Sorcerous Stabber Orphen Rogue Journey Vol 3 Chapter 2

Sorcerous Stabber Orphen Rogue Journey Book 03 - Spectre, Sleeping on My Chest - Chapter 2 - The Fool Who Took The Bait   Chapter 2 – The Fool Who Took the Bait   “Orphen, I sometimes think…” “Cleo, I sometimes think…” Two people said to each other. “You seduce women quite single-handedly.” "You really are a headstrong girl." Then there was silence in the carriage……even the horses remained quiet as one of them jumped on one of the seats, they were afraid. Orphen grasped the reins of the two mares in a flurry. He whispered to the girl behind him, but didn’t look back. “When did I seduce a woman?” “When was I headstrong?” They stopped talking. The scenery started to change, the wind blew and rustled the gra.s.s, dust was blowing in the deserted street, and the sun rose to its highest point. Orphen reluctantly recalled what happened last night——Majic and Cleo were arguing over dinner, then Orphen appeared with Hirietta, both of them covered in blood, the only thing he said was that “he had a headache”. They didn’t know what happened, he only told them that “she helped me out”. The next morning, Hirietta disappeared. She left a note with a kiss on it beside Orphen’s pillow. The note said she “had to leave in a hurry”, and “if you’re willing to meet my client, then come to this place.” Aside from leaving Majic and Cleo, this note proved troublesome——Cleo obviously misunderstood the meaning of this note. She was sure that Orphen and Hirietta had spent the night together, and they were going to spend another night together, though she didn’t say this out loud. “I’ve known you almost a month——” Cleo stuck out her lips, and started chewing on them. “First you propose to my sister.” “It was just a scam. It was an idea that Vulcan came up with anyway.” “Yet the last time we stayed in a hotel you grabbed the waitress a.s.s.” “That was a simple misunderstanding. My hand has a mind of its own sometimes.” “As for what happened in Alenhatan……” “Don’t bring up Stephanie, she’s a good friend of mine.” “I’m not finished. You were seducing that waitress with your eyes, I saw you.” “Oh, come on. She was asking for it.” “And let’s not forget how you punched that young lady in the carriage, all because she waved her fist at you.” “Well, she was asking for it too. Besides, she started it.” “You also sneak out in the middle of the night with Majic, leaving me all alone.” “I’m teaching him magic, that’s all.” “…………” Cleo closed her mouth for a moment——her eyes were no longer angry, her eyes twinkled. “I want to learn magic too!” “No way.” Orphen answered immediately. Cleo was obviously not satisfied with his answer. “Why not?” “It’s rather simple, Majic’s father pays for his tuition fees. Every month I get money put into my bank account.” He goes to the big city every month, he generally spends a couple of days in Totokanta while getting the money. “Tuition fee? Can’t you just teach me?” “Not just anyone can learn magic. You need to have the proper genetics, you’d need to be born again if you wanted to have any chance to learn magic” “Born again……” Cleo sighed. “I wish I was born again.” Cleo muttered under her breath, upon hearing her, Orphen asked her a question. “Do you believe in the afterlife? You are the second daughter of a wealthy family, you can live the high life. I don’t think travelling with an illegal loan shark is a good idea.” “What’s all this about? Are you looking to argue again?” “No, just speaking out loud, seeing as I’m having to waste my money buying you clothes. You’ll probably be the end of me……by the way, what in the world do you want from me?” “Ah…” Cleo frowned. She hesitated for a second before giving him an answer. “I, didn’t think you’d ever ask that question.” She put a finger on her chin, and continued talking. “Well, give me some more time. Then I’ll answer your question……” Cleo pondered for a moment. “O-Orphen, what did you call me last time? Partner, wasn’t it?” “…………” Orphen didn’t answer. He was surprised by this. “Go on, don’t be shy.” “No, I didn’t……” Orphen didn’t look at her. “Oh, forget it. You know what I thought you were when we first met?” “……Human?” “No, a ruffian!” “I was joking. There’s no way in h.e.l.l you’d ever call me your partner!” “……What?” Orphen responded in a hoa.r.s.e voice. Of course he remembered he said that, he just didn’t want to admit it. “Orphen is a very powerful person, so I want to be just like him.” Majic chimed