The Regressed Son of a Duke is an Assassin

A silver door at the end of a corridor on the fifth floor of the mansion.

A tall man dressed in the uniform of the mansion approached the door.

-Knock knock.

“Please come in.”

Even though it was a late hour when the caretakers wouldn’t usually come, the owner of the room allowed entry.

As soon as he faced the owner of the room, the man bowed his head.

In front of him was Aschel, sitting leisurely in a chair, reading a book.

“I have confirmed the whereabouts of the second young lady you mentioned.”

Aschel asked casually, keeping his gaze fixed on the book.

“Where is she?”

“She has been confirmed to be in ‘Pruina,’ the territory of the White Elves to the north of the continent. It seems she has been there for quite some time.”

“Pruina… To think she was with a race that outsiders despise so much, her affinity truly deserves recognition.”

Aschel closed the book and smiled mysteriously as he looked at the moonlight through the window.

“Just keep an eye on her, and if there’s any sign of her returning to the empire, let me know again.”

“Understood.”

The man who had been observing his demeanor cautiously asked.

“Has something good happened?”

“Why do you think so?”

“Your face looks unusually bright, Lord Aschel. Did you find the meeting with your younger sibling interesting?”

At the mention of his sibling, Aschel’s smile turned into laughter.

“Hahaha. Interesting… Well, depending on the circumstances, I suppose you could say that. But, you’ve misunderstood, Kellen. I’m feeling quite terrible right now…”

Arched eyebrows and straightened lips.

His face was the opposite of how it looked just a moment ago when Cyan was mentioned.

“I apologize for not being able to read your mind, Lord Aschel.”

The man quickly bowed his head.

“It’s fine. If even hiding your own feelings is this difficult, how much harder would it be to know someone else’s? Especially, even for a boy who has just shed his wet smell…”

They say that they know ten ways in the water, but they don’t know the insides of people in one way.

Aschel had been feeling irritated to the point of being annoyed by his meeting with Cyan just a few hours ago.

“Um, what kind of conversation did you have with that sibling Cyan…?”

“Nothing much. Just asked about how he’s been and exchanged a few pleasantries. But… Why do I feel so uneasy?”

Before I knew it, even the eyes had hardened, and the face was full of negative emotions.

“He seemed extremely surprised to see me…”

“Well, wouldn’t it be natural to be surprised after such a long time?”

“There’s no need to call it a long time. In the first place, I never had any interaction with that fellow. Today is practically the first time we’ve exchanged words while facing each other.”

The age difference between Cyan and Aschel was a whopping seven years.

Aschel had never had any reason to take an interest in Cyan, and given his thorough pursuit of necessity, it was even more inevitable.

“What can I say? Did it feel like encountering an old enemy from a past life? That look in his eyes was as if he could kill me any moment. Even though he probably doesn’t have any memories of me…”

Cruelty personified.

At that moment, Cyan’s eyes seemed more like those of a demon than a human’s.

“In many ways, he’s definitely a brother worth worrying about. We should make sure to keep an eye on him so he doesn’t stray.”

The man understood Aschel’s words immediately.

“I’ll assign someone to him.”

Aschel responded in silence.

Having finished his task, the man left the room immediately.

Left alone, Aschel stood up and absentmindedly gazed up at the night sky.

A pitch-black curtain with not a single star and faint mist sandwiched between.

The eerie sight, even obscuring the bright moonlight, seemed to evoke someone’s presence.

* * *

February 18, 986 of the Genesis Era.

The third dawn since returning to the mansion.

In the yard, carriages and guardian knights, ready for departure, were already waiting.

“Ha…”

A breath escaped involuntarily into the still chilly morning air.

A desolate scene compared to two days ago when Cranz departed.

The rest of the mansion’s occupants, except for the coachmen and guardian knights, were probably under the impression that I would depart around noon.

Not wanting to leave amidst the awkward attention like Cranz did, I deliberately planned to leave at a time when nobody knew, departing alone.

Except for one person.

“You’re quite early, Emily…?”

Standing in front of the carriage, Emily glared at me with eyes that seemed to be on fire.

The bundle of discontent filled in her cheeks was ready to burst at any moment, making me feel uneasy.

“I’m really disappointed, young master…”

“I told you. From the beginning, it’s not that I don’t want to bring you, but I can’t. They don’t allow personal attendants at the Academy.”

“Well, it would’ve been nice if you had told me that from the start! Why did you have to tell me the night before?!”

Would you understand if I said I was scared of your hysteria?

Honestly, I intended to tell you as soon as we arrived at the mansion, but I completely forgot due to the unexpected encounter.

The statement that personal attendants cannot be brought is also a lie.

In terms of Academy regulations, the entry of attendants is theoretically prohibited.

However, there are always loopholes to bypass the rules.

If the accompanying person’s status is not an attendant but a guardian knight, then the situation changes.

With nobles from all over the continent gathering at the Academy, personal safety is not restricted within the Academy because nobody knows what might happen.

Therefore, nobles disguise their personal attendants as guardian knights to bring them in.

Using this route, it’s not difficult to bring in attendants, and it’s a method that is frequently used in practice.

I could have also used such a trick to bring my attendant in, but I didn’t.

Perhaps for her, the Academy will be an even more sinister and repulsive place than the frontlines where monsters lurk.

“Still, I’m truly grateful to you. If it weren’t for you, I probably couldn’t have endured staying in this mansion.”

“Enough with the sweet talk. Go and take care of yourself.”

