In My Second Life, I Rule from the Shadows

Chapter 47: Six (2)

“Good work.”

Ninth Lord gave a polite bow toward Six.

Upon receiving the message that the cleanup of this area was complete, she had immediately arrived with her subordinates.

Erasing the traces of battle and taking the remaining spoils was their job.

“Make sure not to miss a single thing.”

At her command, her subordinates scattered, either searching the inside of the building thoroughly or beginning the cleanup.

A long tail would always be stepped on eventually.

But NOX had always wrapped things up perfectly, and so far, their movements had never been exposed to anyone.

That had been one of the principles Karl had engraved into their minds from the moment he built NOX, modeling it after Killing Veil’s methods.

“Ninth Lord always seems busy.”

“Since I’m not from the combat division, I try to assist you all from behind the scenes.”

“I get the feeling you’d fight well too.”

“……”

At Six’s remark, Ninth Lord gave a faint smile.

“Thanks to you handling things so cleanly this time, it seems my work will be much lighter.”

“This is clean? I got a little carried away trying to imitate art poorly.”

With an awkward expression, Six glanced around the room.

There wasn’t a single spot free from blood.

Blood splattered in all directions, severed body parts scattered about, and even fragments of spilled entrails.

It would be a pain to clean up, but Ninth Lord only gave a wry smile and shook her head.

“As long as the building and structure aren’t damaged, I couldn’t be more satisfied. Second often smashes buildings to pieces.”

“Haha, if it’s Second, I can believe that.”

“We’ll return after finishing the cleanup here. You must be tired, so you should head back.”

“Then I’ll leave it to you. Oh, is everything fine on that side?”

“Yes. Dirsen’s brainwashing is working perfectly. His range of actions is already under our control. As long as the plan proceeds smoothly, we’ll be able to secure Lahan without difficulty.”

The base power held by Dirsen and Turgar was roughly equal in scale.

But in terms of the quality of its members, Turgar’s side had the advantage.

As a former second-in-command of Lahan, he had many elite subordinates who followed him.

Dirsen, as the boss’s son and successor, also had a fair share of supporters, but compared to Turgar, who had worked extensively in practical operations, he inevitably fell short.

That was why they aimed to pull NOX into their hands.

Though the shape of it had turned out a little differently, in the end NOX was intervening to tip the balance toward their side.

“We plan to cut off Turgar’s cooperating organizations one by one, and spread rumors that NOX is behind it. That should instantly sway the opinion of those who are neutral or hesitant. We’re also making secret contact with members on Turgar’s side.”

“……You’re busy.”

“It’s work that must be done.”

Seeing her speak as if it were nothing special, Six gave a wry smile.

Perhaps the busiest person in NOX—aside from the Master and the Queen—was Ninth Lord.

“Then I’ll be heading ba—”

Just as he was about to take his leave, Six’s head snapped to the side.

A moment later, Ninth Lord’s eyes widened as well, and both turned toward the same spot outside the window.

On the rooftop of the building across the way.

Beneath the broken moon hanging in the night sky, the empty rooftop greeted them.

No one was in sight where their gaze landed, but Six’s expression hardened.

“……It wouldn’t be good for our movements to be exposed right now, would it?”

“No. For the sake of the plan, we must remain completely hidden.”

“Understood. Then I’ll leave the cleanup to you.”

“Should I call for support?”

Standing at the window, Six seemed to consider it for a moment before shaking his head.

“It’s unlikely they know this is NOX. If I can take care of it myself, I’ll try.”

He didn’t wait for an answer.

Pushing off from the window frame, Six sprinted across the rooftops of the city, cutting through the cool darkness of the deep night.

‘Where are you?’

With narrowed eyes, he scanned the blackened horizon.

Far away, he sensed a faint presence.

The opponent’s movements were so stealthy that he had to focus his awareness to detect them.

‘I’d better hurry.’

If they reached a hideout or slipped into a “flick” location, even for him, rooting them out would be difficult.

So he accelerated, pounding across the rooftops in pursuit.

“……”

It didn’t take long for him to close the distance.

The target glanced back at the Six following closely behind, then suddenly changed direction, leaping downward.

Below them lay a small vacant lot.

‘Trying to shake the tail?’

Six narrowed his eyes and followed, landing on the ground.

Shaaak!

The instant his feet touched the ground, a sharp trajectory came at him.

Leaning back, Six saw a long shadow slice through the space above him.

‘A spear?’

He was sure they’d been empty-handed a moment ago.

Guessing it to be a weapon with artifact functionality, Six heightened his vigilance.

Shrrrk!

As he spread his fingers wide, countless thin threads shot out, instantly filling the vacant lot.

Six’s stage could be not only indoors, but also such confined outdoor spaces.

Whish!

Some of the threads wound around the spear shaft and yanked it upward with great force.

Even a skilled opponent would be flustered by such an unexpected attack.

Six watched closely, ready to seize the opening.

Fwip.

But the opponent’s reaction went beyond his expectations.

Instead of resisting or stopping, they pushed off the ground, going along with the pull on the spear to launch themselves upward.

‘Tch.’

When the tension in the threads loosened, their power inevitably lessened.

Using that slack, the opponent sought to regain control of the spear and began cutting through the threads binding it.

Slash!

Though the threads weren’t easy to cut, Six didn’t gamble recklessly.

