186
“Wow, this is really something.”
“There really is a reason for the price.”
Hanbit and the twins, having left the guild grounds, were traveling in an unusual carriage.
It was a summoning-type magical device Kenji had given them to use freely.
“Black Dragon, did you ride something like this in the other world too?”
Haneul patted the seat cushion and asked.
Hanbit, looking around the carriage interior, nodded.
“I did. There are lots of interesting vehicles, so after becoming a survey team candidate, you’ll be able to see them one by one.”
Having revealed his experience in the other world and with the goddess, curiosity like this came naturally.
Rather than deflecting with talk of a novel, he could just pass along things that had actually happened — which was also easier for Hanbit.
“Black Dragon, is learning skills right now related to Episode 6?”
Noeul, glancing outside, asked the question.
Hanbit leaned back and said with arms crossed:
“It helps with Episode 6, but it’s not essential. Our party is already strong enough. It’s more that the location is close and we have the time, so think of it as stopping by early.”
“Still, strength alone might not be enough, right? What with the exiled royalty and Zenith — it all looked extremely complicated.”
Haneul searched her memory and narrowed her eyes slightly.
Episode 6, the final episode of the Raven Kingdom.
With so many factions entangled, predicting the course of events was difficult.
Adventurer A’s guidebook had just ended it by stupidly arresting or killing Zenith.
“This episode has two goals. The first is suppressing the anti-government forces raised by the exiled crown prince. The second is eliminating the Artua family and fulfilling Zenith’s wish and vengeance.”
“So the Artua family gets lumped in with the anti-government forces? They’re founding heroes.”
“Until now there was no justification for it. The king doesn’t actually trust that family to begin with. But if it’s a rebellion, the story changes entirely.”
The meeting between the king and Zenith that would take place in the afternoon would change many things.
Bringing someone who had full insight into the anti-government forces’ situation to his side, after all.
Only Hanbit, who had witnessed it firsthand, knew just how formidable Zenith was once the direction of her blade changed.
“Won’t the exiled crown prince’s side realize Zenith has been taken, and conclude that information has been leaked? That could mean they start moving more carefully.”
Noeul, who had been thinking something over, voiced his opinion.
It was an extremely important point in this progression.
“The crown prince knows how deeply Zenith hates Raven. The thought of her leaking information would never even cross his mind.”
Zenith, who would have served as strategist at the heart of the anti-government forces’ main body.
The crown prince treats her as a disposable piece, but blindly trusts in the anger and desire for revenge she harbors within.
That would be his first fatal error.
“That man is cowardly but proud and greedy. And his ear is easily turned. He’ll be swept up by the completely changed atmosphere around him.”
The administrators killed were people of the crown prince and the Holy Nation.
A result that enrages both sides — but the Holy Nation in particular would be furious to the tips of their hair.
Their already powerful sway within the anti-government forces, now driven by rage, would manifest as troop deployment three times beyond what was expected.
The crown prince’s eyes lighting up at a ‘possibility’ was a natural development.
And moved by that, the Artua family would also raise their head.
“If he’s cowardly, would he not appear on the battlefield in person?”
“He’ll be away from the main force, but it doesn’t matter. We’re going to go catch him ourselves. That’s the end of suppressing the anti-government forces.”
“That sounds… exciting!”
At the mention of going to catch the crown prince, Haneul’s eyes sparkled.
Thinking about the skills they would soon be learning — maybe it was fine to leave that to the twins.
Clatter—
With that conversation, the carriage continued on its way.
It was another twenty minutes before they reached their destination.
* * *
“Wow, what’s this place?”
“I didn’t expect it to be this large.”
The three arrived at the outermost edge of the Raven Kingdom’s southwestern border.
Spread before them was a massive ruin, the size of a small town.
“The place fell to monsters. Even before that, I heard it wasn’t a particularly active area.”
This town, which had perished decades ago, had always been in a dangerous environment.
