Lord of Caldera

Chapter 52

"Hey, you!"

Max jumped back in shock, retreating out of the range of Sylas's sword. It was already a situation where no excuse would work.

A string of curses popped into Max's head, but there wasn't even enough time to spit them out.

'Run!'

The job and everything else didn't matter anymore. If he didn't flee immediately, the knights would capture and kill him.

Just as Max was about to open the door, a teacup flew from Sylas' hand.

Crash!

"Oof!"@@@@

The teacup struck Max's head, shattering on impact and causing him to stumble. In that brief moment, Sylas darted out and blocked the door.

"There's no escape!"

'Damn it...!'

Max barely managed to regain his senses, biting his lip as he stepped back. Now, the only escape route left was the window behind him.

After a moment of hesitation, Max turned, sprinted, and threw himself toward the glass.

Smash!

"Argh!"

Max tumbled to the ground from the second floor, shaking off the glass shards. Fortunately, the high-quality glass wasn't too sharp when it broke. He let out a small sigh of relief, but that relief was short-lived.

"What was that sound!?"

"It came from over there!"

'I knew this would happen.'

That's why Max always hated breaking through windows. It was like announcing his location to the whole neighborhood.

Luckily, he had managed to distance himself from Sylas. If he could hide his mask and dagger, he could return to being an innocent warehouse worker.

Just as he thought that and prepared to slip into the shadows, a voice rang out.

"Assassin!"

"...!"

Cold sweat ran down Max's back. He had thought it would be easy enough to take Sylas hostage with a bit of effort, but now he had to worry about his own life.

Seeing Max manage to block the surprise attack, Sylas smiled, seemingly impressed.

"Oh, not bad. I guess I can go a bit harder."

"...!?"

Max initially thought Sylas was bluffing, but before that thought could even finish, another barrage of rapid thrusts came his way.

Max had no choice but to focus all his energy on parrying Sylas's strikes. There was no time to think about anything else. All he could do was block the blade that was right in front of his face.

While Max was struggling to fend off Sylas's attacks, time continued to pass, and a crowd had started to gather around them.

"Sir Toby, what's happening here?"

"The young lord... he's fighting!"

The knights gasped in shock as they saw Sylas clashing swords with an unknown assailant.

"What are we waiting for? Let's help him!"

"No! Stop, all of you!"

Some of the knights drew their swords and charged forward, but Toby stepped in their way.

Frustrated at being blocked, the knights frowned and shouted.

"Sir Toby, why are you stopping us!?"

"Lord Sylas is your master! You should be the first to help him..." they yelled in outrage.

Toby, however, lowered his head solemnly, wearing a heavy expression.

"Do you think I don't want to help? But the problem is his identity!" Toby said.

"His identity? Isn't he just an assassin?"

"He's no ordinary assassin! That guy... he's an assassin from the heretic cults of the East!"

"What!" The knights gasped, exchanging startled glances. Eastern heretic assassins were notorious, even within the Empire.

These assassins were known for their fanatical devotion, willing to die without hesitation, and for undergoing ten years of body modifications just for a single mission.

And now, Sylas was fighting one of those dangerous killers?

"An assassin from the East? Are you sure?" one knight asked in disbelief.

'Sure? Are you kidding me? Where's this drunk fool getting this nonsense from?' Max thought, shocked even more than the knights.