Chapter 159 – Monsters Live in the Shadows (02)

Slurp.

With the sound of the shadows being released, a path opened in the darkness.

It wasn’t just a part of the shadow, but only a little light was applied to that part, but for the party who were exhausted while maintaining a defensive position in the dark forest, it was literally a ray of light.

Moreover, since I am waving my hand at the edge, the group has no choice but to come.

“Master! Are you okay?”

“It’s okay. What about my wooden sword?”

When William carefully handed me a wooden sword wrapped in cloth, I roughly hung it around my waist.

The soldiers were buried in the shadows and were on the verge of going crazy, but fortunately, perhaps because the time was short or because the captain, a former academy guard, encouraged them well, they stopped in a slightly tired state.

On the contrary, the two female thieves were in a shocked state with tears in their eyes, but fortunately they soon calmed down when I showed up.

‘Definitely a thief … He’s not a professional thief, but if he’s a bandit, his morale is low.’

Originally, thieves had excellent agility and many miscellaneous abilities, but had low morale and were prone to running away, but it seems that those characteristics have now been revealed.

However, it has the advantage of quick recovery.

“Rita…?”

The captain, who was a former academy guard, looked at Inori who was standing next to me with a nervous expression and pretended to know him. As he was guarding our party members, he must have come and gone several times.

“The attack just happened without anyone knowing who we were, and there was no major damage, so let’s end it by apologizing to each other.”

There wasn’t much repercussions from the soldiers, perhaps because they were prepared for that much when they joined the [Shadow Family], But still, something like this had to be done well so that no one would say anything later.

“Rita.”

“…Yes, my lord.”

“I apologize.”

“I’m sorry… I’m sorry… “

For some reason, the soldiers flinched at the lewd voice, and that’s because they were being ‘punished’ by me for various reasons just a moment ago.

“You don’t have to do this.”

When the former guard captain spoke first and received an apology, the soldiers were only momentarily frightened and seemed to have decided to let it go, perhaps because it was not a major attack.

No, more accurately, he looked a little embarrassed while looking at Inori’s condition.

The soldiers were agitated as they saw Inori clinging to me with a blush on her face. They may have reacted by saying they couldn’t understand why a member of the [Shadow Family], A family notorious for murderers these days, would bow down to them.

“So, let’s stay here for now.”

“We have nowhere to go, so that’s welcome, but are you asking us to join this family?”

The lighting is so dim that the interior cannot be seen.

Well, I was familiar with the situation as my [Shadow Ninjutsu] Was lost, but I didn’t want to go in because my eyes weren’t following me, so it was clear that it wasn’t the right place for ordinary soldiers or the timid William Thieves.

“For confidentiality reasons, we cannot let you into the [Shadow Family] Mansion. Instead, there is a regular village where the people involved live, and a message has been sent there, so you will be able to stay there.”

Already, we had already sent a message to the village where the [Shadow Family]’S relatives resided. Please let the soldiers and bandits I brought stay.

It seems like they are preparing in a bit of a hurry, but because they are also royalists ‘first of all’… More precisely, they are close to being neutral and hostile to the ‘Duke faction’, so they were preparing to let royalist soldiers sleep without any complaints.

“I’m ready, Sogaju.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

Rito grumbled that he was called in even though he was on vacation, but he also seemed to have a big smile on his face when he saw me.

“I will be with you, master.”

“Only invited lords and clans may enter [Shadow Family].”

William flinched from his cold tone, which reminded me of Saori’s mother in the past, and he grabbed the handle of the mace, but if the two of us fought here, it would be pointless bleeding, so I stopped William first.

“I’m taking a break in the village.”

“Yes, master.”

For some reason, Inori’s shadow was shaking slightly, as if she did not like the title ‘master’, so I deliberately exaggeratedly wrapped my arms around Inori’s waist and slightly lifted her up.

“Ah.”

As she clung to my side, she was now able to do things with ease that she had not been able to do before, even though she was strong, due to her size.

“Then I’ll talk to the [Shadow Family] From the inside to get their support… Um… Mr. Guard?”

“It’s Richard. And call me brother, not uncle. He’s not that old, right?”

Actually, the guards were a little younger than the teachers.

* ​ * ​ *

Currently, Inori has become the head of the [Shadow Family] And is leading the family.

Rito was not suited to be the leader of such a family of assassins as he was a very affectionate and kind-hearted person, while Inori thoroughly differentiated between public and private matters, and after losing me, he became so cool-headed that he did not properly express his anger at losing his master. She received recognition while practicing and rose to the position of Sogaju.

