LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 14
Elsez extended her hand toward the dark guild member standing beside her.“Give me the quill.”At that moment, Cassian, who had been watching her anxiously from the side, grabbed her arm.“Are you really going to sign? Do you even know what kind of guild this is?”“I know. I need a lot of money anyway, and they’re paying well. Now I see why everyone’s so desperate to join.”“You…!”“What right do you have to stop her, when you’re nothing to her?”Madame Latour intervened with sharp words, cutting off Cassian’s attempt to dissuade Elsez.Elsez gave Cassian a look, silently urging him to trust her.Though still doubtful, Cassian stepped back, his gaze firmly fixed on her.Taking the quill handed to her by the dark guild member, Elsez signed the contract.The moment her name was written, black flames ignited from the signature line, consuming the contract in its entirety.The resulting ashes scattered into the air, forming a massive black magic circle that sank into the back of Elsez’ hand, engraving itself there.Elsez frowned slightly at the unpleasant sensation of something crawling under her skin.The black magic circle moved slightly, then locked into place with a sharp sound.The contract was complete.Madame Latour, holding the contract bearing Elsez’ name, smiled in satisfaction.Taking a step closer, Elsez firmly reminded her of the agreed-upon terms.“Now, release the Eternal Guild members, Madame.”Madame Latour gave a casual gesture to her subordinates holding the Eternal Guild members.They untied the ropes restraining them and sent them back toward Cassian.Turning her lazy voice toward Elsez, who still stood glaring at her with hostility, Madame Latour murmured,“Now then, you should come this way.”Her eyes gleamed like a snake that had just devoured its prey.But Elsez remained motionless, merely staring back at Madame Latour.Something about Elsez’ defiance filled the Madame with a vague sense of unease.“Even if you resist, the contract is already—”Before she could finish, Elsez placed her hand on her chest and spoke.“Elsez, of the Guild of Ones.”Both Madame Latour, with growing alarm, and Cassian, with confusion, turned their eyes to Elsez.With a confident smile, Elsez locked gazes with Madame Latour and continued,“I swear upon my name to speak only the truth before the divine.”Madame Latour’s eyes widened in shock as the realization hit her.At that moment, the black magic circle engraved on Elsez’ hand shattered with a sharp crack.Simultaneously, the contract in Madame Latour’s possession burst into black flames and disintegrated.Just as the magic circle had first appeared, it crumbled into ash on Elsez’ hand and scattered into the air.Elsez stared at the ashes for a moment before lifting her gaze to meet Madame Latour’s.In the darkness, her vivid amber eyes gleamed sharply, unyielding and fierce.Eyes that could not be broken by any force Madame Latour could muster.How does she know the termination phrase?Madame Latour could only stare in stunned disbelief at Elsez.What Elsez had spoken was a “truth oath,” commonly recited when under interrogation.But it was also a hidden termination phrase that nullified contracts with the dark guild.Because the dark guild operated illegally, their contract nullification conditions differed from those of other guilds.If things went awry and guild members were captured by knights, the knights would first dig into their affiliations.Most cases could be resolved with a hefty bribe, but sometimes the guild’s very existence could be endangered.To prepare for such situations, the dark guild’s contracts were designed to break if magic was used to probe their origins—or if the contractor made a truth oath.Unlike normal magical contracts that ended with the contractor’s death, contracts forged with dark magic persisted beyond death.Dark magic was derived from mana from another dimension, which could not be absorbed into this world.Thus, breaking a dark magic contract required the living contractor to actively nullify it.To safeguard their survival over individual members, the dark guild had embedded specific nullification conditions into their contracts.However, because someone might exploit these conditions, knowledge of them was restricted to a select few.For a newcomer like Elsez, who had just entered the guild district, to know this was completely unexpected.As Madame Latour stared dumbfounded, Elsez brushed off her hand, where the magic circle had once been, and murmured,“I like money too, but I’m not confident I could live well with blood money.”The reason Elsez knew the termination phrase was simple—she remembered it from her previous life.“In the main storyline of Last Heroes, there’s a scenario where the player rescues a villain who signed a contract with the dark guild.”Just as Elsez was about to approach Madame Latour, a dark guild member who had silently drawn close attempted to attack her.But Cassian and Elseszwere faster.Elsez bent her body smoothly to evade the attack, while Cassian swiftly struck the staggering guild member in the stomach, slamming them into the wall.“Urgh!”Another guild member who tried to sneak up behind Cassian met the same fate, joining their companion embedded in the wall.Thud!A powerful wave shook the shop floor momentarily.Madame Latour stared at Elsez who was now advancing toward her with a cold gaze.Elsez stopped a few steps away and spoke.“Madame, if you want to recruit talent, you shouldn’t rely on threats. You need to present a vision.”“……”“When the future I imagine aligns with the future of the group I want to join, that’s when people truly move.”“……”“So don’t ever try to tie me down with such cheap methods again.”Madame Latour let out a small, sardonic laugh at the bold words of this audacious child daring to advise her.“Such impudence for a brat.”Behind Elsez, another dark guild member moved to attack.Before Elsez could retaliate, Madame raised a hand, stopping them.“Stand down. Do you really think any of you could take her down, no matter how many of you try?”The guild members hesitated, then slowly backed away.Elsez shot a glance at each of them before turning to Cassian.As she moved away, Madame Latour’s voice called out from behind her.“I’ll watch and see how long your amateur ideals can last.”Elsez glanced over her shoulder, giving Madame Latour a calm look, then turned back to Cassian.She felt the Madame’s gaze boring into her back but ignored it.Walking out of the shop with Cassian, Elsez found that the Eternal Guild members Cassian had sent ahead were already gone.Cassian, now relaxed compared to when they arrived, lightly tapped Elsez on the head.“Good work.”Feeling her tension melt away as they left the shop, Elsez looked up at Cassian’s warm eyes.The comfort in his gaze finally made her realize how heavy her body felt now that the adrenaline was wearing off.“How did you know the conditions for breaking the contract?”Elsez froze at his question, mid-sigh of relief.…Sharp as always.She couldn’t exactly say she’d learned it from a game scenario.And leaving it unanswered would only make him more curious.After a moment’s thought, she improvised.“Well… I had a close friend who once helped someone entangled with the dark guild. I learned about it while helping them out.”“What kind of friend deals with something like that?”“A hero.”Of course, it wasn’t a friend but herself.Elsez felt a self-awareness about how boldly she delivered the lie.Luckily, Cassian didn’t seem inclined to press further.“Well, if the dark guild’s management is that sloppy, they’ll be wiped out soon enough.”…He muttered, though, as if he were speaking to himself.Elsez decided to ignore his comment and focus on the outcome.After all, she’d used her past knowledge to navigate the crisis, and everyone had made it back safely. That was what mattered.Just then, Cassian’s voice dropped from above her head.“I’ll take that back.”“Take what back?”“What I said about you not being able to swat a fly.”A small chuckle escaped Elsez’ lips at his words.It was his way of acknowledging her skills.“But why did you say you’re not involved with me?”“Because you’re not.”“I am.”Elsez blinked at him, puzzled.Cassian grinned and added,“No, I will be.”He suddenly stopped walking, causing Elsez to halt and look up at him.“I’ll make it official.”He extended his large hand toward her, as if to offer a handshake.“Join our guild.”