The Regressed Son of a Duke is an Assassin

I didn’t recognize the face, but I distinctly remembered those awkward eyes.

The unfamiliar yet not strange energy we felt towards each other.

He, too, seemed to have realized he was caught, not attempting to deny the situation.

“Shall we move to another spot?”

He seemed to be considering the young girl, who appeared to be his daughter.

As I nodded without a word, the man looked down at the girl and said,

“Sally. Daddy needs to have a talk with someone here, so could you wait inside for a bit?”

“Okay, got it!”

The girl entered inside with a bright smile.

After sending his daughter away, the man led me with a stiff face.

“Come this way, please…”

He guided me to a clearing behind the house, filled with unused timber, its purpose unclear.

He wasn’t looking at me, but from his worried back, I could sense the lingering intent to kill.

“Are you with the lord…?”

The man asked with an anxious look as he turned around.

“If I were, I would have captured and thrown you in jail since last night.”

I replied nonchalantly.

“The girl from before, is she your daughter? Or granddaughter?”

“My daughter…”

“She seemed to be in poor health; has it always been that way?”

“…”

Instead of answering, the man exuded a threatening aura.

“Can’t you just ignore me like yesterday?”

I couldn’t help but snicker at his pathetic attempt.

“Don’t be mistaken. I’m in control here. I can capture you alive and hand you over, or if I’m bothered, I can just take your head.”

His eyes were still full of wariness.

“You don’t believe my words? Try me. Did you think the club at your waist was for cleaning your shit?”

“!”

He must have realized that hiding a weapon was futile, as I had known he was armed from the moment I first saw him.

The man, now pale, quickly threw the concealed club to the ground.

He realized he had no choice.

“What do you want?”

“Lead me to where he is.”

The man’s gaze then shifted in one direction.

At the end of his gaze, inside the clearing, stood a small shack that seemed newly built.

I moved towards it without hesitation.

-Creak-

The space was barely the size of a small bathroom, but the floor was covered with a carpet too clean for its surroundings.

Naturally, I moved the carpet aside, revealing stairs leading down.

Anyone would think there’s a secret base hidden here.

As I descended the narrow stairs, a pitch-dark space welcomed me. I gathered mana on my hand and cast an ignition spell.

-Whoosh!

The surroundings lit up instantly.

It was a cramped underground space, not much different from when I entered.

“…!”

I almost set ablaze a bulky figure that suddenly appeared in front of me.

“Who- who’s there!”

The owner of the body also seemed startled by my presence and screamed.

The harsh, grating voice was unavoidably irritating.

Glancing from head to toe, I immediately recognized him by his bald head.

It was the missing Lord of Paqaron.

“You! Do you know who I am to treat me with such disrespect? I am the Lord of Saphern, Paqaron! Paqaron Nephelis of the Nephelis family, a noble lineage of the Empire! Once I get out of here, I will meticulously decide whether to spare your life or grind your bones to feed to the beasts in the menagerie…!”

His hands and feet were shackled with chains.

A blindfold prevented him from seeing.

In a situation where even begging wouldn’t suffice, he was spewing serious insults that I couldn’t just ignore.

I stepped back to avoid the spit flying from his mouth.

-Thud

I then bumped into a small table in the corner.

On the table was a familiar black mask.

“So, it was a mask carved from wood? Quite well-made.”

The man remained silent.

Beside the mask was a fist-sized, reddish-brown stone.

A faint magical aura lingered around it.

“So, it’s a firestone? I was wondering how the black smoke was produced, but did those knights really fall for such a clumsy trick?”

A small artifact firestone.

A type of mana flint that could create fire without using magic.

Though it was an artifact commonly used by long-distance traders and easily obtainable, I hadn’t expected such a low-quality item to mimic the mist.

“I guess it was just good luck…”

The man turned away as he responded.

“Right, it was just luck. If it had been Vellias or another city near the imperial capital, it wouldn’t have been possible. Only in such a lowly city could this happen.”

Further investigation was needed, but it was clear that a city guarded by such foolish knights could not function properly.

“Such pests shouldn’t exist in this world! You think I’d be scared just because you’re followers of the black mist! If I put my mind to it, wiping you out would be no trouble at all!”

As if the situation wasn’t bad enough with such a pathetic lord.

Not only was he lacking hair, but it seemed he was also lacking in thought.

“So, you’ve managed to cause trouble but haven’t tamed him? What have you been doing all this time?”

“Excuse me?”

“You didn’t kidnap him to simply admire him tied up, did you? Weren’t you planning to torture him?”

“Torture?!”

At the mention of torture, Paqaron became even more outraged.

Ignoring him, I continued the conversation.

“Yes, that’s right! But I haven’t been mentally prepared yet… Besides, there are knights roaming around outside…”

His feeble hesitation no longer even made me laugh.

I voiced a guess that had formed in my mind.

“Your daughter’s leg… it’s related to this man, isn’t it?”

The man didn’t deny it.

“How did you know?”

“It just seemed like it.”

I continued without showing my thoughts.

