The Regressed Son of a Duke is an Assassin

The scent of blood scattered everywhere as if the god of death had passed through.

Vellias’s official knight, Brian Kendrick, could hardly believe the scene unfolding before his eyes.

Screams of knights could be heard every second, and at the same time, cruel blood rain poured from the sky.

Could an 11-year-old boy really be behind this?

The boy, having looked at the corpses of the knights, soon turned his gaze towards him.

“Hiieek!”

Upon making eye contact with the boy, Brian found himself collapsing to his knees, powerless. Cyan Vert.

The youngest son of Duke Willius Vert, the guardian of the continent.

Just a year ago, he was scorned as the incompetent of his family.

However, within nearly a year, he had grown to become the most talked-about member within his territory.

The offspring recognized by the Duke.

The prince who protected the princess from demonic beasts.

The returnee who survived the Demon Dragon.

To those unaware, it was puzzling whose story they were hearing, so rapidly had Cyan’s fame risen.

But…

‘Did he learn assassination techniques from the knights?’

Even those renowned senior knights would not employ such brutal swordsmanship.

Holding that small sword, no bigger than a lady’s hair comb, he first disabled the hands holding weapons, then the legs to prevent standing, and finally, as if delivering a finale, decapitated the heads. It was miraculous not to faint after witnessing such cruelty directly.

Cyan, who committed such brutal acts without hesitation, calmly approached the stream to wash his face.

His actions seemed all too natural, as if it were an oft-repeated task.

“Are knights these days also doubling as coachmen?”

Cyan asked in an indifferent tone, but Brian could not answer.

Even though he wanted to speak, only a meaningless moan escaped his trembling vocal cords.

After washing his face, Cyan walked up and made eye contact with him, who was kneeling.

“Confess.”

A whisper like a ghost, stimulating every sense.

It meant to confess everything without resistance.

Before him was no longer a young boy, but a cruel executor of death who could send anyone to the pits of hell at will.

Frozen with fear, Brian began to confess as if enchanted.

“I- I received orders from Duchess Margaret! ‘Assassinate young master Cyan on his way to the Royal Academy.’ It was a secret command given to me and six other knights!”

“The reason?”

“I- I- I don’t know the details, but I’ve heard stories! Before the fourth, Cranz, went to the academy, he earnestly begged something of the Duchess! Maybe it was because of that, the Duchess issued this order, and we were just speculating among ourselves!”

Cyan chuckled incredulously.

“It’s no wonder you ran away with your tail between your legs…”

The questions continued unabated.

“So. If you had succeeded in killing me, what was your plan for the aftermath?”

“Just… to return, report the situation, claim that we were attacked by thieves and you died, and to process your death. After that, to receive the agreed-upon compensation and end it there…”

“Compensation?”

Hearing this, Cyan snickered.

“All of you are just low-ranking, aren’t you? From apprentice to just now becoming official knights…”

“That- that’s correct, but…”

“Shall I tell you something? If you had returned, you would have been executed immediately.”

“…!”

“Did you really think that after failing to protect me and letting me die, you could just say ‘The young master unfortunately died after being attacked by thieves,’ and they would just accept that? Of course, they would blame you for the failure of the mission and demand you pay the price.”

Brian’s eyes were wildly darting about.

“Moreover, compensation for low-ranking knights who aren’t even professional mercenaries? Even if she were to pay, do you really think she would just let you go after you attempted to kill a noble’s child?”

“But, she promised us safety…”

Cyan continued with a look of pity.

“Well, what would low-ranking knights like you know about the Duchess? Nothing. You were just disposable tools for her, unknowing and disposable.”

It was a fact that could be understood with a bit of thought.

The sudden assassination mission given to seven low-ranking knights.

While they could feel something was off, they were knights of the domain who had to follow orders.

In summary, it was just bad luck.

They were thrown into the pit of death without any right to refuse.

Realizing the truth, Brian trembled with indescribable emotions.

“Are you… going to kill me too?”

He asked cautiously, with a hint of resignation.

“Why would you think that?”

“I have nothing more to tell you. There’s no need to keep me alive anymore.”

“…”

Cyan silently stared intently at him.

“Don’t you resent me?”

“It was us who tried to kill you first. Do I have the right to resent?”

Cyan said with an inscrutable smile.

“Being unnecessary and being worthless are different.”

“Excuse me?”

“I’m not that kind of person.”

It was a statement Brian couldn’t comprehend.

“Besides, you still have something to do for me.”

“What do you mean?”

Cyan nodded his head towards a carriage that was left beside the sprawled bodies.

Despite a bit of blood splatter, the horses and the carriage were in pristine condition.

“You’re good at driving a carriage.”

* * *

[What are you thinking?]

“What do you mean, what am I thinking? I can’t possibly walk all the way there on my own two feet.”

