It hadn’t been long since he started learning illusion magic, but layering it with ancient magical techniques had doubled the difficulty.
I might’ve neglected the high-level magical artifacts, but the illusion itself works surprisingly well.
Considering that the leader of Requiem Chairlse was roughly Level 5 by Blackout standards, the fact that the illusion magic worked so flawlessly that he didn’t even suspect it was quite impressive.
Especially since, as an assassin, he wouldn’t have let his guard down.
Tap—
But Chairlse was a seasoned assassin.
The moment he realized he’d fallen for an illusion, he immediately kicked off the ground and charged at Jun.
Two short swords shot toward Jun’s neck.
They were even imbued with aura, fitting for a Level 5 fighter.
[Shield]
A blue shield appeared between them, but Chairlse slashed at it without hesitation.
He trusted in his aura.
However, the aura only managed to cut through about half of Jun’s [Shield] before it stopped.
“……?!”
An unexpected outcome.
But true to his veteran instincts, Chairlse immediately gave up on the swords and leaped back.
He drew spare blades from his waist and responded to the incoming blades of wind.
Clang-clang-clang!
The blades of wind kept flying at him relentlessly.
As he deflected one Wind Cutter after another, Chairlse’s mind began to race.
How the hell is he doing this?
The artifact he had used, Phertharos’s Mirror of Truth, nullified all magic in the area and continuously disrupted the flow of surrounding mana.
And yet, the opposing mage showed no signs of being affected. He was casting spells as naturally as if nothing were wrong.
It was shocking enough that my aura was blocked… but to cast magic of this caliber in this environment?
This wasn’t good.
He didn’t know what kind of artifact the mage had used, but it was clear the preparation had been thorough.
That mana flow…
And that wasn’t even the worst of it.
Even as Chairlse deflected the flying wind blades, he was aghast to feel the enemy preparing yet another spell.
And it wasn’t a simple spell like Wind Cutter, either. It radiated immense destructive power.
If his team had been there, he might’ve found an opening somehow.
But they had fallen for the illusion and weren’t even present at the scene.
He had to escape this crisis no matter what.
A fierce glint entered Chairlse’s eyes.
“Oh?”
Jun acknowledged the opponent’s skill when he saw him boldly choose to charge forward.
Holding out until the mage ran out of mana was one strategy, but true to his assassin nature, Chairlse had opted for a quick, decisive clash.
However, it didn’t last long.
Though he skillfully blocked and dodged the relentless barrage of wind blades and closed the distance, he soon hit his limit.
As the gap shrank, the blades were now materializing right in front of him. They were so close that even his reflexes couldn’t keep up.
“Khugh―!”
Chairlse made a split-second decision. He sacrificed one of his arms and forced his way right up to Jun.
He must be planning to rely on the blades’ cutting power to sever his arm cleanly, then reattach it later.
He overcame even the fear of losing a limb to get to his opponent.
But unfortunately for him—
Jun’s spellcasting was faster.
[Ice Break]
A field of ice instantly spread and bound Chairlse’s legs.
At the same time, over a dozen [Iron Fists] summoned by Illusia pounded Chairlse’s body.
His legs were frozen in place and the brutal blows from all directions delivered a storm of unrelenting violence.
“Gkkhh—!”
It didn’t take long for Chairlse to collapse with his blood gushing from his entire body.
“You’ve got some serious skills, I’ll give you that.”
If Jun had let his guard down even a little, it might’ve been him on the ground instead.
He looked down at the fallen Chairlse.
“First, treatment… Hmm. Maybe I went a bit overboard.”
Losing an arm was bad enough.
But his entire body was covered in bruises and wounds. It was going to take more than a potion or two to fix this.
“I can’t just rely on Eleanor forever. I should probably learn at least one healing spell myself.”
With no other choice, Jun pulled a high-grade healing potion from inside his coat.
It was a new one, recently crafted using a mana fluid.
“This might hurt a bit during the healing process. But hey, after taking a beating like that, he’ll live.”
As he brought over the severed arm and got to work on the lengthy healing process—
“I’m back. But, uh… what is that?”
Maya, who had finished dealing with the Requiem members still caught in hallucinations, blinked as she looked at the bloodied Chairlse lying crumpled on the floor.
Jun casually responded while realigning the man’s bones with a distinct crack.
