Chapter 54: 54
Shit.
It turns out the curse of King Bahamut didn’t just affect Countess Azalea and Baroness Sheiza, but also the soldiers wearing Ventura armor.
Just thinking about the lingering influence of the curse of King Bahamut and the traitor among the Assassins still makes my blood boil.
But when I saw Cecile, who was looking down with guilt, I felt like I couldn’t solve this complicated problem with my black flames alone.
"Baron Atreus, don’t worry... I will definitely resolve the internal conflict among the Assassins," Cecile said, holding my hand, as if asking me to trust her.
I saw that the wounds on Baroness Cecile’s body had healed, no longer a trace of the slash.
Perhaps it was due to her regenerative healing abilities, which had accelerated since my arrival.
"Please give me a chance, Baron Atreus... I will definitely resolve this problem as quickly as I can...! I just have to defeat that traitor in a duel and I’ll be trusted as the leader of the Assassins again!" Baroness Cecile pleaded, as I remained silent, not giving her an answer.
I understand that this duel is important to Cecile.
Even if she wants to resolve this internal issue, I have no problem with it because I can trust her.
However, I sense something else within Cecile.
I know she’s hiding something, whether it’s her suffering, her ambition, or perhaps her seemingly endless anxiety.
Next to me, Alex is still staring at me, as if trying to tell me that my decision to kill the traitorous assassins directly is also a wise choice for him.
Between these two choices, I believe I must use a wise approach to resolve the problem.
"...of course, Cecile. I trust you can resolve this internal conflict," I said with a smile.
Cecilia immediately smiled at my response.
"Th-thank you for your trust, Baron Atreus...! I swear I will resolve this internal problem as soon as possible...!" Cecile exclaimed enthusiastically.
I simply smiled in response and then left to excuse myself, as Cecile seemed to have recovered.
I left the tent, and Alex followed behind me.
"Alex..." I whispered quickly, causing Alex to immediately approach.
"Yes, Baron Atreus..."
"...deploy an intelligence operation to track Cecile. I’m sure she will choose a place to train after this, in preparation for the upcoming duel. Just tell me the location, and I will resolve this matter on my own."
"Understood, Baron Atreus."
*
Two days after my last meeting with Cecile, I crept stealthily toward a spring in the forest of the golden mountains of Aaren.
According to Alex’s intelligence, Cecile spent her time training and meditating there.
I hid among the bushes and trees and spotted Cecile meditating near the spring.
No one accompanied her, as I knew she usually trained alone.
Or rather, she always tried to carry her own burdens alone.
What intrigued me was that she wore her Venture Armor even while meditating.
I thought meditation was a time for rest, but she still wore it, even while meditating.
Even from intelligence, I heard that Cecile had been wearing her Venture Armor for the past two days without removing it.
Well, I knew she was probably trying to adapt to the Venture Armor, but I felt that was going too far.
The Curse of King Bahamut still lingered within the Venture Armor, affecting her.
Another important aspect of intelligence is that I must maintain my distance.
Those who observe too closely are said to have ended up injured, attacked from a distance by Cecile.
Well, in that case, I can imagine Cecile’s swift and deadly movements.
Suddenly, Cecile ended her meditation.
Her eyes were sharp and determined.
She stood up again, gripping her twin swords tightly.
A purplish-black aura seemed to flare around her body, and I could feel the pressure of immense power.
She ran, then darted to each edge of the spring so fast that my eyes couldn’t see clearly.
She could even run up a fairly high vertical slope with ease.
With such swift movements, she was indeed a feared Assassin.
In the midst of her rapid movements, Cecile made a swift slash toward a nearby waterfall, and the slash caused the waterfall to split open.
SLASH!
SLASH!
That swift and deadly slash had a much wider and longer reach than Cecile’s before she’d been frozen in her Ventura armor.
The Ventura armor was indeed a game-changer, transforming my warriors’ strengths, but I knew there was another problem behind that immense power.
Curse of King Bahamut.
Although Cecile’s movement and attacks as an Assassin had indeed improved significantly, I felt something changing her from within.
This was similar to when I fought Baroness Sheiza, who was completely possessed by the Curse of King Bahamut.
If I looked closely, Cecile’s sharp gaze was slowly turning red, and the red veins on her face were faintly beginning to appear.
I couldn’t let this happen.
I immediately walked into the waterfall area, which naturally caught Cecile’s attention.
"Who is that...?!" Cecile exclaimed loudly, as if I were her enemy.
She even threw one of her twin swords at me!
But I remained calm because Rhaevor’s Spirit appeared quickly and blocked that throwing swords with its fist.
CLANG!
"Ba-baron Atreus....?!"
Cecille gasped in shock, unable to believe that I was approaching her, not her enemy.
She quickly ran towards me, and at that moment, I saw her eyes almost turn red, and the faint red line that had previously been visible had completely disappeared.
But I wasn’t that naive.
I knew the curse of King Bahamut within Cecile’s Venture armor was still waiting for her to let her guard down.
"I-I’m sorry, Baron Atreus...! I thought you were an enemy...!" Cecile exclaimed, bowing apologetically.
I took one of Cecile’s twin swords, not immediately answering.
"You seem to consider everyone an enemy, Cecile...even me, your own husband..." I said calmly.
"N-no...! It’s not like that, Baron Atreus...! I-I was just training and—"
"Training to be a killing machine? I know Assassins do have the power to do that, but I’m sure Assassins aren’t just brutal killing machines." I interrupted quickly, leaving Cecile stunned in embarrassment.
"I-I just want to fully adapt to this venture armor, Baron Atreus..."
"...and at the same time, you’re starting to forget your identity as an Assassin."
"No! I’m still an Assassin! I can assure you of that!" Cecile snapped, and I wasn’t surprised to hear it because I could sense the mixed emotions within her.
Good.
This is exactly what I wanted from Cecile.
"...if you’re so confident in your identity as an Assassin and your venture armor, let us duel, Cecile. Fight me," I said, throwing one of the twin swords, which Cecile caught immediately.