Part 2 Chapter 75
***
Imperial Capital, Royal Palace
Duke Edgar Bassenberg came to request an audience.
Two ability users stood by his side as guards.
- His second son, Elliot Bassenberg, had a powerful flame-type attack ability.
- His seventh daughter, Brigitte Bassenberg, who could send quick messages between ability users through telepathy.
Nike watched the duke enter the audience chamber, then quickly sent a messenger to Belzer to signal the start of their plan.
Everything was moving according to plan.
But still… something felt wrong, like a hand tightening around his throat.
Maybe it was because Bania wasn’t by his side.
All the returners (people with regression powers) who could fix unexpected problems were split up. Nike had to stay in the capital for the uprising, while Bania stayed close to Ryan to protect him.
It was the smart choice. Efficient.
Yes, very efficient.
Nothing would go wrong. Nothing at all.
…Or so he told himself.
Damn.
Then why was he so nervous?
Maybe because the duke had arrived much later than expected.
And because the location of the duke’s eldest son was still unknown.
“Your Highness,” Kali came up and whispered, “I should go now to reorganize the army. But before I go…”
Nike cut in. “Can you use your power to track David Bassenberg’s location?”
Kali blinked, then sighed. “The last place he was seen was his territory in Schnel. But if we chase him now and get caught, it’ll ruin everything. You, of all people, should know the golden rule of an ambush.”
Her rapid-fire scolding made Nike bite his lip. He knew she was right. Acting suspiciously would only destroy their chances.
“Are your hands shaking?” she asked coldly.
Nike clenched his trembling fist.
“I’m sorry to say this, but the young lady has a much higher chance of surviving than you.”
“I know.”
“And if something really happened, don’t you think she’d send you a telepathic message right away?”
Nike stayed silent.
“Actually,” Kali continued, “she gave me something to tell you for moments like this.”
She cleared her throat and repeated Bania’s words word-for-word:
“Imnotgonnaletthecountryfalltwicebecauseofme. soifyoudosomethingstupidjustbecauseyoureworried, thenkissingisforbiddenforamonth.”
The way she said it—flat and fast, like reading a script—made silence fall between them.
Finally, Nike nodded. “…Alright.”
“I’ll go prepare the troops now. But one more thing, Your Highness—I heard you’ve recovered all your memories?”
“Yes.”
Nike had done it at last. He had received back all of his memories from Bania—so he could prepare perfectly. He was the only one who remembered every detail of that day before the regression.
“I wanted to hear about the strategy you used to succeed back then,” Kali said.
But Nike only regretted getting his memories back.
Because when he finally uncovered the memories of that massacre, nothing unexpected had happened at all.
Instead, what he got back were only memories of Bania—their time together, their love, their moments. And that turned into his greatest weakness.
He realized the truth.
The only thing that could ruin this perfect plan… was himself.
Because of Bania, he might lose his reason and make mistakes.
“Your Highness?”
“We don’t need a strategy,” Nike shook his head. “All we have to do is gather the ability users. As long as the duke gives the order to summon them…”
He remembered clearly now—the butcher of that day. Ryan.
“There will be no variables. No one can survive Ryan.”
***
The Day Ryan Bassenberg Killed His Entire Family
It was dawn under a blood-red moon.
…
“Father~! Your son is here! Hurry up and crawl out!”
Nike had rushed to the Bassenberg estate after getting a message from Kali, his lover’s knight.
A bad feeling. Please help me rescue the young lady.
At the time, Bania had been locked away in a pitch-dark dungeon, punished for copying the escape ability Dark Steps while trying to flee abroad.
“Why hide like a rat when you’re gonna die anyway? So pathetic!”
And that was when Nike first saw Ryan.
With mercenaries armed with new weapons, he barged straight into the estate of ability users without hesitation.
At first, Nike didn’t recognize him. But when he called the duke “Father,” Nike realized he was a hidden family member. Soon, he guessed he must be the same man who had been cast out years ago with the blame for the Conrad Massacre.
