01x10 - The Assassin Gazes Upon The River's Surface

[bunniefuu]

It was the king's personal

assassins, the Night Ravens.

The king hired that squad from Gram.

So Saran would still be alive

if it weren't for Gram.

That's perfect. You're after the same

person I requested a hit on.

I have a job request

for the assassin Akira Oda.

The target is my sister's k*ller,

Gram Cluster.

I had a feeling that was the case.

So you had a hunch

but didn't care to confirm it?

Take back your request.

Why? He can just turn it down.

That said,

I will only guide you through the

demon realm if my request is fulfilled.

I'm also willing to waive the fee

for crafting and servicing your weapons.

You can even keep the Guiding Ring I lent you.

And you don't have to repay me

for saving your lives in the labyrinth.

That's enough!

Akira?

Sorry to make you worry.

But this is my decision to make.

Still

If what Crow just said is true,

Commander Saran's death is on Gram's head too.

Plus, he's now coming for you.

k*lling him off would be the smart choice.

MY STATUS AS AN ASSASSIN

OBVIOUSLY EXCEEDS THE HERO'S

Allow me to reiterate.

I did not fabricate what I said

about the squad the king hired from Gram.

That doesn't matter.

Amelia.

Just hear me out.

Do you remember how I said Gram has

powerful private guards at all times?

I do.

He has drugs to thank for that.

I suppose you could call them boosters.

They forcibly buff one's combat skills

to be on par with those of demons,

while simultaneously taking away their ego.

He can mass-produce an obedient

and all-powerful personal army at will.

I thought it was strange someone took

the commander out, even in an ambush.

Not even Saran could hold off boosted

soldiers with numbers on their side.

Gram needs to be dealt with before

this becomes an even bigger problem.

As you're aware, he's involved in trafficking.

His clients? Demons.

In return, he gets materials that can

only be found in the demon realm.

Materials he needs to produce

even more boosted troops.

So the sooner he's k*lled, the better.

Akira?

Whatever you decide, there will be pain.

Because you and I

We cannot avert our eyes from reality.

Did you get any sleep?

A little.

Who's there?

It's me, Lia.

Come in.

Sir Akira, Lady Amelia,

I'm truly sorry for yesterday!

You did nothing wrong.

Yeah.

No

I mean, I did get annoyed at the king.

I'm sorry I couldn't stop him from

asking you to do his dirty work for him.

What, did he ask you to assassinate Gram?

Yes, but I turned him down.

The crown will lose all face

if Gram's misdeeds come to light.

But if they try to k*ll him and fail,

Gram will have the upper hand.

Hence why the king wants

a disposable pawn to do it.

It's utterly unacceptable.

He even insulted Lady Amelia.

What did he say?

I forgot.

I don't think this will make up for it,

but let me show you around town again!

Why not let her?

She isn't going to back down.

Yeah, you've got a point.

Would you do that for us, Lia?

Thank you! Let's be off, then!

Would you like to join us as well, Sir Crow?

Uruk has historically been a tourism

hot spot. There's so much to see.

To start us off,

I'll take you to the art museum.

After lunch,

we can enjoy some shopping

down the main avenue.

And tonight, we'll see a play at the theater!

What's for lunch, you think?

I think we can expect good things.

She seems pumped.

Thank you for backing me up earlier.

I didn't want to see you standing there

with your head bowed for hours.

That's really why I did it.

It made me happy all the same.

I get it now.

Lia, one moment.

Yes? What is it?

Why don't we split up for a while?

I'll go with Akira, and you can take Crow.

Um, did I perhaps do something to upset you?

Not at all. I just want

some alone time with Akira.

They must have things they

want to discuss privately.

We can still make the play together if we meet

at the central fountain plaza after sunset.

You're right.

Is that acceptable?

Thanks a bunch. We'll see you later.

Please wait, Sir Crow!

Why'd you do that?

Haven't you noticed?

Lia likes Crow.

I mean she loves him, of course.

That's a problematic age gap.

I heard Crow was her godfather, too.

Beastfolk don't visibly age, so it's

normal for couples to be far apart in age.

