The Master had a cover story for our return. We were kidnapped by illegal slavers and held in the charcoal plant to wait out the winter. A group of Adventurers by happenstance sought shelter in the main house and found us. I would cry for help and they would drive the slavers out and rescue us. My part in this charade was to be bold to ask for help. Both the adventurers and the slavers were members of the Master's guild so they would make a believable escape. We needed Anjou to believe that to match my story.

We enacted the scene and the "Adventurers" brought us home after I showed them where we lived. The reunion was drenched in tears but I felt detached.

I was a parricide. One only has two chances at being one. I felt like trash. I went to my corner and sat on the floor with my back to the wall.

"What's wrong with Apricot?" Mom, the best mom, always sweet mom showed a ton of worry for me.

Olive held her arm. "Let me talk to her. Apricot has trouble understanding things."

Mom nodded but didn't take her eyes away from me. Olive sat next to me and pulled me to her lap. "Was it hard? To keep Anjou safe?" She whispered to me.

I hugged my sister and buried my face in her neck. I didn't have the heart to tell her. "I did what I had to do to keep us safe. I believe things will change in the next days. I can't tell you, sister. Just believe me. I paid a terrible price for what I got for us."

Olive hugged me and we cried.

----------------------------------------

The defeat of the slavers sent ripples through the city. They were artificial but the effect was real. It put our family under the lens of the public eye. One day, two carriages pulled next to the house. We were summoned by one Lord Ackerton for a talk. Six armed and armored guards made sure we all "volunteered" to go. It was our first time riding a carriage and the girls were excited. Only mom and Mira were worried about what was about to happen.

We stopped at the driveway of a manor. Servants took us around the back for a bath and new clothes. As one maid put, "we couldn't meet the Lord in these rags."

When we met the Lord, I bit my tongue. Lord Ackerton was none other than the Master. While it was an expected outcome, I thought he would use a stooge. He sat and the servers gave us refreshments. None of us dared to drink.

"Please, please. Help yourselves. You don't mind my station. I'm here to right a great wrong. I'm the owner of the charcoal plant where your lovely children were held hostage. I had no idea and I am terribly sorry," The master Assassin played his fake persona.

It was terribly convincing. Even his level under {Appraisal} showed as thirty-nine. While nobody could read my level, he could fake his. It made me wonder if the sixty-something I saw wasn't fake as well and he was on the eighties or the triple digits.

Maybe I was playing way out of my league.

"Milord. You are too kind. We are unworthy of being maids in your service," Mom said.

"No. I know you are hardworking and one of you even has the [Governess] Class. I insist. I have minor properties in the city and I have a modest house that needs someone to staff it. If you take the job, you'll work and live there. It is the least I can do. No, what I must do. I wonder the suffering little Apricot and Anjou went through. I have no child of mine so I won't dare to understand what you suffered. The pain of not knowing if your dear children were alive. Please, take this offer. It will make me sleep easier at night."

Of that, he can be sure. I won't try to murder him in his sleep. But Olive suspected more than what was said was going on. She knew part of my powers.

"Mom, I think we should accept. I heard only good things about Lord Ackerton," She lied. "He's fair and kind with his servants."

"Listen to your daughter, Mrs. Juniper. I am willing to increase your pay and give tuition to your three younger girls so they can get good Classes and Professions when they come of age. And to Ms. Cerise, she'll get the position of governess, the same as her Class. It will increase her Exp gains because she will also gain awards from your work."

That pitch gained Cerise's vote, "Let's accept, mom!"

Mom looked at me. "Apricot, what do you think? Do you like to work for Lord Ackerton?"

I grinned. "Yes!"

Inside, my worries skyrocketed. Was mom suspicious of me?

----------------------------------------

Lord Ackerton went with us to show the house. House my ass. That was a miniature mansion. Two floors plus servant's quarters on the roof, it remembered me of some Victorian mansions. Which was weird. The world didn't even use steel yet but the architecture was too far ahead. But it could be an influence from the gods. Or other transmigrators came here and polluted the world with their ideas.

He gave us a stipend and some spending money as a kind of compensation for what happened to us. We discovered that our few things were already moved while we were having tea.

Maids took us to play and I got a glimpse of Lord Ackerton talking to mom. During our play in the main lobby, a maid took me aside.

"The Master wants your tithe tomorrow. Tonight, one of our men will come. Lead him to where you hid the treasure," She said and kept playing.

That night, I insisted to sleep on Olive's room. We were lying in bed, Olive hugging me tightly.

This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

"Apricot, is something going to happen tonight?" My lovely sister asked.

"Yes. One of the conditions for our safety was to surrender the treasure we stole from the magistrate," I whispered. "A man will come tonight. I'll show him where the treasure is and come back. It won't take much time."

"Did you buy this place?" Olive wasn't excited about getting a new house. She was worried sick and I hugged her tighter.

"No. Olive. I want to say more but I can't. I love you. The less you know, the better. I did terrible things. But I was infringing on someone's territory when I killed that man. And now I'm giving the treasure to them to settle our dispute."

"Keep your secrets, sister. I'll be here if you need someone to listen to you, or just a shoulder to cry. I love you too. You saved me. I was too shocked to say thank you for that night."

"You're welcome."

We waited until the [Assassin] came to pick me up. Time to work.

I walked outside on the windowsill. The man in black pointed at the roof and flipped up. I followed. On the roof, he had a pack for me.

"A proper attire," He said looking at me as if I was garbage.

"Milady or Your Highness," I glared at him.

"What?"

"When I'm working, you'll address me by 'Milady' or 'Your Highness'. I'm the Death Princess, I tell you. You will show respect."

I appraised him. He was thirty-two.

