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Chapter 40
As expected.
After leaving the alleyway, Arteon went around to every blacksmith in the capital.
As befitting a large city, there were indeed quite a number of blacksmith shops.
‘…To think that merchant was actually telling the truth.’
There was not a single place that produced better goods than the shabby little blacksmith shop in the alley he had first seen.
No—calling it a “slight difference” would be embarrassing; the gap was that enormous.
“What on earth kind of person is he…?”
He couldn’t understand how someone with that level of skill could be running such a small, run-down forge.
But…
“I’m way too late now.”
It had been a long time since he’d found a decent blacksmith, and in going around the capital’s forges to compare them, he hadn’t realized how late it had gotten.
“Besides, it’s more comfortable to stay somewhere a bit quiet anyway.”
Arteon headed toward an inn with its lights on.
It was a rather small inn, but perhaps because it was in the capital, the prices were on a completely different level from Almeres, the northern city.
“…Damn it, those insane highway robbers. Twelve silver for one night in a room this small?”
Feeling as though even his soul had been stripped away, Arteon grumbled as he lay down on the bed.
But soon…
“……”
Arteon calmly reflected on the recent events.
In his past life, at around this time, he had reclaimed the Helikel Gorge—something that had never been scheduled to happen.
That alone had become a major turning point capable of drastically changing the situation on the northern front.
‘How will the Empire move from here on…?’
Would they simply continue to hold their ground like now?
Or would they advance forward?
If they chose to advance, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say the timetable would be shortened by at least five years.
Which meant, in other words, that significant changes could arise within the Empire itself because of this event.
‘And those guys… how will they act?’
The one who deserved the closest attention was undoubtedly Belkein.
In his past life, Belkein had been an outstanding soldier, but because he never involved himself in political struggles, he had died a meaningless death in the North.
But with the reclamation of Helikel Gorge, wasn’t it possible that he could rise to the position of legion commander?
Perhaps the future of the northern front could even come to revolve around Belkein.
Naturally, from the perspective of the central powers, which side managed to win Belkein over would become a critical issue.
“But he’s not an easy man.”
Money or power—
He wasn’t the kind of person who could be swayed by such sweet temptations.
Thinking about what lay ahead, Arteon closed his eyes.
It felt as though an overwhelming number of events had flashed past him like arrows.
But then—
“…?”
Arteon opened his eyes again.
Behind the inn building, the sound of someone climbing up along the wall.
Sharpening his senses, Arteon tracked the intruder’s movements.
After all, the target might be another room.
“……”
Still, ominous premonitions were never wrong.
Suppressing his presence as much as possible, Arteon slowly raised his body.
He didn’t know who had sent them, but… the purpose was clear enough.
Pressing himself tightly against the wall near the window, Arteon even stilled his breathing.
Soon, with a faint creaking sound—
Slide.
The window of the room Arteon was staying in opened.
And the moment the intruder cautiously stuck his face inside—
Grab!
“Ugh—mph…!”
With his left hand gripping the back of the intruder’s head, Arteon immediately covered his mouth with his right.
The man instinctively reached out toward Arteon, but—
Crack!
“…!”
Arteon twisted the man’s neck and slammed him onto the floor.
Bang!
The man collapsed with a loud crash, his body twitching violently.
With his cervical vertebrae damaged and nerves severed, excruciating pain and full-body paralysis set in.
Of course, he was still alive.
Arteon hadn’t completely broken his neck.
‘…An assassin.’
It wasn’t unexpected, but it was still surprising.
He hadn’t thought they’d move this quickly.
But assassins like this—
‘…The Kar tribe’s assassins were far more dangerous and powerful.’
Setting aside his old memories for a moment, Arteon looked down at the fallen assassin.
“I know you won’t talk anyway. So… don’t say a word until the end.”
With that, Arteon rolled up part of the blanket and stuffed it into the man’s mouth.
The blanket was jammed so tightly into his gaping mouth that his jaw looked as though it might dislocate; he could only gag silently.
His panicked eyes stared up at Arteon.
Judging by his appearance, he still looked like a boy—but why did he give off the unmistakable air of a seasoned torture subject?
Tap.
“If you happen to feel like saying something… blink your eyes quickly.”
There was no need to waste much time on small fry anyway.
A few decisive checks—
Either he’d die… or he’d talk.
Arteon drew up his mana and focused it into his leg.
Crack!
“Kaaaarghhhhhhhhh!”
With the sensation of his calf bone shattering, the man flailed like a live fish.
A scream leaked out through his tightly blocked mouth.
But this much, he should be able to endure.
Having bones crushed…
With training, one could withstand that.
But how about this?
“Alright, I’ll show you just once. If you endure this well too, I’ll simply kill you next time.”
Arteon grabbed the assassin’s shattered calf, bone fragments protruding from it.
Into that wounded body…
‘If I shape mana into spikes and push it inside…’
Of course, changing the form of mana was no easy feat.
Only a tiny fraction of top-tier mana users could do such a thing.
But when it came to mana control, Arteon prided himself on being second to none.
It might be impossible for others, but this much was nothing.
And as Arteon altered the shape of his mana and injected it into the assassin’s body—
At that moment—
“…!”
