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Bloody Moon - Volume 1 - Chapter 3

Published at 19th of December 2022 08:17:09 AM


Chapter 3

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“It’s a trap.” 

Laud, the second prince of the Kemened Kingdom, looked back at the person who said this. He didn’t know the name of this person, but it didn’t matter much. He was simply called ‘a guide’, and he has been an assassin working for the Kemened royal family since his father’s generation.

Prince Laud asked with a frown. 

“Okay?” 

“The Leshak Caliph doesn’t buy prostitutes. He’s never visited the brothels before. It’s obvious, Count Custer went to the brothels, and as soon as he did, he died. Now the Prince is visiting the brothels?” 

Laud put down his glass of wine. 

“But, are you’re saying that the Leshak Caliph came out as a bait, right?” 

“I am, but… … .” 

“Then proceed.” 

“… …” 

The guide shuts his mouth. He was a seasoned assassin. There were countless enemies of Kemened who had been purged by his organization. With the outbreak of the Seven Years’ War, even an important asset like the ‘Basilisk’ could be obtained. 

It was Radan who killed the target, but it was the guide who led Radan to the opponent. The fact that Radan has been able to keep his identity a secret while carrying out so many assassinations, had far more to with the guide than anything else.

He was convinced that it was a trap. Laud’s words were giving him something to think about. 

“Aren’t you thinking about the return of the ‘blue snake’?” 

The blue snake was used to refer to Radan. The royal family of Kemened was extremely reluctant to mention Radan’s name. Even now, most people believed the third prince died when he was born. 

“The death Leshak Caliph is more important than the blue snake.” 

Laud grinded his teeth. It was not clear where the anger was directed at. Maybe it’s for Alsanu Ill, who has dementia after having waged a never-ending war? Or perhaps directed towards the Crown Prince of the Empire, who has been steadily trampling the Kemened Kingdom for seven years? Or is he thinking about the youngest brother who killed his own mother with his cursed eyes? 

“But if it fails, you could lose the blue snake. The blue snake is the most important  person for the war right now……,” 

Laud threw his glass at the guide. 

“Shut up! Don’t think you think I already know that!?” 

The silver cup did not break, but it was crushed. He was hit on the forehead by the glass, but no blood flowed. Instead, his clothes were soaked in red wine. The guide quietly wiped his forehead. 

“… … Forgive me, my Lord.” 

“Damn it!”  

Laud kicked the table. The luxurious, but precarious triangular pediment fell and the wine jar placed on it was shattered. 

“Did you hear what I said? Is there anything more important than killing Leshak in this situation?” 

“Of course not.” 

“Then do it! Do it!! I am the one who speaks in the king’s name!” 

“… … .“ 

Prince Laud was not yet king. The day he can safely be crowned king will probably be very far away. He didn’t know if the current war would end if he killed Prince Leshak. But he could bet that as soon as the war with the Empire is over, the five small countries will start the war again over what remains. The guide did not dare to say such a thing. The advice wasn’t his. He was only ‘a guide’, subordinate to the royal family of Kemened and he killed the people as they told them to. 

“Well, isn’t the return of the blue snake an absolute condition?” 

Laud, who had been struggling to breathe for a while, answered. 

“You do your best. However, if the situation is not favorable, I will not blame you for that. Get out.” 

“Thank you, your Highness.” 

The guide wore a black mask over his face. And he became like a shadow and disappeared. 

Absolutely no one going to and from the palace noticed his entrance, except for one man, Radan. 

“It’s already the third day.” 

It was Abadd’s words. “I’ll bet my gauntlet on the assassin knowing it’s a trap, and not coming.” 

Abadd tapped Karum on the side.

“What are you going to bet?” 

“Um, I… … .” 

Sidris’s nostrils dried up the troubled Karum. 

“Shut up. Don’t get caught up in it, they won’t show up anyway.”   

“Well?” 

Karum thought for a moment and shook his head. 

“No, I can’t. If they won’t show up, why are we here? Above all else, the Prince wouldn’t be here for prostitutes.” 

“His Highness would not expect an unknown assassin to appear. You’re too smart to believe that.” 

“Then why… … ?” 

It was the third day after infiltrating Merv’s brothel district. For three days, Leshak been acting as bait and assumed the role of a prodigal prince. In fact, even the Guardian Knights of Leshak doubted for a moment whether the purpose was to catch an unknown assassin, or to satisfy their accumulated desires. 

“He wants to know how things work here, how the information leaked from here is passed on to the unknown assassin. It’s impossible to just cover your ears when your opponent  screams so loudly.” 

