Chapter 80: I Failed. Eli Killed a Person
“Death to the monarchy!”
Several peasants armed with swords and bows charged forward. They threw torches at a nearby building. Alicia blanked out, staring at the riot like a deer in the headlights.
These people were small fry. Let alone knights, from their stances, she doubted they could even beat students or squires. But there was something more important than dealing with this riot. She turned her attention to Elidranthia. Her priority was to save her. To prevent her from killing people. Eli had already prepared a spell, and rocks floated above her hand.
“Eli, don’t. Let’s flee.”
“These ingrates! We are working hard. If we let them continue, innocents might die when the knights come,” Eli’s voice rose. Her hands clenched. This world still had nobility and a medieval mentality. Such blatant acts of terrorism would immediately be punished by the gallows. The knights might kill innocent bystanders if things were left unchecked. She had to stop this attack at once.
“These might be the Reapers’ work. They might target you.” Alicia gripped Eli’s hand firmly. “How about you go back to the academy while I handle this?”
Alicia was surprised at how easily she suggested that idea and lying in overall. At that moment, she felt like Eli’s life was worth more than hers. Eli must not die. If she did, who was going to stop her if she went out of control? Alicia might be a high-ranking mage, and she had excellent swordsmanship. But since she never exercised, her actual ability with a sword was only a little above that of a knight.
Eli turned to Alicia. “No. You are Rank 8, while I am merely Rank 6. Your life is worth more than mine. Without you, Shadowstep is going to suffer.”
“No. You are nobility, Lady Elidranthia, even if you are not a mage, your people need you. We should escape together. We are mages. We aren’t supposed to kill but nourish. Our enemies are monsters prowling in the forest. If this happened near Shadowstep, I might have agreed. But we know no one here. You didn’t actually like the nobles either, right?”
“You should listen to your maid, little girl.”
A hooded man suddenly appeared behind them.
Alicia drew her épée de cour. Her sword flew to the man’s face, but he glided to the side, dodging with perfect accuracy. The man knew it was just a greeting slash, so he simply stood there with a smirk. His black coat concealed his figure and arms.
“Who are you?” Eli asked. She silently took a knife from the table.
“No one important. I was wondering whether several of my friends and I here could assassinate you, but apparently that was beyond our league,” the man said, nodding to Alicia. Alicia blinked. Normally, no one would think that two teenagers could beat them. With just that little exchange, the man somehow knew.
“Then leave.” Alicia scowled.
“Well… Maybe we should try. A lot of money was involved, after all. I don’t want to tarnish my reputation in the guild. Getting a job is hard nowadays.” The man smirked. Then he leaped toward her. Alicia’s hand moved on its own. Her rapier blocked the thrust, followed by a swift counterattack.
The man leaped back, still smiling.
“Alicia. Seven people surrounded us. Let me help.”
Eli turned around and saw seven people with daggers rushing toward them. Their eyes were manic. Killers.
“Don’t worry, milady. I could handle them all. I am the best knight in Shadowstep!” Alicia said as she drew her blade. She knew that they were professionals. But she had confidence in the cheat given by the goddess.
Unlike the test with Bernard, she could use her magic here. She might not have much faith wth her sword skills, but she had a lot of confidence with her magic. There were no rules. She could just blow them away and create shields from ice. She had options.
She did just that. Several fireballs formed around her. The men launched their attacks, unwilling to let Alicia gain the upper hand. Yet Alicia was too fast for them. The fireballs formed almost instantaneously and shot toward the assassins.
The men were quick on their feet. They rolled forward as numerous fireballs exploded behind them. Their backs were burned, yet it didn’t faze them as their daggers flew toward Alicia’s eyes. Her head swerved, and her body leaped backward, dodging all six daggers with pinpoint precision.
As long as something was physically possible, her swordsmanship compelled her to perform the most efficient move. Her counterattack was deadly. The assassins only had daggers, so once their opening attack failed, the counterattack became fatal. With two quick thrusts, Alicia struck at their necks. It was fast and precise. Blood gushed from their necks, and their lives faded before they could utter a sound.
Alicia’s heart pounded in her chest. She had just killed two people, even though she hadn’t truly intended to. It wasn’t guilt she felt. It was the fear that with a single misstep, she could be next.
Two daggers flew toward her flank. Her reaction was flawless. She rolled away while casting a wall of flame that engulfed her attacker, ending another two assassins’ lives.
