Even Elric hadn't expected Prince Cromhel to actually grant his request. In fact, as he had mentioned to Sean earlier, it was more of a polite refusal on his part.
But to think that Cromhel would actually follow through with such an outrageous action—"outlandish" didn't even begin to cover it.
Were all the geniuses known as the "Three Stars" such eccentric individuals?
'It seems like it might be fun to keep someone like him as a friend,' Elric thought to himself.
If he looked at Cromhel not as a "prince" but simply as "Cromhel," Elric had to admit that he found him to be an intriguing and fascinating person, someone worth befriending.
Meanwhile, Sean was trying his best to suppress the urge to pull out his hair.
'Now there's another Elric! Another one!' Sean was internally screaming.
Having just one Elric was enough to give him constant headaches. But now there were two! The world had surely gone mad.
The servant hastily carried off Rodeo, who was severely injured. His bleeding was profuse, and without quick treatment, his life would be in danger.
Elric didn't bother to glance in Rodeo's direction. Instead, he watched the severed arm with a faint, bemused expression.
He had planned to take revenge personally one day, but now that someone else had done it for him, it didn't feel all that bad.
A dry chuckle even escaped his lips.
"You're throwing away quite a lot just to make one friend. After all, you don't really know much about me, do you, Your Highness?" Elric remarked.
Count Franz, who had taken a significant portion of the remaining wealth of the Melvinger family, was a considerable power in his own right. The Franz family was even considered a leading figure among the imperial nobles.
Even if Cromhel valued Melvinger's reputation, cutting off the arm of Count Franz's son was sure to provoke the wrath of the count. It was obvious that the Franz family would be furious, and they would likely raise objections.
It was possible that other noble families closely tied to the Franz family, as well as a portion of Cromhel's loyal supporters, might view him as capricious and even withdraw their support.
Yet Cromhel didn't seem concerned in the slightest.
"Haha, there's no need to worry about that," Cromhel waved his hand dismissively. "Even if Franz family was labeled a traitor, they wouldn't be able to leave my side."
There was a certain confidence in Cromhel's tone, as if the Franz family's fate was entirely in his hands.
'It seems he has some sort of hold over them,' Elric thought.
And it wasn't just the Franz family; it was likely true for all of Cromhel's noble supporters.
'Though I heard he wasn't very interested in the throne, it seems he's smart enough not to let go of any power he already holds,' Elric's mind worked quickly to calculate the situation.
"At least I've shown my sincerity, wouldn't you say?" Cromhel asked, with a smile.
Elric was about to respond when—
"Your Highness!"
Suddenly, the attention of Elric, Cromhel, and Herman all turned in the same direction.
BOOM!
A section of the wall exploded, and a group of masked assailants poured into the room.
Shh-shhh-shing! Thwack-thwack!
"Your Highness, you're in danger!"
"Get to safety!"
A hail of arrows and daggers rained down, forcing the knights and attendants to leap forward in defense.
But some of the attackers changed tactics, aiming their weapons directly at Prince Cromhel.
***
'Assassins?'
Elric reacted quickly to the unexpected attack.
Even with the Border Guard, the Royal Guard, the famed Blue Lion Herman, and the Blue Hawk present, someone dared to stage an assassination?
The very idea was absurd, but Elric realized that the absurdity was part of the assassins' plan.
There wasn't enough time to cast a proper spell, so Elric prepared to activate the Seal of Maleficence instead.
'Why isn't he moving?'
Despite the deadly weapons flying toward him, Cromhel remained disturbingly calm. In fact, he looked as though he were more annoyed by the situation than afraid.
As expected—
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
Cromhel twisted the sword he had used to sever Rodeo's arm, expertly deflecting all the incoming blades.
THUD!
He then stomped on the ground, releasing a wave of mana that knocked the assassins back.
The shockwave was so powerful that the shadows protecting Elric trembled. The table in the middle of the room shattered into pieces and flew into the air.
Without hesitation, Cromhel dashed forward, leaping through the debris straight at the assassins.
He moved like a lion charging into a herd of sheep.
"Hnng!"
"Block him!"
The disguised attendants-turned-assassins tried to regain their bearings, but it was already too late.
The Black Lion had already sunk his fangs into their throats.
SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!
Five heads were severed in an instant as Cromhel's blade cut through the air.
At the same time, Herman and the Blue Hawk sprang into action.
They couldn't forgive the audacity of assassins daring to defile their domain.
