Chapter 7. Field Trip on a Clear Day (13)

Her push had been without hesitation. No remorse, no second thoughts. She shoved me off the cliff like it was nothing. It was just a thick forest behind me—or so I thought—but it suddenly turned into a cliff, and I was caught completely off guard.

Hmph. She really is good at magic. She must’ve used illusion magic to conceal the cliff and trick me…

A clear case of magical abuse!

“Up we go! My leg hurts, but I can still walk… I guess I’ll get moving.”

I had no teleportation stone, and the forest ahead looked even more ominous than before—but I couldn’t just stay here. So I began to move, dragging my injured leg along.

Beside me, Tosoon was still in his enlarged form, watching me with worried eyes.

“Grrrr.”

“A monster!”

I had barely taken one step when a surprisingly large monster jumped out, startling me. I flinched for a moment and then carefully observed the creature. There were five of them in total, slightly smaller than me in size. They looked similar to dogs with sharp teeth… basically, they looked vicious and scary.

“Great. With my leg like this, I can’t fight or run.”

I clicked my tongue once. Could it be that Seria anticipated the possibility of me surviving the fall and set these monsters loose to finish me off? Considering how thorough she is, it actually made perfect sense. Hmm, if that’s the case…

“Tosoon, get them.”

“Kyung!”

This is how I handle things. I had Tosoon, who had just become my ally. Despite his sweet appearance, Tosoon had quite sharp and strong teeth. With a single blow—not even, in a single bite—he took down the vicious monsters.

Crunch!

The sound of bones breaking rang out satisfyingly. Tosoon, as if playing a game, gleefully hunted the monsters. The dog-like beasts whimpered, shrinking back in fear after watching their fellow monsters go down.

This is the survival of the fittest!

My adorable Tosoon, after tossing the monsters around like toys and getting bored, shrank back down and nestled into my arms. The monsters, after being thoroughly thrashed by Tosoon, were already in shambles.

To think that gentle-looking Tosoon would so thoroughly toy with those dog-like monsters… Goes to show you really shouldn’t judge by appearances.

“Tosoon, good job!”

I reached out a hand toward Tosoon, who was nestled in my arms. As if understanding, Tosoon placed his front paw in my hand. See? Smart monster. Takes after his owner! It had only been an hour since Tosoon became my pet, but we were already perfectly in sync, and I felt proud.

“Grrrr…”

The monsters, hunched and tense, continued to warily watch Tosoon. Even though Tosoon had shrunk back to his smaller form, the memory of being beaten earlier kept them from charging recklessly. Watching them hesitate, I started thinking. Hmm, even after being intimidated this much, they still won’t leave. In that case…

“Go, Tosoon!”

Despite the grand proclamation, all I did was gently set Tosoon down on the ground. Whether Tosoon picked up on my intent or simply found the trembling monsters amusing, he put on his fiercest expression and strutted toward them.

“Kyung!”

“Whimper… whimper…”

In the end, Tosoon won the stare-down. Overwhelmed by his imposing presence, the monsters retreated and bolted back into the forest.

Tosoon really is amazing! A rabbit of exceptional caliber!

“Hmph. So Seria thought I’d die from just this? She’s sloppier than I thought.”

Well, normally, a person would die instantly with every bone crushed if they fell off a cliff, but luckily, I met a magical creature named Tosoon and managed to tame him, so I survived. And the monsters Seria probably prepared in advance as a backup plan? Tosoon took them down in a single bite. If Seria finds out, she’ll probably grab her neck and faint.

“Come on, Tosoon. Time to go.”

With the monsters taken care of, I had nothing left to fear. Hmm, but now I have to walk all the way back to the Tower. That’s going to be rough…

‘Kyung!’

Just as Tosoon was trotting over to me and I reached out to lift him up, a net came flying and trapped him. What now?! I quickly turned my head and looked back into the forest. From the shadows behind the dark trees, masked men slowly revealed themselves.

“You’re Radel Karel?”

One of the men—tallest among them—called out my name. Wait, how does he know my name? I was flustered, but I tried to keep calm and play dumb.

“Nope, you’ve got the wrong person…”

“Nope, it’s her. Looks just like the girl in the drawing.”

The man pulled out a piece of paper and kept glancing between it and my face. What the heck is drawn on it that he says it looks just like me? I couldn’t hold back my curiosity and stared at the paper—on it was a woman’s face.

What the—where exactly does that look like me?! The face was round, the eyes tiny, and the lips like a fish! It looked like something a hater drew. I couldn’t help but let out a scoff.

‘So, who are you guys? Assassins or something?’”

“I was only joking, but the others began whispering among themselves in a flustered panic. Wait, are they seriously… assassins?

“That girl knows who we are.”

