NOVPUB“There’s no need to hide your face anymore. You’ve got such a beautiful one—it’d be a shame not to show it.”
“...!”
Violetta’s face flushed red.
She quickly stepped back and pulled the black veil down over her face again.
“Th-thank you for the kind words, but I’m more comfortable like this for now.”
“I see.”
Ludger didn’t press her any further.
Violetta tried to calm her pounding heart.
Was it kindness?
It was strange. Her heart was beating like a drum. Loud. Like someone stomping their feet inside her chest.
No way...
She had promised herself, in this line of work, she would never give her heart to anyone.
To truly like someone, to fall ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) in love with someone—that wasn’t something meant for her.
Because she was a prostitute, despised by all.
She always had been.
And always would be.
Right. This is just... happiness from seeing an old scar disappear. That’s all.
Violetta calmed herself by organizing her emotions like that.
She gently touched the place where the scar had once been.
The rough, bumpy sensation was gone. In its place, smooth skin.
A scar even the priests of the Lumensys Order had given up on—healed in an instant.
This is real magic?
It was magic, sure—but what did “real magic” even mean?
Violetta had only picked up a general understanding of magic through observation. Even to her, this was beyond comprehension.
It felt like her entire definition of magic had been overturned.
“So, what are you planning to do now?”
“...For now, I plan to carry out your instructions. Starting as early as tomorrow.”
“That’s good. I like promptness.”
Yes. Best not to get too caught up in it.
Violetta had seen and heard a great deal.
She understood how dangerous this man—James Moriarty—was. And how formidable.
His capabilities had just been proven beyond doubt.
Erasing her scar was merely a gesture of goodwill on his part. A simple kindness, as far as he was concerned. To her, putting too much weight on it would only lead to loss.
Naturally, Violetta came to her senses.
They might be standing in the same alley, in the same moment—but he was someone of an entirely different caliber.
“In any case, today’s meeting was quite impressive. I’ll take my leave now.”
“Violetta.”
Just as she turned to leave, Ludger’s voice called her back.
She froze mid-step.
“What is it?”
Why was he calling her? They’d finished their business. Or was there something he hadn’t yet said?
A flurry of thoughts stormed through her head—only to be cut off when she realized Ludger wasn’t looking at her.
His eyes were trained beyond her, deeper into the twisting alley, like he could see straight through the darkness.
“Why are you— What the—?!”
Before she could finish her question, Ludger grabbed her by the waist and pulled her close.
Startled by the sudden move, Violetta panicked.
“Wh-what are you doing—?!”
But before she could protest further, a bolt grazed her veil.
Thwack!
The arrow buried itself into the wall behind her. Its tip trembled violently.
Violetta stared at it, stunned.
“...An ambush?”
“Seems that way.”
Ludger responded calmly, his mana flaring to life.
“Why don’t you come out, instead of hiding?”
The moment he finished speaking, armed figures emerged one after another from the shadows of the alley.
Ludger narrowed his eyes as he scanned them.
They didn’t bring firearms.
In other words, they already knew he was a mage—and had prepared for it.
Thinking back—the projectile fired at them was a bolt, not a bullet.
A crossbow, to be precise.
The fact that they were using such tools...
They’re targeting a mage—intentionally and methodically.
Ludger thought for a moment about whether he had earned someone’s deep grudge to warrant such an ambush—and found himself nodding.
“The remaining scum from the Red Society, is it.”
“James Moriarty.”
A man in his mid-thirties with a scraggly beard, standing among the group that had surrounded them, sneered as he bared his yellow teeth.
“To think such a big shot would be wandering around alone without a bodyguard. You’ve got guts. Or maybe you’re just dumb. Either way, it works in our favor.”
“I don’t know who you are.”
“What difference would that make? You’ll be dead in a minute anyway.”
“Foolish. Do you not know how the Red Society fell?”
“Oh, we know. We even know you’re a mage. But did you think we wouldn’t prepare for that?”
“Hmph.”
Ludger quickly realized something was wrong—his mana wasn’t circulating properly.
So that’s what this is.
He sighed quietly.
Not a good situation.
He had expended a considerable amount of power healing Violetta’s burn.
He needed time to recover—and of all times, this was when the ambush came.
The timing couldn’t have been worse.
“Let me go.”
“Oh, my apologies.”
Violetta shot him a sidelong glance through her veil, then steadied herself.
“Are you going to fight?”
“We’re surrounded. You’re not about to tell me to run, are you?”
She snapped, clearly irritated.
