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Chapter 306. The Saint of the Empire (7)

She hunched her body close to the damp ground and bit her lower lip. She had just realized that the two Players keeping tabs on her had thoroughly concealed their skills. And it meant that they were prepared to kill her at any time in case she ran away.

“...”

The boat started to settle after shaking like an amusement park ride, and Cha Si-Eun slowly stood up. All she could see with her naked eyes was the pitch-black water.

“If you were going to run away, you should have gone somewhere far. You should’ve at least let us have some fun with hunting you down.”

The black water split and two people emerged from below. They didn’t seem to be holding their breath underwater, likely due to the large, transparent air bubble covering them.

“...Were you planning to do this from the very beginning?” she asked as she looked up at the two figures, pressing down the anger in her voice.

“Not really. We were originally only ordered to watch you, so we didn’t know it would end up like this either.”

‘That means…’ 

They were going to kill her before she could spread rumors, as she had already discovered the truth. At that moment, she realized that the two people were no longer wearing their priest robes.

“You two are not even part of Silver Constellation,” she said.

“That’s right. But does that matter at this point? We were commissioned by them anyway.”

“Oi, you shouldn’t leak the client…”

“It’s not like I said their name myself, so it’s okay. Plus, we’re going to kill her soon enough.” He spoke as if Cha Si-Eun’s death was already decided. His partner was about to lecture him, but his partner shut his mouth. The Player wasn’t wrong, after all.

“We feel bad as well, we have to kill someone so pretty, after all.”

Shing! 

The hood she was wearing was cut off, revealing her face.

“Wow~ You look like an actress.”

“Hurry up and kill her. We’ll have a lot of work to do when we get back if we want to make it look like a suicide.”

“Ah, really, what a waste…”

Cha Si-Eun lightly touched her grazed cheek with her hand.

‘An invisible attack.’ 

She had no idea what kind of technique he had used to conceal it. But considering the way he had changed the direction of the wind earlier and that they were breathing underwater, she assumed that he was a highly skilled wind elemental user.

Her shoulders started to shake as she stood there, stiff.

‘...’ 

Non-combatants didn’t have much offensive power. It was at times like this that she greatly resented her lack of combat skills. People often regarded healers as nobility, but in a world run by the powerful, the weak were still weak in the end. Without sturdy walls to protect her, she couldn’t complain even if something as bitter as this happened to her. She knew this even back then.

‘That’s why I wanted to make one for myself… An iron fortress of my own.’ 

She wanted to chase her dreams with the people she had opened her heart to, but she failed.

‘But still, I won’t die so pathetically.’ 

She bit her lip hard. A heavy mace appeared in her hand.

“Look at that. The little lady has more spunk than she seems.”

“Are you planning to break our heads in with that? Do you even have the strength to wield it?”

The two assassins taunted her. Of course, they knew that a cornered mouse would bite a cat.

“But what should we do… We’re tigers, not cats.”

They were in the same family as cats, but the difference in their power was incomparable.

However, Cha Si-Eun seemed to have accepted the challenge as she took a running stance. Her bloodshot eyes looked like they would spill tears at any moment, but they didn’t. Instead, her eyes glared at the two assassins with the intent to kill.

“...Woah.”

Even though they were stronger than her, they felt a chill go down their spines.

‘Hm, did we underestimate her too much? She’s still a 2nd floor Player. We can’t let our guards down.’

‘They say that a woman’s vengeance can make it snow in the summer…’[1]

And behold, it really was snowing right now.

“Huh? Wait.”

They stopped. No, there was no way it was actually snowing. It was the peak of spring when the cherry blossoms were blooming The four seasons were distinct in Frontier, and this was Evian, not some territory in the north. How could snow be falling?

‘Something’s weird about this.’ 

When they realized it, the thick snowflakes turned into sharp spikes and stabbed them.

“Hup!” The wind elemental user narrowly managed to push them aside. They immediately eyed Cha Si-Eun, but seeing the way she was blinking, they realized that she wasn’t the cause of this.

‘An outsider is interfering.’

‘I still don’t sense anyone. Where the hell are they?’

They looked around the pitch-black water surrounding them.

Crackle.

The sound of something being flash-frozen could be heard in the barren river.

“You guys were faster than I thought.”

Unlike the two idiots, Cha Si-Eun discovered where the voice was coming from as soon as she heard it. She held out her arms toward the dark riverside, trembling nervously.

“...Breath of Restoration.”

The bright energy in her hands lit up the area, revealing a man leisurely walking across a frozen path to the three others.

“...Seo Jun-Ho,” the two assassins snarled. They hadn’t expected him to be here. The air around them changed instantly.

“This has nothing to do with you. Just keep going where you’re headed instead of causing trouble,” they warned.

