Chapter 21

EP.21 Dedicated Knight-3

"Magic...?!"

[Wind Bullet]

A bullet of wind condensed in his hand and was fired. The bullet of wind sent the man standing next to him flying, his chest torn open.

"I... I...! I won't... laugh...!"

"Yeah, I remember you for your pretty gums."

Smack!

Leo's punch twisted his oral structure, making his gums stand out. The force of the blow sent shockwaves to his brain, causing him to foam at the mouth, but it wasn't enough to hide the charm of his gums.

"This is... ridiculous...!"

"Oh, right. There was a client who told you about it."

[Stone Lance]

Rocks rose and formed a blunt spear. It might as well be called a long club.

Crack!

"Argh...!!"

"But your overbite is unattractive."

Saying this, Leo pierced his sternum. The lack of a blade meant he wouldn't die, but it was enough to seal his lips and fracture his sternum.

With the overbite no longer visible, his face looked much better.

"You...!!"

This time, another one shouted. At the same time, several daggers rained down on Leo.

"Dagger technique... Judging by the style, it's the 'Blood Shadow' method."

A light evaluation, the daggers were light enough to be deflected by a simple spin of the spear.

It was also a naive technique, allowing him to break through and approach without resistance.

"Arghhh!"

The scream drowned out the sound of flesh being pierced. A blunt spear could still penetrate flesh with enough force, and even shatter the bones inside.

"That...! That guy! It's him!!"

"Who...!?"

"The guy in the newspaper! The Joke Assassin...!!"

Smack!

Unfortunately, the words ended with "Joke Assassin...". The spear, flying forcefully, crushed the philtrum of the loudmouth.

There was no way to know who he was trying to talk about.

He shouldn't know.

"...I'll... kill you!! Joke...!"

To Leo, a joke meant murder.

Indeed, upon hearing the word "joke," he displayed a madness-like performance.

"Hey, who am I?"

"...The Joke Assassin... sir...!"

Crack

It was the wrong answer.

The slight twist of the subordinate's neck allowed the last remaining assassin, the leader, to realize the truth.

"Who am I?"

The leader

"...L... Leonardo sir."

"You have good instincts."

Thud

As a reward for the correct answer, the dagger that fell stabbed his palm and the floor.

"...Arghhh!!"

"Calm down. I still have a lot of questions."

The assassin's collar was grabbed by Leo.

This caused the dagger in his wrist to open the wound wider.

But he couldn't scream.

The fear in that child's eyes stifled even the scream.

Or, was he even a child?

The cognitive dissonance... it felt even more absurd.

His thoughts were shattered, and his senses were disoriented.

If left like this, the torture would begin.

For that existence, such actions would be as simple as yawning.

He quickly inserted his tongue between his teeth to extract a pill.

A suicide poison used among assassins.

Prepared to prevent leaks of confidential information, but now it was the only way to avoid the torture.

"Oh, right."

Snap

Leo's grip opened the leader's mouth. Then,

"Arghhh!!"

He used his other hand to pull out the tooth where the pill was hidden. Blood gushed to the floor, and the molar with gum attached was held in Leo's hand.

"...Why the rush? Let's talk slowly."

Throwing the pill and the molar to the floor, Leo prepared for the 'conversation.'

"Name."

No poison, no strength.

All that was left was bravado.

"You...! You'll regret this...!"

Smack!

A punch flew. His nose broke.

"Tell me your name."

"That was just a bluff...!"

A kick came. His jawbone cracked.

"What? You sent a pursuer after Aria?"

"...Y-Yes! If you don't chase...!"

Flesh was torn. The flesh of his earlobe was ripped under his fingernails.

"It doesn't matter. Even if all of your organization goes after her, Aria won't be caught."

The pursuer, at best, would be a mid-level assassin. And there would only be two or three of them.

That level wasn't something to worry about for Aria; it would be more appropriate to worry about the pursuer's identity.

"...Then...! Then... why...?!"

Pain surged. His right vision was darkened. His thumb had long since pierced his eyeball.

"I'm the one asking questions. This is the last one, so answer well."

Leo raised the dagger. Even the patience of a saint has its limits.

"Name."

"Kan..."

The dagger was aimed at Kan's last eye.

"...It's me...!"

Leo put down the dagger and continued the questioning.

"Affiliation."

"Blood Shadow... sir...!"

This was as expected.

The important part was coming up.

"Mission details."

"...That's...!"

A late answer, and his patience didn't last long.

"Arghhh!!"

Leo's fingernails pulled out Kan's thumbnail. Unsatisfied with the scream, Leo posed a question to stimulate his imagination.

"Let me tell you something. You have 10 fingernails, and 10 fingers. So, you can be tortured 20 times just with your hands. Add your feet, and how many times can you be tortured?"

It was a simple arithmetic problem.

"Leonardo... sir, you were to be kidnapped...!!"

The effect of the question was tremendous.

Uncertain information was now confirmed.

He had felt a sense of déjà vu from the beginning.

