Children of the Holy Emperor - Chapter 457



Only Noblemtl

457. Kaya’s Breath (6)

Chaeng! Chaeng! Chaeng!

In the blink of an eye, several attacks and defenses took place. The speed was so fast that No. 21 couldn’t even follow the sword’s trajectory with his eyes.

‘… Double-edged swordsmanship?’

I could barely make out the assassin’s weapon in the midst of the stormy movements. If the author had rushed towards this side first, No. 21 would probably not have been able to react properly and would have given up his vital point in vain.

‘You’re not someone I can deal with.’

Prince Mores also seemed to have judged it that way.

“Number 21, stand back!”

Number 21 backed away obediently.

Just sensing the sharp momentum that the two people were radiating was enough to make my skin tingle. With the tension stretched to the limit, I couldn’t even guess who my rash actions would harm.

Kaang!

At that moment, the prince and the assassin, who had clashed swords fiercely, were pushed to both ends of the room without resisting the recoil.

“… … .”

Without causing any significant damage to the other, the two of them glared at each other in silence instead of clashing again. It seemed like they were taking a moment to catch their breath and explore each other.

And only then was Number 21 able to see the attacker’s figure in full for the first time.

The opponent was a woman holding a short sword in each hand. Beneath her statuesque, expressionless face and the black assassin’s signature stealth outfit, you could see the outlines of her well-trained, sleek body.

The aura activity isn’t that strong, but perhaps what you see isn’t everything. Rather, it’s probably that he’s become skilled at hiding his aura. Even No. 21, who considers himself an elite agent, felt that the enemy was faintly visible even when he was right in front of him.

His Aura concealment ability is top-notch. It would be safe to assume that he is close to the level of a Dekaron Knight, who is said to be the most ideal assassin.

Number 21, who had figured it out, was amazed at how the prince had completely countered that woman’s attacks.

‘But that’s strange. You look so old for your age.’

Yes. When I think about the prayers and atmosphere they give off on the outside, I feel like they are legendary seniors who were given early numbers.

On the other hand, the woman’s face looked too young. Even if she somehow managed to maintain her youth through aura training, what was that smooth, unblemished face? Even if you look closely, it didn’t look like someone who had crossed countless death lines and gained real-world experience.

‘How could that be possible?’

Prince Mores also seemed to have noticed the sense of unease the assassin was giving off.

“It’s strange. You seem to be very skilled at utilizing your aura, but the aura layer accumulated on your body is relatively weak.”

“… … .”

“You wouldn’t have destroyed a perfectly good Auror layer like Commander Bruno, would you? What the hell are you doing?”

The prince’s bright gray eyes stared intently into the assassin’s face. Occasionally, a strange red glow seemed to hover in the center of his pupils.

Although Number 21 didn’t realize it, his gaze was drawn beyond the assassin’s youthful face to the inside of the skull, wrapped in a clean hide.

and-

“…There is a salt crystal, right?”

Shh.

The prince showed his teeth and smiled eerily, as if he had figured out a clear answer.

“I was really hoping so, but that’s not your real body?”

“… … !”

Pfft!

Before Number 21 could even grasp the meaning of those words, the woman who had kicked the floor came swinging her sword with a fierce aura.

Bam! Bang!

The twin swords wrapped in a whitish light clash violently with the nutcracker.

The swordsmanship was sharper than before, and the murderous intent was even more fierce. It seemed that the prince’s words had greatly offended the assassin.

Hurrruk!

In response, the Nutcracker was also engulfed in crimson flames and set ablaze. Despite the difficult battle, it was only now that Prince Mores had revealed his aura.

It may have been a measure to protect the weapon from an unexpectedly strong enemy –

‘…fire?’

Number 21 was quite bewildered by the unfamiliar form of aura burning fiercely in the darkness.

Come to think of it, I had a brief conversation with the prince before entering the building.

-But, your Majesty, why don’t you use the outer air? If you don’t really want to maintain the aura concealment, it would have been much easier to just actively use the aura.

-hmm.

At that moment, the prince frowned as if he was embarrassed and answered like this.

-Actually, officially I’m still staying in Regina.”

-So?

Of course, No. 21 also guessed to some extent that the prince was trying to leave no traces behind. He didn’t even pull out the nutcracker he was used to, and he only used the stiletto he had retrieved, which was a hassle.

But even if weapons and swordsmanship are like that, isn’t it really necessary to restrict Aura as well?

-But the traces my aura leaves behind are so unique. Even so, I received a great blessing from the ancient fairies?

-…yes?

Only now did Number 21 understand the meaning of those words.

The prince’s worries were not unfounded. In fact, as the number of sword exchanges decreased, clear burn marks began to appear on the assassin’s smooth skin.

Of course, the prince wasn’t doing so well either. Every time the twin swords of the assassin wearing an aura brushed past, a thin line was drawn on the prince’s body and red blood spurted out.

