Recap from the last chapter: Sue slipped into the palace and met up with the Queen and Prince. She managed to get money out of it while she took the prince’s ‘innocence’ away in front of the queen, before returning to the a.s.sa.s.sin Guild and discovering some information about the client behind the prince’s a.s.sa.s.sination.
Chapter 88 – Coincidence
The two of them hurriedly made their way to the third floor, and Lawrence led Sue straight into a small room: “We should wait here for now. The client is still in the next room with the leaders.”
“We’re next to the guild leader’s office?!” Sue chomped down on the bread, spun around the room once to look at the place before pointing at the wall in front of her.
“….. It’s the next room, but it’s not on the left but the right side.”
“…..” Sue’s hand lowered as she chewed the bread furiously with black lines on her forehead. Could one blamed her?! There were two walls, and every room looked like the same. It was not like she studied the building’s blueprints when she came in yesterday…..
After eating two additional rolls of bread, and drinking condensed soup with melted b.u.t.ter that was sent in, Sue regained her energy and grabbed a doc.u.ment on the table. She rolled it into a trumpet-like shape and stuck it onto the wall to eavesdrop.
“What are you trying to do?!” Lawrence looked at her, almost at a loss for words.
“I’m trying to listen to the contents of their talk…… D#[email protected] it! Why is the quality of the room’s wall so good?!”
“….. The wall is actually made up of normal materials, but every room on the third floor is adorned with a barrier that could isolate sound and defend a certain level of sudden a.s.sault.”
At the very least they were still the a.s.sa.s.sin Guild. The place was not some random shady inn located in the black market. If anyone could listen in to their contents, the guild members would have been arrested a long time ago.
The guild’s third floor was reserved for high ranking members who regarded safety as their primary concern. Even if there was no safety measure in the lower echelons, these members were paranoid about their lives and had many layers of defense.
Sue also recognized that her thoughts were not practical. Not everyone in this parallel world was an idiot. If she wanted to know what was going on, she had to craft a high-level listening tool by working on it furiously right now, or wait for everyone to finish their talk and allow the old man to brief them…..
She climbed onto a large chair and took out a bag of snacks: “Is this the same client from the previous time?!”
“It would appear so, judging from the voice and appearance,” Lawrence said thoughtfully after a moment. “But my father mentioned that requests like these are usually not made from the mastermind themselves, but from a subordinate. Most of the time the masterminds’ ability to hide is quite good, and they won’t allow people to make a connection through these subordinates. None of these people with a n.o.ble status would allow themselves to set food in this dangerous place……”
Sue giggled: “Calling your a.s.sa.s.sin Guild a dangerous place; this joke is too much for me.”
“You…… ” Lawrence felt himself at a loss. He was trying to have a serious conversation, but the person in question had the mood to play word games with him…… This obviously concerned her as a client, right?
“Anyways, according to my father and the guild leader’s a.n.a.lysis, investigating this man would lead to another small fry or even point to the wrong direction.”
“We can discuss that issue later. The most important thing is attaining this clue. What other options do you have if you don’t follow this client?!” Sue was fine with it. “At the very most you just wasted some time to verify things. But what exactly is your next move?!”
“We will send an expert in Stealth to follow him, but we can’t promise anything.” Lawrence hesitated for a while before he continued speaking carefully: “Right now our a.s.sa.s.sin who’s the most proficient in Stealth isn’t having a mission……”
“What’s with the pauses. Is there something wrong with that a.s.sa.s.sin?!”
“…… Honestly, it’s not that there’s something wrong with him, but his att.i.tude might not be at his best when he takes on your request……” How was he supposed to tell her that particular a.s.sa.s.sin was the one who fainted twice from her tiger’s palm smack after she sent it after him…..
Indeed, this matter should not be revealed to her. This will affect her trust in the guild. Although, ever since she knew the four young a.s.sa.s.sins in the forest, she did not seem to place much faith in the guild’s quality.
“Hmm?!” Sue thought for a while and nodded with comprehension: “I heard that pros have one or two weird habits. I can understand that.”
