“I need to find out who’s behind you guys.”
Elaine, acting on her words, immediately moved right in front of the group. After that, everything happened in an instant. She sliced off the heads of two of the masters and broke the spine of the third, leaving him alive. The rest were taken care of shortly after.
Elaine didn’t go easy on the group. She had no reason to, after all, they were here for Ash.
The situation ended quickly. Contrary to the hallway filled with blood, there wasn’t a scratch on her body. The blood that soaked her clothes, was not hers.
The master that she had kept alive to find out who had sent the assassins had been knocked out prior, this was to ensure that he was unable to commit suicide by biting his tongue. She quickly turned around, paying him no mind. She had to go to Ash. There weren’t any more assassins left hiding here, she had to get to him as quickly as possible.
Clang!
Suddenly there was a loud noise from the other end of the hallway. It had come from the direction of Ash’s room. Elaine ran down the hallway without hesitation. After crossing the long corridor and taking a couple more turns, the place where the sound had originated from came into view.
The hallway was a mess. The door was broken and there were corpses of assassins laying scattered all over. The soft glow pouring out from the room illuminated the dark hallway. In the center of the scene, Ash was standing on the broken door with his sword drawn.
There were also bodies of assassins laying under the door he was standing upon. However, the side profile that Elaine could see appeared to be very indifferent.
“Y- “
Elaine paused in the midst of trying to call for him. A short distance in front of her, she spotted the maid who she had thought ran away.
All of the prior events came to mind the moment she saw her. The assassins laying in wait in the corridor she had led Elaine to. The light from the lamp going out at a critical moment. It was all too much to be considered a coincidence.
However, the assassins had not only attacked Elaine, but also the maid, so Elaine had protected her, considering the possibility that she might not be in cahoots with the assassins. Even if the maid was not on her side, she was confident in her ability to stop the maid immediately if she showed any suspicious actions.
But, nevertheless, here she was …
The maid that she had thought to have run away, now approaching Ash?
It could not be considered another coincidence.
When her thoughts had reached this point, the maid moved. She took out a small dagger from her bosom and rushed at Ash. Her movements were so fast and stealthy, you could tell she was not just an ordinary person. Ash, sensing a presence approaching fast, raised his head. His eyes were still emotionless as he watched the maid run at him with a clear murderous intent.
As soon as Elaine saw the maid move, she acted.
She caught up to the maid in an instant, blocking her way and striking the wrist that was holding the dagger. The maid was then hit on the back of the neck, falling unconscious before she could even resist.
The dagger fell from the maid’s hand and flew into the air, stabbing into one of the corpses in the hallway. At that moment, a spark like lightning exploded from the dagger. A strong electric current engulfed the corpse in a flash. Soon the light faded and only the charred remains were left.
‘What was a magic tool doing here?’
It was a magic tool containing a lightning spell. Now, Elaine could see the small circle engraved on one side of the dagger. It seemed like the circle was activated as soon as the dagger was stabbed into an object. Or, it was also possible It could be activated upon impact with another object. Ash was an opponent that would have been possible for a mere assassin to stab, so they could have been aiming for the moment when he had struck the dagger away.
In any case, the maid had used this as a last resort to attack Ash.
‘You were going to throw this at him?’
If he wasn’t careful, he would have been hurt by the magic. When she thought about it like that, Elaine was so angry that she couldn’t help but grit her teeth, then she heard a low voice.
“Dame Elaine.”
When she turned around, she saw Ash walking toward her.
A little while ago, Ash had been calm as he watched the maid rushing toward him. He seemed to have the confidence to be able to deal with anything that came his way. He had experienced the attack of assassins many times before, it always seemed to be the same boring occasion. He did not rush, and planned to just swing his sword casually.
And then, someone had jumped in front of him. Shining silver hair, clearly visible even in the dark. The straight back of a woman who was guarding him, blocking the path.
The moment he saw it, he was struck by a sense of déjà vu. It was a strange feeling, as if he had seen a similar scene before, or he had experienced a similar situation.
