The Villain is Too Good at Sniping

96. Mother-Daughter Relationship (2)

Animals that have given birth become ferocious.

You don’t need to look far; even a puppy becomes extremely sensitive when it has puppies. It’s even more so with humans.

“Who are you? Who dares to scatter my daughter’s magical residue all over the place?”

Aidan Stillhaden seemed to have no intention of hiding her own magical power. After years of seclusion, she emerged aggressively to counterattack.

In the process, she destroyed the lodging where I was staying.

I got up from my seat before the ominous magical power engulfed me. If I didn’t get up now, I would be forced to do so by Aidan.

“So… that mask. You’re an Esperand too?”

Aidan didn’t break the door, but the wall of the lodging. The dusty, fog-like appearance of Aidan was terrifying.

The ominous blue magical power that filled the air was about to transform into a magic attack and strike me at any moment.

However, Aidan didn’t attack immediately, probably because of Lara Stillhaden’s safety.

“Let me answer your question first… Yes, I am an Esperand.”

I got up from my seat. Although my whole body was trembling due to Aidan’s killing intent, I couldn’t show it.

The reason I was still alive was that Lara Stillhaden’s whereabouts were unknown.

Aidan, who had been in seclusion in Elysium, probably didn’t know that Lara had enrolled in Arsene, so she must think that Lara’s life was in my hands.

“What did you do to my daughter? Answer me! Esperand…!”

If I answered incorrectly here, I would probably be torn apart and killed. That’s why I didn’t show any emotion.

I was currently wearing a mask, so Aidan couldn’t read my expression. The mask provided by Esperand also had a voice modulation function, which would adjust my trembling voice.

Aidan’s blue eyes resembled a tiger’s. They were filled with a fierce, ominous killing intent.

The first thing I had to say was probably that.

“Don’t worry. Your daughter is still safe.”

“What…?”

“Yes, so please stop that magic. I came here to talk to you.”

It was a clichéd line, but it was precisely because of that that it would be understood quickly.

Aidan gazed at me for a moment. The eerie, pulsating magic emanating from him remained unchanged, but he didn’t take any further action.

However, through my [Observer’s Eye], I could see the flow of Aidan’s magic.

Like air, it wandered and swept through every corner of the room, completing its search. Aidan’s magic was similar to the search-type magic Edel Di Bison had used, but its scale was larger and more refined, visible to my eyes.

“I’ll believe that you came here to talk to me for now.”

Aidan then withdrew his magic.

Aidan must have realized that there were no traps or seals set up in my residence.

“Don’t try any foolish tricks.”

He spread his arms, and the staff hidden in his robe floated up and landed on the ground.

I also summoned a single dagger using ＜Dual Swordsmanship﹥ and lightly pressed it into the table. It was a gesture indicating I wouldn’t attack, as well as an implicit agreement.

“Let me repeat myself: your daughter is safe. You may not know, but she’s currently attending school in Arsen.”

“Are you saying my daughter is in Arsen?”

Before answering, I shrugged my shoulders and projected the screen of my prepared watch into the air.

It was a photo taken during our previous harsh winter survival training.

In the background was the main building of Arsen, and Lara Stillheid and I were standing side by side, wearing our school uniforms.

“My daughter… is indeed… in Arsen.”

Aidan’s words trailed off for a moment. I projected the photo for him to see and then closed the window without warning.

For an instant, a glimmer of surprise appeared in Aidan’s eyes, but that was fine. My goal was to show him that Lara Stillheid was still safe.

“Let me explain my purpose.”

“Go on.”

“Firstly, I have no intention of harming your daughter, Lara Stillheid. I haven’t done so in the past, and I won’t do so in the future.”

Next, I placed the Elfin feather on the table.

This item, which had summoned Aidan, was imbued with Lara Stillheid’s magic. At the same time, it was a clue for Aidan to understand that I had a connection with Lara Stillheid.

“What’s the reason you brought that item if you have no intention of harming my daughter?”