“…….”
[You misunderstand…….]
After another ten minutes, the talk in the next room finally ended. A messenger knocked on the door and alerted Lawrence, who in turn informed Sue of the progress. She also understood that he told her the information, so she could personally glimpse at that man when he came out.
She wore accessories, changed her face randomly with her artifact and tidied up her dress. She trotted to the door with her lambskin boots and opened it, then ran noisily out like a stampeding horse, rushing straight to the group of men outside, and ended with a pounce.
“Daddy!” She yelled.
“””PFFFFF””” The leader and the various men spat out blood at the same time with their whole body twisting into ugly shapes.
The client who was draped in entire black because of his long cloak, received a body blow from the child. He subconsciously took a step back and wanted to draw out his weapon, but quickly realized that it was a child. Because of the additional fact that he was still in the a.s.sa.s.sin Guild, he barely managed to react in time and suppressed his threatening actions……
“You recognized the wrong person.” He coldly put the little girl down who pounced on him, with a voice that was obviously disguised to sound like gravel.
[Your b.l.o.o.d.y [email protected]#$! I sacrificed my beautiful self to steal a b.l.o.o.d.y bag of lemon candy?! What’s a man carrying sweets for……] Sue was going crazy inside her mind. She threw the candy inside her bracelet and pounced onto him again.
“Daddy, why are you covered in such clothing?! Did you get smacked in the face for teasing the pretty girls?!”
[F#%$! This time it’s heart-shaped biscuits!] She screamed in her mind.
The men beside him were trying to stifle their laughter. When they saw Lawrence nearby, they immediately guessed who this strangely familiar girl was. The cloaked man obviously did not want to waste any more time with the child. He pushed her away and nodded casually to the guild leader: “Then I’m going off first, once the matter is settled, I’ll be back to pay the remainder of the money.”
He paused for a moment before he pushed the little girl further away, adding another sentence: “And please discipline your child.”
The cloaked man believed that she was not an ordinary child if she was able to access the third floor, and must be close to one particular person…..
The guild leader was unable to laugh any longer, and the wrinkles on his face scrunched up together, but he quickly appeared relieved when he thought of something. He broke into a larger smile and explained: “You’re misunderstanding something, this is the vice guild leader’s child…..”
[You beast!] This time the vice-guild leader was unable to laugh.
The cloaked man made his way down, and a young man quickly appeared from one of the rooms and nodded to them. Sue immediately realized that he was in charge of following the client.
The young man had an ordinary appearance, but there was the sign of a disguise, so that was probably not his real appearance. From his appearance, he did not look like a cool pro who could handle himself, and even appeared to be quite frivolous. She could not tell if he was actually capable……
When the young man went past her, he hesitated for a moment and asked: “You’re the vice guild leader’s daughter?!”
[Gosh, he’s even a gossiper……] Sue added the information to her mind before she rolled her eyes.
“You actually believe my random ramblings?! If I call you ‘my son,’ are you going to take care of me when I’m old?!”
She was upset over having to act moe and received nothing in return, and this man had the guts to offend her….. If it was not for the fact that she was not tall enough, why would she spend so much effort and act shamelessly to pounce into someone’s arms?!
“””Cough, cough, cough!””” The people in the corridor coughed drily.
“You little t…..” A fire burned in the young man’s eyes. He wanted to raise his fists and threatened her, but after thinking about the fact that she might have some higher-up’s support and he still had a mission at hand, he stomped his feet down in anger and ran down the stairs….. F*#$! He probably had no luck with little girls lately.
“Tsk!” Sue pulled down her accessories and changed back to her real face. She revealed the candy and biscuits. “That client is pretty cautious. Even against a child like myself, he didn’t lower his guard. But I think he has children, if there is truly no choice, we can try to create an opening from that…..”
“You stole from him?!” Lawrence was shocked, before he realized that she was someone who could even steal the palace’s royal authority pa.s.ses.
The other leaders had some inkling of an idea in their hearts when they saw her. They thought about the fact that she managed to impersonate the little prince in the forest, but they merely did not know how she did it…..
