"I'm impressed you found out..." Legris Demien smiled.
He didn't seem bothered or worried in the slightest.
Donning the usual optimistic demeanor, the Lecturer--now traitor--seemed even more relaxed than before. It could be that he had given up, or...
"Don't be. It's a shame I didn't find out sooner."
If I had taken action quicker, perhaps things wouldn't have come to this. But, I was done blaming myself and being weighed by unnecessary shackles of guilt.
I promised everyone I would take responsibility for their lives, so I intended to do just that.
'Killing the culprit should be enough!'
While it was selfish and self-serving, I was going to ease my conscience by ending things right here and now.
"How did you--"
"--Find out your identity? It's a long story... too long for tonight."
Unlike the time with Liliana, there was no need to buy time, neither was there any cause to explain my rationale.
In essence, it profited me nothing to drag on this confrontation.
"You're going to die here. Before that, though... I have a question. If you answer me honestly, I just might reveal my method to you." I smiled.
Legris grinned, having a sparkle in his eyes. It seemed he had an inking of my incoming inquisition.
'No matter... I just need to ask.'
"Why? Why are you trying to kill me?"
It had been a question plaguing me ever since the first assassin tried to take my life.
Even as an innocent baby, who had never committed a crime, the enemy had set their sights on me.
Initially, my paranoia told me that it could be a consequence of my reincarnation. However, after adjusting a bit, I surmised that it could be the work of some opposing faction.
Unfortunately, even the latter didn't seem to be the case the more I delved deeper.
Not only was our family a very powerful one, but we were also so deeply rooted in the aristocratic society that we had no enemies.
While I didn't mean we were perfect, I just meant that no one in their right mind would attack a Leonard.
If they were people of means, they gained more in cooperating with us, rather than resorting to petty assassination.
Sure, there were some idiots who didn't know the way of the world and would try assassinating an heir to get rid of the competition, but... at some point, the possibility of that being the case of my opponent seemed slim.
The enemy was too smart for that.
It didn't make any sense for them to attack out of spite or Ill will toward my household.
It almost made me revert to my earlier assumption, but I debunked it pretty quickly. If I had reincarnated and they knew of this fact, the enemy wouldn't have sent such an assassin the first time.
They would have considered the possibility of someone being more powerful. Their actions after that period told me that they simply didn't have any information concerning me.
Which begged the question... why?!
"Why? Hehe, I figured you'd ask that..." Legris chuckled a bit.
My eyes narrowed and my smile slowly faded away.
This was it--the moment of truth.
It was the reason I had painstakingly ensured they sent someone capable to kill me this time around... so I could arrive closer to the truth.
It was risky, but... it was better than having no information and dealing with attacks as they came.
I needed to know!
"... Why should I tell you, though?"
'I knew it...'
This was the downside to my plan--Cooperation!
Why would the enemy divulge Intel? Who would spill info to the member of an opposing party?
"Hm. You have nothing to lose, don't you? If you kill me here and now, you can keep your secret and reason. But... I simply want to know before going to my grave." I smiled and gave a sarcastic reply.
"Haha, this kid..." Legris laughed.
My eyes never left him throughout
"... I could just kill you and still not say a thing. Besides, you wouldn't have approached me if you didn't have a means of killing me."
He knew me well, just as I wanted.
"I saw the large crater you made in your fight with that Shadow Demon. You know he was a Demon Lord, right? The fact that you reduced him to that state as a kid is impressive... it's no wonder they are after your life."
My ears twitched the moment I heard that last part.
"They?" I repeated.
Of course, I knew Legris didn't say it by accident. He clearly wanted to get my attention.
In essence, this was bait.
"Why don't we swap Intel? Tell me how you figured out my identity and I'll tell you what you want. After the exchange, we can duke it out... or whatever."
Legris Damien seemed fairly confident--if not completely assured--of his victory. Unfortunately for him, I didn't plan on losing this time.
"Why don't you begin? Tell me the reason behind this whole game. You've been trying this since twelve years ago. Why me?"
I already knew it had nothing to do with my family.
This guy--whoever was behind him as well--was after me as a person.
Why?!
"I'm a member of a certain organization. They want your life because you're a threat to them."
'What?!'
I didn't understand a single thing.
"I don't know the details since I'm a lower seat of the twelve major members, but..."
What was he talking about?
"... Apparently, you're a singularity that should be purged."
What the hell was this?
"Hey... what are you talking about? You guys have been after me since I was a baby, and you think it's gonna cut it that I'm a threat to you? What the hell is that? I never did anything to you people!"
I was supposed to be calm, but my bottled-up frustration began surfacing a little.
"Hey, chill. As I said, I don't know the details. I'm only the 9th Seat, you know? It's an incredible group."
There was a possibility that Legris was lying, but why would he spout something this ridiculous and expect me to take it as the truth?
Wouldn't someone like Neron be more of a threat to them? Why didn't they kill him instead?
"It seems you don't believe me..." Legris interrupted my thoughts.
"It's hard to trust in those words. They're too absurd."
"Fine, then... then, I'll tell you this--maybe you'll be able to make sense of it--you are an anomaly in this world. Something about your existence isn't supposed to be."
That struck a chord within me.
Was this what he meant by me being a singularity? Then there was only one possible explanation for this...
... My reincarnation!
