The spy was startled by Merlin’s entrance through the window of the room, he had expected it, but he had put his attention elsewhere for a while, hence his surprise. Merlin tried to sense the position of the viscount inside the manor, and realized he was coming in his direction. He was 4 minutes away from the room, and Merlin was growing impatient due to being tight on time.

Not dwelling anymore about that, Merlin looked at the female slave. In spite of knowing that for her, death, and Lokiseth pulling her soul into his pseudo-realm was actually her luck, he couldn’t help but feel a little guilty about it.

He was supposed to have slept with Camille, which meant the slave should be naked or in her underwear when her body was found. However, Merlin didn’t think it was right to leave her naked body exposed for everyone to see, so he had her wear Camille’s gown and hoped for the best.

Checking the viscount’s position once more, Merlin discovered that he was coming toward the room at a quicker pace than before. Instead of the 2-3 minutes, they only had 1 to stage Camille’s murder. Merlin told the spy to kill the slave, and Lokiseth pulled her soul into his pseudo-realm.

Then, Merlin took his sword, shouted “DAMN BASTARD! YOU HAVE KILLED HER! I’M GOING TO KILL YOU!” and leapt towards the spy. The spy knew he was going to die regardless of what he did, but he still defended from Merlin’s attack. In fact, he wanted to harm Merlin as much as possible before passing away.

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Viscount’s POV:

I woke up early this morning. I couldn’t sleep that well last night, probably due to sending my niece to sleep with that young man. My sister would probably kill me if she knew I had her beloved daughter give her chastity to a man she just met. However, I didn’t have much of a choice, it was this or both siblings getting caught and murdered by the men chasing them.

Having Camille sleep with that young man is a gamble, he might not be able to protect them in the end, but he probably is one of the strongest men in the city. It would be perfect if he were to fall for her and be willing to lay his life down protecting her if needed be, nevertheless, as long as he can become a strong layer of protection for both siblings, it will be ok.

In addition, if that young man were to marry Camille and enter the family, that would also mean a substantial increase in the strength of my household… but thinking about that is going ahead of myself, I should first check about the boy’s intentions.

I was on my way to Camille’s room, when I heard the young man’s voice. He had just shouted “DAMN BASTARD! YOU HAVE KILLED HER! I’M GOING TO KILL YOU!”and following that, sounds of swords clashing invaded the hallways nearby. I ran to the room, but I didn’t expect to see the scene that received me when I arrived there. The young man’s clothes were tore in many places, but overall, he looked fine.

The man attacking him, on the other hand, had been severely injured all over his body by the young man’s slashes, but he seemed to be holding his own. However, my sudden appearance sealed the fate of the attacker. He got distracted when he saw me, and the young man used that chance to behead him. His decisiveness startled me for a second, but I didn’t mind it in the end, and looked around the room, searching for Camille.

I wasn’t prepared for that. She was too young and had all her live ahead of her, to think that the enemies of those two have managed to get into the manor despite my efforts… *It’s regrettable, but what is done it’s done, and I can’t do anything to change this outcome. On the bright side, Camille’s death has been avenged, and Gil is safe.* The young man faced me, and apologized to me.

Merlin: “I’m sorry, I couldn’t save her.”

Viscount Monyme: “I don’t blame you, boy. You had no way to know there was going to be an attack, and she is already dead, so she doesn’t care anymore about this matter. But tell me, how did this happen?”

*How can I blame you, boy? If you really knew the mess she and her brother were in, you would have never associated with them in the first place!*

Merlin: “…”

V. Monyme: “Hahaha, don’t worry, boy. I won’t pursue the matter of you sleeping with my niece, I knew what you two were up to when I saw you leave the ballroom together, but did nothing to stop you, because I thought you were a good match for her. Besides, looking at it now, at least you gave her a piece of happiness before she died… thank you!”

He is blushing, hahaha. What an innocent young man, Camille probably was the first girl he has ever slept with…

Merlin: “I woke up early, and after watching her sleep for a while, I dressed up and went out of the room for a walk. When I came back, I saw that man coming out of the room next to this one, and coming into Camille’s. I run to the room and unsheathed my sword on the way, but I was to late. She was already dead when I entered the room.”

The expression this boy is making… Damn, I don’t want him to feel guilty for her death! It’s not his fault. Who would have guessed that an assassin would come into the manor, and be audacious enough to kill Camille…

V. Monyme: “It’s not your fault, boy, you couldn’t have known that an assassin was going to attack her. There was nothing you could have done to save her…”

Wait a second… did he say that the assassin came from the room next to this one? But that room is… *Gil!*

************************************************

Merlin saw the viscount run out of the room. He didn’t say anything, he smiled inwardly, and took out a tracking nullification talisman. That was a talisman which could be issued by the church, however, it had the rank of legendary was an artifact of legendary rank on its own right.

