「Isn’t that him?」 

「That’s him.」 

「It’s definitely him.」

The sound of the cats chattering beside him didn’t even register in Isaac’s ears. He merely stared with wide, unblinking eyes, his gaze locked onto the grey hood, where only the line of his mouth was visible beneath the fabric.

The grey hood was looking down at the fallen man. The man still had a breath of life clinging to him, but it was obvious he would expire any second—a man whose body had been cleaved open from his shoulder to near his heart, pouring blood onto the floor.

In the corner, the wizard quietly moved his lips again. An inaudible magical incantation flowed out and reached the fallen man, and once again, the man’s horrific wound began to knit back together at a rapid pace. From the deepest tissue to the surface, from the heart up to the shoulder, new flesh bloomed and fused the wound shut.

Right then. The grey hood abruptly snapped his head around. His gaze locked perfectly onto the wizard.

The wizard, who had been chanting his spell with moving lips, flinched. His shoulders could be seen trembling ever so slightly.

The grey hood stared at him in silence for a moment. Then, beneath the shadow of the hood, his lips curled into a faint smile.

‘So it’s you.’

Isaac felt as if he had actually heard the thought aloud. A sudden, violent chill washed over his entire body, and he stopped breathing.

Just then, the second-closest man lunged at the grey hood, swinging a massive axe. Turning his head to look at him, the grey hood swung his sword downward, as if aiming to slice right through the weapon itself.

*SCREEECH—!*

The blade bit about halfway into the thick iron of the axe head before stopping. The complexion of the man holding the axe shifted drastically. A sword that could cut directly into a solid iron axe—no one had ever heard of such a weapon, nor a person capable of wielding it like that.

The faces of the other men hardened as well. The fierce, aggressive atmosphere sank into a heavy, deadly seriousness.

“You have some serious skill.” 

The middle-aged man spoke. 

“But no matter how talented or monstrous you are, you barged in here alone. Tonight is your end. Let’s see just how long your stamina holds out against a multitude of men who will neither be injured nor killed no matter how many hundred times you swing that sword. ——ATTACK!”

The middle-aged man roared.

But before his words could even finish, the grey hood, who had seemed lost in thought as if he wasn’t even listening, suddenly stepped forward. He effortlessly closed the distance to the man holding the axe.

Facing an opponent who had closed in on his very nose in a split second, the axe-wielding man didn’t even have the time to resist. In a fleeting, absurdly brief moment, before the middle-aged man’s command of “ATTACK!” could fully leave his mouth, the axe-wielding man’s head was cleanly severed. A head tumbled to the floor, followed by the axe slipping from dead hands, and finally, the man’s lifeless body collapsed on top of it.

The grey hood ignored the fountain of blood spraying from the neck and looked straight at the wizard.

The wizard, his eyes darting unsteadily with a pale, bluish complexion, met his gaze and violently trembled. Then, as if realizing the intruder’s intent, he clamped his mouth shut, his eyes widening in pure fury.

The corners of the grey hood’s mouth relaxed.

“I see. You can’t bring back the dead. Well, that simplifies things.”

“Just don’t give you the chance to heal them.” The grey hood opened his mouth for the first time. The moment Isaac heard that low, quiet voice, the blood drained entirely from his face.

It was a familiar voice. A voice he could never mistake.

…… God.

Beneath Isaac, whose mind had gone entirely blank, a hellish slaughter commenced.

It could only be described as a one-sided massacre.

These men, who had injured and murdered countless people, who were second to none when it came to combat, were slaughtered completely and utterly, one by one. In a single breath, heads were severed, torsos were bisected, and even if by some miracle an attack was dodged and only inflicted a glancing wound, the blade of the grey hood decisively severed their windpipes before the wizard could even finish reciting a spell. Watching wounds slowly, creepily try to heal

themselves on bodies that had already lost their heads, Isaac had to fight down the urge to vomit.

This was no battle between men. No human could fight him on equal footing—as Isaac felt this truth in his very bones, the dozen or so men were transformed into a mountain of corpses in the blink of an eye.

And the last remaining survivor, the middle-aged man, wore a blank, devastated expression, as if he were trapped in a nightmare, unable to comprehend this impossible, hellish reality when the grey hood finally stepped before him.

Right behind the grey hood, a body that had just lost its head slowly began to tilt. The leaning corpse bumped lightly against the grey hood’s back, then slid smoothly to the floor. The long hem of the grey hood’s cloak, which had barely been hanging on after its clasp was severed, snagged on the corpse’s arm and was pulled completely off.

