Chapter 13

The intruders struck!

Instinctively avoiding the attack, Tang Yuwon moved quickly and seized the enemy's short blade that had stuck into the floor.

‘It fit his hand pretty well. If it's not as good as the White Dragon Sword, it'll still do.’

It was a short dagger just under 30 cm. Because the White Dragon Sword, due to the nature of the Guardian Sword, had not had its scabbard prepared in advance, it had been away from Tang Yuwon's hand for a moment.

There was no weapon of this size at hand.

The dagger, which fit snugly into his grip, awakened Tang Yuwon's fighting spirit that had hidden its venomous fang.

Having taken a weapon to defend himself, Tang Yuwon walked around the bedchamber and extinguished the flames of the magic lamps that had been lighting the room.

One, two, three… as the lights that had softly illuminated the sleeping quarters went out, only pitch-black darkness remained in the room.

He did not hurry his steps.

At last Tang Yuwon sat again at the table where he had been dining a moment before.

‘Is he not afraid of the Emperor's gaze? He must be fearless. Or perhaps these are a different group than those who poisoned Yurion…?’

That made more sense.

The ones who had spent years hiding and using only poison would not take such violent action at the Fifth Prince's movements so hastily.

Sitting back at the table, Tang Yuwon nonchalantly resumed his meal with a fork and knife in his hands.

Sss-ss-ssk. Thud.

As the fork and knife held separately in each hand did their work, a well-cooked piece of veal was cut into a bite-sized portion.

To continue eating calmly during an assault—yet Tang Yuwon had confidence.

He himself had once been active as an assassin. Because of that he knew well.

‘This was the first move of a killer who had been preparing and preparing. If that was the enemy's best earlier, then even if ten of those bastards came, he could kill them all.’

An assassin had to decide the outcome on the first move when the opponent did not notice their existence. But the enemies had failed to do so.

How long had it been since the first attack—about thirty seconds? Just as the well-cooked veal reached Tang Yuwon's mouth, there came the sound of a crash, and then the entire window frame of a broken window was torn out.

Soon two masked assailants came through that window into the Fifth Prince's bedchamber.

“Are you here?”

That was the greeting from Tang Yuwon to those men.

Under the masks that covered their faces, astonishment flashed across the two assailants' faces.

“We were dining, and yet guests have arrived.”

Tang Yuwon, who had been eating, put down his fork and knife and wiped the corner of his mouth with a napkin.

The whole sequence of actions exuded composure and dignity.

This was a reaction the assailants had not expected at all.

Their first attempt to kill had failed, yet the Fifth Prince, who should have been cowering and trembling in shock, greeted them as if nothing had happened.

‘Did the Fifth Prince have some backing he trusted?’

‘What was with that composure…?’

Frightened by Tang Yuwon's composure, the two assailants could not act rashly and hastily exchanged glances.

It was a situation they had not anticipated. Neither of the two could come up with a clear answer.

The one who provided an answer was Tang Yuwon.

“Why are you so surprised? Weren't you here to kill me? Is it a problem that the White Dog who should be trembling and begging for his life is so confident?”

Tang Yuwon struck at the core as if he had read the assailants' thoughts.

At that moment, the suspicion in the assailants' minds turned into conviction.

‘We underestimated him and acted too hastily. Still, he is the Fifth Prince chosen by the White Dragon Sword; he must have something to rely on.’

It was human imagination that turned a five-year-old child into a hero who would save the world.

Although that imagination was limited to a single child in their minds, in it the child became a hero who split mountains and cleaved seas with his sword.

This time, that imagination was used to break the assailants' fighting spirit.

The two assassins who had come to snap his neck realized defeat without getting a proper attack in.

The Fifth Prince stood with his back to the darkness.

Behind him in the dark there was the image of an imagined master so skilled that even his presence could not be sensed.

At that moment, Tang Yuwon delivered the finishing move.

He slid the dagger he had picked up earlier across toward the assassins.

Sss—

The dagger slowly slid across the tablecloth and stopped in front of the two assassins standing at the edge of the table.

“Kill him. Spare one of you.”

He had willingly given up an excellent weapon he had possessed.

In truth, it was nothing short of madness.

‘The White Dragon Sword was not visible… If so, then that must be the only weapon the prince had…’

Because it was madness it planted an even stronger conviction.

Even if the assassins looked closely, there was nothing near Tang Yuwon that could be used as a weapon.

And then he casually handed over the only dagger?

‘Damn, is there a master whose presence we couldn't sense….’

‘If that's the case…!’

Their options were limited: one of them would have to sacrifice himself and let the other go to spread the word, or both would resolve to bury their bones here.

Cornered, the two assassins exchanged looks. It was no longer the stupid, vacant expression they had shown earlier when they had been flustered.

Tang Yuwon did not miss that look.

‘Damn, he's almost bought it.’

Thoughts were short and actions swift.

Until now he had been all leisure, but with a bolt-like motion Tang Yuwon snatched up a fork from the left side of the place setting and threw it.

The fork flew through the air and aimed at the brow of the assassin who had taken a half-step forward.

Clang—!

Unfortunately, Tang Yuwon's ambush failed, and the fork struck nothing but the wall.

The assassin focused every fiber of his being and narrowly avoided having a fork embedded in his skull.

Tang Yuwon's attack did not end with that failed first move.

After throwing the fork, he showed his next move without pausing to see whether it had landed.

By the time the fork hit the wall, Tang Yuwon was already reaching toward the dagger he had tossed in front of the enemies.

“Stop—!”

Startled by Tang Yuwon's ambush, the assassin who had been free cried out urgently.