You're saying you did this for them?

Yep. Also, Crow wasn't wrong.

I want to talk to you in private.

You don't need to accept Crow's request.

We can go to the demon realm

without him. I'm sure we'll figure it out.

Money won't be a problem either.

Latty said something to me.

All people, even villains,

have their own stories.

And no one gets to end that for them.

Don't you feel the same way?

I thought you'd soon lose interest.

You're still coming with me?

I don't really have anywhere to go.

I just didn't want to be around Dad anymore.

I'd heard that you two didn't get along.

Not even the king of demons gets

to break the laws of this world.

Of course we don't see eye to eye.

Huh? What do you mean

by that, Lady Latticenail?

Bad kitty-cat! Call me Latty, not Latticenail.

That's easier said than done.

Hey, I came up with the nickname myself.

It's short and sweet,

not to mention totally charming!

Huh? What's that establishment doing there?

It's a small inn.

Adventurers and merchants use it

when traveling between cities.

The ground floor is probably a tavern.

Look at all those horses.

When traveling by carriage in a hurry,

you can swap them out midway to save time.

That's why they're here.

Wow. You sure know a lot, Night.

The food's not ready yet. Only the bread.

Drinks are good to go, though.

If you want to stay, take the stairs

up to the second floor.

Bread's fine by me.

Thanks.

You an adventurer out to make some coin?

Something like that.

I want to hit it big in the capital.

Uruk City? You'd best be careful.

The high-paying jobs the guild master

puts up there are crazy dangerous.

Rumors say there are even demons involved.

Not a problem for me.

There are jobs to transport goods

to the human nation of Retice.

They pay less, but stick with those.

What's up with that?

Instead of hiring shipping companies,

the guild master gets adventurers to do it.

Probably goods he wants to keep quiet.

Oh yeah?

Well? Whaddya make of my

information-gathering skills?

Most impressive.

We got some very useful intel

about the guild master, Gram.

Had you not concluded the way you did,

it would've been flawless.

A woman of the people's gotta leave her

autograph at every establishment she visits.

LATTY

That was the most important part.

Wise words from Latticenail there.

If you think so, then turn down Crow's request.

I'd decided to avenge Commander

Saran before I ever met you.

But

k*lling Gram will get you out of danger too.

I'm going to get stronger.

Whoever comes after me, I'll be fine.

Most of all, what's Crow to do

if I turn him down?

He'll die a slow death, trapped by a desire

for revenge that'll never be fulfilled.

In Latticenail's terms,

that's how his life story will end.

Um, where are we going?

I'll tell you once we get there.

But I'll already know once we're there.

When will you stop treating me like a child?

You refuse to teach me Inversion, too.

Why would I ever do that?

I'd never run the risk

of destroying your mind.

Huh?

We're here.

I've never seen these flowers before!

They're called red spider lilies.

Akira told me that when we saw

some on the road to Uruk.

So they're originally from his world?

A hero from generations ago

must've brought them here.

Akira was surprised because

they're considered a sterile plant.

Don't. They're apparently poisonous.

Akira said these are also known as flowers

of the dead and represent the afterlife.

Perhaps that is why they are so beautiful.

They are. Why bring me here, though?

I found this while walking around town

yesterday, and I wanted to show somebody.

That's all.

This is a lovely place.

It's deserted, silent, and so pretty.

Yes.

If there's someone you like,

you should bring them here

and tell them how you feel.

I bet it'd go well.

Where did that come from?

I mean, you've been alone forever.

You'd be so much happier with a partner.

I don't plan on ever finding happiness.

The moment I desired avenging my sister,

I abandoned all hope for myself.

Besides, given that my aim

is to ruin the life of another,

I have no right to be happy.

Well done.

Animals are much easier

to deal with than monsters.

This hardly deserves praise, so please stop.

This will take care of dinner

and jerky for four or five days.

We can count on Tsuda for all our food needs.

We've got a whole bunch of the

condiments we picked up in Yamato too.

We're running low on wasabi, though.

Yeah, because you eat so much of it.

Huh? I use perfectly normal amounts.