Originally it was because of a massive ‘nest’ — but now only its remnants remained.
Grrk—
Thud—
Monsters revealing themselves throughout the ruins.
Considerable in number, but not enough to require all three of them to engage.
“Can I handle them?”
“I’ll deal with the far ones.”
The twins each took up their weapons and stepped forward.
Hanbit stopped in place and quietly watched the two of them.
Fwish—!
The necks of the monsters were swiftly severed as Haneul’s dagger drove in.
A faint silver afterimage scattering, wind wrapping around the body.
Far fewer unnecessary movements compared to before, even though she was noticeably faster.
Crackle—!
A fire lance flying past above Haneul’s head.
Ka-boom—!
Screeeech—!
The magic that hit precisely detonated an entire cluster of monsters in one go.
Speed, trajectory, and firepower — all commendable.
Grrowl—
Cheonho, which had been sleeping on his shoulder, let out a small rumble.
Still at an age equivalent to a human infant, it had to spend most of its time sleeping for a while longer.
Kyeeek—!
Boom—!
A short time later, the last monster let out a scream and fell.
The twins, having finished the subjugation, returned.
“My movements and thinking still don’t sync up. Don’t they?”
“I’m frustrated by my lack of skills. Flexible application is difficult…”
The siblings reflected on the battle with their individual impressions.
It was an attitude crucially important for growth.
“Both of you did well. The weaknesses you felt will be addressed this time.”
“It’s the hidden skills, right? I’ve been desperate to ask what they are, but I’ve been holding it in.”
Haneul said in an excited voice.
Noeul, glancing around at their surroundings, asked:
“Could it be that Haneul and I will be learning the same skill?”
“No, you’ll each be learning separately. I’ll go through both of them, but the two of you will learn different ones.”
“…Does that mean there are two hidden skills?”
“There are two skills, but the person teaching them is the same. Come on, let’s head inside.”
Hanbit moved into the interior of the ruins.
The twins looked at each other and quickly followed.
Step—
The sight of completely collapsed building foundations repeated itself endlessly.
Haneul, taking it in, asked:
“The kingdom doesn’t seem to care about this place. Even if it is their land.”
“They left it like this on purpose. It serves as a minor monster barrier. Though the last time anyone checked on it was probably over twenty years ago.”
When this small town had first fallen, the Royal Guard had come to investigate.
But after realizing it was land with no value in reviving, it became a place no one cared about.
The barrier had been a nominal excuse to justify neglecting the town.
“Even in a place like this, someone actually lives here?”
“Because it’s a place like this, someone lives here. People who want to go completely unnoticed exist anywhere you go.”
Slightly different from the socially averse Aslra, but experts who lived in hiding were more numerous than one might think.
And most of them operated by a logic rooted in the principle of strength.
“Get down for a moment.”
“What?”
“Yes!”
Haneul pressed Noeul’s head down and flattened herself.
Slide—
Hanbit gripped the hilt of his spare sword and set his stance.
Whoosh—!
Crackle—!
A powerful wind and flame surging forcefully along the blade.
Having pushed that power to its limit, Hanbit swung the sword in a circle right then.
Fwish—!
With a sharp sound, a circular firestorm was born.
It surged outward in every direction loaded with tremendous force.
Kwa-kwa-kwa—!
The wind blade devoured and demolished even the remaining rubble of the already-ruined wreckage.
“Graaugh!”
Just then, a thick cry rang out from the lot at the left corner.
Crumble—
Hanbit threw aside his now-broken sword and walked toward the source.
The rubble visible in the distance was shaking violently.
“What the hell——!”
Boom—!
With the voice that came again, a man burst out of the rubble.
Not a scratch on him from the earlier ambush.
[Brigand Helvo]
The man who had completely emerged, Helvo, looked around with a soot-blackened face.
“Who’s the crazy bastard!”
“It’s me, you fool.”
“…?”