And the figure of the man who had been hidden beneath the hood was revealed in the firelight.

And then——Isaac confirmed the man’s face and swallowed a strangled groan.

Of course.

He had prayed so desperately that it wasn’t true. He had wanted to believe he had misheard the voice, that his intuition was wrong.

“Y…… you…… are……”

The middle-aged man tilted his head, frowning grotesquely at the figure revealed before him. Staring at him, blinking rapidly as if searching his memories for a face he had seen somewhere before but couldn’t quite place, the middle-aged man’s eyes suddenly blew wide open as if he had been struck by lightning, and his body began to violently tremble.

“Y-you…… You are…… Why are you,”

The middle-aged man stuttered, unable to even form a proper sentence, and ultimately failed to finish it. Without ever receiving an answer to his question, the middle-aged man lost his head. *Thud*. The severed head that dropped to the floor maintained that exact expression of bulging-eyed terror.

Now, in that space where a deathly, rat-quiet silence flowed, only that man and the wizard remained. Oh, and Isaac, lying flat on his stomach up in the ceiling.

‘…… God…… why are you doing this to me…… Is it because I’m the child of a witch? You’ve never done this to me before……’

「Why is he here?」 

「Right……? Hmm, considering he came to wipe out a gang of thugs…… Ah, I know! He’s here to collect the bounty!」 

「Ah—now that you mention it, he was that kid who lived a hard life.」

「Yeah, he was the poor kid who couldn’t make ends meet.」 

「His bedroom was incredibly shabby, and he couldn’t afford food, so he filled his stomach with blood……」 

「Yeah, he did. Even though he’s a prince.」

That’s right. Even though he’s a prince.

If he’s a prince, why the hell is he doing something like this in a place like this?!

Isaac grabbed the chattering cats by the scruffs of their necks and squeezed. ‘I know they can’t hear you down there, but please stop talking nonsense and shut your mouths for a minute.’ The presence of reinforcements approaching from outside had already reached the immediate vicinity, but right now, even that threat felt agonizingly distant.

It was the Prince. Even looking at him again, it was the Prince. Prince Kyan.

That man was standing right there. Looking down at the wizard with an emotionless expression, while the wizard glared back up at him with a face pale as a sheet. Then, the wizard muttered.

“Who…… are you?”

The wizard didn’t know who the man was. Isaac was briefly surprised, but quickly realized it made sense. There were a few portraits or statues of the royal family inside the palace, but unless you were a court mage, you wouldn’t have seen them, and ordinary people almost never had the chance to see the faces of the royal family unless there was an official public event.

The Prince stared at him intently, seeming entirely uninterested in the wizard’s words. Then,

“You’re human.”

The Prince clicked his tongue in apparent disappointment.

“But fine, a wizard…… that works too. Now that a wizard has shown up, a witch should appear soon enough.”

The moment Isaac heard those words, muttered like a soliloquy, a sudden realization flashed through his mind.

He’s looking for a witch. He was hunting for a witch.

‘Why…… It wasn’t to stockpile painkillers…… The assailant started massacring the Roberni faction even before that night I ran into the Prince.’

“You’re the one who should be answering what you are.”

The wizard spat, glaring at the Prince. 

“You wear the shell of a man, but you are no human. I can see it. What are you? To have something so ominous and wicked……!”

The Prince didn’t answer the wizard, who was pointing a trembling finger at him with quivering lips. Instead,

“Have you ever seen the Witch of Roberni?”

As if he hadn’t heard a word the wizard said, he threw out his own question. The wizard’s eyes twitched, and he stiffened.

“Nonsense, there is no such thing.”

The Prince stared blankly down at the wizard. Meeting that cold, azure gaze, the wizard’s complexion grew increasingly ashen.

“They sent someone far too lowly……”

The Prince muttered to himself and raised his sword. Wizards are a prideful breed. Hearing those words, the wizard clamped his mouth shut, his lips twisting, and glared fiercely.

“You are so arrogant you don’t even know how high the sky is. Do you think a meager talent with a sword gives you the right to dare stand against true, grand power?”

The wizard, spitting words through trembling lips, began to rapidly mutter under his breath. A heat haze began to rise around the wizard’s body, distorting the air. The Prince saw it and tilted his head slightly.

“Do you know how to handle offensive magic as well as you do healing?” 

“If you wish for it, I shall show you.”