Tents are up.

Want to go forage for veggies?

I'd like some mushrooms as well.

We'll go wash our clothes

while it's still light out.

There's a river nearby.

I'll go get us drinking water too.

I'll go wire up our surroundings.

Alarm wires, right?

They ring when anything touches them?

It's easy to grow complacent when you

start getting used to camping.

Stay on your toes.

Watch the fire, okay?

I still can't believe Gilles is

willing to put up with us.

I'm grateful, though.

He said he was only doing what

Commander Saran would have.

He's going to help us get home

to the world we're meant to be in.

Akira probably wouldn't need

Gilles holding his hand.

Honestly, I could never stand him,

even back in our world.

He always ignored me.

I would say you just didn't

register in his head.

He only recognizes me

because our sisters are friends.

Maybe he's just not interested in people.

He's way stronger than us, at least.

I can tell even without

crossing swords with him.

Yeah. Retice was puffing us up,

but it was all lies.

We're only a little bit stronger

than the average person.

A hero in name alone, huh?

But he Akira's different.

I really hate to admit it.

But there's one more thing

I've realized since coming here.

He never doubts his

choices in life.

Yeah.

That's a form of strength.

It's not realistic right now, but I also

want to stop wavering someday.

Just like Akira.

You're speaking your mind

a lot more lately, Satou.

You think?

Are you really going to do it, Akira?

There are several reasons I need to.

But you're hesitating.

You have been since Mali.

Maybe.

If you've made up your mind,

then I think you should do as you wish.

Speaking hypothetically,

are you going to grow to hate me if I do this?

Never.

But I want the person I love

to love himself too.

But please!

I'm not buying that.

It's okay! I'm just looking!

You've looked enough. Let's go.

No, I don't wanna go! I wanna stay here!

Help us out, Yui.

I don't wanna go! I wanna stay here!

We can't. We have to move out tomorrow.

Why do we have to leave? Isn't this our home?

I'm sorry. It's out of my hands.

My father up and disappeared when I was a kid.

We could no longer afford our rent,

so we moved to a cheaper, rundown apartment.

I don't resent my father.

For years, he tended to my sick mother

and raised us kids,

naturally all while working.

He was likely at the end of his rope.

I'm still not going!

Yui!

Go by yourself if you want!

I'm staying right here!

Please, Yui. Family's gotta stick together.

It's gotta be all of us.

That's never happening! Dad's gone!

Yeah, he's gone. That's why

the rest of us gotta stick together.

I don't wanna lose anyone else.

Please come with us. I'm begging you.

Okay.

It's really small.

It's just perfect for the three of us.

Dinner's ready.

Sorry, I kinda messed it up.

It's yummy!

Yeah, this is great.

I'll cook tomorrow!

But you said cooking was a pain.

I can stay on my feet

on good days, so I'll cook then.

Mom

We can take turns!

We're all here.

Yeah?

You're right.

What's the matter, Akira?

It's nothing.

I certainly was wavering at the time,

but there was yet another reason.

In the event I made it home,

a certain outcome flashed before my eyes.

If I went home a m*rder*r,

I couldn't stay with my mother and Yui.

I'd have no right to.

On to our next story.

We bring you an update one month

after the mass disappearance.

Reporting from Amadare High School

in Ishiya, where 28 students went missing.

The search for them is still on,

LOOKING FOR NEW INFORMATION,

30 DAYS SINCE THE MASS DISAPPEARANCE

but there have been no breaks

or leads regarding there whereabouts.

REPORTING FROM OUTSIDE

AMADARE HIGH SCHOOL, ISHIYA CITY

What happened on that fateful lunch

break the students went missing?

What is Akira even doing?

I'm having to make dinner

every night over here.

He'll come back to us, because

I know.

Because we gotta stick together, right?

EPISODE 10:

THE ASSASSIN GAZES AT THE RIVER SURFACE

Translation: Sriram Gurunathan

Timing: Krzysztof Kunc

Editing: Riley Dalton

Quality Check: William Haggard

EPISODE 11: THE ASSASSIN BROWSES