Episode 186

In his previous life, even after the continental war ended, the true identity of the Night Killers remained a mystery. People speculated they might be sorcerers, but it was just a guess.

When Zeke had encountered a Night Killer in the Joins’ ghetto area before, he had assumed they were merely mages using dark magic to enhance their sniping spells.

But Zeke’s assumptions were completely off the mark.

He never imagined that the Night Killers were actually knights using magical guns to fire bullets infused with dark energy.

“No matter how many Imperial mages I interrogated, I never found a trace. Turns out, they weren’t mages at all but specially trained assassins.”

Zeke pondered what to do with the unconscious Aaron and decided to use his dragon senses.

“Before I wake him for questioning, I need to find out who he’s working for.”

Zeke instructed Richmond and the dragon soldiers to stand guard, then reached out to the fallen Aaron.

A low hum resonated as Aaron’s memories flooded into Zeke’s mind.

Fragments of memories flashed by rapidly. Zeke meticulously examined each piece.

Among them, he discovered a memory of Aaron during his training.

“This is it.”

Zeke delved into the memory of Aaron’s training.

In a forest clearing turned training ground, young boys and girls with shorn heads stood in line, their eyes filled with a fierce determination.

They looked to be about fifteen or sixteen, each resembling a wild animal ready to pounce.

Their bodies were covered in scars, and they held strange swords, somewhere between a short sword and a dagger.

A masked figure, presumably their instructor, stood before them and shouted.

“Only you remain among those who came here! The rest were weak and died! The blood of the weak stains your swords! Remember, weakness means death!”

The instructor’s words made the children’s eyes burn even fiercer.

Zeke clenched his teeth at the instructor’s speech.

“These lunatics. They trained these kids to kill each other.”

Zeke’s eyes burned coldly.

He had undergone similar training himself.

In the southern continent’s cartel, this was how hitmen were raised.

Zeke, too, had been trained as a formal hitman in his past life, forced to kill his fellow trainees to survive.

At first, one hesitates to swing the sword. But once someone kills the weakest, and the comrades you trusted turn their blades on you, that’s when hell begins.

Zeke had survived by killing those who tried to kill him.

He had been the weakest-looking, making him an early target. But in the end, it was Zeke who survived.

Once the slaughter began, Zeke swung his sword without hesitation, ensuring every enemy was dead, no matter how weak they seemed.

Zeke realized that the Night Killers had been trained in this brutal manner as well.

He continued to sift through Aaron’s memories.

After completing his training with high marks, Aaron surprisingly enrolled in the Draker Academy.

There, he received standard knight training alongside other trainees.

Zeke was taken aback by this memory.

“They trained them as knights on purpose? What are these people up to?”

After graduating from the academy, they were secretly recalled for special training.

Aaron excelled in assassin training and was selected for the magic corps, where he learned to handle magical firearms.

Zeke realized that the Night Killers were a group created with immense time and resources.

“The Empire wouldn’t train them like this… It’s far more systematic and secretive.”

He had always thought the Night Killers were part of the Empire, but Aaron’s memories suggested otherwise.

Then, a memory surfaced of Aaron receiving a medal in his Night Killer uniform after completing his training.

Zeke examined this memory closely.

To his shock, an unexpected figure appeared in Aaron’s memory.

“Kain?”

Kain, who had died at Zeke’s hands in a southern continent dungeon, was in Aaron’s memory.

Kain personally pinned medals on the Night Killers’ uniforms and shook each of their hands.

The uniformed Night Killers saluted Kain.

“Hail! Siemens!”

At that moment, a low hum resonated.

Aaron’s memories began to shatter and intertwine as he seemed to regain consciousness.

There appeared to be a difference in using dragon senses on someone conscious versus unconscious.

Zeke quickly withdrew from Aaron’s memories.

He opened his eyes with a sharp breath.

He realized where Aaron and the other Night Killers had been trained.

“Damn Siemens bastards.”

They weren’t the Empire’s secret weapon but Siemens’.

In the continental war of his past life, Draker and its allied families had mostly fallen to the Empire.

It seemed Siemens’ secret assassins had been deployed on the battlefield for the Empire.

“Was Kain originally a knight of Siemens?”

Kain’s true identity remained elusive.

Zeke had tried to read the memories left in Theia’s Hershion, but due to the ancient artifact’s defense mechanisms, there were no memories of Kain.

Zeke looked at the unconscious Aaron, contemplating.

“Maybe I can learn more by interrogating him.”

Suddenly, Aaron’s eyes snapped open. He sprang up and swung a hand at Zeke.

Zeke easily dodged Aaron’s attack and stepped back.

Realizing he was unarmed, Aaron assumed a martial stance.

Zeke watched him with a look of admiration.

“That knight training wasn’t for nothing.”

Aaron recognized Zeke as his target and looked for an opportunity to eliminate him.

Zeke spoke to Aaron.

“Aaron Dominic.”

Hearing his name, Aaron flinched, momentarily startled.

But as a specially trained agent, he quickly regained his composure and sought an opening to attack Zeke.

Zeke clicked his tongue at Aaron’s determination.

The Night Killers were trained from a young age, almost brainwashed, to prioritize eliminating their targets above all else.

Zeke addressed Aaron.

“Aaron, listen to me. You’ve been brainwashed by Siemens.”

Aaron didn’t respond, instead charging at Zeke with incredible speed.