It can’t be helped. Since it’s an extremely close combat at a speed that’s hard to keep track of even with your eyes, the evasion angle is also extremely limited.

‘The skills seem to be about the same… … .’

At first glance, it seems like women are superior in terms of attack speed.

But surprisingly, Prince Mores did not easily fall for her tricks. Even though the distance was not convenient for countering with a long sword, he gave her the opportunity to attack and appropriately cut off her attack every time.

Plus, the prince’s ominous aura.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The strange aura that burned more and more fiercely as time passed had a corner that stimulated the essential fear inherent in humans just by looking at it.

Chae Jae-jaeng! Chaeng! Chaeng!

While following the tangled path of swords that drew such dizzying afterimages, No. 21 carefully fiddled with the dagger in his bosom. Thinking that if things didn’t go well, he would have to join right away.

Phew!

However, the confrontation between the two ended sooner than expected. The two people suddenly closed the distance and swung their swords at each other with all their might.

“… … !”

The nutcracker’s blade sticks out through the woman’s chest.

On the other hand, the woman’s relatively short twin swords only lightly brushed under the prince’s armpits.

Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam!

The twin swords slipped from his weak hands and fell to the floor one after another, making a loud noise.

Cheeeeek!

Acrid smoke rose from the woman’s back. The outside air, which had penetrated deep into her chest along with the blade engulfed in flames, shook her insides and raged like crazy. Her flesh burned rapidly and the bleeding gradually subsided, but-

Prince Mores did not just sit back and watch.

Kkwadduk!

The sword caught between my ribs twisted violently, and a terrible noise of scraping raw bone was heard.

Then the prince made a big cut in the woman’s side and took out the nutcracker-

Gulp, gulp.

Blood poured out like a waterfall from the convulsed heart and lungs. The assassin vomited blood from his mouth and fell slowly to the floor like a puppet with its strings cut.

‘How terrible. Not even a single groan was shed until the very last moment… … .’

No. 21, who saw that the assassin’s eyes were slowly losing their light, took out a simple execution tool from his bosom and approached the prince.

“Are you alright, Your Majesty?”

“hmm.”

But the prince’s expression is unusual. His eyes, looking down at the fallen assassin, have become darker than ever.

“Number 21.”

“Yes, please give your order.”

“There’s one thing I didn’t tell you in advance because I didn’t think it was that important.”

“…What is that?”

Number 21 felt uneasy for no reason. And that unease soon became a reality. Then, from the prince’s mouth, a sound he had never imagined came out.

“Actually, I’ve been feeling the faint presence of people under this building for a while now.”

“A few…?”

I don’t feel anything?

As the nervous 21 focused his senses towards the basement, the prince continued his explanation while holding the nutcracker.

“Oh, that’s probably because the auror activity is abnormally low. So I just thought, maybe they were just imprisoning some civilians who were dying. That’s what happened… … .”

“… … .”

“Just now, one of them suddenly became very active and seemed to jump up from its seat.”

It was at that moment that No. 21 sensed a faint presence.

“And now, he’s rushing here at incredible speed-”

grasp!

As soon as he finished speaking, another assassin burst out from the half-broken wooden wall. A young female assassin in stealth attire, holding a short two-handed sword in her hands.

Chae chae chae! Chae chae!

As the nutcracker and the two-handed sword became madly entangled again, No. 21 looked at the woman, trying to collect his dizzying thoughts.

‘…the same person?’

For a moment, No. 21 thought so. But when he turned his head to check, the assassin from earlier was completely dead, lying on the floor like a crumpled rag.

‘No, but that can’t be… …!’

It could just be a coincidence. She is clearly a woman of similar age, but her build and presence are subtly different from the assassin from before.

But strangely, No. 21 felt a strange sense of kinship with the person who had just fought the prince, as if he had come back to life. And it seemed that this feeling of kinship was also the same for the prince who was dealing with the woman directly.

Swish swish swish!

The prince lightly deflected the two-handed sword that was shot at him in the same trajectory as before, and raised the corners of his lips in a sly manner.

“Haha! That’s ridiculous. You’ve been using the salt crystals to keep using the same people?”

“… … ?”

The prince, who had been muttering incomprehensible words, suddenly shouted loudly at No. 21.

“Number 21! Underground! Look in the basement!”

“yes?”

“There’s something down here! We have to get rid of it first!”

“No, who the hell said we should get rid of it… .”

“If you don’t know, just follow this guy!”

Pfft!

As soon as those words left his mouth, a small flame shot out from within the prince’s cloak. It was the ancient fairy who had been hiding until now.

The red flame circled over No. 21’s head a couple of times before disappearing into a narrow gap on one side of the floor. Judging by the small ladder hanging over it, it seemed to be a secret passage leading to the basement.

‘But is it okay to leave the decline like this?’

Number 21 looked back with worried eyes. However, despite the increasing number of minor wounds, the prince did not show any sign of fatigue.

