Acting as a Slit-Eye Chapter 54

Chapter 54. Second Persona (2)

As I jumped from the gate toward the carriage, the sharp sound of wind cutting through the air filled my ears.

Simultaneously, the distant ground began to approach. However, my heart remained as calm as a tranquil lake.

Rustle──!

Just before landing on the carriage roof, I reached for a tree branch to slow my descent and landed lightly atop the carriage.

"...... Huh? What's that sound?"

Whether it was soone with sharp senses or keen ears, a voice ca from the cargo compartnt.

Keeping my presence concealed, I deeply pulled my hood down.

If what I was doing here reached the ears of the Dawn Society, it wouldn't be as simple as it was before.

The issue wasn't just the Soul Stone, but also delaying the Dawn Society's ultimate goal of resurrecting the Demon God.

Moreover, the passengers in this carriage were all cult mbers of the Dawn Society.

So I had to be cautious.

"What's the big deal? At most, it's probably just a squirrel."

On the roof, I once again used 'mana detection' to explore the inside of the carriage.

'Two in the cargo compartnt, and one coachman.'

None of them emitted a particularly strong presence.

'It seems Bishop Pintel did not co along.'

It was a small relief.

If there had been soone of the Bishop rank, it could've been a dangerous situation.

'I suppose it's about ti to start.'

Thinking so, I grabbed the supports of the carriage roof and shook it vigorously up and down.

"...... What the heck!?"

As the pillars wobbled and the tent cover above shook loudly, a man from the cargo compartnt poked his head out slightly.

"Wait a minute, it's not a squirrel...... Arrghhh!"

I quickly grabbed the man's jaw and tossed him out of the carriage.

'Ugh.......'

I knew I was strong, but this much.

An imnse strength indeed.

The act of lifting and tossing an adult man effortlessly made

cluck my tongue in disbelief.

Afterward, I grabbed the support again and hurled myself towards the cargo compartnt of the carriage.

"Crazy!"

Perhaps startled by the sight of his companion being thrown out, the remaining man quickly drew his sword as I entered the compartnt.

Or rather, attempted to draw it. Before he could unsheathe the blade, my right foot had already kicked him in the abdon.

"Ugh!"

The sharp sensation relayed through my toes indicated that my attack had landed cleanly.

The man flew into a corner of the cargo compartnt, bumped his head, and fell silent. It seed he was knocked out.

I walked forward slowly and pulled aside the tarp connected to the coachman's seat.

"Hey! What's going on in the cargo compartnt......, eek!"

As the coachman turned his head to speak, he was startled to see , hood pulled low, with a sword at his throat.

Above him, as always, was an unmistakable aura of 'fear'.

"Wh-who are you......!?"

"You don't need to know that, but you should stop the carriage......."

Smack.

As I started to speak, I slapped my mouth at the slip into formal speech.

Fortunately, the coachman seed to understand my intent, grabbing the reins to stop the carriage and moving towards the cargo compartnt.

If I spoke, I might unconsciously use formal speech again, which could reveal my identity... so I resolved to communicate using the universal language of gestures.

Snap.

I held out my hand, gesturing for sothing.

"...... What do you want? We're just passing travelers. We have nothing worth taking, please spare us."

I shook my head, signaling denial continuously with my hand.

"Please, Sir. Spare . I have a wife and children waiting for

at ho."

The coachman continued to plead pitifully, glancing around as if hiding sothing with shifty movents.

There were several boxes in the cargo compartnt, but the small box behind the coachman sohow caught my eye.

'Is it that one?'

I pushed the coachman aside and reached for the box when a chilly sensation ran through my fingertips.

"Haaah!"

The sight of the coachman, who had sohow drawn a small dagger, trying to stab

ca into view.

Yet it wasn't fast enough.

Before the dagger could reach , I twisted my extended hand and struck his side.

"Gah!"

Leaving behind the coachman, sent flying out of the carriage with a groan, I tucked the box under my arm and prepared to make my escape from the carriage.

Outside, the fallen coachman panted heavily, glaring in this direction.

"...... Do you even know who we are!?"

What a remark fitting for a third-rate villain.

"We are the Dawn Society! If you turn us into enemies like this, you won't survive."

He'd be astonished if he knew my true identity.

If he realized the mysterious assailant was actually 'Bishop.'

"No matter how much you hide your face, you will never avoid our pursuit.... Ugh!"

Annoyed by his incessant chatter, I kicked the man's solar plexus, silencing him abruptly.

It's irritating enough that I had to handle soone else's job.

Just to be sure, I opened the box to check the contents. Inside was a red Soul Stone emitting a bizarre energy.

'With this, I managed to prevent the Dawn Society from securing their Soul Stone.......'

Yet, there was still one worry lingering in my heart. It was that the 'Black Knight' never made an appearance.

'He should appear next ti.'

After all, he's the protagonist.

Otherwise, why should I keep doing this?

***

In the audience chamber of the Dawn Society located in the Genl Monastery, a solemn atmosphere prevailed.

For an ordinary person, it would not be strange to feel suffocated by the oppressiveness of the setting.

Eleanor surveyed her surroundings once before shifting her gaze to the throne in the audience chamber.

There, Tenelon sat with a clearly displeased expression, exuding arrogance.

He stared at a man kneeling like a criminal before him.

