The mountain ruins did not stay quiet for long.
Jeather felt it before he saw it.
Not presence.
Not mana.
Intent.
Sharp. Coordinated. Human.
Astrael stood slightly ahead of him, emerald aura dimmed but alert.
Velkaria's hand was already on her blade.
Saxum, unusually silent, shifted between stone and metal form in uneasy cycles.
Jeather exhaled slowly.
"…That's organized."
The Diamond-tier ruin beast had already retreated back into the fractured mountain core, as if something about what was coming next did not concern it.
That alone was more alarming than the beast itself.
Then the wind changed.
Not naturally.
Forcefully.
A ripple passed across the mountain ridge like a curtain being pulled aside.
And they arrived.
Fifty signatures.
No hesitation.
No noise.
Just descent.
Black shapes dropped from the sky like falling ink.
Each landing was silent.
Each step synchronized.
Execution-level assassins.
Not hunters.
Not soldiers.
Erasure specialists.
Their armor was layered in matte voidsteel, designed to suppress mana detection. Their masks carried no expression, only engraved markings of the Viremont Crest, fractured and inverted — a sign of direct royal execution authority.
Jeather blinked once.
"…Fifty?"
Astrael narrowed his eyes.
"They came prepared to erase a lineage."
Velkaria whispered, "My Lord… that is overkill."
Jeather tilted his head slightly.
"I feel mildly insulted."
Saxum raised a tiny rock hand.
"Jett many enemy."
"Yes," Jeather nodded. "Jett many enemy."
A pause.
Then he sighed.
"…Okay. That's a scheduling issue."
A slow clap echoed from behind a broken stone pillar.
Not applause of admiration.
Applause of recognition.
The old shopkeeper from Ardent District stepped into view.
Same hunched posture.
Same tired eyes.
But now, something different.
Respect.
And fear.
"You finally drew attention from the crown's blades," the old man said calmly.
Jeather frowned.
"…You followed me."
"I warned you once," the old man replied.
"Silver beasts don't appear alone."
One of the assassins shifted slightly.
All fifty locked onto Jeather.
The old man continued.
"And now you've attracted what hunts those who hunt Silver."
Jeather sighed.
"Can we not do dramatic monologues right before I get attacked?"
The old man ignored him.
"You really don't remember, do you?"
Jeather froze slightly.
"…Remember what?"
The old man looked at him for a long moment.
Then exhaled.
"You were not born in Ardent District."
Silence.
Astrael turned slightly.
Velkaria narrowed her eyes.
Even Saxum stopped moving.
The assassins did not react.
They were waiting.
The old man continued.
"You were born in the Viremont collateral bloodline sector. Not noble enough to inherit, but dangerous enough to be erased."
Jeather's chest tightened slightly.
"…Collateral sector?"
"Yes."
The old man's voice lowered.
"You were part of a branch family that carried unstable authority traits. Your lineage could resonate with beast contracts on a level the main family couldn't control."
Jeather blinked.
"…So they cut it off."
"They burned it."
Silence.
A faint flicker passed through Jeather's vision.
Fire.
Hanging banners.
A child screaming.
Then—
Jefferson's voice.
Cold.
Precise.
"Dispose of the remainder."
Jeather's breath slowed.
"…Oh."
The old man nodded slightly.
"You were meant to die in that purge."
Jeather looked at his hand.
The nine-leaf clover mark pulsed faintly.
"…So I didn't."
"No," the old man said.
"You changed."
Astrael muttered quietly.
"He is still changing."
Velkaria whispered, "My Lord… what are you?"
Jeather didn't answer immediately.
Then—
He smiled faintly.
"…Someone who collects problems apparently."
The System Reacts Again
The air fractured.
Not physically.
Conceptually.
The system appeared.
But not as a clean interface.
It flickered like a broken memory trying to stabilize.
[EMERGENCY CONTRACT INITIATED]
OBJECTIVE: SURVIVE EXECUTION PURGE (0/50) REWARD: PERSONAL BEAST REALM UNLOCK FUNCTION: CREATE MANAGED DIMENSION FOR TAMED ENTITIES PERMISSION: OWNER-ONLY ACCESS NOTE: ENVIRONMENT WILL SELF-ADAPT TO HOST BEASTS
Jeather blinked.
"…A pocket daycare dimension?"
Silence.
Then he added casually:
"…Like that game where the old couple runs a monster daycare center?"
