C378 - The Warning (2)
"Some members of the Elder Council want to kill me? And they haven"t sent you to kill me, right? If so. Then, there"s no choice for me..."
"It would be suicidal for those old and boring pieces of meat to entrust me with a request."
Due to Cyron"s strict orders, there was currently no one within the Family who could use Yona.
Even in the past, Joshua had indirectly crossed paths with Yona (and Yona"s return to the Family was delayed due to dealings between Jin and Owal) while trying to contain Jin.
Joshua received a slap in the face and had to return the Black Light Heart.
"And even if they did, do you think I would kill you?"
"Yes, you"re right. You wouldn"t kill me, Older Sister. I"m also a benefactor of Samil. It was just a joke."
"I don"t like those kinds of jokes!"
Jin chuckled softly.
"Alright, who are these guys?"
The fact that some members of the Elder Council were trying to kill him didn"t particularly surprise him.
After all, he was sure there would be plenty of people who would want to kill him once he became a Flagbearer.
Jin had always caused trouble for his Family since his Cadet days.
By the end of his career as a Provisional Flagbearer, there was even a three-hundred-million reward just in Runcandel for him.
He had constantly violated Runcandel"s ancient and humiliating traditions by using Magic, so in a way, a.s.sa.s.sination attempts were natural.
"Actually, it"s quite late. No, it"s too late."
The corner of Jin"s lips curved.
At this point, an attack from the Elder Council, even if it were only some of them, no longer frightened him.
However, Yona"s grave expression bothered him a bit.
"Who are these guys?"
"I don"t exactly know which of the Elders they are. If I had known, I would have killed them all..."
"No, the a.s.sa.s.sins were commissioned by some unknown Elder."
"Eh, how do you know? I haven"t even mentioned the a.s.sa.s.sination request yet."
"It"s obvious. The only ones who have the power to unsheathe their swords and kill me directly are the leaders. Among them, there"s no one who would benefit from my death right now."
Jorden Runcandel, of the Black Sword a.s.sociation, Lynn Milcano, of the Law Guard, and Tellot Runcandel, of the Civil Guard.
Among them, Tellot was a potential ally of Jin, Jorden was a clear enemy, and Lynn was a potential enemy.
But even Jorden gained nothing by killing Jin right now.
-You"re clever but you show a careless appearance in an obvious problem. Isn"t it clear? Jorden Runcandel, the council president, and the Second Flagbearer have a mutually prosperous as well as compet.i.tive relationship.
-You"re right about the mutually prosperous part, but I"ve never heard of the compet.i.tion.
-Oh, right. Well, it makes sense. You"re different from me, and much more so the higher-ranking Flagbearer, so it"s understandable. Just remember one thing. The Council President hasn"t given up on his dream of becoming the patriarch.
Jin remembered the conversation he had with Tellot Runcandel during their dealings.
"It"s more of a loss for him as he hasn"t given up on the patriarch position. The head of the Black Sword a.s.sociation wants to see Joshua and me continuously restraining and devouring each other, ultimately ruining us both together."
Although Lynn Milcano"s intentions were still unclear, at first glance, she was affiliated with Jorden.
"Therefore, it"s likely that the Elders who want to kill me have entrusted the task to outsiders. It"s unlikely to be someone from among the leaders themselves; they are probably not powerful individuals who could confront me in direct confrontation. And Older Sister, you probably used Samil"s intelligence network to confirm this."
"Hehehe, correct. That"s absolutely right. You"re very clever."
Yona ruffled Jin"s hair as she continued speaking.
"I won"t tell you who the a.s.sa.s.sins are."
"Why not?"
"I"ll tell you if you go out with me. Little brother, it"s been a long, long time since we"ve seen each other like this to have a real conversation!"
It had been almost two years, and it was the first time they had seen each other since he became a Flagbearer.
Jin smiled at her words.
"That"s true. I"ve missed you, older sister. I received the letter you left in my room last time, and the rose ring, and I felt really good all day after seeing them as soon as I woke up."
Yona showed her pure, white teeth as she smiled.
It always seemed strange to think that the world"s greatest a.s.sa.s.sin could smile with such innocence.
"I"m glad!"
"Before I became a Flagbearer, I disappeared without a word, and I"m sorry. I couldn"t help it because things weren"t going well."
"I understand. So, what do we do now? Any plans?"
"Let"s start by filling our stomachs. We haven"t eaten anything in the forest."
"How about we play hide and seek first? Or maybe throwing knives?"
"Throwing knives?"
"It"s when we stand a hundred paces apart and take turns throwing knives at each other. Every time you dodge or block, we take a step closer, and the one who gets stabbed first loses."
"Isn"t there another game?"
"Alright, how about an axe-throwing game?"
"What"s that?"
"We use axes to hit each other"s ears..."
"No, I get it now. Older sister, we should have fun like normal people do, you know. Things like shopping, watching plays, having a drink and chatting."
"Jin."
Valeria called out to Jin in a calm voice.
At the same time, Yona suddenly turned her head, oh, you were still here.
She had that kind of expression.
"I"m leaving now. I"ll take care of the body of this Home Demon from the Imperial Guard, so get in touch if you need me."
Valeria pointed her finger at the body of an Imperial Guard Home Demon she had wrapped in her cloak.
"Where are you going?"
