A scratch?

Cadel’s gaze instinctively swept over his body. Kunra’s scale armor that had been created covered his entire body. More noticeable, though, were the shards of armor on the floor.

‘Did I just get knocked off by an attack……?’

It was ridiculous. He could accept this fact if it had been any other armor, but this was the finest armor made from the scales of the Scarlet Dragon. To be able to dent it with a single blow.

It shouldn’t be possible, but if there was anyone here who could do it, it was Yozen Vardikta.

‘Did he not recognize me, or did he recognize me and still attack?’

It was clear what either side needed to do right away. Cadel injected a little more mana into the Count’s barrier and then stood next to the bed.

‘Whatever it is, it’s clear that the one he’s after is Count Keinstein.’

If he stuck with Count, he could seize the opportunity. That was the moment when Cadel decided to raise his mana in preparation for an emergency.

“Kugh……!”

Someone grabbed him hard by the nape of his neck, and a heavy impact on his ankle shook him off center. It was a skillful move that he didn’t have the strength to resist. Cadel reflexively reached for the ground as he felt himself crumble, but a flying hand snatched his arm back.

With a loud thud, Cadel’s face fell to the ground. The combat helmet had saved him from a broken nose or teeth, but the impact hadn’t gone away completely. Cadel gritted his teeth at the searing pain that shot through his face.

And the next moment.

“Arghh! F*ck…!”

The pinned arm snapped and twisted. His vision went white as his joints screamed in pain. Horrible pain shot through his right arm, which was clearly dislocated.

Cadel moved his other hand and fired a fireball at the figure crushing his back, but it missed.

The off-target fireball created a small vibration as it clattered to the ceiling. At the same time, his left arm was grabbed. Cadel’s face went white from the unnatural force of the grip on his forearm.

‘Is this crazy bastard planning to rip off a person’s arms?’

At this point, he wondered if it was ‘the’ Yozen he had seen in the Dunkelhai forest. Although Yozen had an eerie vibe at the time, he did not show this kind of coercive attitude.

Cadel cried out his name almost in a panic due to the rising suspicion.

“Yozen!”

Then the hand gripping his forearm loosened faintly. Cadel winced, his cheeks crushed to the floor, trying to somehow identify the human on top of him. But the hand at the nape of his neck prevented him from turning his head properly.

“I thought I had eyes for people. Looks like that wasn’t the case, what a pity.”

Cadel stopped trying to check the other person’s face as a voice quietly rang in his ears. It was undoubtedly Yozen’s voice. The soft voice that had guided him through the forest.

“Is that correct? Yozen. You know me”

“Yes, I remembered your face. The way you breathed, the way you walked, the way you talked.”

“I have no intention of attacking you like I did then. I just have something I want to say. Therefore—”

Yozen did not let Cadel get to the point. Instead, he leaned down from where he was sitting on Cadel’s back and pressed him close. Hot breath glided across Cadel’s ears.

“You’re trying to protect the Count, that little pig. From me.”

Yozen’s voice was calm, even, but Cadel felt goosebumps crawl up his spine, the killing intent piercing through his armor and sending shivers down his spine. A killing intent worse than any enemy Cadel had ever encountered. His dry aura dried up even Cadel’s sweat.

“It’s not like that. I was just being a mercenary for a while, thinking that if I came here, I could meet you.”

“……Is that so?”

While feeling Yozen’s breath on his ear, Cadel suddenly realized. Even though he was breathing so close to him, Cadel couldn’t hear Yozen breathing as he should have. Even though he could feel the breathing, he could not hear any sound.

The only sounds that filled the room were his own moans as he held back his pain, the Count’s shallow snoring, which still showed no signs of waking, and the sound of the wind blowing from the barrier that surrounded him.

‘It’s like a horror movie.’

His body became increasingly stiff due to instinctive fear. Cadel had to make desperate efforts to recognize Yozen’s presence as a ‘prospective comrade to be recruited’. Otherwise, he felt like he would attack Yozen without even realizing it.

“Unless you’re trying to protect the Count, stay still.”

Soon the weight on his back was gone, and so were the hands around his arms and nape. Cadel curled into a twitching ball and turned his stiff head, and for the first time, he saw Yozen for what he really was. Though it was only the back of his head.

