Chapter 482: The Meeting
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 482: The Meeting
"This should be the place."
Following the tail of that procession, Muen arrived at the innermost part of the estate.
It appeared to be a secluded private courtyard, filled with various modest ornamental plants. Even the Royal Knights ordered to guard the area didn't dare set foot inside, contenting themselves with standing watch at the perimeter gates.
Muen, however, had no such reservations.
He slipped easily through the seemingly undefended yard, his form concealed by distorted light as he moved soundlessly toward the inner corridor.
The windows were tightly shut, but through the glass, Muen could see a warm, amber glow radiating from within.
Right, looks like I’ve found the target.
Having confirmed his objective, Muen didn't hesitate.
Delays only invited trouble. He reached out and grasped the doorknob... it was locked.
As expected, but a simple lock was no match for him.
"I suppose it’s time for my long-neglected ultimate technique to make an appearance," Muen whispered.
With a flick of his wrist, he produced... a fresh flower he had plucked from the garden moments ago.
He casually tossed the beautiful petals aside, leaving only the most dangerous thorn on the stem.
Secret Technique: Lockpicking LV10!
Muen pinched the thorn, jammed it into the keyhole, and gave it a few deft wiggles...
Click.
It didn't even take the length of a song; the lock yielded in mere seconds.
Though the sound of the pick was muffled within his Alchemy Domain, Muen still pressed his ear against the door as a precaution, holding his breath and listening intently.
...Good. Aside from the faint sound of running water, there was no other movement.
It seemed his infiltration was a success.
Relieved, Muen wasted no more time and slowly pushed the door open.
The door swung inward without a sound, and he stepped into the room.
Lamps crafted from expensive magic stones sat upon the desk and lined the walls, casting a warm, gentle light that revealed the entire room at a glance.
Directly ahead was a large bed hidden behind heavy curtains, and to the side stood a tall bookshelf.
The shelves were crammed with books. Though the shadows made it hard to read the titles, it was clear the room's owner was an avid reader.
Everything seemed normal enough, but what surprised Muen was the decor. Near the window and scattered throughout the room were various trinkets that screamed "young girl," all accented with adorable pink accessories.
"She actually has a side like this?"
Muen picked up a pink plushie that was about to fall off the edge of the bed. He considered pulling back the curtain to toss it inside, but after a moment's thought, he placed it back where it belonged.
A gentleman should respect privacy.
...Besides, he’d see what was inside that bed sooner or later anyway.
With that thought, Muen circled the room, following the faint sound of water. Finally, in a corner on the far side of the room, he saw the bright lights of the bathroom and a feminine silhouette blurred through the frosted glass.
"Found you at last," Muen murmured. "I'm so glad you're okay."
Perhaps because the tension in his heart had finally snapped, Muen had a momentary lapse in judgment. He actually reached out to open the bathroom door...
Zheng—!
In an instant, the Death Warning screamed in his mind. A sharp whistle of cloven air lunged toward the vitals in his back.
Startled, Muen snapped back to reality. A blade slid from his sleeve into his grip, and he spun around, precisely intercepting the path of that frigid, lethal glint.
Clang!
At the critical moment, blade met sword, sending a shower of sparks flying.
But the sparks failed to illuminate the attacker’s face. The moment the hidden strike was launched, the lights in the room had simultaneously extinguished. Muen could see nothing but the sharp, cold edge of a longsword and feel a bone-chilling killing intent.
"Who is it?" Muen barked in a low voice.
The cowardly ambusher didn't answer, though Muen thought he heard a faint sneer.
Immediately after, the thrusting sword changed its rhythm. The cold, snake-like precision vanished, replaced by a ferocity like a torrential storm.
Countless sword shadows fell like crashing stars, filling Muen’s vision in an instant.
"Dammit!"
Muen wasn't holding the easily recognizable Elizabeth, but a generic alchemy blade.
The mundane weapon felt wrong in his hand, and the vastly different balance and shape of the long blade compared to his usual short blades made his movements clumsy.
In the heat of the moment, he didn't even have an opening to counterattack. He could only rely on his speed to desperately parry and dodge.
And even that defense was being systematically dismantled.
Muen could feel the sheer sharpness of the opponent's swordsmanship. A faint Fighting Spirit swirled around the unremarkable blade—it had no special elemental properties, yet every strike carried a chill that made his skin prickle.
The attacker was like a cat toying with a mouse, steadily shrinking Muen’s room to maneuver.
Unable to fully execute his techniques and hampered by an ill-fitting weapon, Muen found it increasingly difficult to withstand the escalating assault.
He felt as though he were facing a grand general on a battlefield, someone who had already calculated every move and was forcing him, inch by inch, into a dead end.
I can't keep this up...
Regret gnawed at Muen.
For all his planning and caution, he hadn't expected that someone as proud as her would actually keep a personal bodyguard so close.
Or was it even a guard?
But now wasn't the time for such thoughts.
The attacker’s intuition was beyond his imagination. After he had displayed his terrifying speed, the opponent’s moves were clearly designed to pin him into a corner of the room where he couldn't move freely.
If he didn't find a way out soon, even if he escaped this attacker, he’d likely be greeted by the sharp lances of the Royal Knights outside!
He couldn't let the Royal Knights know he was here yet.
Therefore, in this situation, there was only one way to break the deadlock!
Muen gritted his teeth and secretly infused Thunder Clap into his blade.
Zheng—!
The rain-like sword shadows were briefly knocked back, and the figure in the darkness seemed to falter for a split second in surprise.
In the next heartbeat, Muen didn't hesitate.
He turned and bolted.
Straight for the bathroom.
"Celicia, it's me! Tell your guard to stop! This is a mis—"
Muen threw the bathroom door open.
And then...
Before he could finish his sentence...
He froze.
"Eek! A pervert!"
Inside the brightly lit bathroom—the only place with light—it wasn't the Celicia Muen had imagined.
Instead...
It was Wei'er, who had already quietly dressed herself during the commotion.
Wei'er, the sole designated secretary to the Student Council President of St. Maria Academy.
Wei'er looked at the intruding Muen and blinked. She clutched her flat chest and cried out in a voice completely devoid of emotional inflection:
"President, save me! Boohoo... the pervert is so scary..."
"Huh?"
Muen stood there, utterly bewildered.
But before he could process the situation, he felt a sharp, familiar kick slam into his backside.
The force sent him flying into the bathroom wall, his upper body getting wedged into the masonry like a planted onion.
"Hmm? This sensation?"
A cold, questioning voice drifted from behind him, followed by a realization that manifested as a chilling sneer.
"And here I was wondering what kind of audacious fool would dare break into my private villa in the middle of the night... So, it's you."
"..."
Muen struggled to pull himself out of the wall and turned around sheepishly. Before he could even catch his breath, a long leg clad in black stockings extended toward him, a soft foot expertly pinning him by the chest.
"Ha... haha. Long time no see, Celicia. Your footwork is as... memorable as ever." Muen gave a strained, awkward laugh.
"Indeed, it has been a long time."
Under the bright lights, the silver-haired beauty in her nightgown remained expressionless. She looked down at the man whose face was different, but whose mannerisms were unmistakably familiar, and said coldly:
"Having fun in the Holy City, Mr. Muen Campbell?"