“The leader of Requiem.”
***
Splash!
“Ghh…? Guhh, guooaaagh!”
The icy sensation pouring over his head snapped Chairlse back to consciousness, only to be met with unbearable pain surging through every inch of his body.
“Kaagh…!”
Naturally so. He had been brutalized by a barrage of iron fists and even lost an arm in the process.
But then, for a brief moment, he noticed something strange. His severed left arm… was moving.
The pain was still intense, but undeniably, it was there and responding.
“Haaah… haaaagh…”
“Hmm. Looks like it hurts a lot.”
“Seems that way.”
Finally, Chairlse managed to clear his pain-blurred vision.
Beyond the damp basement that was dimly lit by a [Light] spell, he saw two figures.
The mage he had fought and a female warrior holding the Acanthus’s Fang.
“Ghhk…”
“Yeah, looks like the pain is really kicking in.”
No matter how many potions you pour into someone, that doesn’t mean the pain disappears.
“Drink this. It’s a numbing potion.”
After downing the half-full vial, the pain dulled a little. Only then was Chairlse able to take stock of his condition.
“You… healed me?”
“Yeah.”
“…Why?”
“Pretty naive question for the leader of an assassin organization.”
“……”
Why else would they go to the trouble of keeping him alive?
“The Viscount Bedron’s weakness. You know something, don’t you?”
“…Hoo.”
He had no choice.
Chairlse who realized that gave a nod.
An assassin should naturally be tight-lipped, but he had no reason to stay silent for Viscount Bedron’s sake.
“I’ll tell you everything I know.”
“No need.”
“……?!”
He’d been played.
To think they’d stoop to something even an assassin wouldn’t do…
“I already know the location of all his secret vaults.”
Chairlse trembled even more at those words.
What kind of intelligence network could uncover even that?
Could this be the true power of the imperial intelligence agency under a Count’s command?
Of course, it was just a misconception on his part.
Jun didn’t want to waste time, so he got straight to the point.
“Your job is simple. Stall the Viscount.”
“How…?”
“We’ll tell you how. You people aren’t following him out of love, are you?”
“……”
Just getting that much from him was good enough.
He might never get a chance to reclaim the dagger of vengeance, but…
“If you do a good job, I’ll give you access to Basai’s techniques.”
“…What do you want me to do? Tell me.”
“I like that enthusiasm.”
Viscount Bedron looked down at Chairlse, who was kneeling before him, and asked,
“Did you bring me his head?”
“Yes. Here it is.”
When Chairlse opened the box he had brought, sure enough, the head of the mage he had seen in photos was inside.
“Well done. Though you took your time, this isn’t too late.”
He wanted to spit on the head, but Viscount Bedron decided to take care of more pressing matters first.
“What about Acanthus’s Fang?”
“Unfortunately, one of them got away.”
“It can’t be helped. We’ll deal with that later. Can you move immediately?”
“Going all-out would be difficult. The arm I reattached hasn’t fully healed yet.”
“Tsk.”
Sure enough, through the torn sleeve of Chairlse’s outfit, the signs of a clean severance were visible.
It must have been a fierce battle.
“Then focus on your recovery for now.”
“Yes.”
“By the way, how heavy were the losses?”
“Fifteen lower ranks, seven intermediate, and three higher ranks were taken out.”
“That’s quite a few.”
Still, considering they had wiped out a famous mercenary group, it wasn’t a bad outcome.
Eventually, when Acanthus’s Fang fell into his hands, there’d be no need for Requiem anyway.
“There are still mercenaries we haven’t dealt with. Shouldn’t we tighten security around the mansion?”
“Hmm.”
The Viscount paused in thought, then nodded.
“Just in case, station anyone among your men who’s still able to move.”
“I’ll do that.”
As Chairlse stepped back, Viscount Bedron looked at the spot where he had been and sneered.
“Fool. He doesn’t even realize he’s been discarded.”
The Viscount couldn’t imagine that Chairlse had actually sided with Jun.
From his perspective, Chairlse’s injuries were far too severe for that.
What kind of lunatic would go so far as to cut off his own arm just to fool someone else?
Even with healing potions, there was still a risk. One wrong move, and he might never be able to use that arm again.
“Finally, I can catch my breath. Hmph. Now I’ve got to lay the groundwork, just like I planned.”