And now, he was back—for revenge.
“You’re pretty good,” Ryan suddenly said to Nike.
Nike froze.
He had slipped in among Ryan’s mercenaries, pretending to be one of them while fighting the Bassenberg soldiers. It wasn’t his plan—he only needed the duke’s key to open Bania’s prison. But his path had overlapped with Ryan’s.
And blending into the attackers was the safest way forward.
The only problem—he stood out.
“Why are you just using a sword? Didn’t Levin give you lots of nice weapons? Can’t handle them yet?”
Ryan ripped off Nike’s mask and tossed it aside. His eyes widened as he saw Nike’s face.
Did he recognize he was a royal? And if so… that he was Bania’s lover?
“What the—? You’re super handsome!”
…Apparently not.
Nike was confused. What kind of man was Ryan? He had the nerve to storm into the home of ability users, yet acted so carefree.
True, his mercenaries had powerful new weapons, but that wasn’t enough to beat ability users.
Yet Ryan spoke as if he could crush them all.
Nike realized something—Ryan wasn’t powerless as the rumors said. He was clearly an attack-type ability user.
So Nike asked directly, “Did you attack the Bassenberg guards first to gather all the ability users in one place and kill them?”
Ryan grinned. “Wow, a mercenary caring about that? Nice. But yes—you’re right. Numbers 1, 2, 10, and 11 are too dangerous.”
He was clearly talking about David, Elliot, Krista, and Bania—the strongest of the Bassenbergs.
“They’re always scattered everywhere, living luxuriously in their castles. No way I could track them all. But if Father calls an emergency meeting, they all show up. Perfect.”
The recent attack by unknown mercenaries—that had been Ryan’s trap, to force the duke to summon everyone.
“There are four of them who can cause mass slaughter. I have to wipe them all out at once. Otherwise, ordinary people will get caught in it.”
He spoke of mass murder… yet claimed it was to protect others. A strange man with twisted morals.
But would he show mercy to Bania?
Nike wondered—Could she survive this?
***
Ryan rounded a corner—and came face to face with Duke Edgar Bassenberg.
And not just the duke. All of his children were there, looking shocked.
Every able user of the family, except Bania, stood there with their knights.
The mercenaries stopped too. Silence filled the hall.
“R-Ryan?!!!” Elliot gasped.
Then he noticed Nike beside him. His eyes went bloodshot.
“Damn it—the 3rd Prince?! I knew it! Father, I told you! Only the royal family could do something like this!”
“…Wait, time out!” Ryan turned to Nike, jaw dropped.
“You’re royalty? Do you do mercenary work as a side job or something?”
Nike said nothing.
Ryan just waved his hands calmly at the shocked family.
“Everyone, relax! This has nothing to do with the royal family. I just met this guy today!”
“Like hell we’d believe that!” Elliot shouted.
“Don’t believe it then!” Ryan snapped back with a grin.
“Because you’re all going to die anyway.”
The room froze.
“You bastard!” Elliot lunged forward, his flames igniting.
<Dragon’s Wrath>
But… he didn’t attack. He turned back, yelling at his father.
“Father! What are you doing? Shut down his powers so I can crush him!”
But the duke didn’t move. He just stared at Ryan with a pale face, sweat dripping, eyes shaking.
Like a small animal frozen before a predator.
“Father!”
“What’s wrong with you?!”
His other children panicked, urging him to act.
Why wasn’t he stopping Ryan? Without their abilities, they were helpless. They’d all be slaughtered.
But still, the duke didn’t act.
“Ha… hahaha!” Ryan suddenly laughed, clutching his stomach.
“As expected, Father, your instincts are sharp as ever.”
Then his eyes sharpened like a beast’s.
“Too bad you didn’t have those instincts twenty years ago—when you threw me out.”
Step by step, he advanced toward the trembling duke.
“Now you realize it, but it’s too late. You’re already a dead man.”
“D-Don’t come any closer…” the duke stammered, shaking in fear.