in. “……Yes, I don’t know what I was thinking. He is a very powerful person indeed……” “Huh?” Cleo smiled. But Orphen just laughed. (Great, I’ve won this round.) “Master……” Majic poked his head out from the carriages curtains, Cleo glared at him intensely——she didn’t him putting his head in between both of them, Majic was sweltering under the intense heat inside the carriage, he was sweating all over. “Are we going to spend the night in Kink Hall Village?” “Yeah.” Orphen took out the note that Hirietta gave him. “The message said to go to this village.” Orphen crumpled the note and put it back into his pocket. “What’s in Kink Hall village?” “I don’t know…….actually, I think there’s supposed to be some well-known scholar of magic hiding in the area.” “Magic? Is he from the Tower of Fang?” Majic asked. Orphen shook his head. “You could say that. He got expelled from the Tower because he was studying some strange type of magic, he should be somewhere in the village.” “……I wonder if we’ll have the chance to meet him.” Majic wiped the sweat off his head, Orphen took out a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to him. “I highly doubt it, the guy is probably a corpse. He was expelled fifty years ago, if he’s still alive, he’s probably more than a hundred years old.” “He could be alive, I’ve heard of an old lady who lived until she was one hundred and twenty.” “Yeah, yeah.” Orphen said as he patted the head of Cleo. He then thought about their whole conversation and the “partner” thing. Orphen then thought about the note again, there was another part that he didn’t read out to Majic and Cleo. “In fact, I was commissioned by my original client and Ostwald, though, it really makes no difference to me.” This was actually a threat: “If you don’t come to Kink Hall, they’ll kill you.” They were getting closer to the village, they could see a white chapel in the distance, Majic and Cleo both looked at it. “Oooo……” “What is it?” Orphen didn’t know why they were amazed, it was just a simple frontier village, about 100 kilometres away from Alenhatan. As they arrived closer they could see multiple houses, an elementary school, police station, and a couple farms. There was some children playing in the haystacks, the only adult nearby was an old man who was lying down, it looked like he was letting the children take care of the sheep while he rested. In the distance, they could hear the barking of dogs. Such views of the countryside were nothing out of the ordinary. “h.e.l.lo, Majic?” Orphen asked. Majic’s face was that of amazement, his emerald green eyes flickered when he spoke. “It’s a nice place.” “I guess so.” Orphen casually replied. “……What about it, Master. Couldn’t you see yourself living the life of a farmer for six months, with a wife, and probably a b.a.s.t.a.r.d child or two?” “You already know the answer, Majic.” ——Just as he finished, the curtains of the carriage opened, Cleo stuck her head out. She was sleeping for a while, her hair was a mess, she washed her face after waking up, and parts of her face were still wet. Orphen pointed his finger at her. “This is my answer.” “……Oh, I see……” Majic said enigmatically as he nodded. Orphen looked back at Cleo and said: “Hey, make sure to put your sword at the bottom of the luggage. We don’t want to be mistaken for robbers.” “I know, I’m not an idiot.” Cleo did as she was asked. Then she asked him a question.  “Why did you even agree to meet this woman?” Orphen felt speechless——he knew she was angry. Half of her body was now sticking out of the curtains, Orphen could feel her hair on his shoulders. It was like a snake wrapping around its victim, he wasn’t happy. “Well, are you going to answer me?” “Whenever someone is entangled by a beautiful girl, it’s said that they are your wife.” Cleo blushed. Orphen laughed. “I’m joking. Anyway, Hirietta’s just a mercenary that’s going to protect me for a while.” He didn’t call her an a.s.sa.s.sin, he called her a mercenary because he didn’t want the others to know her true ident.i.ty. Cleo was sceptical, she didn’t believe him. “Why is she protecting you?” “I’ve got enemies in these parts.” Orphen said, as he looked to the front. They were now entering the village. Majic smiled and joined in on the conversation, he was still sweaty from before. “So, should we expect trouble?” “……Probably, don’t worry. However, I don’t think I’ll have to kill someone.” “Oh, okay.” “Master, your life is at stake, they could strike when we