REAPER SCANS

I Reincarnated As The Greatest Genius of a Prestigious Family!

[Translator – Rainypup]

[Proofreader – Harley]

Chapter 103: No Wonder It Was Strange (2)

Disposing of a corpse was a rather labor-intensive task.

“Open your subspace,” I said.

“…It’ll be hard to clean later,” Delward replied.

“Isn’t it better than getting caught?”

“That’s true.” Delward listened to me obediently. “Fuu. For now, I’ve put the body away.”

"Then we have to erase all traces."

“Ah. Bloodstains.”

I shook my head.

“Then wire?”

“There are quite a few more besides that.”

Looking around, it was a mess. Of course, there were wires, but there were also double and triple layers of protection in case Delward ran away.

There were simple traps that could momentarily restrain movement, and at the outermost level, there were traps that caused explosions, perhaps designed as a last resort. There was no other reason for an assassin to prepare so extravagantly other than they were determined to get him.

“Haah…”

Taking care of the mess was not as difficult as I thought. Fortunately, I learned all of these things from my mother, and the basics of traps were that you learned how to set up and dismantle them.

Just because they were from the Drenik Empire didn’t mean the assassins’ traps were all that outrageous and complicated. On the contrary, it could be said that many traps using mechanical devices came from the Drenik Empire.

Well, maybe I just learned well.

“Done.”

I collected all the traps and clapped the dust off my hands. Most of them were still unactivated, so they could probably be recycled later. It didn’t usually take much work to make a single trap, after all.

“…What on earth are you?” Delward asked blankly as he watched me dismantle all of the traps.

Instead of answering, I pointed to Delward's feet and said, “If you take a step, you’ll get bloody. Step back.”

“Oh, yeah.”

The finishing touch was to remove any blood stains.

Removing blood stains was not difficult. It was a basic skill of an assassin.

After spraying them with the potion and wiping them with a cloth to completely clean the blood stains, and even applying a chemical to mask the smell, I was done. Even so, I looked around again to see if there was anything I had missed, just like my mother had taught me.

Hold on.

Was this my first assassination?

“Thank you. If it weren’t for you, I would have been a goner.” Delward expressed his gratitude before asking incredulously, “Didn’t you say that you… were talented at other things?”

“Well, I had the opportunity to learn various things.”

"…They tormented me so terribly."

It was easier because they were more focused on Delward than expected, but my mother's teachings were truly amazing. If I did as I was taught, everything would work out just fine.

The first one, I hid completely in the darkness while holding my breath and slashed his neck.

The second one, I moved through the darkness before the first assassin could even fall and stabbed him in the heart from behind as well.

“The last one was magic, right?”

“You saw it correctly.”

The last one was, as Delward said, a two-chain spell that pulled out roots from the ground. I used it to tie up the assassin’s feet as he had sensed me.

The finishing touches were done by Delward, though.

“My sister has made some really great friends. Does Leila know you’re good at this kind of thing?”

“No.”

How could she know? She probably didn’t even know that my mother was a (former) legendary assassin.

Delward soon began to grin and said, “Ha… Anyway, thanks to you, I survived. These people followed me from the border.”

“Are they assassins from Drenik?”

Delward's eyes widened. “Did you know that too?”

“Yes, well. It was obvious.” I answered vaguely and then asked, “I don’t know exactly why you were chased, but I understand why you kept getting chased.”

"Huh? What does that—”

“Look at the soles of your shoes.”

Delward lifted one foot urgently to expose the bottom and examined his shoe.

Sure enough, a small crystal embedded in the space between the front and back heels, not touching the ground.

“It’s a magic receiver.”

“But I can’t see anything?”

“Well, it’s hidden.”

There was no way a spy would have planted a conspicuous receiver like an idiot. As I approached and channeled my mana, the protective magic on the receiver broke and it revealed itself.

“…What in the world?”

This was an item that assassins often used to track their targets. It was probably put in place before they crossed the border or during the chase. The former was more likely.

“Then you already knew?”

I already knew. I was following him and I focused for a moment, and then I saw it. However, I didn't know exactly what it was used for, so I just watched and followed.

"Yes."

“You really are… incredible?”

Even if I had known in advance, I would have acted the same. If they were the kind of people who would follow Delward from the border to the capital, I would have found them even without that tracker.

Rather, it would have been better to induce a situation and deal with them together.

Thunk.

Delward then stabbed his dagger into the sole of his shoe, took out the tracker, and crushed it.