“Yes, but it’s a pity that I only managed to pounce twice.” Sue sighed and waved her hand dismissively: “Forget it. The fact that he’s so careful, means that he probably doesn’t have anything that would reveal his ident.i.ty. I’m heading out; you guys can chat among yourselves…… ”
The little girl disappeared before their eyes without a sound. Everyone looked at each other with bulging eyes. After a long while someone finally broke the silence:
“She’s a thief?!”
“Yes. Seems like she’s a professional.”
“And she can disguise herself?!”
“Yes. Seems like she’s a professional.”
“Can she kill?!”
“I don’t know about that; perhaps we can try to find out another day?!”
“….. Should we try to raise her?!” She was someone talented to be an a.s.sa.s.sin…..
“….. Let’s continue to observe.” Yet she did not appear like a subordinate who would listen to them…….
Even though they got a clue, this route did not appear to be an easy one. He was quite cautious and the only option might be a long-term observation. Sue felt sorry for the young man tasked to track him. His following days will be filled with boredom…..
He had to follow him everywhere; watch him eat, describe his actions when the latter is working, and if the client goes to bed with a girl, he had to touch himself by his lonesome s—
[Cough cough cough! This line of thought isn’t a good one.]
Sue also encountered a little trouble. She immediately found that she had trouble opening up her shop. A child had no qualification to buy properties, and the middlemen thought she was a troublemaker and dismissed her with terrible candy and a copper coin, with the intention of chasing her out and even threatened to complain to her parents……
[[email protected]$! I traveled across dimensions, if you can find my parents I’ll change my surname to yours!] Sue was going berserk, but also realized that her plans were not realistic.
[If I want to open a shop, I have to get an adult to be involved. ]
She could try adjusting her age, but she did not have identification papers to back her up.
[Get someone else to front it?]
That idea was quite creative, but having her accounts on someone’s else name meant that it was possible that they might get ideas about swallowing up her properties.
The reality was a cold one.
Sue was once again lost after losing her goal in life. Should she really go back to school and get some degree papers?! At least it would be good to present them in certain situations. But getting her to go to school with a bunch of brats, and discussing the latest dress or candy shop after school hours was too painful. It was a generation gap.
But, however, not going to school made her feel that she was going to be even more bored. There was no need to worry about the material lifestyle, but the mental life was just too empty. If she somehow got clinical depression that would be too much of a joke.
[But, however, yet……]
The little girl knocked into someone after falling into loops of mental anguish.
“You again!” The young man who was following the client glared at Sue.
“Me again?!” Sue was gloomy. She did not use her real appearance this morning, so why did he looked like he recognized her?! Trying to flirt with someone with the pickup line of ‘Do I know you somewhere’ was not nice. First, her age was too young. Second, did he not have a mission?!
The young man looked at Sue who was confused. He recalled that he had covered his face with a scarf yesterday, but reminding her of this shameful incident hurt his pride, and he could only grit his teeth in anger.
“Hmph!” He ignored her based on the fact that she was probably someone who was involved with the guild.
[What, do you have a toothache? You’re gnashing your teeth so hard!] She was looking down on him.
“Bro, if you want to get the attention of a girl, you should know that this move is too old-fashioned. Try something new the next time.”
“Girls…..” The young man looked like his toothache was intensifying. The expression in his eyes was complicated. “You’re not considered one with that little flat chest of yours.”
“Then based on your words, how big must they be to be considered one?!”
“At the very least…… S^@#! You’re really shameless.” The young man was so embarra.s.sed he jumped up in anger: “Stop talking to me, I don’t know who you are!”
“I don’t know you in the first place…..” Sue could also care less about talking to him.
[Hmm? I actually came back to the sweets shop I went to yesterday. The pie wasn’t half bad; I’ll buy it again.]
“Hey!” The young man watched Sue enter and called after her, wanting to say something.
[I ain’t hearing anything, whatever.]
When she opened the door, the loud noise level came rushing at her in waves. The room was filled with people, and that fact shocked her. Before she realized what was going on, she was forced out of the shop the next second.
