A Swordsman’s Stream

Chapter 30

**Assassination and Concealment**

Assassination followed by concealment was a traditional infiltration method that couldn’t be omitted from the Assassin’s Dawn. When paths were blocked during an infiltration, players often chose this method. Some even played by assassinating every NPC in sight.

However, what Sojun did was on another level. He killed NPCs who were about to trigger an alert before they could see him, ensuring they were classified as assassinations. In short, it was a play where he dominated through physical prowess.

– This hyung is doing something only he can do again.
– Haha, he’s doing it all himself.
– Assassination with no witnesses, amazing!
– Killing just before being seen, incredible!

In difficult zones like the Albark Palace, if an assassination was followed by concealment, others would eventually notice the absence of their comrades after a certain period. If you killed and hid an NPC here, you were forced into a time attack.

“Well, let’s speed things up a bit from here.”

It wasn’t too tight of a schedule. Sojun wasn’t planning on worrying about noise any longer.

Clip-clop, clip-clop.

Sojun walked leisurely down the corridor. No, “strode” would be a more precise description. When the sound of his footsteps drew the Royal Guards closer, he took out a dagger from his inventory and threw it.

“Certainly, assassination is easier than Musou.”

After hiding the fallen NPC in a nearby empty room, Sojun continued walking.

– We’ve never actually agreed to call this assassination.
– A bit shocking, haha.
– Killing before they’re even seen? Amazing.

Even during the dark night, the corridors of Albark felt grand and wide enough for several people to walk hand in hand.

Slow, steady footsteps resounded from the other end of the wide corridor. Royal Guards, trained in both magic and martial disciplines, exuded pride with each step. The moment a uniformed guard turned the corner, even if just barely in sight…

Swish!

The dagger sliced through the air, striking the Royal Guard. The guard’s eyes, filled with shock, fluttered shut.

– Predictive shot, incredible!
– He must have watched first, right?
– Either way, it’s amazing.
– Totally awesome.

Footsteps once again echoed alone in the corridor.

“It’s quiet. I like it.”

Sojun, making an unintruder-like remark, surveyed his surroundings. Despite having a blueprint, the Albark Palace was complicated. It seemed that the viewers had given up on seeing Sojun fail and began guiding him. He found stairs that led down and walked in that direction following the viewer’s input.

“Oh.”

Sojun whispered a soft exclamation only the viewers could hear as he descended the grand staircase, which looked like the main heroine might showcase her dress and beauty. The grand hall on the lower floor greeted him.

“Quite an impressive setting.”

Sojun murmured as he vaulted over the banister. He spotted two Royal Guards overlooking the hall from below. Sojun fell towards the guard on the right, his coat billowing. Just before hitting the floor, he flung his dagger, killing the guard on the right. Immediately, he pulled out the dagger from the guard’s neck and threw it at the guard on the left as he spun around.

– Wow, what did he just do, haha.
– Took down both of them like that!
– This is true assassination!
– He’s just great at assassinations, haha.

When ambushing with melee weapons, a forced assassination motion of about one second occurred. In a high-difficulty zone like the palace, using melee weapons on one of the two NPC guards would inevitably alert the other. Sojun only had one remaining dagger.

Therefore, he approached close to throw the dagger, skipped the assassination motion, and killed the other guard in quick succession. He explained this to the viewers.

The viewers were dumbfounded.

– Why not just ambush with the long sword after throwing the dagger?
– Haha, as if there aren’t other weapons available.
– The streamer is kinda silly. That’s part of his charm though.”

Oh. That’s right.

Sojun admitted it readily.

“I didn’t think of that. That would indeed be easier. However…”

It was because he hadn’t thought deeply about it.

“It’s not particularly difficult this way either. Try it once.”

Sojun smiled brightly as he said this, causing the viewers to burst with joy.

– Haha, he finds every chance to mock us.
– Don’t give this sly streamer any chance to mock, guys!
– Hey, he’s just doing it; got a problem?
– Oh, god, why grant such talent to someone like him?
– Sojun wins!

“An assassin always goes with a dagger.”

Smiling in triumph, Sojun headed toward the queen’s quarters.

– But if an assassin uses a dagger, does that mean the times he used a longsword, he wasn’t an assassin?
– The streamer trapped in his self-contradiction, haha.”

Honestly, whether assassination or Musou, it didn’t really matter. As long as the stream was entertaining, it was all good.

“Let’s skip the trivial stuff.”

Sojun’s deep voice resonated pleasingly.

– Yes, hyung.
– Yes, oppa.
– Ha! If I had said that, I’d probably get cursed out. But since he’s handsome, it’s fine. Haha.
– Suddenly, I’m really annoyed. Unfollowing him right now.