Astrael slowly turned his head.
Velkaria blinked once.
Saxum tilted his head.
The system did not respond.
Jeather nodded.
"Yeah. I like that reward."
One step.
That was all it took.
The assassins disappeared.
Not teleportation.
Erasure movement.
They attacked from all angles at once.
Astrael reacted first.
Emerald roots erupted like spears across the battlefield, intercepting five assassins mid-air. But the blades cut through them without resistance.
Velkaria moved second.
Silver arcs split the air, forcing three assassins to redirect—but their bodies folded unnaturally around the strikes.
Saxum slammed into the ground in full earth form, creating a barrier wall—
—and still two assassins passed through it like ghosts.
Jeather sighed.
"…Okay, that's slightly annoying."
He stepped forward.
And raised his hand.
"Verdant Authority: Field Expansion."
Astrael flared instantly.
The mountain itself responded.
Roots, vines, and corrupted forest energy erupted outward in a controlled domain.
The assassins paused for the first time.
Jeather tilted his head.
"So you can react."
Then he smiled.
"Good."
The old man stepped back slowly as the battlefield expanded.
"I survived them once," he said quietly.
Jeather glanced at him.
"…You fought fifty assassins?"
The old man shook his head.
"No."
Pause.
"I hid."
Jeather blinked.
"…Respectable strategy."
The old man continued.
"I was a record keeper in Viremont's lower archives. I saw your purge order before it was executed."
Jeather froze slightly.
"You saw it?"
"Yes."
"Then why didn't you die?"
The old man smiled faintly.
"Because I removed your name from the active execution ledger."
Silence.
Jeather stared at him.
"…You erased me from the system."
"Yes."
Jeather exhaled slowly.
"…That explains why they're late."
The old man nodded.
"But they found you anyway."
Jeather looked at the assassins again.
"They always do."
Astrael roared fully.
Velkaria entered full combat state.
Saxum evolved mid-fight into molten stone form.
Jeather exhaled.
"Alright."
He cracked his knuckles.
"Fifty targets. One reward. No waste."
The mountain did not feel like terrain anymore.
It felt like a sealed arena.
Jeather knew the moment the assassins stopped dropping from the sky.
Fifty signatures.
Now fully deployed.
No more arrival phase.
Only execution phase.
The wind died.
Even Astrael's emerald aura flickered slightly, as if the air itself had been compressed into obedience.
Velkaria stepped half a pace forward.
Saxum shifted nervously between stone and metal form, his body clicking like unstable armor.
Jeather exhaled slowly.
"…So this is the part where they stop testing me and start trying to erase me."
The old man behind him spoke quietly.
"They will not fight you as individuals."
Jeather didn't turn.
"I noticed."
The old man continued.
"They will treat you as a target condition, not a person."
Jeather tilted his head slightly.
"…That sounds annoying."
Astrael muttered.
"It is worse than annoying. It is surgical."
Velkaria nodded.
"My Lord, they will prioritize capture of your identity structure."
Jeather blinked.
"…My what?"
Before anyone could answer—
The assassins moved.
PHASE ONE: DISASSEMBLY GRID
They did not rush.
They formed geometry.
Fifty assassins spread across the battlefield in perfect radial spacing.
Not encircling randomly—
but constructing a kill lattice.
Jeather frowned.
"…That's new."
One assassin stepped forward.
Its voice was distorted through its mask.
"Viremont Execution Clause 7: Identity
Collapse Protocol activated."
Another added.
"Target will be reduced into non-recognizable mana residue."
Jeather raised a hand.
"Can I just say—your naming conventions are unnecessarily dramatic."
Silence.
Then—
The first strike began.
HOSTAGE ATTEMPT: "NAME TAKING"
PROTOCOL
Three assassins vanished.
Not toward Jeather.
Toward Astrael.
Astrael reacted instantly—emerald roots erupted.
—but one assassin slipped through the gap.
Its blade did not aim to kill.
It aimed to mark.
A glowing sigil formed mid-air.
Jeather's eyes narrowed.
"…That's not an attack."
Velkaria's voice sharpened.
"They are attempting to overwrite beast ownership authority."
Jeather froze slightly.
"…Excuse me?"
The sigil expanded.
Astrael roared.
The forest energy erupted violently—but the assassins adapted instantly, severing root connections in real-time.
One assassin landed behind Astrael—
and stabbed downward.
Not into flesh.
