“Calm down and listen.”
“I can’t calm down!”
"That blessing is incredibly useful for a safe escape. I don't know what might happen next, so wouldn't it be nice to have one more survival tool?"
I added, grabbing Ryan's arm as he grumbled.
"You saw Max die, didn't you? That's what fighting Wassenberg means. You have to always keep death in mind. And there's someone among us who absolutely can't die."
“What are you talking about?!!!”
Max, who had been quiet, was surprised. Ryan turned to him and said.
“Oh, you died once. This guy saved you.”
“...”
Max muttered as he looked at me with his mouth wide open.
“Oh my god...”
Ryan looked back at me and shook his head firmly.
"I disagree. I can't gamble on one blessing. By bait, I assume you're deliberately being caught, right?"
“That’s right. I have to make her eat my shadow.”
Raised to be a thorough assassin, Marina handles everything in secret, ensuring even her own blessings remain hidden.
Therefore, it is natural not to do anything that would make it visible to the outside world that you are using Bless.
Her modus operandi is to thoroughly assess the surroundings and then, when there are no witnesses, target 'one person' and deal with them.
Blast furnace...
"There are only two ways for me to obtain the Blessing. Either when Marina openly eats a shadow in front of me, or when she escapes a shadow she secretly consumed. But she'll never show herself openly eating a shadow. The former option is a lost cause."
“So, you’ll let her ‘secretly’ eat your shadow?”
"Yes."
“And you have to make sure she feels safe enough to come back out, so you have to create a situation where you’re completely alone, right?”
"That's right. Of course, we could try using other people, but that would introduce too many variables."
I can't use regression this time. If someone else dies as bait instead of me, I won't be able to survive.
“...Then, when it’s all over, can I hide nearby to save you?”
"I'm sorry, but that's not possible. She's so meticulous that she knows everything and moves accordingly. She must have come with her subordinates, too. If Dad were to get caught chasing her, it would be a disaster."
We mustn't be unaware that Marina is here now. She has a keen sense, so we must never be "tight."
If Marina feels something strange, she will return without doing anything.
“Ha, so...”
Ryan washed his face dry.
“Are you saying that you’re crazy enough to go into a group of assassins alone, take a blessing, and escape?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“How do you escape!”
Ryan shouted with a grin.
"Regressing? The original purpose was to obtain Blessing, but if you waste time, isn't it all useless?"
That's right. That's exactly why I can't use regression this time.
My 'eyes' that swallowed the blessing also return to the past before I obtained them.
The reason I don't have the blessing of my sixth brother, Mario, <The Abyss of the Receiver>, that I acquired a while ago, is that I went back in time to a point before I acquired it.
"It's too dangerous. No. You're going to try it now, and if it doesn't work, give up on the blessing and just waste time, right?"
Ryan was worried.
"Are you confident you can regress without touching that eighth? If you even make one wrong move and regress together, all your secrets will be revealed, and we'll be ruined."
He grabbed my wrist and looked shocked.
"A thirteen-year-old girl with such a hunched body deliberately allowed herself to be captured by an assassin, only to escape after taking a Blessing? Could there be no variables? I don't think so."
“Don’t wind down time. The goal was to receive blessings in the first place, so why wind it down?”
“If you don’t close it, how are you going to get out of there!”
“On foot.”
“I can’t calm down!”
"That blessing is incredibly useful for a safe escape. I don't know what might happen next, so wouldn't it be nice to have one more survival tool?"
I added, grabbing Ryan's arm as he grumbled.
"You saw Max die, didn't you? That's what fighting Wassenberg means. You have to always keep death in mind. And there's someone among us who absolutely can't die."
“What are you talking about?!!!”
Max, who had been quiet, was surprised. Ryan turned to him and said.
“Oh, you died once. This guy saved you.”
“...”
Max muttered as he looked at me with his mouth wide open.
“Oh my god...”
Ryan looked back at me and shook his head firmly.
"I disagree. I can't gamble on one blessing. By bait, I assume you're deliberately being caught, right?"