Sojun smiled as he interlaced his fingers, positioning two daggers around his index finger. One of the daggers he picked up on the way, a kitchen knife. Extending his arms in the dark, he aimed at his enemies.

‘Hmm, it’s my first time throwing daggers of different weights.’

But it should be fine.

Swoosh!

The two daggers simultaneously flew through the air.

Two guards stationed at the door fell at the same time.

“Ugh!”

Perfect.

As the short death throes echoed, Sojun confidently entered through the main door.

It didn’t matter if he got caught now.

“So, Scammer Dice-nim, how was my stealth mission?”

– Cheating Dice must be crying right now lololol.
– This madman is doing stealth and assassination like a mad hero!
– Mad hero! Mad hero! Mad hero! Mad hero!

『”Cheating Dice” has donated 100,000 won!』
『”Wait, did I just get cheated?”』

Sojun expressed his thanks, making the viewers laugh.

Sensing the presence, someone stood up.

Bzzt!

A red beam formed in the center of a sphere that appeared next to Sojun and shot out.

The Queen, the Ruler, had awakened.

“How dare a lowly creature like you enter here.”

While she was lying on the bed moments ago, now she was standing behind Sojun.

* * *

The method to defeat the Queen had already been circulated.

Another streamer had beaten Sojun to it.

It wasn’t a surprising fact.

After all, others had occasionally managed to take down other Rulers.

Thankfully, no one had yet gathered all the Fragments of Order.

The reason was that no one had managed to defeat the Mage Tower Lord yet.

For someone like Richard Neville, to those who could follow Sojun’s broadcasts, the task was manageable with the skill Weakpoint Perception.

Drake, too, if skilled, could be defeated with the help of various items and skills.

‘Although it’s very few.’

What mattered was that a few people could manage it.

However, the Mage Tower Lord was different.

Those who obtained the skill to spot weaknesses immediately challenged the Mage Tower Lord.

Only to hurl lightning like Sojun.

And those who saw the patterns of lightning were shocked.

The weak points were too narrow.

Moreover, the lightning vanished too quickly.

『”How did Nameless do it? LOL”』
『”Even more chilling. He didn’t use the weakness detection. Darn!”』
『”Minimum eye speed of a bird.”』

Even without aiming for lightning patterns, the difficulty was too high.

As a result, Sojun’s reputation soared higher each day.

In any case, the conclusion was clear.

‘People aren’t expecting me to defeat the Queen now, are they?’

Since someone else already defeated her first.

What the viewers truly wanted was for him to collect all the Fragments of Order.

Sojun used his weakness detection and slashed at the Queen’s Mirror with his sword.

The mirror, a glass orb reflecting like a mirror, was the Queen’s special weapon.

It floated freely, reflecting attacks and casting embedded magic, functioning like an orb.

‘Thanks to this weakness detection, the Queen’s difficulty level has significantly dropped.’

Crash!

The Queen’s Mirror shattered, with glass shards scattering everywhere.

Due to some peculiar force, the shards suspended in midair, obstructing Sojun’s view.

“How dare you damage my possession!”

Sojun could see the Queen’s arm swinging from the opposite side through the glass shards.

A dagger flew towards him.

Navigating through the glass debris, it aimed precisely at Sojun.

The dagger multiplied in reflections, creating illusions.

‘But the real one is only one.’

And Sojun had never missed an enemy’s attack mid-battle.

Clang!

The swiftly flying dagger was blocked by Sojun’s knife.

And in return, Sojun threw his dagger.

“Ah…”

The last remaining HP bar decreased.

With a short death cry, the Queen gazed at Sojun with hollow eyes before collapsing.

– So clean, wow!
– This is next level, haha.
– One try. No damage, no skills. Crazy.
– Now let’s go!

“It’s done.”

A notification sound rang out.

『Queen Arietta has died.』
『You have obtained the Fragment of Order (4/4).』
『You have gathered all the Fragments of Order. The hidden scenario ‘Choice’ is now in progress.』

As Sojun read the words, a raven landed lightly on his shoulder.

A letter was attached to the raven’s leg.

“A carrier pigeon?”

As Sojun detached the paper from its leg, the raven fluttered its wings, flying away through the balcony.

He unrolled the letter.

The message invited him somewhere with the promise of a reward.

“Sent by the Branch Manager?”

Most likely, going there would trigger the start of the scenario.

– I waited a week just to see this!
– Choice? What choice are you talking about?
– Please don’t end the stream. Please don’t end the stream. Please don’t end the stream.

The location was the fourth floor of an abandoned factory on the southern outskirts of Altheon. It was practically at the outskirts of the game’s map.