Abadd silently clicked his tongue and shook his head. “You are too generous to His Majesty. He may have originally been a playful character like that,” 

“His Majesty!?” Sidris’ sneer cut Abadd’s words. “Say something that makes sense. His Highness would never uses a prostitute. That will never happen.” 

Abadd licked his lips like a child. Although there was a feeling of inferiority next to Leshak, he was also a handsome man. The sullen expression on his face didn’t suit him. 

“No, that’s…. I think so too. But isn’t it too much to tell us we’re playing pimps? I’m tired of seeing drunks in heat for the past three days.” 

Abadd muttered. Sidris’ reaction was cold. 

“If you don’t like pimps, play a prostitute.” 

“….play. Damn it, you shouldn’t talk.” 

The Guardian Knights were disguised as pimps, and pimps’ messengers, respectively. They roamed through every nook and cranny of the Red Street observing the movement of money and people. This was possible because Leshak bought a brothel in the streets of Merv. 

While the Guardian Knights scoured the underbelly of the Red Street pretending to be the real pimps who run a brothel, Leshak was drawing attention by serving as a big guest. Then someone knocked on the window of the brothel. He was an errand man who lived here from the beginning. His role was to hang around at the entrance of the Red Street, grab a guest when they came, and guide them to the brothel. 

“Hey there, new master.” 

Abadd opened a small window. “okay.” 

“Why, are there rich customers coming and going here?” 

This was about Prince Leshak. 

“He just went into the house across the street. Damn, I just missed him. Now I can’t eat it at all.” 

This messenger did not know that Prince Leshak was the one who bought the brothel where he worked. Abadd replied with a short smile. 

“It’s okay. You’ll have a chance next time. So now you know what to do?” 

“Sure, are you asking me to go and see what kind of prostitutes they are using?” 

“Yeah, that’s right.” 

The errand boy shook his head. 

“But why… … Judging from what I’ve seen at so far, he doesn’t have any particular taste for it. If you’re going to buy any woman, just come over to my house.” 

Abadd reached out over the field window and tapped the messenger’s head. 

“Because it’s been asked. Go and see the prostitute’s face.” 

“Hey, the new owner must be the first to do this kind of ground business. This kind of way doing things doesn’t happen very often here…. I’ll go there anyway.” 

“Yes.” 

The field windows closed and the messenger ran down the alley like a flying squirrel. 

“I’m glad I have that kid. Monitoring just got easier.”

The messenger boy, who was born and raised in this alley, said that he knew the faces of the prostitutes in other brothels to some extent. It was the task of the messenger to check the faces of the prostitutes going into Leshak’s room. 

If he was a prostitute had an unknown face, there was room for doubt. 

“You are taking full advantage of the fact that Your Majesty bought the brothel. How much money did you spend?” 

“Don’t ask me that. Leshak is the one who does all the money calculations, right?” 

“Aha. That’s why you’re doing things like that these days.” 

“Is it? I have been pouring money on the battlefield for seven years.” 

“And His Majesty, doesn’t know the concept of saving money.” 

“Because he’s a perfect person, I think he can be flawed like that.” 

“Can you say those words to him?” 

“…… I don’t want to be hated by him. If I had that kind of personality, I would be quick to cut off my share of the bounty.” 

“You. If you’re going to joke about His Majesty, then leave.” 

Abadd and Karum shut their mouths. If there was a human that should not be hated more than His Majesty, it was Sidris. 

“Are you conscious of your being a bait now?” 

“Uh, um…… .”

lt was a moment when Abad and Karum looked at the window with troubled expressions. Bang bang! The knocking rang loudly. At this time, Abadd immediately opened the partition. 

“Oh, yes! Did you check?” 

The face of the messenger boy seen through the window turned white. “Wow, I think this is big trouble!” 

“What has happened?” 

“That, that…….I heard that sister Yeni would be in the guest’s room, but…….” 

“What is it?” 

“Yeni was excited… … I asked Lena to borrow a hair tie…. … I’m was going to do it the prettiest, so… … So l… … ” 

Abadd tugged the messenger’s clothes through the window. 

“Speak to the point, so what happened?” 

The errand boy said in a trembling voice. 

“Yes, sister Yeni is dead.”

“What?”

“To tie the braid…..so I went back, I went……..No my sister is dead…….”

“Good damn it!”

-bang!

The door to the brothel opened, and The Guardian Knights, including Abad, ran towards Prince Leshak. The reason why the prostitute named Yeni died was obvious. The assassin is disguised as the dead prostitute. 

