The Academy's New Queen (7)
People think assassins are like reapers from the underworld. Watching them lurk in the shadows and snatch away lives, well… it’s not hard to see why. But assassins aren’t as overwhelmingly powerful as the common perception suggests. As I mentioned, their abilities are heavily skewed toward offense, stealth, and infiltration. What makes them terrifying is how they strike when their target is off guard. They’re like daggers coated in poison—lethal, yet their value plummets the moment they miss their single chance.
‘So the odds are in my favor.’
I am Eden Rofas. Once the top student of the swordsmanship department at Joachim Academy, now the underworld’s drug king who rose from nothing. If this had been an ambush I failed to notice, it would be different. But once their surprise attack is blocked, this becomes a fight I can win.
I gripped my sword and expanded my awareness. Shhhk— One from the front, two from behind, one from the left, two from the right. There was only one assassin, yet daggers flew from every direction.
…The attack felt strangely familiar.
Clang— Steel met steel, sparks flying.
“You won’t beat me with such pathetic tricks.”
I had already deflected over twenty daggers. Even if they threw a hundred, the outcome wouldn’t change. The assassin must have realized it too—that hurling daggers from the shadows wouldn’t be enough to end this.
“…Impressive swordsmanship.”
The presence began to fade. They were trying to flee. Assassins typically withdrew the moment their first strike failed, waiting for the next opportunity. But I wasn’t about to let them go. Did they really think I had only been blocking because I lacked the skill to counter?
“Running away, are we?”
I focused on the tips of my feet and launched myself after the fading killing intent. In an instant, I closed the distance and appeared right in front of the assassin hiding in the darkness near the campfire.
“Got you.”
My blade grazed past their nose and embedded itself in a tree.
“…How?”
A woman with her mouth and nose covered by a black mask stared at me with wide eyes. A familiar face. There was only one person who would throw daggers from every direction like that. I had already figured out their identity.
I pulled off the assassin’s mask with one hand and smiled.
“I knew it was you. Jayoung.”
“So that brat back then was you.”
“How could I not recognize you? I’m disappointed.”
“How was I supposed to know without a name?”
“Fair enough.”
Some time later, Jayoung, Alicia, and I sat side by side in front of the campfire. Alicia, suddenly forced to sit and chat with someone who had just tried to kill her, tilted her head in confusion.
“So, what’s your relationship with each other?”
“Ah, I didn’t explain.”
I had been too caught up in the moment. Thinking about where to begin, I opened my mouth.
“Well… we’re from the same orphanage?”
“That’s it?”
“It’s a long story.”
“We’ve got all night, don’t we? Tell me. I need to know what’s going on.”
When Alicia growled at me, Jayoung spoke up, looking slightly awkward.
“We were lovers.”
“What?”
Alicia let out a genuine shriek and covered her mouth with both hands.
“You and… her?”
“Yeah.”
“What kind of relationship is that when you don’t even know each other’s names? Don’t tell me it was some kind of shady arrangement…”
“It wasn’t like that.”
Jayoung’s eyes turned toward the campfire. The flickering flames reflected in her gaze.
“We didn’t have names. The orphanage we grew up in was created to raise assassins.”
“There are places like that?”
Jayoung nodded and continued.
“Cheonjeol and I met there. We were seven.”
“Cheonjeol?”
“That’s what they called me at the orphanage.”
“What does it mean?”
Alicia asked. Since most assassins came from the east, she wouldn’t know the meaning without understanding the eastern tongue.
“It means ‘cutting the heavens.’ My sword was unusually fast.”
“And Jayoung?”
“It means ‘purple shadow.’ She can hide her body inside shadows.”
Jayoung stood up and slipped into the shadows. Alicia watched in amazement.
“Whoa… wow.”
Returning to her seat, Jayoung went on.
“Anyway, Cheonjeol and I got along well. We were both difficult people, so we didn’t have any other friends.”
……
“……And somehow we became lovers. That’s the boring part. After we left the orphanage at ten, we lost track of each other. That’s enough about the past. There are more important things to discuss.”
I cut the conversation short. We didn’t have time to reminisce all night. Tossing a few more branches into the fire, I turned to Jayoung.