“Fuu.” Delward looked relieved like someone who had an aching tooth extracted. “I can rest comfortably now.”

“I suppose.”

“Yes. Thank you. Really. I really thought I was going to die without being able to do anything…”

I shook my head and said, “Instead of killing you outright, wouldn’t they have tortured you?”

“…You say such cruel things so casually.”

Well, that was the rule. I didn't learn it, but assassins were also trained in torture techniques.

Just because they were assassins didn’t mean they were only tasked with assassination missions. They also played a variety of roles, including kidnapping key figures, torturing them, and gathering information.

If they had caught Delward, they would have tried to find out what information he had extracted through torture.

In fact, when I looked at the daggers they were carrying, I saw that they were contaminated with paralyzing poison.

"You can rest assured now. It seems like the people who were chasing you are gone."

“Yes, that’s fortunate. Very fortunate. But just in case, I’ll have to be more prepared in the future.” Delward asked in a mutter, “Are you really fourteen years old?”

“Yes. My birthday is a little later than Leila’s.”

"…That's not it. It doesn't make sense. I've heard several rumors while I was here. About swordsmanship, spearmanship, magic, summoning…”

It was hard for even me to explain. As I kept doing it, I got better at everything. I wasn’t sure if it was all thanks to ancient magic, but my innate ability allowed me to unleash all that my magic allowed me to do.

"…Well, there are things in this world that are hard to understand."

Oh. That was a phrase I often used.

"True."

“Alright. Then, um… Should I go back to the mansion like this?”

Delward hesitated for a moment, then shook his head. "No. I acted all cool, so it would be a bit weird if I went back. I guess I'll have to keep going like this."

Well, it was his choice. I saved him, so I’d done enough. If he had died like that, Leila would have been incredibly sad.

“Oh, and…” Delward rummaged through his clothes.

This was the third time I’d seen him do so.

“Even if you’re Leila’s friend, I feel like I should repay you for saving my life,” he said.

"You don’t have to."

“But you saved my life…”

“Rather, would you mind answering a question?”

“What is it?” He stopped rummaging through his clothes and looked at me.

“Yes. I was wondering why you left in such a hurry without even seeing the Duke.”

“Well, there was an assassination threat…”

“It felt as if you were intentionally avoiding him. If the threat was the problem, you wouldn’t have even come to see Leila.”

“…You’re quite sharp.” Delward took a deep breath. “It’s a long story. No. I’ll make it short. It’s simple. To me, my mother is more precious than anything else in the world.”

Extreme filial piety beyond the norm.

"Ahe almost died giving birth to me, and then she became very weak. Then she had Leila… she was bedridden for a while because of that."

So that was the reason.

“Saving my mother is the sole reason I wandered around the continent as soon as I graduated from the academy and ended up in the Drenik Empire.”

“I understand.”

I could understand it. I would have done the same. However, if it were the me now, I would have approached it more cautiously.

Still, this kind of recklessness wasn’t bad. It was romantic. Thanks to that romance, I saved him from being killed by an assassin.

“My father wanted me to become the next head of the household, but I didn’t follow his wishes and started wandering right after graduating.”

"What about your eldest brother?"

Delward shrugged and said, "Owen isn’t ambitious. Neither am I, but he’s worse than me. He says he's more comfortable hanging out with soldiers. That's why he's not in the knights, but stuck in the Eastern countryside, fighting with monsters and bickering with rangers."

I never knew there was such a story.

But it was a bit shocking.

Two sons of the most powerful family in the empire had no interest in becoming the next head of the family.

“So, the next head will probably be Leila.”

Leila as the next head of the family? It was a bit surprising. She wasn’t even thinking about it.

“It’s also more appropriate. Oh, this is a secret. You can’t tell anyone,” Delward said.

"Sure."

It was a more unexpected secret than you might think, but on the other hand, it was an understandable secret. I think I knew why Duke Thermion had such a troubled expression whenever the topic of his sons came up.

"That's what happened. Well, I told you my secret, but I'm not that upset. Anyway, I need to meet with Father and find all the ingredients to cure Mother's illness, and prove I wasn’t wrong, but not now."

There were some parts I didn't understand, but I was able to respect his choice well enough.

“Oh, and I will definitely repay this favor. I don’t think I paid the price of my life for telling you a secret.” Delward smiled brightly as he said so. “Let’s have a drink later. You’re not old enough to drink, but it should be fine as long as we don’t get caught, right?”

“Sounds good.”

"Alright. Then… I guess I should go now."

