The Former Holy Knight. Having Lost My Job and Childhood Friend, I Decided to Start a Dark Guild - Chapter 67

After the attack on the LeBlanc family, I informed Cecil via letter that Leon Stein had not been found.

It would be our family’s first unsuccessful request, but considering everything, it was the best course of action. Even if we met, I couldn’t live up to Cecil’s expectations, and I wouldn’t have anything to say if asked what I was doing now.

Moreover, given the current chaotic state of the Holy Knights, Cecil wouldn’t have time to spare for someone like me, Leon Stein. She must be preoccupied with finding the culprit behind the recent attack.

Unexpectedly, a reply came from Cecil. It was a formal and polite letter, as befits the leader of the Holy Knights, and it roughly said:

Once you’ve accepted a request, you must not abandon it. The reward will be increased, and the deadline extended by two months, so you must find Leon Stein without fail.

Additionally, there will be a party hosted by the royal family to celebrate Duke LeBlanc’s recovery, and as the person who contributed to thwarting the attack, you are also invited to attend.

No, no, extending the deadline on their own and inviting a Don of the Dark Guild to a royal family-hosted party is absurd by any stretch of the imagination. I couldn’t help but laugh at the one-sided nature of it.

Naturally, I intended to send a letter of refusal again, but the Michino Family’s operations became busier, and Cecil-related matters were put on hold. Well, it wasn’t like Cecil was ever completely out of my mind.

Yes, the Michino Family is busier than ever since its establishment.

It seems the LeBlanc matter has become quite the talk among the upper echelons of the capital, leading to a surge in requests. Most are for guard duties, but there are also typical Dark Guild requests like collecting money (debt collection cases) and bringing someone in (mild kidnapping cases).

As long as it’s not too unscrupulous, being a Dark Guild, we take on a wide range of jobs. Amidst these, a very Dark Guild-like request came in.

“Don Michino, I have heard much about you. That the Michino Family protected the Duke during the recent LeBlanc house attack.”

The man speaking so respectfully in my private room is a well-known merchant in the capital. Seeing his serious expression, I could somewhat guess the troublesome request he was about to make. And the reward he mentioned was astronomical.

“I will offer at least five hundred gold coins as a reward. Don Michino, you are the only one I can ask for this.”

Kano, standing next to me, gaped at the mention of the hefty success fee.

Normally, this would be where one would politely decline, but the man’s desperate look made me decide to hear him out.

“So, what is the request?”

The man looked at Kano. “Could you send the young lady away? This isn’t something to discuss in front of a woman.”

“If that’s the case, I cannot listen. Kano here is one of our executives.”

The man sighed heavily, then leaned in to whisper, “There’s a man I want dead.”

As expected, I sighed inwardly. It was a request that officially recognized guilds would never take, but Dark Guilds specialize in assassination. I had anticipated such requests, but hearing it directly from the client sent a chill down my spine.

Of course, I was about to refuse immediately when the man mentioned a particularly interesting name.

“Torquemada Slobryn, that man cannot be allowed to live.”

Torquemada is an inquisitor belonging to the Papal States. Above all, he was the one trying to sell Nina, a special heretic, to the Dark Guild. Though I had no intention of killing, I found myself listening intently to the man’s story.

The man had a daughter named Lily, who he had sent to a prestigious noble school and raised with great care. The holograph he showed me depicted a beautiful girl with a bright smile.

However, her carefree life took a sudden turn.

“My daughter manifested a heretical skill. My wife and I cried our eyes out. Being a heretic, she couldn’t even have a normal marriage. But she was still our daughter. We decided to ensure she’d live a comfortable life, even if it couldn’t be normal.”

They warned Lily not to speak of her heretical skill and moved to a remote village far from the capital to live quietly. That peaceful life came to an abrupt end.

“It was around the time Lily turned sixteen. Suddenly, Torquemada, the inquisitor, visited our home. It was shocking. How did our daughter’s secret get out? Probably, someone snitched on us. But Torquemada told us something unexpected.”

Torquemada Slobryn didn’t plan to capture Lily. Instead, he claimed he could erase her heretical skill. For a considerable fee, he would make her a good human again within a year, he said.

After much deliberation, the man paid a large sum and entrusted his daughter to Torquemada. It was painful to live apart from his daughter for a year, but if her heretical skill could be erased, she could return to a normal life in the capital.

“Then, about a year later, a letter arrived from the Papal States. I couldn’t believe it at first. The letter stated that following an inquisition, my daughter had been sentenced to death. And it was a post-mortem notification. My daughter had already been executed.”

The man took out a crumpled letter from his pocket. “Above all, this is unforgivable. This letter was sewn into my daughter’s clothes, which were returned by the Papal States.”

The letter, written by Lily herself, detailed her experiences after being taken by Torquemada. It was heart-wrenching to read.

In short, Lily was first used as Torquemada’s mistress, then as a plaything for the nobles of the capital.

Especially, one man’s name was mentioned as having taken particular interest in her. Lily wrote:

“Because of the drugs Prince Raymond made me drink, both my mind and body were ruined. I couldn’t resist anything that man said.”

After being toyed with for a year and becoming pregnant, Lily was subjected to an inquisition and sentenced to death.

The man said:

“Don Michino, please. Kill Torquemada, that man.”