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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 31
Chapter Title: Crisis
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Crisis
"What? The Crown Prince is dead? And it happened today?"
"I just heard myself."
"Ah, so that's why everyone looked so grim, huddled together and whispering."
Collin nodded as if he finally understood why the people in the capital seemed so strange.
The Ains Empire, where we were, was the center of the continent, the pinnacle of nations. To say the Crown Prince of the empire was to become the master of the continent was only a slight exaggeration. With such a person dead, people were naturally worried about the aftermath.
"Talk about bad timing. What rotten luck. When will we be able to go home?"
"I'm not sure either."
Collin scowled in disbelief and sat down in a chair.
"Who killed the Crown Prince?"
"Nothing has been revealed yet."
"The Crown Prince is in the Imperial Palace. Is it even possible to kill him there?"
Collin asked, finding it strange.
"I couldn't have imagined it either, but it actually happened."
"Raon, do you know how the Crown Prince died?"
"This is just a rumor, so I can't be sure, but the Crown Prince trains with his sword every dawn."
"Trains?"
Collin looked puzzled, wondering why training was being brought up when he had asked how the prince died.
"Yes. And right now, his fiancée is here. You know, the lady from our country who's practically a princess?"
"Ah, she's here?"
"Yes. The Crown Prince called for her at dawn to show her his training and was demonstrating his swordsmanship in the training grounds."
Raon paused and swallowed hard.
"But after he finished and was approaching his fiancée, a sharp stone pillar shot up from under his feet and impaled him. The priests and mages who were right next to him tried to save him, but his heart was shattered, and he died instantly."
"That's magic. But aren't there wards in the Imperial Palace that prevent magic from being used freely?"
"That's why the masters of the Magic Tower have been summoned to the palace. It's absolute chaos."
"For the Crown Prince to die in his own home, in front of his fiancée no less... what in the world is going on?"
Collin shook his head pitifully.
"Hoo..."
After hearing Raon's entire story, I was lost in deep thought.
I knew who killed the Crown Prince, why they did it, and where the assassin was.
But the current situation was different from the one in the novel I knew. In the novel, the Crown Prince doesn't die at dawn. He still dies in front of his fiancée, but it happens in broad daylight while he's being cheered on by a huge crowd.
However, the method of assassination was the same, which meant the culprit was also the same. I could be certain of the killer.
The group the culprit belonged to would begin their operations in the shadows, starting with the Crown Prince's assassination and causing various incidents across the continent. But for some reason, the timeline had been moved up significantly.
If the story progresses like this, everyone will die. I need to buy time for myself and the protagonist to grow stronger.
Normally, I would have let things be, not knowing if I might die myself, but perhaps because I had acquired the Heavenly Martial Body and the level of my Creator's Eye had risen, I felt confident that I wouldn't die even if I confronted them.
"Collin, Raon."
"Yes."
"...Yes. G-Greatest Brother."
"Um, Second Brother, why on earth are you doing that?"
Raon looked at Collin with pity, as if to ask what he was thinking.
"Don't ask..."
Collin let out a deep sigh and lowered his head.
"You two, file the departure applications for the four of us. With the Lox name and our alibis, it shouldn't take too long."
"Understood."
"What will you be doing, Brother?"
"I have something I need to do."
"Isn't this your first time here?"
I smirked at his words.
"Even if it's my first time, I have a place to go. Raon."
"Yes."
"Name some decent inns in the capital."
"Dragon's Tear, Giant's God..."
"Dragon's Tear sounds good. You two wait there. And don't bother Giranox."
"Huh?"
"Where are you going?"
I left without answering them.
"He said it was this dawn, so the killer must have already slipped out and is at a tavern by now."
It was useless to summon the masters of the Magic Tower and block all traffic. The assassin would have already left the Imperial Palace and would be in a tavern.
I entered an empty back alley.
'Agnes.'
[Ugh! What?]
I called out to Agnes, who was in the form of a bracelet. She sounded sleepy, as if I had just woken her up.
