Night's Mist was an ability that he couldn't abandon.
He needed it not only to stand against Chaos but also to thwart the plans of people like Rose, that endangered his life, and kill them.
So, although it was messing with his brain, amplifying his desires, especially the dark ones, and changing his character to something along the line of Chaotic-neutral, he wouldn't discard it even if he found a way to.
"My lord, we've eliminated the threats to your life... for now. As long as Rose isn't dealt with, there will be more like them who will come to kill you. We need to make a plan to get rid of her." Delilah was certain that the possibility of Rose acting against Roy once more was 100%, and that's why she came to the conclusion that Rose needed to die for Roy to live without worrying about assassins.
Delilah could be seen standing behind Roy, respectfully waiting for him to speak.
"Give me a moment to think." Signaling her to wait, Roy raised his head and gazed ahead, holding the world on the other side of the shore that separated the southern district from the Western.
The light-reflecting barrier had shattered when he killed Trent, and hence, the world on the outside of the abandoned site was now holdable in his eyes.
He could see a sea of lights at the edge of his vision. This was made from the glow of countless lanterns found in the same places as alluring vixens that could tempt a man into sleeping with them with a wink of their eye and a turn of their lithe waist.
Reflected in his eyes was probably the most beautiful and innocent view the red light District had to offer.
Prostitution was legal in the Empire.
It has only been two decades since the war ended.
In order to survive, people with nothing to eat were bound to do hard labour or engage in the sex trade for some food.
Knowing that they would be taken unfair advantage of, the Emperor created new laws to protect them.
So you could enjoy your time with them but not harm them, treat them like your toy, or act as if you own them.
Following his footsteps, most Counties also introduced such laws in their inner court to protect sex trade workers.
Baldwin County was among them.
This was irrelevant to Roy, on whose face a thoughtful look has long appeared.
Delilah saw the look on his face hardening and the mist in his body darkening his eyes and the veins below his pale, white skin, and a chill ran down her spine.
'He must be scheming Rose Charlotte's death. Like an arrogant fool, she has offended him so much that he now wants her dead. It would be a surprise if she survived the night he wants her out of the picture.'
Delilah's eyes were on him, and she saw him suddenly turn around and look at the two corpses dragged and put side by side seven feet behind her.
'I should confirm that they were indeed sent by Rose and see if there's any solid evidence that proves she had hired them to kill me. If I can find something like that, it would become so much more easier to kill her without worrying about the entire empire condemning me as a criminal and trying to lock me up.'
Roy thought about it, and two screens containing information about two people who recently died popped up in front of him.
『Ding! You've opened the character screen of Xavier and Trent!』
Roy went through the memories of their life and confirmed that only a few days ago, Rose Charlotte hired them in order to kill him. On top of that, the evidence proving that she had committed the crime of having a noble killed twice was also present somewhere in the Yama's Gate sub-branch that was in the County.
Furthermore, from their memories, he also found out that if they failed, she would hire a Gold-ranked assassin to kill him after the adulthood ceremony.
Since they failed, she would be sending more assassins after him after half a month.
Finding that out, Roy chuckled; his laughters were anything but pleasant they were dark like hands that come out of the quagmire, grab a person's ankles, and threaten to push him inside it.
His laughs filling the air stopped after a few moments, and he cranked his neck to the right, staring at Delilah with a smile that was trying hard to hide his anger at Rose but failing to do so.
Roy: "You want to know how I want to deal with her? I want to behead that bitch with my hands. But without an Imperial decree, the trouble it would bring me will be endless. Not only the Charlotte Family but even the Achlys and the empire's inquisitor would come after my life if I killed her without a foolproof plan."
Roy's eyes narrowed thoughtfully, and now he looked like a thousand years old fox scheming to steal the hearts of his enemies. "And… I won't be able to settle my scores with her by just killing her as that would be letting her off too easily for trying to get me killed twice and having the thought to do it a third time."
"So... what are you going to do with her?" Delilah could tell he was scheming to take out the arrogant miss of the Charlotte family that treated others as dirt, but she wanted him to let her on it.
"Rose seeks fame and glory, and she's a vain person that can't accept a life of mediocrity or tolerate a single disrespect. What she cherishes the most needs to be taken away. The gazes of admiration and respect directed her way regularly and her status, backing, once she loses all that, she'll realize she's nothing special. I will first grab her by the ankle and throw her down to the very end of the social ladder, at a level worse than slaves. Only when she's looked down upon by the people she looks down upon will she feel thoroughly crushed. Then, I will put an end to her."
The profound look in his dangerously narrowed eyes struck Delilah like a current and made her tremble like a dancer.
'This person is too dangerous. I am lucky he left me alive when I aimed for his life. I better not offend him again in this lifetime.' She swallowed nervously and found herself admiring and fearing him more.
Calming down, he looked at her with interest.
That didn't escape her notice.
"My lord, why do you look at me like you want my help regarding this matter?" Delilah asked.
"You caught on. I do need your help. Help me collect evidence of her hiring these assassins and your Alias to kill me. Documents, letters exchanged between her and the Yama's contractor, and so on, please get whatever you can get your hands on." Roy, for a fact, knew that these existed and were put somewhere by the Yama's contractor. As for where that was Delilah's job to find out.
"Stealing such things from the organization is like playing with fire." Delilah said, "I don't want to get burned. Do you want to see me get burned?"
"No, I don't. It would be a waste to see your beauty and life burned away just after I finished integrating you into my life." Roy eyed her.
She was pleasant to look at, and Roy was a man with a 100% functioning private part who didn't have the habit of shying away from admiring what should be admired, so why wouldn't he admire her, especially now that his self-constraint has loosened a little because of the side effects of his ability?
Their eyes met, but as she wasn't a nervous maiden, she didn't shy away from him and also puffed out her chest in pride.
She stepped close to Roy and gave him a loving smile that made him wonder why she was acting this way, but then she answered his question, "I don't mind backstabbing the organization for you. As long as I'm rewarded handsomely, and you guarantee my safety, protect me from the assassins they will send after me if my cover is blown, this body of mine is yours to use as you please."
Roy: "....." Her wording sounded too wrong.
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