“Damn! Caught too soon!”

The guide grabbed Radan’s arm and dragged him. It was he who killed the prostitute named Yeni. All he had to do was push Radan, now dressed as a woman, into Leshak’s room and his role would be over. However, the Guardian Knights of Leshak were faster.

The guide now thought that they might have bought a whole brothel. Otherwise, dozens of Leshak’s forces would not have been able to block the road so quickly. He must have been hiding in a brothel. Sweat dripped from his forehead. It was the first time he had lost his way in this maze-like alley. 

Shouting could be heard here and there.

“This way is a dead end!”

“They went that way!”

“Couldn’t have gone too far!”

“Find Them!” 

Shouts were heard as the guide quickly shook his head. 

“I have to leave here.”

He let go of hand he was holding, and pushed Radan’s back. Radan fumbled through the air disoriented. 

“I, I… ..ca..nt, I don’t know the way… …,” 

“It’s more dangerous if the two of us go together.” 

The prostitute he killed must have been found. If so, Leshak’s army will be looking for an assassin disguised as a prostitute. In that case, it would be safer to go separately, so that he would be free to enter the brothel and pretend to be a guest. It was unfortunate, but Radan had to be given up. 

But if he’s lucky, there will be a safe place for Radan as well. Few people would suspect a blind man as an assassin. 

“Come on, go! If you get out of here safely, I’ll go find you.” 

The guide abandoned Radan and hurriedly ran away, just as he turned the corner… 

The blade came in front of him. The guide raised both hands without saying anything. The road was already blocked. Abadd, who was at the forefront, grinned as he thrust the blade into the guide’s neck. 

‘Whoa, where are you going?” 

“… … !” 

“I ran around like a dog because of you. Thanks to you, I’m winded.” 

Sidris said from behind his back. 

“Be vigilant! The opponent is an unknown assassin.” 

“Stop worrying, because there is no weakness in my stance.” 

Contrary to his usual countenance, there was not even the slightest bit of playfulness in the sword. There was no gap. There would be no way to escape. After understanding the situation, the guide deliberately changed his character and opened his mouth. The only way left was to hide his identity. 

“Oh, you’re looking for an assassin? What… … It’s an unfair accusation.” 

The guide trembled skillfully. 

“I have no intention of listening to what you say. Hey there, tie this guy up. The confession will be made in front of His Majesty the Crown Prince.” 

“Yes, Sir Abadd.” 

The soldiers came and bound the guide.

“Hey, why are you like this! What did I do wrong! Ohhhh… …!” 

The guide pretended not to know anything and struggled with his hands and feet. 

“Hey, Radan! Are you there!? Come on and tell them a bit! What are you doing when I’m being treated like this!?” 

Abadd and Leshak’s eyes turned to Radan, who was behind them. Radan was terrified and leaned against the wall. He was desperate to figure out what was going on just by the sounds he heard.

The guide was caught. It was probably caught by Leshak’s men. Somehow, a familiar voice was mixed in. 

-“Radan!”

-“He doesn’t even know this grace! His clothes have already been sold somewhere!”

-“I just take you to make money because you can’t see! Don’t you know what your whole house would look like if it weren’t for me? How could yourt sick father and brothers have eaten!” 

“Ah… … “

Radan groped the wall and stepped forward a little. He knew there was no escape. He had to trust the guide. He will somehow pave the way. 

“uh……? stay still… are you…?” 

Abadd saw Radan’s movements and remembered him. Today, he was dressed like a woman, and he had a red cloth on his head, meaning a prostitute, so he couldn’t recognize him when he first saw him.

“Aren’t you that prostitute from back then?” 

“um… … there”

Radan stood blankly, not knowing what to say. Now he too remembered Abadd’s by his voice. It was his guardian knight who was with Leshak. That is…… 

“That guy is right.”

They turned their heads all at once to the voices coming from behind Radan. 

“The Crown Prince.”

Leshak to appeared at the same time.

“Awh!”

Leshak’s hand stretched out from behind and wrapped around Radan’s neck turning it around. Radan let out a small moan as he bumped his forehead against Leshak’s chest.

Leshak, who held Radan tightly so that he could not escape, removed the red cloth covering his head. 

“Ah, uh… … .”

His shoulders trembled spontaneously. Leshak looked into Radan’s face, which had on makeup now in order to look like a woman. Leshak took his thumb and rubbed his lips, as the red rouge spread, Radan face returned to the same look as when they first met. Leshak let out a low, heavy voice towards his face. 

“Then can you tell me now, what is your name?”





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