["Aren't you afraid of death?" Felt's head throbbed, her face a mask of utter disbelief.]
["If I can take a high-tier thief with a Divine Protection to the grave with me, I'll sleep just fine. Let's welcome the coming silence together." In the face of absolute annihilation, Hachiman's voice grew eerily steady. He didn't let a single tremor of his internal panic reach his lips, successfully deceiving the girl holding the blade.]
["You bastard...!"]
[Felt gritted her teeth so hard they audibly creaked. Beside her, Old Man Rom had begun to lower his guard. He recognized a foe he couldn't beat, but he was also moved by Hachiman's apparent resolve, choosing to believe they truly only wanted the insignia.]
["Don't worry about this old man's life," Rom wheezed, his breathing heavy. "The choice is yours, Felt. You're the one with the Wind Blessing; you're the one in control. Don't let appearances mislead you."]
[Hachiman's heart was screaming. He was good at acting tough, but the old giant was the real deal.]
[He forced a thin, breezy smile to hide his lack of spine. "Yeah, think it over carefully. Rom's life is dangling by a thread held by your fingers. Don't do something you'll regret."]
["Let Hachiman go and return the insignia," Emilia interjected, her voice soft but firm. "I'll let the theft go unpunished."]
[The offer hit Felt's resolve like a physical blow. "Shut up... dammit! Why should I trust a word you say?!"]
[Hachiman didn't miss a beat, his sarcasm cutting through the air. "If we wanted you dead, do you really think your giant friend would still be breathing?"]
["Guh..."]
["Fine! I get it! I'll throw the insignia to you, but stay away from Rom, or I'll open this guy's throat!"]
[As the words left Felt's mouth, a collective sigh of relief echoed through the cellar. For a fleeting second, the tension broke, and the mutual hostility softened into something approaching a truce.]
[Clink.]
["Oh, I'm afraid that won't do."]
[The insignia was mid-air. Emilia's focus shifted entirely toward the falling object. Puck, sensing the end of the conflict, relaxed his guard just enough to watch the two thieves. Everyone believed the nightmare was over.]
[Then came the whisper of a Reaper. A thin line appeared across Emilia's noble white robes. In a sickening burst of red, her life spilled out onto the cold stone floor as her abdomen was sliced open with surgical precision.]
[Thud.]
[Emilia was dead.]
"BOOM!!!!"
In the real world, the temperature on the streets of the Capital plummeted. Puck, usually a cheerful, cat-like companion, clenched his paws into iron fists, his face contorted with a rage that bordered on the demonic.
"She... dares...!!!"
"This..."
Emilia stood frozen in the town square, her mind reeling. The horror of seeing her own death—so sudden, so visceral—left her breathless. She had never imagined her end would be so quiet and unremarkable.
"Puck, calm down! This hasn't happened yet!"
As the crowds around them began to shiver from the magical frost, Emilia pulled the spirit into her palms, comforting him despite her own trembling.
"I'm trying..." Puck growled, his eyes burning with a murderous intent as he memorized every detail of the assassin on the screen.
The shockwave rippled through the higher echelons of Lugnica.
"Dead? Just like that?"
Crusch Karsten, a woman of iron discipline and peerless political acumen, stood agape. Her hand shook, her teacup shattering against the floor. Tea soaked into her uniform, but she didn't even notice.
"Is this... is this even logical, Felix?"
"I... I don't know, meow..."
Master and servant stared at each other in stunned silence. This was beyond a farce. Margrave Roswaal, a man of immense power and wealth, had backed this girl for the throne—and yet he hadn't provided a single guard? She was assassinated by a common street-level hit before the race even began?
Crusch admitted the attacker was fast, but to be one-shotted like a commoner? Where were her protective amulets? Where was the legendary power of the Great Spirit Puck?
"I truly..." Crusch trailed off, a bitter, hollow laugh escaping her. "Given Roswaal's backing, I assumed she would be a formidable rival, or at least possess the capital to survive the opening move."
The realization hit her like a cold wind. While the other candidates were tigers and lions entering the fray, Emilia was a lamb that had wandered into a wolf den without a single shepherd.
"Cancel all contingency plans regarding Emilia," Crusch said, waving a hand in disappointment. "There's no point in strategizing against a ghost."
["Emilia—!"]
["Hush now. Don't be in such a hurry. You're next."]
[The attacker stepped into the light, her black dress clinging to a lithe, seductive frame. Her kukri blade dripped with fresh blood. Felt recognized her instantly. "It's you! You're the one who hired me! You saved Rom, so I won't charge you for the—"]
[Her voice cut off.]
[Old Man Rom slumped to the floor, his life extinguished in a single, silent stroke. He stopped breathing before he even hit the ground.]
["Why?!" Felt screamed, her grief mirroring the white-hot fury in Hachiman's eyes.]
["I never intended to leave any witnesses," Elsa purred, licking the blood from her lip. "The moment you took the job, your fate was sealed. Though, I must say, the timing was perfect. Killing that half-elf girl would have been a chore if you hadn't distracted her. I suppose I'll be getting a bonus from my employer for such an efficient cleanup."]
[Steel clashed against steel as the cellar became a blur of lethal motion. Two women moved like streaks of light, too fast for the human eye to follow.]
["Can we win?" Hachiman's voice cracked.]
[The answer came in a spray of crimson as a second body lost its vitality.]
["Oh, I am sorry," Elsa cooed, turning her gaze toward the last man standing. "That poor half-elf might have stood a chance, but these two? Disappointing. Now... it's your turn."]