The Regressed Son of a Duke is an Assassin

In a corner of the library, two women sat huddled together.

With a candid heart, Arin recounted to Luna everything that had transpired between her and Cyan during her diplomatic visit with the emperor three years ago.

“I had expected Cyan’s engagement, to be honest. He probably thought the same. After all, His Majesty noticeably favored Cyan,” Arin disclosed.

Cyan’s assignment to the royal court despite not being of noble blood was emblematic of this favoritism.

“But I didn’t expect it to happen so quickly. I thought it wouldn’t happen while I was still attending the academy. Maybe I was too complacent.”

Despite her youth, she understood the significance of engagements between non-royalty and nobility.

Love between two young individuals who had just shed their innocence was no longer important.

This engagement, with no background whatsoever, revealed the emperor’s intention to establish support for the duke of Vert, despite him being an outsider, to the 5th princess.

“His Majesty probably wants me to live comfortably without any interest in the empire. But I don’t want that. Cyan’s words, urging me to become the emperor back then, were more than just advice to me.”

To Arin, Cyan was akin to a guide who showed her a vision when she was feeling hopeless.

“I know. For someone like me to become the emperor is almost impossible. It’s not a problem that can be solved simply by maturing. The walls of the world I will actually face are too formidable,” Arin lamented, realizing her position once again.

Feeling increasingly perplexed, Luna finally spoke up.

“Do you dislike being engaged to Cyan, Senior?”

“N-no! I don’t dislike it! To be honest, I’m happy. Anyway, by being engaged, I can get closer to Cyan.”

Arin’s voice dwindled to almost a whisper.

“But Cyan will probably dislike it. He might even resent it. To me, Cyan is someone who will be a great help, but to him, I’m just a foolish princess causing trouble…”

Arin’s voice trailed off as she became more and more overwhelmed.

Luna, witnessing Arin’s growing confusion, recalled a memory from the past.

It was when Boris Ruchelheim, a new instructor, first appeared before them.

She remembered the moment when Cyan held Arin’s hand to stop her from handing over the mana orb to Boris.

The anger, the hatred, the desperation in Cyan’s eyes.

It seemed like he would kill anyone who even touched a single strand of Arin’s hair.

It was as if he was desperately trying to prevent Arin from being taken away by someone else.

Although Luna found Arin’s unusual behavior intriguing, she thought to herself, ‘Arin Senior must be precious to him.’

How could someone who seemed to only think of himself become so angry for others?

Seeing Arin struggling, Luna sighed softly and said.

“I’m envious.”

“Huh?”

Arin blinked, thinking she misheard.

“After all, engagements are just formalities, right? Just because you’re engaged doesn’t mean you have to get married right away…” Luna reassured.

“R-right…”

Arin replied, though there was a possibility it could end in the middle.

“Then we still have plenty of time. Within that time, you just need to make Senior Cyan so desperate for you that he can’t live without you. I think you need to be more assertive.”

“B-but what if Cyan…”

“If you keep hesitating like this, Cyan Senior will dislike you even more.”

Luna asserted further, her solemn eyes showing unwavering conviction.

“Whether it helps or not, does it matter? Just pursue what makes you happy. Like me.”

“…..?”

Luna thought again.

Once, Cyan had thrown himself to protect her from danger at the imperial palace while hugging her.

It was an unforgettable memory that stirred her emotions.

In Arin’s eyes, filled with questions, Luna saw her own unwavering determination.

“Let’s work together, Senior.”

Luna said, smiling brightly at Arin.

* * *

After parting ways with Arin at the library, Luna returned to her dormitory.

Some men loitering near the main gate spotted her and immediately flocked around her, but Luna calmly ignored them and headed silently to her room.

Upon entering her room, she was greeted by Lamela, her personal guard, who wore a displeased expression.

“Where have you been…”

“The library.”

Luna replied nonchalantly, her response quicker than Lamela’s question.

“Don’t you always do this to us? It’s fine if you go out, but at least say something to us…”

“I always inform you. There won’t be a repeat of what happened before, so don’t worry.” Luna said, her attitude unwavering despite Lamela’s plea.

Lamela turned her head, seeming to drop the matter.

“Lamela?”

“Yes?”

“Could you bring me the research data on the Tome from the recent meetings of the society?”

Lamela doubted her ears.

“You mean research data on the Tome?”

“Yes. Even if it’s trivial, please bring all the data if possible.”

“Oh, understood.”

Despite being momentarily taken aback by the unexpected request, Lamela soon fetched all the research data from the society’s meetings stored in the data box for her.

It amounted to about ten volumes of textbooks.

With the preparations complete, Luna sat down and began to read through the stack of data.

She immersed herself in the analysis for about three hours.

After finishing her analysis, Luna turned to Lamela once again and asked.

“Is this all?”

“For now, yes. This is all the data we currently possess. If you need more detailed data, you’ll have to request it from the society.”

“Then I have a favor to ask. Please request all the data on the scriptures of the gods that have been discussed recently.”

Luna’s tone was firm.

“Um, may I ask why you’re asking for that?”

“Just because I want to explore it personally.”

“Understood.”

Lamela did not inquire further and turned to leave.

“Remiharam…”

Lamela’s body turned back at Luna’s murmured words.

“Please be discreet. Luna. Mentioning the Tome’s name is also prohibited within the society, isn’t it?”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes?”

