At the expense of the estate belonging to the Arcutus family, the surrounding walls seemed to act as a barrier against outside intrusion from wild animals, considering the existence of a territory within the borders of the southern region located a few miles away from one of the territories belonging to the Marquess.
Being the Dukes, it was already evident from the overall appearance of the entire territory that it was economically boosted, with the dense internal energy showcasing its geographical value. It stretched over a vast expanse, reaching the horizon in a way where the pagodas and large buildings blurred the thin line where sky and earth met.
Yet standing like a dot in the line of sight was a figure of a woman in a white assassin dress amidst the darkness of night.
"I will make sure to bury all of you." Standing on the walls with the moonlight filtering through the fabric of her dress as it shimmered in white, Olea’s eyes burned with amethyst determination as she looked out towards the expanse, clearly angered by the burning flare within her heart.
She was resolved to destroy this entire territory and take revenge for the betrayal that had befallen her parents.
Yet, knowing full well that her current state and strength were not enough to confront someone of the Arcutus family’s caliber, she controlled herself, enduring the pain similar to that evident in the warm blood trickling through her palm, where her clenched fist had caused her nails to dig into her own flesh.
Looking toward the vast expanse, her eyes turned to a specific wall near the end of the borders. The patrolling guards seemed to pass through her body while moving, as if she were a ghost.
Her technique diluted her overall presence, proving her identity as the ghost blade. Like a ghost holding two blades, her body disappeared and she directly arrived at the wall.
A few meters from where she initially stood, she stretched out her hand and placed it against the wall, passing through it without activating any mechanism.
"Haa...It’s still not enough." As she passed through the wall, her body materialized again in solid form while she breathed. Looking around, she found herself in a black, narrow alley within a cave-like structure that was compact.
This made her realize that she was still unable to pass through solid dense matter despite her technique’s perfection.
The technique she was using had been bestowed upon her by her parents, who had taught her a method they themselves could only use temporarily.
Like a real ghost, they could pass through matter, though the denser the material, the harder it was to pass through. Yet, yet again she found herself made aware of her own limitations.
Swoosh!
Once again, a sound resonated, and her body disappeared once more. This time, it was more like camouflage, meant to hide her presence from others’ eyes as she moved toward a certain direction, sensing the movement of energy appearing strange.
On instinct, she made her way in that direction.
Navigating through the increasingly narrowing cave, she managed to pass through the space, compact enough like a cat.
She finally arrived at an outside area that resembled a huge dome, expanded enough to reveal a red circle in the middle that appeared to be made of blood.
Several talismans hung around, red in color, with words written in black ink.
’!?’
Even though there was blood all over the place, with human corpses lying skinned alive, her eyes widened as they fell upon the wall.
There lay hundreds of weapons of different kinds, but she recognized the two at the center.
It was two swans, one black and the other white, joined in such a way as to form a circular shape: the kunai shuriken blades specially designed to leave a signature marking of the renowned assassins known as the Black Swans.
"Mom... Dad?!" A wave of shock coursed through her body, causing it to stiffen. Her mind became entranced as she saw the bloodstains on both the white and black swans, which her parents had used to mark their targets after killing them as a way of making it clear that the victims had been dispatched by the Black Swans. Now, those markings lay on the wall as mere decorations.
Her energy flared, though still under her control, evident in how she remained stealthy even while her feet trembled.
She began to move forward, clearly taken aback by finally finding evidence of her parents’ presence in a place suspected to be where they had met their demise.
Indeed, she only recalled the last moment when her parents informed her they were going to meet the head of the Arcutus family, which was the last message they had given her.
After their absence, she could only confirm verbally from the elders and others about the betrayal.
She had never obtained any evidence but today, she finally saw proof of her parents’ existence.
With each step forward, her body instantly disappeared, materializing like fog against the wall.
Hovering in mid-air, her hands reached out, taking both swans into her grasp. She looked at them as her heart swirled with memories spent in her childhood with them.
Flashes of moments rushed through her mind as she remembered running through the garden while holding her parents’ hands, their faces blurred, and engaging in training as they fought with each other after one of them had attempted to scold her.
It created an atmosphere too lovely to believe, contrasting starkly with the hollow reality of tracing their path toward revenge.
tap tap
tring tring
’!?!’
But suddenly, within that hall-room, a sound resonated loudly enough to make her flinch. She turned, her amethyst gaze flaring as she heard someone’s arrival, the footsteps mingled with the sound of strange bells ringing. The volume of the noise increased with the approach of the individual.
’Is it the head of the family?’ Olea’s doubts flared. Given her location, it was evident that whoever was entering this place was aware of the death circle associated with the killing of her parents.
The only person she could recall responsible for the betrayal was the head of the Arcutus family.
Yet she knew how weak she was against him, and if a battle were to ensue, things would become messier.
At this moment, anger and hatred fueled her, but she understood one thing: if she were to die today, her revenge would remain unfulfilled.
Therefore, she wanted to escape for the sake of that vengeance.
"I will come back." Remembering the sound of the ringing bell and the footsteps, her body disappeared, clenching her jaw like a tiger. She had already expended much of her internal energy and, being in enemy territory, preferred to retreat for now, determined to return with more strength and force to settle the score.
SWISH!
Olea disappeared, heading out of that place.
----
tap tap
Finally, the sound of footsteps grew louder as a silhouette finally arrived in the room, halting as the shadowy figure looked around, tilting her head.
Soon enough, a distorted image of the silhouette, which appeared womanly, revealed itself.
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Her hands tapped on two small bells hanging from her waist. With a grin, her eyes turned towards the wall, now marked by the absence of two swans, and she said with a chuckle, "Amusing to see how your daughter finally reached here, isn’t it my toys?"
"Should I add a third bell too? Huh?" With her other hand placed on her lips, a chilling voice emitted from her mouth as the two bells seemed to vibrate as if they were vessels of some souls protesting for the first time in several years.
"It was just a joke; I will not forget my promise until you both don’t, hahaha," the woman chuckled as if remembering some promise made to her two weapons, making her way back out of that place while clearly hoping to meet that girl face to face.