Dark navy blue hair with a faint bluish tinge was tousled, and through it, he could see the knot of white bandages covering Yozen’s eyes.

His clothes were sheer enough to reveal the outline of his body. The matte black outfit would not look out of place if it were to immediately melt into the shadows.

The only bare skin was the nape of Yozen’s neck and hands peeking out from under his hair. The figure that peeked through the thin fabric was far from scrawny, and his entire body was made up of lean muscle.

He was not a huge man, nor did he have huge muscles, but the sight of him made Cadel cringe. Like prey in the presence of a predator, he felt an instinctive rejection.

Cadel forced his mouth to open, pushing the fear away.

“Hold still. What are you trying to do?”

“From now on I’m going to kill the Count. So if you’re not from Count and just want to talk to me.”

“…….”

“It’s better for you not to interrupt me.”

Beyond the head turned diagonally toward Cadel, the sharply raised corners of the mouth were visible.

‘He says…… Kill the Count…….’

Of course he would. From the beginning, Cadel had come to the Count’s mansion to meet Yozen, who was trying to assassinate someone. Once he had met Yozen, it was only natural to observe his work.

Cadel had no intention of throwing himself into the fray for the Count, no intention of confronting Yozen for him.

‘They say the men Yozen assassinates are all notorious aristocrats. If that’s true, maybe Count Keinstein is better off dead here.’

He tried hard to rationalize himself without knowing why. Still, it didn’t seem right to let a man die in front of him, did it? He had that question, but wasn’t that a thought that only Cadel Lytos would have?

‘I’m not going to be manipulated anymore. I’m going to think, I’m going to make my own decisions…….’

He pushed back every moderate thought he could to keep it out of his mind. Cadel’s gaze shifted to Yozen and Count Keinstein, who was sleeping soundly through the commotion.

Yozen was lightly tossing and catching the dagger in his hand. The dagger spun in the air, perfectly coiled in Yozen’s hand like a magnet.

Cadel realized that Yozen was waiting for the barrier that enveloped the Count to dissipate.

‘There is no need for heroism. What I want is Yozen Vardikta, not the risk of the lives of strangers. Don’t do anything out of character. Save the pity for Cadel Lytos.’

Ignoring his strangely fast breathing, Cadel drew back the barrier. As the hissing wind barrier disappeared, Yozen no longer threw his dagger.

The tip of the dagger, raised in reverse, traveled slowly as if it were gauging its aim. Cadel watched Yozen’s actions, wrapping his dislocated right arm.

The dagger landed precisely above the Count’s heart. It paused at the spot where the [Dark Engrave] had been carved, and soon a black energy began to form from the blade as it found its target.

‘That’s…….’

It was different from demonic energy. The demonic energy was close to a dark purple color, and its fluttering motion was strange and irregular. It was different from dark mana. If dark mana had gas-like properties, Yozen’s energy was closer to liquid.

It clumped together and slid like water. It didn’t take long for the energy to run down the blade and stain the dagger black.

[Is it ‘dark energy’? It’s been a while since I’ve seen a human being capable of that level of dark energy.]

Dark energy. There was something ominous about seeing Yozen’s power in real life, not in a game, that made him break out in a cold sweat. Cadel tightened his grip on his right arm without even realizing it was painful.

Extreme tension scattered Cadel’s thoughts. With the dagger full of dark energy, Yozen stood still for a moment, as if waiting for something, and then his grip on the blade tightened.

No unnecessary force, no bouncing, just perfectly refined movement. The plummeting dagger itself signaled the Count’s death.

And then, at that very moment. A heavy wind swept across the bed, and something clattered to the floor.

“Ugh…….”

Yozen’s dagger could not pierce the Count’s heart. His dagger lingered just barely above the white sheets of the empty bed. Pausing, he turned his head in the direction of the sound.

Standing there was Count Keinstein, Yozen’s target just moments before. Falling out of bed, the Count rubbed his tailbone and blinked at the unexpected shock. For a moment, he sat dazed, confused between reality and dream, before realizing that he had an uninvited guest standing in his bedroom.

His steady gaze found the dagger in Yozen’s hand, then turned to Cadel behind him. The urgent cry that followed was enough to snap him out of his reverie.

“Run away!”