least expect it, we should stick together at all times.” “The idea never crossed my mind.” “But Orphen, who wants your life?” Cleo asked. Orphen calmly replied. “Well, before I met you guys I was an underground loan shark, I made both enemies and friends. And whenever I run low on funds, I go round seeking the money that is owed to me. That racc.o.o.n dog Vulcan owes me money too……” “Do people pay back the money?” “Seven people owe me money, I’ve caught five of them.” Orphen was getting frustrated, Cleo was hanging on his shoulder. “I’ll find Vulcan soon enough, he won’t escape me.” Orphen spat onto the ground. “Anyway, there are those who see illegal loan sharks as a thorn in their sides.” “Who are they?” “Oh, shut up! One of the gangsters goes by the name of Ostwald, he’s a big wig in Totokanta’s financial sector. He wears fancy clothes, has a moustache, and is fat and annoying……” “......Is he the one……?” “Stop asking questions! Short answer, yes, he’s one of people after me. He’s hired a.s.sa.s.sins to come after me.” Orphen grunted. “Are you done with the questions?” Orphen waited for an answer from both of them. But he only heard Cleo hesitantly talk. “Well……” Then all of a sudden, something moved in front of the carriage, but it was too late, whatever it was went under the wheel. Orphen pulled on the reins, the two horses started to panic, Orphen looked at what happened. There was a snake sticking its head out of a wooden box in front of them. “Ah——” It was actually some guy wearing an outfit, Orphen recognized him. “Dortin!” “Loan shark!” Both of them shouted. Orphen then went to see what he ran over. Naturally, whatever was under the wheel was struggling, it was wrapped in a fur cloak, and had a large sword by its waist. “You mongrel! Stop gawking and get this thing off me!”   The sun was setting, a crow cried twice in the distance. It was very rare for Kink Hall to get any visitors, never mind five at one time, for a while, the town was a busy place. Kink Hall village only has one small hotel on the outskirts of the town, it was pretty basic, since the hotel rarely received visitors. Although they are staying at an Inn, it looks no different from one of the village’s normal homes, except it was built by a famous person. “……So, some famous person built this house?” Orphen asked, as a small boy carried their luggage up the stairs, Majic and Cleo followed after them. Vulcan and Dortin were in the kitchen helping out. “Yeah, and his name was Fonogorosu, he also died here.” The boy replied. He’s repeated the same thing to all the guests that ask this question, he then went on to say: “He was killed with magic.” “Magic?” Cleo said. “Yeah. Everyone says the house he lived in is haunted. ” “Haunted?” Orphen saw a look of intrigue on Cleo’s face, this worried him. “That sounds like fun!” “You’ve got to be kidding me.” Majic couldn’t believe Cleo, he looked up timidly. “Master, tell me she’s joking.” “You heard it right from her mouth, she isn’t joking.” Orphen said reluctantly. He then stretched forth his hand, pointing it at Majic. “This isn’t the first time, every time Cleo thinks something “sounds fun”, it always gets us in trouble.” “That isn’t true at all!” “Whatever you say.” After they got into their room, Cleo forgot all about their previous conversation. The room was a converted bedroom, it was small and there was two beds. There was a small window where light shone through, and a wardrobe that was falling apart, it looked like it was a.s.sembled from old windows. On the wall was a painting, it was an ugly ivy leaf pattern, it seemed to be from the Inn keepers personal collection. Orphen gave the little boy a tip, then he left, Cleo looked at the two beds in bewilderment. She then looked at their luggage in the corner, she examined the layout of the entire room, and she even inspected the inside of the wardrobe. There was a single gla.s.s lamp in the middle of the room, it hanged from the ceiling and didn’t give out much light. “——Cleo, who do you want to bunk with?” “What?” Cleo shouted, turning around to face Orphen. “There are only two beds.” “…………” Majic and Cleo turned to Orphen. He just scratched his head, and looked at Cleo. “Looks like we’ve got a problem……I guess I’ll sleep on the floor, or the carriage.” They all nodded in agreement.  “Well, now we’ve only got to find something to do.” Cleo said, then she smiled. “I know, I could listen while you give Majic some magic lessons.” “I’ll think about it……” Orphen took off his shirt, and sat on the nearest bed. He thought about it for a moment——to tell the truth, he didn’t really want to kill this girl. There was no specific reason, he just thought that Cleo was more trouble than she was worth. But then again, he really didn’t want to have her listen to him teaching magic. He also hated the prospect of having to sleep in the carriage, since he couldn’t’ afford to be wasting money on another room. It just wasn’t practical…… (Oh, alright.) “Cla.s.s begins after dinner.” Orphen said, Cleo immediately became cheerful. He didn’t expect her to be so pleased. (……It’s not like she’ll be able to learn magic, right? ….So, there’s no harm in her attending the lesson.” This is what he thought, at the time.   “It’ll be a history lesson for today.” After dinner, when the sun had gone down, the only thing that could be heard outside was the insects. Orphen, Cleo, and Majic gathered in the room. Orphen talked as he opened the window, Cleo heard him and asked: “A test?” “Yes. It’s a history lesson, I hope you’ve remembered what I’ve taught you.” Orphen shifted his gaze to the bed next to Cleo. Leaning against the windowsill he said: “And repeat yourself, if need be, for Cleo’s sake.” “Okay.” Cleo was like a mother watching over her child. “Ooo……” Majic and Cleo both looked at Orphen. He shifted his gaze upwards, staring at the air, he began to say: “On this continent, Majic can be divided into seven categories.” He had everyone’s full attention. “Out of the ancient races, six of them stole their magic from the ancient G.o.ds. The other one, the Dragon race, received their magic through breeding with another race. After Majic finished, he folded his arms. “What happened next?” “Do I look in the books?” “Of course not.” Majic reluctantly continued. “The ability to use magic is based on the individual’s genetics……” Orphen interrupted him, as he pushed away from the windowsill. "Oh——sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt you." “It doesn’t matter what age you are, or whether you’re very strong, the proficiency of your magic is based on your willpower.” Cleo listened the entire time,     “Tell me more about high level magic.” Orphen interrupted the lesson, and said: “When I was in the Tower of Fang, my teacher was Childman and I was in his cla.s.s, there was seven of us in total. In the top level of the Tower, there was seven people that——” He shrugged. “Oh, never mind. Majic is the one telling the story, not me. Continue……” “Well, there is voice magic, this is the most powerful magic on the continent.” “Yeah, it’s pretty good.” Orphen chirped in. Majic continued. “There are seven different types of magic in total. Voice magic, which is what we humans use. Silence magic, dark magic, air magic, spirit magic, destruction magic, and beast magic.” Orphen nodded to him. “The most significant feature of voice magic is the use of our voices, sound is used as a medium to cast magic. You say the incantation and you get the desired effect. However, this cannot be sustained forever. Furthermore, voice magic has two sub categories, they are Black and White magic. Master and I use Black magic.” “Black magic is the use of thermal and physical energy……” Orphen stepped away from the window, the he spoke. “While white magic is the opposite, it’s the manipulation of time and spirit. It’s also said that white magic is much more powerful than black magic…” He then turned in the direction of the bed, he looked at Cleo. “Cleo, did you understand that?” “……Ah——” “Hey! Don’t fall asleep!” Orphen ran over and shook Cleo until she fell down on the bed. “This is so boring.” “You were the one who wanted to listen, so I suggest you listen to it all.” Cleo attempted to lift her body. “Will you teach me how to use magic tomorrow?” “Why you little……” Cleo fell back down on the bed, she seemed to fall asleep again, Orphen’s hands trembled as he said: “I can’t teach you magic since you don’t have the necessary genetics! And stop pretending your asleep!” “Ah……” Cleo let out a deliberate cry, as she hugged the pillow. Orphen creeped closer to her and said: “We’ve wasted more than enough time on your nonsense! You deserve a good thrashing!” “Master……” Majic was speechless. “Why must you always argue with her?” “Because I’m sick of her. She needs a lesson on manners.” While Orphen was thinking of something nefarious, Majic was confused about something. “Master, I’m a little confused, how is it