“Why does it not?” He slowly turned his head and looked at Cha Si-Eun. She looked like she was at a loss for words. “...I’m actually a pretty selfish guy, so I don’t really get involved in others’ fights.” Such was the cold-hearted world of Players. After all, they would rarely have a reason or desire to interfere.

“But there are exceptions,” he said.

When it came to “his people,” he was determined to fight the whole world to protect them.

‘I never would have thought the Saintess was Secretary Cha.’ 

He was flabbergasted after seeing her face from afar. He had never imagined that she would even be a Player, let alone a famous one like the Schumern Saintess. It was all because he hadn’t sensed any magic from her in the past.

‘And on another hand, I feel a little bitter…’ 

He gave a self-deprecating smile.

“If I had given you more reason to trust me…You would have sought me out if you were struggling or if you were scared. I thought I was trustworthy enough.”

“That’s…” Cha Si-Eun muttered as she looked down into the pitch-black waters of the river. Wrong—she just didn’t like causing trouble for others. She didn’t want to be a weakling who had to ask others for help, she wanted to confidently face the world as her own Player. She wanted to tell him that she was able to come this far thanks to his advice. But as she trailed off, the wind elemental user summoned a vicious gale and pressed Seo Jun-Ho back.

“I don’t like saying the same thing thrice. Leave while I’m being nice.”

“What if I say no?”

“If you want to make an enemy out of Rock Blood, I won’t stop you.”

Rock Blood? Seo Jun-Ho turned his head. He had never heard of such a ridiculously-named organization.

However, Cha Si-Eun seemed to recognize the name, and her face immediately grew white.

“Do you know them?” Jun-Ho asked.

“T-they’re the most famous assassin’s guild who kills people for money. They’re so big, they even have a large building in Seoul…”

“So they’re trash…”

A rock would never bleed. If there were blood on a rock, that meant that it belonged to someone who dared to cross them.

Seo Jun-Ho snorted at the vicious yet comical naming sense. “I haven’t been paying much attention because I have been cleaning up the fiends, but it seems that the fiends are not the only problem.”

How had things become like this? The past had been more romantic. All of humanity had one collective goal, and it was an era of glory whence they stood against monsters as one.

“I miss the old days…”

“...You sound like an old man,” the Frost Queen mocked. Even so, he let out a long sigh. He finally understood why elderly people often grumbled that they didn’t live this long just to witness such things.

“...So, you’re not going to leave?” the assassin asked with sharp eyes.

“Secretary Cha—wait, you’re not a secretary anymore, so… Miss Si-Eun.”

“...Yes?” she said, surprised. She had countless conversations with him at the Player Association, but she had never heard him use such a cold voice.

“I’m sorry you couldn’t trust me until now.”

Now that he thought about it, she knew very well how human he was. After his return, she had seen him injured many times.

‘And the same was true during the situation with Janabi… That was probably why.’ 

The reason why she couldn’t readily ask for his help was probably that she didn’t think he was that strong. Her kindness, which bordered idiocy, made her not want to drag him into her problems and get hurt as well.

“I don’t know if I can become a strong fortress like you want,” he said.

Cha Si-Eun’s eyes grew wide. He used the word “fortress” as if he had read her thoughts.

“But, if you ever need to rest… I can at least be a fence for you.”

“...”

Cha Si-Eun opened and shut her mouth a few times. Her eyes grew hot, and she eventually squeezed them shut.

He always seemed to find her to offer her another path whenever she was pondering over something.

‘Thank you…’

The tears she had been holding back spilled over as she opened her eyes. She bit her lip and nodded. “I… I still have a long, long way to go… But could I hide behind that fence?”

Seo Jun-Ho fixed his eyes on the two assassins and grinned. The answer was simple.

“Of course.”

“...You don’t seem like the obedient type,” one of them said. It seemed like Seo Jun-Ho had no intentions of backing out. He exchanged glances with his partner.

‘He’s an unexpected factor, but…’

‘Seems like we’ll be pretty busy tonight...’ 

At that, the two assassins vanished completely.

‘...Invisibility?’ 

Seo Jun-Ho scanned the dark river. No, this wasn’t simple concealment.

‘It’s similar to Night Walking. They can hide their presence itself.’ 

Suddenly, a sharp, twisting sound cut through the quiet riverwaters as if the air were being ripped apart. Seo Jun-Ho turned his body.

“Wind! One of them can control the wind! And they can go in the water, too!” Cha Si-Eun shouted.

“I see.” He couldn’t see his enemies, and he had to endure invisible attacks on top of that.

However, Seo Jun-Ho actually had a small smile on his face.

‘This is the best.’ 

He recently ate a very delicious potion. Well, he wasn’t actually sure if it was delicious just yet.

‘This bastard… It hasn’t done anything ever since then, so I’m not sure.’ 

However, in a situation like this, where his five senses were useless, it would have to start working if it had a conscience.

‘Get to work, Intuition,’ he started chanting to himself.