That kind of talisman, Merlin could create it in half an hour, but the knowledge to create them had been long lost in Klantea. There were only a few hundreds of them in existence, and most of them were scattered through the numerous temples of the church around Klantea.

In normal circumstances, those talismans would only be used by high-ranked members of the church who were in the middle of a top-secret inquisitorial mission. Despite knowing that the talisman would probably raise questions about the church’s involvement in the assassination, Merlin decided to put it in a pocket of the spy.

If word got out about the talisman being found in his possession, those who used the siblings being cursed as an excuse to hunt them down might think the church learned about the siblings, and sent out an inquisitorial mission to deal with them. It would also explain why whoever was tracking the spy, suddenly lost track of him.

*I hope that will be enough and they will buy the death of the siblings.* thought Merlin.

Merlin stood up and went to the other room. There, he found the viscount closing his fists tightly and seething with anger. The viscount had felt helpless at first, because he couldn’t act in the open against the instigators of the murders due to how powerful they were. From helplessness to wrath, he couldn’t control his own emotions anymore. He started to feel wrathful, and started to think of ways to punish the guards in the manor for their negligence.

After a while, the viscount finally calmed down and realized it wasn’t the fault of the guards, the enemies chasing the siblings were highly trained individuals, there was no way for his guards to successfully confront them. Sadly, the only individual strong enough to do so, didn’t get there in time and only could finish off the assassin.

Merlin didn’t know of the exact thoughts of the viscount, but he could tell he had finally calmed down and started to calmly assess the situation. After that, they talked for a while, and Merlin agreed to assist to the cremation ceremony of the siblings the following day. Merlin left the manor and went back to the inn.

Back in his room, Merlin observed the siblings asleep on the bed, and decided to talk to Camille first. He gently shook her to wake her up, and smiled at her when she opened her eyes.

Merlin: “Good morning, sleepy head.”

Camille: “Huh? Good morning, Merlin… This is not my room… Where is this place?”

Merlin: “This is my room in the inn.”

Camille: “Ok, but why am I here? Ok, why are we here? Why did you also bring my brother? If you really wanted to do adult stuff with me we could have done it in my room, back at my uncle’s place.”

Merlin: “Don’t worry, that was not my intention when bringing you two here.”

Camille: “Ah, ok… but you haven’t answered my question?”

Merlin: “Sorry, but you two are now dead.”

Camille: “What do you mean? How are we dead? Don’t you see we are here, alive and kicking?”

Merlin: “The people who want you dead, won’t stop chasing you until you die. They even went as far as to infiltrate the manor last night, so I staged your death and your brother’s to fool them into thinking that they have achieved their goal.”

Camille: “I understand… How did my uncle take it?”

Merlin: “He thinks you two are dead.”

Camille: “What? Why?”

Merlin: “He is your uncle, you, more than me, should be aware of how bad he is at acting. Sometimes, to fool your enemies you have to fool your allies first. In this particular case, with how bad your uncle is at acting, the only way for your enemies to buy your deaths without your uncle inadvertently selling you out, was to make him believe your deaths are real.”

Camille didn’t know how to react to Merlin’s words, it was a lot to take in, and their uncle could never learn the truth or it would jeopardize their survival, but that also meant she didn’t know what to do from then on.

Camille: “What are we supposed to do now? Without a background, a family, or any kind of backing whatsoever, how are my brother and I supposed to survive?”

Merlin: “I have a suggestion for you… if you are interested.”

Camille: “What is it?”

Merlin: “I could alter the way you two look with magic, we could form an adventurer group, and you two could go adventuring with me.”

Camille: “Is that even possible?”

Merlin: “If you are willing, yes, it is.”

Camille: “Please, take care of us from now on!”

Although Merlin had made that offer, he wasn’t sure about how to work it out. The part of changing their looks with magic was very easy, however the part of giving them new identities and registering them in the guild, was easier said than done.

There were two main problems to make it work. First, a boy and a girl of the same ages as the deceased nephew and niece of Viscount Monyme’s suddenly registering in the Adventurers Guild, right after their deaths, was bound to arise the suspicions of the people who wanted the siblings dead. The second problem was that their entrance in the city hadn’t been registered by the guards, and they were still looking for the intruders, so he had to find a way to take the siblings out of the city, and have them enter it again in a proper way.

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