Since it was a [Shadow Family] With a small number of clans that would use [Shadow Ninjutsu] To the point where incestuous marriage was even considered, it is said that Rito almost stepped down and gave in, and Inori became the head of the So family without any problems.

And currently, I was listening to the story while being attended to by the Sogami.

Grrrr…

‘I don’t like alcohol very much’

Still, Inori pours me some celebratory drink, so I just take it because I can’t drink it.

Oh, by the way, I don’t have [Shadow Ninjutsu] Right now, so I was really in a state where I couldn’t see anything in front of my eyes, like I was blind.

Anyway, Inori pours the drink for me and takes the glass with her own hand and puts it to my mouth, so all I have to do is open my mouth and drink and eat like a baby bird getting food from its mother to her.

And I was not just receiving food and drinks, but I was also sharing information that Inori and the [Shadow Family] Were aware of.

“And after the lord disappeared, the situation changed as the Duke started a large-scale attack as they had prepared in advance.”

Crunchy.

I try to control my facial expression as much as possible while eating the crunchy pickled vegetables. Even if I can’t see anything, Inori, who has [Shadow Ninjutsu], Will be able to see me clearly, so I have to keep my facial expression as cool as possible.

“The family, which was aware of the duke’s impure movements, persuaded the nobles who attempted to defect to the dukedom through a list they had identified… But they were tainted by the dukedom’s demonization, so they had no choice but to kill them as a result, and the remaining nobles knew about it. By deliberately pretending not to know and attacking the family without knowing it… It has led to the family being imprisoned as it is now…”

As a result, if you listen to the rumors, it is not true that the Inorine [Shadow Family] Tried to carry out a reign of terror by randomly killing people, but they tried to persuade nobles who tried to cooperate with the dukedom based on their intelligence or to use information to suppress them. However, they had already been defeated by the duke and as a result, they either died fighting with members of the [Shadow Family] Or their deaths were faked.

In the process, several members of the [Shadow Family] Suffered damage or died, and the ninjas who were Inori’s uncles and aunts suffered damage that was close to annihilation.

And currently, the head of the family, Yujiro’s father, is trying to spread a shadow for the family’s defense, and together with Saori’s mother, they are doing their best to cover the family with a shadow, so Inori is acting as the actual head. . Of the family.

“Okay. Thank you for your hard work so far, Inori.”

“…Yes.”

I couldn’t see Inori’s shyly happy face her, but I felt like I could feel the fresh joy of a former girl from her, her voice, her her.

‘Even if it’s information… Isn’t there anything big yet?’

In the beginning, the [Shadow Family] Devoted all their energy to assassinating nobles who had gone over to the Duke faction, and they were unable to act actively once the Duke faction found a way to counter the [Shadow Human Art].

No, even if you want to be active, the original number of clan members is the head of the family, the hostess, Rito, Inori, and the twins who can only now be used as one clan.

Among the two people, who were about my uncle’s age, one was seriously injured and the other was diligently searching for information. However, no matter how new the [Shadow Clan] Was, the number itself was small, so the amount of information was inevitably limited.

‘Originally, in this case, if the royal faction was alive and well, the minor information could be left to general informants, and the [Shadow Family] Would only have to search for high-level information…’

Currently, the royal faction is torn apart without a central point, so it seems to be suffering in various ways without such support.

“Master. Are you really my master?”

“…Huh?”

It felt like I could see Inori’s eyes clearly in the dark, where it was difficult to see what was ahead.

“Then. I am me. Although my appearance has changed a bit…”

“May I ask why you haven’t used [Shadow Ninjutsu] Since before?”

I said I wouldn’t show it as much as possible, but it seemed like it showed up as expected.

After all, it’s no different from being blind in this mansion, so no matter how naturally you move, there are limits.

“I haven’t used it for two years and now I can’t use it.”

In fact, I don’t know if my abilities will come back or not.

“…”

“Can’t I be recognized as a lord without [Shadow Ninjutsu]?”

There was no answer to that question.

As I slowly closed my eyes and fell into sleep due to the combination of the alcohol I had had in a long time and the fatigue I had accumulated while coming here, I felt a light weight being slightly added on my body.

Seueuugh…

I touch her back without opening my eyes.

A back that is smooth without a single fluff of fluff and is surprisingly not noticeable, but has been sincerely trained.

Her slender waist her her her, along with her her body her that trembled sensitively and slightly whenever her fingers her touched it, naturally told me who she was.

It’s just a little bit embarrassing.

‘You’re naked’

But now she’s leaning over me with her clothes off.

She was quietly leaning on top of me with her toes slightly overlapping with mine, listening to her heartbeat. It was a height difference that I would not have thought of before.

‘Let’s take this opportunity to see if we can build up companion trainees again…’