Emperor of Steel

Perhaps the name Henry was one of the most common names in the Rhodesia continent.

Common names, common looks and the words that differed.

Henry had a mediocre appearance which could be forgotten as quickly as possible and was surprisingly great for an assassin.

That too, not an ordinary assassin.

He was the head of the assassin master of the assassination organization Hydra, created by the Baroque Imperial.

It was him who was the dangerous member of the Hydra and was admired by the members.

And as such, Henry had received a royal order awhile ago.

“Get rid of Luke de Rakan. Leave no trace of what he did, but make it look like a nobility.”

Henry, who reached the land of Rakan, hovered around the target from far distances.

Sometimes disguised as a servant working in the manor, and sometimes as a merchant who had gone to trade with the Marquis of Rakan.

There was a reason why he couldn’t go straight to the assassin part.

‘Information gives us a chance to adapt and know through different eyes.’

Henry had always taken his sweet time to observe the target before assassinating.

Even if running out of time, it always made sure to verify the target for a week.

He had to see and confirm with his own eyes, whether the information collected by the organization was indeed correct.

Some of the assassins believed in at sight and their abilities, such men failed their assassination mission or suffered much greater defeats.

Unlike those lowly men, Henry was able to carry on his success streak of never failing to perform his assassination tasks, all thanks to that care.

‘Most of the information is the same, but what is it with the behavior and tone?’

Henry had been spying on Luke for some time and caught something odd.

The marquis of Rakan had gained fame for being a Rune Knight.

His name began to come with the battle against Count Monarch, and had won the war with the Volga Republic during his military service, and was declared as a hero.

It wasn’t just that.

He had shown his ability as a Lord by placing the small manor to a huge title of marquis.

However, such a dangerous man, often used frivolous speech, not in the line of skill or fame.

For that reason, they were always looked upon by the retainers.

‘An exaggerated rumor, maybe? Or is he hiding his true face?’

That wasn’t marquis Rakan, and the retainers’ achievements were unknown.

However, he had to be careful of them.

It was a proverb that the hawks hide their claws till the end.

A man who was so great that he hides his true nature doesn’t show his skills in front of the other.

‘He will be much greater than what is known. So being careful isn’t bad.’

The tiger which hides in the bushes to catch the rabbit was the best one.

How could an assassin right away kill a Rune Knight whom the Emperor seemed awfully wary about?

‘Don’t be over-cautious! As always, I am paying attention!’

Henry was determined.

The time when the moon wasn’t completely down, the dark filled dawn.

Henry crossed the manor’s fence with a stealthy cloak darker than the darkness.

There was magic detection everywhere, and the guard dogs, but none of them had noticed the intrusion of Henry as he was an Assassin Master.

It was as fast as the wind moved, and like a rock when stopped. Far from the sound of the foot, there was no sound of breath and no odor was coming out of the body.

But the stealth was surprising.

As he passed through the garden, Henry on a tree, saw the inside of the manor and he was completely aware of the wall’s furniture. He hadn’t seen a single knight passing by.

All of that was due to the artifact he had gotten from the ancient Mado Era, which was given to him by the Emperor.

The artifact, called Chameleon Brooch, gave a different level of power than any normal invisibility magic.

In addition, there was an ability which disabled the detection magic, and that doubled the ability of Henry’s to infiltrate the manor.

‘Lord’s bedroom is in the middle of the third floor of the manor. There are two escorts standing at the entrance…’

Near the bedroom, Henry pulled a small box out of his arm.

When he opened the lid of the box, a small green moth fluttered towards the escorts standing at the entrance of the bedroom.

“Hwaaah. I feel sleepy all of a sudden.”

“Yeah. I shouldn’t be falling asleep…”

The Moths were dusted in sleep powder.

Henry laughed at the men who fell asleep and entered the bedroom through the door.

‘As known to the world, Marquis Rakan, a Rune knight with 6 circle magic and is the best swordsman. Did he surpass a Sword Master with combat power?’

Considering that the man was hiding his skills, the Marquis was greater.

And Henry was alert, yet not afraid. Because he was an Assassin Master who can stop the Sword Master.

Srrrk!

Henry, as if slipping on an icy road, approached the bed and pulled out the long slender needle from his hand.

When the needle, which was made from grinding a purely high-quality diamond, stabbed in the chest, the target would die of a heart attack.

In other words, it could be disguised as a natural cause of death with no traces left behind.

Henry carefully raised the needle and lifted his head after checking the posture of the sleeping figure.

But right then to his dismay, a voice came from behind his back.