Part 2 Chapter 82
“Wow! That Max! He deserves a beating!”
He nearly gave me a heart attack!
“Ugh, it hurts!”
“Come here! I’ll throw you into the grave first!”
“Ahhhhh!”
In the middle of the night, an unexpected uproar broke out.
Max hid behind Nike’s back, cleverly running his mouth, while Ryan ominously waved his fist.
“Did I say anything wrong? They’re definitely in big trouble, right?”
“Aah! I almost had a heart attack before they even caused a big trouble!”
“Well, you’re alive, so it’s fine!”
Ryan, grumbling, paused.
He lowered his fist, turned around, and looked at me with a gleeful expression.
“The graveyard… is ready.”
That’s right. After the summons, everyone found their resting place. Now, we just had to close the coffin.
The murderer smiled and said, “I’ll bury everyone.”
***
The next day, at the Cruiser Marquis’ estate.
This was the home of Nike’s subordinate, Liner, and the secret gathering place for the ordinary soldiers who would be joining the operation.
At the outdoor gathering area of the castle, fifty soldiers were checking their weapons.
Fifteen knights from the former Cerberus Mercenary Group, and thirty-five hand-picked soldiers trained by Kalliga.
With the addition of the royal knights, the total headcount was sixty.
Compared to the Basenberg soldiers, the number was ridiculously small, but the power gap would be made up by advanced weapons.
And since the battle would require Ryan to fight one against a hundred, having too many people would only increase casualties.
“You’ve arrived.”
As Nike arrived, Kalliga handed him a note.
“I’ve cross-checked the portraits with the order list and ensured that all the targets’ appearances are noted. You can refer to them by their numbers.”
Before the operation, Nike, as the commander-in-chief, took the time to review the strategy.
The note contained the numbered list of ability users who had received the summons.
Seeing it, Nike flinched.
It reminded him of Ryan, the executioner, who would number the names of the targets before eliminating them before the regression.
“The plan has already been reported to the superior, so I’ll skip that. I’m here to explain a few important points. First…”
- David Basenberg,
“Number 1.”
Nike looked at the name with a somewhat lost expression.
“Ryan Belzer will go in first. He will identify the position of Number 1 and send the signal. Only then should the main army move in. If we move without the signal and are spotted by Number 1 before entering the castle…”
Nike paused and added:
“The army will be annihilated.”
Everyone held their breath.
In that moment, a chilling silence fell, as if everyone was thinking of their own death.
“But this person is relatively easy to handle, as long as we don’t have the sky above us.”
If the target is inside the building, they can’t summon lightning. Their power is halved.
“Therefore, once we enter the building, we just need to be careful of individual combat if it happens.”
Next…
“Number 0.”
- Edgar Basenberg,
“This person is the one we must never accidentally kill until all other ability users are removed. If this person is eliminated first, we will lose control of the other ability users.”
This had already been clearly instructed to all soldiers.
“And…”
The last one.
- Krista Basenberg, <Storm’s Truth>
“Number 7.”
Nike bit his lip.
Bania was supposed to infiltrate to rescue this sister.
“You’ve heard, right? Number 7 is not a target for elimination. But this person doesn’t know that she’s not the target.”
She’s a ‘rescue’ target, not an ‘elimination’ target, but she doesn’t know that.
Those who suddenly show up might not know whether they’re trying to kill her or rescue her, and in the chaos, she won’t trust the intruders easily.
If she’s isolated, she might try to protect her family from the attackers.
There are dozens of potential variables in her case.
That’s why Bania’s entry is inevitable.
“If she is isolated, Kalliga Belzer will prioritize securing her. But if you come across her during individual entry…”
<Storm’s Truth>
- The power to control the wind freely.
*When attacking a target, the speed of life being erased is comparable to the high-level ability .
“…Just avoid encountering her.”
After thinking it over, Nike finally said these words, and once again, a fearful silence fell among the soldiers.
“That’s all. The rest of you should proceed as instructed. Any questions?”
“Ah! Your Highness, no, Commander!”
At that moment, a young-looking soldier raised his hand.
“I thought you’d explain about Number 6. Isn’t it true that with Number 6, we can’t do anything? They said we can’t speak or even move.”
- Richard Basenberg,
“Ah.”
After confirming who Number 6 was, Nike said:
“You don’t need to worry about Number 6.”
Richard…
“He won’t be there that day.”
***
Richard!
Brouse Marquis’ Estate.
Elliot, upon arriving at his estate, went straight to his brother’s room, which had been lavishly prepared.
When he opened the door, cigarette smoke filled the room.
“Have you arrived?”
Richard, who had been lying on the sofa, sat up and, as a habit, lit a cigar.
