Chapter 1
In the pitch-black night, a figure in night clothes landed on the roof of a mansion like a cat.
SWISH.
The man appeared almost ghost-like.
He made not even the slightest sound, yet his movement speed was incredibly fast.
Before long, the man had passed through the garden and entered the outer staircase connected to the main room.
Then he stopped walking and waited motionlessly for a moment.
CLACK. CLACK. CLACK!
“It’s time to change shifts.”
“Ah, you’ve worked hard. Take a look around and then go in.”
“Yes, please go in.”
CLICK!
Just then, knights were changing shifts in the corridor.
SWOOSH.
When he headed to the main room via the banquet hall, the knights’ vigilance was even more ironclad.
But when he entered the room where the target was sleeping, the suffocatingly dense surveillance network completely disappeared.
No matter how much they were knights, they couldn’t invade their lord’s privacy.
CLACK.
The intruder carefully closed the double-layered window and immediately went to the bed.
There, a robust man was sleeping while embracing a very young woman.
SLITHER.
Drawing a dagger from within his clothes, the intruder consecutively stabbed both people in the neck.
STAB!
“GURGLE!”
“GROAN!”
The man waited until both their hearts stopped, then repeatedly slashed roughly with the dagger used for the crime.
STAB! STAB! SLASH!
This was to hide the fact that a professional assassin had killed them.
The man who had poured sword strikes on the woman as if in rage embedded the dagger in her spine and quickly withdrew.
Despite the brutal butchery, almost no blood splattered on his night clothes.
This was because he had worked so technically.
Eventually, the man deliberately left traces of intrusion on the window and swiftly left the mansion.
***
“Code name Crow. Mission accomplished.”
“The young lord’s dagger?”
“Of course it’s perfect, isn’t it? Who do you think handled it?”
“What kind of report is that… Hah! Fine. Rest for a day at the safe house and return to headquarters.”
“Yes, yes.”
I was in the middle of talking with an ordinary-looking man when a person who leaned against the wall casually threw a wooden plaque.Â
That was my superior disguised as a back-alley thug.
However, the supervisor couldn’t impose any particular sanctions despite the carelessly given report.
This was because I had never made a mistake even once until now.
Moreover, there was a fundamental reason why he couldn’t treat me carelessly.
Entering a secluded alley, I pushed my body toward the wall.
I entered the safe house through a narrow entrance covered by camouflage.
Following the passage for quite a while, several rooms with soft lights appeared.
‘E51.’
The wooden plaque I received from my superior had a room number written on it.
When I found the room and turned the door handle, a metallic sound rang out along with cold air that flowed out and swept over my entire body.
Soon, a bed that could barely fit one person and a bucket used for relieving oneself appeared.
It was a terribly poor environment.
THUD.
Lying down on the bed, I took out a small notebook and opened it.
It was a record book of achievements I had kept every time I completed a mission.
‘I’ve satisfied the promotion requirements.’
The achievements I had accumulated so far were 30 assassinations of Level 2 difficulty targets.
Despite being only eighteen years old, I had made remarkable contributions.
When I returned to headquarters, I would surely be promoted to a Level 1 agent.
Level 1 was an agent whose approximate level was Tier 5, and they often took on the position of squad leader in combat units.
‘Being an assassin would probably be better.’
Although Lantzvalger’s regulations were very strict, they were quite liberal when it came to agents’ career choices.
To continue with my plan, an intelligence agent who was relatively safe and frequently engaged in external activities would be more advantageous.
However, intelligence agents had the disadvantage that it was difficult to achieve clear accomplishments, and promotion was accordingly limited.
It seemed better to maintain the assassin position as I had been doing.
‘Deinox… What exactly was your reason for making me like this?’
As I lay there looking at the notebook, the incident from 18 years ago suddenly came to mind and invaded my thoughts.
Surprisingly, the summoned Deinox had transferred my soul into the body of a newborn child.
It wasn’t the effect I had expected, but getting to live a new life was a fairly decent result.
However, the joy of resurrection was very brief.
I had been born as the fourth child of the Lantzvalger family, who could be called my enemies.
“In a way, this might be the ultimate revenge. It’s like implanting a cancer lump inside the enemy’s body.”
I intended to steadily climb the ranks step by step and stand at the pinnacle of the family.
Then, I would kill not only this detestable household but also all those bastards who participated in the incident 18 years ago.
I would clearly show just how terrifying a lazy genius can become when they put in effort.
With a bleak smile, I snapped the notebook shut.
‘Before that, let me escape from this damn situation. No matter how much of a Level 2 agent I am, what kind of room is this…’
Then I surveyed the musty-smelling cubbyhole with dissatisfaction and waited for time to pass.
***
The next day, I headed straight to Peiros Harbor.
To get to the island of Heukrin where the Lantzvalger family was located, I had to take a boat.
The harbor was packed full of passenger ships and fishing boats.
I leisurely walked around the dock looking for a ship engraved with the family’s emblem.
Then I began asking the captain something out of the blue.
“How much do marlin scales cost these days?”
“Big ones are 9 gelds and small ones are 30 sels. Interested?”
“That’s expensive. Then what about renting a fishing boat?”
“Just give me 5 sels.”
I handed over five silver coins and hopped onto the boat.
Soon, when it became 9:30, the captain began rowing without saying a word.
WHOOSH! WHOOOOSH!
The sea route from Peiros Harbor to Black Scale Island was very rough.
But the captain skillfully found safe waterways and moved along them.
After quite some time passed, a massive island revealed its magnificent form.
Outer walls that looked like large fish scales pieced together and an endlessly spreading sea fog.
This was the headquarters of the Lantzvalger family, the island of Heukrin.
‘It’s even more irritating because it’s cool.’
The entire place was constructed like a single castle, emanating an overwhelming aura.
When the boat reached the outskirts of the island, I raised my head and stared at the highest spire.
Then I felt as if the sharp peak of the tower would pierce through my chest.
Standing at the bow of the boat, I gazed endlessly up at the island of Heukrin with its mysterious dignity flowing.
As if I had met the rival of a lifetime.
