Chapter 29
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: Shadows on the Road to Quill
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Having finished all preparations to head to the duke's domain with Merina, I stood at the main gate of the Pador estate.
There, from Ian on down, everyone in the Pador family had come out to see Merina and me off.
"Going to Quill on such a fine day? That sounds wonderful."
The princess flashed a smile as pure and clear as the blue sky.
Ian smiled back and nodded.
"You won't be disappointed. Quill in summer is truly spectacular."
"Really? I've never visited Quill in the summer before. I'm looking forward to it."
"You certainly won't be disappointed."
The two exchanged greetings while concealing their true intentions from each other.
"We're deeply honored that Your Highness thinks so highly of Deyan."
"Not at all, Ian. Anyone would take a liking to someone like Lord Deyan."
"Of course. He's a son we're truly proud of."
Ralph watched the exchange with eyes bulging in envy. Jealousy, plain and simple. I wondered if Merina had noticed.
I glanced subtly at Ralph.
"It would be nice if Lord Ralph could join us next time."
"Really...? You'd have me?!"
Ralph's face broke into a goofy grin, but he quickly straightened up after catching Ian's eye.
Ian gave his son a warning look before turning back to Merina.
"Your Highness's kindness toward my unworthy son is greatly appreciated."
Ian bowed his head in thanks. At the mention of "unworthy son," Ralph's expression darkened.
"Not at all. Lord Ralph takes after you, Ian—he's a fine man himself. Well then..."
Merina finished her farewell with Ian and turned to me.
"Shall we be off, Deyan?"
"Yes, Your Highness. After you."
Merina headed to her imperial carriage. I boarded the one assigned to me.
Riding with me were not only Marian and Nellin, but also Jayvolg.
It might have been safer to travel alone on a potentially dangerous road, but as far as the world knew, I was still the frail third son of the Pador family.
A delicate young master couldn't very well set out on a journey by himself, could he?
As the carriage door closed and we set off, Nellin let out a sigh she'd been holding back.
"What is this?! Young master, I've never ridden in anything like this before!"
Marian tried to hide her excitement better than Nellin, but her eyes were darting everywhere... She must have found it fascinating.
Was it because this was an imperial carriage prepared by the palace?
It was certainly luxurious.
The interior was spacious enough that even with four of us aboard, there was still plenty of room.
It was more like a room than a carriage.
From the outside, it hadn't looked this big.
Magic must have been applied to it.
Otherwise, there was no explaining the size.
With an innocent smile, I spoke to the two delighted girls.
"You like it that much?"
"Of course! This is something we could never even dream of."
Was it...?
In my first life, had I ever properly rewarded Marian and Nellin?
Given them gold?
Granted them a vacation?
None of it.
"Marian, Nellin."
"Yes, young master."
"I'll let you ride in an even bigger carriage someday."
"Really? Promise, young master? Promise!"
Nellin bounced around in excitement, and Marian, who didn't seem displeased, wore a faint smile.
But then.
"Me too?!"
Jayvolg, that hulking brute, shoved his face in.
"You just keep up your training, Jayvolg."
"...That's too much!"
What was wrong with this guy?
Hanging around Marian and Nellin so much had made him start acting like them.
More precisely, like Nellin.
"It's fine, Jayvolg. Do you really think the young master would leave you out?"
Marian soothed him.
"Really?"
And Jayvolg lapped it up as if it were only natural.
That guy...?
Don't pout with that massive frame of yours.
I want to hit you!
I barely suppressed the rising killing intent.
As we chatted idly with the three of them, the carriage soon left Pador territory behind.
Sunset had fallen before we knew it.
The endless plains soaked in the glow of dusk, the sun dipping low on the horizon. The horses neighed to a halt, and a knight approached us.
"Her Highness requests your presence briefly."
"I'll go."
I stepped down from the carriage and entered the largest one, where the princess waited.
The inside... Our carriage had been lavish, but compared to this—befitting Princess Merina—it was nothing.
This was practically a small house.
As I arrived, Merina offered me tea and pastries from the table.
"Want some?"
"No reason to refuse."
I took a sip of tea and a bite of pastry.
Partly because I wanted to, but mostly to check for poison.
The princess was traveling outside the palace again—who knew what they might have done?
Fortunately, nothing.
It passed the first test.
"How is it?"
"Not as good as Marian's pastries."
"Really? These are my favorite... If hers are even better, I should ask her to make some sometime."
"She'd be thrilled."
"I'll do that. Anyway..."
Merina glanced out the carriage window. The wind rustled the wheat fields, as if waving hello.
"We'll enter the duke's domain soon. I was worried about an ambush, but it looks like we're in the clear!"
