The Return of the Iron-blood Sword Hound
chapter-282

Chapter 282: Something Money Can’t Buy (4)

A few days later. Vikir, wearing the mask of the Night Hound, visited Damian’s mansion once again.

“I’m glad it seems like we’ve become a team.”

This time, Dolores was with him.

Vikir had planned to introduce Dolores while seeking Damian’s cooperation.

Though Damian’s mansion security was still strict, there was an area without guards, as agreed upon in advance.

Vikir took Dolores and followed that route.

Finally, after passing through several gates, they arrived at a high wall at the end.

While Dolores was contemplating what to do in front of the tall wall,

“Come here.”

“…Huh!?”

Vikir lifted Dolores in his arms in a princess carry and effortlessly leaped over the wall.

…Thud!

Vikir, who had landed in the courtyard, finally put Dolores down beside him.

“Whoa… Did you already jump over?”

“?”

“Oh, no! I just spoke nonsense!”

Blushing, Dolores hid her reddened ears with her hair and waved it off as if it were nothing.

At that moment,

“The garden offers a nice scenery for a date.”

A low voice echoed from the other side of the garden.

Vikir and Dolores turned their heads to see Damian standing there.

“Since you officiated at my daughter’s wedding, I am willing to officiate at yours.”

“You’ve become quite talkative.”

“Hahaha, have I?”

Dolores was greatly surprised to see Vikir and Damian casually exchanging words.

When she visited Damian for the second round of the university league, he was extremely gloomy, nervous, and remarkably silent.

How could his personality change so drastically in the meantime?

‘By the way… officiant? Night Hound? Wait, wasn’t Damian’s daughter killed in an accident?’

Serving as someone’s officiant, a highly significant ceremony for nobles.

What had happened between the Night Hound and Damian?

How did they become so close for some reason?

However, Vikir did not bother explaining past events to Dolores.

“He is an ally who will help us in this matter.”

“Nice to meet you, Saint of Quovadis. Are we in a truce?”

Having heard Vikir’s introduction, Damian extended his hand towards Dolores.

Dolores, in return, shook hands politely.

“It’s an honor to meet again, Director Damian of the Imperial Mint.”

“If I had known how to ride a boat, I would have looked even better back then. Hahaha-”

Dolores, who saw Damian’s bright smile, was once again surprised. She had never known he could smile so broadly.

At that moment, Vikir got straight to the point.

“I will kill Bartolomeo, the head of the Bourgeois.”

Dolores glanced at Damian, momentarily taken aback. However, even at the mention of killing his own family’s head, Damian didn’t bat an eye. On the contrary,

“Yeah. I’ve already prepared a place for you.”

He was taking it in stride. Damian then proceeded with the story.

“I mobilized some loyalists within the family to spread rumors about the Oracle Investment Club. It caught his interest.”

“So, did you get him?”

“I did.”

In response to Vikir’s question, Damian nodded. He then explained to Dolores, who was staring blankly, not understanding what was going on.

“It’s about a dinner appointment.”

“Ah.”

“Remember it well. The dinner is the perfect moment to assassinate my brother.”

Dolores nodded at Damian’s strange request.

“But why specifically a dinner? Aren’t there other opportunities when he’s outside the family or in bed?”

“It’s because of a peculiar habit my brother has.”

Damian continued his explanation.

“When there are meetings or dinners with outsiders, he always invites the other party into the safe inside his house. Also, at all other times, he keeps well-trained soldiers by his side.”

“Inside a safe?”

“Yeah, a safe.”

Dolores raised an eyebrow. The safe might be large, but how big could it be to invite outsiders inside?

But Damian’s next words left Dolores with her mouth agape.

“The safe is a perfect cube with dimensions of 100 meters in length, width, and height. The walls are made of mithril and oriharcon, making them impervious to any force. Additionally, layers of teleportation-blocking movement control magic are stacked dozens, if not hundreds, deep, making it impossible to escape even with magic. Of course, who designed and crafted it is a mystery.”

It was nothing short of an impregnable fortress.

“Inside that safe, there are mountains of gold, jewels, money, artworks, and all kinds of treasures. Guests have dinner amid these treasures for two hours.”

“Why have a meal in such a place?”

“There are too many naive puppies among those who come to see my brother. People who want to flaunt their wealth with absurd pride. Maybe it’s to suppress their arrogance beforehand.”

“I’m sorry for asking so many questions, but… Is there a specific reason why the meal lasts two hours?”

