Chereads / The Strongest Assassin Reincarnated in a Different Timeline / Chapter 6 - Deceptive and Ruthless Methods

Chapter 6 - Deceptive and Ruthless Methods

The small group carefully treaded their way in without speaking to each other. There were a lot of guards patrolling in the area, but most of them were celebrating early for their absolute success once the sun rises since the hundreds of thousands of troops that they had gathered secretly as reinforcement would arrive early in the morning. By the time the battle resumed once more, the citizens of Sylpharia had no way of countering their massive army which would definitely lead to completely owning the two cities forever as their spoils of war. 

Leon thought they should let them celebrate for now while they can, for they won't be smiling anymore by the time the sun rose up to the sky. Their precious marshal had no way of knowing that they were so bold as to sneak inside their territory in the middle of the night. 

Alisa was quite amazed at the sight of the city that didn't look too ancient at all. Lots of questions swirled inside her head as she gazed at the modern houses and some tall buildings that were no different from the ones found in her past life. Wasn't this supposed to be an ancient timeline? Why were they using undeveloped technology and weapons in the war when civilization was progressing just fine? She could clearly see that these buildings weren't made of stones, but of solid concrete and steel. She was totally lost with how weird the situation of this world had become. However, her curiosity had to wait later. Her priority for now was to capture the enemy's marshal. If it wasn't possible, Leon said they could eliminate him instead. 

Inside the tall building which lay situated in the center of the city, a man stood in front of the transparent glass window in the highest floor and looked below while sipping his favorite tea. He was wearing a military uniform that looked the same as the Chalandrian soldiers, except for the badge and the five stars pinned on his chest which meant that he held the highest authority within the military. Marshal Balthor had been in extremely infuriated early due to what happened in the battlefield. Almost the entire right flank of his army was decimated by a single person. How could someone so powerful suddenly appear on the opposite side? He never would have thought that Prince Raphkiel Leonis Arnor was such a cunning person. He was seething in anger and couldn't wait to take him as a prisoner and skin him alive. 

The thought of his massive reinforcement arriving soon calmed his heart down. No matter how clever he was, the prince wouldn't definitely expect that he had more than enough soldiers to deploy in the next clash. His one-man powerhouse wouldn't stand a chance against a hundred thousand soldiers.

"Sooner or later, you will fall into my hands and I'll squeeze your nation dry in exchange for your precious life, Raphkiel!" He sneered and his eyes displayed a hint of madness. 

Suddenly, a knock could be heard from the door. A soldier had entered the room and saluted to him. Balthor was curious what a soldier was doing here at this time. He also clearly instructed that only the high-ranking generals could come inside. How dare this lowly soldier waltz in here? His anger was fueled once more.

"What are you doing here? Depending on how you'll answer, I could have you executed here right now!" His voice lashed at the soldier who trembled in fear.

The soldier spoke. "M-marshal, please spare me. I came here to deliver bad news and it's urgent."

"Speak." He coldly spat.

"I've spotted intruders sneaking over the walls earlier when I was relieving myself. I'm pretty sure that was the infernal monarch himself." 

"What?!" He stood up abruptly. He was startled at the news. 

"It's true. I've led my men secretly and somehow, we're able to capture them. I've temporarily bound them and put them in a room."

He was elated upon hearing that. Raphkiel was a fool! He had the urge to laugh, but he kept his composure in check. "Alright, take me to him." 

"Right away, sir!" The soldier turned around and left while Balthor followed him. Beneath the military cap, a trace of sinister smile formed in the lips of the soldier. The soldier raised her head slightly, only to reveal that it was none other than Alisa. Her eyes showed a cold glint unbeknownst to the one following her.

Earlier, she had stolen a soldier's uniform after knocking one down and then she disguised herself as one of them. Balthor wasn't the least bit suspicious at her despite having an abnormally high voice for a man even though she already tried lowering her voice to the lowest as possible. Just hearing that she had captured the infernal monarch along with a few of his generals made his doubts dissipate into thin smokes. Her mission was as good as completed. 