[What the heck?! Is the shop clearing their stocks with a discount?!]
The young man behind her was doubled over with laughter.
“Today’s the Academy of Light’s break day. There are many students out here by themselves or with their parents to buy things. This shop is especially popular…… Haven’t you realized the number of kids in the streets today?!”
Alfred’s Sweets was a famous shop and a children’s favorite. The shop had a large variety of desserts ranging from cheap to expensive, and the most important thing was how good they tasted. The students who were walking about will never forget to come here at least once. Buying the sweets on this day was no less harsh than a b.l.o.o.d.y battlefield.
[I see. I stole the desserts away from the cloaked man who prepared them for his children, and that idiot must have followed him here.] Sue was momentarily speechless.
“So you had a period where you fought pa.s.sionately like this?!” Sue asked as she stepped back gloomily after peeking into the opened door again.
“Me?!” He shot an eye at her: “Hmph. This is a pastime for the rich. If people like us have the money, who would work as a.s.sa.s.sins to risk their lives?!” He certainly could buy anything now, even getting the deluxe mocha pie.
“Are you serious? I remember the cheapest candy can be bought with a commoner’s children pocket money.”
“…….” The young man drooped his head a little sadly without saying anything.
“Tsk! If you’re stingy, then spit it out.” She looked down on his sad feelings.
“Pfff, pff, pff!” The young man jumped up, his spittle spitting out in anger: “You little wench!”
Sue felt refreshed after teasing the easily angered youth. She stood in front of the shop for a while to see if the crowd was going to be reduced just a little.
[If I keep thinking about troubling things I’ll get old easily….. It’s always good to relieve stress by transferring it away….. Tsk! Another one is forced out of the shop. Looks like Alfred’s dessert has a difficult battlefield today. Yesterday was a lucky day for me.]
The one who was driven out of the shop was there to get desserts for his girlfriend, and that youth dove back into the shop like he was prepared for death— This was the scenario Sue had thought up in her mind.
[Ah, a tragic drama, to battle for love…… Oh this time, it’s a pretty girl who fell down on her b.u.t.t. Hahaha, good! Good! Let the b.u.t.thurt flow through you!]
She loved seeing pretty girls looking ugly……
[Hmph, even pushing out a little kid this time?!]
Sue went up to a chibi who was slightly bigger than her and pulled him up from the ground. She patted his clothes to get the dust away and encouraged him.
“Hey kid, don’t be afraid, even though the people inside is bigger than you are, you’re not without advantages…… Go back in and fight for it. If any adult pushes you out of line, just smash your head into that person (crotch) with all your strength. You’re in the best attacking position with your height.”
“……” The young man was filled with black lines. If….. the little boy was evil enough, crippling one or two people with his head was not a problem for him.
The chibi looked at Sue with tearful eyes and found it was a little girl who’s smaller than he was. He instantly found it was a little shameful to cry in front of a little girl, so he wiped his tears away with his sleeves.
“I’m not scared. Daddy will defeat the bad people and bring the desserts out safely.” He said bravely.
[Why does this line sound like a villager watching a hero battle an evil dragon….]
Sue was at a loss for words. How much did this little kid admire his dad before he was capable of saying something disgusting like that?
“Then you should just wait outside with us.” She slapped him on the shoulders with tiptoed feet, almost with sympathy: “Your dad might be distracted from ransacking the evil dragon’s nest because his beautiful little princess…… I mean, his cute little son got injured from the crowd.”
The chibi obediently stood down on one corner and watched the door with big, round eyes, waiting for his father to come out.
The young man glanced stealthily at the chibi, then at Sue, before he frowned……
Waiting was boring. Sue took out snacks that she had not finished eating and commented on the unlucky ones who were pushed out from the shop.
“*Crunch*….. This guy is unlucky; his pants got torn open.”
“…..”
“*Crackling*…… Oh, there’s someone trying to steal money in the chaos, should I warn them?!”
“…..”
“*Gulp*…… Why are you both looking at me?!”
