PBAOM ★ CH 04

Chapter 4

Why the Assassin Went to Mermandi

<……>

One day, the Second Prince suddenly came to the guild and complained, demanding they make up for the mistake made seven years ago.

Devon found his words irritating.

Because of the prince’s past request, one of the guild members had been immediately executed by the kingdom.

And the damage the guild suffered while covering up that “incident” had been no small matter either.

So Devon had sworn never to accept another request from the Second Prince again.

But this time, he ended up taking it anyway—for a different reason.

A sense of professional duty, you could say.

After receiving the mission order from Reinhardt, he read through the report on Lady Natania of House Mermandi.

And he discovered a few interesting facts.

‘Wasn’t the lady supposed to be resting in the countryside after that poisoning accident?’

According to the report, the lady actually lived in the capital’s mansion and was being neglected by her family.

‘Well, she lost her sight—so a prestigious family would want to hide her away.’

Officially, they said it was to keep her apart from their unruly eldest son, but it seemed there was another reason behind it.

When the crescent moon rose, Devon infiltrated the Mermandi Duke’s estate.

Wearing a black hood and a serpent mask, he searched for the annex where the duke’s daughter supposedly lived.

The building that housed the duke’s only daughter looked older and poorer than the rest.

He saw guards changing shifts in front of it, and a pair of knights crossing the outer courtyard toward the great hall.

Perched high in an old tree, Devon observed them and waited for the right moment.

Past midnight, after patiently hiding for some time, he noticed something strange—
The security was far too loose.

He silently descended the tree and quickly knocked out the guards one by one.

“Urk!”

As he was dragging their unconscious bodies out of sight, something caught his eye—

A man, dressed differently from the duke’s soldiers, was slipping toward the front gate amid the confusion.

Clearly, he was an outsider—just like Devon. The situation was getting messy, and irritation flared within him.

‘So the rumors about the Mermandi family being full of schemers were true. Seems like a lot of rats are crawling around here tonight.’

The guild forbade unnecessary killing, but he had little choice now.

He drew his blade from its sheath and followed silently.

The man in the red cloak was pretending to be one of the duke’s knights,
but Devon recognized the tattoo on his arm immediately.

Blocking the man’s path, Devon spoke first.

“Hmm… let me guess. Bahal Trading Company?”

At those words, the “knight’s” face darkened.

He instantly sensed that Devon was no ordinary intruder.

Resting a hand on his sword, the man tilted his head slightly.

“Listen, friend. Seems we’re both here to see the same person. Why don’t we just pretend we didn’t see each other? I’ll let you walk away.”

Devon tilted his head lazily and scratched the side of his temple.

The man’s calm arrogance only made the knight more annoyed.

Devon appeared to think for a moment—then suddenly smirked wickedly.

“Why should I?”

“…What?”

“Why should I share my prey with a stranger?”

***

After a bloody fight, Devon Kiel killed the assassin from the Bahal Trading Company himself— leaving the body behind so that when the duke found it, he’d think Bahal was responsible.

But there was one thing Devon hadn’t expected:

A red-haired woman with a white cane had witnessed the entire scene.

Her clumsy posture, her nightgown, and that cane—Devon realized immediately that she was Lady Natania.

“Oh… you came out to greet me?”

For a moment, he felt oddly excited.

Maybe he could finish the job sooner than planned.

‘So she really survived the poison I made seven years ago?’

The irony of it all amused him—coming all this way just to correct his own past mistake.

Natania seemed to understand what was happening just from the sounds alone.

As expected of someone the prince had warned them to be cautious of.

But her frozen body soon moved. She dropped her cane and ran in the opposite direction—without even looking back.

Her reddish-brown hair fluttered as she ran, quickly growing smaller in the distance.

‘…Annoying.’

He had let his guard down for a moment, thinking her blindness would slow her down.

Fortunately, she soon tripped and fell—unable to see an obstacle blocking her path.

Catching up easily, Devon cut off her retreat.

He approached the trembling girl sitting on the cold ground and asked,

“You’re the blind lady, aren’t you?”

The blue reflection of his sword shimmered in her clouded eyes.

For a second, her quick escape had made him think she could actually see.

But she didn’t flinch at the blade aimed at her face. She just sat there quietly.

No one could fake that kind of reaction.

“Yeah… it’s really you.”

Her bright green eyes—one of them clouded over in a grayish film—reminded him of a misty swamp.

A tear rolled down her cheek, and the sight oddly caught Devon’s attention.

So this was Lady Natania, the woman the prince had warned about as a possible hidden power behind Mermandi?

She was just a fragile young woman.

Devon’s dark eyes narrowed as he studied her from head to toe.

Her bare feet—shoes lost while running—looked small and cold.

Her thin body trembled visibly.

But that would be over soon.

He’d let her fall into an eternal sleep—gently, almost mercifully.

Her slender neck peeked out from her silk nightgown.

Her chest rose and fell rapidly like a frightened bird’s.

The way she swallowed nervously pleased him somehow.

He glanced around the small room.

For a noble house famous for its luxury, it was a surprisingly simple space—ordinary furniture, plain decorations.

The first things he noticed were hand-written journals, transcriptions, and sheet music.

Traces of someone struggling to overcome her disability.

It reminded him of someone from his past.

“……”

His hesitation didn’t last long.

Devon decided not to kill her—at least, not yet.

He wasn’t sure whether it was a whim… or quiet defiance against the prince.

The silence stretched, until Natania suddenly pleaded, her voice desperate,

“If you don’t need money… I can serve you instead!”

Oh?

Devon raised an eyebrow and licked his lips.

Her small, delicate face looked unexpectedly cute.

He suddenly understood why the proud duke had hidden his daughter away.

So instead of finishing his job, he teased her cruelly.

“Serve me? You mean at night?”

“…What? No, that’s not what I—”

“I’m not into blind girls.”

Her expression twisted painfully, and for some reason, that amused him.

Before she could protest further, Devon struck her pressure point precisely.

Her body went limp, collapsing like a doll.

He slung her over his shoulder, put the pen cap in his mouth, and scribbled a note.

Then, after finishing everything he had to do, he walked away—calm and unhurried.