The Sword and The Shadow

When Xeno saw One gradually manifest once more, his irises constricted as he had a flashback.

Back then, he and his sister, Latie, were orphans that nobody wanted. Upon being picked up by the espionage apparatus of Stok, they underwent hellish training sessions. As assassins to be used and disposed of, they didn't need to learn noble etiquette, speaking techniques, basic magic knowledge and survival skills like the normal agents. They didn't even need to know how to read and just had to know some commonly used ones.

They were expendables, after all. Their only purpose was to die and only needed to be able to get around before their deaths. So, most of the things he learned were assassination techniques, everything from traps, poisoning, and even engraving a self-destructing magic formation on himself!

As for assassination techniques, one instructor gave them a particularly good drill. She was none other than One.

"Not only does this skill require you to have an impressive sense of balance, you also have to be able to control your impetus. That's why I don't expect you to actually learn it. I only want to drill in a point: a good assassin can launch attacks from any angle from head to toe." That was what she said in an androgynous voice after demonstrating the beautiful maneuver.

When One fought Harrison, Xeno felt a little odd seeing that move, but he didn't bring it up immediately. Just now, her execution of the move was rather crude and completely different from the top assassin he remembered. Additionally, Leguna had some kind of understanding with that assassin. So, Xeno didn't expose it even though he felt there was something wrong about the assassin.

And now, One showed the true form of her skill. When her figure elegantly reappeared in the moonlight, even Leguna was awed by the beauty of the skill, and that was when it was being carried out by her cross-dressing as a middle-aged man. He had no doubt he would have a nosebleed if he saw her with her original figure performing it, nay, he felt the blood trickling out already… all when Alissanda was about to lose his life.

Just as Leguna wiped his nose, he snapped out of it and leapt, pushing Alissanda away before she managed to land.

She didn't seem the least bit surprised about his reaction, but she could only continue to fall on her original trajectory, as she wasn't able to gain any leverage in mid-air. She threw out two knives towards the prince's eyes.

However, Leguna threw some black daggers out to knock the knives away before reaching his hand out to grab her. While she had tried to harm Alissanda, he still didn't think she was his enemy and was willing to approach her. Though, hugging someone who looked like a middle-aged man made him shudder, even if the man was a beautiful and sexy woman in disguise.

More importantly, One seemed to feel a little spoiled when she was held up in a princess carry. She lost quite a bit of energy in an instant and softened, letting him hug her as she pleased. She even tried to burrow her bearded head into his chest.

That caused him to clench his butt and fling her far away without caring if she'll get hurt.

One was quite the weird woman. Sometimes when she approached Leguna, she would act like a lovestruck maiden and think all sorts of ridiculous thoughts. But the moment she parted with him, she would turn back into the mysterious and elusive assassin.

In an instant, she charged once more and held her two daggers behind her, not letting Alissanda see where she was going to strike from.

The prince was quite perplexed by how weird they were acting, but it simply wasn't time for him to figure things out. Her attacks were effective and came without warning. He didn't doubt that he would be dead had Leguna not pushed him away.

That person was there to kill him.

Even though his expression was grim, he let his holy impetus flare before getting into the ideal stance to use Lunaminous.

However, Leguna blocked in front of him and glared at One with Lighteater in hand.

She gradually lost speed and stopped before giving him a complicated look.

"What do you want?" Leguna coldly asked. He trusted her for no good reason, yet she was trying to harm Alissanda. Had she just been using him the whole time to make this approach?

"You'd best move aside. I already saw it. This man has to die."

Alissanda didn't say anything and merely lowered his sword slightly.

"Was this your aim? To use me to approach Alissanda and kill him?"

"That's right." She didn't bother to argue. No matter how one tried to analyze it, Leguna's explanation seemed the most probable.

"You're someone on their side, after all." He didn't mention Stok, because he feared he would create a misunderstanding with Alissanda.

"No, I'm on yours. I was born from you, so everything I do is for your sake."

"Don't use me as an excuse! Alissanda's my friend! I don't see how letting you kill him can benefit me in any way!"

"You don't understand! I've seen it!" she hurriedly explained in a panic, "In the future… he… he will… uugeb--"

Before she could finish, she spat blood out violently.

"You…"

Leguna took a step forward, then back, and remembered. He recalled that she would often say things that were hard to understand, and they seemed to be taboo for some reason. Saying them will cause her great damage. She did the same thing in the millennium capital and spat blood nonstop. It seemed she was just about to say something else just now.

One coughed a couple times and wiped the blood off. She held her dagger and pointed it at Alissanda.

"Move away. I have to kill him for your good."

She wouldn't even bother talking if it wasn't Leguna. She could simply kill the one causing her trouble.

"Wait!" A thought suddenly occurred to him. "You said people who change fate will be punished by the laws of fate, right?"

One remained silent.

"Even though I don't know what is going on, you tried to say something about him and got the blowback. What would happen to you if you killed him?"

"……"

"I know it even if you don't say it. You'll die too, right?"

"……"

"Don't do this."

After seeing her moves, he knew he wasn't her match and wouldn't be able to stop her.

She came with the intent to die. An assassin with that level of dedication would not be restrained by tethers. There was little doubt that there was a good reason to kill their target.

That was why Stok trained death agents. While they weren't as strong or as skilled as normal agents, they had no fear and could be more effective at times.

Now, One was both Stok's strongest assassin and a death agent. If she really wanted to, there was little chance that Alissanda could avoid his fate.

All Leguna did was talk. Xeno didn't call any reinforcements. He could tell the assassin had some kind of relationship with Leguna, so he decided it would be better to not make this a big deal.

"Why do you value him so? He will ueugeg--"

She suffered another blowback without being able to finish.

"I do value him…"

He felt the tug on his heartstrings at the sight of her spitting blood. Looking at her, he suddenly recalled what they had talked about outside the millennium capital a few months earlier. She had also vomited blood and looked weak and helpless.

"But, I don't want you to die even more… Leybecca…" Leguna whispered without thinking.