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Chapter 76
As planned, Lucius fed false information to Marlin.
And, believing Lucius’s words without question, Marlin immediately passed the news to Emily.
Everything went exactly as Messina had predicted.
“Now Killian won’t take an interest in this matter anymore, right?”
“Yes, Messina.”
Sezanne relayed to Messina all the conversations that had taken place at the Starr mansion.
“They were told that the Crown Prince imported new horses from another country. Fortunately, the Starr mansion is treating this misunderstanding as nothing more than a simple incident.”
“That’s a relief.”
Jed, who was listening alongside her, spoke up.
“So, when do we schedule the next operation?”
“Four days from now.”
“Alright, I’ll relay that to the others below as well.”
“Good.”
Having been there and now hearing the exact day of the operation, Sezanne quietly waited until Messina met her gaze.
“Sezanne, I’ll show you the operation headquarters today. Follow me.”
Sezanne’s expression lightened at Messina’s words.
Finally, she would find out the location where Killian’s assassination would take place today.
“You seem pleased.”
“Yes, it seems Messina has finally recognized me as a member.”
“Then keep performing well from now on.”
“Yes, I won’t disappoint you.”
Messina altered her appearance through disguise, and Sezanne, with her hat pulled down low, followed behind.
The carriage they rode in headed toward a city familiar to Sezanne.
“This place….”
When the carriage stopped, Sezanne looked at Messina, confused.
“Let’s go upstairs and discuss it first.”
“Ah, yes.”
Sezanne went up to the building directly across from Delina House.
Upon reaching the top floor and opening the door, she found several of the Rejeta Family operatives already lying in wait.
“Are we shooting the magical bullets at Killian from here?”
“Yes.”
Messina answered Sezanne’s question without hesitation.
“We’ll fire two shots at the head and two at the heart.”
Killing someone seemed incredibly easy for Messina.
“So, what should I do to help?”
Sezanne asked nervously.
“You…”
A smirk lifted the corner of Messina’s mouth.
“You’re going to be entrusted with a very, very important task.”
D-Day
It was the day of Killian’s assassination.
Messina wore a black mask covering her entire face.
She possessed an A-grade magical ability, a rare power among commoners. Being a woman yet able to effortlessly command her operatives was largely due to this.
As a member of the family using the Bear emblem, the magical bullets she fired were explosively powerful.
Combining her innate strength, speed, and flawless aim, it was no wonder the Rejeta Family had never failed in an assassination before.
Sezanne’s task was to stay at Delina House and, the moment Killian showed himself, move to the adjacent building to alert Rejeta.
Though trivial compared to others’ tasks, it was still quite important and something only a Starr operative like Sezanne could handle.
As usual, Killian moved to Delina House around six in the evening.
At this point, an hour had passed since he entered Delina House.
With plenty of time expected before he came out, the two operatives guarding the door engaged in brief small talk while looking at Killian’s picture posted on the wall.
“Honestly, you have to give him credit for looks. Even in a sloppy photo, nothing’s ruined.”
“Yeah, I guess you need looks like that to get the Empire’s most beautiful wife.”
“Have you seen his wife?”
“How could I? I’ve only heard rumors.”
One of them, admiring Killian’s photo, noticed something strange and removed the pictures from the wall to inspect them closely.
“Why are you taking the pictures off all of a sudden?”
“Wait, something’s off here.”
“What is?”
“All the poses in the photos are the same.”
His odd observation caught the attention of the other operative, who also leaned in to look.
“Huh? It’s true.”
“See? It’s definitely strange. It’s like the person knew we’d be taking pictures…”
Hearing the commotion from behind, Messina strode over, annoyed.
“Getting rowdy among yourselves before an important operation? How dare you make noise at the headquarters! Want to die?”
“It’s not that, Messina. Look at this.”
“Don’t think it’s anything trivial.”
Messina snatched the photos from them.
As she examined them, she sensed something odd and reached for more.
“…Give me the other photos too.”
“Yes!”
Like the other operatives, Messina studied the photos with a serious expression.
“Damn it!”
She cursed and ran to the window overlooking Delina House.
“What’s the matter, boss?”
Jed immediately followed her.
“I think Killian knows everything.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean he seems to know we’re planning to assassinate him!”
Jed picked up the photos of Killian from the floor to examine them.
In all the photos, he rested his hand on his chin. It wasn’t just one or two; every single photo showed the same pose.
This gesture meant: “I don’t care what schemes you’re planning.”
“What the hell does he know and to what extent?”
“Messina, calm down. He’s probably only realized that someone is watching him.”
Messina’s tension eased slightly at this.
“Do you really think so?”
“Yes, he wouldn’t believe we intend to assassinate him. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have invited us to the mansion.”
“So the location hasn’t been exposed, right?”
“Absolutely not.”
“…Still, it feels unsettling.”
“If he wanted, he would have raided this house already. But nothing’s happened.”
As Jed said, the surroundings were calm.
“Still, everyone, stay alert and keep the defenses tight.”
“Yes, understood!”
Following Messina’s orders, the operatives resumed their positions to keep watch on Delina House.
Though her heart pounded, Messina tried to calm herself through meditation. Whether Jed was right or not, it was too late to back out now.
And Killian is already inside… I just have to kill Killian. Just Killian…
Time passed, and finally, Sezanne emerged from Delina House.
She went straight up to the building and reported to Messina.
“He’s about to come out now.”
“Good, get ready.”
Messina prepared to shoot at Killian, while the other operatives prepared for any accompanying subordinates.
“No mistakes. Focus.”
“Yes, Messina.”
The room was tense enough that not even a single breath could be heard.
After a few minutes, as Sezanne had said, Killian appeared outside.
“Ready.”
It was odd that no other subordinates followed him, but there was no time to care. The target was Killian alone.
“Goodbye, Killian.”
Messina fired at his head, while Jed aimed at his heart.
Bang! The gunfire echoed through the quiet night.
Killian fell immediately, and upon hearing the shots, the Starr Family operatives rushed out of Delina.
“Shall we shoot?”
“No need. No one saw us kill Killian, so avoid unnecessary bloodshed. Hurry and clean up here.”
The priority was to leave as quickly as possible.
“Yes, understood!”
Sezanne checked outside the window while the rest packed weapons into bags.
“All done?”
“Yes! Almost finished.”
As they finished, fireworks suddenly went off outside the window.
“What’s that noise?”
Messina stopped packing and stared blankly outside.
“What… fireworks? Wait!”
She shoved Sezanne aside and looked again. The people who had been on the street earlier were gone.
“Everyone, get your weapons! Now!”
But the Rejeta Family’s reaction was slow.
Their hideout doors were already being torn apart by outsiders.
A strange scent filled the room, paralyzing the Rejeta operatives.
“Messina, it’s too late.”
“How did…?”
The intruders into the Rejeta hideout were, in fact, the Starr Family.
“Sezanne, good work.”
“Yes, Giovanni.”
Sezanne, who had been with them the whole time, looked completely fine. They immediately began restraining the Rejeta operatives.
Messina glared furiously at Sezanne, who was restraining her. She really shouldn’t have trusted her recklessly.
“Messina, stop glaring so hard.”
Then, through the Starr operatives, a very familiar voice was heard.
Messina, barely able to control herself due to the incense, lifted her head in shock. Someone she never expected to see there.
“Could it be… alive?”
Seeing the face of the person who had entered the room late, as if to finish off the confirmation kill, Messina’s eyes trembled wildly.
“Yes. Did you think I’d be dead?”