He swiftly released the threads from the spear shaft, freeing the opponent.

Tap.

And so, Six came face-to-face with the opponent, who stood not far away.

‘A skilled spear-user. About a head shorter than me, and with their whole body covered—hard to tell the gender.’

It was frustrating how little information he could gather.

The fact they used a spear was a big clue, but unfortunately, no one in his known list matched it.

That was why he lowered his hands and decided to ask frankly.

“Could you tell me the reason you were watching us?”

“……”

As expected, there was no reply.

‘Hmm.’

Six narrowed his brow.

It would have been good if he could at least hear their voice.

Even the faintest trace of hostility or emotion in a voice could be a valuable hint.

But with them only aiming their spear in silence, it was nothing but frustrating.

‘Well, I’ll know once I capture them.’

They were skilled, but not to the point of being overwhelming.

If he was willing to take on a small amount of risk, capturing them wouldn’t be hard.

Shrrrk!

Once again, Six spread his threads across the vacant lot, clasping his hands together before his chest with a smile.

“I wonder what kind of music you like.”

Tung.

With a flick of his fingers, the threads vibrated like the strings of an instrument, producing a small sound.

At the same time, the amplified vibrations traveled along the threads, soon producing a sharp sonic burst.

Shaaak!

An invisible slash targeted the opponent.

It was an attack from a blind spot, but they swung their spear wide, dispersing it.

Six, however, lifted his head without the slightest concern.

“Then I’ll begin with one of my favorite pieces.”

Tung. Tudung. Tung. Tung.

The threads plucked in succession, producing a strange, melodic tune.

At the same time, a relentless barrage of massive invisible slashes rained down from every direction.

Kang! Kang!

The opponent, unwilling to be taken down so easily, showed sharp movements, deflecting the unseen blades and trying to counterattack Six.

But this vacant lot was already Six’s stage.

“……!”

As the force of the attacks intensified, the clothing that covered the opponent from head to toe began to tear.

Just as fluttering scraps of cloth danced in the air, they tightened their grip on the spear shaft—

Fwip!

The loose threads lying around their feet suddenly went taut.

The sudden binding of their limbs rendered them helpless.

Like prey caught in a spider’s web, they dangled in the center of the lot.

“Hm.”

Like a musician concluding a performance, Six gave a polite and graceful bow.

“Then, let’s start by removing that mask.”

“……”

The commotion would soon draw people’s attention.

Already, in the midst of the once-quiet city, he could sense a growing restlessness.

That was why he quickly stepped toward the opponent—

And the atmosphere of the air changed.

Saaaah—

An eerie, cold flame tinged with blue rose from the opponent’s entire body.

At the same time, the threads binding them began to melt strand by strand.

Drop, snap.

It was a truly shocking sight for Six.

Ever since mastering the technique taught to him by the Master, nothing had ever broken his threads.

Thud.

The figure landed on the ground.

The aura emanating from them as they gripped their spear now brimmed with a ferocity incomparably greater than before.

‘This is dangerous.’

An alarm rang in his head.

He intended to retreat—

But in the blink of an eye, their figure vanished from sight.

“……Kgh!”

He pushed off the ground, leaping back.

Even as he tried to counter with his remaining threads, a heavy impact slammed into his back.

Clang—!

With the sound of metal striking metal, Six’s body rolled helplessly across the ground.

Catching himself by hooking threads onto a nearby tree, he spat blood and quickly rose to his feet.

…That last blow had rattled him inside.

He was fortunate to have given up on counterattacking and instead defended himself—had he been a moment slower, the strike would have cleaved him in two.

‘This won’t do.’

Now wasn’t the time to worry about hiding his identity.

It was kill or be killed.

He never thought the moment to bloom the final flower of his art would come so soon.

‘Still, if it’s to nourish NOX…’

He would gladly become the root of even a wild weed.

It was his way of repaying the only person in this world who truly understood him.

Swoosh!

The opponent’s figure vanished again.

Unable to even track their traces now, Six prepared to unleash an indiscriminate attack in all directions—

Thud!

A shockwave exploded so close it lifted his body into the air.

At the same time, the opponent who had been charging toward him was blasted backward, retreating to the rear.

Six’s eyes widened at the appearance of the new figure standing before him.

“……I’m not late, am I?”

“You came at just the right time.”

Second.

Among the Black Label members, excluding the King, Queen, Jack, and Ace, she was the strongest after X—and she had personally arrived as reinforcements.

Saaaaah—

The blue flames grew thicker.

The opponent’s murderous aura spiked explosively, as if intent on taking down both Second and Six together.

“Wow, this won’t be easy. Where did this guy even come from?”

Second let out a dry laugh, clenching her fists and adopting a stance for a straight punch.

‘Even if it’s fire, I just have to smash it.’

The tension rose to its absolute peak.

Just as their auras clashed in sharp opposition—

Ssshh…

The opponent extinguished the blazing flames and turned away.

Glancing back at them, it was as if they were saying, “Follow me if you think you can.”

“What a brat.”

Clicking her tongue, Second watched them vanish without a trace.

“Let’s go too. This just got annoying.”

“……My apologies.”

“A variable is called a variable because it can’t be predicted. Just be satisfied with this much.”

Even as Six leaned on Second for support, he kept his gaze fixed in the direction their opponent had gone.

‘Someday.’

Someday, he vowed, he would drape his art over that flame.