“So, Jayoung. What are you going to do?”
……
Jayoung’s mission had been to kill me. If I returned alive, she would have failed. She stared at the flames for a long while before lifting her head and meeting my eyes.
“I’ll report the mission as a failure. I can’t kill you.”
“Is that okay?”
“I have no lingering attachment to the Violet family anyway. I was only using them as a temporary employer. I planned to leave eventually.”
“Then it’s settled.”
Alicia looked worried.
“But what if the Violet family retaliates?”
“A few of them won’t be a problem. Same for Cheonjeol.”
Jayoung stood up.
“Sorry for knocking out the other assassins. If I’d known you were Eden Rofas, I wouldn’t have done it.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“Then I’ll be going.”
“Already? You finally meet your old lover and you’re just leaving like this?”
Alicia’s question made me recall the past. Back then, we had relied on each other. Growing up without parents, we had always craved attention. What we felt as children wasn’t really love—just the playacting of seven-year-olds. There was no lingering attachment.
“It’s already in the past.”
After saying that, I simply watched Jayoung’s retreating figure disappear into the night.
***
Three days passed like that. The plan was progressing smoothly—better than expected, thanks to Alicia’s efforts. We were practically at the finish line.
“It ended faster than I thought.”
I picked up a quill and crossed two more names off the list. It contained the names of fallen noble students who held grudges against Louise Violet and her family—the very people Alicia needed to win over during this exam. I had expected it to take a full week for around 130 students, but Alicia’s enthusiasm had finished everything in three days.
“When I decide to do something, I do it properly.”
“Good work.”
“Praise me more! Clap! Cheer!”
Alicia puffed up with pride, her nose practically in the air. Because of that, we decided to start moving together again from the morning of the fourth day. Quite a few students had already been eliminated, so there was no need to drag things out until the full week was over.
“Ah, right.”
While I was thinking about the next phase, Alicia spoke up beside me.
“You never explained what you meant by making me the queen.”
“You’re right.”
Jayoung’s attack on the first day had made me forget, but she still remembered. I couldn’t keep hiding it forever.
“It’s exactly what it sounds like. You need to win over the fallen noble students who were wronged by Louise Violet or the Violet family.”
“Okay. And then?”
I bent down, picked up a small branch, and placed it in her hand.
“Try breaking this.”
“Easy.”
Alicia snapped the branch without effort. Then I handed her several branches at once.
“Now try these.”
……
After struggling for a while, Alicia threw the branches away.
“Even small amounts of power become strong when gathered together. Once this exam ends and we return, the students who received your help will gather around you.”
“Ah…”
“Do you understand?”
“Yeah.”
That much was enough. In truth, I had also been blackmailing and persuading several professors and disciplinary committee members behind the scenes, but there was no need to mention that.
“But why me? You could do it yourself.”
“Everyone knows me as a drug offender. It looks cleaner if you’re the one stepping forward instead of someone with problems.”
“How thorough.”
Alicia nodded, impressed.
“The real fight begins after we return to the academy. It’ll turn into an all-out brawl, so be mentally prepared.”
“Got it.”
It was time to start eliminating the remaining students. Since we had already finished our tasks, returning to the academy as quickly as possible would be best. As I walked while thinking that—
“Kyaaah!!!”
“S-Save me!”
Screams echoed from a distance.
“Eden!”
Alicia and I ran toward the source of the screams. What we saw upon arrival was unexpected.
“Run!”
“Wind, cut through!”
Several students had gathered there, and a massive wolf the size of a three-story building was tearing into them.
‘An upper-rank monster.’
“We have to help them!”
The moment Alicia pulled out her staff, a plan flashed through my mind. It was cruel even by my standards, but if it succeeded, it would be an enormous opportunity.
“…Alicia. Stop the students from escaping.”
“What?”
My plan was to turn Alicia into a hero who stood against Louise Violet. And heroes weren’t just kind to the marginalized—they usually had a tale of bravery. Every great hero’s saga required a great achievement.
“We’re going to show everyone. The moment you defeat that monster.”
And right in front of us was the perfect story for Alicia to become that hero.