“So what? We just have to take care of her quietly, without a trace.”

From the sound of it, they really were assassins. Whoa—this is my first time seeing real assassins… No, wait—assassins?! My eyes widened in shock. Why, why… are there suddenly assassins? I could pretty much guess who sent them, but just to be sure, I asked.

“Did Seria send you?”

“Yeah.”

“You idiot! Why would you say that?!”

The tall man was smacked on the head by his colleague and collapsed to the ground. Seemed like it hurt—he was rubbing his head with both hands.

“Ow! Why’d you hit me! We’re going to kill her anyway, so what’s the problem with telling her!”

“You’re not supposed to reveal the client’s name, you moron!”

For some reason, the two started fighting. The other assassins were sweating trying to pull them apart. What is this? Are they here to kill me, or did they come to put on a comedy skit?

Still—assassins? I’ve actually been targeted with a murder contract. Wow, thanks to Seria, I’m getting all sorts of new life experiences. Damn it.

But how the hell did a commoner like Seria manage to hire assassins? Sure, she always gets whatever she wants—eating whatever she likes, owning whatever she desires—but hiring assassins takes a ridiculous amount of money. No way a commoner could afford that.

…Wait, did these guys get swayed by her looks and take the job for free? If that’s the case, I suddenly feel even more wronged.”

“Um, question. How much is Seria paying you for this?”

I raised my hand and asked the assassins, who were still bickering among themselves. Just in case, I tapped my communication orb to start recording. There might be some valuable info in here! Honestly, I didn’t expect hired killers to politely answer questions from their target. But contrary to my expectations, these sloppy and slightly slow-witted assassins cheerfully began to answer.

“Ha! The request came from that girl Seria, but the one who forked over the big money was none other than Marquis Edwin himself.”

Marquis Edwin? Now that I think about it, Huan did warn me to be wary of him. So the Marquis, who’s also Seria’s sponsor, has gone so far as to fund an assassination. What a noble cause to support, huh. I felt dumbfounded and asked again just to be sure.

“Aha, so you’re here to assassinate me, paid with Marquis Edwin’s money!”

“Exactly!”

The assassin cheerfully shouted the answer even louder. Heh, with this, I can drag that Marquis down with me. I smiled inwardly with satisfaction. Thank goodness the assassins trying to kill me were airheaded. It made me seriously wonder how they even became assassins in the first place—they were so straightforward and clueless.

“You idiot! Stop leaking client information!”

“Eek! Okay!”

The man who had been fighting earlier delivered an uppercut to the one who so obediently answered me. That guy seemed to be the leader—he looked like the only one with some sense. After dishing out his punishment, the one who appeared to be the boss let out a deep sigh.

“Phew, well, you’ve already heard it all. There’s no helping it now. You’ll have to die.”

You were going to kill me anyway! I gulped as the man’s gaze suddenly turned serious. It was terrifying to see the assassins drawing the swords hanging at their waists. Come to think of it—there’s nowhere to run! Behind me is a cliff, in front are assassins, and I don’t have the teleport stone anymore! This is the very definition of a life-or-death situation.

Damn it… They were so stupid that I didn’t even feel threatened before!

“Ah—To-soon!”

I looked down at To-soon, who was caught in the net. Unlike earlier when he had been full of energy, he now lay limp and drained. What?! What did they do to our To-soon?! I hurriedly freed him from the net, but he was already on the verge of passing out. There was a strange, sickly sweet floral scent coming from the net. This smell…

“We coated the net with a special drug that saps energy! I saw how powerful that beast was earlier. But now what are you gonna do? That pet of yours is useless now!”

One of the assassins sneered as he spoke.

I frantically grabbed To-soon and shook him. The snow-white rabbit dangled weakly in my hands. Come on, To-soon—wake up! Ugh! I was worried about To-soon, and terrified for myself. I bit down hard on my lip. Now, I had nothing left to shield me.

“No… I still have one thing left.”

A dagger—small, for self-defense—was tucked away in my clothes. I’d kept it on me the whole trip, not wanting to leave it in my bag in case of emergency. Hmm, could I really take down trained assassins in my condition?

There were eight assassins in total. Seria had been so thorough that she sent a whole team just to make sure I was really dead. Wow, I’m honored.

I slowly gripped the dagger and observed their movements.

“Should we all go at once?’]”

“Assassins are supposed to move in secret and eliminate their target quietly. So I’ll handle this myself,” the leader said as he gripped his sword tighter. Hmm. But they were already far from being quiet or stealthy. There were so many things to nitpick here, but all I could do was stand there, tense.

I kept my eyes fixed on the assassins without blinking, unsure of when they might rush at me. I drew my dagger and held my breath. The moment I did, a dark figure lunged at me.

“Ugh!”