God of Assassination, Become the Strongest Healer - chapter 5

Hey, aren’t you curious who I am? 

What? Ugh, that’s loud! The flame flickered and seemed to look at Fagan. “Do you think I’d talk to an invisible ghost?” 

Wow, you can see me. But the flame’s confidence faded with Fagan’s sharp tone. “I don’t know who you are, but you seem bored, so I was going to ignore you. Why do you talk so much? I’m trying to focus.” Fagan spoke bluntly, a side of him different from how he was with family or his nanny. He added, “I won’t stop you from watching, but I’m busy. If you can’t stay quiet, then go out the window.” 

Whoa… I just wanted to help because you seemed to be struggling. Honestly, I didn’t think you could hear me. 

“I can hear you just fine, so be quiet.” 

Ugh… “Anything else you want to say?”

Without waiting for a response, Pagan raised a handkerchief, wiped the sweat from his brow, and closed his eyes.

“Uh… hey, so… you know…”

Zap.

But Pagan’s focus didn’t last long. The flame, unable to bear being ignored even though it had been acknowledged, spoke up again.

“Do I have to know who you are?”

“Uh, n-no, not really… but you know, I’m uh, pretty close with that big guy the one you call the founder of your family, you know? And a few of your ancestors, they kind of got to know me, too.”

“Yeah, I don’t care. Not interested. So, keep it down.”

“Ugh… this isn’t how it’s supposed to go. You’re supposed to be curious. All the others were curious.

The flame hovered around Pagan’s head, wagging like the tail of a dog begging for a walk. This couldn’t be happening. No, no matter how you looked at it, this just didn’t make sense. If he was aware enough to recognize its presence, he should naturally sense what kind of role it played and how it would be useful to him in mastering Angelus.

But for some reason, this kid—only five years old was reacting like this.

“Hey, you!”

“…!”

“You just said, ‘This isn’t right,’ and ‘That’s not how it’s supposed to go,’ didn’t you?”

Right around the time the flame had spun itself in circles dozens of times, Pagan suddenly spoke, causing the flame to flinch in surprise.

“Still think you’re doing it right?”

“Y-yes!”

The flames grew bigger, reacting to a sudden feeling.

 The mana flow of Angelus was stable now. Just before, it had been chaotic, but now it was  different

. Although Fagan was still new to Angelus, a faint path for the mana was starting to form. It was impressive for someone who had just learnt Angelus today.

 The flame wondered how he managed it, thinking that without a proper mana circuit, Fagan could have hurt himself instead of creating a path. However, Fagan had trained for a year in Arca, so he was already familiar with handling mana.

Guiding the strong flow of newly established Angelus was not that difficult for him.

Of course, from the flame’s perspective, unaware of the Arca flow absorbed in Fagan’s blood and muscles rather than his heart, the situation was utterly baffling.

Rustle.

While the flame was taken aback, unable to accept the unexpected outcome, the silk blanket, embroidered with vibrant patterns, was thrown aside, and Fagan’s small frame disappeared under it.

—What the—?

“What do you mean ‘what’? I’m going to sleep. Training’s done for today. So from now on, actually stay quiet.”

You’re just going to sleep? Without talking to me more? Seriously?

Faegan calmly accepted the flame in his room, warning it not to make noise or he’d throw it out the window. He then covered up with a blanket and fell asleep. 

The flame hovered silently above him, confused about the situation. It had existed for a long time and I couldn’t understand why things were different now.

 It sensed that Faegan was unique compared to the many others it had encountered. It wondered if this was connected to the unusual morning routine Faegan had.

The flame lingered in the room for a while, watching Faegan’s sleeping face. But no matter how much it thought it over, no clear answer came to mind.

—What kind of weird kid is this, really?

The flame muttered to itself in amazement, layering its words over Faegan’s steady breathing.

Six years later. 

The sun was shining brightly through the stained glass, but it was softer in the late afternoon. I stretched and got up from my desk, where I had been studying medical books since early lunch. I was starting to feel stiff from sitting too long. After rolling my shoulders, I left the study.

As I learned more about healing and the human body, I kept discovering new things. For example, earlier I felt sore after sitting for a while, even though I’ve been training my body every morning for seven years.

 Normally, I wouldn’t feel stiff after sitting for hours or even all day.

 But there I was, groaning and feeling discomfort, which I shouldn’t have felt. It seemed that the mental strain of sitting still for so long had affected my body without me realizing it.

“Is this proof that it doesn’t take much for the human body to be deceived?”

I kept walking, recalling a sentence I’d read in a medical book a week ago. There was still so much to study and so many books to read, but now seemed like the perfect time to take a short break.

