Night in the Royal Capital
Late at night, when everyone was asleep, atop the main building of the academy.
Under the pitch-black night sky, devoid of even a sliver of moonlight, Rudell overlooked the panoramic view of the Royal Capital.
A cold wind brushed past, his robe fluttering and making a soft rustling sound.
"Sigh…"
A low sigh escaped Rudell's lips as he gazed upon the Royal Capital for a long time.
Although he had enrolled in the academy, Rudell had little interest in studies or grades.
His sole focus was to eradicate the Death Eater Cult from within the academy.
"..."
It was an obvious fact that even the academy couldn't escape the clutches of the Cult.
If his guess was correct, the Cult's influence had already taken deep root within the academy by this point.
Naturally, capturing them all wasn't as simple as it sounded.
"Hmm…"
Last winter.
It would be ideal if he could just kill them all, like when he buried the Cult agents who had visited his viscounty, but the situation was vastly different now.
Unlike those he could deal with quietly, the Cult within the academy already existed as a faction, hidden behind masks.
If he acted rashly against them in such a situation, they would undoubtedly use their power to corner him.
Even if he won a battle, it wouldn't necessarily lead to victory in the war.
Rudell himself felt the need to approach this matter with caution.
"If it can't be done from the inside, then I have no choice but to dismantle it from the outside…"
For the sake of preserving the forces that would participate in the final battle in the future, the academy's power had to be maintained with minimal losses.
To achieve this, the most ideal method was to gradually weaken the Cult's influence and deliver a decisive blow.
And the first step towards that was to chip away at the Cult's forces within the academy.
"..."
No matter how deeply rooted the Cult members were within the academy, it would be difficult for them to move freely within the Kingdom's watchful eye.
This meant that there were those supporting them from outside the academy, and that was precisely what Rudell had to target.
"I need to deal with them first."
Having finalized his plan, Rudell cautiously pulled up his mask and turned his head.
And what his eyes fell upon was a place that seemed significantly less illuminated compared to other parts of the Royal Capital…
The slums of the Royal Capital, also known as the Back Alley, located in the heart of the Old Royal Capital.
"Well then… shall we begin?"
A sigh escaped Rudell's lips as he looked at the slums that seemed like a gaping hole, and then his figure melted into the shadows, disappearing.
Moments later, only the sound of the wind filled the space where Rudell had been, as if nothing had happened.
* * *
Back Alley.
Despite its humble name, it was a place that had existed since the early days of the Kingdom's founding.
When the Kingdom had just gained independence from the Empire, it had served as the de facto center of the Kingdom.
However, as the Kingdom developed, the center gradually shifted to the more strategically advantageous outskirts, and in the process, the Back Alley began its slow decline.
The poor, fallen nobles, illegal immigrants, criminals…
All sorts of people began to gather in the Back Alley for various reasons, and it gradually became a lawless zone beyond the reach of authority.
And this meant that there was no better place than the Back Alley for handling clandestine affairs.
Somewhere in the pitch-black darkness of the Back Alley.
A man was walking through a narrow, foul-smelling alleyway.
Although his detailed appearance was hidden by a hood and cloak, he navigated the intricate alleyways as if it were his own home, passing by countless vagrants and beggars.
After walking for a while along the dark alley.
The man slowly stopped as he turned a corner.
A dead end blocked his path.
All that could be seen were overflowing trash cans, the windows of dilapidated buildings, the faint candlelight flickering from within, and rats scurrying across the streets.
One might have thought he had taken a wrong turn, but there was no sign of bewilderment in the man's eyes.
Instead, as if this were his destination, he began to cautiously scan his surroundings.
After a while, having confirmed that there was no one around, the man slowly approached a nearby wall.
It was an ordinary wall with nothing special about it, but the man narrowed his eyes and carefully examined it…
Soon, his eyes caught sight of a brick that was slightly protruding, barely noticeable unless observed closely.
The man slowly raised his hand and touched the brick, and it vibrated slightly, making a rattling sound.
-Click, click, click.
After a moment, with the sound of scraping stone, the wall retracted inward as if being sucked in, revealing a passage large enough for an adult man to enter.
A passage filled with deep darkness, like a gaping abyss.
The man, gazing at the passage, proceeded without a moment's hesitation.
Guided by the faint light flickering in the distance, the man walked through the passage for a while…
He stopped when he reached the end of the passage.
And what unfolded before his eyes was a small, dark space.
The space, decorated like a small shrine, held several people dressed similarly to the man, and in the center, an ominous black flame burned.
"You're late…"
"The guards have been more active lately, it's been difficult to move around freely."
The man replied to their reproachful words and approached them.
"Have the dogs of the false gods caught our scent?"
"Perhaps."
Of course, even if they had, it wouldn't change much.
This place was practically beyond the reach of the law.
As long as they didn't cause any major incidents, they wouldn't attract attention.
"Then I'll leave it to you again. The day of fruition is not far off."
Saying so, one of the men handed out small pouches to the rest.
The recipients checked the contents of the pouches and carefully tucked them away as if handling precious treasures.
"Fear not, for death is but another beginning for us. We shall all return to His embrace and become one."
"Death shall be equitable."
An ominous short prayer ended, and just as they uttered the last verse…
"Fear not… Such convincing words."
"Wh-Who's there!?"
A youthful male voice echoed from the darkness, and they looked around in panic.
But no matter how much they searched, all they could see were shadows cast by the flickering flames.
However, they knew.
That someone else was present in this place besides themselves.
And then, at that very moment…
"Gah!?"
"Brother!?"
Without any warning, shadow thorns erupted from beneath their feet, piercing through one of them.
Red blood began to flow from the corpse that couldn't even utter a scream…
"Cough!?"
"Argh!?"
"Gurk!?"
Following that, shadow thorns surged from the darkness, impaling their bodies one after another.
Unable to offer any resistance, they collapsed to the ground, lifeless, their blood staining the floor.
Moments later, as their breaths ceased, a young boy emerged from the swirling shadows.
His green eyes, gleaming under the hood, cautiously scanned the surroundings.
"Phew…"
With a short sigh, Rudell removed his hood and examined the fallen figures.
The ones he had just dealt with were only a small fraction of the countless pawns.
Likely, many more were lurking in the darkness, plotting to consume the Kingdom.
"Still… it's a good start."
Muttering to himself, Rudell stood up and took a step.
The blood that had spread across the floor made a splashing sound as his feet stepped on it. Rudell bent down and picked up a pouch that had fallen to the ground.
As the blood-soaked pouch dripped, Rudell casually brushed it off and opened it to check the contents.
Inside were small orbs that shimmered with an ominous light.
"Tsk…"
Rudell frowned upon seeing them and dropped the pouch. It slowly sank into his shadow as it hit the ground.
This should be enough for today.
"Shall we head back?"
With that thought, Rudell snapped his fingers in the air.
Simultaneously, small sparks appeared from somewhere and scattered around…
-Whoosh!!
As Rudell's figure disappeared into the shadows, the sparks turned into an inferno, engulfing the surroundings.
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