Arcane Era-Chapter 91: The Assassin

"... Mmmphhh!!"

The assassin opened his eyes to intense pain, his body trembling as he felt an inexplicable agony course through him. His blood was boiling, which caused him to violently shake, only able to let out muffled screams due to the restraints on his lips.

These extended to his body as well, as he was expertly held by Liyah’s armament, [Pink Teddy], perfectly immobilized by the massive creature’s overpowering hold.

The man had just woken up from unconsciousness, yet he felt like he was about to die.

The pain was too intense.

However, soon, the boiling ceased, and he felt a sudden chill course through him—down to his marrow. It felt like his blood was freezing, but right before it got to a dangerous degree, the cold ceased.

"I won’t waste your time, so I’d advise you not to waste mine." Kamara stood before the assassin, and the rest of the team were right behind her, watching her speak. "I can make a living for you hell if you refuse to answer any of my questions. I’ll make sure you don’t die and only suffer the most intense pain until you finally break. To save us that trouble, you better confess and I’ll let you go. Understood?"

The assassin had no choice but to nod.

"Good." She removed the restraints around his mouth, smiling very sweetly. Her team members watched this very closely, though Kamara and Kaycee seemed especially disturbed by the troubling sight before them.

Arlet had a stoic expression, while Theo’s curious face was filled with seriousness.

He wanted to know so many things.

"Who are you and what were your intentions, sneaking into her room." Kamara pointed at Liyah as she asked the question, causing the latter to shrink back a little. The assassin’s gaze on her made her retreat another step further.

"Hey, eyes on me." Kamara’s slap landed on his cheek. "I’m the one asking the questions here."

"I... My name is Farik... I’m just a Mercenary... I-I was given the mission, I don’t know anything else, I swear." The young man desperately begged, his slick black hair now scattered on his mildly pale face. If he didn’t appear so disheveled, one might think he was handsome, but unfortunately, the fear and pain contorted his face to the point where he looked quite horrid.

"Who gave you the mission?"

"I-I don’t know!"

"Don’t lie to me!" Kamara pressed, her face sharply moving closer to his.

"Okay! Okay! I only know he has an Armament, okay? If I tell you anything about him, or details involving our arrangement, I’ll die!" Farik cried out. "I honestly don’t know anything much, though. I don’t know his identity, and even if I could spot him... I’d die before I could even get the first word out."

"You can’t be sure the Armament would work."

"I am! He tried it out with another Mercenary right in front of me, so I know it’s real. I’ll also die if I don’t do as he say—guargh!" Blood spilled from his lips as he said those words.

Farik coughed incessantly, his pale face looking even more miserable than before. "S-see? The more information I spill, the worse it’ll get. If I try to say anything too sensitive, I’ll die on the spot. Please, you have to believe me!"

’Hmm...’ Theo frowned mildly. ’It doesn’t seem like he’s lying.’

"You also had this... a mobility-type Armament." Kamara brought out the ring Farik was wearing before his capture. "Where did you get it? What does it do?"

"I-I can’t tell you..."

’That means it’s tied to his employer in some way. Someone that has access to Armaments... this person isn’t a simple individual.’ Theo’s frown deepened.

Armament wielders were at the top of the food chain in the current world.

The employer of this Mercenary actually had an Armament that could enforce death if any of his information was spilled, and he was also most likely responsible for granting this assassin his Armament. That meant the man had to have at least two Armaments.

’Maybe even more...’ Theo narrowed his gaze. ’Whoever we’re up against is quite rich, and most likely relatively powerful as well.’

Most importantly, they had to be connected to the Royal Palace in some way.

’How else would a sole Mercenary be able to reach the secluded domain of Sarvos’ esteemed guests?’ A lot of questions swirled in his head, but he patiently watched as Kamara interrogated the man, gleaning as much information from him before finally knocking him unconscious again.

The entire thing lasted about half an hour.

"Looks like he knew nothing about the assassins that attacked in the banquet, but looking at the facts, it doesn’t appear that these two events are isolated. They most likely trail back to the same mastermind." Kamara sighed, turning to the team.

Theo nodded quietly, satisfied that she came to the same conclusion he did.

"This Farik guy also apparently worked alone and has only been a Mercenary for a relatively short period, not having much acclaim. This means we’re dealing with someone who either doesn’t have the funds to hire top Mercenaries or who wants to stay lowkey and so decides to use greenhorns who have little connections, thus reducing the chances of his plans getting exposed."

"It has to be the latter, right?" Theo said.

"Yes. I think so too, considering the fact that he has at least a few Armaments at his disposal. One for ensuring his plans and identity remains hidden, one that he lent this guy, and most likely a few others." She added, relying on the logic that someone with two Armaments wouldn’t simply lend one out.

Arcane Instruments were very precious, and many coveted the power they offered.

Hence, Farik’s employer most likely had a few Armaments at his disposal, which was why he could part with one. Theo and the others heard Kamara analyze this and nodded in agreement.

"This ring is only a Standard Grade Armament, but I highly suspect this guy has one or two Regal Grade Armaments at least. The Armament he used to bind this assassin is definitely of the Regal Grade, and there could be others." She continued with her deductions. "Finally, this person is quite cautious and cruel. He actually killed someone just to prove a point to the Mercenary he hired. This shows desensitization to the value of life, superiority complex, and an authoritarian disposition—ruling through absolute terror and fear."

"Do you think he’ll strike again?" Liyah finally spoke up, her worried gaze traveling all over the room. No one could blame her for asking the question.

After all, they had been invaded in the banquet hall, and now where they slept.

This person clearly had some form of persistence, and he possessed enough information and connection to breach the Royal Palace’s security not only once, but twice.

"We’re definitely dealing with an insider, someone familiar with the palace." Kamara sighed, collapsing on a couch right next to her bed. "As for your question, Liyah... I’m honestly not sure."

"Hm?" Theo raised a brow, feeling a little let down by the response.

"From what I can gather, this isn’t the first time such an assassination attempt is taking place. It has happened quite a few times in the past, which is why the King and Head Chancellor weren’t too surprised by it. But, with us being here, the likelihood of said attempts succeeding has come down to zero."

"Yeah. If they couldn’t succeed before, they’re not likely to succeed now." Arlet said, finally speaking after being silent for so long.

"Exactly. We’re dealing with an intelligent person here... which means they won’t waste resources and increase the chances of us getting closer to them. Still, we shouldn’t be too certain that they won’t strike again, which means we can’t let our guards down... hence why I said I’m not sure."

’Ahh... that makes sense.’ Theo nodded to himself. ’I also think this guy will most likely not strike again, but we can never be too careful.’

"Now that we have put together a profile of our culprit, let’s narrow it down considerably."

Everyone nodded after hearing Kamara utter those words.

"Mercenaries are in large numbers in Sarvos—in fact, far more than in other Nations at the moment. This is due to the Civil War and also due to the immense reduction of Sarvos’ military might after the destruction of their fortress." She began to analyze. "Getting a Mercenary to do the job is easy, but being able to consistently send out assassins, while even giving one an Armament, shows signs of incredible wealth."