The Regressed Son of a Duke is an Assassin

For an hour, I aimlessly followed the waterway, periodically checking to ensure we weren’t going in circles. Thankfully, we weren’t. Whoever built this place made it absurdly expansive.

That’s when the thought hit me:

What exactly am I doing here?

Kaeram, who brought me here, had been tight-lipped since our arrival, offering no guidance whatsoever.

The docile elf, Hastia, was gleefully smiling as if on an outing, tightly holding my hand.

Just as I was seriously considering turning back, a fierce sound of water came from ahead, much like that of a waterfall.

I decided to follow the sound.

-Rumble!

Sure enough, there was a waterfall spewing a chilling coldness from the cliffs the canal led to.

It wasn’t very high, but there was a fairly large plaza formed below the waterfall.

It seemed worth checking out just that spot.

If there was nothing special below, I’d return immediately.

I wrapped Hastia’s leg with my arm as she absentmindedly admired the waterfall, causing her to abruptly scream.

‘Going down – Aahh!’

After descending, she gasped, clutching her chest.

“What’s with the gasping?”

Hastia turned to me, her face completely flushed.

‘Because you suddenly embraced me without warning…’

“Then you should’ve said something. That you could go down by yourself.”

‘That’s not what I meant!’

I will never understand this elf race.

Ignoring her as she cooled off, I surveyed the area around the waterfall.

I hadn’t expected much from this place, but there was nothing noteworthy here either.

The waterway ended right beneath the waterfall, with no further paths visible.

“It was a futile effort.”

‘Don’t be disheartened, Cyan! How about we try going back the opposite way?’

The docile elf suggested cheerfully.

Seeing her smile made the corners of my mouth twitch.

“You said you foresaw that I would come to this ruin through a prophecy, right?”

‘Yes, well… That’s right.’

Hastia avoided eye contact as she conveyed her sentiment.

“What did I do after I entered the ruin?”

‘Well? I don’t know about that…’

“Useless…”

‘Oh, please! Don’t say that!’

Finally, Hastia covered my mouth with her hand.

‘It wasn’t precise, but, inside this ruin, Lord Cyan met someone.’

“Met? Who?”

‘I couldn’t see clearly…’

Hastia avoided eye contact again.

As she blushed and twisted her body, I spoke again.

“Useless.”

I coldly peeled off Hastia who almost cried and clung to me.

Just as I was about to climb the cliff again,

-Swoosh!

Suddenly, the flow of the waterfall changed, making a roaring sound.

At the same time, a massive presence of some unknown creature was felt in the water.

I immediately held Hastia and moved away from the waterfall.

Soon, the water of the waterfall surged forward, and white foam and swirls erupted from the pool.

“Kekekekeke!”

A disturbing laugh filled the space as a huge head emerged from the waterfall.

Intense blue scales, gleaming eyes, and a long body without limbs—the true form of a snake.

The snake, with its red eyes bright, opened its mouth wide towards me.

Its wriggling tongue and dozens of teeth, all sharp as spikes, were visible.

After spotting the creature, I first climbed back up the cliff above the waterfall with Hastia.

“What is that?”

‘It’s the Relic Serpent, the guardian of the ruin! It must consider us intruders!’

Typical of a goddess’s ruin to have all sorts of things.

The serpent, hidden in the water, quickly climbed up the waterfall back to where we were.

“Stay behind me!”

I hurriedly sent Hastia out of the waterway, then jumped towards the waterfall.

At the same time, I drew Kaeram and swung my sword energy a couple of times.

However, the sword energy cut through the water currents instead of the serpent.

-Splash!

Despite its bulky size, the creature was unexpectedly fast.

At that moment, a thick tail slipped out from between the waterfall’s rocks, hurtling towards my face.

-Clang!

It felt like I was parrying a hefty greatsword, not a tail.

The serpent’s face then reappeared from the water.

“Do not defile the Goddess’s ruins, impure being…”

A majestic voice surrounding the ruins echoed in my ears.

The moment I heard that voice, I was struck with a fresh shock.

I had never thought that a serpent could speak.

At the same time,

“So, you’re the guardian of the ruins?”

The corners of my mouth rose to my ears.

“I’m glad I met you.”

Using a nearby wall as a springboard, I leaped towards the serpent.

The serpent quickly dunked its head back into the water, trying to hide.

But this time, I wouldn’t miss.

Without hesitation, I plunged into the waterfall after the serpent.

The water was so bitterly cold it felt like my blood could freeze at any moment.

If I stopped swimming for even a second, my limbs would freeze solid.

Seeing this, the serpent opened its mouth again in the water.

“Foolish! How dare a mere human immerse themselves in the Goddess’s holy water! You’ll self-destruct even if I don’t devour you!”

This serpent still didn’t grasp the situation.

Then, a black mist emerged from my bosom and spread around me.

-Ssssss

Soon, Kaeram materialized around my shoulders, giving the serpent a mischievous smile.

[Hello! Haven’t we met before?]

The serpent’s face twisted unpleasantly.

“De- demonic sword Kaeram? Why are you here?”

While they exchanged words only they understood,

-Crack

I took advantage of this distraction and grabbed the horn on the serpent’s head.

The serpent writhed in an attempt to shake me off.

I thrust my sword into the scales that sprouted around its horn to calm it down.

“Screech!”

The serpent screamed and thrashed more violently.