'Change my face.'
[What? How did you know about that?!]
Agnes had a special function that could change her owner's face or body. That's why she was called the artifact of myriad transformations, not just a weapon.
'I just had a feeling you could do it.'
[Seriously, what are you?!]
This was a special ability Agnes revealed to the protagonist after falling for him, so it was only natural she'd be surprised that I knew about it.
*Vwooom.*
I split Agnes into two, placed one part on my face, and infused it with my internal energy. Agnes turned liquid-like and thinly coated my entire head.
"Let's see."
I turned the other part of Agnes into a mirror to check my reflection.
"As expected of Agnes. You're amazing."
[H-Hmph. You're just realizing that now?]
In the mirror, Yuren's face was gone, replaced by that of a common-looking young man with brown hair. After finishing the transformation, I went back outside.
"Excuse me."
"Me?"
I stopped a boy in a servant's uniform who was passing by.
"Do you happen to know a tavern called Flamberge?"
"Flamber... Ah! Isn't that the place where a lot of rich people go?"
"That's the one."
"I know it."
"Can you guide me there?"
"Ah, I'm a bit bus—"
Before he could finish, I took a gold coin from my pocket and tossed it to him. The boy caught the coin and immediately started walking.
"What are you waiting for? This way."
Wow, look at that attitude change. This kid's going places.
"Here it is."
After following the boy for about fifteen minutes, an opulent building appeared. It seemed magic had been used on the building, as every wall emanated a luxurious glow.
"Alright. Thank you for your trouble."
"But this place is for nobles and the wealthy. I don't think you can get in looking like that."
"Is that so?"
I waited by the side of the building and spotted a nobleman leaving Flamberge. A servant from the tavern was escorting him out, so he was definitely a noble.
'Agnes.'
[Got it.]
I used Agnes to make my face identical to the nobleman's. Since my clothes were different, I deliberately waited a moment before entering the tavern.
"Oh? Viscount Veru. You're back again?"
"I wanted to drink a little more."
"Haha, of course. With such a major incident, one needs a drink to feel better."
I gave him a vague reply and sat down at a table in the middle of the room.
As expected, no private rooms. Thank goodness for all the plot holes.
"Should I bring you what you were drinking before?"
"Yes."
After sending the servant away, I focused all my internal energy on my hearing.
"The Magic Tower confirmed it too. They said it wasn't magic."
"Really?"
"Yeah. There was no movement of mana. They said it's a phenomenon they've never seen before."
"Then what in the world happened?"
Most of the people here seemed to be wealthy merchants. Given the situation, the nobles were probably keeping a low profile and hadn't come.
"Sob, sob."
"Please stop crying and have some of this."
"He looked at her with eyes he'd never once shown me..."
"He's a terrible person."
"Right? To dump someone like me, he must have lost his mind."
I heard the voice of a young woman talking with a hostess at the far right.
"So you were dumped today?"
"Yes. I knew just by looking at his eyes. The man I love is in love with that woman."
"So you just left without confessing?"
"No, I killed him. Sob, sob."
The woman continued to speak between sobs.
"Haha, you're making that joke again."
"What do I do now?"
"The best way to forget a love is with another love."
"Really?"
"Yes. I'm sure you'll be able to meet someone wonderful."
"Really? Talking with you always makes me feel better."
Found her.
The one I was looking for was that sobbing woman right there. No, not a woman. That thing wasn't human.
[Envy, it seems you had fun with the Crown Prince.]
I immediately lowered my head and sent a telepathic message to the sobbing woman.
*KABOOM!*
*SPLAT!*
The moment I sent the message, a sound like a bomb exploding rang out from the table where the woman, Envy, had been. At the same time, a rain of blood fell inside the tavern.
Not only the hostess next to Envy but also the merchants nearby had their bodies blown apart by stone pillars.
*Gulp.*
For her to go berserk just like that... am I going to make it back alive?
"Who is it?"
Envy's whisper was low, but it echoed in my ears like thunder.
"Hiiik!"