He chuckled. "What did I do to deserve this? Babysit a brat? What was the boss thinking?"

I set a contract on him and shared it. "I think you either show respect or you're dinner. I'm this close to level," I lied. I needed more than two million to level.

"What the fuck?" He drew his short sword.

"Famous last words. Are you sure you want to die and fail your mission? The Master will get his treasure one way or another. Because you won't kill me."

"I'll kill you, then I'll kill those bitches sleeping under us."

He was just blowing steam. I didn't move from my spot. "Yes. This kind of attitude will be unacceptable in our organization going forward."

The ice grew in my hand. I twirled the shaft. Then I charged. Right before I reached melee distance, I tossed the ice at his face. He blocked and I reached his leg. I climbed him and moved to his back. He was doomed now. With all my perks, he would kill himself before he would wound me. He struggled and cut himself with his dagger several times. I rode him, dodging his attacks and landing weak punches on his back whenever I could.

He struggled for five minutes before he started to pant. My punches did between zero to two HP of damage each and it was mounting up. I moved up and started to beat over his spine right at the base of the neck. He would die of a thousand baby punches. He

> You gained the Skill Punching (common). Increase the damage and accuracy of your unarmed attacks made with fists.

>

> You gained the Skill Riding [Humans] (very rare). You have better control and coordination when riding a human bigger than you.

I can't believe I still didn't have those two. My skin broke over the knuckles. I swapped hands, drawing on Lily's memories to focus on the left hand. He had a big bruise on his nape.

"Say 'uncle' when you want me to stop," I whispered in his ear.

"Fuck you!" He shouted.

I switched to stabbing him with the ice dagger in the back of his neck. My bleeding perks soon triggered. I kept stabbing, draining his HP. He got stunned and I stopped.

"Master, if you are watching, tell me to stop or this fool will die," I said. "Three, two, one... Dead."

I finished him.

> Contract Fulfilled.

>

> You killed level 39 Assassin. You gained 351,176 Exp (15,210 base x 10,000 perk x 0,0001 curse x 3.05 perk x 7,57 contract).

Another thing the guild needed. A cleanup crew. This guy was bleeding all over the roof.

I did as Nenandil instructed and we got five liters of water running down the roof instead of blood. The body would be another problem. I changed into the outfit they provided and another [Assassin] appeared. This one was forty-two.

"Report," I told him. These guys will get used to working under me.

"I was sent to finish the job tonight," She said. Funny. Under those leathers, I couldn't discern her gender. Her face was androgynous. Until she spoke, she could be just a pretty and somehow effeminate man.

"Good. Follow me. Leave this idiot there. I'll take care of the body when I come back."

I stashed my clothes in the backpack and we went out, jumping from roof to roof. I led her to where the robe with the treasure was hidden. I would keep the coin pouch I took from the tax collector as rainy day savings.

"Make sure the Master gets his treasure. I know what's in there," I told her. I was being intentionally bossy and mean.

"He will don't worry," She said with an amused voice.

"'Milady' or 'Your Highness'," I told her. "I am sure you heard me tell your former coworker that. You're only three levels above him."

Translation, I can kill you if I fancy.

"His build was crap," She shot back with a cocky smirk.

"I didn't go all out and he didn't get a single hit in. If I get really serious, you're done for. You don't want to try me, sister. You have a job to do. Get that robe-bag to the master. You're dismissed. I'm going home to clean a corpse."

She grinned. Then she vanished. I had not a single fucking idea where she was.

I heard a chuckle, "Farewell, Your Highness," She mocked from two roofs away.

I jumped my way back home.

----------------------------------------

The next day, Lord Ackerton visited again to check if everyone was okay. Pretty nice of him. Mirabelle told him of the fight they heard and he promised he would send a detachment of female guards to protect the house. We were all gathered in the sitting room. The Lord forced mom and Mirabelle to sit down.

"But that's not why I came here. Mrs. Juniper," He said. My mother gave him her undivided attention. "I gave it some thought, and I know your daughter Apricot has a special condition. I think she is a very smart girl and with the proper education, she will soar. I wish your permission to assign her some private tutors."

Mom bowed. "Milord, that is too generous. We can't accept it."

"Your daughter has very special talents. I'm sure you know certain strange incidents happen around her."

Olive spluttered for a moment and I nudged her with my elbow. Mom glared at her before staring straight at me.

"Yes, certainly. A lot of strange incidents. Mostly fortunate ones, I must say. Even when we are brought to the brink of despair she comes back with an even greater boon."

I was so thankful I could compartmentalize my feelings and shunt them away. Because there was no way a normal person would keep a straight face in that situation. It should be a perk.

"Without proper education," Lord Ackerton resumed his pitch, "Her growth will be stunted. I think with the right tutors she can become a normal member of society."

My lips twitched.

Mom knew when she was fighting an uphill battle. "Will you take her away?"

"She'll live here. But some lessons will need to be elsewhere. Little Anjou will join in some of them. I swear to you, Mrs. Juniper, your girls will be treated like Princesses."

I pushed so hard to not react and laugh that I groaned.

"See? She wants this. Apricot can barely contain herself."

"I do, mom. It will be alright. Lord Ackerton is trustworthy. He's very rich. I bet the gained a lot of money overnight."

"See? She has a great imagination. I am thinking of training her in the arts," Ackerton added.

"I'll entrust my treasures to you, Lord Ackerton. You have been unnaturally generous and we are thankful."

"Apricot is a lucky amulet. You are most fortunate to have a daughter such as her. I can tell she loves you a lot. Little girl, would you take a walk with me?"

"Surely, milord," I curtsied.

"Where did she learn to do that?" Cerise whispered to Mirabelle.