Chapter 96: The Assassin of Chenarus (3)

The alarm bells rang from the entrance of the temple. It was a warning that something was amiss and that everyone should rise.

The guard at the temple entrance, having confirmed the body, was the first to run over.

After all, he had been the captain of the guard stationed at the temple until just a moment ago. Of course, this was a setback for me.

People were stirring from their sleep in all directions. There was no going back now.

Today, I must kill the bishop. At least I had managed to get close to him.

His room was conveniently located in a corner.

"What's happening?"

Five seconds after the alarm bells rang, the bishop opened the door and asked. The knight guarding the door tilted his head.

"Not yet. Shall I go and find out?"

"No, it will be fine. News will come soon. If it's just a trivial intrusion by an unbeliever, that would be fortunate, but who knows what else might happen."

"That's true. Don't worry. We will be on high alert!"

"Then I'll leave it to you."

The knight, who had loudly answered, looked resolutely around. The bishop closed the door again.

Click— The sound of the door locking was carried by the wind. The knights seemed not to have noticed.

I was approaching cautiously. There were two knights guarding the door.

The wind focused on the bishop. He headed straight for his desk and felt around underneath it.

'Hmm?'

He moved the rug and lifted the floor. It was his emergency escape route.

I didn't expect such a thing to be there. Due to observing the entire area, I hadn't checked the room in detail.

Still, his judgment was quite quick.

He immediately realized something was wrong as soon as the captain of the guard left.

His decision to flee rather than rely on mere possibilities was quite sharp.

He probably thought it was the imperial intelligence agency.

'Time...'

Originally, I planned to kill him in his room and then escape, but with the escape route, things have changed.

It will take time for him to get through that hole.

Can I kill him and escape afterward?

It was uncertain. The temple had no windows, so I had to leave the way I came in.

The lack of windows was for religious reasons.

The temple of the God of Light, Ru Noada, was meant to symbolize finding light in darkness.

'Of course, the bishop wouldn't have known that he would find a real god of darkness in the darkness.'

Still, magical lamps were lit throughout. I increased my speed and smashed the nearest magical lamp.

The knights' confusion was palpable.

"Huh?"

"Who, who is there!"

There were two opponents. I drew my sword in the darkness. I pushed off the ground with force in my legs.

My presence was completely controlled.

The knights, who hadn't yet adapted to the darkness, couldn't respond effectively.

With the speed of the wind, I beheaded one knight before he could draw his sword.

"Ugh!"

"Here...!"

The knight behind had drawn his sword but hadn't yet located me.

I stabbed him directly in the chest. The knight, who had been about to call for help, convulsed briefly and collapsed.

Two seconds. That was the time it took to deal with the two knights. I wasn't worried about the last cry.

I had control over the nearby sounds.

I opened the door, which was locked by the wind, and threw the two bodies inside.

I locked the door again and headed straight for the escape route.

'He didn't get far. I need to be as fast as possible.'

I lifted the rug and opened the entrance. There was a ladder, but I simply threw myself down.

The depth was about 3 meters. The underground tunnel was just wide enough for one person to move.

I kicked the ground continuously. The bishop was running ahead, unaware of my pursuit.

It was a 40-second distance. He wasn't a particularly skilled fighter.

The narrow tunnel wasn't ideal for running, but my exceptional balance made up for it.

Soon, I saw his back.

10 meters away. A magical wave brushed past me. It was his territory. The bishop turned around.

"!"

His eyes widened and his mouth opened in shock. He immediately reached out to me.

Darkness emerged from his hand. It was black magic. At the same time, I threw a dagger.

The flying dagger and the incoming dark beam narrowly missed each other.

The tunnel was too narrow to dodge, and the black magic was incredibly fast.

"Ugh!"

I twisted my body sharply, but the magic grazed my left arm. Despite the wind, the pain was intense.

I gritted my teeth and endured. The dagger was embedded in the bishop's neck.

Blood gushed from the wound caused by the force of the throw. The bishop collapsed like a statue.

I ran through the pain. I grabbed the embedded dagger and dragged it across his neck.

A red line was drawn across his throat. The dangling head was not a pleasant sight.

'Time is short.'

I immediately searched his body. There was nothing. I didn't have the time to check his tattoos.

The wind was conveying the chaos outside.

Was there something in the office? There was no other option now. I had to trust the imperial intelligence agency.

I pondered in the tunnel leading in one direction.

'Should I go forward or retreat?'

I couldn't check the end of the tunnel with the wind. Waiting was too risky.

What was at the end of the tunnel? A den of demon worshippers? Or outside the city?

Was it the right judgment to go forward? If I retreated, I would have to face people.

There were risks either way. My job was to minimize those risks.

'I need to consider my injury as well.'

I turned around. At least now I knew the layout of the temple and who was approaching.

Wearing a mask, a brief encounter wouldn't be a problem.

I ran back up the tunnel. Two bodies greeted me in the office.

The commotion was now approaching the bishop's room.

'I need to change the escape route.'

There was an escape route I had planned, but the situation had changed. I wasn't panicked.

Plans die the moment you start the operation.

I quickly thought. Even if it wasn't perfect, I had to act on what I saw.

Something flashed in my mind.

I focused on the wind. My internal magic power rippled. The moon inside me shone brightly.

At the same time, darkness descended on the temple. All the magical lamps in the temple were broken.

'The convenience of magic becomes a disadvantage when it disappears.'

