God of Tricksters

"Gah!" Theo spat a mouthful of blood while Rea looked at him in horror. "Eh?"

Theo grabbed the assassin's hands while gritting his teeth. However, his grip was not that strong.

He glared at the man before him and said with anger. "So, out of those many people, you're the one who gets me…"

The man smirked as he tried to wave his blade so he could cut through his body while saying, "That's right. They're not as good as me after all."

"Joker!" Rea hurriedly leaped to help Theo.

However, Theo was the first to make his move. He smiled and said with a cold tone. "Is that so? That means they're not as dumb as you."

Theo's hands skillfully circled around the man's head and snapped his neck.

"Eh?" The man was shocked because he also used his strength to skewer Theo's heart, but his blade was actually sliding down Theo's shirt without a single drop of blood. Even the blood that Theo spat a moment ago disappeared.

However, it was already too late for him to react. Theo snapped his neck and cut it with a blade made by Magic Power.

In an instant, the assassin was the one to die while all the wounds on Theo's body disappeared.

"Eh?" Rea widened her eyes in shock before looking at the translucent barrier inside Theo's clothes.

That was the Irregular Guardian that Theo had shaped into an armor. It was the one that blocked the dagger. And Theo utilized his illusion to remove the sound, create the wounds, and release the blood smell.

It was so real that they never thought it was an illusion.

"Well, we can use him." Theo looked down with a cold expression. He pointed at the corpse and said, "If you have any trouble in convincing those people that I can't go, use this guy. Tell them that assassins are aiming for my life, and I'll hide for the time being. In fact, I'm disappointed. Why do I have to experience this while helping people?"

Rea sucked a cold breath before realizing Theo's real plan. "Wait a minute. The reason why you let yourself get stabbed…"

Theo smiled and found the camera hidden in his body. There were usually two ways to show that he had accomplished the mission. The first was to use Theo's head. The other way was to show the proof that he had died.

Because he was helping people here, there would be huge chaos if the guy brought Theo's head out of this tent. So, he needed to resort to the second option.

But that was his mistake. By taking the video to prove that he had cleared the mission, he allowed Theo to use it as a justification for his action.

In other words, Theo had been planning to use the assassin to take an absence from the press conference, which should be attended. Even Rea would have a hard time convincing the other party that Theo couldn't attend it. So, this was the solution.

"Well, it seems that I'm pretty lucky that this assassination is when I'm still with you." Theo smiled and handed the proof. "Anyway, you should do the rest."

"I… I understand." Rea received the proof with a nod. After that, she saw Theo off.

As soon as the tent was closed again, Rea ignored the corpse and sat down while pinching the bridge of his nose.

'It turns out to be like that. Theo has been utilizing every opportunity to his advantage. No, should I say that he has made many plans according to his needs? As long as there is an instance where he can take advantage of it to accomplish his goal, he will do it.

'That's why if you want to fight Theo, you need to show nothing until the last moment. Just like the War Saint, Theo is thinking about what his opponents will do, allowing him to outsmart their thinking.

'Is that Theo's true tactic? Why do I feel like everything he said is the truth? Whenever he says something, it feels like there's no lie in it. However, a shrewd guy like him will lie all the time, especially against his enemies or even a neutral party like me.' Rea pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling troubled to discern the man called Theodore Griffith.

Little did she know, the reason why Theo's words were believable was that he never lied.

With him saying the truth all the time, it was easier for them to believe that was the case. However, Theo created a persona where people saw him as a shrewd guy. This way, they would even doubt the truth.

No one knew whether Theo told the truth or not. So, they would be trapped in that doubt until Theo defeated them.

To put it simply, if Theo ever said to her that he never lied with a sly smile, she would never believe those words.

Rea clutched her head and muttered in a low voice. "It seems that what my father said is true. Having a good relationship with him is better than becoming his enemy. As someone aiming at the top, he'll most likely challenge Honorable Father, so a neutral party is not a good idea either.

"It seems that this is my flaw. Everything I think is for short-term gain. I should focus on the long-term gain like Honorable Father and him. If I can't do this, I won't be able to improve. And I still need to consider my Martial Prowess too. He's strict with himself and challenges impossible goals. That's why he can continue working hard tirelessly.

"I know that he can do all that because of his talents, but I can learn a lot just watching how he acts. I see… It seems that I shouldn't see my brother as the wall. I should see him as the wall so that I can climb higher." Rea clenched her fists, determined to focus on chasing after Theo's back so that she could climb to a higher place.

However, there was still one minor problem before her. She looked at the corpse and said, "Well, I should call the soldiers first to take care of this problem."