Chapter 67
Chapter 67
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 67
Chapter Title: Assassin Salesman 4
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“Hmm. Not a very cute kid. But he’s helpful, so thanks. Having a follower isn’t bad either. I can put him to use when I need to.”
“…….”
“Ah, Azadin. Saying that right in front of him... he’ll get hurt.”
“You?”
“Ismail.”
“Why?”
“Because he’s a kid.”
*No, you’re a kid too.* Azadin wanted to say as much, but Midiam, who was excitedly chattering away, beat him to it.
“Lately, Ismail’s been feeling inferior to you, Azadin.”
*Isn’t saying that right in front of him even worse?*
Azadin glanced at Ismail’s face, and sure enough, the boy’s expression crumpled like he’d bitten into a bug.
“Even though he’d poke fun at you for the things he’s better at, getting shut down so cleanly—with not even a real fight—has to hurt. When you provoke someone and they don’t even flinch, that’s even more humiliating.”
Midiam’s words genuinely wounded Ismail. In truth, most of Ismail’s resentment toward Azadin stemmed from Midiam herself. The root of his inferiority complex was how she’d opened her heart to Azadin and clung to him so tightly.
Ismail had served as Midiam’s henchman, slithering about like a tongue in her mouth, yet he’d never earned even a scrap of her attention. Meanwhile, Azadin had won her over far too easily.
And yet the very girl at the center of it, Midiam, was only pointing out that Ismail felt inferior—without a clue as to why.
“Hmm? Inferiority complex? Toward me? Why?”
“Probably because your martial prowess is just too outstanding. We challenged you to a duel and lost, after all.”
“To be precise, it was just you. Hm, well, I don’t think I have anything to apologize for, really. Ismail, I was just saying you’re pretty good at Foresight Bird magic for your age. If there’s a misunderstanding, let it go.”
Azadin apologized to Ismail in earnest. From Ismail’s perspective, it probably felt like his insides were burning. In the end, both Midiam and Azadin were just toying with him.
“I-it’s fine.”
A thousand fires raged inside, but Ismail had no choice but to say it.
“Then I’ll do some stretching and rest. You two rest up too.”
Azadin did some stretching and took a break in his room at the Blue Rose Pavilion.
*********
Toward evening, Clerk Belldon arrived in place of the soldiers.
“Here’s the information you requested.”
Belldon brought a roughly sketched map. It was a hand-drawn layout of the count’s castle interior and the positions of the servants on night duty.
“I don’t know how the troops are deployed, but the count spends his days in his office and his nights in the rear garden annex with his mistresses. We don’t know exactly where in the annex. Access to the annex has been tightly sealed off lately.”
The intel on the castle grounds was quite detailed, but it cut off completely at the rear garden annex.
*Which means that’s where things are happening.*
Azadin analyzed the information he’d received.
*Did Young Lord Kozel bring this on his own without telling his mother? Or is the countess really involved?*
Given Young Lord Kozel’s style and personality, he wasn’t the type to be popular with the castle servants.
*This is intel only maids could provide. The countess must be involved.*
With that in mind, Azadin decided to probe Belldon.
“Looks like the countess has made up her mind, bringing this to me. Doesn’t that mean there’s something you owe me?”
“Yes. The countess placed the commission. But what do you mean, something we owe? Anything else beyond the intel?”
“The advance payment.”
“Oh, that. H-here.”
Belldon handed over a pouch. It contained silver coins—not a large sum. Maybe the equivalent of one gold coin at best.
“This must be the money for bribing those refugee thugs.”
“Yes. That’s all the budget we had.”
“If the job escalated to a 50-gold-coin commission, shouldn’t the advance be higher?”
“That’s... difficult.”
“Difficult?”
“Yes. The countess has had a lot of expenses lately.”
The soldiers Young Lord Kozel had brought were very well-equipped. That must have come from the countess’s purse.
After shelling out that much with no gains—and her son returning crippled—it was no wonder she felt the pinch. Even so, Azadin pressed for the advance.
“The count hardly leaves the house these days, does he? This isn’t just some street ambush. If you don’t put some real thought into the advance, we can’t start the job.”
“But if we pay the advance, then we’d have to interfere to keep you from running off with it, wouldn’t we? Our employers don’t want that kind of messy deal. Our employer says that since you approached us, we have to bear that much risk. If we’d been the ones hunting assassins, we’d pay an advance, of course—but you proposed this first, and now that we’ve hired you, sabotaging it over this... as for the advance...”
“We’re risking our lives here too. Bringing this pittance as an advance is a problem.”
