Chapter 82: Crimson Purple… SSS-rank Skill Copy!

In another luxurious room inside the same estate, Black Rose sat at the edge of her bed, biting her nails anxiously as her eyes darted around the room like a person who had taken one too many caffeine pills.

Her mind was a wreck as her thoughts were all over the place, making her unable to focus on one thing, so much so that even the sound of battle coming from somewhere in the estate didn’t faze her.

It was almost like she’d become a living zombie.

Thud.

The sound of a body dropping suddenly echoed from outside her door, and she froze and stared at the door like a frightened rabbit. Though what she felt wasn’t just fear. It was a conflict of emotions that made her unable to decide.

"C-Cindra?" she slowly called out towards the door.

There was no reply.

Then the crisp sound of footsteps suddenly resounded in the hallway and stopped right before her door on the other side.

"Cindra, is that you?" she asked again as she slowly stood up, a katana materializing in her hand.

The doorknob rattled, before it slowly twisted and the door swung open.

Black Rose had already raised her sword to intercept the intruder, when she saw who it was standing in the hallway.

"Uncle?" she blurted in surprise on seeing President Hunter, before sighing in relief as her sword dissipated. "Thank goodness you’re here. I-I think there’s a fight going on in the Emperor’s study." She immediately explained.

President Hunter smiled warmly as he stepped a few steps forward into the room, before stopping close to the doorway, not advancing any further.

Only if Black Rose were herself would she have noticed his position blocked the path to the doorway leading out of the room.

"I ran here as soon as I heard what happened," President Hunter said, and his expression turned serious. "Do you perhaps... know what’s going on?" The man suddenly narrowed his eyes.

"I-I don’t know..." Black Rose said in confusion, before she paused and slowly looked up. "I think it’s Kaelen... Kaelen Cross." She mumbled to herself and turned around to face the window in the room, turning her back to President Hunter.

"But why? Why is he doing this?" she asked no one in particular.

"He’s here for vengeance," President Hunter said calmly, making Black Rose turn to face him in confusion.

President Hunter explained. "You were too young to remember, but you and Kaelen Cross were almost like cats and dogs back then. Always fighting over every little thing when left alone." He reminisced with a genuine smile, before his expression changed. "But something happened... let’s say, a fight broke out between the Emperor and Kaelen’s father, Governor Cross, and envy began eating away at the Emperor. Y’know, your father is a jealous man. And when he listened to the council of evil men, he decided to kill Governor Cross and his entire family as well."

"W-What?" Black Rose blurted in shock and disbelief.

"But you see," President Hunter wasn’t finished, "Governor Cross is a man loved by the people, both in his stronghold and across the nine strongholds. Murdering such a man would never go unpunished. So the Emperor decided to wipe out the entirety of Stronghold 2, using the Stronghold 3 Governor, who also envied the position of Governor Cross." President Hunter smiled coldly.

"Unfortunately for them, everyone else died in Stronghold 2 that night. But the Cross family they were after somehow survived. The mother escaped with the boy into the wasteland. And as for Governor Cross, he simply vanished into thin air after he was killed."

"A-Are you saying Governor Cross was able to attain Tier 9... ten years ago?!" Black Rose asked in shock.

President Hunter’s silence was her answer.

That explained everything for her. Kaelen’s monstrosity was simply hereditary, but far surpassed that of his father.

She had never seen or heard of anyone with enough evolution points to go up 20 evolution realms at a go.

Everything she knew about him was fake. He’d plotted everything from start to finish, faking his identity just so he could get closer to her and use her to get to her father.

She felt like she was at the center of everything, but at the same time, she felt a weight lifted off her chest on learning the truth, though she couldn’t deny the fact that it hurt to be used.

"And what about his mother?" she asked curiously.

"Well, just like Governor Cross, she disappeared into thin air as well. No one knew the whereabouts of the Cross family until Kaelen made himself known. They could be far away, they could as well be among us," President Hunter said sinisterly.

Black Rose paused to think for a moment, before she finally resolved within herself and immediately turned back to President Hunter. "I have to go."

She said and moved towards the door, when President Hunter suddenly raised a hand to block her path. "Whose side are you taking?" he asked strangely.

"What?" Black Rose stopped in her tracks, and it was only then she began to notice the strange patterns of her uncle.

"Are you going there to fight for the boy... or are you going to protect your father?"

"W-Why are you even asking that? What does that have to do with the fact that he broke into the Emperor’s house and is trying to kill him?" Black Rose said with a frown.

"So you’re taking your father’s side." Hunter said with a grimly.

"Don’t call him my father. You just said there’s a chance for Kaelen’s parents to still be alive out there. Two wrongs don’t make a right. I’m not taking any side. I’m only going to protect him from the monster he’s about to become—"

"What about the lives lost in Stronghold 2?!" Hunter flared in rage, surprising her. "What about my sister who lost her life in this house?!"

"What about your mother?" Hunter asked in a low tone, which made Black Rose stop dead in her tracks.

She opened her mouth to speak, but each time, no words came out. Her face flushed crimson like someone who wanted to cry, but her expression remained stoic.

She slowly shook her head as she hardened her resolve. "You don’t know anything."

"The Emperor is brainwashing you! Can’t you see? He killed her, just like he killed everyone else. Your mother’s death is not your fault—"

"Get out of my way," she growled as her katana materialized in her hand. Her eyes were as cold as carved ice.

Hunter remained silent for a moment, before a look of disappointment flashed across his face as he looked his niece in the eyes.

"I’m sorry..."

"...I can’t let you leave," Hunter said in a cold tone, making Black Rose subconsciously take a step back.

Before she could say anything, Hunter suddenly stepped aside, and standing directly behind him was another figure that made her heart drop at the sight of them.

Hunter walked around the figure and stepped out of the room, closing the door behind him, and the sound of the lock clicking resounded in the silent room. Then the receding footsteps of Hunter slowly disappeared.

Black Rose never took her eyes off the figure dressed in full rags that covered their entire skin, with a scarf wrapped around their head and face, leaving only their eyes open.

But it was those eyes that made this particular person famous. One eye was a dark shade of red, and the other a lighter shade of purple.

Crimson Purple.

That was the given alias of this assassin due to their uniquely coloured eyes.

Their gender was unknown.

Identity unknown.

Crimson Purple, a name feared across the entire Stronghold 1, even by top officials and S+ awakeners—who were usually their targets—was a ghost who never spoke or negotiated with either clients or targets.

You don’t find them. They find you.

Legend has it that it was a girl, a lone survivor from the Stronghold 2 massacre, who watched her parents get slaughtered and tried to escape the stronghold with her baby brother, only to lose him in battle.

That was the moment they supposedly awakened, and that was the day their first kill was recorded at the age of 8.

Today, the infamous Crimson Purple, with a 100% win rate, has chosen her as their target, and their Talent...

A katana suddenly began forming in the hands of the figure, replicating that of Black Rose’s.

...SSS-rank Skill Copy.