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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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As night fell deeper, I had just finished discussing strategies and directions with the others at the hotel and decided to head to the rooftop, where I found Sen absentmindedly gazing at the night sky.
Though it was more of a sloped roof than a rooftop, perilously close to seeming like one could fall off at any moment, Sen sat there quietly like a cat.
Slipping quietly beside her, I broke the silence.
“What’s on your mind? The assignment is over, isn’t it?”
After confirming the hotel location and the duration of Heaven Len’s stay earlier that afternoon, Sen had informed us. Thanks to her, we were able to ascertain that he would only be in Bethel until the next morning, which meant the deal Mikael had mentioned was likely to happen tonight or by dawn.
“I have a favor to ask again.”
“A favor? You mean another assignment?”
“Well, you could see it that way.”
Although it was termed an assignment, Sen never actually asked for anything from me. It was as if she avoided even mentioning it, trapped within the formality of requests.
“No, it’s not an assignment.”
Sen’s expression, initially brightening at my words, quickly darkened.
“If it’s not an assignment, I’m not interested.”
“What do you want?”
As expected.
Seeing Sen seal her lips with a look that said she hadn’t thought that far, I felt a pang of pity.
“You’re not motivated if it’s not an assignment, because you’re not part of the Chokugen Faction, right?”
Sen usually acted indifferent, but I could sense a deep-seated anxiety within her. The Chokugen Faction she had been with all her life was gone.
No matter how harsh or inhumane the Chokugen Faction’s actions were, they were like parents to her.
Suddenly, they had cast her out without any information, leaving her feeling utterly alone in the world. It was as if she was forcing herself to imitate the Chokugen Faction.
“Is staying with the Chokugen Faction that important to you? This might be an opportunity for you to leave and live your own life.”
“What is my own life?”
Sen stood up abruptly, fists clenched, glaring at me.
“I am the Chokugen Faction. I’ve been with them since I was little. Live my own life? They and their leader are everything to me.”
The girl, forged into an assassin’s blade, expressed her emotions with a calm and collected demeanor, as if she knew no other way to vent.
“You talk as if you’ve lived a long life, yet you’re only 18.”
“It’s 17, I’m a year younger.”
“What, you were younger?”
Had she lied about her age to enroll?
As Sen glanced away irritably, trying to descend from the roof, I grabbed her wrist.
“The conversation isn’t over. It seems like all young people think they’ve lived through it all, yet you’ve barely lived half of your life.”
“So, you’re going to live relying on something? Is that really all there is to Sen? Defining yourself through someone else?”
“Shut up.”
“Who said you have to change overnight? Did you think the knots tied within you over 17 years would unravel that easily? But you have to start somewhere, try something. You know you need that.”
Initially, I regarded this child merely as a link to the Chokugen Faction, a tool to assign difficult tasks conveniently. Yes, I used to think that way, but my perspective changed as we spent time together. This girl was just a child.
Especially, Sen and Michelle seemed to share unexpected similarities.
Sen had the Chokugen Faction as her parents.
Michelle Portren had Mikael Portren, part of the Tudogs, as her parent.
Both were unable to let go of their parents, despite knowing they were wrong.
I could firmly say,
“When will you stop throwing tantrums? It’s time to become independent from your parents.”
“As I said, you can’t free yourself from all shackles immediately. But you have to start somewhere.”
Sen, being smart, must have understood.
She was just afraid.
Everyone is, in their own way. Though everyone’s circumstances differ, there comes a time when one must leave the comfort of their parents’ embrace and spread their wings.
“Right now, you’re heavily reliant on the Chokugen Faction. Try to shift some of that weight elsewhere.”
“Shift it?”
I nodded slightly to Sen, who looked up at me.
“Don’t cling to the Chokugen Faction. Start exploring what you like, what you dislike, and find yourself. That way, you’ll naturally distance yourself from the Chokugen Faction.”
“Find myself?”
“Doesn’t that sound fun?”
Thinking it would be enjoyable to experience various things, I smiled, and Sen, clutching her fists tightly, nodded slightly.
“In that case, this is my favor to you.”
“A favor…”
Whether she disliked the term or something else bothered her, Sen’s expression darkened again. I hurriedly changed my approach.
“Not a favor, then… a mission? A promise between friends? Something like that?”
“A mission… that sounds good.”
Had we moved from an assignment to a mission? I wasn’t sure if this was a good development, but considering it as a step towards change was a positive sign.
“Protect Michelle Portren tonight. I don’t think there will be any major issues, but just in case.”
“Michelle…?”
With an expression of confusion, Sen looked at me.
“Yes, it’s a mission given out of caution, and you also have a debt to repay.”
“A debt to repay?”
“There is such a thing.”
The task seemed complex to Sen, who appeared to be grappling with the difference between this and the paid assignments she was used to. I couldn’t help but chuckle at her subtle expression.
“That’s life, kiddo. It’s strange that the Chokugen Faction only relates things to money and goods.”
