The Assassin's Seven Principles of Manipulation

Chapter 350: Chapter 345 — Pierce

Zephyrion stared at Horus’ smiling face, then lowered his gaze towards the outstretched hand. Several seconds passed before he finally sighed.

The rod reverted to its normal shape, while the metal spikes surrounding him dissolved. Then Zephyrion calmly approached Horus until he stood directly before him.

”Before I accept, I have one question.”

”Hm? Go ahead.”

”You said if I refuse, you’ll report everything to your master.” Zephyrion held his gaze. ”Meaning you haven’t reported anything yet.”

”Yes, but what does that...” Horus trailed off, then suddenly smiled as realization dawned. ”Oh. That’s where your mind went.”

He chuckled.

”Come on, Prime. Give me some credit. You seriously think I’d walk up to you, reveal all this shit and just hope you wouldn’t kill me? We’re still inside the academy. The second my life is in danger, my rune tab gets me the fuck out of here before you can finish the job.”

He was right.

Every rune tab was secretly fitted with configurations that would instantly transport a cadet away if their life was in danger. Even worse, the academy would be notified at the same time and would descend on this place almost immediately.

Unfortunately for Horus, he had made one fatal mistake.

He might have been observing Zephyrion for the past few months and learned a great deal about him during that time, but the great Calderalth ancestor, Demorian Calderalth, had been asleep throughout that exact same period and had only just awakened.

Meaning there was simply no way Horus could know what Zephyrion was truly capable of.

’Can it work?’

’It’ll work, protege. Do it.’

Before Horus could react, Zephyrion tightened his grip around the rod and formed a connection with it.

In an instant, the world around him dissolved into countless spiraling, dancing runes. The rod suddenly flared with brilliant light, and a dome of formless metal expanded around them, sealing the surrounding space completely.

The rod was a metal of peak Dominion rank. Within its domain, every connection to the outside world was severed.

Including the rune tabs.

”Wait—Prime, don’t fucking—!” Horus bellowed as realization struck, but Zephyrion’s arm had already whipped forward like lightning, punching straight through Horus’ chest and heart before bursting out his back in a spray of blood.

Horus gripped the arm buried through his chest, staring at Zephyrion with wide, trembling eyes.

”Y-you... you’re fucking dead. M-my master will find out. He’ll find you, and everyone you care about... he’ll fucking kill them all.”

Zephyrion lowered his head until he was staring Horus directly in the eyes, then spoke in a cold, quiet tone.

”Then you won’t be alone for long. Your master will join you soon enough.”

Horus’ eyes widened, but Zephyrion twisted his arm inside his chest and violently yanked it free. Horus crashed to the ground, one hand weakly stretching towards him as blood rapidly pooled beneath his body.

”Y-you... don’t... understand...”

Zephyrion watched silently as the light slowly faded from Horus’ eyes. His outstretched arm finally went limp, dropping to the ground as the last trace of life left his body.

Only then did Zephyrion immediately move.

He first cut off the finger bearing the ring, then quickly searched Horus’ body for anything else that might be useful.

He found nothing.

’Quickly, protege.’ Demorian urged.

’I know.’

The dome of metal aura was currently blocking every signal from being sent outside, but that also meant both he and Horus had effectively vanished from the academy’s senses. Worse, once the dome disappeared, there was every chance the academy would immediately detect Horus’ death.

He had to act fast.

He sealed Horus’ body inside a dome of metal, then quickly destroyed the spilled blood and erased every remaining trace that either of them had been there.

He was just about to leave when he suddenly froze. His head snapped towards the distance, his eyes narrowing as his entire body tensed.

But there was nothing there except the drifting wind and the quiet forest.

Zephyrion maintained his cold stare for several long seconds, carefully scanning the area, before finally turning away and shooting into the distance.

Some distance away, the air above a tree branch suddenly rippled and cracked apart, revealing a figure staring after Zephyrion’s rapidly disappearing silhouette with narrowed eyes.

”He sensed me...”

Sera Eryndor tightened her grip around the bracelet on her wrist. The concealment relic was supposed to be powerful enough to hide her presence from even peak Heralds, yet Zephyrion had somehow turned directly towards her, almost as though he’d felt her gaze.

’No. The relic didn’t fail. I did.’

It had been that brief moment when she failed to conceal her shock. Somehow, Zephyrion had sensed it and almost discovered her.

Sera exhaled, shaking her head.

Regardless, she’d learned far more about the Lightning Prince than she ever expected tonight, and even more importantly, she’d witnessed him kill someone.

A murder.

No matter how one looked at it, this was a weapon, one her Queen certainly wouldn’t hesitate to use against him.

”Her Majesty needs to know.”

Sera immediately brought out a circular object and began sinking her consciousness into the WorldPulse.

Squelch!

A blade suddenly pierced through her back and burst from her chest in a spray of blood.

”W-what?”

Sera stared down at the bloodied blade protruding from her chest, her eyes trembling in disbelief.

’Him?’

But he was merely a Vessel rank. How could he possibly have sneaked up on her...?

She shakily turned her head, and the moment she saw the person standing behind her, her entire body froze.

”I-Ingrid...?”

Ingrid stared back at her, her expression dark and complicated, with a trace of guilt flickering in her eyes.

”...I’m sorry, Sera.” Her grip tightened around the blade. ”I’m so sorry.”

”W-wait... Ingrid, please—”

Ingrid suddenly twisted the blade, then ripped it free in a spray of blood. Before Sera could react, Ingrid placed a hand against her head, and a dome of metal instantly formed around her entire body.

Several seconds passed before the dome finally dispersed.

There was nothing left where Sera had once stood.

Ingrid remained completely still, staring at the empty space a long second. Then, slowly, her gaze dropped to her hand.

Blood coated her fingers and ran down her palm, dripping silently from her fingertips. Ingrid stared at it, her expression growing increasingly complicated.

Her fingers were trembling.

The moment she noticed, she clenched her hand into a fist, hard enough for her nails to dig into her palm. She remained like that for several seconds before slowly lifting her gaze towards the direction Zephyrion had disappeared.

Her jaw tightened.

Then she wiped the blood from her hand and vanished from the tree branch.