Pretending to Be Human Is Exhausting Again Today - Chapter 62

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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Pretending to Be Human: Episode 062

I quickly explained the necessity of a preemptive strike.

First, Gilli Port jutted out like a promontory due to its geography, making escape via alternative routes impossible. It meant we had only two choices: fight or surrender Princess Chloe.

The fortunate aspect was that the Mercenary Groups hadn’t yet formed an alliance. If we could defeat them individually before they united, we could improve our odds even in what appeared to be a reckless battle.

Moreover, even if we were pushed back in combat, it wouldn’t constitute total defeat. If we could whittle down the enemy’s forces and use that opportunity to buy time for a retreat to the Neutral Zone, we would have achieved our objective.

According to plan, the Emperor’s reinforcements should have already arrived in the Neutral Zone.

After hearing my full explanation, one of the Knights posed a question.

“Wouldn’t it be possible to send a warning to the Mercenary Groups? Wouldn’t they back down at the mention of the Princess’s name?”

“They would simply claim they never received such a request. This operation isn’t being conducted under any Mercenary Group’s name.”

The Mercenary Groups weren’t fools, and they would never expose themselves in such matters. Whether they wore masks or launched surprise attacks, they would conceal their identities thoroughly.

Their mindset was simple: as long as no evidence remained.

‘On the other hand, they’ve likely already realized that Princess Chloe isn’t an imperial dignitary. That’s why they judged it acceptable to take the risk.’

Though it was unfair to Princess Chloe, the moment someone like me came to greet her, it was as good as announcing to the world, “I’m not a dignitary.”

Upon reaching the conclusion that no peaceful resolution existed, people began murmuring among themselves.

Particularly from Princess Chloe’s side, suspicion about whether they could trust my words grew increasingly stronger.

‘I suppose it would be difficult to believe.’

Our group trusted me because of what I had accomplished before, but from the Jins Kingdom’s perspective, it was an absurd claim. A threat had emerged without warning, and now a Princess was asserting she could resolve it.

I wouldn’t trust myself either.

As I was deliberating whether to take only our personnel, Princess Chloe hesitantly raised her hand.

“I… I think I should follow the Princess.”

“What, Princess Chloe?”

“The only one we can trust is the Princess. Everyone knows that, don’t they?”

“That is….”

As if they had just grasped the reality of their exile, the atmosphere among them grew somber.

Princess Chloe surveyed the surroundings broadly before turning her gaze toward me and speaking.

“I trust the Princess. So I’m placing all command authority over my guard under your direction.”

“…Thank you for your consideration, Princess Chloe.”

It was an ideal situation for me, yet something felt oddly unsettling.

There was no trust in Princess Chloe’s eyes. Instead, they held a resignation as if she had already accepted her death.

‘It’s not the resolve to survive—it’s the expression of a soldier marching toward certain doom.’

Her words and demeanor proclaimed absolute trust in me, yet her eyes told a different story. It was strange.

But I had no time to waste on such trivial matters.

Unable to defy Princess Chloe’s opinion, her guards reluctantly declared they would follow my lead.

I immediately issued orders to Ivan and Ruslara.

“Ivan takes the vanguard, Ruslara takes the rear. I’ll hold the center. Take the war horses Grid prepared and lead everyone out of the port!”

“Yes!”

Ivan took command of the assassins while Ruslara oversaw the remaining combat personnel. I mounted the war horse Grid had specially prepared.

‘It’s a shame I don’t have proper armor.’

Given the hasty preparations, the only defensive equipment I could wear was a simple breastplate covering my chest.

A general dressed in nothing but a breastplate over her gown—even I found it ridiculous.

‘Perhaps it’s stirring up old memories from before.’

Recollections of my time living as a Demon surfaced at such a moment—a favorable omen indeed.

It meant I would not fall in this coming battle.

* * *

The Free Mercenary Troops known as the Black Helmets had earned considerable renown throughout the Neutral Zone.

And their leader, the Captain of the Black Helmets, found himself in an unusually elated state.

A commission had arrived—one so lucrative that a single success would afford him decades of idle luxury.

[Target: Princess Chloe, an exile from Jins Kingdom. Secure her person, alive or dead.]

A princess as the objective—ordinarily, he would have declined such a contract, but circumstances had shifted.

Jins Kingdom had undergone a change of monarchy through rebellion, and Princess Chloe had been stripped of her royal status. Intelligence further suggested that even the Empire, which had granted her asylum, now treated her with contempt.