The last two men turned and fled. Alicia counted the bodies. When she turned to Elidranthia, her heart stopped.
There, Eli sat in a pool of blood. Her hand gripped a bloodied knife.
She was not injured. It was worse. The realization came too late. Alicia had failed.
“No way. Eli… Eli! Are you okay?” Alicia rushed to her.
“Yes. I’m fine. Luckily, I had a steak knife with me. When this man came at me, I killed him with my earth magic and the knife,” Eli said. Dark miasma exuded from her. Her lips curled into a grin as her red eyes flared. Alicia felt a shudder. She thought she was already used to her eyes, but her aura had intensified.
Alicia looked at her closely. There didn’t seem to be any significant change. She didn’t suddenly turn into a blood-crazed woman. But when Eli glanced at her, Alicia felt a shiver. She had failed Goddess Sistielle.
“I… I see.”
“More importantly, we must return to Shadowstep at once! This man said an army from the Western Nation was going to invade Althemer through Shadowstep. It’s going to become the frontline very soon! We need to call Ludwin for help!” she said.
“Uh. Alright. Let’s go.” Alicia was bewildered. Had she failed, or had she not? She didn’t know. She clenched her sword, considering whether she should stab Elidranthia in the back. Eli had just killed a person. The goddess said that when she killed someone, her power would be enhanced, and she would rule the world with an iron fist.
No. I haven’t failed yet. It was just one kill. Eli still looks fine. Maybe it takes one out of three before I completely fail?
Alicia tried to make sense of what had happened. Eli had killed a person, yet she hadn’t turned into a vampire or destroyed the world. She hadn’t become a demon lord yet.
They ran toward the academy while Alicia wondered whether she should kill Eli now.
“Eli, what’s wrong?” Thor, who was guarding Ludwin’s bedchamber, asked.
“I heard that someone was planning to invade Althemer through the forests of Shadowstep. Please, you must help us.”
“Understood. I shall report this to Ludwin and the Prime Minister at once,” he nodded. “Are you sure this information is correct?”
“The assassins who assaulted us said so. I will return to Shadowstep and provide any help I can. Thank you.” Eli gave a curtsy before leaving with Alicia in tow.
“Where to next?” Alicia trailed behind Eli. Despite her shorter height, Alicia found herself struggling to catch up. She runs faster now.
“We will hire the fastest carriage home. Do you have money?”
“Yes, I do. But I’m not sure whether it would be enough.” Alicia was a modern person and had absolute trust in the banking system, so she only carried enough money for snacks, not to travel across the country.
Eli was different. While she had accounts and kept most of her funds in the bank, she always kept a decent sum of cash on her at all times—enough to travel or live in a foreign land for a few months. It was a habit she had developed while working as a government agent.
“Let’s go. I will pay for it,” Eli said.
Once they stepped out of the academy, the panic from the town square incident became apparent. The academy was far from the town square, but Eli could tell from the people’s expressions and hurried movements that they were fleeing from it.
Knights patrolled the city more than ever. It didn’t take long for Eli to realize that blood had been spilled today. She could only hope the knights could differentiate friend from foe. She would hate it if they ended up killing innocent civilians because of this.
“This was too sudden,” Eli muttered. There had been no warning. This riot was not spontaneous. It felt orchestrated.
Someone had planned this, and they were very powerful. You couldn’t do this without an extensive network inside the target country.
Even the CIA and FBI would need years to cause a revolt of this size. But then, for what purpose? Unlike the modern world, there was no UN here. Even if half the peasants revolted, the nobles could simply slaughter them all without repercussions, especially if they had mages. Peasants were replaceable here. No matter how many died, they would not care.
“Shit.” Eli cursed. Her blood was boiling. The answer lay in her destination right now. Her hometown.
This was all a trap. If there were an attempted coup, the kingdom would have to dispatch knights to secure the capital. That meant the outskirts would be abandoned.
“Ugh… should I go back?” Eli muttered inside the carriage. “No, they won’t believe the assumption of a teenager. Even if they believe me, they won’t risk their own territories or the capital. They might even use Shadowstep as a buffer zone before doing anything.”
This is the worst thing about Alicia’s prophecies. They come true, but not in the way you expect them.
Eli could only bite her lip in frustration as the carriage drove toward Shadowstep. They would arrive in a week. She sincerely prayed that Shadowstep would still be standing when she arrived.