They would either fetch more magical lamps from the storage or light unused torches.

Either way, it would take the followers of Ru Noada quite some time to find light.

It usually takes 15 minutes to adapt to the dark. Skilled knights take about 4 minutes.

I had to escape within that time. I kicked the ground.

A knight heading to the bishop's room was right in front of me. I ran past him.

I had blocked my presence, but he seemed to sense something was off and called out.

"Who's there?"

By the time he finished speaking, I had already turned the corner. I had control over the sound, so there was no worry.

The pain in my arm was intense. It was due to the black magic. It would last quite a while.

I gritted my teeth and ran.

I brushed past a few more people. After about 2 minutes, people started to notice me.

"Who are you? This is Merkin!"

The darkness only allowed for vague shapes. The mask I wore wasn't a concern.

I simply followed the escape route I had planned.

The entrance of the darkened temple was crowded, so I had no intention of going that way.

I escaped through the back door.

It was a bright night, but there was no one on this side. I immediately ran and jumped over the wall, escaping the temple.

I climbed the wall and quickly made my way to the roof of a nearby building.

At the edge of the roof, a large full moon greeted me.

Phew. I took a deep breath and turned around.

'At least it was a success.'

The temple of Ru Noada was now lit up. People with torches could be seen everywhere.

My heart was pounding. I had quite a bit of combat experience, but...

This was the first time I had moved so dangerously alone, with no support or preparation.

A scream from a follower who had checked the bishop's room echoed.

* * *

-Bishop Yorop and the capital's captain of the guard were assassinated. The captain of the guard was found dead in an alley outside the temple, and the bishop was found dead in his emergency escape route inside the room. ...

The next day. The front page of the newspaper I unfolded as soon as I returned from my shift.

-...The captain of the guard's visit to the temple, despite his usual piety, is puzzling. However, the timing is the issue. Why did the captain of the guard visit the temple at dawn?

The assassination covered the entire front page and continued into the second and third pages.

The front page stated the facts, while the second and third pages were filled with speculations about the reasons.

-It is confirmed that Bishop Yorop met with the captain of the guard, but the nature of their conversation is unknown. What was the reason for their meeting at dawn? The reason for the assassination is likely related to this.

-The temple of Ru Noada was also in a state of confusion. The bishop's room was not supposed to have an emergency escape route. Why did the bishop create one without the temple's knowledge? The investigation into what lies at the end of the escape route is ongoing.

Of course, there were mentions of me, though they were speculative.

-The assassin is believed to be a highly skilled individual. The captain of the guard died without drawing his sword, and the two knights guarding Bishop Yorop showed little resistance.

-It is almost unbelievable that all the magical lamps in the temple were broken simultaneously. This suggests that the assassin was not only a skilled fighter but also a powerful mage.

Frankly, I felt relieved. My secret was perceived as magic from the outside.

I had expected this when I killed the bishop, but the previous targets were also naturally linked.

-Some speculate that the deaths of Duke Pueto and Sir Leveto on the same day might also be the work of the assassin.

-A mage capable of breaking all the magical lamps simultaneously could also have caused the chandelier to fall, affecting the drunk Sir Leveto...

-The guard has expressed a desire for any suspicious sightings, regardless of what they are.

The article was actually published today, but the rumors started circulating yesterday afternoon.

Phirri would have come to me immediately, asking if I had heard anything. I claimed I knew nothing.

In any case, it was strange to hide such an event, even in a newspaper managed by the royal family, but it was quite detailed.

The absence of any mention of demon worshippers in such a significant event allowed for some speculation.

'The imperial intelligence agency can't be unaware.'

They were controlling the information. The emperor might not even know about the demon worshippers.

King Haisen's intelligence chief also had things he didn't tell the king.

Moreover, the probability that the imperial intelligence agency intentionally created the demon worshippers was high.

They were likely trying to handle the issue themselves rather than reveal their own shortcomings.

If the emperor had known about their existence, he would have used it for succession disputes.

He would have wanted to see who would be the first to suppress them.

'Someone in the imperial intelligence agency, whether the chief or someone below, is heavily involved.'

From the intelligence agency's perspective, they would want to handle the matter as quietly as possible. It seemed they were already quite late.

I could understand the intelligence chief's position.

Would the intelligence chief's life be spared if the emperor found out? The answer was clear.

In the game, information about demon worshippers didn't exist on the continent until they revealed themselves.

'This... Perhaps exposing their true identity wouldn't be bad.'

If I could create an incident and inform the emperor, it might improve the situation.

The words of someone with the Founding Emperor's Medal wouldn't be easily dismissed.

Since the demon worshippers would likely approach me, I could use that person.

'Hmm.'

I maintained a calm expression and focused on the wind. The intelligence agency hadn't yet started monitoring me.

Either they were outside or didn't have the resources to invest in me at the moment.

I didn't want to miss this opportunity.

I needed to be cautious and systematically eliminate the suspects.

I believed the system message didn't appear because of this.

Despite the difficult assassination, the lack of news suggested that the world hadn't yet recognized the completion of my mission.

In any case, this assassination was quite profitable. The burden of the empress was heavy, but it was better to know.

I didn't immediately have a plan. Phew. I needed to think about it over time.

* * *

"The assassin has appeared."

"I heard."

The next day, during sword training, Erendil brought up the topic. She looked at me without saying a word.

The atmosphere was tense.

"Was it you, by any chance?"