『 Information Engraving Complete. 』
The paper that began to blur soon became blank.
Only then did I tear my gaze away from the paper.
Then I recalled Adel's talents and traits that were engraved in my mind.
I closed my eyes and organized the information.
'So these are Adel's traits and talents.'
Adel's traits were clearly fraudulent, but there was something sinister about them.
Traits and talents that were specialized in 'assassination' alone.
After all, he was a character that was set to fit the code of an assassin from the very beginning.
[ Arsene Adel ]
: Race - [ Half Demon ]
: Tendency - [ Chaos ]
: Talent - [ Position Exchange 'Ⅰ' ]
: Trait - [ Interest ] [ Absorption ] [ Killing Intent ] [ Darkness ] [ Mana Manipulation ]
: Mana - [ 341 ]
I stared at Adel's status window.
I seemed to know how to use the traits and talents that I had vaguely felt.
First, the most basic Mana Manipulation.
"Hoo."
I slowly drew up the mana that was crouching in my lower abdomen as if exhaling it.
An unknown aura that spread out around me and flowed through my blood vessels.
With this, I succeeded in 'Mana Manipulation'. I felt a surge of energy throughout my body and twirled my arm around.
As expected.
A small amount of uncontrolled aura was trying to burst out.
Swoosh....
I moved my index finger to add color to the mana that was flowing out.
The black color that was applied to the mana.
The manifestation of [Darkness], one of Adel's traits.
"Success."
My eyebrows twitched with a strange sense of excitement.
The manifestation of a trait that was so difficult to sense, no matter how hard I tried to handle it.
But with just one 'engraving' from the paper, I succeeded....
"Is it too vague to call it a success?"
Originally, the Darkness trait is one of the strongest traits for assassination.
Normally, it would be able to deprive the opponent of their five senses just by spreading it out, but.
But I could only paint a darkness the size of my hand, let alone spread it out.
"Even so, it's not bad."
One thing was for sure, it was not a bad situation.
It was enough to cover the tattoo that proved my succession to Arsene.
Slash.
The moment I fused Mana and the Darkness trait, a black water drop formed on my index finger.
I lightly spread it over the tattoo on the back of my neck, covering it perfectly.
A tattoo that was perfectly hidden by being painted over with black mana.
"This should do it."
I turned my head away with a satisfied smile.
With this, I had acquired the usage method for the 'Darkness' attribute.
All that remained was how to apply the Darkness attribute....
But I didn't have enough time to practice that right now.
The Six Families' Knights would reach me in just a day.
For now, I should practice using the other attributes first.
"Let's start with Killing Intent."
Killing Intent is a natural aura that emanates from the body.
It's something that those who have killed numerous lives and mastered killing intent possess.
However, Adel was able to use Killing Intent as a trait.
I looked in the mirror and glared.
"...…!"
Ha, a snicker escaped my lips.
A young child who hadn't even reached adulthood yet, glaring....
If it were anyone else, they would've been laughed at, but this was my face.
Thud, thud.
For some reason, I felt a sense of self-loathing as I slapped my cheeks and opened my eyes sullenly.
Let's try again.
"Like scattering mana...."
I split the mana that was gushing out into a powder form using [Mana Manipulation].
Soon, the mana that had been transformed into powder spread out in all directions.
Cringe.
A creepy aura that made my flesh crawl.
My eyes, which had been gentle, transformed into those of a wolf hiding its fangs.
Of course, it wouldn't be useful in an actual battle with a strong opponent.
But against ordinary people who hadn't mastered mana and swordsmanship....
'It's worth a try.'
If I polished my [Killing Intent] trait, I would definitely reach a level where I could subdue a knight with just my aura someday.
I remembered it because it was something I had written myself to show off Adel's strength.
Of course, right now, I couldn't even defeat a single trained soldier, let alone a knight.
"Now there are only two left."
I stared at the Status Window while suppressing my Killing Intent.
There were many attributes in the status window that I hadn't tested yet.
Two attributes that I didn't necessarily need to use. And one very important talent.
[Interest] and [Absorption]
Attributes like these were like a personality, so I didn't need to test them separately.
Then, the one I should practice first is.
- [Position Exchange 'Ⅰ']
The 'talent' that put Adel in the position of the strongest villain.
An ability that was not inferior to the main characters of the novel.
'Even I think this is ridiculously fraudulent.'
Adel's talent, [Position Exchange 'Ⅰ']
When used, it can exchange the location of a designated object with its own.
The explanation ends here.
It was a very simple ability.
Simple, yet an ability that one could immediately notice was fraudulent.
No matter how one imagined it, it was ridiculously overpowered in actual combat.
A power that an opponent with no prior information about the ability could not even react to.
It was clear that it was an unparalleled assassination technique.
'Seeing is believing.'
I got up from my seat and used Position Exchange.
"Designation."
As I muttered the incantation, dozens of arrows shot out.
Whoosh.
I stared at my feet and saw the arrows starting to shoot out.
