Once I finished my paperwork, I headed over to where Grim was waiting for me.
“Good work on your mission, black cat.” As soon as I noticed the tree branch move, I heard his voice. Perched in his owl form on the branch, he continued speaking. “Black cat, we’ve heard of both your and the new member, silver wolf’s, achievements. The higher-ups are very pleased. It’s time for your next missi—”
But before he could finish his sentence, I threw some papers at him from out of my breast pocket—paperwork for my resignation. Seeing what was written on it, Grim looked at me with doubt.
“What are you playing at?” he asked.
“Nothing. I’d like to leave the organization as of today.”
“And why’s that?”
I paused, taking a moment to put everything I’d kept bottled up into words. “You told me this before, Grim. I’m a first-rate mage, but a second-rate assassin. I’m just not cut out for this job. So instead, I’m going to devote myself to my research.” I’d said this without any hint of it being a lie.
From the very start, I’d wanted to join Chaos Raid because of Garius, the man I’d met—the one who raised me in his orphanage. Back then, I simply didn’t see any other path to go down.
I didn’t regret a single thing about joining Chaos Raid; I had grown exponentially as a mage because of it. But staying here forever wasn’t going to help me keep growing. In order to reach new heights, I had to leave.
“When I leave, I’ll be taking Cain with me,” I added. “I’m pretty sure that’s what he wants too.”
In a way, I might’ve been somewhat responsible for him. I had a feeling he’d be in danger if I left him by himself. Maybe it was a side effect of his demon upbringing, but Cain was missing the vital qualities that normal humans possessed. Things like common sense, and empathy. I couldn’t help but feel that I’d be making a big mistake if I left him in the care of the organization. For Ayane, well...I was pretty sure she’d be all right.
“You’re leaving Chaos Raid, huh?” Grim repeated my words. He sounded less surprised and more exasperated. “This’ll be the seventh time I’ve heard those words come from your mouth. I’m getting tired of this, Abel.”
In a rush, memories I had been completely unaware of flashed through my head.
What is this? Oh. I remember. I’ve spoken with him about leaving the organization before.
My head hurt. It was like a fog descended on my mind and obscured my memory. Does this mean that my memories were manipulated? Grim’s an Ashen-Eyed mage. Distorting my memory and arbitrarily using me as his pawn is more than possible for him.
“People are so mysterious. A strong ego can disturb the balance of an organization, yet a strong ego is also necessary to encourage one’s growth. I might’ve left too much of your ego in you, Abel, hoping for your growth.” Though Grim said this softly, his words were filled with zeal. “But I’m done. This is over. You’ve grown more than enough. From now on, I’ll make you a puppet that moves solely for the aims of Chaos Raid.”
Grim’s aura changed—he was ready to fight. Right then, another memory I didn’t remember having flashed through my head.
I see now. It looks like I’ve challenged Grim six times before—and lost every single time.
At the end of every fight, he manipulated my memories so that I could remain a convenient pawn for the organization.
“Allow me to show you who stands at the top.” Grim spread his wings and flew towards me.
If I didn’t take him down here, I’d be a prisoner to the organization forever.
“Howl! Mumei!” I said, using Mumei, my favored sword.
I wasn’t a big fan of using weapons, but one rule at Chaos Raid dictated that all members had to carry around the weapon they were given. This blade was light, sturdy, and made of a special alloy that was a good conductor for mana. It was pretty useful, so I had no issue carrying it around. Its name had emerged from what other people called it; another apparent rule was that all weapons had to be named. I’d stubbornly ignored doing that, but before I knew it, my sword’s name had become Mumei.
There was a slice and in the next moment, my blade had cut Grim’s body in half. Yet I felt that it had happened too easily. Though that should’ve ended things, I didn’t get the sense that the battle was actually over.
“I see. You’ve gotten a little better.”
He’s behind me?
The moment I realized it, a colossal monster stood in my way. It was over three meters tall. He’d used the sand in our surroundings to create it.
“It’s too bad, but you can’t defeat me. You probably don’t remember, but that’s how it’s always been.”
I see. I seem to have cut nothing more but a vessel. As an Ashen-Eyed mage, Grim could transfer his soul to other vessels. Usually, he was in an owl’s body, but when he was fighting, he transferred his soul into a more appropriate form.
“Now then,” Grim said. “I wonder how many times you can kill me.”
Grim began attacking, swinging down his huge, sand monster arms. Despite his large body, his movements were surprisingly nimble. I dodged his attack right before it could hit me, and cut his arm with my sword.
“Interesting. You’ve grown a little, Abel.”
It looks like even cutting off an arm doesn’t actually do any damage to him.
As proof, the arm I’d just cut off immediately regenerated. At this rate, it’d be hard to deal any lasting damage. Next, I decided to use my Body Fortification Magecraft to analyze him. Using Inspect, I looked for any vulnerabilities, and found one.
I see. Looks like his core is around his heart. If I get to that, I can make his body crumble.
I proceeded to evade him as much as I could while targeting his weak point. It was a tall order, but for me, not impossible.