Into connection space.
Astrael staggered.
For the first time.
Jeather's expression darkened slightly.
"Oh."
Saxum panicked.
"Jett angry face!"
Jeather stepped forward.
"…You don't touch my assets."
JEATHER ENTERS THE FIELD
He moved.
No hesitation.
No buildup.
Just impact.
The assassin closest to Velkaria didn't even finish turning before Jeather's fist connected with its mask.
CRACK.
Not killing blow.
Structural break.
The assassin's knee followed immediately—Jeather kicked it sideways, snapping joint alignment.
The assassin dropped.
Jeather grabbed its collar mid-fall.
"…Question."
Silence.
He tilted his head.
"Do you people practice breathing while losing legs?"
He slammed it into the ground.
BOOM.
Velkaria blinked once.
"…My Lord is efficient today."
Jeather didn't look back.
"Annoyed today."
ASSASSIN RESPONSE: ADAPTIVE ERASURE
The assassins recalibrated instantly.
Two appeared behind Jeather.
One aimed for throat.
One for spine.
Astrael intercepted one.
Velkaria intercepted the other.
Saxum transformed mid-air into a stone hammer form and smashed a third assassin out of trajectory.
Jeather did not turn.
He simply stepped sideways.
The blade missed.
He grabbed the assassin's wrist mid-air.
Twist.
SNAP.
The assassin dropped its weapon.
Jeather sighed.
"…You all share the same handbook or something?"
He sealed it instantly.
CARD LIGHT BURST.
[ASSASSIN SEALED – LOW INFORMATION UNIT]
He frowned.
"…Oh. You're collectible too."
The old man stepped forward slightly, watching the battlefield intensify.
"They're not trying to kill you first," he said quietly.
Jeather ducked under a blade.
"Noted."
"They are mapping your reaction hierarchy."
Jeather kicked another assassin into a rock face.
"Still noted."
"They want to determine what you value more than survival."
Jeather paused slightly mid-motion.
"…That's creepy."
Astrael shouted.
"Behind you!"
Jeather turned—
caught the blade—
and bent it with his hand.
Then looked at the assassin calmly.
"…Bad design."
He snapped its wrist.
Now the battlefield shifted.
Assassins no longer attacked randomly.
Jeather clicked his tongue.
"…They're reorganizing like spreadsheets."
Velkaria answered while deflecting three strikes.
"This is a noble execution doctrine."
Saxum yelled while punching the ground.
"Jett! They too many!"
Jeather sighed.
"Yeah, I counted."
He lifted a hand.
"Verdant Domain."
Astrael exploded outward.
Forest domination spread violently—but controlled.
Roots no longer grew randomly.
They tracked movement patterns.
The battlefield became segmented.
Assassins were forced into micro-zones.
Jeather walked calmly through it.
Breaking ankles.
Sealing targets.
Occasionally commenting:
"Stop dodging into your teammates. That's inefficient."
SYSTEM INTERRUPTION
[SYSTEM NOTICE: USER IS BREAKING EXECUTION FORMAT]
Jeather paused mid-seal.
"…No I'm not."
[SYSTEM NOTICE: TARGETS ARE NOT BEING PROCESSED AS INTENDED]
Jeather sealed another assassin.
"…They're being processed fine."
Astrael muttered.
"Your system is distressed."
Jeather nodded.
"Good."
One assassin attempted final protocol.
It grabbed Saxum.
"Beast capture initiated."
Saxum panicked.
"Jett!!"
Jeather stopped.
For the first time.
Silence.
Then—
He smiled.
Not angry.
Not calm.
Empty.
"…Wrong move."
Astrael froze.
Velkaria stepped back instinctively.
Jeather vanished.
No movement trace.
No mana flare.
Just disappearance.
Then—
CRACK.
The assassin's arm bent backward at an unnatural angle.
Jeather appeared behind it.
Holding Saxum.
"…Don't touch him."
He snapped the assassin's elbow.
Then its shoulder.
Then sealed it mid-collapse.
Saxum hugged him instantly.
"Jett safe!"
Jeather exhaled.
"…Yeah."
Pause.
"…Mostly safe."
The old man whispered:
"They chose the wrong emotional anchor."
Jeather looked over slightly.
"…What?"
The old man answered:
"You are not reacting like a noble heir."
Jeather tilted his head.
"Good."
"You are reacting like a collector."
Jeather smiled faintly.
"Better."