Chapter 78: Night of the two Moons
“Do you think we’ll see a shooting star tonight?” Lillian asked, her eyes sparkling with childlike wonder.
“Maybe, the sky is pretty clear tonight, so who knows,” Lily replied, swaying her feet off the edge of their makeshift seats.
Right now, the two of them were relaxing by the fountain side of the city square in the commercial district after their successful hunt.
Due to the target being weaker than expected, they had a lot of free time on their hands than anticipated, allowing them to unwind and enjoy the nightlife of the academy.
“There sure are a lot of students, sis,” Lillian commented as she looked at groups of students gathering, drinking, and playing among the festival-like vibe of the crowd.
“Well, they’re mostly seniors who are about to graduate soon, so this kind of thing is natural,” Lily responded.
“Is that so?” Lillian said with skeptical eyes as she watched the students drinking. No matter how she looked at it, weren’t they just abusing the privileges they had?
“Oh yeah, sis, since we’ve got quite the budget now, why don’t we buy new dresses tomorrow?” Lillian suggested, her eyes gleaming with excitement.
“Do you really want to waste our money on useless stuff like that?” Lily replied, a touch of annoyance in her voice.
“Oh, come on! I know you would like one as well. We’ve been stuck buying equipment and assassination tools all this time. Shouldn’t we at least buy something for ourselves this time? Who knows, we might even snatch a random rich boy out there, right? Hehehe~”
“Don’t ‘hehehe~’ me. What use does a boy have in our life anyway? And besides, the thing about clothes can be done later. You know we’re running out of supplies for your paralytic poison, right? We need to save up for that.”
“Eh~ We can just earn a bit more money from accepting offers from other clients, right? That amount of money can be made in a jiffy! And new clothes are important for girls our age, you know! I mean, didn’t you say you want to date a tall and handsome young nobleman one day? How are you going to do that when we’re basically using the same dress over and over again?”
Lily sighed heavily as she looked at her little sister with a raised brow.
Since when did her little sis start to get interested in the opposite sex?
Ever since they were young, they had always been together, so she had always known more things about Lillian than Lillian herself.
But this time, listening to her sister speak about dresses and men made Lily stiffen for a bit as worry gnawed at her heart.
She knew they were already at that age to get interested in that stuff, and even she herself couldn’t deny that she had been thinking about it as well.
But for her, it was more of a “what if” situation—a fiction.
A life full of happiness and love could never happen to the two of them, who were already in the depths of the shadows of the world.
Finding a man wasn’t exactly forbidden, but for better or worse, it would be best if they did not engage in such notions.
“Lillian, you know we can’t engage in a relationship, right?” Lily reprimanded. Being conscious of a man was one thing, but being interested was another
Lillian looked at her sister with a mix of confusion and defiance. “Why not, sis?”
“We’re assassins…… you know the price for playing such a role in this world Lillian”
Lillian looked like she wanted to rebuke her sister’s words but just shook her head instead and sipped heavily on her blue lemonade juice.
After all, her sister was right about all of it.
Being stubborn now would only lead to them fighting. After drinking all of it in one fell swoop, she looked at her sister once more as her mind cooled down.
“…Can’t we at least buy the dress?” she said with begging eyes.
Seeing this, Lily sighed once more before nodding her head reluctantly. “Fine…but just make sure we don’t go over budget, okay?”
“Hehe~ you’re the best, sis!”
“S-stop hugging me so tightly! My drink’s going to spill.”
“Hehe, no way!” Hugging Lily even more tightly, Lillian giggled as she watched her sister’s embarrassed reaction. No matter how many times she had seen it, her big sis always had the best reaction whenever she was trying to be nice or honest.
“Alright, alright, you win,” Lily said, trying to sound exasperated but failing to hide her own smile. She gently pushed Lillian away, careful not to spill her drink. “Just don’t make a habit of it, okay?”
Lillian grinned widely. “Promise! I’ll find the perfect dress, and it won’t cost too much. You’ll see!”
“Haa~ how I wish your dreams will come true, sis,” Lillian sighed wistfully.
“What dreams?” Lily asked, raising an eyebrow.
“You know, your dream about marrying a tall and handsome nobleman.”
“Okay, first of all, that is not a dream of mine. You’ve probably mistaken your own words for mine. And second of all, something like that is too unlikely to happen. There’s no way a tall and handsome nobleman would ever get intereste—”
“Lily and Lillian, am I correct?”
A man’s voice cut off her words. The twins slowly turned around, their expressions shifting from playful banter to guarded caution.
Standing before them was a handsome young man, his gaze serious and intense.
“Riley?”
The twins spoke in unison, quickly realizing who he was. Riley was a celebrity in the academy, often seen walking hand in hand with the famous Seo Gyeoul, and just a while ago Rose Brilliance herself as well.
He was a well know young student among there peers growing even more infamous due to his mysterious relationship with Princess Snow, alongside other well-known female students of the academy as well.
“It looks like I don’t have to introduce myself,” Riley said with a slight smile.
“What do you want?” Lily asked sharply. Despite Riley’s seemingly relaxed stance, she could feel an unsettling threat emanating from him.
As classmates, she knew Riley was one of the most special and mysterious students, with significant connections to important people in the academy.
Lily had always thought their paths would never cross directly, considering his prestige and power.