“No. I don’t know you. Don’t talk to me.” The young man looked away painfully with a palm on his face.
The chibi was looking at the large bag on Sue’s hand. He swallowed his saliva and looked away with resolution. His father was going to come out soon, and he should not request candy from a little girl.
Sue took two more bites and saw the little boy casting glances at the bag of snacks.
“You want to eat them?!” She finally realized.
“……”
“If you want to eat them, just tell me so.” Sue reached into her bag and grabbed a handful. “Let me calculate the price. One bag of lemon candy is 4 silver coins. There are 25 in them, so it’s 16 coppers for one. I have five here….. Well, just get your dad to give me a silver coin.”
She threw the batch of candies at the chibi without reservations.
“Can I?!” The chibi was a little hesitant: “My dad says I can’t eat things that a stranger gives out.”
“There’s no problem here. You’re buying from me, and I’m not giving it out.”
“Oh.” The chibi puts the stone in his heart down. He carefully put a candy into his mouth. His eyes were closing with delight because of his beaming smile. The sweet and sour taste from the candy made him feel the lemon candies were the best.
“Eins!” A man walked out from the store with huge strides. He rushed anxiously to the chibi before slowing down. He pursed his lips and bent over: “Why did you run out of the store? Daddy was really worried when I couldn’t find you.”
“Daddy….” The chibi stood up hastily. His fidgeted with his hands and lowered his head like he had done something wrong.
[Hmm. That’s a familiar scent.] Sue’s eyes narrowed like a hunter. She threw another candy into her lips and raised her hand after chewing it.
“I can bear witness, he was pushed out and didn’t run out of the store.”
“Oh?!” The man looked at Sue and back at his shy son, before nodding with a deadpan expression: “Thank you, kind child. You accompanied Eins to wait for me.”
“There’s no need to be moved. I’m waiting for you to settle the bill so I waited along with him.” Sue gave a smile: “Your son ate my candies, and that would be one silver coin. Would that be cash or credit card?!”
“Credit card…..” What was that?! The man looked stunned, but he reacted by taking out a silver coin: “Very well, no matter what I should thank you.”
“Daddy, let’s go home.” The chibi tugged at the man’s sleeves with a raised head, his small voice asking with a little shyness in it.
“Alright.” The man stood up and stroked his son’s hair. He took his son’s hand and started walking off to the streets, turning around once more to Sue and nodded slightly to thank her again, before they walked off.
Sue smiled and waved at the chibi who also turned back to wave at her, and pulled at the young man who was about to leave: “That man is your mission’s target?!”
His pupils shrunk, and he took in a chilling breath before he glared at Sue: “What rubbish are you talking about!”
“I’m the client who commissioned you, what are you being shy for?”
“……” The young man was not being shy.
He dabbed his forehead to brush the cold sweat away. He patted his chest after hearing Sue’s words. He thought he had somehow failed in his mission by allowing a little girl to know he was tracking someone….. But…..
“Stop your nonsense! I’m merely taking a stroll in the streets.” Who would admit they were on a mission when they were on the mission?! Facing a G.o.dlike opponent was better than having a crazy ally…..
“Good! You’re a professional!” Sue praised him lavishly with a thumbs up, before leaving the area. “Then continue to take your stroll, I’m leaving.”
“You’re not buying candy anymore?!”
“There are too many people today. Maybe when there’s a day when the moon aligns with the opposite end of the earth, and the sun is there in a clear sky.”
“……” The young man looked at the little girl with his muscles twitching in his face. What was she on about. When he looked at the disappearing father and son, he stamped his feet and began shadowing the two.
Sue felt like she did not have a meaningful day.
[It’s a clue after all. Should I disguise myself as that man and have a stroll in the palace?! Perhaps the mastermind might lose their head and make contact with me….. But that shy chibi— It’s a cruel thing if he loses a dad. In order to ensure the prince’s safety, that man should be removed as well, but what about that chibi?!]
