NoGift

VIPER coated both his fists with his most toxic poison and attacked the Pope indiscriminately.  The Pope didn't seem to care about his attacks and just dodged expressionlessly.  He did it so easily, showing that he's not just a powerless salted fish.  Viper clucked his tongue in disappointment.  And here he thought he could easily turn this bastard into a puddle of meat.

But then again, he'd probably be more disappointed if he did.  Not taking into account that this shitty Pope was the one who gathered all those insiduous perverts, turned them into his obedient minions, and called them 'Apostles'.  Really, how shameless.  Using such a holy sounding name to call that group of people.  The Pope was also the man Viper's master considered as an enemy.  Anyone who could pull hate from his master would definitely not be some weak chicken.

But Viper really didn't care much about those, he just wanted to beat this guy's face.  The moment he saw the way this bastard was looking at Argent, he'd been fantasizing on how he should dug his eyes out.

"Hey, Your Holy-shit-ness, I have a question.  Could you please be kind enough to answer it?"

Instead of answering, rays of light flew to his direction.  Viper jumped back.  Because they were in a single room, the range of movement was very limited.  But that didn't hinder Viper from flexibly dodging each one of the light rays.

Viper was not bothered and continued asking, "Why do you look at Argent like that?  Do you fancy him, perhaps?"

Just the thought of that could make him feel murderous.  He already had to guard against that Xing general, now another one would be added?  How could he just take it?  He blamed Argent for being charismatic, attracting bees and butterflies everywhere.

"Stop talking nonsense!" Limos interjected.

She knew this was one of the assassins of Dreich Gallere.  Seeing how he impersonated Harlequin and even helped the duke earlier, it was quite clear that he's here for the duke.  Which only made her hate more.  She's not an emotional person.  But since meeting the duke in person, she felt like all the negative emotions in her started to brew, slowly turning into a big ball of negativity.  With just a tiny bit of push, she was sure that it would explode at any second.

Because the assassin was right.  His Holiness looked at the duke differently.

Limos eyesight had always been bad.  If she didn't circulate her Mana in her eyes, she would be totally blind.  But since the duke came into this cottage and talked with His Holiness, she kind of wished that she was indeed blind.  Because that way, she wouldn't see the way His Holiness looked at Argent Blackbourne.

She'd been with the Pope for almost a decade now.  So she was most clear just how different his treatment was of the duke.  Limos couldn't understand it.  She thought that the duke was just a pawn.  But the way His Holiness acted during the whole interaction he had with the duke, it clearly showed otherwise.  And that's the source of her resentment.

Limos knew she shouldn't feel this way.  She didn't have the right.  But still.  She was only human after all.  That's why she couldn't help but be emotional hearing the assassin say those things.  It one thing to know but it's completely another thing to accept.

Viper turned his head to look at the purple-haired woman.  "Argent doesn't seem to like you.  Should I cut off your head and give it to Argent as a gift?"

Even if Limos didn't want to, she shuddered.  Because she could see in his different colored eyes that he really meant what he said.

The Pope moved and put the woman behind him.  "Go down.  Try to look for Harlequin if you could.  I'll handle this."

"Aww... look at that, how sweet," Viper said while putting his hand on top of his chest as if he was really touched by what he saw.  "You two should just be together.  I approve."

Lucern ignored the blabbering assassin and said to Limos, "Go."

Limos didn't want to go but she still did at the end.  All the orders of His Holiness should be obeyed.  So, she turned around and left the room.

Viper didn't really care if the woman leave or not.  For him, the bigger target was this shitty Pope.  "Your woman should move fast or else, she will end up finding just a decaying corpse," he taunted, referring to the real Harlequin.  "Hey, why don't you answer my earlier question?"

"You don't have the right to know," the Pope answered coldly.

Viper burst out laughing.  "I don't have the right?"  His smile suddenly turned bloodthirsty.  "You're the one who doesn't have the right to talk or even look at Argent."

Lucern sneered.  "Argent Blackbourne is not someone a little assassin like you should covet."

Viper's smile disappeared.  "Now you're just making me mad."

He raised his hand and a sudden torrent of poison rained down.  The Pope put up a barrier of light as a response.  None of the poison passed through the barrier.  An evidence showing that the Pope's Mana was stronger than Viper's.

He didn't care.  Frankly, he already expected that.  So he dashed forward again.  This time, as he moved, he took out a special dagger from his space ring.  The Pope just stood there and rays of lights started falling on Viper's head.  With his fast reflex, he managed to dodged every last one.  Then he thrust his dagger forward.   

It sliced through the barrier of light.  Something that the Pope clearly didn't expect, based on the slight widening of his eyes.  But the bastard still managed to dodge the dagger at the very last moment.  Although the side of his face was still caught, causing a shallow wound.  And then, he quickly retaliated.  Pointing his forefinger at Viper.

A beam of light went straight to him.  Because Viper just finished an attack, the distance between the two was very close.  He could see that the beam of light would go straight to his heart.  His body flexibly bent back, making the beam passed through.  But it still almost scorched his nose.  Then he cartwheeled back, away from the Pope.  He landed and crouched down near the window.

Lucern looked at the dagger the assassin was holding.  "It seems like Sinclair really cares about his orphaned disciples if he gave you that."

Viper stood up.  The dagger was a gift from his master, all of the named assassins in Dreich Gallere had one.  It was made up of his master's scale.  Giving it the ability to cut through Mana produced by a human's Gift.  It was mostly applicable to elemental Gifts.  It was even more effective because his master was a golden dragon - the highest class among all the dragons.

The way the Pope talked, it showed that he knew about the real identity of his master.  Viper didn't like that one bit.  "Don't say my master's name with your filthy mouth."

Lucern only smiled, the usual hypocritical smile he gave to people.  "Since you're already here, why don't you deliver a message to him from me?"  He didn't wait for the assassin's approval and continued, "Tell him, no matter what he does, everything is inevitable.  Things that are supposed to happen will happen.  Because I'll make sure it will."

---------- 

At the middle of the forest, a man was lying on the ground.  His long gray hair was sprawled in disarray.  He was only wearing his underpants.  The left part of his body was in a state of decay.  His face was contorted in pain.  A big letter 'X' was tattooed at the very middle of his forehead.

This was Harlequin, the man Viper thought was already turned into a rotting piece of meat.  That would have actually happened if Harlequin didn't manage to drink a healing potion personally made by one of the Apostles.  It temporary stopped the decaying process.  But if he didn't manage to get to a healer soon, he would definitely die here.

"Damn, that f*cker!"

He wanted to teleport but he was just in too much pain that he couldn't even manipulate his Mana.  He could only blame himself for being careless.

When he fetched the duke earlier, he didn't put up his guard that much.  Maybe because deep inside he was still underestimating the duke for being a NoGift.  Who would have thought that at the middle, he would be attacked and poisoned.  Even his clothes were taken!  But the worst part, the duke and that assassin saw his whole face.

For that, he'd have to kill them.  This humiliation, he would pay it back a hundred times more.  He swore.

He suddenly heard footsteps.  When he raised his head and saw the one walking towards him, all he could think of was; [Of all the people who could find me here, why does it have to be this psycho?]