Capturing a knight as a hostage for negotiation was one thing, and the fact that he was 'kindly' restrained instead of having his tendons cut was another.

"Who ordered it?"

"...T-That's...!"

"Ah, if you don't want to say, don't. I have a good idea. It's easier for me to kill you."

Leo held the dagger in reverse and prepared to strike.

Was it the fear of death?

Or the primitive defiance of a human?

"Jihad...!!"

He spoke.

"Jihad Dainons...! He gave the order...!"

An unexpected name.

Good thing he bluffed.

"Jihad?"

Faint but definitely remembered.

His pettiness and meanness were unparalleled even among small-minded people.

"Yes! He said to bring you back alive, with a hefty reward...!"

"So, Jihad, who worked as a bodyguard for Reinhardt?"

"Yes! So...!"

"Alright. I think I've asked everything I needed."

"Then...!"

Of course, keeping a promise was the right thing to do.

Bang!

Smashing his head into the floor, Leo kept his promise.

Before he could scream, the leader fell like a legless worm.

[As expected of the Joke Assassin. The performance is solid.]

<Now I'm tired of being annoyed.>

[But you don't have to kill him, right? You said you would.]

In fact, contrary to the announcement of killing, Leo didn't kill anyone. The assassins were all unconscious or severely injured, but not dead.

<They'll be executed eventually. No need to get blood on my hands.>

He hadn't killed them yet.

Attacking the beloved of Reinhardt was an unpardonable crime.

[But you've already gotten your hands dirty, haven't you? Look at your hands.]

<It's fine. Aria didn't see.>

Actually, sending Aria wasn't out of concern for her safety. She was an exceptional genius.

But Ariasfil was still a girl, and at her age, seeing such a dirty situation would be too much to handle mentally.

[But... Jihad? Wasn't he the bodyguard who got fired and beaten up?]

<Yes. That guy.>

Jihad's behavior was so memorable that even the old sage remembered his name.

[But to take revenge like this? Are you really crazy?]

The sage was busy despising, but Leo looked at the nearly dead assassins with a puzzled expression.

<Am I really crazy?>

Leo, the reincarnated, knew that his intervention had created significant differences between his past and present lives.

The current attack was one of those changes.

But the unnaturalness of the situation remained.

<No matter how blinded by revenge, would he really attack Reinhardt's beloved and knight in a rational way?>

Even a madman wouldn't dare to touch the hero's family.

Without direct confrontation, they would be destroyed socially and through the media, and sometimes even by radical followers.

[That's why they focused on you.]

<Even then, it's strange.>

When the assassins first attacked, Leo raised his sword defensively. The 'Blood Shadow' assassins were skilled in throwing daggers.

He had to be extra cautious.

<But they didn't. It was as if the condition was to leave no marks.>

[They threw daggers earlier.]

<It's better to fail the mission than to die.>

That would undermine the justification for revenge. Why be so kind to someone he was supposed to take revenge on?

The honor of 'I will take revenge myself' was too grand for Jihad's despicable record.

[...Then...]

<There must be a black hand behind this. A black hand greater than Jihad.>

This wasn't the end.

It was just the beginning.

With that certainty,

"Leo!!"

Aria ran over.

And at the same time,

Click

The sound of handcuffs echoed roughly.

And Leo was arrested...?

***

"..."

[...]

"..."

[...]

A familiar situation, a familiar room, a familiar silence continued.

"...Ah... ha..."

Breaking the silence, Leo sighed deeply.

[Why do you have such a connection with prison? Shouldn't you just give up?]

Hearing that annoying tone, his sense of reality gradually returned.

<Do you think I like this?>

The story was as follows.

Aria easily evaded the pursuer and contacted the nearby guards and the family.

After finishing the call, Aria returned to the alley with the guards to protect Leo.

But the guards arrested Leo.

It was a strange incident, but the reason for the arrest was simple.

[Who told you to use magic?]

A mere mercenary, not a mage, using magic was enough to raise suspicion and warrant arrest.

<You taught me to use it. Damn.>

Even without seeing it, the circumstances were enough to raise suspicion. Especially the scorched ground from the Fireball was solid evidence.

[So, what now? Will you be released immediately?]

<If it were that easy, it would be great, but it's unlikely.>

[You charmed the hero's daughter. That should...]

This guy, no matter how much you peel him, only shows disgusting traits. Truly admirable.

<It's not that simple.>

If he had just used sword skills or aura to defeat the assassins, they wouldn't have reacted so sensitively.

<The problem is that I used magic.>

[What's the big deal? In my time, that was just a joke...]

<That's the problem.>

No need to explain, the sage was a 300-year-old bachelor, and his knowledge was outdated.

[So, why?]

In 300 years, everything has changed.

The mountains, the villages, the cities, and even the laws.

<There are organizations that go ballistic over magic, mages, and magical tools.>

[Who are they?]

Creak

The locked door opened, and two people in robes entered.

Their thick robes and long-brimmed hats hinted at their identity.

To be precise,

<The Magic Tower.>

Also, the sage's distant and obscure junior.

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