The Queen smiled. "Don't tell you don't know?"
Ryuen blinked in silence, lowering his gaze to his hands.
He cursed under his breath, regretting everything he had been doing up until now.
He had let his guard down too much, and now she had her hands on his journal.
She must have read everything in there: the nas of his targets, his employers, and—most damning of all—details about the organization.
"Y-Your Highness," he stuttered, still keeping his head low to avoid eting her gaze.
"I would appreciate it if you kept what you read to yourself."
"Hm?"
Her brows furrowed. "And what makes you think I would listen to you?"
"Because you also have secrets," he replied, finally raising his head to et her eyes.
"And you wouldn't want anyone to know about them."
For a mont, the Queen was taken aback by his boldness.
The fact that he didn't let his shock cloud his thoughts was... impressive.
With a soft chuckle, she lowered the journal to her lap and smiled.
"You've killed a total of one hundred people," she said, her voice calm yet piercing.
"Excluding those who got in your way."
"And you didn't just do this in one country," she continued.
"Let's not forget your employers are connected, and then there's the organization."
Ryuen frowned. "I left that life behind."
"That doesn't change the fact that you killed innocent people."
At her words, Ryuen felt sothing inside him crack.
He took a deep breath, forcing himself to remain composed.
"Those people were nothing close to innocent."
"Is that so?"
She flipped the book open randomly, her fingers stopping at the center of a page. A knowing smile crossed her face.
"You seem to be familiar with a certain Marie," she said.
"You murdered her brothers—all three of them, didn't you?"
Ryuen clenched his fists tight as the mories poured into his mind like a flood of dark, thick liquid threatening to drown him.
"I had my reasons," he replied firmly.
"I know," she said, flipping to another page. "Is she the reason you decided to teach at a college?"
"Partly."
"Ten years old. Blonde with violet eyes. The only human you allowed yourself to feel anything for..."
She trailed off, her eyes scanning the next lines.
Her expression slowly shifted, her eyes widening with every word she read.
Suddenly, she slamd the book shut and gently placed it on the table beside her.
"Is this how humans are?" she yelled, her voice rising in anger.
She trembled with barely-contained rage, her hands balling into fists.
She wanted to hit sothing—anything—but her state made that impossible.
With a heavy sigh, she continued, "Why would soone think of doing such things to a little kid?"
Ryuen shrugged nonchalantly. "Lust."
"Nonsense!" she snapped. "That was a child!"
The room seed to tremble as a faint rumble echoed around them.
"They deserved death," she growled.
"I would have spoken to the Reaper of Souls myself if I wasn't already overdue."
She exhaled.
"You shouldn't have just killed them. Torture would have been better."
Ryuen laughed nervously, sensing the tension in the air rise to dangerous levels.
The aura surrounding her shifted, becoming sothing darker—sothing murderous.
"Eh... Uhm... Your Highness, there's really nothing we can do about it now," he stamred. "It's already happened."
The Queen snapped her head toward him, her gaze sharp and unforgiving.
"You disappoint , Ryuen. I expected more from an assassin!"
As she spoke, she hurled the journal at him, aiming for his head. He caught it mid-air.
However—
BAM!
Ryuen crashed into the wall hard, though he made no sound.
A faint ringing echoed in his head, one he couldn't ignore.
As he dropped to the ground, his vision blurred.
He blinked several tis, trying to clear it.
'When was the last ti I actually hit my head this hard?
'
"I'm really getting old."
He sighed and glanced at the Queen, who stood nearby, still mumbling incoherent words in anger.
'Hehe, now she gets it.'
Before Ryuen could close his eyes, the Queen grabbed him by the collar and brought him to his feet.
She made sure he was steady before stepping back, a flicker of remorse visible in her gaze.
"Sorry about that," she murmured.
Ryuen smiled faintly. "I understand."
She mirrored his smile, but her expression quickly hardened.
Holding up the journal again, she asked, "She's the reason you started killing, isn't she?"
"Yes," Ryuen admitted.
"Then why did you stop?"
He hesitated, but as the weight of her gaze bore into him—and realizing she already knew—he exhaled deeply.
"My sister."
"Perish that thought and listen to ," she said, her tone commanding.
She stepped closer, and cupped his cheeks.A small, sad smile graced her lips.
"I won't be here to guide you anymore. That's your mother's job. And I would have loved to take it on..."
Her voice trailed off, a hint of regret seeping through. "But my ti is up. So listen carefully."
"Like I said earlier, trust no one. And I an no one—not my family, not your students."
Her voice softened slightly as she added, "The only exceptions are Kenta, Akari, and Yuta."
'Haruka is among?' Ryuen thought, his mind racing.
"Trust none of them," she repeated firmly.
"Keep your guard up at all tis. Find Hiroto. Locate the city where your children live. And look for Akari Gozen."
"Why are you telling this?" Ryuen asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
"You'll find out soon enough." She patted his cheek gently and stepped back.
"Be grateful to the Arbiter, too," she added with a soft chuckle. "
And I'm glad you have my skill."
Her smile lingered as she turned away.
"Take care now. And tell them you ca here to look for clues about how I died."
"How you..."
Ryuen's words were cut off as the Queen suddenly vanished, leaving him standing alone.
Before he could process what had happened, the door to the study slamd open.
Jun marched in, followed by several soldiers holding torches and books taken from the Queen's bedroom.
Jun's brows furrowed as his gaze settled on Ryuen. Suspicion flashed in his eyes, clearly wondering what a mortal like him was doing in the Queen's private chambers at such a late hour.
Before Jun could speak, a scoff escaped Ryuen's lips.
She's actually dead, he realized bitterly.
The weight of the thought settled heavily in his chest, but he quickly masked it.
He tucked the journal into his coat and addressed Jun coldly.
"I ca to do what your incompetent guards and your lazy self couldn't."
With that, he moved past Jun, his focus already shifting to the task ahead.
But just as he reached the door, he paused, turning his head slightly to glance at the prince, with a cold gleam in his eyes.
"Your mother was a remarkable woman," Ryuen said.
"She wasn't killed—no one could have succeeded. You'd know that if you weren't so busy envying a mortal like ."
Jun's jaw tightened, anger simring beneath the surface.
Ryuen chuckled dryly, his smirk sharp and mocking.
"Take it from , tone down your arrogance or change completely. Maybe then you'll find friends who aren't just your sister."
He took a step forward, then stopped to deliver one final jab.
"Tsk. Pathetic. Here I was thinking you'd be better than the last spoiled brat I t."
Satisfied with the provocation, Ryuen sauntered out of the study, a satisfied smile spreading across his lips.
But his thoughts quickly shifted to what waited for him
The raid was set to begin once the sun rose.
Another journey — into another dungeon, one he was certain would demand ti and patience.
And yet, as the night stretched on, Ryuen still heard her voice.
Find Hiroto. Locate the city. Trust no one...
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