The wizard bared his teeth and began to chant a spell. A bizarre language flowing from deep within his throat poured out, laced with raw power. That formless power took on a dark, shadowy shape, sweeping entirely over the Prince before instantly erupting into a violent blaze. A bluish inferno engulfed the Prince, mercilessly scorching his entire body.

The Prince seemed to frown faintly, but that was all; without showing the slightest hint of pain, he swung his sword. Lunging forward with unavoidable force and speed, the blade crashed into the wizard——and rebounded violently, as if it had struck a solid wall. As if wrapped in an invisible barrier, not a single scratch appeared on the wizard’s body.

But with a sharp *crack*, a thick ring the wizard wore on his finger fractured. The wizard’s face grew even paler.

The wizard hurriedly chanted another spell, and in the next second, the air in the room changed. Only the air immediately surrounding the Prince violently rushed inward, applying a crushing, monstrous weight and pressure onto his body. *Creak, creak—* it was enough to make the sickening sound of bones grinding together audible.

The Prince slowly moved his arm. As if testing the resistance of the air, the movement was heavy and sluggish, visibly straining against the immense pressure. Even as he moved his arm in a few different directions for a brief moment, the agonizing sound of his bones popping echoed continuously, sounding as if they might snap at any second. Yet, at a certain moment, the Prince’s body moved.

It was undeniably slower than before.

It was noticeably slower than his lightning-fast movements from just moments ago. However, it was still far too fast for someone who didn’t specialize in physical combat to evade; only after the Prince had closed the distance right up to his eyes could the wizard barely flinch away, and the Prince’s sword fell heavily upon him. Once again, the blade crashed against the invisible wall and bounced off, failing to inflict a single wound on the wizard, but—

*Craccck—* The fissure on the wizard’s ring grew slightly longer. It looked ready to shatter completely at any moment. The wizard’s complexion turned entirely blue.

The wizard ground his teeth furiously. The sound of his chanting became incredibly fast and rough. The moment the spell left his lips, it transformed into a shape resembling thick, black smoke. The smoke flew at the Prince, and the instant it touched his body, it morphed into something like sticky tar, instantly entwining and binding both of his arms tightly.

“Hah, ugh, how is that? You can’t move. Astaros’s Smoke will completely immobilize anything from this world, binding it in space.”

The wizard stammered, his voice laced with venom. Indeed, the Prince, whose upper body and both arms were heavily bound by the smoke, stopped moving. He looked as if he was trying to move, but seemed unable to.

Having cast a curse that required shaving away his own lifespan to manifest, the wizard grinned, his lips tearing into a gruesome smile as cold sweat poured down his face. Then, from his robes, he drew a dagger.

“Y-you… you have to die. You monster wearing human flesh…..!”

The sharp blade raised above his head flashed in the light.

Isaac unconsciously tensed his body and clenched his fists. The ceiling gave a faint creak, but the noise was instantly drowned out by the sharp *CLANG* of metal below.

The Prince had casually flicked the tip of his boot, kicking a shattered fragment of a sword up from the floor. The jagged piece of steel shot forward and impaled the wizard perfectly through the throat. The tip of the blade, having pierced straight through the center of his neck, jutted out grotesquely from the back.

“——.”

The wizard froze, his arm still raised high.

*Cracck.* The ring splintered. The fracture deepened until the ring finally shattered completely, its fragments pattering onto the floor.

A silent scream tore from the wizard’s gaping mouth. The inferno that had engulfed the Prince, the crushing pressure of the air, the black smoke that had bound his body—all of it vanished, dissipating like a hazy mist.

“Can’t heal your own body? Or is it that you have to chant a spell?”

The Prince asked. Clutching his punctured throat, the wizard simply gaped his mouth like a fish, unable to speak a single word.

“Next time, I hope they send someone better. At least someone who knows about the Witch of Roberni, or barring that, someone who can entertain me a little longer.”

The moment that bored, muttered sentiment left his lips, the Prince’s blade fell upon the wizard’s head. The sword cleaved straight down from the crown of his skull to his solar plexus in a single strike, and the wizard died instantly.

And then, only silence remained.

In the midst of the suffocating, stomach-churning stench of blood, nothing moved. Nothing except the Prince, who lazily tilted his head from side to side, popping his neck with a sharp *cracck, crack.*

A drop of cold sweat fell from right beneath Isaac’s chin. *Bop.* In a silence so profound he feared even that tiny sound might be heard, Isaac wished he could stop the thunderous pounding of his own heart.