that I’m able to use magic?” “Well, you obviously didn’t get the genetics from your father, I can tell you that. So, that only leaves your mother……” Cleo was still pretending to sleep, Orphen sat on the bed beside her and started petting her head. “When your father was drunk one time, he did talk about her. His wife——your mother——her name is Iris Lin, she was a thief. He didn’t tell me why she left. I had also heard that she had magical talent, this is where you inherited the ability to cast magic.” Orphen recalled Majic’s father Bagup, his old weathered face peering back at him. He felt Cleo move, the girl stopped pretending that she was asleep. “……So, if I didn’t inherit the magic blood, I can’t use magic?” “Yes, that’s correct.” Orphen had mixed feelings about Cleo, so he removed his hand from her head. “Even though you are from the n.o.ble Everlasting family, it’s impossible for you to use magic.  I’m sorry, Cleo.” Majic couldn’t believe this. “Master, I never expected you of all people to comfort Cleo.” “Oh, shut your mouth!” Orphen shouted, his face went bright red. Cleo then took the pillow and threw it at Majic.   Ding dong! Ding Dong!   (What’s that noise?) He could hear it in the distance, he wasn’t sure where it was coming from. All around him there was a black fog, he was surrounded by total darkness. Then a ringing sound became clearer, it went through his eardrums, into his brain…… “─────!” Orphen woke up from a dream. His entire shirt was drenched in sweat, he jumped up from his bed, his heart was beating intensely.  “Why? This feeling?” It was still dark outside, he could see the stars clearly. He was lying in the middle of the two beds, he made a bed on the floor instead of sleeping in the carriage. Majic and Cleo were sound asleep. Majic’s sleeping position was very structured, while Cleo was all over the bed, her arms and legs stretched in every direction. Orphen looked at them for a moment, he then grabbed his jacket. But he didn’t put it on, he closed both his eyes with his right hand, as if he was trying to remember something.  Back when Orphen was in the Tower of Fang, he was taught to control his memory and mental state. However── (I can’t do it……) This was no surprise. His heart was beating intensely, he was unable to calm himself down. (Is…this…white magic?) His knee suddenly gave way, he grabbed a chair to keep his balance. Normally people who can use white magic isolate themselves from the world, or are under the exclusive use of the Royal Family, very few have even experienced first-hand contact with a white sorcerer. Orphen was one of them, for some of his former friends were proficient in white magic. (Who the h.e.l.l is doing this?) A chill went through his entire body. Then, the chair he was leaning on flew towards the ceiling. “Holy s.h.i.t!” Meanwhile, Orphen felt like his entire body was being hit by a tsunami, the waves breaking the silence of the night. It was like an invisible force was contracting and expanding everything in the room, from the wardrobe to all their belongings. It was a sickening feeling. Then, the beds were turned upside down, and the occupants went with it. Everything in the room was being thrown about the place, the windows broke, the Gaslamp exploded, and the doors on the wardrobe came off the hinges. The room was a mess.   “Ahhhhhh!” ——Majic was yelling, those sickening feelings they felt were now gone. Orphen stood up in the mess of a room, he put on his jacket, and took out the dragon pendant from his pocket. “W-What happened, Master?” Majic said, as he crawled out from underneath the overturned bed. Cleo was miraculously sound asleep, however, she was speaking all kinds of gibberish. Orphen whispered: “The enemy……is coming.” He didn’t understand that himself, he thought that the nightmare was a warning, maybe even a premonition. “The enemy.” Orphen repeated it again, as he clenched the pendant in his left hand. (My body……that was really something.) Orphen hadn’t felt anything like those strange feelings before. (The culprit can’t be far, I must find him.) He was now focused, a bead of sweat dripped down his forehead. From the corner of the room, a blanket of darkness appeared. Like a mist looming in darkness, it slowly moved to the centre of the room——Orphen backed up against the window, he never blinked, the blanket of darkness encroached upon Majic’s position. “Hey!” Someone shouted. An intense knocking on the door then followed. “Sorcerer! You