In essence, she had become an ordinary person in name alone—powerless, without faction or influence.

The mercenaries therefore had no qualms. All that remained was to dispatch her as swiftly as possible and slip away from the Empire.

‘There are rumors that the Emperor’s daughter has taken charge of guiding Princess Chloe, but… their circumstances are equally dire anyway, so it hardly matters.’

A cursed princess sent to welcome an exiled one, they said.

Like attracts like, the Captain of the Black Helmets sneered inwardly.

‘Regardless, assassinating the Emperor’s daughter carries too much risk. I’ll target only Princess Chloe and exclude the princess from the operation.’

Seasoned in such affairs, the Black Helmets swiftly devised their strategy. Gilli Port, where the two women lodged, possessed but a single thoroughfare—there was nowhere to flee.

‘We strike with overwhelming speed. I’ve heard other mercenary groups have accepted this contract as well. I won’t be sharing the reward with those dogs.’

The Captain urged his subordinates onward, eager to reach Gilli Port with every passing moment. His mind already painted the life that awaited him upon success.

First, he would acquire land and a dwelling, settle his debts, and expand his mercenary group. Then he would lay the foundation for becoming a mercenary who one day commanded the entire Continent.

‘No, with this amount of money, I could even purchase a noble title. If I went to a suitable country and changed my identity….’

For him, this commission was the greatest opportunity to transform the course of his entire life.

As he continued indulging in such exhilarating fantasies, he belatedly noticed the Vice-Captain calling out to him from beside.

“Captain, Captain!”

“Huh? What is it?”

The Vice-Captain spoke to the Captain as he lifted his head, his tone exasperated.

“How many times do I have to call you! I’m asking what we should do now!”

“What are you talking about? And why have the troops stopped moving?”

Only then did the Captain realize that the Mercenary Group’s march had halted. Their location was in the Dense Forest near Gilli Port, and they had been traversing through this forest to avoid the eyes of others.

The Vice-Captain, striking his chest in frustration as if to say he hadn’t even noticed the troops had stopped, pointed ahead.

“It’s because of that, that thing! Don’t you see it?”

“What exactly are you telling me to look at… Huh?”

Following the Vice-Captain’s fingertip, the Captain’s eyes fell upon an unbelievable sight.

On a cliff beside the forest path, a woman stood alone.

As if she were a gatekeeper, the woman atop the cliff stood motionless, gazing down at them.

‘Dark blue hair and golden eyes… Isn’t that the Empire’s Princess? Why is the Princess here?’

The Captain blinked, taken aback by Deina’s sudden appearance.

“Even you can see she looks like the Empire’s Princess, right? What should we do? Should we capture her first and interrogate her?”

“What about her other guards? Aren’t there any nearby?”

“I don’t see any.”

The Vice-Captain’s reasoning held merit. I couldn’t fathom why Princess Deina had revealed herself, but once we captured her, Princess Chloe’s location would become immediately apparent.

For the Black Helmet Mercenary Group, it was an opportunity not to be missed.

“Um, um, I think that looks like a trap….”

A mercenary standing behind the Vice-Captain cautiously voiced his concerns, but the two men had no intention of listening.

“That cowardly recruit is still the same. Hey! You fall back.”

They acted as though even if it were a trap, it wouldn’t matter.

They possessed confidence. They believed they had already assessed the Princess’s guard level.

“It’s unfortunate our faces have been exposed. There’s no choice—we’ll take her hostage. Listen! Climb up to the cliff top and prevent her from escaping….”

The moment the Captain issued orders to his subordinates, Deina’s eyes gleamed with intensity.

Seized by an inexplicable sense of unease, the Captain simultaneously noticed that she was saying something.

No sound reached his ears, but the shape of her slowly moving lips was unmistakable.

[Found you, leader.]

Yet those words didn’t seem directed at him.

‘Leader? She was searching for me?’

In the instant he attempted to interpret the meaning, one edge of the Captain’s vision distorted. Beneath the cliff, within the deeply cast shadows, something stirred.

In that moment, the instinct honed through decades of mercenary work sounded an alarm within him.

Something lurked within those shadows!

“Wait, everyone! Draw your swords…!”

But before he could issue the command, something burst from the shadows and descended upon him with greater speed.

A creature, moving with the swiftness of wind, flew toward the Captain and whispered against his ear.

“Come now, you’re first.”

Before the startled mercenaries could even draw their weapons to stop the Assassin, a dagger was driven deep into the Captain’s throat.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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