Vanguard of the Eternal Night

translator: xiin

editor: kara

The master assassin pondered for a while when faced with Victor's questions. His eyes were deep as though he'd thought of something that made him feel embarrassed.

Victor coaxed him, "You know you can tell me anything."

Two seconds later, Tyron said, "Don't add onions to the roasted chicken wings, they don't taste good."

After having said that, he fell into a new round of reflection, his eyes drooping slightly and appearing very melancholic.

Victor: "……"

Victor was no longer fooled though and thought to himself that he really should've just bitten this old antique to death instead!

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A while later, Victor grumbled as he roasted chicken wings.

Chicken wings weren't common synthetic products from the interstellar era but rather real birds that had been raised artificially and processed by hand before being quick-frozen. This kind of thing was naturally very expensive.

But, there was no helping it. This husband-husband couple contained one old antique and one who was rich, tall, and handsome, and neither of them were willing to deal with the nutritious and delicious synthetic products.

Tyron belonged to the category with broad vision. He had tried the best and the worst foods the world had to offer and had no bottom line when it came to what he ate when times were hard. He would just eat a few more bites when he came across delicious food. It was Victor who was more critical; his father was an expert full-time cook, making synthetic food seem like nothing but organic feed in his eyes…

The taste of synthetic products almost all had the same baseline level, and this level was higher than that of ordinary food. After all, it had undergone thousands of years of slow progress. However, it wasn't much better than ordinary food. In addition to having to compromise for the sake of everyone's tastes, the government was also another important factor… They didn't want to see the majority of the population become overweight and then have to undergo weight loss surgery. This would simply be a waste of government money and medical resources.

After the master assassin had come into this world, he'd been in the virtual world for a long time and hadn't eaten anything real.

Later, he'd changed his body and refused to live in the virtual world. This also led Victor to happily get the hell out and join him in reality.

The two of them would find cooks or look for an AI butler. Very occasionally, Victor would do it himself.

In this era, cooking by hand had long stopped being a necessary chore and had become more of a symbol of family.

Victor only knew how to use the oven, but even if that was the case, he often felt a warm and happy feeling when he used it, especially when he turned around to find his own old antique slowly making his way over as he followed the fragrance.

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On the other side, while baking, Victor also warmed up some milk and thought: There's another match tomorrow. Who packed the schedule for the top six so tightly? He should urge Tyron to sleep earlier today, and he should drink this glass of milk even if he didn't want to…

Victor was still thinking about it when he turned around and saw that Tyron had suddenly appeared.

What made it strange was that Tyron hadn’t come out himself. He’d projected a virtual image that came to sit at the counter with a snap.

Victor: “???” In order to not have to drink milk today, he’d even taken out a virtual projection?

Victor stood there looking at him foolishly. Tyron snapped his fingers, and a qin suddenly appeared in his arms.

"……!!" Victor was shocked.

This qin was unlike any instrument Victor had ever seen before. It looked a little like a classical bass but had five strings and a higher range section. There was also a pick in Tyron's hand.

Before Victor could react, Tyron suddenly plucked the five strings, creating a deep and loud sound.

Victor was the first to be affected. He was shocked by the depth of the sound.

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The master assassin then began to play the qin.

He sat comfortably on the counter, one leg propped up on the opposing knee so that the base of this strange instrument could rest on his lap. He lowered his head slightly and kept his gaze down as he looked at the qin, silent and focused. Occasionally, he would turn his head slightly so that his gaze could see another part of the instrument.

His hands were very good-looking and flexible, and this was especially so when he played the qin. The pick was like a small bird as it flew between his five fingers. It was an undisguised show of skill, shifting from the first finger to the last, bringing with it a long string of musical tones.

The sound of the qin was like the qin itself, full of an exotic flavor. The tone was low, but the rhythm was fast, making people feel a sense of resonance from the heart. When the pace picked up and grew faster, it even seemed like there was a shiver running down from the back of one's neck, transmitting all the way to the end of all four limbs.

This music was vast and distant. It seemed that there was endless space and years spreading out in front of them, so much that the end couldn't be seen at a glance.

Victor murmured, "The prairie."

Tyron looked up at him and flipped the pick in his right hand, immediately making another heavy stroke.

The sound of the music suddenly turned powerful and atmospheric. He stroked the strings harder and faster as though wanting to inject powerful strength into the music. All of a sudden, the sound of the qin was no longer like a qin but more like the clashing of weapons, leaving a strong echo of blades impacting.

"War…" Victor thought about it and said, "No, it's a fortress."

Tyron continued to fiddle with the qin, but the corner of his lips raised slightly. He didn't lift his head as he said, "White Gate Barrier."

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Tyron's skill wasn't that profound, but he seemed to have a magical ability to perfectly portray a scene, an emotion, or a glimpse of a culture.

He played a lighter tune again. This time, his body was relaxed, his fingers more agile, and the pick even slid along the strings.