[Oh, great, are you going to ferment that mighty power of the gods into soybean paste? Why bother with him when you can just use your magic to move the carriage, there’s no need to use such a guy!]

“Do you think it’s time to advertise a ghost carriage roaming around? Why not just announce that the heir of the Mist God has returned?”

[Such a merciful assassin we have here!]

Kaeram mocked but couldn’t help but click her tongue.

Merciful, huh…

Well, it’s debatable whether this can be considered mercy.

All his comrades are dead, and he alone survived, only to end up driving the carriage for someone who could be considered his enemy.

It wouldn’t be strange if he felt humiliated in this situation, would it?

I understand Kaeram’s point about whether there was a need to spare him, but on the other hand, there wasn’t a need to kill him either.

If he’s going to die a dog’s death upon returning anyway, might as well make use of him if possible. If it increases his chances of survival, it’s a win-win, isn’t it?

I leaned out of the coachman’s seat window.

-Thud thud

Watching every direction with alert eyes and a firm grip on the reins.

Not too fast, not too slow, just the right speed, skillfully navigating obstacles along the way.

Despite racing through the rough wilderness, the carriage offered a very satisfactory ride without a single jolt.

So much so that I even managed to doze off at one point; that says it all.

“…!”

Startled by the unfamiliar presence, Brian turned around and was surprised to see me.

This caused him to momentarily lose control of the reins, making the carriage shake violently.

“Do- do you need anything?”

“No. Focus on driving.”

“Yes…”

Brian quickly regained his composure and continued to maintain normal operation.

“How old are you?”

“Ni, nineteen this year.”

Nineteen. The same age as Emily.

“You handle the horses and drive the carriage so well, it seems like this kind of work suits you more. How did you end up becoming an official knight?”

Scratching his head awkwardly, Brian then cautiously answered.

“Tr- truthfully, I was an apprentice knight. I was just a laborer doing odd jobs within the domain. Recently, because many of the domain’s official knights were called away to other places, I just got lucky and became a knight.”

“The domain’s knights were called away? Why?”

“I’m not sure of the reason, but about a year ago, there was an increase in nobles throughout the empire, including the royal capital, looking for personal guards. The pay is good and the treatment quite decent, so I know that quite a number of capable knights have already left.”

Was it because I’ve been at the front lines for so long that I was unaware of the news from this side?

After all, most of the knights guarding the front lines belong to the Order of Light, separate from the domain’s knights, but this was quite an unexpected piece of information.

To think that the frequency of searching for personal guards has increased to the point where even the domain’s knights were being called away…

It seems something significant has indeed happened.

“So you became a knight just to fill the numbers?”

“Yes… Well, becoming an official knight isn’t something that can be easily achieved, and I just thought I was lucky. It definitely wasn’t an opportunity that came by often. Even after becoming an official knight, the work was the same, though…”

Yeah, from what I see, you were indeed lucky.

Had you been wearing armor instead of a coachman’s attire, you would have died just the same on the spot.

As the silence stretched on, the cityscape began to emerge from the end of the wilderness.

“Sa- Saphern is in sight, young master!”

Saphern, a mid-sized city in the empire.

Though not a large city, it was considered quite affluent within the empire.

As we slowed down and approached the checkpoint, armed guards approached and blocked the way to the carriage.

“Where have you come from?”

“Ah, well, that is to say…”

Sitting in the coachman’s seat, Brian was at a loss for words, sweating profusely.

Anyone would think he was hiding a corpse in the back at this rate.

I got down from the carriage and showed the guards the crest of the Vert family directly.

“Cyan Vert, son of the Duke of Vellias, on my way to Luwen for the Royal Academy.”

The guards, upon checking the crest, began to scrutinize my attire.

One of the most representative ways to confirm someone’s identity was to look at their attire.

The well-ironed, bright silver uniform was speaking on my behalf.

“Are you… traveling alone?”

“With one coachman cum guardian knight.”

(PR: cum: combined with; also used as. used to describe things with a dual nature or function. not the other cum)

The guards looked dubiously at the faces of Brian and me for about three seconds.

“Alright then. We’ll grant you entry.”

After completing the formalities, the guards made way.

“It’s not really my place to give advice, but if you can afford it, it might be wise to hire a few more guardian knights in the city. The atmosphere in the empire is quite tense these days.”

“Thanks for the advice. I’ll think about it.”

I got back into the carriage and entered Saphern.

“…”

The moment we entered the city, I could feel a stark atmosphere flowing through.

A sense of vigilance, perhaps?

As if to prove this, I saw numerous guards armed with swords and spears walking around the streets.

Surely, the Saphern I knew from this time wasn’t like this.

An uneasy feeling that I wouldn’t just be passing through this city started to settle in.

“Where should we go, young master?”

“To an inn. Not somewhere luxurious, any place where we can leave the carriage is fine.”

“Understood.”

For now, I decided to leave our belongings and take a closer look around.

(To be continued)