They took a slightly different path and didn't take the elevator. Instead, they walked down the stairs, making it longer and tiresome. Goodness! This was the fifth floor and the soldier had the audacity to make him walk like this. He then started to complain.

"Why are you making me take the stairs instead of the elevator? Are you stupid?" 

"I'm very sorry, Marshal. Please bear it with me. The infernal monarch and his generals were currently placed in the basement and the elevator can't go down there." Alisa hurriedly explained while pretending to sound worried. 

The marshal's expression softened. He didn't doubt anything amiss at all. He just thought that the prince was just desperate to win the fight so he personally took action. What a stupid and inexperienced royalty. He looked down on these princes who only came to the battlefield to gain some fame and experience so they could sit on the throne once they returned. Did they really think life was that easy? 

"Alright, I'll speak for your promotion once I've seen them with my own eyes. Hurry up." He said smugly.

"Right away, sir." 

Once they had arrived at the basement after several minutes of climbing down the stairs, Alisa brought him to a room, only to enter there and saw no one else. Suddenly, a sense of crisis and horror enveloped his heart. Something was wrong! 

"Where are the prince and his generals?" He turned around with a frown and questioned Alisa, whose face couldn't be seen due to the military cap covering it. When he saw she didn't answer, his temper flared up and he drew out a sword from his waist.

"Answer me, you bastard! And who the hell are you? Which unit do you belong?"

Alisa raised her head and revealed a murderous pair of eyes that scared Balthor out of his wits. He couldn't move at all and his hands were trembling in fear. "Wh-what is this? Such powerful intimidation..." 

In an instant, Alisa rushed forward grabbed his wrist. She twisted it with a little force and dislocated it effortlessly. Balthor's bloodcurdling screams echoed throughout the whole basement as he was relentlessly beaten to a pulp by Alisa. Raphkiel and his two generals emerged from hiding and entered the room, only to see Balthor's face swollen like a pig. Several of his teeth were missing while his limbs were either dislocated or fractured. Just what in the world did this woman do? Nevertheless, he was impressed by her skills. He had little hopes that she would be able to capture such a high-ranking man, but she proved him wrong. Here was Balthor, lying in his own pool of blood after being left barely alive by Alisa. 

"This girl is a genius, Your highness. How did she even go unnoticed inside? Even if the three of us were to go on a disguise, there would still be a trace of suspiciousness lingering on us. But we've seen her boldly marching inside and even greeted some soldiers. Her skills are truly terrifying." Timothy whispered to Raphkiel while watching her torture Balthor without even asking any information. 

"Either she is indeed skillful, or the Chalandrians are just a bunch of stupid savages." He plainly said. Upon seeing that she didn't have any intentions of stopping, he frowned. 

"Enough, Alisa. You're going to kill him." He grabbed her hand and dragged her back where the generals stood.

"I've made it sure that he won't be able to escape. Isn't that great?" Her smile was somehow frightening. 

He didn't say anything and went to the enemy marshal instead. He bent his knees enough so their faces would meet each other. He coldly greeted with a mocking tone that didn't feel like an apologize at all. "I'm sorry for my subordinate's rashness, Marshal Balthor. I'm pretty sure you won't take it to heart, would you?" 

"Damn... you... Just you wait until my reinforcements arrive tomorrow... No one can escape this place alive. Not even you, the infernal monarch himself!" His eyes showed madness as he tried to release an evil laughter only to fail and cough up blood instead. He then struggled to point at Alisa who couldn't care less about him anymore.

"And you, filthy woman! How dare you beat me up?! I'll have your limbs cut off after I let my men defile you, bitch!" 

He thought she would be provoked, but what came out from her face was just a cold smile. Her eyes didn't have any trace of warmness which stirred up the fears in his heart. How could a person be so cold-hearted and decisive? Were women in Sylpharia this scary? Since he couldn't do anything to her, he lashed out at Raphkiel instead.

"Shame on you, Prince Raphkiel! You dare hide in the skirt of a woman, you bastard! You're such a disgrace to all of the royalties in the world!" 

