‘As expected.’

The man’s appearance, who was just a step away from the balcony, proves that Edgar’s hypothesis was not wrong.

The aura of magical power which could easily be detected on an averagely talented person is hardly able to be detected on this man.

The man must have used some kind of magic artifact to forcibly surpass his aura or the man is a rare case like himself who has a special body constitution.

Actually, the latter is likely to be the case.

The same context as how he was able to pass through the barrier and sneak into Ariel’s room.

He had expected for the world to have people whose body has the same constitution as him, but he had never thought that anyone would actually be so daring to break through the barrier like this.

If Edgar hadn’t felt a sense of incongruity when he met the man in the town, a major accident would have occurred in this quiet night.

“!”

CLING!

Deflecting a dagger that flew from the darkness, Edgar quickly straightened up his thoughts.

No matter how spacious the room is, he was at a disadvantage in such a confined space because his weapon had a longer range.

Besides, in order to prevent the opponent from using Ariel as a hostage and getting out of here, he had no choice but to stick around and protect her as much as possible.

Even in this situation, which was in many ways unfavorable, he was able to leave some scars, but it was truly regrettable that he couldn’t deliver a significant blow.

‘It’s dangerous.’

On the other hand, the situation was not easy for the man who was confronting Edgar as well.

Despite the boy’s young age, he handled the situation quite skillfully, the man would have had a chance to successfully complete his mission if the boy had shown up just a little bit late.

The boy paced back and forth between the balcony and the bed, stopping him from escaping through the window, and preventing him from using the target as a hostage to get out of the situation.

‘If I attack hastily, I will be the one to suffer. What should I do?’

At least in this kind of situation, if he were to gamble, it is to barge directly from the door to incite chaos and escape through the gap of time when they are still in confusion.

However, this strategy is possible only when the opponent is fairly easygoing.

If he is not wrong, the boy would probably shove the sword into his back without hesitation the moment he turned his back.

However, if they continue to cause a commotion in the room, it will be the same as calling in reinforcements.

‘The only weapon I have is a dagger tucked in my sleeve. And it’s dark.’

However, it isn’t that he is at his wits.

His purpose is to kidnap the young miss of the Robeheim family, but his opponent does not know whether his purpose is to assassinate or capture her alive.

That’s why the boy is more aggressive to keep him from getting close to the young miss.

Then, what he should use is this small information gap.

Maybe he could find a way out of this.

“… … .”

“!?”

When the man carefully put his hand into his bosom, Edgar rushed right in, refusing to give a chance.

Unlike him, whose only weapon is a sword in his hand, his opponent is an assassin, who knows what kind of hidden weapon might the man take out.

He doesn’t know how things would go if he let the assassin pull out another weapon.

VIRRR!

Edgar’s form arrived in front of the man at the same time as he stepped out, just like a swordsman’s footwork.

The man timely managed to stop the incoming sword with his other hand, but he was at a disadvantage as one of his hands was kept occupied in his bosom.

Edgar, who smiled coldly at the man’s trembling wrist, thrust his sword forward toward the man’s right eye.

SHHK

“Kuk!”

The man somehow twisted his head to avoid it, but the sword that brushed past the side of his temple was stained with blood.

‘Damn it.’

For some reason, the man felt like he was a magician parrying with a swordsman, not as an assassin.

It is said that the higher the swordsman reached the pinnacle, the more they did not give the magician time to prepare, and this boy’s fighting method was very similar to that.

‘But now would be perfect.’

Even though his back was pinned to the wall, now that the distance between the boy and the bed was far, it was just right.

Apparently, God smiled at him in the end.

When the dagger could be felt in his left hand, which he had put into his arms, the man smiled.

What he was actually aiming for was furniture displayed on the ceiling above Ariel’s bed.

At first glance, it was not a simple glass material, and the tip was quite sharp.

If a dagger was thrown to drop that thing, this boy would surely throw himself to protect the young lady.

If that’s the case, aim for the moment the boy turns around and pierce his back.

There are only two options.

Ignoring the young lady being hurt, the boy chose to attack him, or ignored his own attack and tried to protect the young lady.

However, in the opinion of the man, this boy would never choose the former.

He would somehow try to get out of the place holding the young lady and continue the fight with him after that.

It might be possible if there is an overwhelming difference in skill, but in a battle with such a small gap, the opponent becomes prey for a skilled assassin.

BA-DUM! BA-DUM!

‘Now!’

As the boy gradually closed the distance between them, the man, who had been watching for an opportunity until the very end, threw the dagger at the string that hangs the glass furniture.

SHUUK!

“… … !”

Edgar belatedly recognized what the opponent was aiming for as the dagger flew through the silenced air.

The moment Edgar turned his back and ran toward the bed, the man quickly closed the distance and aimed at Edgar’s back.

The glass furniture reached the back of the boy who came right in front of the head of the young lady.

At this moment, it would be impossible to step away while holding the young lady.

And the man who had reached to such a conclusion, stabbed the dagger straight through with the smile of a confident winner.

Quack!

“What!?”

However, it was Edgar’s savage hand that greeted the man.