His gaze, searching for the direction of the voice, landed on Hanbit.
Helvo, having confirmed his ambusher, brushed the soot off his hands and scoffed.
Then he drew a dagger from his waist and came swaggering forward.
“Some wet-behind-the-ears adventurer, and you’ve lost your mind? You just picked the wrong person to mess with——”
Fwish—!
In an instant, Hanbit vanished from Helvo’s field of vision.
Just as he turned his head to look, a kick came flying at the back of his neck.
Crack—!
Caught off guard, Helvo barely managed to raise his left arm and block the attack.
But the extreme pain surging through it impeded his movement.
“Want to keep going?”
“Gugh! You think this is the beginning?”
Slide—
Helvo, delivering a defiant reply, had a shadow writhing beneath his feet.
Gripping the dagger tightly in his right hand, he didn’t move.
And when the shadow locked into shape, Helvo’s form disappeared downward.
Fwish—
“Huh?”
“What was that, a skill?”
The twins watching from a distance went wide-eyed.
The technique Helvo had used was Shadow Concealment.
A technique to hide oneself in one’s own shadow and emerge from a nearby shadow.
Anyone without knowledge of it could be easily caught off guard — but not Hanbit.
Thwack—
Hanbit, holding the empty scabbard, focused his senses.
Even as an assassination technique, the number of those who used it with true mastery were few.
Slide—
Just then, a faint presence was sensed from the ground behind him.
Pretending not to notice and keeping his gaze fixed ahead, Hanbit put force into the hand holding the scabbard.
And just as a small sound of breath followed—
Crack—!
Hanbit turned and his scabbard drove down hard.
“Gugh!”
The blow landing precisely on the top of the head made Helvo’s consciousness grow hazy.
Sllling—!
Hanbit disarmed him and moved to drive the sword at the right side of his throat.
In that instant—
Whooom—!
A violet radiance appeared between the two of them.
Tat—!
Hanbit, who had sensed the danger early, quickly stepped back.
Krrr—
A circular purple field that appeared on the floor.
Everything in its surroundings — including Helvo — was being pulled toward its center.
“Making a scene, are you.”
Just then, a voice came from atop the nearby rubble.
Hanbit looked up and spotted a woman with a black scarf wrapped around her.
[Kiede]
A clear, three-character name tag with no title or modifier attached.
She was the owner of the hidden skills Hanbit had come here to learn.
“Boss!”
“Since when am I your boss? Want to die?”
At Helvo’s pitiful call, Kiede’s face scrunched sharply.
A reaction that conveyed genuine revulsion.
“P — please just undo this first!”
“Haa.”
Slide—
As she let out a sigh, the purple field on the floor vanished.
The pulling force that had been drawing everything toward its center was no longer felt.
Tat—!
Kiede leapt high and landed in front of Hanbit.
In the gaze they exchanged was a sensation of someone trying to see straight through to the inside.
“You’re not someone who came through life unscathed either.”
A faint warmth in the quiet words.
She shrugged, stepped back one pace, and said:
“So what is it? I doubt you came here just to kill a nobody like that.”
“I came to learn techniques. Shadow Concealment and Gravity Magic. I need both.”
“Hmm.”
Kiede crossed her arms and shifted her gaze sideways.
The twins were standing there as though watching some fascinating film.
“You seem qualified. What about those little ones?”
“They’ll be learning, but make that call yourself. This is payment.”
Hanbit drew a pouch containing ten million gold and handed it to her.
Kiede accepted it, gauged its weight, and smiled.
“Not bad. Follow me.”
Ding—
[Hidden Quest]
Deep in the ruins, you encountered a person of unknown identity named Kiede.
It seems you may be able to receive special teachings from this mysterious woman.
Objective: Earn Kiede’s recognition and learn her techniques.
Reward: Kiede’s Technique Manual, Kiede’s Spellbook, 5,000,000 Experience Points, 50 Stat Points
