I threw the decorative sword to the corner and immediately took a fighting stance. The masked assassin slowly appeared from behind the pillar.
“You’re so delusional that you’re trying to kill yourself. You’re fearless enough to sneak into His Majesty the Emperor’s bedroom?”
“...”
The assassin leaned back against the pillar again, crossed his arms, and looked at me with an impertinent expression. I don't know what kind of mask he's wearing, but judging by his relaxed attitude, I'd think he's the owner of this room.
“How can you be so relaxed when you’re an assassin?”
I deliberately kept the assassin talking. It was common for assassins to be silent, but since I couldn’t see properly, I couldn’t gauge his skills. I just felt that he wasn’t a lowly person. Even though he had a sword hanging from his back, the assassin didn’t seem to have any intention of drawing it. Why? Why? I thought, “Since I don’t have a sword, I’ll fight fair and square with my bare hands.” Is he thinking this way, which is not typical of an assassin?
“Who did this? Who sent it?”
“...”
As expected, the assassin remained silent this time as well, but I felt that I should at least try to poke him here and there with words before the fight. However, the assassin did not seem to have the will to fight me. What is this guy doing? Is he waiting for me to attack first?
“Are you here to take His Majesty’s life? Or mine? Too bad. No matter whose life you are taking, you have chosen the wrong person!”
I flew into the air in one breath to prove my point. But maybe it was because it was the first roundhouse kick in a long time... The assassin dodged my roundhouse kick like a loach. This kid was no ordinary guy. Surely, with that kind of fast defense, he could have caught my feet flying towards his face and thrown me against the wall. However, the assassin only dodged to the side and didn’t attack me in any way. Oh, was it because the mask covered half of his eyes that he couldn’t see me well?
“You managed to dodge it well. But with this, you’ve used up all your luck for tomorrow! The luck of not getting caught when you entered the bedroom, and the luck of avoiding my roundhouse kick just now. This means you won’t be able to get out of here alive today!”
Moreover, I couldn't let him live since he had witnessed my swordsmanship skills.
“Huh.”
The assassin let out another short laugh.
“Are you laughing? Oh, yeah, you have a very positive attitude toward death.”
I threw a powerful punch at the assassin again. But this time, the assassin moved his body like a loach. He countered my punch with his elbow and pushed me to the side. Amazing speed and the sense of control and strength at the end of the movement. This guy was no ordinary guy. The assassin didn’t push me hard, but my body slid forward with one foot as if I was dancing a sword dance, and my leg was accidentally torn apart.
“Ahh...!”
I never thought that the movement that I couldn’t do when I was dancing with swords just a little while ago would be so successful now. I swung my arms and barely managed to regain my balance and get up. Then I stumbled back again, and my other foot slipped. This is crazy!
“You’re so delusional that you’re trying to kill yourself. You’re fearless enough to sneak into His Majesty the Emperor’s bedroom?”
“...”
The assassin leaned back against the pillar again, crossed his arms, and looked at me with an impertinent expression. I don't know what kind of mask he's wearing, but judging by his relaxed attitude, I'd think he's the owner of this room.
“How can you be so relaxed when you’re an assassin?”
I deliberately kept the assassin talking. It was common for assassins to be silent, but since I couldn’t see properly, I couldn’t gauge his skills. I just felt that he wasn’t a lowly person. Even though he had a sword hanging from his back, the assassin didn’t seem to have any intention of drawing it. Why? Why? I thought, “Since I don’t have a sword, I’ll fight fair and square with my bare hands.” Is he thinking this way, which is not typical of an assassin?
“Who did this? Who sent it?”
“...”
As expected, the assassin remained silent this time as well, but I felt that I should at least try to poke him here and there with words before the fight. However, the assassin did not seem to have the will to fight me. What is this guy doing? Is he waiting for me to attack first?
“Are you here to take His Majesty’s life? Or mine? Too bad. No matter whose life you are taking, you have chosen the wrong person!”
