They all just talked about a jewel with old memories entangled in it, and they said they wanted to get their hands on it, no matter how much money they had.
The high point was obvious: he could craft the jewel himself, and he had the raw materials.
'It's not too late now.'
The source of the rumor, which had finally been discovered, was Shartus Kartazen. He was said to have given a jewel to a woman named Arolne Mulde, along with a flashy confession and a love letter.
'Why Shartus?'
He suspected something was amiss. Investigations revealed the man had never been in contact with a jeweler, but he couldn't help but feel uneasy.
They were ordered to ensure that not even the slightest trace of suspicion existed. Any clues that might lead to the discovery of Nort's death were to be cut off.
The man's movements were light. Without a sound, he slipped through the open window. His movements were like a shadow.
According to preliminary research, the man, who has just barely managed to get out of gambling debt, falls asleep drunk every night.
The two maids in the mansion are staying in the maids' room, and the wife and children are going on a trip to another region tonight.
The reason the target did not follow his family on their trip was that he was currently receiving a flood of jewel crafting orders from nobles.
The man gave a bitter laugh.
'Greed leads to death.'
The velvet carpet muffled even the assassin's voice. Even without these tools, it would have been easy to spot them, but with such easy assistance, things went quickly.
He walked up to the second floor without even lighting a candle. The air in the house, which was as still as a mouse, was heavy.
The next day, the maid would go upstairs to wake her master and scream. The man had no intention of skillfully killing the jeweler. He simply intended to make it seem like a robbery for money.
‘Here it is.'
He already knew which of the several rooms was the target room. He stood in front of the jeweler's door and quietly opened it.
Creak.
The door was locked. Even that was expected. The fact that he'd locked the door was a relief. He took out a tool and inserted it into the keyhole. After a few rattling sounds, the lock was unlocked. The man held his breath. Even when the door opened, there was no sign of life inside.
The door hinges creaked. The house was even more unkempt than it looked. It didn't matter. In fact, even if he woke up, he was confident enough to kill him. He'd managed to sneak into the palace and remain undetected for three years, so there were probably a couple of soldiers he'd killed in the forest near the hunting grounds.
The man sidled up to the bed. A jeweler with a bulging belly was snoring. The floor was littered with bottles of liquor, which had rolled over. He must have had two bottles during the evening.
The man snorted. He raised his hand, and the blade flashed. He swung it down. He grabbed the valuables and ran away. That was the end of it. The man applied downward force.
The moment the blade was inserted with a loud thud...
"Ugh!"
“Be quiet.”
The man swallowed his breath. A sharp sensation reached his throat. His wide eyes were filled with nothing but shock.
'Where? Since when?'
He couldn't figure it out. The man tried to figure out the situation. But the moment someone appeared in a blind spot he couldn't see, inside a room where there should have been nothing, he instinctively realized that everything was wrong.
The voice in his ear was one the man knew well. Hostang Mifilit, without a second thought, was the loyal subordinate of Shartus Kartazen. The man twisted his lips. The revealed hostility was sharp.
“Since when?”
"It was a while ago, right?"
Someone stepped out of the shadows. It was Shartus Kartazen. It was clear he had been waiting, so now he couldn't claim he was a robber. Especially since he had been inside the palace for three years. His false identity was that of a palace soldier.
"You knew I would come here, Prince."
"That's how I led you."
"Lead? What do you mean!"
"Show your respect to His Royal Highness, or you will lose seven fingers in an instant."
Hostang lowered his voice and threatened. The knife slipped into the man's neck. The sensation of his skin being cut silenced him. He was equally uncertain about what was going on, but the word "inducement" caught his attention.
'But there's no chance of that happening, right?'
The man thought, and then remained silent, following his own thoughts. The Prince probably didn't know the situation yet. There was no way the Prince could even grasp the situation. In fact, since he had little chance of knowing anything, the man couldn't even comprehend the situation itself. In that case, he should have refrained from revealing the information first.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"You don't have to know. We have a lot of questions to ask you later."
"What?"
A woman's voice was heard. The man frowned and looked into the darkness. Unaware, there was one more person in the room besides Shartus, Hostang, and Lucien.
The last one stepped forward. The moon, just beginning to rise, illuminated the window. It was a woman with black hair and blue eyes. She looked straight at him and smiled brightly.
"I finally caught it. The lizard's body."
The man made a dumbfounded expression. She was the Prince's personal maid.
"No, should I call you the Prince's poisoner and assassin?"