*CRASH!*
A stone pillar shot out from under a merchant who was trying to flee through the door, destroying not only the merchant but the door and the building as well.
"I asked who it is!"
The moment Envy's hand touched a trembling merchant next to her, his head flew off.
Dammit!
Cursing, I used the poisons I had prepared on Envy.
[Applying Weak Paralysis Poison.]
[Applying Intestine-Linking Poison.]
[Applying Blood-Spurting Toxin.]
[Applying Frog Flame Poison.]
"What?"
Realizing something had been administered to her, Envy raised both hands.
*KABOOOM!*
"So it's you."
"Kuh!"
Perhaps because our eyes met as I used the poison, Envy recognized me and sent a stone spear flying my way.
*CRASH! CRACK! CRACK!*
Envy slammed her hand on the floor, and the ground cracked as if an earthquake had struck, dozens of stone spears shooting up. I used the Lesser Dragon's Pace to dodge the spears and swung the sword made from Agnes.
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
Is it because of her resistance? The poison is taking too long to activate!
[Activating Creator's Eye.]
[Name: Envy]
[Trait: Seven Deadly Sins - Envy (Invidia)]
[Favorability: -99 (Urge to kill)]
[Current Mood: Wants to skewer him to death.]
Current Mood was a new ability that appeared as the Creator's Eye leveled up. From what I could tell, it showed her current thoughts about me.
In other words, Envy wanted to impale me on a stone spear and kill me.
"Dammit!"
I think I underestimated her. I thought I would win as long as I held out until the guards arrived, but she was launching stone spears without any delay. At this rate, I might actually die.
If it weren't for the Lesser Dragon's Pace and the flow perception from the Creator's Eye, I would have been skewered long ago.
"I don't know how you found out about me, but you will not leave this place alive."
*BOOM!*
Envy stomped her foot hard, and the spears shooting up from the ground became faster, as did her own movements. Thanks to the Creator's Eye, I could read her movements, but the difference in speed made it hard to endure.
"This is the end!"
Envy's enlarged fist flew toward my face. Just when I thought there was no way to dodge it, her movements suddenly stopped.
"Keuk! You bastard, what did you do to me!"
[Weak Paralysis Poison – 0:01]
The Weak Paralysis Poison had finally taken effect. And only for a single second. I had saved my life thanks to a lucky proc of the poison.
*SWOOOSH!*
I poured all my internal energy into my sword and brought it down on Envy.
*SQUELCH!*
"Kuaaack!"
A fountain of blood erupted from Envy's chest. The attack had landed squarely.
"H-How! A human's pathetic aura shouldn't be able to cut my body!"
Envy stepped back and glared at me, grinding her teeth. Her eyes were no longer human.
"I'll kill you. I'll kill you! Keok!"
The rest of the poisons finally took effect. But because of the resistance from the level difference between us, none of them lasted long.
"What the hell is this! What did you do to me!"
"Who knows."
I was sweating cold on the inside, but I deliberately acted nonchalant.
"Kuuuh! Keok!"
Even though it was for a short time, the poisons themselves were working, and Envy's expression hardened severely.
"Kuaaaaah!"
Envy didn't fall to the poison and launched more stone spears. However, her movements were now noticeably slower.
"It hurts so much... sob... sob..."
Envy suddenly collapsed to her knees and began to sob. At the same time, her body began to grow larger. The female form of Envy instantly transformed into a monster over two meters tall.
Shit, Phase 2 is activating here?
"Khahahaha!"
The poison was still in effect, but Envy charged at me with a crazed laugh.
*WHOOSH!*
*CRASH! CRACK! CRACK!*
The speed of the stone spears and Envy herself had doubled. Realizing I would really die if I stayed here, I broke out onto the wide main street.
*VWOOM!*
Just as I was about to run to escape elsewhere, Envy's fist and a spear appeared before my eyes simultaneously.
Dammit, this is it.
The moment I felt death's approach, a clear notification rang in my ears.
[A true crisis of death. The State of Ascension has been activated.]