I flew into the air in one breath to prove my point. But maybe it was because it was the first roundhouse kick in a long time... The assassin dodged my roundhouse kick like a loach. This kid was no ordinary guy. Surely, with that kind of fast defense, he could have caught my feet flying towards his face and thrown me against the wall. However, the assassin only dodged to the side and didn’t attack me in any way. Oh, was it because the mask covered half of his eyes that he couldn’t see me well?
“You managed to dodge it well. But with this, you’ve used up all your luck for tomorrow! The luck of not getting caught when you entered the bedroom, and the luck of avoiding my roundhouse kick just now. This means you won’t be able to get out of here alive today!”
Moreover, I couldn't let him live since he had witnessed my swordsmanship skills.
“Huh.”
The assassin let out another short laugh.
“Are you laughing? Oh, yeah, you have a very positive attitude toward death.”
I threw a powerful punch at the assassin again. But this time, the assassin moved his body like a loach. He countered my punch with his elbow and pushed me to the side. Amazing speed and the sense of control and strength at the end of the movement. This guy was no ordinary guy. The assassin didn’t push me hard, but my body slid forward with one foot as if I was dancing a sword dance, and my leg was accidentally torn apart.
“Ahh...!”
I never thought that the movement that I couldn’t do when I was dancing with swords just a little while ago would be so successful now. I swung my arms and barely managed to regain my balance and get up. Then I stumbled back again, and my other foot slipped. This is crazy!
Normally, I would recover my sense of balance to this extent right away, but things were different now. The perfume I had applied in the bathroom was the cause. I accidentally put too much perfume on my hand and ended up applying it to the soles of my feet, so my feet have been slippery ever since. This slipperiness helped me a lot when I was dancing with swords, but when I tried to do a backflip, I kept making mistakes in my movements, and my body had no strength. It was strange that I didn’t fall down on the already shiny marble floor since I had applied perfume to the soles of my feet.
My body fell backwards. From the assassin’s perspective, it was the perfect timing to attack me. Didn’t I just lock eyes with the assassin? Yes, there’s no way he would miss this kind of good timing. Am I going to get hit like this...
***
Prince Norton and Prince Tesla walked along the backyard path to the villa, far apart from each other. Prince Tesla was the one who was watching to see whether or not to talk. The Prince knew that Prince Norton had promised to meet with Resilia behind the Opera Palace. Resilia had suggested the meeting to Prince Norton first at the banquet hall, and Prince Tesla, who had a sly idea, called Zelda to the backyard of the temple. The siblings planned to have the two meet by chance and have Emperor Linel witness this. They expected that just the fact that the Empress was standing in the dark with the Prince of another country late at night would create a plausible picture. And Prince Tesla’s thoughts were right. He could feel the anger slowly gushing from Emperor Linel’s back. They would have made excuses and gotten away with it anyway, but all distrust starts from such small and trivial gaps. If Emperor Linel had even a moment of suspicion about the Empress, that would have been a good result.
However, a strange concubine suddenly appeared and ruined things. On top of that, she confessed to Prince Norton, who seemed to have lost his mind. If anything, something was seriously wrong. How on earth did that concubine know that Prince Norton and Zelda were meeting in the temple backyard and suddenly showed up and told the Prince that she loved him?
Everything was full of questions. As they approached the villa, the Prince spoke to Prince Norton, who was a few steps ahead of him.
“Your Highness, you go in first. I will enjoy my walk a little longer before going in.”
Although it was a small thing, when his first plan to get Zelda into trouble went awry, he needed a place to vent his frustration. So, Prince Tesla decided to take a walk and go to Pecilini's residence to relax his body and mind.
“If you want to take a walk, the western path where the concubines’ quarters are located is a good choice.”
Prince Norton looked back at Prince Tesla, pointing in the direction of the West Palace.
“Yes? Oh, is that so? I guess Your Highness has been there before?”