“That’s right. I have to make her eat my shadow.”
Raised to be a thorough assassin, Marina handles everything in secret, ensuring even her own blessings remain hidden.
Therefore, it is natural not to do anything that would make it visible to the outside world that you are using Bless.
Her modus operandi is to thoroughly assess the surroundings and then, when there are no witnesses, target 'one person' and deal with them.
Blast furnace...
"There are only two ways for me to obtain the Blessing. Either when Marina openly eats a shadow in front of me, or when she escapes a shadow she secretly consumed. But she'll never show herself openly eating a shadow. The former option is a lost cause."
“So, you’ll let her ‘secretly’ eat your shadow?”
"Yes."
“And you have to make sure she feels safe enough to come back out, so you have to create a situation where you’re completely alone, right?”
"That's right. Of course, we could try using other people, but that would introduce too many variables."
I can't use regression this time. If someone else dies as bait instead of me, I won't be able to survive.
“...Then, when it’s all over, can I hide nearby to save you?”
"I'm sorry, but that's not possible. She's so meticulous that she knows everything and moves accordingly. She must have come with her subordinates, too. If Dad were to get caught chasing her, it would be a disaster."
We mustn't be unaware that Marina is here now. She has a keen sense, so we must never be "tight."
If Marina feels something strange, she will return without doing anything.
“Ha, so...”
Ryan washed his face dry.
“Are you saying that you’re crazy enough to go into a group of assassins alone, take a blessing, and escape?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“How do you escape!”
Ryan shouted with a grin.
"Regressing? The original purpose was to obtain Blessing, but if you waste time, isn't it all useless?"
That's right. That's exactly why I can't use regression this time.
My 'eyes' that swallowed the blessing also return to the past before I obtained them.
The reason I don't have the blessing of my sixth brother, Mario, <The Abyss of the Receiver>, that I acquired a while ago, is that I went back in time to a point before I acquired it.
"It's too dangerous. No. You're going to try it now, and if it doesn't work, give up on the blessing and just waste time, right?"
Ryan was worried.
"Are you confident you can regress without touching that eighth? If you even make one wrong move and regress together, all your secrets will be revealed, and we'll be ruined."
He grabbed my wrist and looked shocked.
"A thirteen-year-old girl with such a hunched body deliberately allowed herself to be captured by an assassin, only to escape after taking a Blessing? Could there be no variables? I don't think so."
“Don’t wind down time. The goal was to receive blessings in the first place, so why wind it down?”
“If you don’t close it, how are you going to get out of there!”
“On foot.”
“?”
I said to Ryan, who was dumbfounded.
“I’ll kill that older sister and then walk out leisurely.”
“What the hell...”
Ryan opened his eyes wide as if he was about to fall out, and his mouth fell open.
When I told him my plan was to 'send Marina away'... Ryan obviously thought I would send her.
No.
I raised my 'creaky' hand, as Ryan had said.
Even though it's a bit crooked, this hand is still scary.
Because...
“Who gave me <Instant Death>?”
***
If Marina is eliminated, she will never return to the family. Then, the pursuit and suspicion of Ryan will begin.
After listening to Vania's aftermath plan to prevent it to some extent...
Ryan headed to the third floor with Max.
First of all, Vania said...
He said that if there was no one standing guard outside, the commotion that should have happened in the first place wouldn't have happened.
"Marina handles everything very quietly. It's obvious her goal this time was to dig into Dad, and Max, who was standing guard alone, was practically set up to be caught..."
In the ‘night’ when shadows do not fall, caution is the iron rule.
“The plan will be put into action tomorrow.”
Ryan, who was chewing on Vania's words, looked back at Max.
“But you heard too much?”
“Oh, do you mean ‘I need to die’?”
Ryan chuckled.
“I heard it, but honestly, I didn’t understand half of what was being said, but there was one thing I was sure of.”
Max said, sticking out his tongue.
“So... the condition for our victory is securing the young lady’s safety?”
“Correct.”
