Chapter 8
“Kidnapped, but there is no malice”
The journalist rolled his eyes and said,
“Will it be okay?”
“Probably?”
Even knowing it was dangerous, they couldn’t resist the lingering curiosity. The knights decided to publish the question in the advice section.
And on the day the question was published, those who had ever held a weapon were filled with excitement.
“This is basically a direct attack, isn’t it!”
“No, but there are three Swordmasters. Maybe it’s not referring to that one.”
“But it’s in an imperial newspaper! Look at this—the condition says a ‘normal woman.’”
“Then she can’t win. Even a properly trained knight corps wouldn’t beat a Swordmaster.”
“Of course you can’t win in a straight fight!”
But what if it wasn’t a fight? Someone cautiously suggested a method.
“Maybe poison could work?”
Then someone listening nearby chimed in, speaking excitedly.
“I’ve heard Swordmasters become resistant to poison. And the real problem is how to even deliver it. Look, it says ‘normal.’ That probably means appearance and everything else is ordinary too. How would someone like that even approach a Swordmaster?”
“But what if she thinks she’s a beauty?”
“You mean using seduction? That still feels too far-fetched. Maybe Swordmasters could even like normality.”
“That could be possible.”
People gathered in small groups and seriously discussed it. Assassination methods, poison, overwhelming numbers—countless ideas poured out. Some even wrote them down and sent them to the newspaper.
And once again, unable to resist curiosity, the journalist printed them all as they were.
Kaite did not read newspapers or magazines, and he did not pay attention to social rumors. He believed it was a waste of time, since he could already guess what they would say. Because of that, his deputy commander, Seren, gathered the information and summarized it for him instead.
“So I’m telling you, you should get a proper aide.”
“But those who only read books are too fragile.”
It wasn’t that they were fragile—it was that Kaite himself was excessive—but Seren did not point that out. He had been by Kaite’s side since childhood and understood him well.
The insomnia that clung to him for years, and his inability to trust people, were born from those who were now dead—his older brother Kalie, the previous emperor’s father, and Kaite’s mother, Saraen.
Seren, who had been lost in thought for a moment, lifted his head as he felt a gaze. Kaite was looking at him with deep, knowing eyes, as if he understood Seren’s thoughts. Seren then spoke again.
“This time, there was a strange question in the newspaper’s advice column.”
“A strange question?”
“It asked: ‘How can a normal woman defeat a Swordmaster?’”
At Seren’s words, Kaite crossed his legs and let out a disbelieving laugh.
“Hah?”
“I think it was aimed at you, Kaite-nim. The other two Swordmasters are not from the Empire.”
“Fine, let’s assume that. But why is the question like that? A normal woman?”
Where would a normal woman even try to challenge a Swordmaster? And what even defined “normal”?
Kaite had quite a few women who held grudges against him, but he couldn’t identify who it might be. The word “normal” could apply to far too many people.
Then could it be the same person who had recently been secretly following him? Strange incidents had been happening lately, and it bothered him. Seren didn’t seem aware of that, but he appeared to have investigated something suspicious.
“I traced the letters sent to the newspaper. However, I couldn’t identify the sender. The origin is within the Empire, but it was sent anonymously from the outskirts. It will take more time to track them.”
Given enough time, Seren would eventually find the sender. Kaite wasn’t worried about that.
What interested him more was the answer to the question.
“So what answer was selected?”
“…It is not appropriate. You should not read it.”
“Bring the newspaper.”
It wasn’t like he was still sensitive to such things anymore. Seren was being overly considerate.
After hesitating briefly, Seren brought him the newspaper containing the article.
As expected, the answer Seren called “inappropriate” was printed there. It listed methods as if Kaite were some kind of giant monster.
‘Ridiculous.’
Even if someone tried those methods, they still wouldn’t be able to defeat Kaite. Many had attempted things like this before—and none had succeeded.
Kaite leaned back in his chair, legs crossed, losing interest in the article. Seren noticed this and changed the subject to the knight order’s monster subjugation schedule.
Ibelin was reading today’s newspaper, “Kass.”
Her question had been published, along with answers and suggested methods.
“This is a bit too much.”
Sitting at the kitchen table, Ibelin clicked her tongue as she read. Even the Gracius Duke was still a human being—this was too extreme.
Still, seeing this gave her an idea.
Ibelin neatly folded the newspaper and went down to the basement. The basement contained many items, including bullets. It seemed her grandfather had preferred guns when he was younger. No wonder he wasn’t good with swords.
The neatly arranged bullet boxes had labels written on them:
[Sleep]
[Stun]
[Explosion]
[Poison]
[Ice]
There were normal bullets too, but the number of special ones was greater. All of them had been enchanted with magical effects and contained mysterious power. And they were all the same size, perfectly fitting Ibelin’s gun.
“These must be expensive…”
Even if she had grown up in the countryside, she wasn’t completely unaware of prices. Guns were expensive and difficult to handle, and bullets were no different. And these were further enhanced with magic?
Then they must cost a fortune.
“And there are so many of them…”
Her grandfather must have been incredibly wealthy. If relatives who took over his house in the countryside ever found out, they would probably lose their minds.
She also began to wonder what kind of person her grandfather had been. She had thought about it many times since coming to this mansion, but had found no answer.
Ibelin loaded new bullets into her gun. There wasn’t much time left until the Emperor’s birthday. So she had to start acting in earnest. Everything else was ready—now she just needed to bring her benefactor.
“I’m sorry.”
Even though she was trying to help her benefactor, her chest still felt tight with guilt.
Afterward, Ibelin moved strictly according to her plan. She waited quietly on the roof of a house in an alley and eventually encountered Kaite.
Kaite was walking alone along a familiar route—one Ibelin also knew. He must have read the newspaper. Seren would likely try to trace the sender of the question, but it wouldn’t be easy.
Ibelin had also carefully disguised her identity when sending it.
‘And my benefactor tends to go to information brokers when he lacks intelligence.’
That was unfortunate news for the information brokers who would suffer from Kaite’s visits. Still, since he rotated between different brokers, he wouldn’t meet the same one too often. Whether that was comforting or not was unclear.
As Kaite came into view, Ibelin held her breath and fired.
The first shot was expected to be blocked or dodged. As expected, Kaite quickly drew his sword and deflected the bullet. But Ibelin continued firing in rapid succession, changing timing and angles.
‘Will this work?’
Swordmasters had overwhelming defense. They coated their bodies in aura. But surprisingly, the bullets still landed effectively.
