…I’ve received many clients, but this is the first time a direct member of the imperial line like Your Highness the Prince has come in person. I don’t even know what words of thanks I should offer.”
He first spewed some flattery to butter Leios up while secretly gauging the atmosphere.
His expression was calm, not particularly angry.
Rather, the complete lack of emotion made Altar uneasy.
“Some time ago, an assassin came to see me. She called herself Alice. She said she belonged to this place, didn’t she?”
“…It is true that Alice belonged to us, but our guild did not attempt the assassination of Your Highness the Prince. It seems she acted on her own initiative.”
The prepared answer flowed out smoothly.
It was nothing more than a childish attempt at deception, but Altar pinned his hopes on something else.
‘Why would the Third Prince, after learning he was a target, come to me?’
There had to be some other purpose.
And he decided to make use of that.
Leios also wore an expression that showed he didn’t buy a word of it, but he didn’t bother pressing the issue further.
“What matters now isn’t that. I want to commission you. If you accept it, I’ll bury the matter of my assassination.”
“…A commission, you say.”
Clatter.
Leios placed a sheet of parchment and a heavy pouch on the table.
Altar first examined the contents of the pouch, whose weight he couldn’t even guess.
“…Hhk!”
It was wealth that made a gasp slip out.
What greeted him wasn’t simple gold coins.
Inside the pouch, jewels each worth ten million gold glittered brilliantly, stabbing his eyes with their light.
‘W-with this money, rising to become the number one assassin guild in one fell swoop wouldn’t even be a problem!’
The employment of assassins was strictly a relationship of profit.
There was no assassin who would turn down vast wealth.
With this amount, he could hire every upper-tier assassin on this street and still have plenty left over.
“S-so then, what is the commission?”
Altar asked while trying to steady his trembling heart, though he couldn’t stop his voice from shaking as well.
But what did that matter.
At his question, Leios gestured with his chin toward the parchment lying beside the pouch.
“It’s the commission letter. Read it.”
No matter what was written there, he had been willing to carry it out.
But upon reading the very first line, Altar grew flustered and spoke to Leios.
“W-what on earth is this…….”
<Commission Letter>
The extermination of Assassin Master Altar, guild master of Crescent Moon’s Footsteps, and all forces under his command.
As Altar was about to ask what kind of joke this was, Leios drew the sword at his waist without changing his seated posture.
Sshhaeaek-!
The sword, brimming with aura, cut through the air like a ray of light.
In the next instant, it pierced through the parchment Altar was holding and headed straight for his neck.
“Ghk!”
But Altar’s reaction was swift.
As befit an Assassin Master, he kicked off the ground and tried to widen the distance, but Leios’s sword, without even a shred of mercy, pierced straight through his chest.
Thud.
“…Khk!”
Pierced through the very center of his heart, Altar slammed against the wall and spat blood.
Even so, he refused to give up and pulled on a cord hanging on one side of the wall.
“…Cough, you bastard… son of a… bitch. You… will never… die easily….”
“Looks like you called your subordinates?”
Leios grinned and released the sword.
Altar alone remained skewered by it, hanging against the wall.
All he could do was glare with blazing eyes as Leios gathered the pouch and the parchment.
“But what a shame.”
Bang.
At the same time Leios finished speaking, the office door burst open.
Even as he was dying, Altar tried to tell the subordinates who had rushed in to kill Leios, but at the utterly unexpected face, he forgot what he was going to say.
“What about outside?”
“All taken care of. With this, Crescent Moon’s Footsteps is wiped out.”
“…You bitch!”
From the thick stench of blood flooding in through the open door, Altar instantly realized that all the subordinates outside had been dealt with.
Among upper-tier assassins, Alice was counted at the very top—there would have been no one among them capable of stopping her.
“You… ungrateful… wretch… who doesn’t even know… the debt… of being raised……!”
“You were destined to die by my hand sooner or later. Just think of it as that time coming a little early.”
Altar cursed her with bloodshot eyes, but Alice merely coldly pulled out the sword embedded in his chest.
Pshhk.
As the sword that had briefly sealed the wound and prolonged his life was pulled free, Altar’s breath was cut off.
Over his gaze, now that of a cold corpse, Alice spat once as if even looking at him was filthy.
“With the nuisance taken care of, shall we head back?”
Leios took the sword Alice handed back and said with an expression of having resolved one matter.
And so, Crescent Moon’s Footsteps, one of the assassin guilds that had ruled the empire’s back alleys, vanished without a sound or trace, and the remaining remnants were swallowed up by others, leaving not even a shadow behind.
If Altar had known that all of this had been planned by Leios simply to enjoy a pleasant academy life, he would have wept tears of blood and wailed—but unfortunately, that day would never come.