"...... Pintel."

"Y-yes...... Archbishop."

At Tenelon's summoning, he replied with a cold sweat. With the Bishop's and Tenelon's severe gazes pinned upon him, his lips quivered.

"I am disappointed."

At Tenelon's pronouncent of disappointnt, pintel squeezed his eyes shut.

"You were expected to personally handle the transport of an essential Soul Stone for us, and yet you left it to common mbers."

"I-I apologize...... It is my negligence......!"

"Negligence, indeed......."

Tenelon muttered Pintel's words again.

His sticky gaze seed unwilling to detach from Pintel.

"I would like to give you a chance to redeem yourself, but... I am not aware of any way to do so."

"I-I will find the one who attacked the carriage and recover the Soul Stone......!"

"Soone whose face you do not even know?"

The soft yet harsh words from Tenelon sealed Pintel's lips.

"One cannot call upon soone unnad; how do you plan on finding a faceless person, pintel?"

As words continued, the atmosphere in the audience chamber grew increasingly heavy.

'...... Thick.'

Demonic energy oozed from Tenelon's body. It began to fill the room.

Under the oppressive pressure, none of the Bishops dared to speak lightly.

Because the wrath directed at Pintel could easily shift onto soone else.

Eleanor was no exception.

"Bishop Pintel, what a pitiful sight."

Amidst the suffocating flow, there was a man who interjected as though swimming through the demonic energy.

'...... Yulian.'

His words seed to remain untouchable by Tenelon's energy.

"To think the person who loudly demanded accountability from

fell into such disgrace....... Truly, the affairs of the world are unpredictable."

"...... Ugh."

Pintel bit his lips as Yulian's sarcasm pierced him.

"Bishop Yulian, you are rather tardy."

"Yes, I was delayed dealing with matters of Blind Eyes. Sir Tenelon."

Instead of using the honorific title of 'Archbishop' with a sense of reverence, Yulian preferred to address him by na and add 'Sir' like everyone else.

This attitude highlighted Yulian's intention that he was in the Dawn Society for his own purposes, rather than as a fully-fledged mber.

"Though it's right to criticize Bishop Pintel for failing to secure the Soul Stone, isn't pinpointing our 'enemy' a more pressing need?"

His words rang true.

Tenelon seed to agree, nodding in assent.

"Indeed......."

"Actually, I have a different perspective. It might be fortunate that we lost a Soul Stone."

"Hmm?"

Eleanor held her breath at the added remark. The attention that had been on Pintel gradually turned to Yulian.

The other Bishops did the sa, each harboring various emotions as they observed Yulian.

Yet, Yulian neither shook nor trembled.

Instead, it seed he wore a smile, as if relishing the situation.

"Consider this. The 'enemy' who attacked the carriage knew we had a Soul Stone and were well aware of its return path."

"Hmm."

"Does that imply anything to you?"

"It ans... they possess trendous intelligence. Comparable to the imperial family, or even the 'Sword Saint'."

Eleanor, who had been silently listening, finally spoke up.

"Bishop Eleanor, how naive a thought."

"Then what do you an? Care to enlighten soone as inadequate as myself?"

A deeper smile crept up Yulian's lips at her words.

"It ans there's a traitor within the Dawn Society."

The audience chamber erupted.

Murmurs echoed like ripples expanding outward. Eleanor gulped nervously.

"If that's the case, wouldn't it have been more prudent to target us directly rather than intercepting the Soul Stone?"

"A lesser mber unaware of our headquarter's location, or perhaps they await an opportunity to annihilate the Dawn Society......."

"Enough."

Midway through Yulian's discourse, Tenelon's solemn voice cut in, halting him.

Beneath his mask, Tenelon's eyes glowed starkly.

Having achieved his intent, Yulian obediently bowed in acknowledgent.

***

Returning ho after my visit to the Dawn Society, I sat in a chair and pondered.

While I didn't expect this to cause a rift within the Dawn Society, it might at least compel them to limit their movents.

'With a non-existent traitor to ward off, they'll be forced to monitor each other.'

Or rather, with

involved, the traitor does exist.

I wasn't sure how effective it would be, but sothing was better than nothing, right?

'But there's sothing bothering .......'

Why didn't the Black Knight appear?

I placed a large calendar marked 'Continental Calendar' on the table and began marking the days with a pen.

The marked days signified the Black Knight's appearances and activities in the capital.

"Though the debut day has passed, appearances on other days are still possible, aren't they?"

After reviewing the marked days, I tore off the current month's calendar and placed it in the drawer.

"Please, I'm begging... just make an appearance."

Because while the 'Sword Saint' is great, it was the 'Black Knight' who dealt with the Bishops and ended Tenelon. I prayed earnestly.

"Hayden Reich, as your disciple, I'm pleading...... huh?"

That's when I noticed a neatly placed newspaper on the desk.

"Adraton Journal"

Along with the newspaper's na, the headline sprawled across the front page like a banner.

【Sword Saint, Hayden Reich! Has Left the Capital?】

【Star of the Adraton Empire, sword Saint's Reason for Leaving the Capital?】

As I read the headline, I couldn't help but let out a dry, ironic laugh.

"...... Master?"

Black Knight, aren't you going to take the stage?

Clacky's Corner:

What could have happened that made Hayden not move?