Ash froze in place as he watched Elaine subdue the maid. Then, the flash from the dagger brought him back from the daze he was in.
It was a fleeting moment. As soon as Ash was pulled back to reality, the thought scattered into the air and disappeared, passing by as just a wayward thought, forgotten.
All his attention was now focused on the person before him, and the fact that she had subdued the maid that was lunging at him. Ash quickly walked toward Elaine and called her name. Immediately, she turned around and her eyes met his. Her light green eyes, which had been cold when they looked at the maid, were now filled with worry as she gazed at him.
“Sir, are you okay?”
She began questioning him immediately as she nervously studied him. She looked anxious, as if she thought he could be hurt. Ash, hesitating for a moment, opened his mouth to speak, then paused again, realizing something. He furrowed his eyebrows.
“I should be the one asking you that question.”
“Huh?”
“Did you run into the assassins as well?”
Ash asked Elaine in a soft voice, sounding defeated.
His eyes were fixed on Elaine’s uniform, which by now had become completely soaked in blood. She noticed the direction of his gaze and scratched her cheek, responding casually.
“Oh, yes. Just a few.”
“A few?”
One of Ash’s eyebrows rose at her calm response, but Elaine just looked down at the maid without noticing. Becoming serious she continued to speak.
“More than that, it seems this maid had conspired with the assassins.”
She remembered the image of the maid who had first approached her in the hallways, pretending not to know anything. The sight of her trembling, surrounded by the assassins. Even then, the maid must have schemed with the assassins to dispose of Elaine.
This mansion was Ash’s living space. She couldn’t believe someone like this was able to wander around freely. Perhaps the maid wasn’t even the only one here plotting against Ash. How many more were there roaming around?
Ash looked at Elaine’s expression, keeping his mouth shut. Then he followed her gaze to the maid, speaking slowly.
“As you can see, my enemies are all around me. Whether inside or outside, it is never safe.”
At those words, Elaine rose her head. He still wasn’t looking at her, continuing in a dry voice.
“This is bound to happen again in the future. Are you sure you want to continue?”
After he said these words, he then met Elaine’s gaze again. He had on his usual cold, expressionless face.
Even though he tried to hide it, she still felt she could tell what he was thinking at this moment. There was a difference between vaguely hearing about something and experiencing it firsthand. Ash was asking her this because he thought she may have changed her mind after this incident.
But, of course, there was no way that could happen. She was actually thinking the opposite, that it was a good idea for her to have become his bodyguard. She shook her head resolutely.
“This is even more of a reason that I can’t quit.”
There was no hesitation in her answer. Ash looked at her in confusion, as if he couldn’t understand what was going through her head.
“You…”
At that time, a familiar voice appeared.
“Dame Elaine!”
The two people turned their heads at the same time. A red-haired man was running at them from the other side of the hallway.
“I suddenly saw a bright flash of light and came to see what had happened…”
Lowell continued speaking, but trailed off once the scene from the hallway was visible. He could tell what had happened just from a single glance. His expression hardened as he quickly grasped the situation.
“What the…! The assassins came again?”
Lowell asked, quickly crossing the hallway filled with blood.
“Are you both okay?”
“We’re okay.”
“Yes, we’re both safe.”
Lowell received a quick affirmation from the both of them, then they explained the situation briefly. After hearing the story, Lowell spoke with a serious face.
“They even had a magic tool and multiple masters present this time… The level of this attack is definitely higher than usual. It also hasn’t even been that long since the last attempt.”
After saying that, Lowell looked around the hallway.
“Let’s change locations first. Ill send someone to clean up the mess.”
They all left the hallway together. The whole time they were walking, Lowell seemed to be contemplating something. Soon he came to a decision and looked back at Elaine and Ash.
“I think we might have to advance our plans a bit.”
Huh? The two people looked at Lowell with confusion written all over their faces, not understanding what ‘plans’ he was referring to. Lowell, with a determined expression, then dropped a bomb with his next words.
“Dame Elaine’s living quarters. How about moving them to the room next to yours?”