The man couldn’t even scream.
His body trembled violently under the unprecedented agony.
Pain so severe that maintaining consciousness itself was difficult, let alone answering.
Though it lasted only about three seconds, to him it must have felt like eternity.
Arteon asked him,
“Looks like you can endure it. Want to keep going?”
Blink, blink, blink blink blink.
The assassin blinked his eyes frantically.
As if he had expected this, Arteon removed his hand from the man’s leg.
It was the worst torture method imaginable—one that even those vicious Kar tribesmen would eventually break under.
Better to die than to endure it twice.
Arteon pulled the blanket out of the man’s mouth.
“Affiliation.”
“No, no, no—Nocturn….”
“Nocturn?”
Arteon’s expression twisted sharply.
He had heard the name before.
‘Clearly… back then Moldrek…’
Arteon recalled a conversation he’d had with Moldrek in his past life.
He didn’t remember exactly what operation it had been, but when trouble had arisen involving northern reinforcement troops…
—Don’t worry about it. Nocturn will take care of it.
‘I’m sure that’s what he said.’
At the time, he hadn’t understood what it meant.
He’d only vaguely guessed.
If Nocturn were the pawns of a force constantly stirring up conflict in the North…
‘Then everything lines up.’
Thinking back now, it made sense.
At the time, that front was one they should have ceded to the Kar tribe, pulling back a step to reorganize their forces.
That way, preserving their troops, they could have pushed the Kar tribe back in one decisive strike together with reinforcements.
But unexpected reinforcement troops were urgently deployed, and the war dragged on continuously.
And as a result—
‘Only our own losses… skyrocketed.’
Arteon felt an overwhelming urge to crush the man’s skull right then and there.
His eyes were bloodshot with rage.
“I’ll spare your life if you answer one more question.”
“Ghk…!”
“Who’s behind you? Who’s controlling the group called Nocturn?”
“Th, that is…”
Seeing Arteon’s face twisted like a demon’s, the man felt terror.
As if his reason had shut down, he blurted out everything he knew without filtering it.
“Fe, Fe—”
But at that very moment—
Screeeeeech!
Something came flying in at tremendous speed.
Instinctively, Arteon grabbed the assassin’s fallen sword and spun his body.
Clang!
The destructive force was so immense that he nearly dropped the sword he was holding.
Arteon’s expression hardened.
‘What kind of—?!’
He looked down at the dagger lying on the floor.
If someone could throw a dagger with this much power—
‘At least… third-star or higher.’
Arteon cast his gaze out the window.
And there, standing on the opposite rooftop, was a man.
Dressed entirely in black assassin garb, with everything but his eyes covered.
A textbook assassin’s appearance.
Yet the pressure radiating from him was so intense it could be felt even from a considerable distance.
But—
Flash!
The moment their eyes met, the man vanished.
It happened so instantaneously that it was impossible to even tell where he had moved, let alone chase him.
“…Damn it.”
Arteon turned his head to look at the assassin lying on the floor.
By now, a throwing knife as thick as a finger was deeply embedded in the man’s head.
To divert Arteon’s attention, he had thrown the dagger and, at the same time, hurled the throwing knife.
From the start, the target hadn’t been Arteon…
It had been this assassin.
‘…Why?’
If that man had attacked head-on from the beginning, he could have killed Arteon for sure.
“Haa…”
For now, it seemed he would have to deal with this corpse somehow.
The long shadows cast by flickering candlelight wavered.
Looking down at the man kneeling on one knee before him, Kaltek furrowed his brow.
“A failure?”
“I apologize.”
Kaltek, a mid-level manager of Nocturn, was someone who enjoyed great trust within the organization for his clean handling of affairs.
And yet, the task he had ordered had failed.
Kaltek asked,
“…Was it impossible with a mid-level assassin?”
“He wasn’t even a match. He was captured and interrogated without accomplishing anything, so I eliminated him.”
“Bashnel, if you had stepped in, you could have killed him easily. Why did you withdraw instead?”
“…I apologize.”
The man’s name was Bashnel.
But Kaltek frowned at his answer.
“I’m not asking to hear such a trite apology. I’m asking why you retreated without killing him.”
But then—
“…Don’t tell me.”
Kaltek flinched and looked at Bashnel.
Bashnel was one of the most skilled among Nocturn’s high-level assassins.
In places with shadows, even third-star knights or higher would be no match for him.
And yet—
“Are you saying that even with your strength, killing him was impossible?”
“…If I had intended to kill him, I could have done so without fail.”
“Then?”
“However, in a situation where my presence had been exposed, it was impossible to kill him quietly. Had I killed him… a major disturbance would have occurred.”
“…Was it really that bad.”
He’d heard the target was just a young boy soldier—yet he possessed such formidable strength?
‘So reclaiming Helikel Gorge… wasn’t just luck?’
The operation had failed, but the justification was firmly established.
And they had also updated their information on the target—
That alone was enough.
“I’ll take care of the aftermath. For the time being, lie low. Since we targeted someone who dealt directly with the imperial family, it will be difficult to find an opportunity for a while.”
“Understood.”
Bashnel nodded and soon melted back into the shadows.
Kaltek sat down and began rapidly writing something on the documents before him.
