News of the upcoming duel between Otana Weiser and Jimmy Silver spread like wildfire, until it became the talk of every corner of Silver County.
In the streets, in the markets, on the sidewalks, people spoke of nothing but the coming clash, as if they had an appointment with the fall of a king.
"I hope Lord Otana wins... maybe our lives will change, this place has been hell since that child arrived."
"Finally, someone will bring down the family's heir!"
"Thank God... we'll be rid of the Silver curse."
No one saw Jimmy as anything more than a title forced upon him, or rumors chasing him like rings of flame, distorting his image and wrapping it in suspicion and mystery.
The Silver family manor — a dark room
In one of the manor's dark rooms, Jimmy stood steadily amid the gloom.
The glow in his eyes had nothing to do with light, or even fire... but with something colder, and sharper.
He said in a calm tone that concealed a frost within it:
"What do you think? Should I call you Irena? Or should I say... Emilia Wilton?"
The maid gasped silently, but tried to hold herself together.
Slowly, she drew a small dagger from the folds of her dress and said:
"I'm... just a maid. I don't know who Emilia is."
Jimmy approached her with cold steps, a mocking smile spreading across his face:
"Beautiful... professional killers always choose dull names, but you? You could have been a queen. Unfortunately, you picked the wrong title."
She lunged at him with lethal speed, but her movement froze before it reached him.
In an instant, she was on the ground, her hand paralyzed, her eyes filled with astonishment:
"You... a sorcerer?!"
Jimmy approached her, eyes gleaming with a stillness resembling death, and said:
"More like... something a little worse."
He extended his hand and wove the web spell around her, binding her completely.
Then he gripped her face in his hand mercilessly and said in a sharp tone:
"I know you're capable of breaking this spell... so don't play the weakling with me."
She screamed with fury and shock:
"Impossible! You can't be Jimmy... that child!"
He laughed quietly:
"I am Jimmy. You're asking how I changed? Who said I changed? I was watching all of you in silence. Learning. Preparing. I refused to be the weakest link... so I withdrew, to remake myself anew."
She stared at him with a look that mixed fear and curiosity:
"So... you were strengthening yourself in secret?"
He smiled:
"Well done. You get full marks."
She said coldly:
"So what do you want from a maid like me?"
He sat in the chair and gestured for her to sit, then released her from the spell:
"Let's start over. I am Jimmy Silver. I carry many titles... the most notable: the Recluse, the Unlucky One, Fool Jimmy. My age? Eleven years old."
Emilia sat before him, and her usual composure couldn't hide the sense of danger beginning to creep into her.
Jimmy asked her with a direct look:
"Who are you, really?"
She said without hesitation:
"My real name: Emilia Wilton. Illegitimate daughter of the Wilton family, one of the great magical families. And I am a fourth-rank assassin."
She paused for a moment, then continued:
"My question is... when did you find out about me? And how?"
Jimmy stood and looked out the window of the dim room:
"Simply put... your footsteps were too quiet, unnoticeable without focus. As for your killing intent... you released it lightly sometimes, and that's impossible for an ordinary assassin. The ability to control killing intent alone proves you're a skilled assassin. I gathered the evidence, and all of it points to you."
She was silent for a moment, then said:
"Do you know how many assassinations I've carried out?"
He replied:
"No."
She said with dark pride:
"I've carried out 104 assassinations. Succeeded in a hundred... failed in four. And you're one of them. So what do you want from me? To kill me?"
He answered simply:
"Rather, I'm offering you a deal."
At the Weiser manor...
While all this was happening, a mysterious guest entered the Weiser family manor.
Seiron Silver, the younger brother of the former baron, and Jimmy Silver's uncle.
A mid-tier swordsman, one star, with a sharp gaze and a heavy silence.
His return was unexpected...
And he hadn't come for peace.