When Prince Norton mentioned the West Palace, Prince Tesla, whose feet were numb, lowered his voice and asked.
“No, I heard it from the servants of the villa.”
“Oh, I see. I’ll keep that in mind.”
'Then that's right. How could that Prince know to mention the West Palace where the concubines' quarters are?'
A vulgar smile appeared again on Prince Tesla's lips as he sighed in relief.
“Many eyes are watching, Your Highness.”
Prince Tesla gave Prince Norton a word of advice as he headed back to the villa.
'What the hell is that Prince author talking about?'
Prince Norton looked at the Prince with a cold gaze.
“Your Highness, please be careful of your actions.”
“What did you say, Prince?”
“A scandal with a foreign concubine...”
Prince Tesla muttered sarcastically. Prince Norton stared at him for a moment, then shook his head, looking down at the ground in disbelief. Who was the man who had been caught having a secret affair with Consort Pesilini and had urged his knight to kill the servant? Who was he to tell to be careful of his actions now?
“Thank you for the advice. I think that if something like this happens again, I should just eliminate the witnesses. That way, there won’t be any unnecessary misunderstandings.”
“What, what?”
“I couldn’t do it earlier because His Majesty the Emperor was there.”
It was a trap set by Prince Tesla, anyway. So there was no need to make excuses to him that meeting the Empress in the temple garden was just a coincidence. When Prince Tesla flinched, the Prince waved his hand and laughed.
“Hahaha, I was just joking. Why are you being so serious...”
Prince Norton bowed briefly to Prince Tesla and headed back to the villa.
“Your Highness, you go in first. I will enjoy my walk a little longer before going in.”
Although it was a small thing, when his first plan to get Zelda into trouble went awry, he needed a place to vent his frustration. So, Prince Tesla decided to take a walk and go to Pecilini's residence to relax his body and mind.
“If you want to take a walk, the western path where the concubines’ quarters are located is a good choice.”
Prince Norton looked back at Prince Tesla, pointing in the direction of the West Palace.
“Yes? Oh, is that so? I guess Your Highness has been there before?”
When Prince Norton mentioned the West Palace, Prince Tesla, whose feet were numb, lowered his voice and asked.
“No, I heard it from the servants of the villa.”
“Oh, I see. I’ll keep that in mind.”
'Then that's right. How could that Prince know to mention the West Palace where the concubines' quarters are?'
A vulgar smile appeared again on Prince Tesla's lips as he sighed in relief.
“Many eyes are watching, Your Highness.”
Prince Tesla gave Prince Norton a word of advice as he headed back to the villa.
'What the hell is that Prince author talking about?'
Prince Norton looked at the Prince with a cold gaze.
“Your Highness, please be careful of your actions.”
“What did you say, Prince?”
“A scandal with a foreign concubine...”
Prince Tesla muttered sarcastically. Prince Norton stared at him for a moment, then shook his head, looking down at the ground in disbelief. Who was the man who had been caught having a secret affair with Consort Pesilini and had urged his knight to kill the servant? Who was he to tell to be careful of his actions now?
“Thank you for the advice. I think that if something like this happens again, I should just eliminate the witnesses. That way, there won’t be any unnecessary misunderstandings.”
“What, what?”
“I couldn’t do it earlier because His Majesty the Emperor was there.”
It was a trap set by Prince Tesla, anyway. So there was no need to make excuses to him that meeting the Empress in the temple garden was just a coincidence. When Prince Tesla flinched, the Prince waved his hand and laughed.
“Hahaha, I was just joking. Why are you being so serious...”
Prince Norton bowed briefly to Prince Tesla and headed back to the villa.
***
Everything happened in a split second. As expected, my guess was right. As soon as I slipped and fell backwards on the floor, the assassin rushed at me to kill me, thinking this was the moment. Just before the hard marble floor met the back of my head and made a loud noise, something got in between. Before I could realize what had dramatically prevented the back of my head from meeting the marble floor, my body had flipped over in an instant, and my posture had changed.
