The End of the Night
The first to notice the anomaly were the guards stationed outside the inn.
"Fog?"
A fog began to spread in the darkness, making it impossible to see even an inch ahead.
In an instant, a thick fog, impenetrable even by the light of lanterns, began to fill the surroundings.
Recognizing the unnatural phenomenon, they prepared to draw their weapons.
But. It was at that moment.
-Step. Step.
Footsteps echoed through the fog, and they drew their weapons with tense faces.
And. Not long after, someone emerged from the fog.
"..."
A boy with a dark-colored hood pulled over his head, his face hidden by a mask.
His green eyes shone with a faint light from under the hood.
"Who are you?"
One of the guards asked the boy.
Anyone but a fool could tell that this strange fog was related to the boy.
However. Instead of answering, the boy lightly raised a finger towards the air.
And at that moment...
-Whoosh!!
"Ugh!?"
The ground around them was swallowed by a dark shadow, and jet-black thorns sprouted from it, piercing their bodies.
Literally riddled with holes, they died without even a scream.
The boy, watching the scene, waved his hand in the air, and the thorns disappeared silently into the shadows, just as they had appeared.
Looking at the bodies that had become cold corpses, the boy passed them and headed towards the inn.
The sound of the doorbell echoed, and the eyes of those inside the inn focused on the boy.
And. Seeing the bodies of the fallen behind him, they all drew their weapons without exception.
"I'm not usually a violent person, you know."
The boy smiled faintly at the sight.
Indeed, he preferred peaceful and gentlemanly solutions whenever possible.
As a modern man who had lived in the 21st century, he had an instinctive aversion to taking another's life.
However. That was only true for those who could reason with.
If the opponent was a monster...
No. There was no room for conversation with beings even more vicious than that.
What room for negotiation could there be with those who regarded human life as less than insects?
"But. That doesn't apply to the enemies of the Viscounty."
At the boy's declaration, which was close to a death sentence, Kyle, who was sitting at the counter, also stood up.
At the same time, a thick fog began to flow in from behind the boy, and the lights illuminating the inn went out one by one.
The next moment.
Silence fell over the inn.
* * *
The situation was so overwhelmingly one-sided that it was embarrassing to even call it a fight.
"Gah!?"
"Wha, what is this!?"
Jet-black thorns poured out from all directions.
Those pierced by the thorns, seemingly made of darkness itself, died without even a decent scream.
"You bastard!!"
Among them, the skilled ones dodged Rudell's attack and rushed at him, but...
"You won't lay a finger on the Young Master."
Kyle's dagger, which had appeared behind them, pierced their vital points, and they sank into the spreading pool of blood without a proper resistance.
Thus. In just a few short minutes, the only things moving in the inn were Rudell and Kyle.
"I think it's all cleared up."
"I think so."
Silence fell over the inn.
Rudell, who looked around for a moment, nodded at Kyle's words and wiped the blood off his cheek.
"It's just as you said, Young Master."
Kyle, still on guard, shuddered slightly with a horrified expression.
No wonder, as the total number of troops in the viscounty was less than a hundred.
Excluding those on leave, guard duty, and patrol, the actual number of troops guarding Biles, the heart of the viscounty, was only about thirty.
In such a situation, it was easy for anyone to see that if these people had committed sabotage, the viscounty would have fallen into unprecedented chaos.
"As expected, no one can match the Young Master's foresight."
"Well, well... That's right."
To be honest, he had vaguely remembered the incident being mentioned in the novel, so he had prepared for it, but...
Thinking it would be best to keep that fact a secret until he died, Rudell awkwardly nodded.
"Kyle. Can you step back for a moment? I need to clean up."
"Yes, Young Master."
As Kyle nodded at Rudell's words and stepped back, Rudell took a short breath and concentrated.
Soon after. With a slight fatigue, Rudell's shadow stretched out, filling the inn with darkness.
And. It was the next moment.
The bodies that were still warm. The broken tables and furniture.
All traces of the battle began to sink into Rudell's shadow.
Before long, everything in the hall, except for the inn building itself, disappeared into the shadows, and Rudell took a deep breath as he retracted his extended shadow.
"You seem to have gotten used to that magic now."
Kyle clapped lightly, as if impressed by the sight.
"Well, yeah..."
Looking at the darkness that flickered like smoke from his fingertips, Rudell clenched his fist and scattered the smoke.
Shadow magic.
In the original novel, it was a magic that only appeared in the final chapter, and at that point, the protagonist boasted tremendous strength even without the help of magic, so it wasn't a very prominent skill.
However. That's why it was a perfect skill for Rudell to use.
It could give substance to intangible shadows and be used for both offense and defense, and it was possible to move instantly between connected shadows.
It was also possible to hide in the shadows for a short time, and it had a wide range of other uses.
The only drawback was that the power of the magic used under sunlight was severely reduced.
In other words, it was practically a nonexistent ability during the day.
Of course, except for that, it was undoubtedly a very excellent magic.
'I won't need to use magic during the day anyway.'
To be honest, even if he could use it during the day, he didn't really want to.
If it was discovered that he was using this kind of magic, he would be immediately mistaken for a Black magician or a vampire.
Getting involved with the temple or crazy Inquisitors was something Rudell absolutely wanted to avoid.
"Then. I'll call Mrs. Janice."
"Yes. Please."
Rudell nodded at Kyle's words, and Kyle lightly knocked on the tightly closed basement door.
"Mrs. Janice. You can come out now."
At the same time, the basement door opened with a creaking sound...
"Is it over?"
"Yes. It's all over."
Rudell smiled faintly at Janice, who cautiously poked her head out and asked.
"Oh my... I was really scared to death. I need to make some money and quit this job or something."
"That's not possible. If you're not here, the people visiting the viscounty will have to sleep on the streets."
Whether or not there was an inn in the territory made a big difference.
Not to mention visitors to the territory, the presence or absence of an inn also affected the traffic of merchants.
In that sense, Janice's inn was an indispensable part of the territory.
"Would you like a glass of Apple soda today as well?"
Janice, who had a sullen expression towards Rudell, asked.
Janice's inn was the place Rudell always visited after finishing his night patrol.
It was where he ended his day with a glass of Apple soda.
"No. I'm fine today. I'll be going now."
It was already late at night.
Not only the patrol, but also dealing with the cult members had made it much later than usual.
It would be troublesome if someone came looking for him, so Rudell shook his head and headed out of the inn.
"Take care, Young Master."
Janice waved at him, and Kyle followed behind Rudell.
"Ugh..."
Rudell, who came out of the inn, stretched his body with a slight fatigue.
He had used too much magic due to the territory patrol and the battle with the cult.
"Are you going straight back?"
"Yes. I'm getting a little anxious."
If his parents were to look for him, he would be scolded immediately.
Where would it be pleasant for parents to have their only son sneak out of the house at night?
In the worst case, he might even be grounded, so Rudell quickened his pace towards the mansion.
And. It was at that moment.
-Whoosh!
"Huh...?"
He heard the sound of something cutting through the wind, and then a strong impact hit his body.
A dazed voice escaped his lips. Then, he began to feel a hot sensation in his chest.
Slowly moving his gaze to his chest, he saw an arrow stuck in it.
To be precise, it was shorter than an arrow...
It was a type of arrow called a bolt, used for crossbows.
[...!!]
Kyle's shouting voice.
But Rudell couldn't quite understand what he was saying.
There was only one thing he felt now.
Drowsiness.
That was all.
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Damn cliffhanger
ReplyDeleteThank for the chapter
damn he missed one
ReplyDeleteNormally this is the time his side character C have to leave the stage. So the attack came
ReplyDelete