Chapter 109: Beneath the Hidden Blade, All Are Equal

"Please, don't kill me..."

Number Four looked down at the hidden blade pressed against his throat, his heart turning cold. He knew the person was standing right behind him, but he dared not turn around, terrified that the blade might slit his throat at any moment.

"Then you must play a game with me."

Ruby directly dislocated Number Four’s shoulders, rendering his arms useless. He then tied him backward to a chair and began the interrogation; intelligence was a necessity.

During the binding process, Number Four desperately wanted to see who this killer—more formidable than any of them—actually was. However, he could not see the man’s face at all, as Ruby had donned a white hood. It was a white hooded mage robe he had inadvertently found in a student's room earlier, which he now wore to conceal his identity in case of need.

"Watch closely. Here is a gold coin. I will wave it in front of you repeatedly. After five minutes, I will ask you how many times I waved it. If you answer incorrectly, you shall go join your partners."

"I... I understand."

Number Four nodded hurriedly, agreeing to the weirdo's request. For him, this was also a good opportunity to stall for time; he believed his boss would surely arrive soon to rescue him.

At first, Number Four tried to count the movements of the gold coin diligently, but as time passed, he grew increasingly bored. His tense nerves gradually relaxed, and by the time the five minutes were up, he was completely hypnotized.

"Tell me, what organization are you from?"

"The Black Magic Association."

Number Four spoke the information he should have taken to his grave with a dull, vacant expression on his face, answering like a puppet in response to Ruby's questions.

"What are you doing here?"

"To kill a person with no magic power."

"Why kill him?"

Hearing this, Ruby was stunned. Had he gotten it wrong? Was the target not Mo Yuna, but him? Was it for money or for his life?

"A few months ago, the favorite disciple of Stein, the Vice President of the Black Magic Association, died. The killer left no traces behind. The Vice President searched everywhere in a rage and finally found a clue in the survivor's diary. He discovered a human with no magic power and wanted to study him, but the diary ended there."

"So you suspect that person killed him?"

Ruby felt like he was being shot while lying down. Fine, even if he were the only person in the world without magic, this was ridiculous! Perhaps the guy just wanted to have a friendly exchange. At this moment, he naturally did not know he was taking the fall for the Mage God girl.

"Although there isn't enough evidence, the Black Magic Association's code of conduct is to kill the innocent rather than miss a target. We finally found a clue about a person with no magic, but that person always hid in the academy, making it impossible to strike. That is why we targeted this opportunity while he was outside."

"I see... Tell me everything about your partners."

Ruby finally understood that there was no reasoning with such an evil organization. Just like terrorists on Earth, they had no regard for the law, so there was no point in showing mercy—though he hadn't intended to anyway.

"Close your eyes. You are now seeing the most blissful, relaxing image in your heart."

With the intelligence gathered, it was time to finish. Ruby would not keep such a person around as a ticking time bomb. However, in exchange for the information provided, he granted him a relatively comfortable death. After a satisfied smile appeared on Number Four's face, the ruthless hidden blade sliced across his throat.

"He's here!"

Ruby’s luck was not great on this outing. Before he could find a hiding spot, he ran straight into a killer. The man immediately turned his head to call for his companions. Judging by the ugly burn scars on his face, this was Number Five, mentioned in the intelligence. This guy was also a cold-blooded killer who had once brutally murdered someone simply for glancing at his face too long.

*Whoosh.*

Ruby found it hard to understand. All his experience told him that in a clash between experts, one could not be lax for even a second, yet this guy had time to turn around and shout? Ruby drew the crossbow from his back and fired. Poor Number Five never dreamed that Ruby would be carrying a ranged weapon, and that he would fire it without even aiming. Before he could even draw his own weapon, he clutched his throat and collapsed to the ground, twitching a few times before falling still.

Although he wanted to fire another bolt, a man who had come running upon hearing his companion's call gave him no time to reload. Ruby made a split-second decision to drop the crossbow and back-flipped to avoid the attack. The stone floor beneath his feet was shattered to pieces.

"From the Black Stone Empire?"

By the moonlight streaming through the window, Ruby saw the opponent's weapon: a long, black refined-iron staff. It was a highly unconventional weapon, and based on the knowledge he had acquired, he confirmed the man's homeland. Only people from that empire favored long staffs.

"Kid, you're strong."

Number Six nodded. He was nearly two meters tall and powerfully built, specializing in using his iron staff to crush his opponents' bones and flesh alike. Ruby’s precise shot and agile evasive maneuvers told him that this hooded weirdo was definitely a formidable opponent.

Since both were fighting for their lives, Ruby had no intention of chatting, and Number Six felt the same. He charged at Ruby again, staff raised. This time, Ruby flicked out his hidden blade. Sparks showered the air as the steel collided with the iron staff. Ruby used the force of the strike to deflect the staff toward the ground, and the moment the pressure on his blade vanished, he slashed a wound into Number Six’s thigh.

"What's wrong? You've killed so many of us, is that all you've got?"

Number Six didn't care about his superficial wounds and kept pressing the attack. Ruby knew he wasn't as strong as his opponent, so he either dodged or used the opponent's own force to deflect the staff elsewhere. In short, despite all of Number Six's efforts, he hadn't even touched the hem of Ruby's robe.

"You have nowhere to run."

Number Six finally cornered Ruby. He swore that after breaking every bone in his body, he would rip off that damn hood to see what he looked like and if he was the target. But to his surprise, he saw Ruby retract the blade and brush past him, disappearing from his sight.

"If this were a sparring match, I would indeed have lost. But this is a fight to the death. Rest in peace. The venom of a Velocis causes nerve paralysis; you won't feel any pain."

Number Six didn't know why his body had stopped responding. While he was desperately thinking, *'Move! Why won't you move!'*, Ruby's voice drifted lightly into his ears. Poisoning his weapon—wasn't that an assassin's innate skill?