Chapter 13: The Old Instructor
"Kill Linley?" Bernard looked at his son, "Kalan, why do you want to kill this Linley? He's just a stone sculpture master. Does he have any influence on our Debs family?"
News of Linley becoming a seventh-grade dual-element magician had not yet spread through the holy capital of Fenlai City. Coupled with the fact that Bernard had been troubled by his own family's affairs during this time, he was completely unaware of any information regarding Linley.
Kalan nodded and said, "Father, this Linley is only seventeen years old this year, yet he has already carved a master-level stone sculpture. Most importantly... he is currently the number one magical genius on the Yulan Continent. Even in the history of the Yulan Continent, he is the second-greatest genius in history, because at just seventeen years old, he is already a seventh-grade dual-element magician."
"A seventeen-year-old dual-element magician?"
Bernard drew in a sharp breath of cold air. His instincts told him that this Linley posed a threat to his family.
"This Linley cannot be kept," Bernard said directly.
Hearing his father say this, Kalan couldn't help but smile. However, Bernard frowned after just a moment: "No, this second-greatest magical genius in history will surely achieve astonishing magical accomplishments in the future. How could the Radiant Church, the Dark Church, and the Four Empires let someone like this slip away? For all we know, Linley might already have ties with the Radiant Church."
"Kalan, this Linley cannot be killed," Bernard said, looking at Kalan solemnly.
"Father, he's just a seventh-grade dual-element magician right now," Kalan said urgently. Suddenly, Kalan lowered his voice, "Father, we don't have to do the killing ourselves. We can hire someone, just like we did with that imperial minister back then."
Bernard pondered for a moment: "Kalan, don't concern yourself with this matter anymore. I'll handle everything."
Bernard didn't say whether he would kill Linley or not, which left Kalan restless and unable to calm down.
******
That night, Bernard arrived at a pre-booked private room in a hotel. Inside the room was a white-bearded old man.
"Mr. Bernard," the white-bearded old man said, smiling warmly as he saw Bernard.
Bernard nodded: "Mr. Bayonet, I've come to see you this time to ask for your help with two matters."
"Go ahead, you're an old client," the white-bearded old man said, still smiling.
Bernard spoke directly: "Two things. First, I want you to destroy the work 'Awakening' currently on display at the Proulx Guildhall." Bernard was well aware that it was nearly impossible to steal the stone sculpture 'Awakening' from the Proulx Guildhall.
But destroying it? That was much easier.
"Destroy the stone sculpture 'Awakening'?" The white-bearded old man was taken aback.
"What, can't your 'Bayonet' organization even manage that?" Bernard said with a light laugh.
There were four major assassin organizations on the Yulan Continent, each with its own unique strengths. The 'Bayonet' organization was extremely powerful. For enough gold coins, they would even dare to assassinate a Red Archbishop.
Of course, assassinating a Saint-level powerhouse was far too difficult.
"Surely you're not afraid of offending the Proulx Guildhall?" Bernard asked, somewhat puzzled.
"No. We certainly wouldn't care about a Proulx Guildhall. Tell me the second matter first," the white-bearded old man said abruptly.
Assassin organizations made their living by offending people. If they dared to offend even the Radiant Church, what else wouldn't they dare to do?
Suppressing his doubts, Bernard continued: "The second matter, I want you to kill Linley."
The white-bearded old man finally smiled helplessly and shook his head at Bernard: "Mr. Bernard, I'm afraid we cannot accept either of your two tasks. Truly sorry."
"Not accept?" Bernard stood up abruptly, staring at the white-bearded old man in disbelief. "Mr. Bayonet, I know your capabilities. Since when have you been afraid to accept such small tasks?" Bernard couldn't believe the outcome of his visit.
After all, this organization dared to assassinate imperial ministers and Red Archbishops. Why would they be afraid of a Linley?
"It's not a matter of fear. We simply don't want to take this task. As for the reason, our organization doesn't need to explain," the white-bearded old man said, his expression turning cold.
Bernard quickly forced a smile: "Mr. Bayonet, my apologies. Since you're unwilling to accept this task, I'll take my leave."
The white-bearded old man nodded.
After Bernard left, the white-bearded old man slowly stood up and muttered to himself: "This Bernard, of all the tasks he could choose, he wants to destroy a stone sculpture and kill Linley. I'd better report this to the Old Instructor. Refusing this task today should make the Old Instructor quite happy."
The white-bearded old man was also a veteran figure within the Bayonet organization.
But because he was too old, he no longer took on missions. He usually stayed in the super-large city of Fenlai to enjoy life, occasionally receiving wealthy nobles.
As for the so-called 'Old Instructor'...
He was a legendary figure within the Bayonet organization. Even the current leader of the Bayonet organization would respectfully address him as 'Instructor.' No one in the entire Bayonet organization had more seniority than this 'Old Instructor.'
……
At the Proulx Guildhall, it was the fourth day of the 'Awakening' stone sculpture exhibition.
In the 'Master Exhibition Hall,' there was a very strange phenomenon. According to the rules of the Proulx Guildhall, guests in the Master Exhibition Hall had to leave every three minutes to let the next batch of guests enter. If they wanted to see it again, they had to queue up again.
But in the Master Exhibition Hall, one guest had been there for nearly two hours. This completely violated the rules!