smelly b.a.s.t.a.r.d! You’re too noisy! If you don’t be quiet and go to bed, then I’ll force you to look at the moon until you die!” If Vulcan heard the noise upstairs, the others are sure to follow. The fog had a spherical radius of fifty centimetres, it then began to take a form. Orphen didn’t have time to open the door and tell them what was happening, nor did know if he could make it to the door. At that time, the fog made a noise. “……I……” Surprised, Orphen took a step backwards. The shape the fog was taking——it was that of a human being. “…I…I…” Thud thud thud…… The knocks on the door intensified. “What did……you say?” Orphen was taken aback, he had never seen this, he just gazed through the translucent human form. Meanwhile, Cleo had woken up, she knew immediately what was going on. “A g-g-g-ghost!” (A ghost……an undead monster?) These words appeared in Orphen’s panicked brain. Indeed, it had a vague outline, but it was taking a human shape. In this case, to call it mist or fog would be inappropriate…… “No way, that sort of thing doesn’t exist——” The fog uttered something in a shrill voice in protest. “Fonogorosu!” The outline was still vague, but he could see a young man. He looked very thin, his elongated eyes gave him a sinister look. He was wearing something which looked like a researchers outfit. “Fonogorosu?” Just as Orphen spoke, Vulcan kicked open the door. The hinges flew off the door, it looked like it was going to impact the ghost—— "────!" Orphen jumped out of the way, the ghost moved towards Orphen’s last location at an incredible speed. A loud explosion rang out. The ghost ran through the wall, creating a big hole. “…………?” The room was silent once again. “What the h.e.l.l was that all about?” Vulcan and Dortin stepped into the room, both of them were wearing their pyjamas. Majic still under the bed said: “……That was, a ghost.” “A ghost?” Dortin said. He looked very sleepy, he then wiped his gla.s.ses and said: “Don’t say that again. I know you’ll just come up with an idea to make money───” “Hey.” Orphen was listening to their conversation, he then spoke in a low tone. “Be quiet……” He stared out the window. Everyone in the local vicinity was now aware that something happened, even the animals in the forest were startled. Orphen could faintly see the ghost in the distance, its elongated eyes peering back at him. Neither of them blinked once, slippery scales then started to appear all over the ghost’s skin─── “……A snake? This is strange.” Orphen didn’t have any energy to respond to Majic’s words. It did resemble a snake, the lower part of the body and the head were snakelike, but below the thin neck there was a pair of human shoulders. “A snake man” Vulcan shouted, dressed in pyjamas with his sword ready. Orphen then heard something hit the ground behind him, looking back, he saw Cleo lying on the floor. “Sword of light——” Orphen straightened his body, ready to cast magic. But before he could, the snake man disappeared all of a sudden. “What?” As soon as the snake man disappeared, everyone could sense his departure. “Ahhhhhhh!!” Orphen collapsed to the ground, trying to forget something. Then suddenly—— “Ah!” Majic screamed behind him. A couple of arrows were sticking into the mattress. “My, my……” Orphen was back to himself again, he was in high spirits. He didn’t think the snake man shot arrows at them, so it must have been human beings. With that in mind, Orphen jumped towards the window for a moment——it was likely that he would be shot, but he didn’t think so, since it would be hard to hit someone in the dark. Thud! He jumped through the hole in the wall on the second floor, landing perfectly. All around him he heard the chirping of insects, he looked around for the culprit. (If I was an a.s.sa.s.sin I would be——) Orphen stuck out his hand towards the small forest beside the hotel entrance. (Hiding at the front entrance!) “Sword of Light, whom I do release!” A tree and parts of the hotel’s porch were set alight. At the same time, a deep and rough voice spoke: “Disappear!” All the flames from the previous attack vanished. (Is that——the a.s.sa.s.sin?) Someone how the a.s.sa.s.sin was able to negate Orphen’s attack, the implications of who this might be ran through his mind. A figure stepped out of the trees, it looked like he was ready to flee. Orphen couldn’t let any of them get away, since they would most likely tell Ostwald about what happened tonight. Orphen took a deep breath, crossed