Victor could hear the cries of the market, the sound of barrels being moved. The crowd clattered over the cobblestones, and the blacksmith knocked against the forge, making loud and clear sounds. So, Victor said, "A very good city."

"San Peria." Tyron said, "The great capital of mankind."

The music changed again.

Victor couldn't tell what it was this time and said very honestly, "I don't know anymore."

Tyron raised his eyebrows and didn't speak. His plucking suddenly seemed light and slow, then suddenly seemed to turn flamboyant. It seemed that there were two lines going parallel to each other, one a lively show of skill while the other was like a secret conspiracy.

In the end, the two lines combined into one as though all their stories had connected together, instantly igniting the fires and causing powerful conflict.

Both of Victor's hands were sweating, and he was very nervous for some inexplicable reason. It seemed as though every cell in his body was ready for action, but he didn't understand what there was to be anxious about.

Tyron immediately ended the music after this segment was over. As the music came to an abrupt stop, he said, "Assassination." It was normal for Victor to be unable to figure it out.

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Tyron finally looked up at Victor with a smile on his lips.

Victor couldn't help himself this time. He wanted to rush over and press up to him to kiss him, but he then remembered that this was only a virtual projection.

Tyron plucked casually at the strings. As the scattered tones rang out, he said, "Playing the qin and imitating lira's creation was something I learned in order to get close to a goal."

Victor thought of the ending to the music and asked nervously, "So, was the result a success or a failure?"

Tyron teased his appetite and said, "Once upon a time, there was a great man who stole two things from a dragon's nest. One was sold at a sky-high price so that he could become a great personage. He was never satisfied with the price for the other thing, because it was a short sword that legends said could sing."

"……" Victor was really angry! But, he had a deep understanding of Tyron's bad characteristics and continued to listen with black lines all over his head.

While he was at it, he opened up the oven to take a look and flip the wings… Even so, he could already see a little bit of charred black.

Tyron was in no rush as he waited for him to finish, then continued, "Nobody believed that this short sword could sing, so the man was unable to get a good price. He began to offer a reward, and anyone who could make the sword sing when they wielded it would obtain a large amount of gold."

Victor guessed, "You went there and managed to do it?"

"'Somebody indeed managed to do it," Tyron's mouth raised slightly, "He made the sword ring out, so the sword was named 'Song of Triumph'. Then, he took the gold. Not only did he take away the gold, but he also killed everyone at the party, including the great man."

Victor: "……"

Tyron: "That wasn't 'somebody', that was a dragon. The dragon hated anyone who stole from his lair and would remember grudges for ten thousand years. Additionally, dragons wouldn't refuse any wealth that was offered to them, even if it was an amount that wasn't worth mentioning."

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Tyron started chuckling as he bowed his head and continued plucking at the strings. The scattered sounds combined together to form a loose tune.

He said: "The great man had a small son who'd survived and inherited his title and properties. Over the course of several generations, their wealth increased. Later, one of their heirs became an even more influential figure and vowed to avenge his ancestor, so he gave up all his possessions and issued a reward for any brave man who could kill the dragon."

Victor guessed carefully, "You killed the dragon?"

"This heir traded elf slaves in order to make his money. I was unhappy about it and pretended to be a bard in order to kill him. I naturally wouldn't accept his task." Tyron spoke slowly, "Let alone, the dragon was an ancient black dragon, who had lived for over 10,000 years. When I was there, I was only about fourteen years old."

Victor was all confused, "… So, later on?"

Tyron said, "The dragon was also unhappy. He came to find me in the middle of the night. He pretended to be a swordsman and lived next door to me."

Victor's head was covered in question marks, "Didn't this person offer a reward for killing the dragon? Why wouldn't the dragon be happy that you were going to kill the man?"

Tyron was amused, "Because, it was such a large reward that the dragon also wanted it."

Victor: "……" This dragon really had no moral integrity.

Tyron continued, "I said, I can pretend to have killed the dragon first and then go get the reward. After receiving the reward, all the money would belong to the dragon. I only needed a chance to get close to this great man."

Victor: "……" How amazing, my old antique!

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Tyron said, "The dragon agreed, and so, I did it like that. The target paid the bounty but wanted to take it back, so he had arranged for his daughter to marry me, and I killed him very easily."

"You're married?" Victor asked anxiously, "No, I mean, you married her?"

"The dragon was more nervous than I was and took away the bride." Tyron showed a sly smile, "I told him where the vault was, watched him fly away, and then snuck back to steal the dragon's hoard, including the short sword and one of the teeth he'd dropped. Later on, that tooth was made into a dagger."

"……" He'd never expected that there would be such a twist at the end. Victor said, "I feel that this dragon must be very angry. His sword was stolen again."

Tyron said leisurely, "Maybe the dragon has always been looking for that bard. I don't know. After all, I'm not a bard anymore."

Victor: "……"

He felt that he'd just heard a story about 'a dragon toying with humans and a demon toying with dragons'.