The bell rang loudly. Roman Dmitry sat on the chair and looked over at the data Bracan had.
“If Ecorche fails to assassinate me and the guild dies in return, how do you think the assassination industry will react?”
It was an incomprehensible question. Bracan looked into Roman Dmitry’s eyes. He couldn’t understand why he pressed the bell and why he didn’t run.
‘Roman Dmitry is as belligerent as the rumors. Normally, people don’t react this extremely just because there was an assassination attempt, but he is a madman who even crossed the borders of the Kronos Empire for the purpose of revenge. Judging from his question, his goal is Ecorche. Then there is still a chance to turn things around.’
He tried using his head. The number of opponents was unpredictable. There might have been more enemies outside than expected, but the possibility of winning was low. The reason was the contents of the report he received the other day.
Bracan made a request to the information guild to figure out Dmitry’s situation, and he received a message related to him yesterday—the whereabouts of Roman Dmitry were unknown and instead of him, his subordinates were there.
Chris, Kevin, Henderson, and the others were all in Dmitry, and there wasn’t any report of them moving for any particular reason. That meant Roman Dmitry was most likely moving alone. And assuming that he decided to prevent the guild from assessing the situation and escaping, then that train of thought was definitely right.
It was reckless, and it wasn’t a common decision. However, considering the steps that Roman Dmitry took, it was a sufficiently realistic theory.
Bracan said,
“… If our guild perishes, the assassination industry will turn upside down. Ecorche is by far the best guild except for the Black Castle and the White Moon, which are the two largest guilds. And that means that you cannot act however you want.”
His attitude changed. He exaggerated about his guild on purpose. He scratched the pride of his opponent, and this made him feel nice.
“As you said, that bell will call my subordinates. There are dozens of assassins out there. Can you handle all of them? Roman Dmitry. I admit that you are strong. But the longer you stay here, the more assassins and troops of Kronos will flock here.”
It was a trick to buy some time. Instead of retreating, people with pride would take this opportunity to stand up and prove themselves. If that happened, things would go according to Bracan’s plan. It was clear that the guild members, who would storm into the office, would overpower Roman right away.
However….
“There are about thirty men left in this base. Excluding those that went out on missions, that would be the only power you can mobilize right now. Bracan, please, you do not have strength on your side.”
At that moment, he felt goosebumps rise.
Tatak.
There was a sound of footsteps in the distance. As if he had waited, Roman stood up with a calm expression.
The guild members entered the office. The first scene they saw was Roman Dmitry sitting and Bracan bleeding.
“Master!”
“Attack!”
There was no need for any explanations. The assassins rushed in. They threw daggers from all sides and attacked Roman Dmitry simultaneously.
It was a well-coordinated attack. One to his head, one to his right, one to his left, and one for each leg. And the assassins who arrived late also threw daggers, aiming for the gaps they found.
It was a menacing sight. In a situation where he was stepping into death, Roman swung his sword.
Papak!
All the daggers bounced back. At the same time, he grabbed the head of an assassin who was attacking, dragged him along with him, and slammed his face into the wall.
Crush.
An eerie sound was heard. Roman Dmitry left the corpse, not caring about the blood, and avoided the attacks.
The moment their eyes met, a single flash blew off the opponent’s neck. Then he smashed the face of another opponent.
Puak!
The human skull was hard. It was invulnerable to normal attacks, but it didn’t have any meaning in the face of the monstrous strength Roman had.
In the narrow space, the assassins and Roman Dmitry fought. Among the assassins, there were also those who used auras, and they specialized in fighting in small spaces.
Rumble.
Aura exploded. At the forefront, the assassins who used aura rushed in, and some figured to move alongside the wall, aiming for his blind spot.
Daggers were thrown without giving Roman a chance to breathe. The timing of their attacks would have resulted in one to two wounds, but Roman Dmitry didn’t waver even in such a situation.
Daggers continued to fly at him, and they all bounced back. Then an assassin who thrust his sword, hoping for Roman to move to his side, had his head blown off. And the assassins rushing from the sides were no different.
Roman Dmitry picked up one body and used it as a shield against the daggers, and he smashed another one in the face. Blood splattered everywhere. The blood of the assassins was staining the walls, turning them red.
One, two, and more bodies kept piling up. The assassins, who showed confidence at first, noticed that the situation wasn’t good.
Something was wrong. Aside from the fact that Roman Dmitry was strong, the man hasn’t used aura until now. He was just using all of his body’s force. The fact that he was dealing with so many assassins meant that something was wrong.
However, in the world of assassination, there was no such thing as a retreat. People who lived with death every day knew that retreating meant losing everything. Finally….
Slash.
Even the last assassin had his head cut off. His face, stricken with fear, floated in the air, and his headless body fell to the ground.