The Prince was looking for the Witch of Roberni. Why, Isaac didn’t know. Judging by how he was mercilessly slaughtering their faction to find her, it couldn’t be for good intentions. But whatever his reasons, one fact was undeniably clear…… Isaac had learned something he was never supposed to know.

The mysterious assailant wiping out the Roberni faction was this man. That meant the culprit who murdered the Grand Duke’s son was also him.….. Most likely, it wasn’t out of any specific grudge; he had probably just cut him down callously in a situation much like this one. A man who showed such equal, merciless indifference to everyone – blood relatives included – was hardly going to show compassion to a complete stranger.

‘I can’t get caught. If I get caught, it’s all over.’

Isaac mentally drew the sign of the cross and prayed for the man to leave quickly. If there was one saving grace in this hellish silence, it was that the sounds of approaching reinforcements had already reached the alleyway just a block or two over. To think that a swarm of Roberni thugs rushing in like rabid dogs would ever be a source of comfort.

‘The Prince wouldn’t linger much longer. Once he leaves, I’ll quietly slip away right after. Then, I’m completely forgetting about the Robernis. Flint or no flint, my life comes first! That monster— Capturing that monster to earn merits and a reward is completely, entirely out of the question. I’d rather spend a million years digging a tunnel from my house to the royal vault.’

‘Hurry up and leave, just leave.’

It was right when a second drop of sweat fell from the tip of Isaac’s nose.

A sudden premonition flashed through his mind.

Acting purely on instinct, he kicked off the floor and threw his body to the side. At almost the exact same instant, a sword blade erupted through the floorboards of the ceiling, tearing through the exact spot he had just occupied. The wooden ceiling splintered with a sharp *Shhhp.*

“——.”

It was a fraction of a second. Had he been even the slightest bit slower, Isaac’s body would have been skewered.

“Hoh…… so a fairly capable one was left.”

The Prince murmured. The blade that had jutted through the ceiling smoothly withdrew downward. When and where would it shoot up next? Probably right beneath him. As Isaac’s entire body tensed, every nerve on edge, the words “Come down” reached his ears. There was no one else here who those words could be directed at.

He was caught. It was useless to wonder when he had been noticed; in a situation where his discovery was unquestionable, pondering it was pointless. He’d much rather climb down than be skewered from below like a kebab by a sword that could strike at any moment.

“Cough…….” Swallowing a groan, Isaac pried up the loose wooden floorboards and dropped down into the room below.

Even as Isaac leaped lightly from the ceiling and landed in the center of the room, the Prince showed no signs of surprise. On the contrary, Isaac – who had only seen glimpses through the cracks in the boards – finally got a full look at the surrounding sea of corpses and blood, and his face turned deathly pale.

“You’re…… that guy. The Royal Guard.”

The Prince arched an eyebrow, seemingly surprised. Isaac hurriedly dropped to his knees and bowed his head. Come to think of it, the last time he ran into him – as Isaac the Royal Guard – it had been a very similar situation. Granted, back then it was the butchered corpse of a magical beast rather than humans, and they were in a forest instead of the top floor of a tavern…… ‘Why do I only ever cross paths with him in blood-soaked crime scenes?’

“What were you doing here?”

Staring intently down at Isaac, the Prince asked. Isaac’s heart plummeted to his stomach. Why were you here? What were you doing? The answer…… probably wouldn’t even matter. Whatever he said, Isaac’s life was teetering on the edge of death.

“The Roberni’s……”

Isaac’s mind raced furiously for a split second, trying to concoct a lie that might buy his survival, but he quickly gave up. This was not a man who would fall for a clumsy lie.

“I was waiting in ambush to discover the identity of the assailant wiping out the Roberni faction.”

“Why?”

“I wanted to earn merits and receive a reward from His Majesty.”

The Prince, who had been slowly inspecting his sword as if examining the blade of a scythe, cast a glance at Isaac. Amidst his expressionless face, his gaze held a faint glimmer of sheer disbelief—a look that seemed to say, Are you seriously asking me to believe an answer so idiotically simple?

Isaac knew it too. He knew exactly how absurd and flimsy this excuse sounded. It probably would have sounded far more believable to say, ‘I work as a Royal Guard by day and serve under the Roberni syndicate by night.’

But that absurd answer was the unvarnished, 100% truth, and feeling a sudden twinge of indignation at that look of utter disbelief, Isaac met his gaze squarely. For a fleeting second, the blue eyes studying him seemed to narrow.

