Dismayed, I sat on a bench at the bandits' camp. Aside from seven horses, the only living creatures were Gloria and I. The veteran [Assassin] was studying the dead bandits. She came and straddled the bench, facing me.
"You're a therianthrope, right?" Gloria said.
"No. I can assure you there's not a single entry in my Status with that word," I dismissed.
"You killed those bandits and knights, didn't you?" She pressed with the interrogation. "Well. They have marks of claw wounds. The same kind we found on the bandits that died around your family back in town, only bigger. But you've grown. You also have not a single wound on you and your broken arm is completely healed. If I had to guess, you become some sort of cat."
"What are you going to do?" I asked, suspicious. If she was going to kill me now, I only hoped my family would stay safe. With Lord Ackerton adopting Anjou, they would probably be.
"Nothing. We watched you during the nights of the full moon. You never shifted although you had some nasty nightmares."
That was a disturbing piece of information. And I did shift. But with Nenandil's help, I would shift right back, sometimes before the transformation happened entirely.
"That's how you killed the merchant as a baby. You shifted and killed him in a night of the full moon. Which means you are a born therianthrope. Since neither of your siblings is one, we suspect you have a different father than the others."
If Gloria wasn't going to kill me, I had nothing to add. "I don't care. Fucking a woman once a father does not make. A father is a man that cares about his children. That nurtures and educates them. I might've had no father at all."
"Yes, you are correct. It doesn't matter who your father was. What about the fairy? They are even rarer than a therianthrope."
"Nenandil is my familiar. She's been with me since forever."
"She's the reason you can use water and ice magic," Gloria stated. I nodded. "You were a prodigy at birth. Funny. Such births are usually predicted by oracles. A pureblood therianthrope that doesn't succumb to rage with a fairy familiar and a ton of perks at birth. I wonder what else do you hide."
She was getting on my nerves. "A lot. More than you could ever comprehend. Please don't pry any further."
Gloria stood up and went to the horse I'd loaded with the trunk and loot. "I don't intend to. What did you find here?"
"Some prince's things. I killed him outside. Don't know if you've seen him. Three meters tall, brown fur and stubby horns."
"Sounds like a half-minotaur. I know only of one half-minotaur prince. One that was missing for a few years already. And if he was here, it means trouble. I'll open that trunk."
I helped Gloria get the trunk on a picnic table and she rummaged around, searching for traps. She disarmed a few and then spread a fine powder. Parts of the chest started to glow, which she cut off with a sharp knife. Once nothing was glowing, she opened it.
The chest contained a lot of coins and documents. Gloria took the scrolls and read it while I collected my treasure. Yes, mine. The Master wouldn't see a single copper.
"There's trouble brewing. These are plans for an invasion. You see, the western provinces used to be a Kingdom fifty years ago. They were conquered by the previous King but some insurgents remained. Prince Bodivka, the one you killed, was a baby when that happened. He spent decades to prepare and convince our neighbors to support him. And now they'll strike within the year."
She kept reading the documents. I tried to steal a peek but with Apricot's mental faculties, it would take a lot of time to process everything. I still looked around to see if I found anything regarding the artifact the prince was looking for. If he wanted to stage an invasion, it must've been a really valuable item. I found no clue. Only that the place it was hidden was near this camp.
"We need to hurry with our mission and bring these documents back to the Lord," Gloria said. "He will be most interested in this."
She was practically oozing excitement. I had to ask, "Why?"
"Because war is the most profitable situation for [Assassins]."
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We brought the horses with us and sold four of them at the next inn. We kept one of them as a pack animal. Gloria ran the mounts ragged, exchanging them for fresh horses at the inns along the road to the capital. I noticed that the inns were set exactly where a horse would stop when tired. It made sense. This way a messenger could run the whole road in a matter of days instead of weeks.
We reached the capital and settled in a house some of our members used as a staging spot at the capital. I met some of the trainees from years ago there.
"This is the staging grounds for our mission. The house we use changes according to a schedule," Gloria explained. "We have safe houses all around the capital. If you get assigned to work here, you'll learn the places. Now, about killing the count..."
She showed me the information. The Count was part of a separatist faction that she was now linking to prince Bodivka's insurgence. Killing him would reduce funding for the rebels and coordination with the countries posing to invade.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
And I was about to be thrown in the middle of another war. Again.
At night, I left the safe house already in hybrid form. Now that Gloria knew, there was no reason to not use it. I didn't let anyone see me as I left, not even the other assassins.
Moving through the metropolis was easier than in a forest. The houses were all tightly packed and there were enough noise and smoke from hearths and cooking fires to mask my presence. The count's mansion was in the noble district and had a perimeter wall. I wasn't supposed to kill any guards. I didn't see why I would. Getting from the wall to the side of the house and then the roof took me less than a minute. Then I had Nenandil sense fluids around us.
Once I knew where the people were, I cut a window shutter and entered the house. I found the master bedroom and entered. A trap I hadn't sensed went off and rang a bell somewhere else. The count and his wife jumped out of bed, the man going for a sword. The countess screamed.
I crossed the ten meters separating us in a flash and pounced the man. The wife screamed. In the darkness, she couldn't see anything but my silhouette. Even that would betray my nature as a were-jaguar. I had to kill the countess as well.
> Contract Fulfilled.
>
> You killed level 37 Aristocrat. You gained 632,163 Exp (13,690 base x 10,000 perk x 0,0001 curse x 3.05 perk x 5,05 contract x 3 Class Rank).
