Chapter 17 Frost Sword Maiden <TOC> Chapter 19 The Instructor Who was Killed in Seconds
Translator: SumTLMan
Shortly before Rayne and Pythius walked into the “Hyacinth Tavern”.
Several kilometres away, in a small room, a heavily armoured knight was paying close attention in the direction of the tavern.
The heavily-armoured knight exuded the aura of a top-level powerhouse, and if any stranger were to take a second glance at this man, they would instantly recognize him… He was impressively [Magic Swordsman] Rhine Luther, a special knight of the Royal Order of the Omagh Empire and Knight Commander of the Royal Court!
This was one of the top forces of the Omagh Royal Family.
For some reason, Rhine was feeling a little unsettled today.
He is hailed as the strongest knight in the royal court, and his intuition was terribly accurate.
“Your Highness, please don’t let any accidents befall you during this negotiation…”
He silently prayed with his hand above his heart, subconsciously gripping the broad-edged sword while breaking into a small sweat. Once there were any signs of trouble, he would be the first to send in reinforcements.
But just then, a breeze swept through the room as Rhine’s brow furrowed.
Someone had entered the room!
……
“Ka-Cha”, a ring sounded as the sharp double-edged sword spun around like a cyclone to cut behind with rampant sword energy.
The movement was done in one fluid motion.
Rhine drew his sword back with keen fighting instincts and struck down like lightning, threatening to split the intruder in two!
But suddenly, just as the blade was about to strike, a black-robed man dodged behind him by a finger’s length. The sword strike fell short and came to a sudden halt.
And from beginning to end, the intruder didn’t show any panic, allowing the swordsman to strike him at will.
Clearly, Rhine figured out the identity of this visitor as his murderous intent was instantly restrained.
But their relationship didn’t seem to be amicable.
The Knight Commander coldly asked: “Metternich, what are you doing here instead of staying by the Empress’s side?”
“Captain Rhine, your swordsmanship is becoming more and more exquisite…”
The man smiled lightly; his face obscured by the black cloak.
As he spoke, the cards he was playing with in his nimble fingers stopped as he drew out the “Jack of Spades”.
Rhine seemed uninterested in catching up with this man and immediately gave him the order to leave: “I’m duty-bound and not at liberty to catch up with you. Please leave the room immediately…”
Despite these words, the Knight Commander had a bad feeling in his heart.
Rhine was confident that he wouldn’t be cowed even if he came face-to-face with the [White Wolf] Barzel, one of the “Ten Legendary Demon Hunters”.
But this cold, viper-like man in front of him was the last person he wanted to see.
This man was like the plague, and nothing good ever comes when he was involved. Not to mention that he had come all the way south from the royal capital to Storm Lake.
“Captain Rhine, what a funny thing to say when meeting an old friend…”
The cloaked man laughed.
Seeing that Rhine had no intention of acknowledging him, he shrugged his shoulders.
He didn’t intend to make a fool of himself, so he directly said: “Since you don’t want to talk to me, I’ll leave after passing on the order.”
“Order?”
Rhine’s pupils shrank sharply as his bad feeling grew increasingly stronger.
“Yes~.”
Then, a glint of playfulness appeared in the black-robed man’s eyes before he suddenly changed his tone to a serious one and barked out the order: “I pronounce Rhine Luther, Head Knight of the Palace Guards, Royal Servant, you are hereby ordered by his Majesty to surround and kill the [White Wolf] Barzel at once!”
“What? Kill Barzel?!”
Upon hearing those words, Rhine’s complexion suddenly changed, thinking that he had heard wrong.
His gaze clouded over as he stared back in disbelief at the black-robed man in front of him, who had always worn a relaxed smile.
Rhine fought back the chill in his heart and sneered: “Hmph! You are but one of the Empress’s men. That one’s orders won’t command this humble servant.”
“Alas, this was not by the Empress’s orders, of course.”
The black-robed man spoke without haste as if he had expected this response, and as he continued speaking, he pulled out a golden crest from his bosom pocket.
Upon seeing it, Rhine blurted out: “The Golden Gryphon Crest!”
He looked at the medallion, which was engraved with a golden gryphon surrounded by a tricolour stripe, and immediately knew that something was wrong.
This was the exclusive coat of arms of the Omagh Royal Family, and to see it was bearing witness to His Majesty Spoglin.
This was a direct order from the Emperor!
How could it be…
The corners of the black-robed man’s mouth slightly raised as he once again barked out the order: “I am passing on His Majesty’s secret order to surround and kill [White Wolf] Barzel at once!”
With these words once again spoken aloud, there was no longer any more room for manoeuvring.
Even Rhine, as the Princess’s exclusive royal guard, had to obey the highest order sent by His Majesty.
“Damn it! How did you get your hands on the gryphon crest!”
Throbbing veins popped out from Rhine’s forehead, clearly displaying his fury and rage.
Not bothering to keep his feelings hidden, he straightforwardly said: “Metternich, you bastard! Do you have any idea how much preparation Her Highness has gone through to soothe the ‘White Wolf Bandits’? As soon as Barzel is subdued, the banditry in the southern region of the Empire will be completely resolved. By doing so, you will undo the years of painstaking efforts made by Her Highness the Princess!”
“Oh, haha, by inviting peace?”
