Assassin
A great wizard could not rise without the support of an extremely influential power. It was a pipe dream to achieve such success alone. Were he to try to build up his power and wealth through underhanded means, he would obviously provoke many people.
In comparison, the Faulens had only met with a small inconvenience. Even if Leylin broke away from the family, he would still run into the same problem when trying to make a name for himself.
It was needless to say that his identity as a nobleman was rather decent. At least it allowed Leylin to travel unimpeded in any place where human civilization gathered. He couldn’t bear to give that up.
With the speed at which his strength was improving, the Faulens would one day be unable to meet his demands, thus he had to expand the interests of the family.
If he ate more, others would have less to eat. Leylin had long predicted that the Baltic archipelago and the numerous natural ports owned by Louis’ family would become stumbling blocks in his family’s rise in society.
Even without this incident, the Faulens would one day become enemies with Marquis Louis. After growing aware of this, Leylin’s gaze turned as cold as ice. ‘If that's the case, I’ll move those blocks away!’
“Compared to the rich and imposing maquis, the Faulen Family is simply not prepared as of now. Even if we emerge victorious in this incident, we are destined to keep a low profile. It would be best… Huh?”
Leylin’s eyes suddenly widened, ‘This energy undulation… A.I. Chip!’
[Beep! Task established, initializing scan… Suspicious person discovered in the vicinity! Gathering of high energy detected! Person is determined to be in possession of powerful explosives.]
The carriage seemed to have turned translucent in the A.I. Chip’s display, revealing the streets and people in the form of numerous lines. A few passersby were sneakily drawing closer to it, and they were marked out by the A.I. Chip.
“Are they assassins? Jacob…” Jacob was currently rushing the carriage along, but hearing Leylin’s voice stunned him for a moment.
“Don’t stop! Don't show any signs of suspicion or panic. Let’s change direction!” Leylin’s command was transmitted to Jacob, yet it seemed like no else heard it.
Jacob stopped for a moment. He had already viewed voice transmission as an ability unique to a wizard. Being experienced, he immediately knew what the young master had discovered.
*Crack!* The crisp sound of the horsewhip sounded. The carriage, which had been going forth, suddenly made a sharp turn, and entered another junction.
“They're still following us? Hah… Did they vow not to give up until they achieved their goal?” Leylin could see the route that the assassins were taking through the A.I. Chip, and he couldn't help but force a smile.
“Jacob, follow the route I’m about to give you.” As the young leader of the Faulen Pier, Leylin couldn't allow its prosperous image to be damaged, come what may. If word got out about a heir to a noble family getting attacked in a ruckus at the port, it could be a huge blow to the port’s prestige. Many of the less influential merchants would be afraid of getting into trouble, and would rather take a detour than come back again to replenish their supplies. Hence, although Leylin had already discovered the assassins, he couldn't take action in the middle of the city centre.
Jacob clearly knew this as well, and firmly followed the route that Leylin gave.
Under Leylin’s directions, the carriage swiftly drove out of the market as smoothly as a loach. They arrived at a small road in the countryside, and the assassins hurriedly surrounded them one by one.
“Are you ready? Jacob, break through their line of defense right away, and send a signal to gather the patrolling team!” Leylin appeared very confident.
“But young master, your safety!” Jacob was rather hesitant.
“That’s not an issue. Don't forget that I’m a wizard, and someone stronger than you at that.” Leylin said without a trace of politeness.
Jacob’s face flushed red, as though he had recalled the few experiences when he had suffered defeat under Leylin’s hands, “Your wish is my command, young master!”
At this moment, a few shadows that appeared to be highly bewildered pounced on them. They had evidently realised that they had been fooled by Leylin earlier on at the port. Their fury even led to them drawing out their murder weapons immediately.
“Are these the bombs of a goblin alchemist?” Leylin shook his head in disapproval as he saw a few jet black objects launched towards the carriage.
If they were attacked by these prohibited items with such immense power in the port, even if Leylin himself wouldn’t suffer the slightest damage, Jacob would definitely sustain injuries or even die, much less the civilians involved.
But now they were in the wilderness. With a widened field of view and Leylin’s prior warning, even Jacob would be able to avoid it.
*Boom! Boom! Boom!*
The violent explosion even caused the entire carriage to disintegrate into pieces, and numerous splinters shot all over the place.
But before this happened, two figures had jumped out of the carriage.
“One, two, three, four. There's still one more!” Leylin said to himself as he noticed the four figures surrounding him.