“Ah, I understand. I’ll speak to my lord about it for now.”
“Then I’ll count on you.”
Azadin let Belldon leave. He scurried out of the Blue Rose Pavilion in a panic. For a mere clerk like Belldon, haggling down an advance with an assassin was probably a nightmare he never wanted to repeat.
“Trying to squeeze an assassin without even an advance—ridiculous. Well, the countess doesn’t seem the meticulous type. Lady Nort the baroness seems more capable.”
Azadin gave a low assessment of Young Lord Kozel and his mother, the countess.
“If they pay a big advance, it’ll be harder to control us. For example, even 5 gold coins at 10% is a fortune. If we stiffed them, they couldn’t exactly complain about getting scammed on the deposit after trying to assassinate a count, right? Their caution makes some sense.”
Midiam showed understanding for the other side.
“If you push too hard, won’t they just cancel the commission altogether? Originally, they were going to raid Lady Nort the baroness’s estate, but you pitched them and switched it to assassinating the count. Honestly, since the goal was stealing the New King Scripture copy anyway, haven’t we already achieved the primary objective by extracting their intel?”
He’d gotten the castle map and servant duty info from the countess, so the primary goal was met. But Azadin shook his head.
“No. There’s still something to watch out for.”
“Yes? What...”
“Derek’s crew.”
That was when Azadin said it.
“Ah.”
In the Foresight Bird magic cast by Ismail, a group of soldiers appeared. Knights and soldiers marching in orderly ranks toward one location. It was Lady Nort the baroness’s estate.
“Troops heading to Lady Nort the baroness’s estate!”
“As expected. Derek’s doing.”
Azadin concluded this was Derek’s handiwork.
“Isn’t that a leap in logic? Can you explain why you think it’s Derek?”
“Sure. First, I insulted them, but they backed off without a fight.”
“Yes?”
Midiam, who’d been listening, was taken aback.
“When I mocked them, I fully expected to discipline them right there. Given Derek’s personality, it was provocation enough for him to lunge. Especially now that Arael’s healed his leg. A herald forced into retirement by injury wouldn’t want to test his recovered body?”
“Th-that’s true. But just that?”
“Arael wanted to recruit me, but Derek’s gang couldn’t attack me themselves. So fishing in troubled waters is the natural next step.”
“Ah.”
Even Midiam, who’d opposed Azadin, was convinced.
Arael wanted to recruit Azadin. Her followers obeyed her, but they didn’t want him joining their group and getting a seat just because of blood ties.
But leaving traces of eliminating him themselves would invite backlash... so naturally, they’d think to pit others against each other.
“So, Derek snitched to the count about you, and now soldiers are heading to Lady Nort’s estate to grab you. That’s your thinking? What will you do?”
“I can’t let Lady Nort, who became the orphans’ guardian under my watch, get hurt.”
“Why on earth is a herald doing this?”
Ismail asked out of curiosity. From the persecuted Aragasa perspective, he couldn’t understand Azadin caring for even the Hybris folk who oppressed them.
“Why? Because caring for Hybris citizens is a herald of the emperor’s true duty?”
“But that’s...”
“Even if not, because it’s the right and beautiful thing to do. In my aesthetics, that is.”
“Aesthetics?”
“Yeah. In that sense, protecting Lady Nort the baroness, who became the children’s guardian, is my mission. Alright, shall we get started?”
Azadin removed his helmet and donned the hawk mask symbolizing a herald.
“Let’s go, Midiam, Ismail!”
“Yes!”
“Bring plenty of arrows and follow.”
With that, Azadin burst out of the Blue Rose Pavilion.
*********
Derek’s crew had passed the following information to the count.
Two nights ago, Mezzeri’s apostles had moved through the underground sewers, carrying a copy of the New King Scripture. They’d kidnapped people for sacrifices to harness its power, confirmed by the testimonies of those captured and rescued.
Amid it all, a man had defeated the apostles and saved the people—and Lady Nort the baroness had invited him to her estate.
That alone would steer things in the direction Derek wanted.
Sure enough, just as Derek predicted, the count dispatched soldiers and knights to Lady Nort the baroness’s estate.
“What’s this, knight?”
In front of Lady Nort’s estate, children still too young wore servant clothes and were cleaning. They were the orphans Azadin had relocated here.
“Out of the way, kids.”
“Th-this is Lady Nort the baroness’s estate. She’s the count’s lover too.”
“Don’t you know? We’re here to investigate because suspicious types infiltrated.”
They shoved the servant boy aside without heed and stormed into the estate, beginning to search the premises.
*********