Yet here he was, standing in front of them, seemingly wanting something from them.
“Please don’t be so wary. I mean no harm.” Riley glanced around, ensuring they weren’t being overheard.
“I have a proposition for you, one that I believe you’ll find very interesting.”
Lily and Lillian exchanged a look, silently communicating their shared caution. Lillian’s curiosity got the better of her first.
“What kind of proposition?” Lily asked, her voice edged with caution.
“Karaka’s dagger…. Are you perhaps interested in knowing its location?” Riley said with a gentle smile.
But the reaction from the two in front of him was anything but gentle.
Their eyes darkened into a crimson red reminiscent of freshly woven blood, and their bodies moved like a blur.
Black daggers materialized in their hands, poised inches away from his heart, neck, and head.
“Who are you?” Lily demanded; her voice deadly serious as the aura emanating from her blade threatened to sever Riley’s neck.
“How do you have information about Master’s legacy?” Lillian added, her voice equally menacing.
“Speak before we cut your head off.”
Despite the lethal threat, a subtle smile escaped Riley’s lips.
His blue eyes scanned the twin assassins with intrigue.
….
Well, I did expect this, but… ‘fuck, it’s scary!’
I know I said something very sensitive to the two of them, but threatening me with my life just because of it is a bit too rash, right?
Looking at their serious gazes, I know they aren’t kidding right now. Classmate or not, strong or not, if it’s for their master, they would gladly die because of it.
I’ve thought up a lot of ways of gaining their attention and making sure they’ll join me on this sub quest, but boy, did I surely get their attention. The intense feeling of bloodlust emanated in the air, and my senses were now on high alert.
In the game, it was mentioned that the two had the presence of veteran assassins whose bloodlust itself could render a tiger immobile due to the fear of death.
‘Those game descriptions weren’t kidding at all.’
I could feel the intensity and threat the two had just by them looking straight at me.
One wrong move and one wrong answer could literally send my head flying.
I took a deep breath, maintaining my calm exterior despite the turmoil inside.
If there was one thing, I learned about the two of them from their extra routes in the DLC, it’s that they don’t take anything about their master lightly.
You must maintain a serious approach if you even want to mention the word “Karaka” in their presence. That’s how important their master was to them.
I’m just glad that time dilation has an automatic effect… because I don’t know when I’ll lose my head in this situation.
Calming my breath, I scanned the two once more. “Riley Hell, that is my name. I believe you already know that, no?”
“Hey, do you want to die…?” Lily snarled at me like a rabid dog.
Her intensity made it clear she thought I was joking, but I was deadly serious.
“Speak. Who are you truly? Who brought you here? Why do you know about our master’s legacy? And why did you approach us?” Lillian’s voice, coming from behind me, carried a lethal edge. She was ready to end me if I messed up again.
Sigh… even though they were supposed to be professional assassins, they were quite impulsive with their emotions, weren’t they?
Even if they asked me who I really am and who brought me here, I couldn’t answer them honestly. I was just Riley, and no one brought me here but myself. And even if I wanted to, it’s not like I could just tell them I learned all about this in a game.
At the end of the day….
“Does it really matter?
“What?”
“Lily and Lillian, the last two assassins of the infamous assassin guild Red Mist… I thought somebody of your status knew about an assassin’s custom, no?”
Wasn’t secrecy and privacy Assassin Rules 101 for them?
“Huh?”
“Haven’t I said it already? I’m here to commission you two. Help me, and I shall give you the location of your master’s legacy.”
“Again, why the hell should we—”
“Because the both of you will die right here,” I said, raising the mana surrounding my body.
“Is that a threat?”
“No…”
But it might be if they ever go on that route and try to kill me.
I’ll have no choice but to defend myself.
Even though they were at point-blank range right now, and I was at a clear disadvantage, I didn’t feel like losing.
With time dilation on my side and a few other tricks up my sleeve, I knew I could win.
Lily’s eyes widened slightly as she felt the shift in mana, a silent acknowledgment of the power I held.
Lillian’s grip on her dagger tightened, her eyes narrowing as she assessed the situation.
The tension in the air was palpable, each second stretching out as we stood in a silent standoff.
“Why should we believe you?” Lillian finally asked, her voice steady but tinged with caution.
“Because I have nothing to gain from lying to you,” I replied. “And everything to gain from your cooperation. Look, I understand your skepticism. Your master’s legacy is crucial to you, and trusting a stranger isn’t easy. But think about it—if I’m willing to risk my life approaching you with this information, doesn’t that say something about my sincerity?”
Taking out a pouch of gems from my pocket, I held it out cautiously and calmly to Lily, aiming not to provoke them any further.
“100,000 gems… and a hundred more if you complete the mission successfully. Interested now?”
Lily studied the pouch with cautious eyes, her expression betraying a mix of curiosity and wariness at my confidence.
Glancing at her sister, they exchanged a silent conversation. After a tense moment, Lily lowered her dagger, though her defensive stance remained intact.
“Fine… But you’ll have to explain to us why you know about our master…” she demanded; her tone resolute.
“Sure…” I replied, though uncertain how much I could reveal.
“What do you want us to do?” Lillian asked, her voice calm yet tinged with suspicion.
“I just need your help with a little dungeon that’s about to pop up tonight…”