Ludger gave a casual shrug.
“If that’s how it sounded, I apologize.”
“Don’t bother.”
With that, Violetta reached under her black frilled skirt and pulled out a black parasol.
Not an ordinary one—just by looking at it, Ludger could tell it was made from uncommon materials.
He realized it was her self-defense weapon.
So she had that hidden all along.
“Quite the curious thing you’ve got there.”
“A lady must protect herself from harsh sunlight, after all.”
Ludger gripped his cane and stood back-to-back with her.
“James Moriarty and Violetta, leader of the Women of the Black Rose. What luck. I wasn’t sure when the meeting would end, but damn, turns out today’s my lucky day.”
“Waiting here just for us. That’s touching, really. I might cry.”
“Still putting on that smug act, huh? Let’s see how long you can keep that up once your limbs start coming off.”
The remnants of the Red Society, now armed with deadly weapons, slowly closed in.
Ludger didn’t let his guard down as he calmly scanned their faces.
The one who shot the crossbow earlier...
He was nowhere to be seen.
There had been almost no killing intent, and the attacker had vanished the moment the shot was fired.
The timing had been near-perfect.
Hiding among the group, lying in wait to finish me off.
This wasn’t behavior you’d expect from a mere back-alley thug.
Even as a Red Society member, this level of skill was unlikely.
A pro.
A professional killer. An assassin well-practiced in murder.
One of them was after him now.
Looks like the remnants of the Red Society pooled everything they had to hire him.
Kill Ludger, retake the seized territory, rebuild the funds. That was their plan.
Ludger drew a slow, deep breath.
He smelled something faint and unfamiliar in the still air of the narrow alley.
Not the usual musty alley stench—but something faintly prickling his nose.
Diffusion incense... a drug that disrupts mana control.
They had scattered it throughout the area.
It didn’t harm the body—but it interfered with spellcasting by forcing mana conductivity to spike unnaturally, spreading it out rather than letting it condense.
Meaning, even trying to form a simple fireball would result in scattered flames that couldn’t focus—and would likely harm the caster, too.
That’s an alchemical component used in artifact crafting. Rare and expensive. And they’re using it now?
Being unable to use attack magic was a serious handicap for a mage.
It explained why the enemy hadn’t brought firearms. Something like [Silence of Fire] would affect a wide area.
But more than that, the real threat here was the assassin hiding among them.
For a pro, a single opening is fatal.
They were waiting for him to panic.
Fools. They didn’t even need to go this far—my magic is already difficult to use right now.
In truth, if he pushed himself, Ludger could still cast spells.
There would be some power loss, and casting time would be longer—but with [Source Code], the delay could be minimized to a negligible degree.
Still, to a mage, fighting with an assassin lurking nearby while your magic is unstable? That incense is more dangerous than they know. Especially when these meat shields are probably just decoys...
In a low voice, Ludger gave Violetta—still back-to-back with him—a warning.
“They’ve spread a scent that interferes with mana. I suggest you avoid using offensive magic—it’ll scatter before it even forms.”
“...You know about that?”
“You learn a lot when you live long enough.”
“What a hassle. I don’t like using my body.”
Despite her words, she was already adjusting her stance to prepare for battle.
And her posture—it was far more practical than mere self-defense.
Had she learned proper swordsmanship?
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
‘Well, in a world this unforgiving, you’ve got to learn whatever you can.’
That went for Ludger himself, too.
Though he was a mage, he didn’t rely on magic alone.
“There’s about thirty of them. But there are dangerous ones hiding among them. Not just one—at least a team of three.”
“The ones who fired the crossbow at the start, right? Contract killers.”
“You know them?”
“They’re somewhat famous. I have a pretty good guess who they are. They’re from the southern desert. I hear they’re precise in execution but extremely expensive. Looks like someone dropped a lot of money just to get us.”
“Technically, just to get me.”
“Well, we’re in the same boat now, so I’m included.”
...Stubborn, in a strangely admirable way.
Ludger let out a dry chuckle and shrugged. Still, it wasn’t a quality he disliked.
“So then, milady. Do you know how to dance?”
“Well enough to make anyone envious.”
“Then I’ll leave the rear to you.”
“Same here.”
Waaagh!
Realizing they weren’t going to use magic, the attackers charged in with wild howls.
Each was armed with iron pipes or blades—crudely equipped thugs.
But Ludger’s expression, facing them, was dispassionate to the extreme.
* * *
Thwack!
A loud crash rang out in the alley as a large body flew through the air and crashed into a pile of trash.