>
> You killed level 22 Lady. You gained You gained 14,762 Exp (4,840 base x 10,000 perk x 0,0001 curse x 3.05 perk).
No time to loot. I used the sword to inflict wounds on the bodies to hide my claw marks before I threw an armchair through a window to get outside. I climbed to the roof and looked around. So much for the invisible [Assassin]. I needed to invest in trap Skills next level.
The guards ran inside and I made my exit with a few long jumps. I needed eleven more assassination targets like the Count to level up. It honestly disgusted me.
Worse yet, if I could pick a side in this upcoming conflict, I would side with the rebels just to get an opportunity to kill the general. I can't believe the perverted bastard would walk free after killing my brothers.
We departed back the next day, using the same method of switching horses at the waystations. I rode into the plantation in a daze. Maybe the years of peace dulled my edge.
I knew what was wrong. The war. I didn't want to be involved in the war. I knew I would. Worse, they knew but wouldn't tell me if I hadn't met the prince. I imagined the silver lining would be that the war would reach a faster conclusion now that the prince was no more.
Boy, was I wrong!
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The Master was most pleased with the documents Gloria brought back. They found and compiled a list of names with the supporters of the insurgents. That meant more jobs. More contracts. And with a fast, tireless, and deadly were-jaguar at hand, I was sent to perform most of them. I killed about twenty targets in three months. Merchants, army officials, minor nobles. I felt nothing.
No. That's a lie. As I removed the insurgence supporters, I felt I was strengthening the general. Making him even more untouchable. And it distressed mine and Apricot's psyche more than anything.
But hey, the Death Princess' name was gaining traction in the right circles and I gained a level.
> Assassin reached level 19.
>
> Human reached level 18.
>
> You gained a human perk.
>
> Chemist reached level 16.
>
> Surgeon reached level 3 [16].
With my perk, I wished for one thing I needed. The ability to change my fur color.
> You purchased the Chameleon Skin (rare) perk. You can change the color of your skin and hair. Reduce odds of visual detection by at least 60% if you are standing still.
Strutting around as a black were-jaguar was asking for trouble. With this, I could hide my origins and get even more sneaky. My Skill Points finally covered that glaring flaw in my Skillset.
> You gained the Detect Traps (uncommon) Skill. You have an improved chance to detect traps.
>
> You gained the Disarm Traps (uncommon) Skill. You have an improved chance to disarm traps.
>
> You gained the Trapsense (rare) Skill. You have a chance to receive warning instants before triggering a trap.
>
> You purchased the Axmianish Human Language (uncommon) Skill. You can speak the language of Axmian humans.
>
> You purchased the Wrottian Human Language (uncommon) SKill. You can speak the language of Wrottan humans.
The points from my professions went to level the Skills I bought previously.
Home security was almost the same. A few guards, a few traps, even the architecture of the houses were the same. Getting in and out of the houses and assassinating my targets became a routine.
I was... bored.
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On the other side, my family's life was changing. No longer we all stayed together, seeking safety from the harsh environment with numbers. No. Anjou as Lord Ackerton's heir apparent became a social butterfly, going to tea parties, balls, and other social events. Sometimes she brought Cerise along as a lady-in-waiting.
Olive's job was to work at Anjou's boutique, while mom and Mirabelle worked with other seamstresses to make the clothes. Or, should I say, mom worked as a pack mule in a mountain while Mirabelle enjoyed being the boss' mother.
I returned home from my three-month-long assignment to find Mirabelle in a very verbose bragging streak. Her wicked and selfish self resurfaced hard. You know, from when she used to steal my baby food and had me eat feces.
"And you see, Apricot, my dear, we started to receive letters from suitors looking to marry my little Anjou," Mirabelle said. "How's the life of an errand girl treating you?"
I wished I could answer with "Very fine, sister. I just murdered Viscount Whatshisface. Did you know he was plotting treason against the crown? How heinous could that be? He deserved way worse than the instant beheading I gave him with my teeth".
But I didn't. "That's marvelous. I'm so proud of my niece! We need to make sure those suitors are worthy of her."
And I meant that. Mirabelle then entered into a rant on how Anjou's clothes were all the rage across high society. Even people from two or three fiefdoms across were coming to buy her clothes.
The next morning I went to the plantation even though I had no assignment. It was time to meddle into Anjou's marriage arrangements. I was in the Master's office.
"So you want permission to investigate Anjou's suitors to see if they are worthy of your niece. Did I get it right? What are you going to do if they aren't?"
I blinked twice. "Murder them," I said matter-of-factly.
"You can't."
"Why not?"
"Because you'll murder all of them. I'm telling this away so you hold no delusions. All of them are bad, and I don't even know who they are. Your eldest sister is the one managing that."
I stared at a corner of the room, absorbed in thought. "I should murder all of them. Maybe a better batch of high-society men will arise. You see, Master, that's what mom did on the farm with the vegetables. She would eat the bad ones and keep the good ones for breeding."
"You scare me," The master groaned. "You wouldn't scare me if you were joking. But you mean to kill them, don't you?"
"Yes, Master," I deadpanned.
"You can investigate them if you promise me you won't murder them until I give my approval. Go, infiltrate their houses, search their documents and habits. Do not kill anyone, that's an order."
"Yes, Master. Thanks, Master. I'll do as you asked."
I left the plantation but didn't go back home. It was time for the Death Princess to meddle in her niece's love life.