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133. The Verdant Assassin

「The knight orders have been taken down.」

「The knight orders? What do you mean?」

「Marge Siu. Because you delivered a heavy blow to the White Phoenix and Red Dragon Knight Orders, surveillance on the Abik Territory intensified greatly. We’ve been locked in an intelligence war with the remaining five knight orders ever since.」

「So it’s my fault…」

「Nay. We of House Abik welcome the battle against those who hunt demi-humans. In fact, we’re grateful to you for providing a quiet battlefield on which to fight. …But recently, all activity from the knight orders suddenly ceased. I found it suspicious—and then came your report.」

「About their drugs ending up on the market, right.」

From beside the Duke, Bellman gave me a smug look that practically shouted ‘My disciple did great!’, but I ignored it for now.

「Upon further investigation, we discovered massive drug supply within the knight orders, with wave after wave of addicts emerging. Worse still, it has begun spreading among central nobles and the wealthy. In just a few months, the central government has begun to collapse.」

It was far worse than I imagined. Even Shizuku gasped.

「The central government’s… like that!?」

「The initial spread began within the knight orders. Some knights had been secretly using the drug for some time, but recently the number of users spiked. We suspect that either supply increased to the point it couldn’t be managed—or someone incited them…」

‘Likely both’, the Duke added, wetting his throat with tea.

「The knight orders are directly under the state. Their ties to the capital are strong, and much of their activity and networks are confidential. The drugs likely reached the upper echelons of the government through that gap. The public hasn’t been swept up in chaos—yet—but it’s only a matter of time.」

「What about this region!? Could it already be deeply affected!?」

「This land is under strict surveillance, but the knight orders were never given free rein. Thus, the impact here is minimal.」

「I see… I—my apologies.」

「Think nothing of it. You, of the werewolf tribe, are not my subject in name or in fact. I do not expect a vassal’s deference.」

While Shizuku breathed a sigh of relief, Asagi and I exchanged glances.

This was a situation that needed to be dealt with immediately, but at the same time—

「A chance, isn’t it?」

「Yeah. That’s what the Duke is aiming for.」

Only now did I realize why Duke Abik had come in person. He opened his heavy lips.

「We shall quell this upheaval with our own hands and present the results to the capital. If we offer support to the half-defunct national army, it gives us a pretext to bring a private force.」

「Then seize control of the central government, and claim real authority. The vast funds required should be easily covered by the gold gained in Vita Tama. That’s the plan.」

The Duke nodded solemnly.

A coup d’état.

This was a coup to replace the brain of a nation, rotted with addiction.

Gold prices had stabilized. A neighboring country was making moves. The central government was paralyzed. The knight orders were down. Now—only now—could the tables be turned.

「Then, finally, this country will change. Become a nation where demi-humans can live in peace.」

The House of Abik had once advocated coexistence with demi-humans and lost the political battle—banished to this frontier. Their return to the capital was their long-cherished goal, and our shared hope as people living alongside demi-humans.

「While I prepare to raise an army, I shall also cut off the flow of drugs the central nobles are sure to keep hidden.」

「And I’ll head to the neighboring nation of Narshe, strike at the source, and gather evidence of the conspiracy.」

Expose the current regime’s corruption and the neighboring country’s schemes. Use those achievements to rise.

The course was set.

「As for the details—Shizuku!!」

「Everyone, protect the Duke!!」

At Shizuku’s cry, Bellman and several werewolves immediately formed a protective ring around the Duke.

Something was here. Not a feeling, but a certainty.

None of my detection skills were reacting, but my instincts screamed danger. Something was right beyond the door. Beyond it, Shizuku’s voice also raised the alert—but then, life signs began vanishing one after another.

「M-My lord! Gah—」

「Blonde… tinged with green…!」

Cries of pain from the Duke’s guards. Then silence—and a figure slipped in through the door without a sound, clad in black and green.

Shizuku reacted first.

「[Garou]—Activate!!」

[Mana activation: 4064]

With the land’s fertility restored, even initial values were higher. That gave her the speed to mount a counterattack.

「…Shall I stop you?」

A clink, the sharp note of metal. Shizuku deflected the intruder’s blade with a mana claw, diverting it from the Duke’s throat and grazing Guran’s arm before it buried in the wall. A flat voice—just a hint of surprise—likely female.

「Hiiieee!? Wh-What’s going on!?」

「If you can’t fight, stay down! Protect the Duke at all costs!」

While Shizuku issued commands, the figure slipped back outside.

Beyond the door, the Duke’s guards lay in a pool of blood. Guran collapsed in fear at the sudden slaughter. Shizuku dashed out to give chase.

「Damn it, where did they go!?」

Shizuku, claws and fangs glowing gold, leapt to the roof. She scanned the surroundings and in a flash, vanished westward like a gust of wind.

「West, Marge!!」

She was even faster than me. But judging from her face when she returned, not even Shizuku could catch the target.

「Sorry, Marge…!!」

「An assassin who slipped past my detection and slew the Duke’s guards in an instant… It’s not your fault.」

The Abik retainers were skilled. The soldiers who fought at Kinui had all been brave and well-trained. And yet they’d been killed instantly—even after receiving Shizuku’s warning.

Bellman and the others now living in the hidden village had also once served the Duke. Their actions during the conquest of the Farthest Ends of the Blue had been questionable, but even so—they had found the hidden werewolf village and reached the ‘General’ of an S-class dungeon with just four people.

Their scout’s Mello Brande, skill [Stealth Movement] had even fooled dungeon monsters. And yet my detection had caught her.

This enemy… surpassed even that.

「The ones who just died still tried to cry out and pass along whatever intel they could. They fought to the end, with resolve and strength.」

「If you say so, I’m sure they’ll rest easier. They served me for many years…」

「Leaving them out here would be cruel. Guran, if there’s a free room, lend it to us. We’ll bring in the bodies.」

「Y-Yes. Just this once, I’ll let them rest free of charge… Please don’t haunt me…」

Rinono and Guran helped move the bodies, and the werewolves assisted them. The Duke watched them with frustration, his face a reflection of just how much he had trusted those men—and how easily they were slain.

「Marge… who could’ve done this to such capable men…?」

「Shizuku. You saw the assassin, didn’t you? Did anything stand out?」

「They wore a cloak, so I didn’t see their face. But the build and movement—it was probably a slender woman. And also… probably not human.」

「A demi-human?」

「We locked eyes for just a moment. Her eyes… were murky. Clouded. Not something a human could have.」

A woman. Blonde with a tinge of green. An abnormal stealth skill.

And inhuman, clouded eyes.

「Was she targeting the Duke… or me?」

「Maybe… both?」

「Either way, our destination is west.」

The enemy is following our movements. They’re watching. We can’t afford to dawdle. A demi-human who escaped west—it’s not the capital, but the neighboring country behind it all. Just like the drugs. Just like the assassin.

They’re accelerating their attacks on us.

「We’d better hurry. Duke Abik.」

「Indeed, Marge Siu. I will not let their deaths be in vain.」