Wait, didn’t the assassin’s hand just touch the back of my head? If I had collapsed from a concussion, it would have been easier to deal with me, so why did he protect me?
My body was already on top of the assassin’s body. I opened my eyes wide and glared at him. Did he change his posture to stab me in the back? Before the assassin could draw his sword from behind, I quickly punched the assassin’s chin more than five times per second and shouted.
“Who are you! What kind of kid are you!”
“Ugh, stop hitting me. I’m not an assassin!”
“What is this dark bastard saying?”
“I’m a handsome bastard! Ugh...”
Stay still.
"...What?"
I stopped punching the assassin's head, determined to crush it. I felt like I had to stop. If I didn't, I had an ominous feeling that my breathing would stop soon. Yes, that voice was familiar. It felt uncomfortable to ignore that voice and continue punching.
'No, Zelda! We have to kill him first. If we don't do this now, it will be hard to catch the assassin.'
The incarnation inside me snickered and egged me on. Oh, right. But you’re laughing in this dire situation? I internally vented my anger at the incarnation and glared at the assassin beneath me again. Yes, this guy is the one who broke into His Majesty’s bedroom. I can’t let him off the hook. I’ll make sure he never acts like a man again!
“Who are you! What kind of kid are you!”
“Ugh, stop hitting me. I’m not an assassin!”
“What is this dark bastard saying?”
“I’m a handsome bastard! Ugh...”
Stay still.
"...What?"
I stopped punching the assassin's head, determined to crush it. I felt like I had to stop. If I didn't, I had an ominous feeling that my breathing would stop soon. Yes, that voice was familiar. It felt uncomfortable to ignore that voice and continue punching.
'No, Zelda! We have to kill him first. If we don't do this now, it will be hard to catch the assassin.'
The incarnation inside me snickered and egged me on. Oh, right. But you’re laughing in this dire situation? I internally vented my anger at the incarnation and glared at the assassin beneath me again. Yes, this guy is the one who broke into His Majesty’s bedroom. I can’t let him off the hook. I’ll make sure he never acts like a man again!
I bent my knees and prepared to strike the assassin’s lower body with a fatal blow. Then the assassin urgently shouted, “Wait!” and took off his mask on his own.
“...Li, Linel?!”
“Whew, my prediction was right.”
He sat up, slapping my knee with his hand, which was heading towards his lower body's vital part. Then he rubbed his pubic area with his hand, and his face looked like he couldn't decide whether to get angry or laugh. I should have apologized quickly, but my voice didn't come out. I couldn't even blink. I just kept clenching my fist, which was about to smash his pubic area. Linel quickly lifted me up, who was sitting near his ankles, and sat me back down on his thighs. Only then did I open my mouth.
“...Li, Linel?!”
“Whew, my prediction was right.”
He sat up, slapping my knee with his hand, which was heading towards his lower body's vital part. Then he rubbed his pubic area with his hand, and his face looked like he couldn't decide whether to get angry or laugh. I should have apologized quickly, but my voice didn't come out. I couldn't even blink. I just kept clenching my fist, which was about to smash his pubic area. Linel quickly lifted me up, who was sitting near his ankles, and sat me back down on his thighs. Only then did I open my mouth.
“What, what on earth is going on...?”
“Let’s talk about this slowly. But first, let’s loosen up this fist.”
He tapped the back of my fist and then opened my fingers one by one.
“Your Majesty, what is this outfit?”
I asked, picking up the mask he had been wearing from the floor.
“What is that dance you are talking about?”
Linel asked with a serious tone. For a moment, my breath almost stopped.
“...Where did you see it from?”
“Starting with forcibly removing the decorative scabbard attached to the wall.”
“Did it look very different?”
“Of course. I don’t usually see you working hard.”
“No. The Empresses’ sword dance....”