The black-robed man seemed to have long known the inside story as a touch of disdain spilt out the corners of his mouth.
He shook his head unconcernedly and lightly laughed as he said: “What the Empress and His Majesty want to see is the complete eradication of the bandits, not the recruitment of this gang of rabble. And after today, the battle against the bandits in the southern region will go down in history as a great exploit for His Majesty the Grand Prince…”
The tone was lighthearted, yet one could recognize the murderous aura of heads rolling in the background.
“You…!”
Seeing the outcome almost in sight, a troublemaker pops up out of nowhere and ruins the well-laid plan. These selfish, self-serving bastards will destroy the Royal Princess’s years of painstaking efforts!
Rhine was furious, but there was nothing he could do to change the outcome.
The Princess, the Empress, the Grand Prince… This clearly involved an internal power struggle within the Royal Family, and he wasn’t in any position to comment.
But he still didn’t give up. Pointing at the gang of bandits gathered nearby, he questioned: “Wipe out the bandits? Do you see what’s going on here? What can you do to wipe out these 100,000-odd bandits?”
The banditry in the southern region had been going on for decades. If the bandits could be exterminated by mere force, would the Empire have allowed these bandits to run rampant and flourish to this very day?
“Alas… Others really can’t, but…”
The black-robed man waved his hand dismissively as if the sight of the over one hundred thousand bandits in the large and small gangs in front of him were all mere chickens and dogs.
After a pause, he grinned with his white teeth, his eyes glowing with dangerous and incomparable confidence as he said: “Hey, aren’t I here…”
At those words, Rhine’s expression completely froze.
Although he doesn’t think anyone can do such an impossible thing, this man in front of him…
Has never once failed!
……
While Ymir, the Princess of the Omagh Empire, and [White Wolf] Barzel were having a private conversation in the tavern, another gang had quietly infiltrated the “Black Market Fair” and headed towards the “Hyacinth Tavern”.
“Prince William, the woman will be handed over to you, as per the contract.”
“Hey hey, you Omagh Royals are a hoot. Who the hell came up with this ‘swapping blades for murder’ plot? Just listening to the whole plan made my back grow cold…”
“…”
“And also… Such a talented commander will just be abandoned like that? Could it be that old man Doppler won’t be long for this world?”
“His Majesty is in good health and of no concern to you. Your Excellency the Prince, please honour our contract as per the agreement. Other matters involving the internal affairs of the Omagh Empire don’t require your personal intervention…”
“Gee… Don’t worry, Sidhe will naturally be happy to help you with that thing. After all, it’s not good for us if that woman ascended the throne. But I remember the contract we signed involved the seven mines’ handover in the three southern provinces once it’s fulfilled. And that filthy werewolf, Barzel, must die this time!”
“No problem! We’ll take care of Barzel. This time we’ve got four ministers from the royal court and Lord Heme personally involved, so this fellow will surely die.”
“Oh, did [King of Hell] Heme Zachariah come here too? Hehe… Then we’ll definitely take care of Ymir Spoglin, good luck!”
“…”
…….
Rayne followed Pythius to the tavern’s second floor, unaware that the tide was already turning for this trade fair.
There was a large meeting room on the tavern’s second floor, and Rayne was fully aware that there seemed to be no ambushes set up.
Except, of course, for the assassin above his ceiling. The one who had been stalking him for several days.
Pythius said: “Stay here and rest, I’m going to meet some friends, there will be a magic potion master’s gathering here later in the day, don’t wander off…”
“Okay, Teacher.”
Rayne couldn’t figure out what Pythius was up to.
But he thought that he must be planning something.
With that said, Pythius then turned and left the room.
Rayne was once again left all alone in the room.
“Seventy-five paces, seventy-six paces, seventy-seven paces… Huh, Pythius didn’t leave the tavern but entered another room upstairs?”
Rayne’s ears slightly twitched. His superb sense of hearing allowed him to easily discern Pythius’s movements after exiting the room.
So, it turned out that the “reinforcements” were upstairs!
……
Rayne knew very well that the reason why old man Pythius had left him alone in the room was that there was an assassin lurking above his ceiling…
Haha, through showing the enemy his weakness, he has now finally found his opportunity!
“I must do it now!”
The window of opportunity was closing.
Rayne couldn’t guarantee what kind of “reinforcements” Pythius would find when he reaches that room.
But he, on the other hand, was certain to instantly kill the assassin above his ceiling!
The instant he made up his mind, Rayne changed from his submissive, weak-looking expression in one second as his eyes burst out with a murderous aura that was as sharp as a cold blade.
In the next instant, he crouched his legs down like a frog to build up strength, then stomped the ground and slammed towards the ceiling.
There was a loud “bang”. Rayne moved at speeds so fast that no one had time to react.
A heavy punch smashed through the ceiling, and he violently rips off a human leg with his strike…
There was a crisp “clicking” sound of bones cracking as the man’s ankle snapped off.
Then, under Rayne’s full power, the ceiling split wide open, and a mortified assassin was slammed through the floor.
The assassin was stunned by this vicious sneak attack and exclaimed: “This… This guy advanced to transcendence only a few days ago!!!”
“This power… How can this guy have so much power!”
Chapter 17 Frost Sword Maiden <TOC> Chapter 19 The Instructor Who was Killed in Seconds