Somewhere in the Kingdom of Gweliven

"Useless fools!" A Dwarf with silver hair pounded the table with his fist after hearing the report of his subordinate. "They can't even do something so simple!"

The silver-haired dwarf once again smashed his fist on the table, making his subordinates inside the room lower their heads in shame.

He was none other than the Guild Master of Twilight Rain, Magnar Vonmus Gweliven. As a member of the Royal Family, he had also wanted to become the King of the Dwarven Kingdom but had lost the right to succession.

Because of this, he started a civil war, with the intention to bring down his nephew, who had inherited the crown. Unfortunately, he was defeated but fortunately managed to escape with his life and had gone into hiding.

A few years later, he returned as the founder of the Dark Guild, Twilight Rain, which started to terrorize the Kingdom from the shadows. However, there were a few people who had blocked him in his path.

They were the members of the Order of the Griffin that served his Nephew.

It was an Elite Group that had both brains and brawn, and its members were capable enough to fight against him in the shadows, stopping his second attempt to start another civil war.

After his nephew retired and passed his crown to the current ruling King, Magnar thought that he could use this opportunity to bring down the newly crowned King since he was not yet well versed in managing the affairs of the Kingdom.

But he made a mistake. The new King had long been educated by his predecessor about Magnar's desire for power.

The new King had forged bonds with the new batch of elites who now belonged to his own Order, which was currently lurking in the shadows, waiting to end this decades-long struggle between them.

After Magnar reined in his anger, he made a gesture for his right-hand man to step forward.

"Who is the best assassin among the Reapers?" Magnar asked. "I want him to personally kill this Half-Elf and rid us of this bastard once and for all."

Magnar's right-hand man thought for a moment before giving two names.

"Right now, we have two promising Reapers that have recently joined our ranks," the right-hand man answered. "All the missions that they have undertaken were completed without fail. Till now, none among their peers have managed such a perfect record when it comes to assassinating their targets. I believe that after a year or two, the both of them will become the new Slayer candidates that will bring our Assassination Squad to the next level."

"Oh? We have such promising talents?" Magnar arched an eyebrow. He had completely given his right-hand man the control over the assassination groups under their guild, so he could focus on domestic issues. Because of this, he wasn't aware about the current rankings among the Assassins under his command.

Magnar's right-hand man nodded. "Sid hails from the North, while Scarlet is from the West. Both of them are more than capable of dealing with the Half-Elf. Sir, which one do you want to take on this mission?"

Magnar pondered for a bit before a devilish grin appeared on his face.

"How about you let them compete with each other," Magnar proposed. "Give them both the mission, and tell them that the one who manages to assassinate the Half-Elf will officially be given the title of Slayer Candidate."

"Competition is good. This will ensure that the two of them will take this mission seriously."

"I agree with the Guild Master. This is the most effective method to deal with the Half-Elf, while also nurturing our own talents. It's like killing two birds with one stone."

"I'm also curious to find out who the best assassin among the young generation is. I'm sure that this is going to be interesting."

Magnar smirked after hearing his subordinate's take on his idea. Even his right-hand man thought that this was also a good way to make the assassins become more proficient in their craft. A good rivalry allowed both parties to grow due to the pressure that they were giving each other.

"Understood, I will issue this mission at once," Magnar's right-hand man bowed his head before leaving the room to send word to the two assassins about their latest mission.

He believed that it wouldn't even take two weeks before the Half-Elf's head was delivered inside their conference room, since the latter would have to deal with the two strongest Initiates that were part of the Reapers.

--

"Achoo!"

"Ah chu?"

Lux brushed his nose, while Eiko tilted her head to look at her Papa who had sneezed while brushing his hair.

Today was the day that he would be meeting Colette's sister, Aina, so he wanted to give a good first impression.

"Eiko, how do I look?" Lux asked the baby slime that was seated on top of the table, and chewing on a piece of bacon.

"Pa!" Eiko replied.

For her, it didn't really matter whether Lux combed his hair or not. In the end, she would perch on top of his head and render his hard work useless.

Just as the Half-Elf was admiring his image in the mirror, a knock was heard on the door.

"Lux, it's time to go."

Emma's voice sounded through the door, which Lux hurriedly opened.

"Not bad," Emma said after looking at the Half-Elf who had dressed for the occasion. "Are you doing this so that you can marry Colette's sister in the future?"

Lux was wearing a gown that was often used by nobles, which Nevreal had given him alongside the token that proved that he was now an Honorary Baronet.

In truth, this was the most expensive set of clothes that Lux had in his possession because it was specially made for the high-ranking members of the nobility.

"Of course not," Lux replied in a heartbeat. "Don't listen to that little girl. She tries to matchmake me with her sister whenever there is an opportunity."

"But, I heard that the guild leader of the Eternal Guild is truly a beauty." Emma smirked. "You might even ask Colette's help later as you try to woo her."

Lux could only smile helplessly due to the pretty Dwarf's teasing.

He really didn't have any intention of letting Colette play matchmaker and pair him with her sister in marriage. Right now, the Half-Elf had a lot on his plate. Aside from the threat of assassins that were meant to kill him, he still needed to protect his step-sister from the machinations of her own father.

He really had neither the time or strength to chase the skirts of Dwarf girls due to his current circumstances.

"Let's go," Lux said before Emma could continue teasing him. "Eiko, come."

"Pa!" The baby slime jumped from the table and blinked on top of Lux's head.

In the end, Eiko didn't damage Lux's hairstyle and behaved properly. She was also very curious about seeing Colette's sister, and she hoped that she would be as friendly as the little blonde Dwarf, who spoiled her a lot whenever they were together.

Emma led the way, and Lux walked behind her. Right now, her role was to be Lux's bodyguard, so she would definitely do her best to ensure that no harm would come to her savior under her watch.