"Stop the assassins!"
"Protect His Highness!"
While Cromhel's guards and the Blue Hawk tried to safeguard him, Cromhel himself only pushed deeper into the fray.
Herman followed him.
For a moment, glances traveled back and forth between Prince Cromhel and Herman.
'… .'
'… .'
Even though the two didn't have much conversation, they worked together to sweep away the assassins as if they had been working together for a long time.
The two lions tore through the assassins with ease.
SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!
CRASH!
It was only then that Elric realized how ridiculous it was to worry about Black Lion, one of the three new stars.
Instead, Elric focused on something else.
If the assassins were already here, it meant more danger could be lurking nearby.
His "Mind's Eye" opened fully.
***
'So far, so good.'
Assassin No. 16 of the infamous martial assassin group, 'Red Phantom,' observed the chaos unfolding before him with a cold detachment.
His mission, handed down from his superiors, was simple: eliminate the Fourth Prince.
At first, he had doubted whether such a task could be completed. After all, the Fourth Prince's reputation, his formidable guard, and his own combat prowess made him an extremely difficult target.
But the Red Phantom's leader had given the green light, assuring him that any sacrifice would be justified.
So no. 16 had adjusted his thinking.
If the guards were a problem, scatter them with distractions. If the prince's skill was a concern, create enough confusion to find an opening.
So he has been waiting for this moment for a long time.
Just mixing a significant number of his subordinates into the guards required a great deal of effort. It was equally difficult to avoid the eyes of the imperial family and the Inspection Bureau.
But number 16 succeeded, and the operation was finally carried out.
The first team would create a distraction outside, while the second team, hidden among the prince's attendants, would strike at him.
In the chaos, with his guard split, no. 16 would make his move, going for Cromhel's exposed flank.
Though Cromhel was a monster, one of the three new stars and Black Lion, he was still human. And there were four other senior assassins lying in wait, ready to finish the job if no. 16 couldn't.
His life, and the lives of his comrades, were all forfeit in service of their mission.
The only complication in the plan had been the unexpected presence of the Blue Lion and Elric Melvinger.
Their interference had thrown off the timing, but—
'I can still move.'
Carefully positioning himself in the shadows, no. 16 locked onto Cromhel's blind spot.
'Now!'
He darted forward like a serpent striking its prey.
But—
WHIZZ!
Before he could land his strike, something flew toward him at blinding speed.
'What is—?'
There was no time to finish the thought.
WHACK!
His vision spun as he felt his head jerk violently. A moment later, his consciousness faded to black.
The last thing he saw was the decapitated bodies of the other senior assassins, their heads shattered.
Why are you…here…?
That was his final thought.
***
[Okay, got another one.]
『You make it look like you're playing darts,』Mephisto snickered.
[What's the difference?]
『None, I suppose. They're practically begging you to hit them, after all. Too bad these idiots don't realize they're dealing with their natural enemy.』
Mephisto shook his head in disbelief as he looked at the shattered bodies on the floor.
The assassins were skilled, their stealth techniques impressive. But they'd chosen the wrong opponent.
Their fatal mistake was underestimating Elric's "Mind's Eye."
With it, Elric could see the flow of life force and detect their movements with ease. Even if their stealth techniques were advanced, they couldn't hide from him.
As long as he had a better instinct to sense danger than most beasts, Elric was a natural enemy to assassins.
So he continued to pick them off, one by one, with ice arrows, shattering their heads.
'Who are these people? No matter how crazy the competition for the throne is, they must know that directly interfering with the imperial family does not bring any good.'
Given how well-informed the Inspection Bureau was about the events of the Black Snowfield, the existence of such a plot suggested that these assassins had powerful backers.
'First, I need to figure out who they are,' Elric thought, deciding to capture one of the assassins alive for interrogation.
[You won't be able to capture them alive,] a familiar voice interrupted.
Elric glanced over to see Heize, who had just joined him, the Border Guard soldiers scrambling in the background.
"Protect the prince!"
"Crush the assassins!"
"How dare they desecrate our stronghold! They won't get away with this!"
Elric glanced at the soldiers before turning back to Heize.
[Why not?]
[They're trained. If they don't commit suicide, they'll die from a mental trigger instead. It's too late for any of them.]
Heize seemed to know quite a bit about these assassins.
[Do you know who they are?] Elric asked.
[T/L: You can read ahead chapters and support me here: https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]