Chapter 1222 Reasons for Choosing
"..." As he listened to the words that came out of Riekan's mouth, Valyr remained completely silent as he asked himself how he was going to achieve the man's request without even having done any preparation beforehand.
After all, if he wanted to make sure that no one else knew who killed her, he would first have to make sure that the location was ideal, alongside many other things that might give him away if it weren't perfect.
"...Man." Though, as he thought about Cynthia being deemed an inauspicious omen by Riekan once more, that train of thought gradually disappeared from his mind as he let out a long sigh of exasperation in response.
Closing his eyes for a bit, the gears in Valyr's mind whirred as fast as they could before looking back at Riekan once more. "You know... if you want me to kill her without leaving any traces, I'll have to at least make a few preparations before doing so."
"Also, did you ever ask yourself at least once whether or not I'm the right person to be stealthily killing someone?" he continued. "You do know that none of my attacks are anywhere close to being stealthy, right?"
"Of course." Riekan nodded back, his expression that of understanding. "I did catch a glimpse of your fighting style back in the tournament, after all." Nôv(el)B\\jnn
"And yet, you're still choosing me to do it?" asked Valyr with a raised eyebrow, wondering what kind of answer Riekan would give him that would make the current situation make sense once more.
"Why wouldn't I?" replied Riekan, looking at the young man with slight confusion. "For one, you have an ability to change every aspect of yourself to the point it's near indistinguishable from your original self."
"Aside from that, I've heard that you've forged a ranged weapon that delivers far more damage than even a fully-charged bow could do. I've also heard that you decided to share its blueprints for the sake of humanity." "I may not be at the battlefield often, but the feats Ylvar achieved there has even reached the clan here."
"...Is that all?" Though he did agree that the man's reasons were compelling enough for him to be considered as the one who'd be doing the killing, Valyr felt like Riekan had misunderstood one of the things he used as a reason.
Specifically, the ranged weapon he forged.
"In fact, the request you gave the clan behind your arrival is a solid alibi that excuses you from becoming a suspect."
"So, can you do it?"
"...Alright." Although he got the feeling that there was the possibility of the entire thing turning into an even bigger mess, Valyr eventually agreed to help Riekan out with his request. "But only on a few conditions."
"As long as it doesn't involve something that goes against my morals, I'm all ears," replied Riekan with a nod, having more than expected something like this to happen.
"For one, you have to help me out in the preparation," said Valyr with a calm expression. "After all, we have to make sure that no one else in the clan catches wind of it happening."
"I was already planning to do that in the first place. What else?"
"Second, you've got to upgrade my accessory even further than what you were initially planning," replied the young man to the question. "I'm risking my life here, after all."
"I could do that, sure." Riekan nodded in agreement. "However, if that's what you want, then I'll upgrade the accessory to the peak of Rank 5 rather than the peak of Rank 4."
"That's fine by me." Valyr nodded in return. "I plan on ascending to the next rank quite soon anyway."
"Anything else?" asked Riekan one last time.
"Well... if I could add you to my friend list... that would be great."
"..."
"...Really now?"