“Zelda, you know, humans can’t be good at everything.”
"...Yes."
Even if Linel hadn't patted my back and said that, I wouldn't have known what he meant. I could tell from the comforting touch of his hands how he was evaluating my swordsmanship.
“I really thought you were an assassin.”
“I wanted to test it. To see if what I was feeling was right.”
“Since when did you know that I practice swordsmanship?”
I asked him in a crawling voice, unable to meet his eyes. Didn't you know that when you took my hand holding the knife at the banquet hall?
“What does it matter when I found out? What matters is that you got caught.”
“...That’s right. Your Majesty, you are quick-witted.”
“Why did you think your husband was just a handsome man?”
He continued to rub his pubic area with his hand and said, What should I do? The pain still hasn't gone away...
“No. I think your body is nice, too.”
“I even noticed that you were thinking that way. Oh, but your fists are really sharp.”
Even though he only smiled briefly, he frowned again as if he felt pain in his pit of the stomach. I quietly hid my hands behind my back. Then he took my hands behind my back again and looked them over as if he was appraising an object, and continued speaking.
“Actually, I had a feeling, but I didn’t have any evidence. I was convinced when I saw you throw a knife at the banquet today. But I pretended to be an assassin just in case I saw something wrong.”
Ha, I knew it from then on.
“I almost got into trouble.”
“It will be faster if you experience it directly like this.”
“That’s true, but...”
If he had taken off his mask even a little later, the lineage of the Lapion Empire would have been... broken. It's dizzying to think about it.
“I never imagined that you would attack me to the point of making it impossible for me to act like a man.”
Linel glared at me, covering his precious body with both hands, which was on the verge of losing its function tonight.
“Let’s talk about this slowly. But first, let’s loosen up this fist.”
He tapped the back of my fist and then opened my fingers one by one.
“Your Majesty, what is this outfit?”
I asked, picking up the mask he had been wearing from the floor.
“What is that dance you are talking about?”
Linel asked with a serious tone. For a moment, my breath almost stopped.
“...Where did you see it from?”
“Starting with forcibly removing the decorative scabbard attached to the wall.”
“Did it look very different?”
“Of course. I don’t usually see you working hard.”
“No. The Empresses’ sword dance....”
“Zelda, you know, humans can’t be good at everything.”
"...Yes."
Even if Linel hadn't patted my back and said that, I wouldn't have known what he meant. I could tell from the comforting touch of his hands how he was evaluating my swordsmanship.
“I really thought you were an assassin.”
“I wanted to test it. To see if what I was feeling was right.”
“Since when did you know that I practice swordsmanship?”
I asked him in a crawling voice, unable to meet his eyes. Didn't you know that when you took my hand holding the knife at the banquet hall?
“What does it matter when I found out? What matters is that you got caught.”
“...That’s right. Your Majesty, you are quick-witted.”
“Why did you think your husband was just a handsome man?”
He continued to rub his pubic area with his hand and said, What should I do? The pain still hasn't gone away...
“No. I think your body is nice, too.”
“I even noticed that you were thinking that way. Oh, but your fists are really sharp.”
Even though he only smiled briefly, he frowned again as if he felt pain in his pit of the stomach. I quietly hid my hands behind my back. Then he took my hands behind my back again and looked them over as if he was appraising an object, and continued speaking.
“Actually, I had a feeling, but I didn’t have any evidence. I was convinced when I saw you throw a knife at the banquet today. But I pretended to be an assassin just in case I saw something wrong.”
Ha, I knew it from then on.
“I almost got into trouble.”
“It will be faster if you experience it directly like this.”
“That’s true, but...”
If he had taken off his mask even a little later, the lineage of the Lapion Empire would have been... broken. It's dizzying to think about it.
“I never imagined that you would attack me to the point of making it impossible for me to act like a man.”
Linel glared at me, covering his precious body with both hands, which was on the verge of losing its function tonight.
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