Perhaps because he is concentrating so intensely, the fire in his eyes becomes darker and the flames surrounding the nutcracker become more intense.

“… … .”

At first glance, it seems believable.

Number 21, having made that judgment, left him behind and flew towards the dark basement.

* * *

The basement was plunged into complete darkness.

After briefly adjusting to the darkness by opening his eyes, No. 21 soon spotted the fairy flames waving in the distance as if beckoning, and kicked the floor.

Knock knock knock!

The underground structure that I saw while running was more complex than I thought. There were small rooms packed tightly on both sides, with dusty hallways in between.

‘That’s the secret base where so many assassins were hiding. Not that strange.’

Then, No. 21 passed by a room where strangely faint sounds were gathered.

‘Is it they who have sensed it?’

Naturally, his attention was drawn to that place, but No. 21 tried to ignore his anxiety and quickly passed by.

First of all, their presence was so faint that it was almost like they were dying –

‘The fairy seems to be in a great hurry.’

The movements seemed urgent, as if there was something more important. The croaker, which was jumping up and down as if urging, looked like a small squirrel jumping up and down a tree.

‘… No, what kind of nonsense are you thinking!’

Number 21, who ran along the flames, finally arrived at a small room at the end of the hallway.

It was a strange room filled with suspicious magic circles.

The candlelight that was dimly spreading out in the darkness, rather than dispelling the darkness, seemed to help fill the room with an even darker and more gloomy atmosphere. It would not be strange if a demon were summoned here at any moment.

‘… … .’

And in the center of it all, there was a shining green altar. A small tower of transparent beads, and a small green flame shining from above.

Sharp!

At that moment, the red flames began to circle around the altar again.

“Fairy? Do you have something to tell me?”

Whoosh! Whoosh!

“The altar? Is that the altar the problem?”

Flap flap!

The flames moving up and down quickly seem to be beckon. They look like they are desperately trying to convey something to No. 21.

‘I’m not sure, but… … .’

I guess that’s the problem?

It was a suspicious altar that didn’t seem to do any good to leave alone anyway. Number 21 bit his lips tightly and clenched his fists in a hurry to start destroying the altar.

Kwajangchang!

* * *

“Haha, you got a fun toy? You got lucky this time.”

Olivier, who was moving in the lead, looked back at the loot he had just acquired with a satisfied expression. How cute, how he managed to disrupt the communication of the entire organization by himself.

Because of this, information sent by those who were guarding Giovanni was completely blocked, and it took Olivier quite a while to figure out where the prince and his party were going.

“He had guts, but his skills were no joke. In the end, the entire pursuit force was mobilized to catch this guy.”

“… … .”

“This guy is probably a dog that Seonghwangga uses himself. Is his real name Sabrina?”

“… … .”

“Yeah, I don’t think so. I know that.”

Olivier, who had been chattering to himself, pushed his head in and carefully examined Dasha’s face, which had her eyes closed.

“… Hmm, I really like him. Let’s groom him and make him a member of our organization.”

“… … .”

“Be quiet. I make the decisions.”

Of course, if it’s a dog that’s been carefully selected by [Oberon’s Hand], it’s probably hard to expect a voluntary conversion. Still, you should spend as much time as possible to teach it well. Sabrina was worth it.

If the worst case scenario is that we can’t communicate at all, it’s okay to just take away that pretty shell.

“Well, it would be really boring if this guy turned into something like you guys.”

“… … .”

“You guys! When someone speaks, talk back.”

Olivier, who had been getting irritated for no reason, soon burst into laughter out of nowhere as he looked around at the expressionless assassins.

“Hahaha! Right. You guys couldn’t say anything even if you wanted to? Sorry~ Sorry~ Hahaha!”

It was just then.

Thud! Thud!

Suddenly, without warning, some of the assassins fell to the ground. Almost half of the total number of people.

“Huh?”

A startled Olivier kicked the fallen assassins and urged them on.

“Hey! Hey! Get up. I was just joking around… … .”

Then Olivier realized the gravity of the situation belatedly when he noticed that the souls had completely left their empty eyes.

no way…….

‘Head tower!’

Judging from the number of fallen soldiers, they are not from the capital city of Brindisi, but from the head tower built in a temporary stronghold.

I thought we had defended ourselves pretty well, but what could have happened to our stronghold?

Olivier hurriedly returned to the secret base, chasing the remaining men.

And soon-

Her fears turned out to be true.

“… … .”

With members of the organization lying around –

Squeak-

The entrance to the secret stronghold rattles weakly in the wind.

Olivier realized that something was seriously wrong, and when he finally reached the secret place he had kept hidden-

“hi.”

What greeted her was a completely destroyed tower and a young boy who should never have been there.

In a dark basement without any lights, silver-gray eyes with a strange glow blink leisurely as if greeting.

“I came to get my group back.”

“… … .”

“I have a few questions for you, by the way.”

The moment the boy’s gaze met Olivier’s spine, a chill ran down his spine.