Merina's face lit up with relief at the smooth journey.
She was jinxing it...
Dusk strikes when the enemy lets their guard down.
The murky night sky descended, boasting its vast presence.
A chill wind swept past the carriage.
I sat on the carriage roof, letting the full force of the wind hit me.
"Young master, aren't you cold?"
Marian, worried about me up there, tried to hand me a blanket.
She was so kind.
"I'm fine, Marian. I just wanted some fresh air."
"Ah... Understood. Then if you get cold, young master, please let me know!"
"Sure thing."
Marian slipped back inside through the window and lay down.
That made me want to sleep too.
There's nothing quite like drifting off under a night sky like this.
But if I actually fell asleep, I might not wake up the next day.
Those shadows flickering like clouds in the sky wouldn't leave us be.
"......"
I glanced toward the driver's seat.
Did Jayvolg not notice?
He just sat there, oblivious.
Even as killers closed in with death in tow.
The soldiers escorting the princess were the same.
It wasn't because my skills outstripped theirs that I sensed them.
It was because I remembered the first lesson taught to Tang Clan children at the Dragon Gate Hall of the Sichuan Tang Clan.
The five senses.
What humans need to perceive the world—and for the Tang Clan, honed to detect poison.
Thus, Tang warriors possess senses sharper and more acute than anyone's.
And the Ten Thousand Poisons Heavenly King Divine Art takes those senses to the extreme.
Those who cultivate it unconsciously sharpen their senses twofold compared to others.
So of course I noticed.
Our carriage was surrounded.
But no need for a fuss.
We'd simply take a quiet nighttime stroll, fitting the silent dawn and our foes.
Still, they were impressive.
Even my keen senses barely picked them up.
Were these elite assassins sent for the princess's murder?
What should one prioritize when facing assassins?
A swift sword too fast for the eye?
Exotic poisons?
Stealthy footwork?
All wrong.
The battle with assassins, from start to finish, boils down to one thing.
Whether you detect their presence or not.
That's everything.
Assassins strike from ambush, taking lives stronger than their own.
If they fail to kill in one blow?
They die instead.
What I needed now was to pinpoint their presence.
Exact locations—that's all it would take to eliminate any fear.
Did they know?
That assassins and Tang warriors were a fatally poor matchup.
Theirs was hopeless.
Pretending to be sleepy, I called out to Jayvolg.
"Jayvolg, mind telling me about your knight academy days? I'm tired—need something to wake me up."
I didn't want to hear it.
It was just a ploy to hide from the assassins.
Jayvolg, clueless, turned to look at me.
"Really?!"
"Yeah, really."
The instant Jayvolg turned,
Shiiiiek.
A gust whipped up his clothes.
In that moment, I focused my hearing.
The inevitable noise amid the wind.
The flutter of clothing.
Two on the left... two on the right!
I stretched as if yawning and hurled a dagger.
Shiiiip!
The dagger sliced through the air.
Tiny as it was, a tree shook as if battered by a typhoon.
As the motion stopped, assassins draped like dead branches caught the moonlight fleetingly.
Assassins and me.
The signal for our shadows' clash rang out. But Jayvolg heard none of the life-and-death brink.
"It was right when I first entered the knight academy. I went as an apprentice, full of excitement. That must have been..."
Jayvolg launched into his endless knight academy tale. Meanwhile, the assassins and I targeted each other's throats.
A faint, alien scent wafted in.
But below, only shadows—no sign of the killers.
Still... I flung a dagger that way.
Thud thud thud!!
Sparks flew briefly, illuminating below. The shadow halted.
Blood soon seeped from it.
Six down.
Where were the rest?
"Hm...?"
Jayvolg tilted his head, perhaps hearing something.
"Young master, didn't you hear a noise?"
"Probably some beast."
"Is that so? Don't worry, young master. I'll handle it."
"Don't make a fuss, Jayvolg."
"Yes, sir!"
I covered a yawn with my hand.
I looked defenseless, but they'd realized I wasn't easy prey.
They'd bind me more stealthily now.
And sure enough.
Papapapak...!!
I opened my eyes from the yawn, and two assassins had leaped onto the roof.
Got you.
"......!"
The carriage roof was studded with needles.
In the dark, invisible to the naked eye.
The assassins, caught off guard, convulsed like they'd been struck by lightning.
Even as they lunged, my move came first.
With the Tang Clan's famed poison technique, Dragon Jaw Bind, I swept over them. They shredded like beasts mauled, plummeting below.
Eight now.
Jayvolg asked amid the sudden commotion.
"Young master, are you training or something?"