He had detected five people through the A.I. Chip, but now it seemed that there was another fellow hiding in the darkness, who was evidently their leader.
“Quick, leave!” Leylin turned around at yelled at Jacob, who had a few traces of blood on his body. He was clearly affected by the explosion just now.“The power of the alchemical bombs are not bad, but unfortunately they are prohibited items. Even if there was a channel to smuggle them, the quantity from before should be their limit.”
“Young master, take care!” Jacob shouted loudly. His muscles were bulging, a sign that his fighting spirit had been aroused. With his hands clenched tight around a decapitator, he rushed swiftly in the direction of the port.
“One of you, follow him! Don’t let him get away!” The four figures seemed to still be immersed in how it was a pity that the alchemical bombs earlier weren’t effective. Seeing how Jacob actually abandoned his master and escaped, their eyes were filled with disbelief. However, as compared to the leader of the imperial bodyguards, Leylin was clearly more important. They made a decision after a few moments of a daze.
A black snake-like figure chased after Jacob, while the other three assassins surrounded Leylin in a triangular formation.
“Heh heh… A noble young master with such thin skin and tender meat!” One of the assassins licked the dagger in his hand, as green light shot out from his eyes like a wolf.
“Act quickly, this is still his territory after all. Someone will come soon!” The explosion earlier on obviously couldn’t be hidden. The three assassins kept drawing closer, their eyes fixated on Leylin’s heart, throat and other vital points. They evidently weren’t planning to let him live for long.
“He’s a wizard, be careful of his tricks!” The moment the voice stopped, a few figures started to encircle Leylin as fast as the wind, and they didn’t even give him the chance to speak.
Three daggers that resembled viper fangs surrounded Leylin. The sharp breeze even sliced at Leylin’s skin.
“They’re well trained.” Leylin quickly made a gesture at the speed of lightning, and he suddenly spat out a single syllable.
*BOOM!* A deafening explosion sounded out, louder than the earlier boms. It deafened the three assassins, and was followed by a ball of fiery white light bursting out from Leylin’s finger. It caused them to involuntarily close their eyes.
These were the rank 0 spells Rank 0 spells Flare and Sonic Snap! Given the situations, instantaneous spells like them were the most appropriate to use. Moreover, Leylin could also adjust and select the spell to his liking, basing it on the circumstances he would encounter. This was much better than those inflexible wizards.
Although they suffered a double blow which caused them to go blind and become giddy, the daggers of the three assassins still sluggishly headed for Leylin. Yet at this instant, Leylin suddenly made his move.
His hand stretched out as quick as lightning, and the dagger of the assassin in the middle came to a stop. An acupoint on his arm seemed to have been hit, and it fell limp and feeble like a dead snake.
‘No…Oh no!’ Before the assassin could even finish this thought, the dagger in his hand had changed ownership and was now in Leylin’s possession.
*Thump! Thump!* Two figures flew backwards. The assassin in the centre, however, was not as fortunate. He knelt on the floor with his hands held behind his back, while the dagger that was previously in his hand was pressed against his neck.
The sensation of the sharp blade made every single strand of hair on his neck stand on end.
“Did you think that I was just a wizard?” Leylin laughed coldly.
Wizards were all relatively solitary. Leylin had moved out long ago by himself, thus practically no one knew about about his wizard rank apart from Ernest. Even his expertise in martial arts was concealed by Jacob under the Baron’s orders.
“I wanted to ask who sent you guys, but it seems like you won't say…” Leylin’s deep voice sounded like the muttering of a demon to the assassin who was kneeling on the floor.
Moments later, the dagger in Leylin’s hand suddenly cut straight through the assassin’s throat. Great quantities of fresh blood started gushing out of his throat as he gasped greedily for air. The radiance in his eyes slowly dimmed, and he collapsed onto the ground.
Seeing how Leylin killed as if it meant nothing and how he did not even seem to have an uncomfortable reaction to it, the other two surviving assassins stole a glance at each other, both intending to flee.
They never knew that the target they were up against would be this difficult to handle. Not only did he possess rather good magic abilities, he was also proficient in combat. His exquisite control over the battlefield and his merciless killing style were not things that a young nobleman who was inexperienced in life would be capable of.
Now, they practically suspected that some sort of devil resided in this young nobleman’s body, or perhaps this was someone else impersonating him.
‘But we still have hope!’ Determination flashed in both of the assassins’ eyes, and they suddenly started to make their escape.