Before he could even open the matchbox,
<Dragon’s Fury>
The cigar lit up.
“Hahaha!”
Elliot, kindly lighting the cigar for him, laughed and sat down beside Richard.
“You heard, right?”
“Yes.”
Before Elliot arrived, Richard had already been informed by his assistant about the recent events.
The imperial family’s decision. And there was even a warning that the summons might be coming soon.
“Did Father say to gather everyone?”
“Yeah. We need to leave right away.”
“I’ll get ready.”
“Ah, no need to rush. We have time for a smoke.”
As Elliot opened his cigar case, he subtly checked Richard’s reaction.
Elliot had sent his brother to the islands and provided him with his favorite alcohol, cigarettes, games, and friends.
‘Ha, why did Father put Richard in that room, knowing how crazy Krista is?’
Elliot nearly passed out when he heard about that day’s events.
His disobedient younger sister. The older brother who went to calm her down. The out-of-control Krista had tried to kill Richard.
If the timing had been off by just a bit, Richard would have been ‘dead.’
A razor-sharp wind that tore everything apart in an instant. Richard was helpless against that terrifying power.
He survived simply because of ‘good luck.’
Before the attack deepened, their father activated the disarmament power, and with mere seconds to spare, Richard drank Diana’s healing potion.
Had any part of the situation been delayed or altered, Richard would have died.
Naturally, the trauma was severe.
When Richard woke up, he had seizures like a madman and was not in his right mind due to post-traumatic stress.
Unable to bear it any longer, Elliot had brought Richard to his estate for isolation and recovery.
“Brother.”
“Yeah.”
“…Krista, is…”
Elliot flinched.
Richard’s hand, trembling with a pathological intensity, tried to extinguish the cigar he hadn’t even finished, fumbling several times.
“Did she… did she receive the summons too?”
His pale face and the cold sweat forming on his forehead showed just how badly Richard had been affected by the thought of his sister.
“Yeah. Actually, after you… had the argument, I sent her back to her nature and isolated her. It’s too dangerous to leave her on the islands; I couldn’t risk it.”
“…Ah, yes.”
Elliot bit his lip. He felt pain for his brother.
“Richard.”
“Ha, ha. Yes…”
Richard’s eyes were on the verge of flipping, and he clawed at his chest, breathing heavily. Elliot couldn’t speak seeing his brother trying to calm down.
Just when things were improving, if he saw Krista’s face again…
“…Don’t go.”
“…Don’t go.”
At those words, Richard paused.
It was an unexpected turn.
“Don’t go…?”
“Don’t go. Just stay here. You’ll just go to a meeting, collect everyone’s opinions, and that’s it. Just tell me what you want, and I’ll pass it along.”
“…”
Richard knew that by staying here, he would inevitably be summoned, so he had already prepared an escape plan before arriving at his nature.
Pretending to have PTSD was part of that strategy.
But…
‘I didn’t expect you to remove me from the equation this early.’
This was so ridiculously easy that Richard was a bit stunned.
“Father’s orders… Can you really make the decision yourself?”
“Ha, what do you think of me? Without me, this family would fall apart. Can’t I handle this on my own?”
Elliot, with a small laugh, looked at Richard and tousled his hair with a bitter expression.
“Why would I drag you to the family meeting when you’re sick? I can’t do that. Just leave everything to me, and you rest.”
“…”
For a moment, Richard was filled with an uncomfortable emotion.
The reason things had become so easy was, well, because Elliot genuinely cared about family.
Despite doing crazy things outside, he was the kindest brother and family member inside.
Elliot had taken his brother in and cared for him, and now he was disregarding Father’s orders to take care of Richard.
But this contradictory nature of his brother made Richard uncomfortable.
He knew most of Basenberg’s illegal activities were carried out by Elliot, but he also knew Elliot had always been a caring brother.
“Then I’ll go.”
Elliot got up.
Now, he was heading to his death.
This might be the last time.
Despite his discomfort, Richard had no intention of stopping him. He knew Elliot was a poison to this society.
Still, Richard knew that the unpleasant feelings he had right now would stay with him, lingering in his mind forever.
Whether he liked it or not, Elliot was his blood.
“Ah!”
As Elliot was about to leave, he turned back with a sigh.
“You must be bored, want me to get you a woman?”
Richard froze.
“Gabi’s suddenly been locked up. The toys I was going to bring to Romaier are just floating around.”
Ah.
His brother was still kind to the end.
“I was debating whether to auction her.”
Seeing how Elliot tried to ease his brother’s fragile heart…
“There are some pretty girls around…”
“No, that’s fine.”
Indeed, he had to die.