“…… Merits. What a pity.”

‘He believed me!’ …… But Isaac didn’t even have time to feel relieved. The implication of the words that followed was obvious. He was going to kill him. Isaac’s heart plummeted once again.

“——I have a terrible memory.”

As Isaac hastily blurted this out, the Prince, who had just begun to turn toward him, raised an eyebrow.

“The moment I leave this place, I will completely forget everything I saw and heard here. No, I’ve already forgotten it all. I don’t even remember what I had for dinner. I have no more interest in the Robernis. And I won’t have even the slightest shred of interest in the future either.”

‘I saw nothing. I tell you, I saw nothing.’

Isaac pleaded desperately. There was no way the Prince didn’t understand what he meant, but without a single word of reply, the Prince looked down at Isaac and slowly flicked his sword, shaking off the drops of blood. It was a habitual gesture right before he cut something down. The grim reaper felt like it was hovering inches from his nose.

“I,”

Isaac continued urgently. He didn’t even know what he was saying anymore. He was simply vomiting words, grabbing at any stray straw he could reach.

“I might be able to offer you assistance, Prince Kyan. If you intend to continue moving in secret, avoiding the eyes of the public, I’m sure there are many tedious tasks. I’m used to handling the bothersome chores in the Royal Guard, so if you delegate those to me, it will save you a great deal of personal trouble. Plus, I might not look it, but I’m quite useful. I can dig up most ordinary

information easily enough.”

“Yes, I suppose so. Seeing as you managed to hide up here.”

Isaac’s heart sank again, thump, thump, thump. The Prince was speaking casually, but he fully intended to kill him. Ignoring Isaac’s desperate pitch, the Prince cast his gaze toward the window, where the sky was just beginning to lighten with the dawn. It was a face that clearly read: Let’s hurry up, clean this mess, and go.

“Of course, you’ve done brilliantly on your own so far, but wouldn’t it be far more convenient to have at least one easily exploitable pawn planted inside the Royal Palace……”

His mind was a tangled mess; he had no idea what he was even babbling about anymore. You’re going to kill me? Don’t you need painkillers?? But just barely, a shred of rationality remained to stop him from blurting that out. Sure, it might save his life, but it would guarantee him a lifetime in a dungeon. But look here, buddy, you might not realize it, but if I die, you’re going to have a hell of a time finding a new witch, you.

“I also know more about witches than other people do.”

It was a slip of the tongue born from his scrambled brain circuits shorting out.

“So I’d be quite a decent errand boy…….”

Adding that last bit, Isaac slowly trailed off. He could feel the Prince’s gaze lock onto him.

“How much?”

“Pardon?” 

“How much do you know?”

For the first time, the Prince demanded an answer from Isaac. The moment he met those unblinking azure eyes staring straight through him, Isaac faintly shrank back.

So this is it. This is the topic that holds his interest.

“…… When I was young, a witch lived next door. Without knowing she was a witch, we were as close as family for over ten years. Maybe because of that, I can spot them a bit easier than others. I suppose I have a bit of a knack for that sort of thing……”

“Not 100% accurate, though, just sort of vaguely,” Isaac mumbled, tacking on the disclaimer. Somehow, he had managed to grab onto a lifeline, but why did it feel like this lifeline was actually rotting from the inside…..?

The Prince stared at Isaac thoughtfully, lost in silence. Then, suddenly reaching into his coat, he pulled out a heavy-looking pouch and tossed it onto the table with a thud. Seeing the Prince silently gesture toward the pouch with his chin, Isaac hesitantly untied the strings. The fabric fell open, revealing a glittering pile of objects spilling out.

It was a collection of brilliantly sparkling, small gemstones. Isaac’s eyes were instantly captivated by the dazzling, fingernail-sized fragments shining in a mix of silver, white, and iridescent hues. For a split second, the blood of a witch, creatures who were utterly powerless against anything shiny and glamorous, surged within him. But the reason he didn’t immediately lunge at the gems with a rapturous face was partly thanks to the human blood making up the other half of his veins, but more importantly——

“Pick it out.”

The Prince commanded. Isaac cast a quick glance at the Prince before looking back at the jewels.

Rising from that pile of gems was a sinister, creeping aura. It was a profoundly repulsive, sickening energy that made him not want to touch them at all. It was so potent that even the cats up in the ceiling had puffed up their fur in distress, and Isaac’s own nerves were completely frayed.