Just five minutes—that was the time it took him to take down the entire guild.
Bracan was at a loss for words. It was shocking. During the battle, he tried to attack with his one remaining arm, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it after seeing what was happening.
His eyes darted in every direction. It was hard to see how Roman Dmitry was taking down his opponents, even though he wasn’t using aura. What was certain was that when the blood splattered everywhere, the assassins met their deaths without fail.
Step.
Roman Dmitry didn’t care about him. He just brushed off the blood from his sword and moved on, passing through Bracan and approaching the vault behind him. And then….
Slash.
He cut it open with one strike. The vault of the guild was made of layers of steel, which meant it couldn’t be destroyed with pure force. However, it was cleanly cut. The steel fell, revealing what was stored inside, and Roman Dmitry checked the papers.
‘Ecorche is an assassination guild whose main clients are from the Kronos Empire. In addition to killing me, I can guess the intention of Kronos based on who the targets are.’
Swish.
He turned the papers over. The past was not important. What caught his eye was something else.
[1st Degree Assassination Calderon Drake]
[1st Degree Assassination Count London]
Two people—they were names that Roman was familiar with. Calderon Drake was the eldest son of the Drake family, and his father, Marquis Drake, was a key figure in the Umberto Kingdom. He was also the head of the military. When the nation was shaken by the ongoing war, he was a very upright man who insisted on not compromising until the end.
People said that the moment Marquis Drake knelt, that would be the day Umberto would fall. But what if… what would happen if his son died? Those who talked of compromising with Kronos—Marquis Drake would be convinced that they did it.
It was a simple way to bring down the Umberto Kingdom. Even though it wasn’t something huge, Marquis Drake was what Kronos could use to bring the kingdom down.
And Count London. He was a rich man from the Redford Kingdom, and unlike his notoriety as a miser, he was truly a hero who helped the nation from the shadows.
Their King had a huge debt, and Count London hurriedly moved to solve it. Knowing that once a conflict with the Golden Bank started, there was no turning back, he saved the nation from dying. Only then did the wealth that he already had begin to increase. And if he goes down, then the Redford Kingdom will too.
Just from the names of those two people, it was clear what the Kronos Empire’s intentions were. They weren’t defeating their enemies through war, but they were making a mess of their nations.
By slowly gnawing out the kingdoms from the inside, even if the Kingdoms’ Alliance all joined forces, there would be no way to stop Kronos’s attack.
Wheik.
He burned the documents, and….
“… is there a way for me to survive?”
Bracan said. He didn’t have a hostile attitude. He admitted defeat.
And in a manner so polite, Roman looked down at him,
“None.”
He ended it with that.
Slash.
Roman Dmitry cut off his head.
At that time, Cort ran like a man whose foot was on fire. His body wasn’t in the best state after a week of torture, and every time he stepped on the ground, a terrible pain ran through his head.
However, he couldn’t stop. Knowing that their base would be in danger if he stood still, he knew looking after himself wasn’t the right thing to do.
He gritted his teeth. He ran and ran. The cold air was hitting his wounds, but he didn’t care.
Step.
‘Roman Dmitry. I will take revenge on you.’
Living as an assassin, he may forget grace but never grudge. Keeping him alive was such a huge mistake.
Cort didn’t arrive at the Kronos Empire but at a certain place.
“No, what is that?!”
It was the Cairo branch of the Dante Guild. It was a group led by Dante, a high-class assassin, and they had a close relationship with Ecorche. Depending on the situation, they always helped each other out.
Dante’s eyes widened. Cort was a monster that even he couldn’t touch, and now he looked so weak.
“There is no time to explain. First, bring me a magic communicator! A magic communicator!”
From Dmitry to Kronos, time would run out. Thinking that running wouldn’t help, he decided to use this method to convey the information. It was the best decision. So they immediately brought it out and connected it to his guild.
“It isn’t connecting.”
“Shit!”
The situation was already a mess. Unless Ecorche accepted the call, it wouldn’t connect, so he called the client instead.
[From the looks of it, it seems like the mission has failed.]
Beyond the screen, Baron Charlton came into sight.
Cort said,
“Roman Dmitry foresaw our plan and set up a trap! All the assassins who attacked Dmitry are dead, and now Roman Dmitry is crossing the borders of Kronos to attack our base. Baron Charlton. This is your chance. If you move Kronos’s troops and send them to our guild, Roman Dmitry can be dealt with!”
He cried out earnestly. Yet despite Cort spitting out those words, Baron Charlton’s expression didn’t change.
[Is that all?]
At that moment, Cort went stiff. He felt an ominous feeling, and then a thought flashed through his head.
“…. No.”
The Kronos Empire—from the start, they didn’t expect Ecorche to win.