“Yes. No matter what happens, I will protect you with my life.”
“Yes, then...”
Ryan took a deep breath.
This is the third floor of the accommodation.
It's in front of Nike's room.
“But, my lord, is this okay?”
"What."
"Don't make a fuss out of it. Just trust me and follow me. I think the young lady will be upset if you do something like this..."
Yes, Ryan has now come to find Nike 'without Vania's knowledge'.
And he was going to make a bombshell statement to Nike.
"I'm worried. Something might go wrong with Vania. Then I need to have at least one way to save her."
The only 'means' is Nike.
"Then..."
"It's okay, Dad. I was prepared. I never intended for you to get your hands dirty and for me to be the cowardly one to retreat."
“…No matter what, how could I make her commit murder?”
I knocked and waited, and Nike opened the door and came out.
'Ah.'
For a moment, Ryan almost cried as he remembered the pink panties Vania had given him as a gift...
'Hold on!'
There is work to be done.
“I’m sorry to bother you so late at night, but can I talk to you for a moment?”
Ryan said politely. Nike stared for a moment, then nodded and opened the door further.
“Come in.”
"Thank you."
Ryan entered Nike's room with Max, closed the door, and thought.
‘Where should I start with this...?’
His head hurts.
“Your Highness.”
Let's just get started.
“I am not incompetent.”
“...!”
Nike's eyes widened.
Max, who was next to him, washed his face dry.
“No, my lord. What should I do if I start from that...?”
***
The next day, in the afternoon.
The Shadow Assassin, disguised as a traveler in the village, was hovering around Ryan's quarters.
And Marina is hiding in the shadows of her subordinates, sharing his vision.
Footsteps of darkness.
Stage 1 of Manifestation: The holder swallows the target's shadow, becoming completely invisible and sharing their sight and hearing.
'Oh, target secured.'
Ryan's group was all stuck in their quarters, unwilling to come out, when a recognizable face appeared.
Vania.
She is an illegitimate child from Windsor Castle who was left to Ryan due to her incompetence.
Marina is also from the same place.
'The last time I saw her... was he three? Or four?'
It's been about ten years since she last saw her, but she still remembers Vania's unusual pink hair.
A tall escort is accompanying Vania.
She had gathered information about her in advance, and since she was famous, it wasn't difficult.
Kali, the leader of the S-class mercenary guild <Cerberus>, was famous in the capital.
'As Father had guessed... There must be some contact with the royal family.'
How could Ryan have hired such a skilled and expensive person?
Of course, there must have been help from the Crown Prince, who personally gave him the title.
Vania and Kali headed toward the crowded village market. The assassin who had planted Marina in the shadows also began to follow them.
'Which one should I eat?'
Marina pondered, pretending to be an ordinary traveler and sticking as close as possible to Vania and Kali.
Vania's Shadow?
Or, Kali's shadow?
It was time to choose.
Stage 2 of Growth: The holder can move from the target whose shadow he has swallowed to the shadow of another target.
'I guess Vania is young, so she probably doesn't know much.'
If so, then it's Kali.
The moment the shadow changed, Kali's vision began to be shared.
And then she heard an unexpected conversation.
“But why are you going to the island with my lord, young lady?”
“Huh? Oh, you meant after the trip, I'm going with Dad?”
“I have someone I need to go and meet...”
Vania spoke absentmindedly, absorbed in the sight of the market stalls displaying their wares.
Schedule for going to the island.
The 'lord' and 'father' in the conversation are probably Ryan Wassenberg.
And by ‘the person you will meet’...
'Is he the Crown Prince?'
As she suspected, he's likely the Crown Prince. She wishes Kali had asked Vania a little more...
“Who would you like to meet?”
...right.
“Ah, that...”
The moment she was waiting for Vania's answer, Vania opened her mouth without thinking.
Vania paused while looking at the items, then looked back at Kali and smiled apologetically.
"Sorry. I decided to keep it a secret from Dad. I'll tell you later."
...Not this one, but that one—that's where the goods are.
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