The helpless flailing soon stopped.
However, as soon as it did, a black magic circle appeared on the ground, from which dark hands emerged, latching onto Seventeen.
She couldn’t even react and was caught completely off guard.
The fake maidservant, however, wielded the same element, so she knew how to counter [Dark Grip].
Her body suddenly turned jet black, mysteriously forcing the dark hands to let go.
Hal was naturally shocked by the method she used.
However, it seemed that Seventeen’s movement speed had suffered as a result of the change, allowing him to place one of his new spells, [Chrono Trap], on the ground just in time.
The moment Seventeen returned to her human form, she suddenly froze.
She couldn’t even speak—nothing.
She could only stare blankly into the distance, frozen in time.
This brief moment of helplessness became her last, as, with a ruthless glint in his eyes, Hal pointed two fingers at Seventeen, a golden magic circle materializing at his fingertips.
A smiting wave of light then emerged from the magic circle, swallowing the frozen assassin.
The last thing Seventeen saw was a sudden wave of light that seemed to have emerged from nothingness.
[Radiant Decimation] shot through several layers of walls, destroying part of more than three guest rooms adjacent to his before dissipating into golden particles of mana.
All that remained of the assassin were a pair of gruesome, still-standing feet, visible only from the knees down.
"Unfortunately, you’re not as smart as I am..." Hal muttered with a victorious smirk, the feeling of taking someone’s life overshadowed by the satisfaction of having his ego stroked.
Naturally, the commotion alerted a majority of the guards in the Imperial Castle.
They quickly rushed to the source of destruction.
Upon arriving, the first thing they saw was the two unconscious guards, slumped on their backs and seated on the floor.
Their hearts immediately sank, as this was a clear sign of an assassination attempt.
Of course, Hal wasn’t the only guest in the Imperial Castle at this time, but all those who were invited here were important people, and even a single death would result in grave consequences for both the empire and the guards stationed on the same floor.
They would be in deep trouble if a guest were assassinated under their watch, and from the violent explosion that had just occurred...
The guard captain immediately kicked the door open, his teeth gritted, expecting the worst.
He was dumbfounded and slightly confused when his eyes surveyed the surroundings, almost turning hostile and attacking Hal before his memory stopped him.
He also quickly prevented his subordinates, who, unsure of what had happened and assuming Hal was the culprit, from doing the same.
Just a few meters in front of them lay the gruesome remains of the slain assassin.
"L-Lord Hal Fennec, correct? We deeply apologize for this mess. Please, do tell us what happened."
Hal was someone who believed that his safety was also his responsibility, so he didn’t blame the guards for their failure.
He was just relieved that he survived the night.
Hal didn’t expect that someone would come to assassinate him, but for safety’s sake, he prepared a small trap.
He conjured an Ironwood Puppet and hid it under the covers of the blanket while he himself slept in the corner with [Dark Ward] active.
Although he hadn’t expected it to be of any use, the trap worked wonders, and the assassin, who turned out to be the maid who had led him to this room, was killed by him instead.
He told the guard everything without omitting a single detail, especially highlighting his clever trap.
Of course, the guards noticed that Hal was somewhat tooting his own horn, but they couldn’t deny they were impressed, as any other youngster probably would have died in his place.
Isolde also arrived at the scene in the middle of Hal’s explanation, wearing an extremely worried look that turned into one of utter relief upon laying eyes on her soon-to-be official disciple.
The Imperial Castle was turned upside down that night, and many guards were punished for their incompetence.
Hal, on the other hand, gained a few benefits from the chaos. The first and most important among them was:
[You’ve completed Act 1 of "Felling the Fell".]
[You’ve obtained 1x Chaos Core!]
[You may claim the additional reward: 1x Permanent durability, [Epic]-tier spell card voucher, at the quest screen at any time.]
Hal was, naturally, extremely pleased with the unexpected quest completion, not expecting Seventeen to have been an undercover Fellkin.
He had thought she was merely an assassin sent by the aristocracy.
But that wasn’t all he gained.
He was also promised a mastercraft-grade, rare-tier weapon artifact of his choice, which he could claim from the Imperial Treasury after the official Magna Prospect Appointment Ceremony.
It probably wouldn’t be of any real benefit to him.
However, Hal had his plans.
As much as he wanted to choose an [Epic]-tier spell card that night, the ceremony was only a few hours away, and he didn’t want to look bad on live television.
He also didn’t want to rush the selection, as his life might quite literally depend on it during the upcoming mission.
So Hal went back to sleep, this time in a new suite, with more guards and a guard captain assigned to protect him.
He shall take his time later.
The serenity of the night returned after the assassination attempt, and even Hal felt that he would be safe this time, so he simply slept on the bed to get a proper rest.
As the dark skies gave way to hues of blue, orange, and vermilion, someone knocked on his door, waking him up.
It was Maid Sixteen, informing him that it was time to prepare and delivering a cart full of food along with the white appointment robe he would wear for the ceremony.
He was also informed that the robe had been poison-tested multiple times before being delivered to him.
Apparently, the appointment ceremony would begin earlier than Hal had expected.
He stretched and stood up the moment the maidservant left the room, enjoyed a hearty breakfast, then headed to the en-suite bathroom to take a bath.
Afterward, he donned the white robes and inspected himself in the mirror.
"Handsome as always!"