He moved with the agility of an Ishtar martial artist, launching a kick at Zeke.

Zeke blocked the kick with his hand and stepped back.

“Talking won’t work.”

He decided to face Aaron in hand-to-hand combat, without using his sword.

Zeke assumed the Infinite Chain Stance and unleashed the Resonant Force technique he learned from Arataso.

A low hum emanated from Zeke, spreading outward. Aaron ignored it, running along the wall to attack Zeke.

Zeke unleashed a Resonant Force-infused strike at Aaron.

The force enveloped Aaron as he charged.

“Ugh!”

The mana vibrations agitated Aaron’s aura, causing him to collapse and retch.

“Ugh!”

His head spun, and he was too dizzy to stand.

Zeke was surprised by the effectiveness of the Resonant Force in actual combat.

“Not bad at all.”

It might not work on blue-ranked knights who could freely control their aura, but it was a formidable weapon against those below that level.

“I should train hard with this.”

Zeke approached Aaron, who was struggling to rise.

Aaron glared at Zeke, trying to steady himself.

“Ugh.”

Realizing his body wouldn’t cooperate, Aaron attempted to follow his training and commit suicide.

He bit down on the poison hidden in his molar, but something was off.

“If you were trying to poison yourself, you’re too late. I’ve already removed it.”

In his past life, it wasn’t that he hadn’t captured Night Killers.

But they were ruthless, consuming poison and detonating bombs within their bodies to leave no evidence behind.

With his suicide attempt thwarted, Aaron glared at Zeke, still trying to move.

Zeke clicked his tongue at Aaron’s stubbornness.

“What did Siemens ever do for you to earn such loyalty? Foolish.”

He looked at Aaron’s bloodshot eyes and delivered a kick to his jaw. Aaron collapsed, unconscious and bleeding.

Zeke called for Richmond.

“Richmond, take him upstairs. Once we’re done here, I’ll interrogate him, so make sure he can’t escape.”

“Understood, Master.”

Richmond summoned a skeleton to carry Aaron upstairs.

Once they were gone, Zeke wandered the maze with Bahamut in hand.

“To think the ones setting traps were all killed by the real wraiths.”

He had suspected, but it was still shocking to learn that the ones targeting him had been wiped out by the wraiths here.

Through Aaron’s memories, Zeke discovered that the Night Killers sent by Siemens, along with the dark mages and specially dispatched knights, had all been formidable.

Yet, it was baffling to think that they had all been wiped out by the specters without leaving a trace.

“What kind of specter could it possibly be?”

If it wielded such power, it was likely an ancient curse that had persisted for a thousand years.

Before attempting any exorcism, Zeke intended to identify the specter and, if possible, absorb it through his devouring ability.

Just then, a signal came from the dragon soldiers he had sent to scout, indicating they had found something.

Whoosh!

Zeke dashed swiftly in their direction.

What he had assumed to be an ordinary mansion turned out to have a basement so vast it could be mistaken for a dungeon.

The strange thing was that, according to Aaron’s memories, this underground area was a labyrinthine maze, impossible to navigate. Yet, to Zeke’s eyes, it appeared straightforward.

“Is it because of the Dragon’s Eye that I can see the path clearly?”

Following the visible path, Zeke soon arrived at the location of the dragon soldiers.

There, a shadowy specter stood, as if waiting.

Zeke drew his Bahamut sword and aimed it at the specter.

“I don’t know what kind of specter you are, but let’s see what you’ve got.”

Oddly, the specter didn’t react to Zeke’s presence.

“What the… why isn’t it attacking?”

It had shown aggressive behavior, attacking Aaron and his group first.

Then, the specter turned and began to move away.

Zeke hurriedly pursued it, sword in hand, and launched a radiant mace of light at the specter.

Boom!

The light struck the specter, scattering it like mist.

But soon, the specter reformed and continued on its path.

Zeke was bewildered.

“Is it not a specter?”

Light-based skills were supposed to be the bane of cursed specters and demonic entities.

Zeke summoned holy fire, creating flames.

Whoosh!

Once again, the specter passed through the holy fire unscathed.

Zeke had no choice but to accept that this entity wasn’t a specter.

“Then what is it?”

It wasn’t a specter, undead, or demon. Without a physical form, it couldn’t be a golem either.

Zeke knew of no such entity in the world.

Despite his confusion, Zeke decided to follow the mysterious being.

After a while, the entity suddenly stopped and turned to face Zeke, raising a hand to point at a section of the wall.

Zeke turned his gaze to the wall, using his Dragon’s Eye.

“A secret place?”

In an instant, the entity vanished like smoke, as if its sole purpose had been to reveal the wall’s location.

Zeke approached the wall cautiously. As he touched it, a message appeared.

[Security system accessing administrator interface.]

[Verifying title: Dragon’s Chosen.]

[Security code deactivated.]

[Opening door.]

Rumble!

The wall, which had seemed solid, opened on its own.

Zeke looked back and forth between the message and the open door, astonished.

“Could it be that this place isn’t just cursed?”

With the security system deactivated, there was no immediate threat.

Zeke stepped through the door. A spiral staircase leading downward came into view.

He began to descend slowly.

After a long descent, he reached a vast chamber. What he saw there left him stunned.

About ten entities, similar to the specter he had seen earlier, stood in formation, as if awaiting orders.

As he observed them, something clicked in Zeke’s mind.

He recalled similar beings.

“Dragon soldiers…?”