The assassin was a bit stronger than the one who'd attacked the Rest Trading Company, but I captured him without any trouble.
So, who's pulling the strings this time?
……Well, this one might be a little harder to crack.
A look with [Divine Eye] told me he had [Assassinate], [Torture Resistance], and other skills.
And if I'm listing the unusual ones — he even had [Self-Destruct].
……Wait, [Self-Destruct]!?
The assassin's body started glowing, so I panicked, scooped him up, rushed out of the inn room I'd been renting, and hurled him as high into the sky as I could.
Right after, the night sky lit up bright as day for just an instant.
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Without warning, a flash of light streaked across the area.
Not many people knew what that light meant.
And those who did realized the mission from the Viscount had failed.
"This calls for… additional manpower. Ugh, we might end up running a deficit. I even thought deploying our No. 3 was overkill as an extra precaution. But there's no choice — I can't let the success rate drop. Next time, we need to be even more careful…"
Whether the man who ruled Momentum's underworld would even get a next time was known only to God.
◇◇◇
He — he actually self-destructed……
This other world is way too dangerous.
Fail an assassination, and you blow yourself up to finish the job.
What a terrifying one-two punch.
Well, now that I've built a connection from fighting that assassin, time for "Perfect Research"!
Where is that assassin's base?
When I searched, a dive bar on the outskirts of town floated into my mind.
Once dawn broke, I headed to the Adventurers' Guild.
"Metia, I need to speak with Guildmus. About yesterday's incident."
"Huh? Oh, sure. Yesterday's incident, you say? It got bright in the middle of the night? I wouldn't know — I was asleep... Just a moment, please."
Sure was laid-back for a guild employee.
Wasn't that, by any measure, an abnormal situation?
Or is it just a daily occurrence for assassins to self-destruct and light up the night sky?
Before long, I was summoned to Guildmus's room.
"Lord Alan... no, Alan. You wanted to talk about yesterday's incident? That was the flash of a self-destruct. Apparently it detonated mid-air, but with that much light, it had to have been a fairly high-ranking operative. Did you by any chance go after the Dark Guild?"
"No, they're the ones who came after me. By the way, do you know this location? It's a bar on the outskirts of town."
"Well, sure, those who know, know — but how come you know where the Momentum branch of the Dark Guild is? You really didn't go after them, did you?"
"No, I only recently learned about the location, which is why I've come to have you look into it. The going-after-them part comes next."
"So you're going to take them on?"
"They attacked me at the inn yesterday. After that, I'll hear out their true intentions before deciding what to do with them."
Guildmus, still wearing the slave collar,
looked at Alan with a completely
dumbfounded expression.
"Well, I suppose you might be able to handle it, Master... but even if you wipe them out, they've got their headquarters in the royal capital. They'd just send more people from there — it'd be a never-ending fight."
"All you need to understand is that as long as you don't get in my way, we're fine. I'm not planning to do any more than the bare minimum."
"They say the Dark Guild's headquarters has numerous assassins with orichalcum-class strength. Even for you, Lord Alan..."
Wait, if I die, the slave contract gets dissolved, right?
Wouldn't that actually be more convenient for Gilmass?
So why is he worried about me?
"Well, Alan... if it came out that I'd entered a consensual slave contract with you, I'd be treated as one of your allies and dealt with too."
Ah, right.
Well, I'll probably be fine, though.
After all, [Gentleman Thief] is the pinnacle of Assassin-type skills.
Alright, time to go say my hellos, I guess.
"Um, also, I'd like to request a rank upgrade."
"I haven't done anything yet, though?"
"No, the guild card also records defeated monsters. Being ranked Copper after defeating a White King Tiger Wolf makes no sense. If I leave it as is, Gilmass will get disqualified."
I see.
If I lost the Gilmass position, I might not be able to ask the things I want to ask, like this time.
"Then Iron rank is fine."
"Yes, please head to the reception desk to update your guild card."
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Skills: [Reverse][Divine Eye][Sword God][Gentleman Thief]
Thank you for always reading!