“I thought a photo would be insufficient, so I wanted to show it to you directly.”

“…….”

Even Aidan’s tough expression, which had been maintained until then, momentarily softened. However, his narrowed eyes remained unchanged.

“I came to warn you.”

“You’re warning me, not my daughter? You, an Esperanza member?”

“Rather, that’s why I had to come personally.”

The one in danger wasn’t Lara Stillheid; it was Aidan Stillheid himself, standing before me.

“Esperanza wants to kill you. Perhaps it’s because you’ve offended Professor Bieorn… or rather, Bionel Font Einzburg’s pride.”

Aidan’s eyebrows twitched, as if encouraging me to continue.

“Perhaps you’ve grasped Professor Bieorn’s weakness. You used to work under him at the Ivory Tower, didn’t you?”

Aidan Stillheid was one of the magicians who had worked under Professor Bieorn.

To be precise, he had played a supporting role, assisting Professor Bieorn.

Aidan had entered the Ivory Tower, a place he had longed for, while working under Professor Bieorn, and had even taken a prominent position.

“Entering under that professor’s wing was… my mistake.”

“Perhaps you saw something you shouldn’t have.”

“Even if entering the Ivory Tower was my dream, I shouldn’t have entered under that professor’s wing.”

Still, Aiden didn’t relax, swallowing his saliva. It seemed that his past experience under Professor Vierne’s guidance had transformed into something similar to a curse.

“Yes. You knew Professor Vierne’s secret, so you must have been threatened with assassination every day. There’s no other way to keep a secret but to kill.”

To survive, Aiden had to stay under Professor Vierne’s wing. Now, Aiden was taking on the role of Professor Exion’s assistant.

However, Aiden had escaped from Professor Vierne. In return, Professor Vierne wanted to kill Aiden.

Aiden knew about Professor Vierne’s inhumane deeds in the shadows, and he knew that if he exposed them, it would be a fatal blow to his reputation.

So, Professor Vierne commissioned Einsberg to take out Aiden Stillheid.

…The one who had once been his assistant, Aiden Stillheid, was to be beheaded.

“You must have faced countless assassins and countered them all. You might have wandered around Elysium, hiding and living off scraps.”

All the assassins sent by Einsberg to kill Aiden had been eliminated.

And now, the commission had returned to me. I was different from the assassins who had been searching for Aiden; I was going to let him go.

“There’s no reason for him to stay in Elysium, is there?”

Aiden Stillheid couldn’t die. He couldn’t afford to die.

“You know that if you die, Professor Vierne will reach out to Lara Stillheid.”

“If I die, Professor Vierne’s hands will reach Lara Stillheid.”

The answers were simultaneous.

“Is there any falsehood in what I’ve said so far?”

Aiden chose to go into hiding. He chose endless escape.

To leave a sense of crisis with Professor Vierne, Aiden was secretly gathering power in the shadows, preparing to strike back at Professor Vierne.

“…None.”

A dry answer came back.

Professor Vierne couldn’t reach out to Lara Stillheid. Everything surrounding Stillheid was uncertain.

Aiden revealed himself when I mentioned Lara, but that was only possible because I knew the original setting; it was a method that Professor Vierne couldn’t easily take.

Moreover, Aiden’s father was in a state of uncertainty, and Lara Stillheid was a student who had enrolled in Arsene.

If Professor Vierne carelessly reached out to Lara, he might suffer a counterattack. The power of the authorities was not something to be taken lightly.

If Professor Vierne reached out to Lara, he would have to be prepared to lose his position as a professor.

He would have to give up everything he had built up until now. Professor Vierne wasn’t ready for that yet.

The time when Professor Vierne would prepare himself and extend his true influence to Arsene would be…

When Lara Stillheid defeated the doppelganger that had taken on Aiden’s appearance, and Aiden’s death was announced to the world.

It was an event that would occur in the middle of Act 2, and the doppelganger that was the cause of the event was now dead in my hands. Therefore, this Act 2 would inevitably deviate from the original story’s trajectory.