Isaac slowly sifted through the pile of gems with his palm. He felt sick. His stomach churned. He quickly realized this aversion came from his witch’s blood. Something a witch despised was mixed in there.

“——.”

This is it. The moment his fingertip brushed against a specific stone, Isaac knew.

I see. So this is a holy silver crystal, blessed by high priests for generations.

It was his first time encountering one directly, but he knew it instinctively. He had read about them in books. A holy relic steeped in over a hundred years of blessings, capable of repelling all manner of wicked things.

He never imagined such a rare artifact, something blessed daily without fail for over a century, actually existed. And this incredibly precious, rare item was indeed exceptionally effective at driving away evil.

Isaac felt a full-body shudder, like he had just touched a cockroach. He could only endure it because he was only half-witch; otherwise, he would have jerked his hand back and retreated instantly.

The Prince watched Isaac in silence. Moving sluggishly, Isaac sifted through the pile, and from among the dazzling, clinking stones, he scooped up four or five fragments that looked similar to the repulsive one, grabbing them all at once.

When Isaac held the pieces out to the Prince, the Prince looked down at them and spoke.

“Which one is it?” 

“…… I don’t know.”

Isaac mumbled, bowing his head. He couldn’t be entirely wrong, but he couldn’t be overly accurate either.

Taking the pieces, the Prince quietly rolled them around in his palm, rattling them together as he stared at Isaac. It was even more terrifying because Isaac couldn’t guess what he was thinking. The hand still resting on the hilt of his sword moved agonizingly slowly. Will he cut me? Will he spare me? Cold sweat drenched the back of Isaac’s neck.

The presence of the men outside had almost completely arrived. The sounds of men who had reached the bottom of the building violently hammering on the door echoed up to them. The entrance seemed to be barricaded, but they would smash through and swarm the place at any second.

“Your division?”

That was when the Prince spoke. Isaac snapped his head up in surprise, but the moment he met those blue eyes, he instantly dropped his gaze back down in sheer terror.

‘I lived.’

On one hand, a massive wave of relief washed over him, but on the other, he was gripped by the agonizing realization that he really didn’t want to answer. Not that he had any choice.

“……The 3rd Division.”

Isaac mumbled as awkwardly as humanly possible. Giving a slight nod, or perhaps a dismissive tilt of his head, the Prince turned away. Having apparently lost all interest in Isaac, he briefly scanned the room and picked up the crossbow lying on the floor. Testing the weight of the bow and the heavy bolt with a couple of light shakes, the Prince vaulted directly out the window.

 Isaac didn’t even have the chance to shout, ‘This is the top floor!’ Grabbing onto the awning, the Prince’s movements as he swung himself up onto the roof were incredibly agile.

“…….”

‘Who am I worrying about right now, honestly……’

Isaac slumped down into a crouch right where he stood. Burying his forehead in his knees, he let out a long, heavy sigh.

He felt like he had just come back from the dead. It was a feeling he was experiencing all too often lately. He felt like he had aged a hundred years in an instant. At this rate, his hair was going to turn white soon.

Both his body and mind were so exhausted he felt like he could die, but he didn’t even have a moment to rest. From downstairs, a resounding *CRASH!* Signaled that the door had finally been breached, followed by the chaotic sounds of a mob pouring into the building.

Dragging his heavy body, Isaac moved to the window. Looking outside, he saw the crossbow bolt embedded deeply into the wall of the adjacent building a fair distance away. Tied to the end of it was a thick rope. He’s planning to leave the same way I did……

“But with a rope that thick at that distance, it won’t hold the weight. It’ll snap halfway.”

Isaac muttered. But he wasn’t worried in the slightest.

And rightly so. Just as he predicted, as the Prince slid down the rope, it snapped when he was about halfway across. But grabbing the broken end of the rope, the Prince easily swung himself onto the wall of the next building, landing lightly, and leaped down from the second-story height without a moment’s hesitation. He landed perfectly, of course, and then in a single breath, he slaughtered five or six unlucky thugs who happened to be nearby before vanishing into the next alley.

Seeing this, the thugs shouted and swarmed after him, but Isaac, entirely unconcerned – though he did offer a moment of silence for those men – lightly rolled his shoulders.

Though the mob had diverted that way, the sounds of men rushing up the stairs from below were getting closer; they would burst in here any second. He needed to hide too.…… ‘I’ll slip out to the empty building on the opposite side. Thank you, Your Highness.’

Casting one last glance up at the ceiling, Isaac confirmed that the three cats had vanished without a trace, and then stealthily slipped out the window.