Infinite Skill Devourer
Chapter 62: Revenge Or Forgiveness IV

Chapter 62: Revenge Or Forgiveness IV

Jun let out a strained chuckle. "What crystal?"

"The one I stole from the queen for you," she replied flatly and reached for another pen. "Don’t tell me you forgot about that too."

"I have made use of it, and besides, that was years—"

Another pen.

This one sank into his shoulder, now getting a hiss out of him.

"You’re running out of limbs," she said ever so sweetly, with a smile on her lips that didn’t seem to reach her eyes.

Jun’s breathing was ragged now, his body trembling as pain moved through him like blood.

Ryuen, who was done searching, finally turned his attention back to Jun and Yurei. "I have a better question."

Jun barely lifted his head.

Ryuen crouched down, meeting his gaze, then he smiled.

"How long have you planned to kill me?"

Silence.

Yurei sighed.

Another pen.

This one lodged itself between Jun’s ribs, sending another wave of pain through his body.

His body convulsed, and he coughed violently, blood dripping from his lips—just the same as when Ryuen had been stabbed.

He struggled to speak, but his voice was barely a whisper.

"Since the moment I met you."

Ryuen’s smirk vanished.

"Interesting. And you managed to lure Aika, Althea, and Erina as well."

"Your student actually gave us the go-ahead we needed," Jun whispered, seeking justification for his deeds, but Ryuen scoffed.

"I’ve already handled her."

He straightened up, and at the same time, a cool wind swept into the room in the form of a mist.

Yuki Onna materialized from it. She was supposed to be smiling—or maybe annoyed.

But this time, there was something different.

She was holding a map in one hand.

And in the other—

A chunk of Haruka’s hair, blood still dripping from the strands, with blood splattered on her clothes.

Her blue eyes met Ryuen’s.

"We have a problem," she said. "I handled the human girl, but they figured it out too early."

"Two Elves, two Kitsune, behind them an army of elves alone. And your students are part of it."

Ryuen’s brow rose. "Akari?"

"No, I didn’t find the girl. She’s probably in a room in the palace."

"Kenta and Yuta?"

"Yes."

"Do they know I am the one here?"

She shook her head and tossed the chunk of hair aside, then raised the map to his face.

"They somehow managed to figure out I am here," she explained and laughed nervously.

Ryuen sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "You’re really not as scary as you seem."

"Eh?"

"Who is she?" Yurei asked, her brows raised, one hand placed on Jun’s head, the other holding a pen under his jaw.

"Another friend?"

"Yes, you could say that," Ryuen replied and pushed his hands into his hair.

"I didn’t plan on fighting the entire kingdom. We’re going to start a war at this rate."

"I can handle it," Yuki chipped in, still holding up the map. "They are marching in from the other side of the palace, where the oak trees are."

"I can appear there and make it seem like I just appeared out of nowhere?"

"No," Ryuen uttered. "I don’t want you to hurt the royals, and my students are included."

Yurei chuckled softly. "I might as well help out too. It’s not my revenge, but I could divide the army."

"I’ll get you your students and the princesses, and you will get me a way to the palace treasury."

Ryuen clasped his palms together and smiled. "Alright, I trust you two. I’ll see if I can call Daiki to help us out."

"Daiki?" Yuki repeated, tilting her head to the side. "This Daiki is a human too, right?"

Ryuen nodded nonchalantly, still lost in thought, when she pointed at a far corner of the room.

His brow rose at first, but when he focused on the energy in the room, he frowned and crossed his arms.

"I thought you said you weren’t going to get involved. What changed?"

Daiki’s laughter echoed through the room as he phased out of the wall, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword.

"I saw how much fun you were having, so... I alerted the army and decided to join in."

"Tch."

"What is wrong with you?!" Ryuen asked, almost raising his voice, when Yurei’s hand landed on his shoulder.

"He’s not a fan of sneaking around, Ryuen," she said, casting a glare at Daiki, who averted his gaze from her and moved it to Jun.

In the blink of an eye, with a slight pull of his sword, Jun’s head rolled to the ground near Yurei’s feet.

She stared at the lifeless head in silence, boredom laced in her eyes.

Ryuen glared hard at Daiki, feeling some kind of anger rising inside him, but he just exhaled.

"You are insane."

The room fell silent, save for the slow drip of blood pooling beneath Jun’s severed head.

Yuki Onna tapped her fingers against the rolled-up map, her gaze moved between Daiki and Ryuen.

"Well, that escalated quickly," she suddenly said, not particularly surprised by Daiki’s recklessness.

Ryuen exhaled sharply. He rubbed his temples out of frustration and dropped his hands.

"You’ve got no self-control," he uttered as he stepped over the corpse and made his way towards the open doors.

His fingers flexed, summoning his twin daggers into his hands, already prepared for a surprise attack.

"Fine. Let’s adjust our plan. We can’t sneak through anymore, thanks to someone."

Daiki grinned and placed his sword on his shoulder. "No need to thank me. We were bound to fight them anyway."

Yurei took another slow sip of her now lukewarm coffee.

She hadn’t moved from her spot, but she wasn’t shocked—just pissed.

She was supposed to be the one to kill Jun, not Daiki, and now she had lost that chance.

With a flex of her wrist, she exhaled and turned around, ready to leave.

"I’ll stay inside the palace, the throne room to be precise," she said with a small smile and walked past Ryuen.

She then paused by his side and raised her head to look at him. "You’re holding back. You could have done worse than Daiki did, but you stopped."

"And I know you also left Haruka alive for that spirit to handle."

He shrugged and slid his hands into his pockets. "I don’t see how that is an issue."

"You’re an assassin. Empathy and pity should be the last things you feel."

"And I am a human. So are you. Don’t let these other races change who you truly are."

He whispered back, causing her eyes to slightly widen, but she turned away with a scoff.

"If it makes you both feel better, I can’t feel anything," Daiki chipped in with a grin, only to get kicked in the knee by Yuki.

Yurei heaved a sigh. She finally decided to agree with Ryuen—at least for the meantime.

She then moved and said, "I’ll stay in to look for the girl and see if anyone tries to come in."

"Try not to kill anyone important," Ryuen called after her.

"No promises!"