“…And you’re only a year older than me.”
Her pouting lips made me laugh heartily, sensing that she was preparing for some change within herself.
***
In the late hours before dawn, the city of Bethel lay enveloped in a silence deep enough to suggest it was asleep.
That late night, Mikael Portren cautiously stepped out of the family mansion, cloaked in a coat and hat, accompanied by a few servants. His stealthy demeanor resembled that of a burglar leaving a house, prompting me to smile.
“Come out with confidence; it’s your house after all.”
The startled servants instinctively clutched their bags, which seemed to contain the items for today’s trade with Heaven Len.
“Daniel McLean, you’ve ignored my warning.”
Mikael Portren stepped forward, his eyes boiling with transparent anger.
“Didn’t I tell you, it’s for Michelle’s sake.”
“Did I not say I would kill you if you mentioned Michelle in front of me again?”
Handing his hat to a servant and shrugging off his coat, Mikael’s muscles began to twitch as if alive.
“It would be better for you to deal with me quickly. If Heini sees you now, you’ll be executed on the spot.”
“Everyone will die by my hand before that happens.”
His voice echoed as if in a cave, his hair gradually lengthening, starting from his head, as blue-grey fur began to sprout all over his body.
His nails and claws thickened, and his teeth sharpened into a ferocious snarl.
I had suspected he was a person who had received the power of a beast from the Demon Forest, but…
“You’ve chosen a more troublesome opponent than I expected.”
“You speak as if you know something.”
“Moon Werewolf. The progenitor of the werewolves that roam outside.”
“…!”
Though transformed into a werewolf, his shock was evident only in a slight twitch of his eyes.
“How do you know that?”
“I know enough to get medicinal herbs for your daughter.”
“…It’s too late.”
But that wasn’t all. About ten servants also began to sprout thick fur, turning into werewolves and standing behind their master.
“Wow, all of them?”
This was unexpected, but it didn’t really matter.
As I drew my sword, Mikael growled at me.
“I’ll kill you, eat your corpse, and then it’s off to meet Heaven Len. The inspector will be hassled by numerous nobles by tomorrow.”
“You won’t meet him even if you go to the trade location now.”
I didn’t know where the trade location was, but…
“Heaven Len won’t show up.”
Besides Sen and Michelle, there was another girl, preparing to become independent from her parents.
***
In Bethel, a luxury hotel popular with tourists.
Despite planning to check out the next morning, Heaven Len had already returned his key and, with his two escorts, left the hotel. After the trade with Mikael Portren, he intended to leave this detestable city immediately.
Heini, the royal inspector, was an annoyance, but adding the condition to eliminate her made the deal even more profitable.
“Heh, heh, heh.”
Imagining the items he would soon possess, Heaven left the hotel but was stopped by someone standing at the entrance to the hotel garden.
A girl with black hair and a cold demeanor, wearing a homemade amulet similar to a charm pouch. She was one of the reasons Heaven wanted to leave Bethel quickly.
“Hayun?”
His niece, the daughter of his brother’s lowly wife from the East.
He had used her well until now, but the moment she rebelled, he discarded her without hesitation.
“Uncle, where are you going in the dead of night?”
Hayun’s voice, low and filled with hostility, prompted the family guards to step forward.
“Get lost, you incompetent girl. Your mother managed to snare my brother with her looks, but you can’t even manage a single lowly commoner.”
“My parents loved each other.”
“I’ve no interest in exchanging words with a lowly girl. At least don’t disgrace the Len name out there.”
Heaven, intending to pass by, was stopped by Hayun, who raised the sword she was holding to block his path.
“If you leave now, you’ll be arrested by the royal inspector.”
“Heh, you spout nonsense well. Is that why you came here, to protect me?”
“No, not you.”
Hayun drew her sword slowly, surprising Heaven, who stepped back as his guards reflexively drew their weapons.
“It’s not for you. It’s for the ‘Len’ name that my parents and I have been part of, and for what they should have done but couldn’t.”
“Uncle, one doesn’t simply disown their family without facing them, even if it’s just through communication.”
Hayun’s voice, calm and steady, carried a serene confidence.
‘You can’t perform to your full potential when you’re seized by fear or confusion. That’s a big problem for a swordsman.’
‘But conversely, if you can master your emotions, you could be the strongest swordsman among the students at the academy.’
People often underestimate something very simple.
The difference between knowing something oneself and hearing it from someone else.
Hayun knew.
She knew her sword wavered with her fragile heart. That mastering this would make her a superior swordsman.
But hearing it directly was different.
A swordsman of incomparably higher caliber had told her directly.
If she could just master this.
If she could find peace of mind, her sword would sharpen further.
That statement gave the girl a sense of assurance.
The assurance that it was possible.
And today was the time to turn that assurance into action.
“Harbert Len and Yoo-rah Len’s eldest daughter, Hayun Len.”
Assuming a pose worthy of a painting, Hayun declared.
“Today, I renounce the name of my family.”
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