The man who asked me to rescue the Prince was known as Medusa, who worked in the court of the Kingdom of Caligor.

It was my first time seeing Medusa in person.

Because the power of the Tenebris that is their source was a forbidden power in the Empire.

So the very power that the Empire calls “black magic” was actually the Ancient Darkness, Tenebris.

The powers of the four apostles, protected by the ancient god Brihim, were all derived from the same root.

Therefore, those who expressed strong swordsmanship could also use strong black magic at the end of polishing their talent.

Of course, in theory, no one has used more than one type of magic so far.

If there had been such a person, it would have been recorded in the history book.

Anyway, unlike the Empire that defined Tenebris as “evil,” there were many people on the western continent who inherited Tenebris’ magic.

“If you have the ability to hire a mercenary, shouldn’t you also have the ability to use black magic to rescue the Prince?”

“Oh, I will be in trouble if I use black magic and it gets into the Emperor’s ears.”

“But it’s your Prince.”

“If we get caught using black magic, the name of the country may be erased from the map. For that, I’d rather give up the prince than…….”

However, he was not confident of proudly demonstrating the power prohibited by the Empire, so he only maintained the reputation of the name “Medusa.”

Indeed, the power they used was the same as Ferdinand’s technique.

‘After all, he’s not a real Medusa, but a wizard.’

With the technique of Medusa, we were able to move directly in front of the capital’s royal castle from the court of Caligor.

I wasn’t particularly surprised because I saw Benjamin use similar techniques many times.

But Medusa seemed to have interpreted it differently.

“As expected, you are a witch. Even when you were teleporting, you didn’t even blink…….”

Saying this, Medusa hid by the bushes and raised his thumb at me.

“What are you doing there? You’re not going in?”

“I’ll be waiting here.”

“Weren’t we supposed to go in together?”

“What if I go in for no reason and run into the Emperor?”

“What about me?”

“That’s why you will get 3 billion gold as a risk allowance.”

It was smart to take it in a sloppy way.

But as he said, it was my job to get the Prince out.

Covering myself with a robe handed over from him, I infiltrated the palace alone without a word.

As I headed to the second-floor hallway of the main castle where the Prince was trapped, I saw a soldier standing there without sleeping at late hours.

‘They’re uselessly diligent.’

I clicked my tongue.

I didn’t think I needed to pull out a sword to deal with them.

I hid my presence and crept up to the soldier and struck him on the back of his neck with my hand, causing him to faint.

As I lightly overpowered the guards and went inside, I could find the Prince sleeping, snoring peacefully.

I tried to wake him by shaking his body, but he didn’t get up. So I slapped him on the cheek and woke him up.

“Who, who….”

“Hush.”

I quickly covered the Prince’s mouth with my palm and examined the boundaries outside.

“I was sent by a man named Medusa, who works in your royal court. I don’t have time, so follow me quietly.”

The Prince nodded furiously at me with his mouth shut.

I took the Prince out into the hallway.

I didn’t know when or where the enemy would appear.

So I pulled out my sword and moved quietly, holding the subtle green sword.

When I tried to go back along the way I came in, I saw the knights walking around.

“Do you know any other way out?”

“Yes, yes!”

“Shh, keep your voice down.”

“Yes…”

The Prince was dispirited but still led the way out.

That’s how it was when we moved in the dark to avoid people’s eyes.

Sabak, Sabak-(Dragging sound)

Jeeeeeeeee.

At the opposite corner, I heard someone’s footsteps and something dragging on the floor.

‘Damn it. Knights are on patrol.’

I hid the Prince behind me and pointed the sword at the front.

The closer I got, the more nervous I got.

‘It’s okay. If they see me, I’ll just knock them down right away.’

Thinking that way, I tightened my strength on the hand holding the sword.

The shadow of the opponent approaching fluttered over the wall under the light of the candles standing on the candlestick around the hallway.

Step-

Step-

Step. (Stopping)

Step-

Step-

Ha…(sigh)

Step-

Step-

Sabak.(Dragging sound)

At last the opponent turned the corner.

The first thing that caught my eyes was the hideous atmosphere felt only by the tall height and the shape that glistened in the dark.

In his right hand, he had a bottle of whisky, and in his left hand…….

Gasp!

What I saw in the opponent’s left hand was none other than Medusa’s hair, who came all the way here with me. I couldn’t help but let out a gasp.

What the hell happened? Medusa was covered in blood in a short time.

But that wasn’t the only thing that surprised me.

“……!”

The moment I checked the other person’s face, I stiffened.

Dull golden eyes and black hair, hair that remind me of the night sky.

“I wondered why a rat was hiding in my palace.”

That low, seductive voice that once made my heart flutter. And…

Drip, drop.

The bottle in his hand tilted slowly.

From the mouth of the bottle, a gurgling liquid soaked Medusa’s blood-covered head with more blood.

“Aaahh!”

A desperate scream rang out in the hallway.

Only after pouring out all the last drop of liquid did the bottle in his hand fall to the floor.

Clink!

The glass broke with a sharp sound.

The man who looked down at it with a satisfied look raised his head.

Slowly tilting his chin, he greeted me with a smile.

“Hi, rat.”

With a very gentle and soft voice.

…… He was my Theodore who never even cursed in his dreams.

Theodore murmured as if singing, pulling the corner of his lips lightly.

“One, two, three rats…….”

Every step he took, humming and coming closer, the hair of Medusa, caught in his hand, shook.

He must have been the one with the unpleasant sound of something dragging on the floor that I’ve been hearing for a while.

I swallowed my astonishment and put my strength on the sword in my hand.

“…….”

My hands were slippery with sweat.

‘Of all things.’

I expected it with vague anxiety that I might encounter him, but I didn’t know I would really face him like this.

No wonder, the shaking shadow was especially handsome.

‘But he didn’t recognize me yet.’

Because of the robe covering me from head to toe, Theodore didn’t seem to have realised who I was.

But you never know when you’ll be caught wasting your time here.

Suddenly he stopped walking and threw out what he had in his hand.

Thud-!

Medusa’s tattered body rolled in front of us.

“Oh, my God, Roden*!”

[T/N: I suppose Medusa’s real name is Roden. Medusa is like a title given to him.]

The Prince, who was hiding behind me, grabbed the hem of my robe in astonishment.

And at that moment, a group of golden lights from all directions aimed at us in the form of daggers.

“A mouse hunt at night is unsightly.”

He muttered indifferently and stared at us.

Then the daggers he made with his divine power flew at us all at once.

Swoosh!

Swoosh!

Swoosh!

I swung my sword quickly.

Swing!

The daggers cut by my sword were scattered as light powder.

Theodore’s brow frowned at my counterattack.

“What’s going on?”

He muttered in a sulky voice.

“Just now, that was…….”

But I gave him no time to think and immediately swung the sword one more time.

Boom!

Clink!

I could hear the glass shattering.

I had to pass Theodore to head to the exit the Prince told me, but it was not possible under the current circumstances.

Then there was only one way out of here.

The window that I just broke.

I grabbed the Prince’s wrist and ran towards the broken window.