One of the Red Society remnants who’d been struck by Ludger’s cane.
The remaining thugs went pale at the sight.
“W-what the hell?! He’s a mage—why can’t we take him down?!”
“Rush him together, damn it!”
Crack!
As one of them shouted, a black parasol struck him square in the face.
His features caved in, and teeth flew like shattered glass.
His staggering form was finished with a black-heeled shoe slamming down on his head.
“Die!”
Another thug charged at Violetta from behind.
A longsword swung toward the back of her head—
But Ludger stepped in and blocked the blade with his cane.
Clang!
The sword and cane clashed.
But shockingly, the sword couldn’t cut through the cane.
“W-what kind of cane is that?!”
“Custom-made.”
Ludger replied, smoothly twisting his cane.
It was an elegant redirection of the opponent’s force.
The man leaning in with force found his balance thrown off.
“Wha—?”
As he stumbled forward to recover, Ludger swung the cane upward with a centrifugal spin.
Crack!
A clean hit under the jaw—his head snapped back.
And just before he could collapse, a hook-shaped handle caught around his neck, holding him upright.
Violetta.
“Gentleman, care for another round?”
“As many as you like.”
Ludger swung with full strength—like wielding a bat.
Thwack!
The man took the blow to the forehead, spun mid-air, and collapsed.
All around him, more than ten thugs already lay foaming and unconscious.
“Wh-what the hell?! He’s a mage—how can he fight like that?!”
“There’s only two of them! And one’s a woman!”
“They’re already tired! Just a bit more pressure and they’ll go down!”
As the Red Society remnants muttered amongst themselves, Violetta caught her breath, shoulders heaving.
“Huff... huff... Guess I’m a bit winded. Maybe I’ve been slacking.”
“Build your stamina once this is over.”
“...You’re supposed to say something encouraging at a time like this.”
“Not really the warm, fuzzy type. Sorry.”
“Hmph. You don’t look tired at all, Mr. Moriarty.”
“This is more in line with my actual job, after all.”
Even as he spoke, Ludger didn’t forget to keep track of the assassins.
That one.
The assassin from the southern desert clenched his fist without realizing it under Ludger’s gaze.
He hasn’t left a single opening. Not once.
He’d had chances to target the woman—but each time, James Moriarty had blocked the way.
Every flow, every opportunity—cut off.
Since the fight began, he’s been watching me specifically.
Usually, in this kind of group melee, people lose focus. But not him.
Even while fighting, Ludger’s eyes were scanning, always searching for something.
That man... he’s a professional. Maybe even more than that. This isn’t his first time dealing with something like this.
They had heard he was a mage strong enough to defeat two near-knight-level opponents.
That’s why they’d invested so heavily, even using diffusion incense to disrupt his mana.
But clearly, they had underestimated him.
They’d need to revise the target’s threat level.
Even getting ten times the original payment might not make this job worth it.
Still... the contract was made.
They were professionals.
They accepted the job. And that meant they had to follow through. That was their absolute code.
The woman is tired. We’ll focus on her.
There were still quite a few men standing.
If they could buy just a little more time, they’d have an opening to strike.
Just as that thought solidified—
Ludger made a strange move.
What’s he doing?
He lowered his cane, then suddenly scooped the woman in his arms and bolted.
Shit!
They hadn’t expected him to run at this moment.
Especially now, when several thugs had already fallen, loosening their encirclement.
Ludger had a clear path.
“After them!”
* * *
“What do you think you’re doing?!”
“If we stay put and keep fighting, it’s our loss.”
Ludger sprinted through the alleyways with Violetta in his arms.
“Put me down! I can run too!”
“You’re already exhausted.”
“They’ll catch up soon anyway!”
“We’ll see. Don’t bite your tongue.”
“Wait, wha—?”
Before she could finish—
Ludger activated the device on his left wrist.
Wire Launcher.
His body shot upward into the sky, with Violetta still in his arms.
The attackers behind them could only gape as they vanished above.
“He’s going for the rooftop!”
Realizing the situation was slipping, the assassins finally made their move.
They scaled the walls with swift, practiced movements. Two used footholds along window frames and crevices, while another sprinted up a fire escape.
“He won’t have gotten far—!”
Thud!
The first assassin to reach the rooftop was greeted by the blade of Ludger’s swordstick.
The blade pierced through his forehead—he crumpled backward off the ledge and tumbled into the alley below.
“Two left.”
Ludger had been waiting for this exact moment.