Whoosh!
Suddenly, Yona grabbed Valeria"s wrist.
"You should join the party too."
"Lady Yona?"
Valeria"s pupils shifted leftward again.
It was strangely amusing for Jin to see Valeria getting nervous over and over.
"Besides, something has been bothering me, Riley. What"s going on between you and my little brother?"
"What"s going on between us...?"
"Don"t tell me you two are lovers? What were you doing in the forest?"
"No, we had some matters to attend to."
"I see tear marks all over your face. Were you having a great time and suddenly had a lover"s quarrel? Little brother, when you"re in love, don"t make your partner cry. And Riley, don"t make my little brother cry even more. Seriously, I"ll kill you if I find out."
"It seems there"s a misunderstanding, Lady Yona."
"Is that so? I"ll really kill you. Even if you"re Samil"s benefactor. Hehehe."
It seemed futile to provide further explanations.
Yona extended her arms and wrapped them around both of them.
"Let"s go!"
When Jin and Valeria finally came to their senses...
They had already left Kyken and were enjoying good food in another city, shopping, renting a whole tavern to drink (Valeria just watched), and much more.
"Hehehe! Being with little brother is more fun than killing people, after all. It enhances the taste of alcohol, right?"
Throughout the day, Valeria was somewhat absent, listening to Yona"s continuous chatter and impulsive actions, but at some point, she seemed to give in and occasionally burst into hollow laughter.
But occasionally, she also genuinely laughed.
In a way, she had spent a normal day like her companions.
It was the first time it had happened to her since the Gray Owl Mercenaries were annihilated.
In her previous life, she had never experienced it until she met Jin, or rather, she had refused to experience it.
"...So when that big shot turned around, I cut off his arm. He didn"t scream, but his eyes were so wide it looked like they were going to pop out. Yes. Riley, until next time."
When the morning sun rose, Yona explained how she had crippled a big shot on her recent mission and sent Valeria away.
Valeria hadn"t said she was leaving before Yona said "until next time," but she was quietly packing her things.
Watching Valeria, who walked somewhat unsteadily as she guided her exhausted body after being tormented by Yona all night, Jin asked.
"Isn"t it okay to do this kind of thing once in a while?"
Valeria turned around and met Jin"s gaze.
"Yes, I suppose so. I"m leaving."
As Valeria left, Yona"s eyes lit up again.
"Little brother, we should leave too."
"Where all of a sudden?"
"To have some real fun."
"Just a moment ago, were you pretending to drink and have fun all night? I had no idea."
Seeing Yona raise the corner of her lips, Jin felt a chill down his spine.
"Hehe, just follow me. I"ll show you many fun things."
-------------
It wasn"t for her feelings.
After leaving the tavern, Jin had to endure Yona"s various "games" for two whole days.
Games like throwing daggers and throwing axes, among other gruesome and terrifying games.
"...I had forgotten what kind of person my older sister is. I should have realized from the moment she suggested we go out."
When Jin was a Provisional Flagbearer, to her, it was just a game to send executioners one by one to kill him when he visited Samil.
So imagine how it would be now, now that he had become a Flagbearer.
During the two days of revelry with Yona, he narrowly escaped death several times.
It was an advantage that he hadn"t slept a wink.
"It"s been fun, little brother! Let"s play again if I have some free time. Hehehe."
Compared to him, who hadn"t closed his eyes, Yona returned to Samil looking refreshed, as if she had slept all these days.
"Phew..."
Jin felt his body heavy as lead.
His face darkened, and he experienced constant muscle twitches around his eyes.
"It"s a bit annoying, but I feel like I"ve had proper training after a long time. I still get gooseb.u.mps on my back even after going through Yona"s unique killing intent for two days."
Jin let out a hollow laugh without realizing it.
If it weren"t for Yona, no one could reek of such a thick bloodl.u.s.t until they left.
"Welcome to the central transfer gate of Baria. Please state your destination."
"Hufester, Calon. First cla.s.s."
"Your identification has been verified. Have a comfortable journey."
The fake identification doc.u.ments used by Flagbearers posed no problems anywhere in the world.
Jin sat in the first-cla.s.s seat as if he were buried in it and closed his eyes.
He felt like he needed to rest before the boarding gate opened.
There wouldn"t be time to rest once he returned to the Garden of Swords.
But unfortunately...
Jin couldn"t rest.
"I didn"t know living in my older sister Yona"s killing intent would be so useful."
Jin didn"t notice as soon as he entered the room.
But sitting quietly, he started to feel it.
There was an ordinary "different" kind of killing intent coursing through his entire body.
Jin wouldn"t have felt it on a normal day.
Not with such an exhausted body.
Furthermore, even though it was normal, the killing intent surrounding Jin was extremely refined.
"Teleportation will begin shortly. You may experience headaches and dizziness due to teleportation side effects, so pa.s.sengers..."
"Attendant."
"Yes, sir?"
"Leave."
"What are you suddenly saying... If I"ve somehow displeased you, please tell me..."
"It means you should leave if you"re not on the same side as the pa.s.sengers. Those are a.s.sa.s.sins who have come to kill me from the Malevolent Spirit Fortress."
The Malevolent Spirit Fortress, the headquarters of the Malevolent Spirit Base.
They were the ones who had received the request from the Elders.
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