"Whatever you say. Anyway, you're coming with us to Groovehill as prisoner of war. Then we'll talk about negotiations and see how much your country is willing to pay off in exchange for your life." Raphkiel turned around and signaled for them to leave. 

Before they could even emerge out of the basement, a loud siren echoed throughout the whole city. The soldiers of Chalandria were already informed of what happened to their marshal after a higher general went to his office to discuss about something, only to find that he was missing. They checked the surveillance cameras and found a suspicious soldier talking to him while he followed him to the stairs after their conversation ended. No one could recognize the soldier which resulted to them issuing a wide search. 

"Shit! We've been found out. We have to hurry and get out of this place." TImothy's expression was grim as he said it. He hadn't forgotten that they didn't have any means of transportation with them which only made it harder for them to escape, not to mention that they were carrying a burden like marshal Balthor. 

Balthor laughed like a crazy man. "Your plans end here, Prince Raphkiel. You won't see your motherland ever again!"

Raphkiel's mood sank. It was indeed going to be a challenge. They might even lose their lives on the process. He tried to think of ways to salvage the situation when Alisa made her move and hit Balthor again in the back of his neck, making his eyes spin and therefore, lost conciousness. 

"I silenced the man since he's so noisy. What's the problem? It's just a bunch of trashy foot soldiers." She frowned and said to him coolly. 

Was she sick in the head? There were about more than fifty thousand soldiers currently in this city, and by the time morning struck, there would be an additional hundred thousand soldiers. 

"I don't have time to argue with you. Move if you want to live." He coldly ordered. 

Ferrid carried the unconscious marshal on his back, with Timothy guarding the rear, while Raphkiel and Alisa stayed in front as they escaped the basement and exited to a rusty ladder that led towards man hole in secluded alley between two large houses. 

"By the way, why do they call you Raphkiel? I thought your name was Leon? Did you lie to me about your identity?" She eyed him suspiciously.

"My full name is Raphkiel Leonis Arnor. Leon is part of my second name. Is there a problem?" He icily replied.

"Fine. Leon or whatever, don't forget your payment. I need it to buy some dress and food later on."

"You..." He was exasperated. "Are you seriously that broke that you have to enter the military to freeload?"

"What do you know? At least this is a clean job. I have to work hard to sustain myself."

She was too outrageous. Clean job? War was way too ugly inside out that it was anything but clean. Although killing someone was necessary, it didn't mean that they didn't have any conscience. She's really weird in more ways than one. And then again, she forgot it again!

"That's prince Leon for you." He spoke again with a raspy voice.

"I have one more question."

"What?"

Alisa looked at him as they stopped in a corner to observe the panicking military forces of Chalandria. She was silent for a while which prompted him to look at her with a raised eyebrow.

"In this generation where technology is advanced, things like guns and bombs should have existed already, right? Why are you people playing with old toys instead of using powerful weapons?"

The generals also turned to stare at her with a baffled expression while Raphkiel was dead silent. It felt like she had asked something wrong. Although she was a little bit spirited and carefree, that didn't mean she was willing to touch a topic that was sensitive, especially in war. There must be a reason why they didn't resort to such things. 

In the end, Raphkiel sighed. "I don't know if you're a genius or an idiot who's pretending to be a smart-ass." 

"What's that supposed to mean?" Her eyes narrowed dangerously as she glared at him.

"That's because guns and bombs are forbidden in war. All of the countries in the world had signed a war treaty that prevented the use of such destructive weapons to ensure fairness in all countries. You can use any means except those things. Also, I'll let it slide for now, but don't ever mention such things in the presence of others, got it? That is a worldwide taboo." The way he said it was too serious that it sent a wave of fear in her heart, but at the same time, she was delighted.

If those things are banned worldwide, then no one else would be able to take her down in this lifetime. Her trauma for nukes and explosives was so great that she didn't want to see them in person ever again. 

"Good thing it is banned."

She finally showed such a beautiful smile that sent his heart racing. She then turned towards him once again and spoke once more. "Then, Your Highness, would you like me to buy you some time so that you three could escape safely?"