Delward made one last request, and I took out my communication crystal ball before he left.

“You have a crystal ball, right?” I asked.

“Oh, yes. Is it not broken? Should I tell you my code?”

“No. I’ll give you my code.” Delward wrote down my crystal ball code and I continued, “If you need help, please contact me.”

“…If you had said that at the mansion, I would have just laughed it off.” He couldn’t laugh it off anymore. “Alright, I will. And please take care of my little sister.”

I nodded. Then, Delward walked down the alley and out of my sight.

Hmm.

Was this alright?

I saved Leila’s brother, but I had to keep it a secret from Leila. If I told her, she’d make a fuss and come after me.

For the time being…

“I think I should go back soon.” I also started walking slowly. “Let’s go, Karnas.”

“Kikreuk!”

Time to head back to the mansion.

* * *

Reaper Scans

[Translator – Rainypup]

[Proofreader – Harley]

Join our discord for updates on releases! https://dsc.gg/reapercomics

* * *

Luckily, Leila didn't notice that I had been out and about last night. She just grumbled, asking why I stayed in my room for so long.

“So, during our vacation, we’re going to Atalia Island and the Khabarovsk Mountains?”

"Yeah. First, we have to go on an ascetic training trip with Priscilla. She said it would take a month, so even after that, we’d still have a month or more left."

The academy's vacation lasted two months. There was plenty of time. I could just take the teleport gate home, so even if I took a visit home into account, there was enough time for exploring.

"Then I guess I'll have to work hard to improve my skills until then," Ernest said.

I nodded as Ernest's eyes sparkled. “Let’s learn archery at the archery range tomorrow.”

"Really?"

“Yeah. Leila, that’d be fine, right?”

“Alright. Then I can train with you at the training ground near the archery range,” she said.

It was a bit strange to go over to someone else's house and train, but so what? As long as it was fun.

In the midst of this, Ernest said something unexpected, “Oh, Dane. Is our club participating in the festival this time?”

“Festival?”

Oh. Come to think of it…

“Right, there’s the academy festival,” Leila chimed in too.

The Academy Festival. It was only held once a year, an event held after the first semester midterm exams.

“I haven’t thought about it.”

Of course, I didn't think about it. I wasn’t interested.

“Is it mandatory to attend?” I asked.

“Not really, but…” Ernest trailed off as if he felt a little regretful, and Leila also showed some interest.

“What should we do?”

“Usually, clubs open a booth! People decorate the booth with something related to their club. A magic club might show a magic demonstration or an economics club might sell something… But the most common booths are those that make and sell food.”

Was it because they made the most money?

“Then we should make a booth, too?”

Ernest nodded quickly and said, “I think that’d be best!”

“Let’s think about what to do. We do a lot of things in our club, after all.”

First, Leila was from the Swordsmanship Department, Ernest was from the Exploration Department, and Priscilla was from the Theology Department.

And I was an assassin… not.

I was talented in swordsmanship, spearmanship, magic, and summoning. Then, the possibilities became endless.

"Alright. Let's do it."

"Really? Good!"

“Sounds fun.”

Leila suggested, “Should we make and sell food, too?”

“Food? What can we make and sell? Skewers? I learned a lot of things while camping.”

Anything was good. After all, it was a festival.

"But did you know? They give out prizes to the most popular booths. I don't know what it’ll be this time, but last year, they gave out a really nice artifact as a prize!”

I took back what I said about everything being alright, warning, “We shouldn’t do things too casually.”

As I burned with determination, Leila chimed in, “The product belongs to our club.”

Alright. Well then, I guess I should think about it carefully.

"There won't be much time to think about it. The application period ends the day after tomorrow. Booth assignments are random."

Ernest's words made me think about what to do. Should I try opening a feeding zoo with my summons? Well, I didn’t think that’d be alright, as it could be considered summons abuse.

“Let’s think about it tomorrow.”

Now that I think about it, it was really late at night. It was time to sleep now because tomorrow would be very busy.

“Dane, have you decided what you’re going to make when you go tomorrow?” Leila asked because I was planning to go to the Thermion's forge tomorrow.

A great blacksmith who could work with any ore and material in the world and could make any weapon requested by someone with a mark. Their work was so perfect that it was unparalleled.

"Not yet."

"When will you decide?"

Actually, I had no intention of making anything right now since my body hadn’t fully developed. I just wanted to go take a look.

I didn't feel like I needed a weapon right away.

“But you never know,” I said as I looked at Leila and smiled. “There might be something I want when I get there.”

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