Chapter 365 - 359: Coward

Before he acted, Ramsay had never considered that he might fail.

Even in the worst-case scenario, if the assassination failed, he never imagined he would be caught.

His Meteor Level strength was the source of his confidence, emboldening him to enter Shore Fort alone, right where the Fifth Knight Order was gathered.

But he never imagined the series of unbelievable sights Ronin would show him.

"You’ve deceived us all!"

With the point of a sword at his throat, Ramsay turned his head to the side and looked at Ronin, who stood not far away, his expression one of utter devastation.

The whole situation felt like a nightmare.

"I never deceived you."

The duration of Wind’s Wings expired. The light, ethereal wings slowly dissipated as Ronin walked up to him.

"You’re the ones who’ve been scheming against Wushan Territory and me this whole time."

"If I’m not mistaken, Earl Jesus is the one pulling the strings behind the Polante Thief Gang, the Black Gold Brotherhood, and that assassin organization, the Skull Society, isn’t he?"

Ramsay remained silent.

"You can remain silent," Ronin threatened, "and I can choose to end your life right here."

Those words snapped Ramsay back to his senses.

"Ronin, I am a nobleman, son-in-law to Earl Jesus. According to the laws of the Kingdom, nobles are entitled to clemency. Let me give you a friendly reminder: killing me would not be a wise choice."

"So, what you’re saying is that you’re allowed to kill me, but I’m not allowed to kill you?"

Ronin drew his Flame Stream Sword and stabbed it through the man’s calf, drawing a pained scream.

"Wake up, Ramsay. Your life is in my hands now. Out here in the middle of nowhere, who could prove I was the one who killed you?"

Ramsay started to panic.

As Moonlight Valley’s strongest warrior, he held an incredibly high status. He had a strong chance of obtaining even greater power and position in the future. He didn’t want to die like this.

"What will it take for you to spare me?"

Ronin chuckled. "I want to know the details of the cooperation between Earl Jesus, the Fleming Clan, Villa Duchy, and Ossen Count."

"They are indeed cooperating, but only the lords and clan leaders themselves know the specific details."

"You don’t know?"

"That’s right. Even though I’m Earl Jesus’s son-in-law, I wasn’t included in their discussions."

Ramsay looked at Ronin and changed the subject. "However, I do know about the deal with Ossen from the beginning of the year. They used a ’friendly spar’ as a pretext to make Marquis Lurans’s old injuries flare up, hoping he would be gravely wounded or even die in the fight. Then, once Wiggin inherited the title of Marquis, Ossen’s maternal grandson—your half-brother—would secure his position as the heir."

"You don’t have to tell me that. We already figured as much."

Ronin wasn’t interested. "Give me another piece of information, something valuable."

"Earl Jesus’s daughter, Sari, is set to marry Facundo of the Earl of Scream Island’s family. The wedding is..."

Ronin cut him off. "Don’t test my patience. I want valuable intelligence, not common knowledge you’re trying to pass off as a secret."

Ramsay’s mind raced. He knew many secrets, but revealing some of them would destroy his future—and possibly his family’s as well.

So he could only offer up trivial, inconsequential information.

"My apologies, Lord Ronin. If you already know all of this, then I have nothing left to offer you."

Ramsay’s tone was that of a man who had accepted his fate.

"However, I can promise you this: if you let me go, I will have Earl Jesus and my family provide you with a substantial amount of gold and resources."

’He’s surprisingly tight-lipped.’

Ronin fell into thought, considering what to do with Ramsay.

As living proof of Earl Jesus’s assassination attempt, Ronin could easily take Ramsay before His Majesty the King to demand justice. He could even use this incident as a pretext for Wushan Territory to attack Moonlight Valley.

But Earl Jesus was, after all, a member of the Royal Family and had close ties with powerful nobles from places like Ferrensburg. In the end, the most Ronin could hope for was some financial compensation. The chances of an execution were extremely low.

And when Ramsay testified, he would surely reveal Ronin’s true strength and the existence of his Giant Dragon.

Ronin didn’t want to step into the spotlight so suddenly; Wubei Territory wasn’t strong enough for that yet.

After years of decline and constant warfare, Wushan Territory needed time to rest and recuperate. Even with Marquis Lurans recovered, it was not the right time to wage war on Moonlight Valley.

As for forcing Earl Jesus and Ramsay’s family to pay a hefty ransom, that carried the same risk of his secrets being exposed.

’Keeping him alive is a threat and a liability.’

A murderous glint flashed in Ronin’s eyes.