Just like in Act 1, I wanted to move towards a conclusion where no one dies.

“Who are you, anyway? Who are you to know my daughter and know me?”

I said, looking at Aiden.

“My name is Gallion.”

***

When I met Lara Stillheid sometime ago, I didn’t reveal my real name.

I didn’t want to get entangled with Lara and thought there was no need to reveal my name.

I thought that if I met Lara again, it would be as Sion Illeonhart. And that’s exactly what happened.

In the end, using a pseudonym back then was the right decision.

“Gallion Esperand.”

“…You must be hearing it for the first time. I didn’t have a reason to reveal it until now.”

The assassins of Esperance are replenished every year and die every year. Among them, there are many who operate without a name.

It was the same with Galion’s setting.

“I met Lara Stillhyden on my way to Arsene and even helped her?”

“Yes.”

“Why did you do that? If you’re an assassin of Esperance, shouldn’t you have hurt Lara Stillhyden instead? If you had taken her as a hostage, it would have been easy to lure me out.”

Galion, an assassin who had been active without a name until now.

“I didn’t want to, so I helped her.”

“So, you’re saying you’ll help me?”

“I can’t promise that. I’m just here to warn you.”

Although I didn’t intend to, the conversation was going in a favorable direction.

From noble mtl dot com

I’m an assassin with a grudge against Esperance, so I secretly release my assassination targets.

Even Lara Stillhyden, who might pose a threat in the future, and now Aiden Stillhyden, are the same.

In reality, it’s an impossible setting due to the existence of solitude, but Aiden can’t judge the truth of my story.

You can’t extract information from an Esperance assassin, even if you capture them. It’s because they make a vow within the family.

If I carelessly let my words slip, solitude would react and I would die a miserable death. There’s no assassin in Esperance who would choose such a foolish path.

Now, I’m not revealing Esperance’s secrets, but rather, I’m telling a story that’s been rewritten. Like how one word can change the tone, I’m suppressing solitude’s reaction.

“Perhaps other assassins who come after me will kill you without hesitation. They might be more skilled than me, and maybe even a high-ranking official will come.”

At that time, even if Aiden uses all his strength, it will be difficult to counterattack. At the very least, a mid-level assassin who can handle a magician will be sent.

“So, please hide for just one more year… no, two years. It doesn’t matter where. Just stay within the tower.”

“You mean I should go back to the tower?”

“That’s the safest place, don’t you think?”

The tower is like a diplomatic sanctuary.

The tower in Elysium is flooded with people from all over the continent who want to learn magic, and they’re all from different nationalities.

The tower, which has been troubled by complex diplomatic issues every year, has come up with a simple solution.

In the tower, everyone is equal, and no one can harm each other. That’s the case for both the professors and the students.

The tower is like a neutral zone.

“Even Esperance and Professor Viern can’t interfere with the tower’s affairs. If they did, they would be condemned by the continent.”

Even the emperor, who rules the empire, can’t easily intervene in the tower’s affairs.

That’s why Elysium has been able to possess a powerful military group called the Elysium Defense Army.

Elysium, a paradise and hell for magicians.

Any organization that invades this place will be branded as a continental enemy. The high-ranking magicians working in the tower know this, so they can relax and take their time.

“Just stay in the tower for two years. You can become a janitor, a professor, or anything. Just stay within the tower. That’s enough until the messy situation is resolved.”

“Two years… why?”

Aiden narrowed his eyes. But soon, he seemed to understand my intentions and looked at me.

“You’re thinking of getting rid of Esperance from within, aren’t you?”

“That’s something I can’t answer.”

I didn’t respond. I felt solitude’s warning reaction, telling me not to say any more.

“Just survive until then. After that, you can leave the tower. If you successfully enter the tower, you’ll be able to contact your daughter as well.”

“Galion, you’re… going this far.”

“Even Arsene’s ladies would wish for your safe return. That’s all.”

Idan couldn’t say anything more, but that’s all he could say for now.