his arms and shouted: “I call thee, sisters of rupture!” At the same time——he pointed towards his chosen destination. The air itself started to vibrate, it felt like the air was being squeezed from all directions, then an explosion occurred. “Ahh!” “Ahh!” He heard several screams coming from the trees——two men armed with bow and arrows fell and landed on the ground. (I doubt that’s all of them.) Orphen walked calmly towards the two men. He kicked one in the head, he fainted. The other man was moaning, Orphen got on his knees and grabbed him by the chest. “Did Ostwald send you? Did he?!” The a.s.sa.s.sin was scarred out of his wits, he couldn’t speak. “Well, seeing as you won’t answer that question. I’ll ask you another——did you see that snake creature?” “Death, death……” The a.s.sa.s.sin seemed confused. “A ghost appeared in the house, did——” “We were——” It seemed the a.s.sa.s.sin’s right shoulder was broken, he went on to say: “We were waiting for you to fall asleep, we were——” Reeling from the pain, he bit his lip. “Planning a night raid.” Orphen felt like he was hiding something from him. “So, you didn’t have anything to do with that ghost?” “Ahhhhhh!” Someone screamed—— It was the man who Orphen kicked in the head. He was holding a fruit knife, and was pressing it against his own head, blood was oozing out. “Ah——ahhh——ahh!” Orphen rushed over, but it was too late. The a.s.sa.s.sin had already cut into his own skull——his skull could be clearly seen, blood was pouring out. “Ah——ahhh!” Screams were now coming from the other man, both of them were screaming. He was grasping at his throat, it looked like he was being suffocated——this was insanity. Several times Orphen has saw people die, but this was too much, too strange. Orphen took a step backwards. Then he felt something on touch shoulder, it was like tree bark, a little hot, a little hard. “…………?” Even though he was frightened, Orphen turned around. There was a tall figure standing behind him, the dark silhouette was clutching a large knife.  “Oh s.h.i.t!” Orphen flew into a panic. He was about to take a defensive stance, but then he noticed it——there was a finger right in front of his eyes. But——it just sat there motionlessly. (…………?) Orphen didn’t know when it happened. Was it when he blinked? He put the thought out of his mind, all he could focus on was the mad grin on this persons face. His basic instincts told him to blink again, maybe if he closed his eyes it would go away. Orphen closed his eyes. Not long after he closed his eyes, he felt something hugging him——it was a woman, he was gently caressed for a moment, then she let go. Orphen opened his eyes. His mind was now free from disorder, he was calm once again. It was like cold water was poured over his head, it wasn’t an unpleasant feeling for him. Then, a pair of lips was pressed upon his. “Hirietta……?”   Orphen liked this feeling, he wanted it to last forever. “Your body surgery technique is really powerful, did you learn it at the Tower?” “Body surgery?” Orphen was stunned for a moment. His heart was now throbbing, he was fl.u.s.tered.  “Even I can’t kill people like that……” “Ah.” “Didn’t you kill those men with some trick?” “No.” Orphen wiped the sweat from his forehead. “I didn’t do anything to them.” “That’s not what it looked like.” “Listen, I——” Before he could say anything else, the front door of the hotel opened. “Orphen!” “Master!” Majic and Cleo came running towards them. Noticing the presence of Hirietta, Cleo became angry. “Orphen——” Cleo was about to ask him something, but he put his hand up to silence her. Orphen looked back at Hirietta, her hair straight and beautiful. Then he looked at Cleo, her entire appearance disorderly. “You jumped from that window alone! That was suicidal!” Orphen put his hand on Cleo’s shoulder, he then pushed her out of the way and headed towards the hotel. “Where’s that stupid racc.o.o.n dog?” He asked Majic, Majic shrugged. “Vulcan and Dortin are parading around the room, they’re calculating how much it’ll cost to repair the room.” “…………” Orphen sighed. Hirietta approached him from behind. “What are you going to do next?” “I don’t know.” She looked at him. “Orphen?” “What?” Orphen asked. Hirietta came closer and whispered in his ear. “Before you do anything, you should rub that off?” “Rub what off?” “My lipstick on your lips, silly.” Hirietta laughed, Orphen’s face was now bright red, as he wiped the lipstick with the back of his hand.   End of Chapter 2