I needed to step out of the study, even if just for a moment, away from the scent of books and ink. Maybe grab a cold drink and snack on something sweet to shake off this heavy feeling.

Creak.

Just as I was about to leave, the door to the study, which had been closed all afternoon, opened.

“Brother!”

A cute voice, like a chick’s chirp, called out from near my waist.

“Rana?”

“I’ve been waiting for you to come out! Yay! Brother!”

This adorable little one, who jumped into my arms with a gleeful shout, was “Rana Claudius,” my little sister, born six years ago amidst blessings.

“Did the nanny make you wait here?”

“Yes, Young Master. The young lady said she really wanted to have a snack with you today,” the nanny, who had been standing behind Rana, smiled and nodded as she answered my question.

“How long have you been waiting?”

“I think just over an hour.”

“You should’ve knocked as soon as you got here. I would’ve come out sooner.”

“The young lady said she didn’t want to disturb you, so she kept telling me that we should wait until you were resting,” the nanny replied with a warm smile.

“Rana! I waited here without bothering Brother! Hehe!”

Both of them looked so proud of themselves, and I couldn’t help but gently pat Rana’s soft cheek, which felt as tender as freshly baked bread.

“Brother! This morning, Grandpa Masher came back from the island and brought some cookies from Euto! I’ve been waiting to eat them with you!”

With a little victory pose, Rana wiggled side to side, and behind her, I saw the luxurious box of cookies that the nanny was holding.

Masher was a retainer in charge of supplies, and Euto was a city famous for its delicious cookies. It seemed like the old man, who had just returned from a business trip outside of Espetara, had brought a special gift for Rana.

And our cute little chick had waited by my personal study door for a whole hour, hoping to enjoy the treat with me.

“You didn’t have to wait for me like this, you could’ve shared it with the nanny,” I said.

“No! I want to eat it with you, Brother. Me, you, and the nanny. Just the three of us.”

I was so touched by my little sister’s affection that I scooped her up into my arms. In my embrace, Rana started counting on her fingers, making sure she had everyone on the guest list for the little tea party.

“Young Master, I told them to prepare the tea, should we head to the garden?” the nanny asked.

“Sounds good. I haven’t been to the garden in a while. How about a walk to see the flowers?” I replied.

“I’ll lead the way. Young Master, you must be tired from all the studying. Would you like me to carry the young lady?”

“No! I want to go with Brother!” Rana protested.

“It’s fine, nanny. I’ll carry Rana. You go ahead.”

“Oh dear, the young lady loves you, doesn’t she?” the nanny said with a shake of her head, unable to win against Rana’s stubbornness. She started walking toward the garden, and I followed, feeling the soft touch of Rana’s cheek against my neck.

“Da-da-da-da♬ I’m going with Brother♪,” Rana hummed happily.

As we walked down the hallway and up the stairs, Rana kept humming happily.

 She looked so joyful, like she had just won something amazing. Seeing my little sister so innocent made me proud as her older brother.

 If someone only saw her wanting to be carried, they might think she was just a spoilt kid. But that wasn’t true at all. 

Rana was more mature than most kids her age. Her soft cheeks matched her kind heart. She was always polite to everyone—family, helpers, or servants.

 The only time she acted like a little brat was when she was with me. Mom would often notice this and say,

 “Rana, how do you love your brother so much? You’re so polite to your dad, but you only act spoilt with Faegan. Your father doesn’t say anything, but you know it makes him a bit sad.”

Of course, no matter how many times Mom said this, Rana’s behavior never changed. Every time I saw her prefer my arms over anyone else’s, Dad would look a little lonely.

“Da-da-da-da-da♫.”

I hummed along to her melody and looked at the garden outside the large window. Though there wasn’t a skilled landscaper involved, the gardens in Espetara were always stunning.

A paradise of flowers and trees, nurtured by the sun, shaped by the fertile soil, and carved by the sea breeze. I took in the sight of the always-green, beautiful garden and reflected on the past 11 years.

It had been 7 years since I started training in Arca and assassination techniques, and 6 years since I began learning healing arts with Angelus.

The family’s evaluation of me was that I was a rare talent, one that would only appear once in a century. It feels strange to say it myself, but my speed and skill in mastering the medical arts of the Claudius family were far from ordinary.

Even my father, when he was young, was faster than most of the previous heads of the family in terms of learning. But my progress had been even quicker.

And more important than the medical arts was my speed in mastering Angelus. I heard that the pace at which I was perfecting Angelus was on par with some of the greatest family heads in Claudius history.

 If you consider it, a big part of my quick progress is because of that guy.

If you consider it, a big part of my quick progress is because of that guy.