The agitation heated the water around us, allowing me more freedom of movement.

Looking down at the serpent’s slightly opened eyes, I said,

“Since it’s hard to control my strength underwater, endure it on your own.”

I would stab only enough not to kill.

The water of the blue waterfall gradually turned red.

* * *

Hestia, thrown above the waterfall by Cyan, grew increasingly tormented as she watched the waterways turn redder with time.

No sound could escape, nor could she transmit her thoughts, adding to her immense frustration.

Eventually, unable to wait any longer, Hastia scaled the cliffs directly, reaching the base once more.

In the pool that Cyan and the Relic Serpent had fallen into, only unidentifiable bubbles surfaced, with no sign of the two emerging.

-Koogooogoo!

Suddenly, the flow of the waterfall changed again, sending vibrations around.

As Hastia quickly retreated, the Relic Serpent burst out of the water with a thunderous roar.

“Kieeeek!”

It was more of a scream than a roar.

Caught off guard, Hastia was soaked by the water dripping from the serpent’s body.

However, there was no sign of Cyan.

After a fierce round of screaming, the serpent eventually fell, planting its face into the ground.

-Kung!

Dozens of cut marks adorned its horned crown, from which blood incessantly streamed.

The groaning coming from its mouth, with its tongue hanging out, suggested it was not dead yet.

-Chwak!

Then, Cyan emerged from the water, a chill emanating from him.

Blood dripped from Kaeram’s blade, which he held in his hand.

“Master Cyan!”

Rushing over, Hastia received no acknowledgment from Cyan as he forcefully kicked the downed serpent’s head.

“Kieek!”

The serpent flinched, and Cyan grabbed its snout and kicked it again.

“You’re not dead, get up.”

“Aaaah… Maaa…”

Feeling pity, Hastia gently tapped the serpent’s scales.

Cyan, confronting the awakened serpent, pressed the blade to its eyes and asked,

“Do you live here?”

“No, not living! I’m just always on standby guarding the goddess’s relics…”

“That’s living. Can’t you answer properly?”

As Cyan raised Kaeram, the serpent flinched again.

“I didn’t come here to cause trouble, so just answer the questions politely. Then you won’t get hurt.”

“What do you wish to know?”

“Has anyone else been here recently, besides us?”

Serpent hesitated to answer.

Cyan picked up Kaeram again.

“Do you want me to ask you twice?”

“Yes, there was someone! But I didn’t see them! They crossed the Bridge of Purity and went over to the other side of the canal!”

“The Bridge of Purity?”

Hastia, who had suddenly taken my hand, answered.

‘It must be the bridge that Lord Cyan couldn’t cross just before!’

Then she showed me a strand of hair.

‘I didn’t mention it earlier, but I found this on the bridge. No one from our clan has this dark shade of hair. Could it belong to a human like Lord Cyan?’

It definitely wasn’t my hair.

The length of it, reaching down to the buttocks in navy blue, suggested it was likely from a woman.

I pushed the hair towards Serpent and asked.

“Is the owner of this hair still here?”

“That- that is…”

Seeing him hesitate again, it seemed he still hadn’t learned his lesson.

Just as I was about to teach him again by lifting my sword,

“Stop tormenting the innocent guardian.”

A strange voice came from above the waterfall.

I immediately turned my head.

A tall woman with long, white hair similar to that of a White Elf appeared.

The woman, with her arms crossed, tilted her head and asked.

“It doesn’t seem like Elphyris gave you the location, so how did you get in here?”

I delayed responding and looked her up and down.

Curved horns on either side of her head and a tail protruding from beneath her skirt, her body was neither human nor elf.

Hastia, still holding my hand, finally cried out with realization.

‘Lady Marian!’

The guardian of Pruina, and one of the continent’s few pure-blooded dragons.

She appeared before me, her form unlike any human I had ever seen in my previous life.

She stared intently at my unresponsive face before tilting her head slightly.

“I’ve never seen your face before, yet you look at me as if you know me. Your eyes show familiarity.”

Her deep gaze held a mystique utterly different from the dragons I had slain near the Academy.

Hastia, standing before me, bowed deeply to Marian.

“Hastia? What brings you here again?”

Hastia merely alternated her gaze between Marian and me, conveying no response to either of us.

Marian’s scrutinizing eyes finally settled on my right hand.

“A magic sword?”

Upon seeing Kaeram, her pupils sharpened with a fierce light.

“Yes, it’s you. The new heir to the Black Mist…”

Her voice held a chilling menace, despite the intrigue it conveyed.

But the presence of a dragon wouldn’t make me bow my head.

Instead, I straightened my neck and stared back at her.

“Ah, truly fearless like your master. Humans would call this audacity…”

She pointed precisely at my throat with her finger and flicked it downward.

“Perhaps you should grasp the situation? You are like an impurity, sullying the space of the Water Goddess.”

Suddenly, the air around us grew heavy and pressed down on my body.

I quickly regained my balance, alerted by the sensation.

-Ssssss

A whisper of mist rose softly from within my clothes and brushed past my ear.

[Master.]

Kaeram’s whisper echoed in my mind, its tone distinctly colder than when we fought the Relic Serpent.

[I brought you here to this ruin for a reason.]

A slight tremor traveled from the body of Kaeram in my hand, as if it couldn’t contain its emotions.

[Kill her.]

(To be continued)