“Well, let’s give it a try.”

Sojun, just as leisurely as when he infiltrated Albark Palace, slipped away and headed towards the marked location on the map. He had to go past Zone 4, where the commoners lived, and head further down.

– Is the streamer who ends abruptly doing this?
– Yeah, make hay while the sun shines!
– Phew. Almost caused a riot.

When Sojun arrived at the marked location, a cutscene started.

“Why did you call me here?”

Arthur, the branch manager of Altheon, appeared from behind a rusted machine. He was quite a distance away from Sojun.

“Nameless. You finally took down the Queen.”

“So what?”

Arthur’s eyes widened.

“Damn. Didn’t I tell you? Capturing them prematurely would cause more damage. The Organization members are coming.”

Arthur tried to speak politely, but he couldn’t completely hide his simmering anger. His hand shook with excitement.

“We also requested support, but there hasn’t been any reply. I told you to restrain yourself until then. Couldn’t you wait a bit longer?”

Nonetheless, Sojun, or rather, the protagonist in the cutscene, remained unperturbed.

“That’s your issue, not mine. And if more of them are coming, then I’ll just catch more of them.”

– Wait, is the streamer moving instead of a cutscene? LOL
– So shameless, LOL
– Must be because of that choice with Arthur last time.
– Oh my…

“Right. You weren’t one of our brothers. Didn’t take any orders either.”

Arthur’s trembling hands steadied. And he smiled warmly, as if never having been angry.

“But Nameless, you are strong. Even if you disrupt order beyond my control, you are captivating enough.”

Order and control. Words that should not come from an assassin’s mouth. The protagonist sensed something odd and prepared for combat.

Swish!

Arthur threw a dagger, and the protagonist dodged it, glaring at Arthur.

“What is this?”

“Heh. As expected, this alone isn’t enough. Of course, a man who killed four of my comrades wouldn’t be easy.”

“Comrades? Don’t tell me…”

The protagonist’s face twisted in realization.

“Yes, just as you guessed. I have been collaborating with the Rulers of The Organization.”

– Man, I knew something was fishy.
– Why would the branch manager of the assassins do this?
– Is he the final boss?
– This was the true ending. No wonder.

“The reason for the cooperation was simple. If we fought with the intent to annihilate each other, the result was obvious—mutual destruction. But the moment you, the Slaughterer of the West, arrived, the balance of this city was disrupted. So, I thought I would use you to kill the other rulers and replace them with my subordinates.”

It became clear why missions didn’t yield Fragment of Order. Accepting missions meant moving according to Arthur’s will, conflicting with the hidden quest conditions.

“But you acted on your own, which complicated the plan and delayed my control over Altheon.”

Arthur, smiling, held a button in his hand.

“Still, you did eliminate them for me, so thank you. Now, farewell.”

Arthur climbed the nearby stairs to the upper floor. Simultaneously, explosions erupted below. Flames surged, and the floors began to collapse in sequence. The protagonist, on the fourth floor, chose to leap outside rather than follow Arthur. However, the rush and height caused injuries upon landing.

Arthur, from the rooftop, threw a dagger at the protagonist and smiled triumphantly. The protagonist thought his end was near and closed his eyes. Sojun thought the same.

But then, Sojun’s eyes, viewing from a third-person perspective, saw a dark figure—a woman—deflect the dagger and carry the protagonist away.

“Hm. A traitor? I didn’t expect this, but a game of cat and mouse sounds fun too.”

Arthur remained relaxed. Altheon was already half his.

Arthur whistled, summoning a crow. He took a paper from the crow’s leg and wrote a letter.

『Nameless has betrayed us and allied with The Organization. Effective immediately, Nameless is designated as the top priority assassination target.』

The crow flew away, and the cutscene ended.

* * *

Huff, huff.

Sojun found himself carried on someone’s back, laboriously breathing. His strength had not yet returned.

At that moment, a notification appeared before him.

Seeing this, Sojun’s eyes sparkled.

“So this is how it is? This could be interesting.”

– Wow.
– Legendary, LOL.
– Hidden quest is insane, wow.
– Gamers, get a taste of your own medicine!
– LOL, the challenge quest went to a top-notch streamer.”

『Hidden Quest – The Hunt』
『Arthur, the branch manager of Altheon, was a traitor. To make matters worse, you are now the top priority assassination target. From now on, every assassin under his command will stop at nothing to eliminate you. There is no place in Altheon free from the assassins’ reach. Survival means… The only way to survive is to stay alert to the hidden blades of the assassins lurking in every shadow of the streets.

Quest Completion Condition: Survive the assassination attempts for one day』

TL’s Corner:
MC’s John Wick moment.