“Once the safe is closed, it won’t open for two hours, no matter what happens. Why two hours? Because the knights of Baskerville tested the safe when it was first created”

Vikir showed interest in Damian’s words.

“Baskerville?”

“Yeah. My brother borrowed the Baskerville Knights to test the safety of the safe.”

Damian reminisced about the past and stroked his chin.

“The ones sent were probably the Pitbull Knight-order.”

If they were the Pitbul Knights, Vikir was well aware of them. He had dealt with them when he swept away an illegal slave auction.

A knight order led by Count BostonTerrier, dedicated to dogfighting.

They were incarnations of determination and spirit, always determined to bite and kill their opponents.

Damian recounted the story.

“At that time, all the Pitbull Knights charged and attacked the walls of the safe, and it was breached in two hours.”

In other words, it means the safe handled the attacks of 100 Graduators level knights for 2 hours.

If the safe was that sturdy, the security would be solid, and it would be a place absolutely safe from external threats, making it comfortable for a meal.

Dolores remarked briefly, “Thinking about it differently… if we get him in the safe, we can be alone with him for atleast 2 hours.”

“Exactly. Those outside won’t know or hear what’s happening inside.”

“Do you not worry about assassination before the head enters the safe? It seems possible, and there could be enough time for that.”

“Strangely, I’ve never seen my brother worry about such things.”

Unexpectedly, Vikir, who was next to Damian, responded abruptly.

“That’s right, Because he’s a demon with absolute power.”

“…What? A demon?”

Damian looked shocked.

Meanwhile, Dolores was absentmindedly taking notes.

“Leisure time inside the safe is two hours. Once inside, there are piles of treasures such as gold, currency, jewels, artworks, etc. The strength of the outer walls is almost indestructible…”

And during this time, Vikir was lost in other thoughts.

“It’s almost certain that the Bourgeois head is the sixth corpse.”

Having reviewed the recent investigation data sent by Cindiwendy, Vikir was convinced.

The Sixth Corpse, Collaborating with Dantalion, trying to swallow Quovadis and Bourgeois simultaneously.

Vikir recalled the time of the Great War (era of destruction). Boosted by the dazzling maneuvers of the great heroes, the Human Alliance, whose morale soared, advanced beyond the ruins of the wasteland.

And they saw him, the most beautiful presence among those driven out from heavens.

He faced the heroes of the Human side with innate courage, unyielding strength, resolute dignity, bravery, and a commanding presence that seemed natural.

However, in the actual battle that unfolded, his tactics were nothing but cowardly, despicable, cunning, and deadly. His appearance was also dreadful – lightning spewing from his eyes, a foul breath emanating like the smoke of the largest volcano in the world, and a grotesque stench. His mouth split wide open like a crevasse in the Antarctic ice, and the horns and wings that extended on both sides were large enough to cover the entire battlefield.

‘…In the legion-to-legion battle, we had a tough time due to his strategic tactics. As time passed and he gathers strength, he becomes a really annoying existence. He needs to be removed quickly.’

It seemed like the sixth corpse chose the Bourgeois’ head for the massive funds to gather an army. Without realizing it, a vast legion composed of followers of the demons was formed.

At that moment, Damian asked, “Do you believe it is possible to assassinate my brother in less than two hours? He’s not just a wealthy man; otherwise, the previous head of the Iron-Blooded family would have wanted him as his adopted son.”

This implied that Hugo’s father was interested in the talent of the current Bourgeois head. Vikir stroked his chin.

“If that’s the case, it means his physique is almost as good as Hugo’s.”

Since then, quite some time had passed, and now the demon was controlling that physique. After various thoughts, Vikir nodded.

“It will be tight, but it’s possible. If you help with just one thing outside the safe.”

“Me? Outside the safe?”

Damian shrugged. Although he was a high-ranked noble, he wouldn’t be of much help in combat. Considering he was originally there only to create the dinner setting and then leave, there was a high chance he wouldn’t even be allowed into the safe.

Moreover, what could he do outside the safe where external intervention was impossible? Damian and Dolores looked perplexed.

Swoosh-

Vikir pushed a document containing his plan towards them.

“With this, the end for the Bourgeois’ head is near.”

And then, as Damian and Dolores discovered what Vikir intended to do outside the safe, they both spoke with faces full of dismay.

“This is not just about the Bourgeois Clan’s head… If we do this…”

“…The entire empire will be in jeopardy, won’t it?”