The Assassin's Seven Principles of Manipulation

Chapter 287: Chapter 282 — Question

”Malach Sanct Sarakhel, Prime of the northern fortress. Beautiful morning, isn’t it? I do hope you received my little gift in one piece. Well... relatively speaking?”

The voice echoed from seemingly everywhere, blanketing the entire fortress and the plains beyond. It was difficult to pinpoint exactly where it was coming from, but determining the general direction was much easier.

Standing atop the fortress walls, Zephyrion stared toward the forest in the distance.

The voice was coming from there.

Suddenly, a screen materialized in the air, displaying live footage of Tobias and the others being tortured. Their screams rang out from the projection, causing the expressions of several cadets to darken.

Zephyrion could instantly see what Malach was trying to do. Beside him, Kaiden’s teeth ground audibly, while the other head cadets wore equally dark expressions.

”Now, I won’t bore you with a long speech, so let’s get straight to the point,” Malach continued leisurely. ”As of this morning, each of your guardian pillars belongs to us. As does the surrounding forest. My cadets are everywhere—among the trees, behind every corner, watching every path out of that fortress. Anyone foolish enough to step into the forest will be returned looking much like your friends there. Assuming we’re feeling generous enough to return them at all.”

”So, if you haven’t quite put it together yet, allow me to help. You’re surrounded. Completely cornered. And sooner or later, we’ll walk into that fortress and put every last one of you in chains.”

”Before that inevitable little affair, however, I thought I’d offer you all an opportunity to make your lives considerably more pleasant.

He paused slightly, as though deliberately dragging out the tension.

’So that’s how he’s playing it.’

Zephyrion thought, already certain of what was coming next.

”It’s quite simple, really. Whoever brings me your Prime, alone, as a group, I honestly couldn’t care less, bound, stripped naked, and preferably tied with a lovely little bow, will be granted that privilege.” His voice remained almost pleasant.

”You have until dawn tomorrow. Do think carefully. And, of course... may the Iron Father be with us.”

The voice abruptly cut off.

In the suffocating silence that settled over the southern fortress, every eye slowly turned toward Zephyrion.

Then, without so much as a gesture, Lumi stepped forward and stood beside him. Somehow, her previously calm eyes had turned frighteningly cold, her killing intent slowly bleeding into the air as she swept her gaze across the surrounding cadets, the warning in her eyes unmistakable.

From the thousands of cadets surrounding them to the head cadets themselves, no one spoke.

...

As expected, the relationship he’d fostered with the southern cadets had turned out to be rock solid. Several hours had passed since Malach’s declaration, and not a single cadet had so much as looked at him funny.

Still, Zephyrion remained rather relaxed, his expression even calmer than usual. Malach’s threat hadn’t fazed him in the slightest. Aside from being certain of the cadets’ loyalty, even if every cadet in the southern house suddenly decided to come after him, the result was rather obvious to him.

The only reason he hadn’t stormed out of the fortress and attacked the northern house was, admittedly, more due to his ego than anything else at this point.

Malach, to him, seemed like a schemer, the type who believed himself smarter than everyone around him. And Zephyrion could think of no better way to crush someone like that than to beat them at the very thing they believed themselves best at, especially when he was heavily advantaged. Plus, achieving it this way would gain him an astronomical number of Temper points, more than he could ever get from attacking alone.

Though there was no denying that they were currently surrounded and at a severe strategic disadvantage, Zephyrion had already thought of a solution.

He would erase that advantage tonight.

With that matter settled, he turned his attention toward something else.

’She’s still following me.’

Ever since Malach placed that bounty on Zephyrion, Lumi had basically appointed herself his personal bodyguard. A rather cute one, at that, though the coldness in her eyes whenever anyone got too close told an entirely different story.

Glancing back, he sighed as Lumi’s eyes widened and she immediately darted behind the corner of the hallway. A moment later, her head slowly peeked out from the side, only to disappear again the instant she realized Zephyrion was still looking.

Zephyrion shook his head.

’When did I stop knowing what was going through her head?’

Before, she had seemed so easy to predict. Now, though, she felt like a puzzle he simply couldn’t piece together.

After staring for a few moments longer, Zephyrion finally entered his room.

Moments later, Lumi emerged from her hiding spot and approached his door. Her hand reached for the handle, only to pause just before touching it, a complicated expression crossing her face. After a moment, she sighed and slowly lowered her hand.

Just as she was about to resign herself to standing guard outside, someone hurried into the hallway.

She was short and petite, even shorter than Lumi, with a pair of large, oversized glasses perched on her face. She walked quickly yet tensely, her eyes darting around as though she expected danger to leap out from somewhere at any moment. Even the walls didn’t seem entirely above suspicion.

This was Bridget, the same girl who had somehow become Lumi’s close friend within the fortress.

”Lumi! There you are! I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”

Lumi quickly signed.

Why?

”Oh, the girls and I are about to train together. I thought maybe you’d want to come with us...?”

Lumi glanced toward Zephyrion’s door with a complicated look before turning back to Bridget. She shook her head, signing.

Sorry. Busy.

”Ooh, busy.” Bridget’s eyes flicked toward Zephyrion’s door, then back to Lumi. ”Right. Very busy. I understand.”

She gave Lumi a knowing look, nudging her slightly with her elbow before throwing in a wink for good measure.

Lumi stared at her blankly, wondering what exactly she was going on about.

Bridget chuckled and shook her head. Lumi’s cluelessness truly needed to be studied.

”Alright, alright. When you’re done with your very important business, come find us.”

Bridget was about to walk away when Lumi suddenly caught her by the arm. With a troubled look, she quickly signed.

Can I ask you something?

”Of course! Anything.” Bridget paused, then suddenly flushed, her voice dropping to a whisper. ”Wait... is it about how to do... that?”

Lumi’s face immediately scrunched up, her expression practically asking what the hell Bridget was talking about.

Shaking her head, she erected a barrier around them before turning back to Bridget and signing her actual question.

”Is it true that men abandon women for being too clingy...?” Bridget muttered, blinking.

Lumi quickly nodded.

Bridget mulled over the question for a moment before slowly nodding.

”Well... yes? I think?” She scratched her chubby cheek. ”I mean, I’ve never actually had a boyfriend, but I’ve heard men don’t like it when women are too clingy.”

Lumi immediately signed.

Why?

”Why?” Bridget blinked, apparently not having expected to defend her expertise. ”Hmm... something about needing space? Wanting time to themselves? You know, man things.”

She nodded slowly, as though becoming more convinced by her own explanation.

”And apparently some of them like doing the chasing. They don’t want the woman chasing them all the time.”

Then, a moment later, her eyes narrowed suspiciously at Lumi. ”Wait a minute... why are you asking me this? Is this about the Prime?”

Lumi’s expression had already fallen considerably from everything she’d heard, and she suddenly wasn’t in the mood to continue the conversation. She sighed deeply and waved Bridget away.

Bridget gave her one last probing look, clearly reluctant to let the matter go, but eventually turned and left, leaving Lumi alone in the hallway.

Lumi stared at Zephyrion’s door, another heavy sigh escaping her.

However, after a few moments, something seemed to occur to her. The light slowly returned to her eyes, and she clenched her fists, her expression turning resolute.