Both the man who shouted and the man who heard the shout reached for the dagger at almost the same time, without any contest as to who would go first.

‘All he would have left in his hand at best was a mere carving knife! He wouldn't hand over the dagger!’

The fact that no one except the Fifth Prince had intervened so far meant that the actions the Fifth Prince had shown a moment ago were all bluff.

All the more reason Tang Yuwon could not permit that dagger to remain in those hands. If he simply reclaimed the dagger, there would be no corner where the Fifth Prince could be trusted.

Three people were after one dagger! In time Tang Yuwon had been faster, but in distance the two assassins had the advantage.

A hair-trigger moment!

Finally, the winner of the contest emerged.

The assassin who had been standing closest to the dagger grabbed it first.

Now all that remained was to pull his hand back!

The instant his weapon was about to be taken, Tang Yuwon’s eyes flashed.

‘Now!’

What Tang Yuwon had aimed for from the start was not the dagger, but the arm of the man who had been left defenseless while holding the dagger!

With the left hand that had pretended to reach and grab the dagger, Tang Yuwon grabbed the man’s arm and pinned it down, then drove the steak knife he held reversed in his right hand into it.

Crack!

Tang Yuwon’s strike, fueled with internal energy, shattered the back of the assassin’s hand.

Instead of tearing into veal, the steak knife smashed the assassin’s hand.

The blade ripped through the flesh, broke bone, and even the dining table was affected, fixing the man’s arm to it.

Tang Yuwon pulled the dagger from the man’s grasp as it was buried into the table.

Having gotten the dagger back into his hand, he immediately drove it back into the man.

Only this time he did not hand it to him — he plunged it into his heart.

“Ugh, ah… no!”

The assassin tried in vain to block with his free hand, but it was futile.

The dagger, imbued with internal energy, cut his hand like paper and raced straight to his heart.

Thud—!

“Ugh!”

A single killing blow.

No need to look further; he was dead.

It had happened in the blink of an eye.

Everything had been Tang Yuwon’s planned action.

From pretending to chase the dagger, to narrowly pressing it into his opponent’s hand while attacking the arm.

Then, taking the dagger back from the man’s grasp and using it to cut off his breath — every move had been meticulously planned.

The series of motions flowed without hesitation and took the man’s life.

Sss—

Tang Yuwon drew the dagger from the man’s heart.

Blood gushed from the wound that had been sealed by the blade.

“I thought he might be about to break, but his bluff was too bold. Even when driving prey, you should leave one path to live… Tch, I tried not to use my hands and let things take care of themselves, but in the end, were both left to me.”

Tang Yuwon wiped the blood from the dagger clean with a small smile that could almost be seen.

The surviving assassin made no sound.

In truth, he was too stunned even to hear Tang Yuwon properly.

‘The Fifth Prince had hidden his skill…! He was not someone to be underestimated!’

The way he had seized people with his words, the overwhelming force with which he took the initiative, and the careful plan that completely deceived his enemies — none of these were what they had expected from the Fifth Prince.

Before he could even try to move, his comrade had been killed.

He could not tell whether to fight back or flee and bring the news.

The lone assassin’s eyes thrashed as if to echo that confusion.

Blood! Blood! Blood! Bright red blood!

His comrade’s corpse flashed across the assassin’s eyes.

From the hole in his comrade’s heart, red blood had spouted and gushed.

Many had killed, but none had ever known what it was to die.

Even this assassin, who had ended many lives while living, was, in the end, one of those who had “never experienced dying.”

An abyssal terror the likes of which he had never felt in his life seized the assassin’s brain. The fear of death possessed him.

At that moment Tang Yuwon’s mouth opened.

“You… missed your chance to run. If you had run when your comrade was dying and only thought of surviving, you might have lived… Yes, blame your limited courage. Who else should you blame.”

The dagger in his hand wrapped around as if it had been made for Tang Yuwon’s grip.

He smiled in satisfaction at the pleasant sensation at his fingertips.

Tang Yuwon smiled and took a step, then another, and the sight of him pushed the already psychologically cornered assassin right off the cliff.

“Ugh… ugh! Don’t come!”

The assassin belatedly drew the dagger and flailed, but it posed no threat to Tang Yuwon.

Overcome by fear, the assassin’s eyes could not even focus properly.

Tang Yuwon was not the sort to be felled by a man wildly swinging a blade in such a state.

Tang Yuwon frowned slightly at the assassin’s pitiful performance.

‘This one… a disposable card. Even worse than the one I killed earlier. The dead man was of similar level, but still.’

No matter how glossy the black mask, the essence could not be hidden.

Wherever they had been used, the two assassins who had targeted Tang Yuwon today were of too low a caliber.

‘I must grow stronger. They were barely third-rate, which is why it was possible. Right now, if the enemy were even of first-rate level, my life would be in danger.’

The small victory before him settled more heavily in Tang Yuwon’s mind.

There was no guarantee the next disposable card that targeted him would be so shabby.

‘If a discarded card succeeded, that would be fine; if not, it didn’t matter. Very well. I will play along.’

A discarded card could become a good card to him depending on how he used it.

With his thoughts resolved, Tang Yuwon took the remaining assassin’s life.

The man had already lost the will to fight.

Killing him was easier than beheading a chicken.

Swoosh—! And thud—!

The dagger Tang Yuwon had sent flew and buried itself into the assassin’s throat.

“Ghk, ghk…”

Each time the man whose throat had been pierced opened his mouth, frothy blood bubbled from his gaping wound instead.

‘Even if I reuse a discarded card, I did not have to use it alive.’

Moonlight poured in through the empty window frame that had been torn away. Tang Yuwon’s silver hair shone unusually red in the moonlight.