'It's about five Pyeong in range, I guess.' [T/N: Pyeong is equivalent to approximately 3.31 square meters]
A slightly disappointing performance.
Compared to the range of several thousand steps that the original Adel had displayed, it was a very short distance.
It must be because the Position Exchange's proficiency was still at level Ⅰ.
As I grow, the range of the arrows will expand even further.
Then I will be able to apply this talent in more diverse ways.
"For now..."
I need to adapt to Adel's talents.
Since traits are a supplementary concept, there is no need to put in the effort to train them right now.
However, Adel's talents needed to be used right away.
Is there anything I can use it on?
While I was searching for an object to use the ability on.
The armor placed next to the door came into my sight.
"Move."
As soon as I uttered the word, the arrows disappeared.
As if teleporting, my body blurred and the world began to reverse.
Thud.
My legs, unable to withstand the ability, lost their center and collapsed.
All the arrows that had been created disappeared.
Damn it.
I got up with a sigh and a curse.
My whole body ached.
The sound of my joints cracking rang in my ears.
"As expected, I can't do it all at once."
I had hoped to succeed once, like with the traits, but it seemed I was being too greedy.
It seems like I'll have to spend the whole day adapting....
The time until the knights of the six families arrive was pressing.
Even so, it was worth the investment.
"Let's try again."
I once again devoted myself to using Position Exchange and the traits.
From evening until dawn.
Dozens, hundreds of times.
.
.
And a day later.
Uninvited guests came.
* * *
Before I knew it, the sun had set and the moon had risen.
The residents of the estate stopped what they were doing and went home, so only silence and tranquility settled in Arsene's territory.
What broke the silence was the sound of noisy horseshoes and various metals colliding.
Creak.
Uninvited guests with iron armor that faintly reflected the moonlight and a sword each at their waists.
Carrying a deep murderous intent, they headed for Arsene's mansion.
"Stop."
The man who was running in the lead raised his hand to stop the horses and waited for a while.
Then the front door of the mansion slowly began to open.
Creak-.
The man and the knights entered the front door and stared at a servant approaching them.
"Are you Sir Peltz?"
The servant who had met the knights asked, but the man called Peltz did not answer the question.
He simply took out a necklace with a lion pattern drawn on his chest and showed it to him.
"Yes, that's enough. But why are the knights behind you...."
The servant looked somewhat bewildered.
They must have come to kill Adel, the head of the Arsene family.
That's why the servant couldn't understand.
Five knights were dispatched to kill a child....
"Do you have a complaint?"
"No, but...."
"They do not tolerate failure. Of course, it is excessive manpower, but isn't it better if the work is easier?"
"I see."
The servant listened to Peltz's answer and obediently agreed.
Those people must have been the high-ranking members of the six families.
How could a mere servant like him know their intentions?
"This way."
The servant, who had collected his thoughts, guided them to where Adel was.
The eerie interior of the mansion.
All the other servants had been bribed by the six families a long time ago, so they had already escaped.
So as they walked through the corridor.
"The bastard is in here."
The servant stopped and pointed to a tightly closed door.
Peltz frowned at the servant's words.
The inside of the room was quiet.
There could be nothing there, or Adel could be asleep, but....
After decades of experiencing fierce battlefields, Peltz's intuition was ringing alarm bells.
Something felt off.
Peltz nodded and said,
"Go in first."
"Me, sir?"
"Well, who else is there besides you."
"I understand..."
The servant clicked his tongue inwardly but followed the order without complaint.
He didn't dare to talk back to Peltz, one of the six family knights.
Creak.
The servant carefully opened the door in case Adel woke up.
"Young master?"
The servant called Adel quietly and approached the bed slowly, keeping the door closed so as not to arouse suspicion.
As he got closer to the bed, he peeked his head out to check on Adel's condition.
"Well, he's still asleep."
Adel was fast asleep under the covers.
The servant didn't suspect anything unusual.
There was no way that Adel could have known that the knights would come in advance.
Even if he had known, it wouldn't have mattered.
How could Adel possibly handle the knights behind him?
"Well, I should check to be sure."
The servant had to do what he was told without complaint, especially because he was terrified of Peltz.
The servant who remained in the Arsene family was a low-ranking member at the time of the Arsene family's purge, which is why he survived.
Since then, he had been secretly bribed by the six families and had been selling information, so he had heard about Peltz's terror.
He didn't want to provoke him unnecessarily and add to his reputation.
"I bear no grudge."
This child is innocent....
No, is he?
He's been a nuisance to me, so this is like a punishment for him.
Why on earth are the six families so concerned about young master....
Swish.
The servant rationalized his actions as he approached Adel.
To confirm that he was asleep.
But then.
Slash.
Adel's closed eyes opened.
His eyes, glowing an ominous blood red, scanned the servant's body through the slits.
"Wh, what the!"
The servant froze, unable to even scream at the sight of his eerie eyes.
He had sensed something strange.
But the servant, overwhelmed by Adel's 'killing intent,' couldn't utter a single word.
Thud.
So easily.
Adel's dagger pierced his neck.