This guest looked to be in his thirties or forties, wearing a loose robe with his hands tucked into the wide sleeves, crossed over his chest. His long black hair was casually spread out, and he seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the 'Awakening' stone sculpture on display.
The guards standing in front of the 'Awakening' sculpture, all of whom were extremely strong, were quietly discussing this black-haired man among themselves.
"What's this person's relationship with Mr. Ostony? He actually told us not to kick him out. Staying in the Master Exhibition Hall for so long is against the rules."
"Don't worry about it. Let's just focus on protecting this sculpture."
"What's there to fear? The guildhall has set up a magic array around the sculpture. It's impossible to steal it. After all, this sculpture is so big. Who could sneak such a large sculpture out from under the guildhall's nose?"
The guards protecting the sculpture were still quite relaxed.
After all, stealing such a large sculpture was extremely difficult, and destroying it would only harm others without benefiting oneself. Who would do that?
"Hmm, quite a nice sculpture. It really has flavor," the man in his thirties or forties said, furrowing his brow as he carefully examined the 'Awakening' sculpture. Then he glanced at the description posted beside it. "A seventeen-year-old brat. Truly something to look forward to."
Time passed. The guests in the Master Exhibition Hall changed batch after batch.
But this man stayed the entire time, carefully observing and appreciating the 'Awakening' sculpture.
"Such smooth lines and marks, clean and decisive, without any hesitation," the man said with a hint of intoxication on his face. "Really captivating. And this woman, her unique charm has been completely carved out. She's even more attractive than a real woman."
In the Master Exhibition Hall, batches of guests came and went.
Many guests queued up again and again, visiting over and over. For those who loved stone carving, spending an entire day admiring a master-level work was nothing unusual.
"Time's up! Next batch!" a staff member of the Proulx Guildhall shouted loudly. Immediately, the current batch of guests had to leave through another door, while the queued guests entered from the front. In the midst of this chaos—
"Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!" ...
Several consecutive explosions occurred, and the entire Master Exhibition Hall was instantly covered in a thick fog. The guests immediately fell into complete chaos. Screams of terror and angry curses rose and fell one after another.
The guards protecting the sculpture immediately became tense.
"Not good," the guards thought, knowing exactly what was about to happen.
"Damn it,"
the man in the loose robe muttered impatiently, his drowsy eyes casually scanning the area. At that moment, four figures were rushing toward the 'Awakening' sculpture at top speed.
These four figures charged forward. The guards had already drawn their weapons, and many hidden experts within the Proulx Guildhall were rushing over. If the exhibition piece in the Master Exhibition Hall were destroyed this time, the consequences would be severe.
"Whoosh!"
Among the four figures, one in white moved eerily, like a piece of paper, drifting and easily evading the guards' obstruction. At the same time, a black dagger appeared in his hand, stabbing directly at the sculpture.
With his attack power, one stab would shatter the entire sculpture.
"Bang!" A layer of light shield appeared in front of the 'Awakening' sculpture. The dagger struck the shield but didn't break through.
"Light Guard?" the white figure muttered softly. Then, a streak of crimson flowed over the surface of his dagger, and he stabbed fiercely at the light shield again. With a 'crack,' the shield shattered completely.
"Not good!" The guards immediately panicked. Even a seventh-grade light-element magician's defensive spell had been easily broken. Because of the surrounding chaos, many of the guildhall's experts couldn't arrive in time to stop them.
These few guards were blocked by the other three figures.
The man in the loose robe, who hadn't moved at all from the start, suddenly sharpened his drowsy gaze.
"Swish!"—
An extremely faint sound rang out, and the white figure froze. Then, with a 'splash,' his body was split cleanly in two. His bright red intestines and internal organs spilled all over the floor. The three figures blocking the guards were also split in two simultaneously, dead beyond death.
******
A moment later, the Proulx Guildhall returned to calm. The man in the loose robe slowly left the guildhall. Outside the guildhall, a carriage was waiting, with someone standing beside it.
It was the old man whom Kalan's father Bernard had called 'Mr. Bayonet.'
This white-haired old man walked up to the man who looked to be in his thirties or forties and said respectfully in a low voice, "Old Instructor."
"Mm, you did well this time," the man who looked to be in his thirties or forties praised with a smile. Then he frowned and muttered discontentedly, "I didn't expect 'Blood Plum Blossom' to have fallen so low. Don't they know how great a crime it is to destroy such precious art?"
Blood Plum Blossom was one of the four major assassin organizations, alongside 'Bayonet.'
"Old Instructor, where are we going today?" Mr. Bayonet asked.
The man thought for a moment and said, "It's been a year or two since I last went to Azure Water Paradise. In the past, I always had the girls there come to me. Today... I'll go to Azure Water Paradise myself. Being around young girls keeps my heart young, haha..." The man laughed again.
"Yes, Old Instructor," the white-haired old man said respectfully. Mr. Bayonet had a big question in his mind: just how old was this Old Instructor? Because the batch of assassins Mr. Bayonet belonged to was the last batch the 'Old Instructor' had trained.
As for the first batch the 'Old Instructor' had trained... even if they hadn't been killed, they would have died of old age by now!
"What are you thinking about? Hurry up," came the man's voice from the carriage.
Mr. Bayonet immediately drove the carriage toward Azure Water Paradise.