“It means that our society is the only one who knows Tome’s name.”

“Of course. Even you should know that there are very few people in the society who know about it, right?”

In fact, among the data Luna had analyzed so far, there was no direct mention of the Tome’s name.

Only a handful of members within the society knew about it, and there had been no disclosure to outsiders.

But…

‘How did Cyan Senior, who is not a member of the society, know about it?’

It couldn’t have been something he heard by chance.

If someone from the society didn’t tell him, there was no way he could have known.

Luna’s curiosity about Cyan grew deeper.

* * *

On a warm weekend morning, I spent my time with books, presenting a highly commendable image of a student.

Despite claiming to have researched about the Tome and delving into the materials Luna had selected for me, I ultimately found no practical help.

It would be quicker to find a needle in a haystack.

[Trying so hard. What’s the point of searching through these useless piles of paper?]

“You never know when you might get caught, better have insurance ready in advance.”

Despite her frustrated outburst, I deftly avoided the punch aimed at me.

I admit to myself that I didn’t really see the necessity, if that snobbish god hadn’t mentioned it.

I wouldn’t have been searching so passionately if not for that.

[Keep going on about it! As if the Tome will suddenly reveal its location.]

Even if I kept at it for a hundred years, it wouldn’t come out.

It was an utterly hopeless situation, but what could I do?

Even breaking into the Imperial Magic Society to gather information was out of the question.

I sighed helplessly, my lips producing nothing but sighs.

“Y-young Master, your tea…”

Amidst this, Emily brought tea.

“Reading on a leisurely weekend morning! It’s truly delightful to see you cultivating yourself!”

Emily said, seemingly off her usual self.

I think our maid must have eaten something wrong in the morning.

Otherwise there would be no way to give such an extremely normal compliment.

Glancing up at her face, I sensed she had something she wanted to say, and it seemed to be the same with Brian beside her.

“Young Master…?”

“What is it?”

“Are you getting engaged, Young Master? With Princess Arin?”

“It seems so.”

She must have seen the official announcement.

Since there was nothing to hide, I didn’t particularly care.

“Is Papa getting married?”

Even our little tyke came running over, asking.

“Seems like it.”

I replied nonchalantly.

There were many things I wanted to say, but I couldn’t be bothered.

Emily’s face as she struggled to hold back what she wanted to say was quite a sight.

I can guess what you all want to say, but I don’t have the luxury to care about that right now.

By now, I’m starting to suspect if this damn snobbish god is trying to mess with me…

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The tranquility of the weekend morning shattered by rough knocking.

Anyone hearing it would think it was being hammered on.

“Who could it be at this hour?”

“Never mind. I’ll go check.”

I stood up, leaving Brian who was trying to see who it was, and went out.

Just by hearing the sound, you’d roughly know who it was.

With a sigh mixed with annoyance, I opened the door.

“Oh! So you really are here, Cyan Vert! Welcome back to school!”

I barely managed to hold back from closing the door.

Not the sand fool, but the sand prince Set Shaharkhan.

Every time I saw him, it felt like he was getting bigger, personally quite an intimidating fellow.

“You seem quite leisurely. How about a spar if you’ve got nothing else to do?”

“I’m busy.”

As I tried to close the door, he quickly intervened.

“What’s keeping you so busy? Your face looks free, all carefree and stuck up! Aren’t you just here at this boring academy for nothing? We should spar together, or else my boredom will…”

Even as we wrestled for control of the door, his gaze shifted to my other hand.

“Oh! I see you’re actually reading an interesting book!”

My gaze also naturally went to the book.

“Are you interested in the geography of our kingdom? That book has been out for a while now, so it might not be entirely accurate! Our Spania Kingdom is a country that evolves every day!”

He proudly boasted, perhaps because he was a prince of that kingdom.

Of course, I wasn’t reading this book to study geography.

What I was reading was about the village of “Nodeli” in the southeast of the Spania Kingdom.

There wasn’t much to it.

Just a legend about a mysterious altar in the village corner where a demon summoned through magic during the Holy War was sealed.

It wasn’t particularly useful information, so I was about to toss it aside.

“If you’re curious about our Spania Kingdom, feel free to ask! I’ll personally answer any questions!”

Well, I wasn’t particularly curious, but there was no harm in asking.

“Do you know about Nodeli?”

“Oh, of course! It’s a small village in the southeast of the kingdom! It’s quiet and peaceful, and not too hot, so it’s often used as a personal training ground!”

It seemed he had been there before.

“I heard there’s an altar there?”

“An altar? Rather, there’s a relic. It’s an ancient relic, so I’m not sure what it was made for, but it could be quite interesting to see! There’s even a demon living inside it!”

I couldn’t help but chuckle in disbelief.

Did he think a demon was just like a common neighborhood dog?

“Do you doubt it? It’s true! I bravely went in to catch that thing, but ended up running away with my tail between my legs! Hahaha!”

He boasted as if it was a commendable feat.

“It was my first escape in my life! I felt like I would die if I didn’t run away! Even the residents warned me not to go in! That demon even had a name!”

A name?

If it had a personal name, it must have been a colossal demon, on par with a dragon at least.

“What was its name?”

“Oh, what was it? Remi… something like that?”

Wait a minute.

No, couldn’t be.

With a strong sense of anxiety rushing through my mind, I threw out a guess.

“Could it be Remiharam?”