He needed to start unraveling the tangled situation.
Viscount Bedron who was a master of scheming quickly thought up several strategies and planned to put them into motion as soon as dawn broke.
That is, if his mansion hadn’t already fallen into Count Mordenain’s hands by the time he woke up the next day.
***
“Wow, things are really going this smoothly, huh?”
Naturally, Jun’s head was still firmly attached to his neck.
What he had shown Viscount Bedron was an artifact embedded with illusion magic. When Chairlse had first heard the idea, he thought it would be impossible.
Viscount Bedron had many enemies and was known to be extremely well-prepared against all kinds of magic.
However, Jun had grown quite adept with ancient magic. So much so that he could even overcome Phertharos’s Mirror of Truth.
After successfully deceiving the Viscount, Jun and Maya roamed freely through the mansion, disguised as members of Requiem.
Thankfully, the vault’s in the same spot as in the game.
Even the password was the same, so it took Jun less than an hour to get his hands on the Viscount’s secret ledger.
“It would’ve been a problem if it wasn’t here. Lucky.”
“For someone saying that, you sure looked like you were enjoying yourself.”
Maya’s remark from beside him was sharp, but Jun felt a bit wronged.
It brought back vivid memories of all the suffering he had endured as “Lee Jeong-jun” during the game.
Back then, he didn’t have the Gillen Merchant Guild, the Count’s support, or even decent information on Viscount Bedron.
He had to reload countless save files and grind his way through to gather information.
Even just sending the head of the MacGray Merchant Guild elsewhere without the help of Gillen would’ve meant dealing with a horde of annoying side quests and managing reputation points.
Still, I guess it’s true this whole thing went down pretty easily.
Even Jun had to admit. Having the support of the Gillen Merchant Guild and the Count’s approval was practically a cheat code.
With those two backing him, few would dare even raise their heads.
And so, Jun handed over Viscount Bedron’s secret ledger to the Count.
The Count immediately obtained the Emperor’s permission and dispatched knights to infiltrate Viscount Bedron’s estate.
Naturally, Viscount Bedron’s soldiers tried to stop them.
But Requiem had already opened the gates.
The soldiers, faced with the Count’s banner, couldn’t bring themselves to resist.
At last, when the Count’s knights broke down the door to Viscount Bedron’s chambers—
“Wh-Wh-What is the meaning of this?!”
Startled awake by the sudden crash, Viscount Bedron grabbed the dagger he kept by his bedside.
It was a magical artifact, but it was useless against the knights the Count had brought.
“It’s been a while, Viscount Bedron.”
“Y-You?! What is the meaning of this, Count Mordenain?! How dare you barge into someone’s mansion like this—!”
“A bit hasty, aren’t you? You and I will have more than enough time to talk.”
“What are you—?!”
Then, Viscount Bedron caught sight of the familiar ledger in Count Mordenain’s hand, and his eyes went wide with shock.
“Why is that… in your hands…?”
No matter how quick-witted the Viscount was, there was no way he could think clearly in a situation like this.
Like a broken machine, he kept muttering the same words, completely dazed, until the Count’s knights took him into custody.
And then—
“Ah! Y-You?!”
As he was being dragged out helplessly, Viscount Bedron spotted the mage he had confirmed dead just the night before, alive and well….and was struck speechless with horror.
Only then did he realize he’d been deceived.
He didn’t know the details, but still—!
“Ch-Chairlse… Chairlse, that bastard…!! Aaaagh! Let go! I said let go!!!”
Viscount Bedron thrashed wildly in protest, but his mouth was soon forcibly gagged by the knights.
Jun, watching the scene, turned to the Count and said,
“Count, may I have a moment alone with him?”
“Just don’t kill him.”
“Haha, I’m not that violent.”
With that, Jun approached the Viscount and gave him a pleasant smile before grabbing him by the hair.
“Wh-What are you—?!”
The Viscount flinched, fearing Jun might gouge out his eyes.
Rip—
“Argh!!”
Without hesitation, Jun yanked out a handful of the Viscount’s hair.
Then, turning around, he approached Chairlse, who had been hiding in a corner and silently observing the scene.
“Looks like I won the bet, huh?”
“……”
A patch of the Viscount’s scalp was torn away with the hair and had taken bits of skin with it.
Chairlse squeezed his eyes shut.
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