"I sleep-talk a lot."
"Sleep-talk...? You're not asleep, are you?"
"Didn't know? I've got sleepwalking."
"Pardon...?"
"It's true."
"W-why say it so creepy?"
"Just kidding. Stretching a bit."
"Phew... Good."
Jayvolg relaxed and resumed his seat. The carriage pressed on through the forest path, a river visible ahead.
That instant.
Ding...!
"......!"
I dropped flat. A wire whistled overhead.
Missing me, it sliced a tree—and felled it in seconds.
"Impressive."
Good choice.
Had I been careless, I'd be bisected.
In such night, wires are invisible and silent—perfect hidden weapons.
But wires demand tension for full power.
I'd gauged the foe's position.
Judging distance, I hurled a dagger.
A branch snapped soon after.
Ten now.
"......!"
A faint presence from the rear.
But I flung a dagger forward instead.
Seeing the opening, rear assassins emerged.
Too late to react.
But I hadn't missed. I turned slowly. Daggers were already in their throats.
The forward throw—I'd spun it to boomerang back.
The assassins died with shocked faces.
Ambush terrifies because you don't sense it.
Jayvolg halted his academy yarn.
"Young master."
"What's up?"
"Lots of beasts out here, huh?"
"Yeah."
"......"
Jayvolg sighed.
"Don't push yourself too hard, young master."
He knew?
I'd underestimated him.
The academy top graduate's skill didn't fade.
He'd played dumb.
A fine subordinate.
"I won't."
"Then we'll keep going."
"Yeah, night's chill is setting in."
"Shall I take over driving, young master? Beasts are no match for me...!"
"Quiet, Jayvolg. Just hold the reins properly."
"I'm the academy's top graduate, you know. I mentioned it earlier, but back at the academy..."
"Quiet."
"Tch... Yes, sir."
Jayvolg snorted and faced forward again.
The carriage headed for the river.
Rumble.
We entered the bridge over it.
The surroundings were wide open.
Assassins hiding in the moonlit, rippling river? Hardly...
But faint rising bubbles.
A river, huh?
Using terrain is an assassin's virtue.
In that sense, you pass.
But that's your flaw.
Water spreads poison like nothing else.
The terrain a Tang warrior welcomes arms wide.
Quietly, I lobbed a glass vial like a hidden weapon.
It sank into the water.
They slashed it instantly—the river turned green. Did they sense something amiss?
Splash!
Assassins surfaced for air.
But butterflies already fluttered beside them.
Pfbt...!
They perished without a scream. The moonlit river lost its gleam, blocked by bodies.
Dead fish floated up between them.
I pulled out another vial.
"Looks tasty."
The vial in my hand matched the one they'd slashed.
"Turning down something so good. What weirdos."
One secret:
This is just cabbage juice for health.
How frustrating if they knew.
Battle is waged with the mind, not the body.
Deceiving the eye at the crucial moment.
That's the Tang warrior's way.
See? I told you.
Assassins and Tang warriors are a nightmare matchup.
Rattle...
The carriage window opened.
Merina blinked sleepily at me.
"Everything okay?"
"Yeah, all good."
"Really?"
Merina cocked her head.
"Feels chilly somehow."
"Nothing to worry about."
Sharp instincts.
The innate senses invaluable for warriors.
A hair's breadth of intuition decides life or death.
Curious, Merina peered toward the river.
No, can't have that. Fainting in her sleep?
"Look at that moon."
"Huh?"
"Isn't it gorgeous?"
Merina's lips curved faintly.
"Didn't peg you for the sentimental type..."
"Prejudice."
Merina gazed entranced at the full moon.
"You're right. The moonlight's beautiful."
She'd be even more entranced seeing the floating corpses below.
While Merina was moonstruck, the carriage crossed the bridge.
"It's getting cold. Get some shut-eye."
"Got it. Yawn anyway..."
Merina yawned and pulled her head in.
"So sleepy. Take care a bit longer—you too, Sir Jayvolg!"
"Yes!"
Merina went back to sleep.
"Quiet night, huh."
Yes, nights should be this still.
No threats, no unease—just sweet slumber.
"Right, Jayvolg?"
"Exactly, young master."
"You kept driving, trusting me all the way?"
"A man who's been burned before knows. Why would I doubt your skill?"
"True. But..."
His upper body was calm, but below...
"Why are your legs shaking so much?"
"They're not! When did I...? You must be tired, young master."
Jayvolg dodged, flustered.
Fine, I believe you. Believe ya.
Dawn passed, morning came.
Was it over?
Not at all.
Once dusk misses its prey and reveals itself, it will move heaven and earth to kill.