The man's eyes shook violently. He'd been caught. He didn't know why, but the situation was all too clear. The man gritted his teeth. It was a move to swallow the poison hidden between his teeth.
Hostang threw a punch. With a thud, the pill flew out of his mouth. Rosentine stepped on it and crushed it.
"There's a lot to talk about, but it's difficult if you're about to give up already. Now, let's put Demon Eye's poison aside and dismantle Mura's ivory. Aren't you curious about what's next?"
Rosentine's eyes, shining even bluer in the moonlight, were cold. She went over to the bed where the jeweler lay curled up and sat down slightly. The smile on her lips was deep. She had given the jeweler a warning beforehand and put the medicine in his alcohol. He would probably wake up only after they were all gone. Of course, he had only met Lucien, and the jeweler hadn't even known half the story.
All they knew was that someone had first taken the "Eternal Blessing." And that was enough. The ball was already overflowing with the ancient jewels. That meant the jeweler was up and running.
Arolne performed as she had hoped. Her evil influence moved other nobles, turning them all into informants. Furthermore, she cleverly spread rumors.
Of course, Mariette Cadilton had been active in trying to dispel the rumors, but even that had bought her considerable time. With the rumors and the catalyst involving Shartus's name, there was no way the mastermind behind his discovery would remain unmoved.
"Even Mura's Ivory...!"
"His Highness the Crown Prince enjoyed it very much."
"What kind of trick did you use!"
"That's what I was originally going to ask. But I figured out most of it before I asked, so it's less useful now."
All that remained was the final mock-up and the man who hired him. There was nowhere left to run. The torso continued to sever the tail, eventually ending in its own decapitation. She had a rough idea, but she needed to hear it clearly from the torso's mouth.
Rosentine stretched heavily. She been up all night here for about three days waiting for him to arrive. She been prepared to wait a week, but she was glad he'd arrived so quickly. The man was so pale that even in the moonlight, he couldn't see. His lips twitched as he tried to say something, then fell silent.
"Don't hesitate, tell me. You have no other choice now."
It was a cold word, but it was true. Hostang thrust his sword forward. A stream of blood flowed down the back of the sword. The words mercilessly crumpled the man's expression.
"After three years of suffering, I don't think you'd want to die."
Shartus approached and leaned against the bed where Rosentine was sitting. Leaning diagonally, he removed the man's hood. A seductive curve appeared at the corner of the Prince's mouth.
It was a face Shartus knew. Three years. He had been one of the soldiers who had been in and out of the palace during that time, so it was inevitable that Shartus, who had held the position of Knight Commander of the Royal Guard, would be familiar with him. Ultimately, even the most crucial security had collapsed.
After three years of behind-the-scenes work.
As expected, he came to assassinate a high-ranking jeweler. Shartus placed a large hand on Rosentine's head. It was clear that the entire social circle was busy working on her plan.
"The entire palace was a plaything in your head. Isn't that fortunate? The enemy almost played it."
A pale, smoky smile shone like a demon in the darkness. Perhaps it would be more fitting to describe him as a demon lord rather than a demon. Rosentine willingly claimed to be the demon lord's servant and rose from his seat. With each step, the distance between them grew closer. Rosentine, reaching the tip of his nose, grabbed the collar at the nape of his neck and plucked it.
"The enemy from across the sea."
A twisted smile hung on her lips. The symbol of the coastal kingdom of Vishtean was etched in black on the man's neck. The general guess was confirmed.
She simply needed confirmation. Hostang recognized the symbol and gasped. Rosentine hadn't mentioned the suspected enemy during the previous meeting, fearing that speaking rashly could lead to diplomatic trouble.
Even if they had only crossed the border, they would have been immediately put on alert. How much more so, the suspicion that they were directly targeting the Second Prince's life? It wasn't something a mere maid could do. Of course, even a sorcerer could do it.
Rosentine's eyes gleamed sharply. The legendary poison from the desert and the legendary healing poison from the sea.
In retrospect, it was clear which route these two items had to take. No treasure had escaped the trade of Vishtean. It was even said that way. The support needed to sustain a long-term plan—namely, wealth and secrecy—was crucial. Rosentine was wary of her thoughts extending to Vishtean. But if it weren't for them, there was no one else to even consider.
"I see... Is this really Vishtean?"
"Damn it! How do you know all this? This symbol must belong to a secret organization!"
The man shouted at the decisive answer. His once pale complexion was now darkening.
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