Emily waved her hand dismissively, but she couldn’t hide her flushed face.

Seeing her like that, I couldn’t help but smile faintly.

It’s okay to say I’ve never had a mother, but she’s a good older sister, even though she’s a bit lacking.

Whether in this life or the last, she was still more than just a precious maid to me.

As the distance is far away, once I leave for the Academy, there likely won’t be a reason for me to come back here.

I don’t know when I’ll see her again, but I only hope for her well-being.

“Alright then, Emily. Take care and don’t get bullied!”

“Don’t you get bullied either, young master! Don’t get depression or social anxiety and commit suicide or anything!”

“….”

She’s still my maid, after all.

She couldn’t help but be the very annoying maid who makes all the remaining dignity vanish.

I climbed onto the carriage without further lingering.

“Let’s go!”

With a vigorous flick of the reins by the coachman, the carriage set off, followed by the guardian knights.

The destination was the city of Luwen in the southeast of the empire, where the Royal Academy was located.

Being situated at the far end from the western border city of Velias, it was essentially the farthest one could go within the empire.

With tight timing, I had to hustle if I wanted to make it to the entrance ceremony on time.

Well, it didn’t really matter if I was late.

After all, I’m not going there to aim for the top student position, am I?

Despite the title of being the continent’s top educational institution, I’m someone who has already mastered such education long ago.

While revision is said to be as important as living life itself, unless I’m suffering from dementia, do I really need to revise education at the level of multiplication tables?

Well, it’s from my perspective, of course; it’s not like education at the level of multiplication tables is actually being conducted.

I’m going to the Academy not for learning but solely for my own purposes.

So, I’ll just try to avoid attracting attention as much as possible and focus on my tasks, but…

Perhaps it might be even more challenging than life on the frontline.

– Knock knock

The carriage, now far beyond the territory, was galloping across the vast plains.

Six guardian knights precisely guarded the carriage.

Hmm…

This feels like something I should address before it even begins.

* * *

The sun dipped low in the western sky.

As the incessant sound of hooves ceased, my eyes, accustomed to constant movement, naturally opened.

Amidst a refreshing yawn, a knock came at the door.

“Master Cyan, it seems we should make camp here for the night.”

I inquired without much reaction.

“How far have we come?”

“We’re near the city of Sapheren in the central region. We should be able to reach the city by tomorrow morning.”

That’s a lie.

There’s no forest with such a pungent scent near Sapheren.

We’ll have to travel for at least another day.

“Alright, understood. Let me know when everything’s ready.”

“Yes, Master Cyan.”

The fading sound of the knight’s footsteps.

Simultaneously, Kaeram revealed himself from within my embrace.

She looked at me sharply and said,

[You know, right?]

“Of course. I figured it out before we even left.”

[You’re already making enemies everywhere? Do you realize that you might end up unable to live and just collapse?]

“Just one attempt on my life is enough. Besides, isn’t it strange for an assassin not to have enemies?”

I just kill to survive.

Well, honestly, I was expecting it, but I didn’t expect it to come so soon.

Camping in a valley like this, where the trees weren’t even properly spaced and where someone could disappear without raising any eyebrows, was absurdly predictable.

It was so predictable that it wasn’t even funny.

– Clomp clomp

A moment later, I heard the footsteps of the knights beyond the door.

The sound stopped right in front of the door, and there was no indication of movement elsewhere.

It would be awkward to think they were here to welcome me.

These knights are surrounding me right now.

“Master Cyan, you may come out.”

Since he said to come out, I had to.

I opened the door without any hesitation and stepped outside.

Six knights surrounded me to prevent me from running away.

Each of them looked at me with different expressions and gazes.

If there was one thing they had in common, it was a sense of pity.

Are these unalike beings sympathizing with me right now?

With an unaffected face, I took a deep breath of the fresh air in the mountain valley.

“The air is nice, isn’t it? Was there a forest like this near Sapheren?”

The knights remained silent.

Naturally, I threw out the next question.

“Who’s in charge here…?”

The eyes of some of the knights wavered, but they still maintained their silence.

“Have you all turned into mute people who’ve had too much honey? I’m speaking, and you don’t respond?”

“Heh…”

From the direction of 3 o’clock from where I stood.

A knight with shaggy long hair and a black crow under his eyes just laughed at my words.

I barely managed to suppress the discomfort creeping into my heart.

“…I have no personal feelings.”

As I shifted my gaze, one of the knights in front finally spoke up.

“I do not remember asking about your feelings? That wasn’t my question.”

“Still, we will ensure the final courtesy and send you off as peacefully as possible. If you just close your eyes, you can quietly drift into sleep without any pain.”

What a dog-like response.

Sure, you’re just puppets who have to obey orders, but what crime have I committed? Conversely, such puppets could become criminals themselves.

Moreover, even being unlucky could be considered a crime.

But shouldn’t they at least answer the question I just asked?

“I feel like I’ve only asked you four questions so far, but as a final inquiry… Who gave the order?”

The answer came from a distant place.

“There is no need for someone who is about to die to know that…… .”

Ah, they’re really opening a can of worms.

The knight with the black crow under his eyes, who had just laughed at my words, taunted once again.

With that, the thread I had been barely holding onto finally snapped.

– Swoosh

In less than a second and within five strides.

Amidst a satisfying sound, splashes of crimson scattered across my face.

A large head was thrown to the floor in a blink.

“…!”

It was truly a sight to see the faces of the knights suddenly turning pale.