Sue felt a headache coming on. She hated unprofessional bad people. If they were going to become a villain, they should cut off all their emotions and cut off ties with their families. Why did he have to put on such a kind face and bring about an innocent little kid to trouble her conscience……
Sue went back to Lawrence home and decided to eat there after the day was gone. She still had to rely on them for about a decade or so after all.
The skinny vice-leader was not there. It seemed like he was quite busy, doing administrative work, training newcomers and exchange sources from other lines of work.
Lawrence was actually wearing an ap.r.o.n and cooking seafood soup like he was used to it all the time. The guest room had three of his friends who came along in the forest a few months ago.
When Lawrence saw it was Sue who came through the door from the kitchen, he spoke to her.
“Sue?! Dinner is about to be ready. Go ahead and play with the others.”
“What are you suggesting me to play with?! That sleazy chess-like gameful of female magicians that’s suited only for male teenagers with the IQ of 60 and below?”
Each time someone lost a round, the clothes on the game pieces would disappear one at a time. When they had nothing but underwear on them, the game was over.
[Just which perverted alchemist came up with this trashy game?!] Sue looked down on the trio.
Lawrence took a look at the guest room from the kitchen and immediately flushed scarlet. He rushed into the room with his ladle still in hand: “There’s a kid here, can you play something that’s more meaningful and healthy?!”
He was also part of the gang who indulged in such a game, but his image was important to him. It was one thing to play that game when it was just the boys, but doing it in front of a girl….. Lawrence was not that shameless.
Sue looked at the newly gained brother-in-name-only leaving his station, before she went to the kitchen and stood on a stool to test out the soup with a new ladle. She tasted it before adding unique spices from Earth…..
“Stop it, Lawrence, no, I’m about to win, only the skirt is left you b.a.s.t.a.r.d!” A yell came from the living room.
“If you want to play the game do it in your own room! Don’t do it here!” Lawrence’s voice was even louder than him: “I already told you not to bring this game over here…..”
“But my mother is a housewife, and she’s staying at home.”
“You know my father.”
“I’m staying with my older sister.”
“Well SUE is staying in my home!” Lawrence was furious.
There was a moment of silence. There was a shuffling sound as the game was packed up. Someone among the idiot trio recognized their defeat: “Alright, it’s your victory. We admit that Sue is more terrifying than them.”
“…… Do you want to die you b.a.s.t.a.r.ds!” Sue’s teeth were gnashing against each other as she snapped the ladle with her bare hands, veins popping out from her forehead.
Dinner was set up soon after, and Lawrence looked at the trio who held their breaths as Sue was still unleashing pressure onto them. He thought for a moment as he filled the bowls with soup, and broke the silence by asking a question: “Sue, do you want to attend the Academy of Light?!”
“Hmm?!” That was the second time someone asked her that. Sue received the bowl and tasted the soup. She thought for a while: “Is there a reason I must attend?”
Lawrence looked puzzledly at her: “Is there a reason needed?! Other than households which can’t afford the fees and require the children to work at home, which child wouldn’t attend school when they are at that age?!”
“Even you a.s.sa.s.sins?!”
The former a.s.sa.s.sin group leader, also the guild leader’s son, chortled with laughter: “Of course. Lawrence is even the former student president.”
“Pfff…..” The world had gone crazy and a wolf had fallen in love with a goat…… Sue coughed as she asked with disbelief: “An a.s.sa.s.sin becoming the student president?!”
“That….. It’s a vote. I was quite popular back then.” Lawrence’s face turned red: “Plus I wasn’t an a.s.sa.s.sin before I graduated.”
Sue studied her fake brother for a moment: “Oh….. It’s no wonder.”
“Huh?!” What do you mean by it’s no wonder?!
“Nothing. I just feel your eyes are kind of fox-like.”
“…… Thanks.” Why did he feel like the meaning behind it was not a good one?!
The three of them looked at each other in confusion. What did that mean?!
Sue merely drank her soup as she reflected on the gap between their worlds.
TL: Seriously, 5k words. The chapters are getting longer and longer. Anyways, the original lines for Lawrence refers to CN culture and is non-translatable in literal terms. I therefore changed it to something probably more appropriate.