THUD! THUD!

Just then, Carlos tossed down two Griffins. They were covered in blood and, after crashing to the ground, were unable to flap their wings.

Ronin’s heart clenched. ’Don’t tell me this Dragon got carried away and killed the two Griffins.’

"Carlos, what did you do to them?"

The Giant Dragon’s massive body descended, crushing the surrounding trees and snapping them into pieces with a series of loud CRACKS.

"Don’t worry, Master. I only crushed their wings a little. They can’t fly for now, but they’ll recover."

Only then did Ramsay get a clear look at the behemoth.

"Is that... a Giant Dragon?"

A wave of shock crashed through him. ’Ronin actually has a Giant Dragon for a Magical Beast mount!’

He broke out in a cold sweat just thinking back on his experience in the air.

’I’m afraid only High Level Griffins would stand any chance of resisting,’ Ramsay thought. ’Ordinary ones are just like lambs to the slaughter.’

’When I get out of here,’ Ramsay thought, ’I have to spread this news. Countless people across the continent will want to find Ronin to see this legendary creature for themselves.’

"If we had known you were this strong, and that you had a Giant Dragon, we never would have moved against you."

Ramsay said, full of regret, "Ronin, let me go. Perhaps we could still cooperate on many things."

"Such as?"

"I can help you deal with Ossen Count, Villa Duchy, and even my own father-in-law, Earl Jesus."

Ronin feigned interest. "You’re willing to betray Earl Jesus for me?"

"With a Giant Dragon and your extraordinary talent, you might one day unite the continent, just like Emperor Orland. Following you would open up far greater possibilities."

’It sounded like flattery, but he wasn’t entirely wrong.’

But Ronin hadn’t even seriously considered unifying the continent. If Ramsay spread that rumor, it would undoubtedly arouse suspicion from all the major powers. It was likely that even Bruno would start to guard against him.

After all, Gremes had died precisely because many people wanted to prevent the Wushan Clan from having two geniuses.

And Ronin was now far stronger than Gremes had been.

"Now that you put it that way, I am a little tempted."

Ronin smiled faintly, but his smile was cold. "But to be on the safe side, I think it’s much safer to kill you right here."

Ronin raised his sword and thrust it toward the man’s heart.

"Wait!"

Ramsay completely panicked and shouted, "We’re cooperating with Sharp Horn City!"

Ronin paused. "Viscount Vitorino?"

’I’m working with Sharp Horn City right now,’ Ronin thought. ’And Vitorino hasn’t shown any sign of betraying Wushan Territory.’

"Yes, Viscount Vitorino!"

Ramsay’s voice was laced with anxiety. "Back when you were leading the attack on the Polante Thief Gang, we were the ones who promised Viscount Vitorino we could broker a freedom of navigation treaty for him with Screaming Island. That’s why he didn’t lead his forces to help you."

Ronin’s eyes widened in understanding.

At the time, Viscount Vitorino’s excuse was that a Magical Beast had appeared in Dennis Port, threatening the ships, and that his men had been injured while killing it.

’So Earl Jesus had a hand in that, too.’

’Still, that was just a transaction of interests. It could hardly be called an outright betrayal.’

’In subsequent matters, at least, Viscount Vitorino had been quite friendly. Besides, his son, Reis, was currently serving under him.’

"I see."

Ronin lifted his longsword and thrust again.

"Wait, wait, wait!"

Ramsay cried out in a panic, "Screaming Island wants to annex Sharp Horn City! They also want to take a piece of Wushan Territory’s land!"

"You’d better tell me more."

The tip of the Flame Stream Sword touched his skin.

Ramsay’s face paled. "Villa Duchy and Ferrensburg are both dissatisfied with His Majesty the King! They’ve been meeting secretly!"

"Duke Villa is already a Silver Moon Knight!"

Ronin’s sword tip pierced the man’s skin, and a surge of Fighting Qi flowed in.

"Also, Earl Jesus is in contact with the Tricia Kingdom!"

"The Tricia Kingdom hasn’t been very stable lately. I hear there have been several riots over there."

...

After Ramsay had spat out who knows how much more information, with a sickening squelch, Ronin’s longsword pierced his heart.

"Aargh!"

The Meteor Knight let out a pained wail, never having imagined Ronin would actually kill him.

"Ronin... Earl Jesus won’t let you get away with this!"

"And I won’t spare him."

Ronin said flatly as a torrent of Fighting Qi poured into the man’s body, obliterating his heart and extinguishing his life force completely.

’A Meteor Knight, and a coward too.’