“Which parent wouldn’t go mad if their precious child ended up like this because of a brainless pig? So, you decided to act ruthlessly, meticulously planning to kidnap the lord, but when it came time to move to the next step, you hesitated, right?”

The man shouted as if it was unfair.

“But even if I do this, it won’t bring my daughter’s leg back, will it? This act is essentially meaningless…”

The man began to share the story he had kept inside, tears in his eyes.

“I was a servant who served the previous lord of Saphern. I was directly involved in city management and administrative duties.”

I hadn’t expected him to be connected to the previous lord, who was said to have died a year ago.

“The previous lord was a man without greed. He had no interest in personal gain, focusing only on the prosperity of the city. Unfortunately, he passed away early due to a chronic illness.”

“And then?”

“He had no children or siblings, and he didn’t appoint any other successor. The imperial city sent a new successor, and it was this Lord Paqaron.”

It was clear that the influence of the Nephelis family, a powerful force in the current empress’s circle, had played a part.

“However, this man was the complete opposite of the lord I served. Instead of caring for the city, he was only interested in filling his own belly. Moreover, he imposed heavy taxes on the people under the pretext of sending funds to his family, and even embezzled some of it.”

It was evident he was a corrupt lord.

Even just that was enough reason for the real mists to take action.

“I felt a disconnect with his greedy actions and immediately quit my job. I knew I couldn’t change such corruption, and I thought it was easier to just not see it.”

“Why? Didn’t you think about trying to change it?”

“I’m just a powerless commoner. Besides, behind that corrupt lord was the enormous power of the Nephelis family. Any attempt on my part would have just hastened my death.”

For him, it was essentially the best course of action within his limits.

“But tragedy struck from an unexpected place. Truly, the gods are indifferent! What sin did that young child commit? What fault lies with an innocent child who hasn’t even fully grown yet? Just because she was accused of blocking his path…!”

A tear streamed down the man’s face.

“The reason was that she had blocked his carriage during his journey! My child was merely playing in the street and got unfortunately involved, and this brute broke one of her legs for such a trivial reason! As a way to tell her never to roam the streets again!!”

They say there’s no greater pain than the suffering of one’s child.

I’ve never had children, so I couldn’t fully empathize, but I could understand the reasons behind kidnapping the lord.

“So, I kidnapped this man! I may not know much, but I wanted him to feel the pain my daughter went through! But if I did that… wouldn’t I become a monster, not unlike this inhuman scum?”

Do you think that’s pitiable?

From my perspective, it’s just a weakness.

An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth is the way of the world, yet here he is, hesitating to seek revenge in the name of preserving human dignity.

To begin with, humans aren’t such noble beings to tout dignity in the first place.

After hearing everything, I quietly told him,

“It makes no difference.”

“Excuse me?”

“It’s just hard to cross the line of starting. It doesn’t make you any less human.”

After all, I too exist in this world as a human being, rightfully so.

“Besides, this man doesn’t even deserve to be treated as human, does he?”

A corrupt lord who embezzles taxes, with a character so broken he would break a child’s leg…

It wouldn’t be surprising if the real Mist took action.

Leaving him puzzled, I picked up a heavy wooden stick that was lying in a corner.

And soon, a terrible scream echoed throughout the basement.

-Thud

“Aaargh!”

The man, startled, cried out in panic.

“What- what are you doing?”

“I’m just doing what you couldn’t.”

With each swing of the club, once, twice, the entire room echoed loudly.

I specifically targeted his left ankle.

Paqaron, who had been spewing insults until now, could only repeat screams of pain.

“Please, spare me! I’ll do anything you ask! Just please spare my life…!”

He hadn’t been beaten much, but he was already pathetically begging for his life.

This is the ugly nature of humans.

Only after experiencing pain do they realize their place.

But if I intended to end it this way, I wouldn’t have started!

-Thud!

“Aaaah!”

My beating continued for about 10 more minutes before stopping.

Lord Paqaron, having received his punishment, seemed to have passed out, his eyes no longer visible.

“Why would you do something like this…?”

I tossed the club in front of the man who had slumped down and said,

“Do you think it’s cruel? Compared to the pain your daughter endured, this is nothing.”

“But…”

“If you were going to end it half-heartedly, you shouldn’t have started at all. Being foolishly sentimental won’t help you in the end.”

The man didn’t respond.

Leaving him sitting there, I climbed the stairs.

People say that crossing the line is like crossing a river from which you can’t return.

But conversely, I wonder, is there a need to return?

The beginning is hard, but once you start and cross the line, an endlessly vast plain lies ahead, the end of which is unknown.

I know the path I’ve walked cannot be sanctioned or understood.

But even if it were understood, what would change?

I live only for what I believe to be right.

Having finished my business, I was about to ascend to the surface,

when the man hurriedly followed and asked me once more,

“Who are you, exactly…?”

After pondering for about 3 seconds, I replied,

“Just someone with a bit of experience…”

A statement that hardly matched my current appearance.

I then left Saphern behind and embarked on my journey back to Luwen.

(To be continued)