And right after that, the huge furniture fell on Edgar’s body with a loud sound.

No matter how deeply Ariel was asleep, there is no way one wouldn’t be able to wake up at this level of noise.

Ariel’s eyelids fluttered, her red eyes came back to life, and her expression turned to bewilderment at the gray sight in front of her.

“tee… de?”

“… Sorry, did I wake you up?”

As Edgar stood there clutching an unknown man’s neck, the blood dripped down, soaking Ariel’s face.

‘If possible, I also want to end this quietly.’

Even though he trained so much, he still has a long way to go in actual combat experience?

At least, in the last minute, he realized that the enemy’s final goal was not to eliminate Ariel, but to capture her alive.

If it wasn’t for this realization, the counterattack would have been impossible.

“Crazy, bastard… … .”

Even the young lady under his arm was astounded.

Ariel would never have thought of the silly boy to actually block the danger for her with his body.

More than anything else, the blows inflicted on his body were enormous and it was definitely difficult for him to maintain his consciousness, but the strength in his hand, which was strangling the man’s throat, only grew stronger and stronger.

‘Damn it, I can’t get myself killed like this. ‘

On the other hand, the man’s thoughts were the same as Edgar’s.

Even if it meant cutting off one of his limbs, the man had to be kept alive somehow to be interrogated.

He has to know who is the mastermind behind this incident and what is their intention.

It was still full of unknown things, so killing the man hastily would only do harm. Furthermore..

‘Even if I had already made up my mind, is it still difficult to do it myself?’

Although he fought to the death, Edgar was a boy who had never committed a murder yet.

It means that even if the opponent is an assassin, it is quite difficult for him to end someone’s life without hesitation.

It was also a part that proves that being the first murder is a serious act.

“Ariel, the rope… Do you have anything to tie him up ?”

“Yes! hang on… … !”

Edgar, holding the man by the neck, slowly moved towards the closet.

Anyway, he has memorized the layout of the room long ago, so there probably is no risk factor.

He tied the man’s wrists with the rope that Ariel had brought and hung him in the closet.

At this level, no matter how strong the man is, it will be difficult to release.

Perhaps because of the bleeding, Edgar, whose mind began to grow hazy, grabbed the man and sat down on the floor.

He’s going to have to explain everything to Ariel, but his lips can’t quite part as his body starts to feel heavy.

He guesses he’ll have to call the others for now.

After all, in order to hand over the man, he won’t be able to bury this incident anyway.

‘But somehow, this is over.’

It was the moment when Edgar’s consciousness was about to fade from the overwhelming sense of relief.

“… Ed!”

Ariel, who was standing across from him, saw the bewilderment in his eyes, and for some reason she shouted his name urgently.

In the midst of his receding consciousness, just before Edgar’s body hit the floor, a small explosion sounded from behind him.

Pooh!

Surprised by the sound, Edgar belatedly turned his head, and standing there was the figure of the man who had apparently been tied up just a moment ago.

The man’s right hand held a thin saw-like thing that was smaller than the palm of his hand, hidden somewhere in his sleeve.

He probably tried to cut the rope and loosened it.

But that wasn’t what was important to Edgar right now.

The whole man’s head had been blown off, and it had turned into a lump that did not know whether it was a human or a monster.

The lower part of his body, which had been relatively intact, gradually collapsed and fell flat on the cold floor.

“Ariel, you… … .”

There was currently only one person in this room capable of doing this.

Edgar quietly called his childhood friend’s name with shocked eyes.

Even if the man was a person who tried to assassinate her, it is still a shock to witness a 14-year-old girl calmly take a person’s life without hesitation.

And more so, Ariel’s eyes showed no fear of murder, no fear, no surprise.

Ariel slowly approached Edgar and touched Edgar’s face, and he calmly asked if she was hurt anywhere.

“I’m fine. Rather, who is that guy?”

“He tried to ambush you, so I just killed him first. I think you were trying to capture him alive.”

It wasn’t that he wanted to ask this kind of question.

This must be Ariel’s first murder after all.

Even so, how could she remain so calm?

It took a lot of determination before Edgar decided to kill someone he clearly recognized as an enemy.

“Are you okay? This must be the first time you’ve killed a person.”

“How is a person who tried to kill you a person, it’s a bug. And would you have the conscience to save such bugs?”

Ariel, who spoke so casually, immediately applied a healing spell to Edgar.

The spell alone is not enough because she hasn’t mastered the spell compared to other magic spells, but it’s enough to heal superficial wounds.

Then Ariel, who got up from her seat, immediately laid Edgar’s head on her lap.

“Is this because of your bloodline?”

Edgar could not feel it until he faced her red eyes looking down at him.

No matter how innocent she looks on the outside, there’s definitely a bloodline of a cold ruler who can brutally cut and dispose of those who block her way.

However, her cold judgment also saved her life.

At the end of the day, he came to help, and it is a relief to see her safe and sound.

Not long after that, people began to flock to the two loud noises that rang at the end of the battle.

He solved one thing, but Edgar fell asleep with a bitter smile at the thought that there were more problems to solve in the future.

I think I’m pretty tired today.

Apparently, he is pretty much exhausted.