Jack laid on top of a flat roofed building located on the top of an unassuming hill. The rain poured down, but he barely noticed. It didn’t even obscure his vision thanks to his unique skillset.
He looked through the scope of his sniper rifle: a weapon that was seemingly alien in this medieval facsimile of Earth that called itself Celestia.
He had been in the middle of a job when it happened. Back on earth he’d lived a relatively interesting life. He’d joined his country’s armed forces at a young age and was selected for sniper training.
He’d later qualified for the special forces and partaken in wet work all over the world. He’d been taught how to survive in the harshest of climates. How to fight with guns, how to create explosives, how to kill effectively.
He’d partaken in work so extreme and politically sensitive that he’d have been disavowed by his country if he was caught.
He was on one such mission when he’d suddenly found himself transported to this strange new world. The system called it Celestia and it had warned Jack that he was being hunted. That was nothing new, he’d been hunted in multiple countries across four continents. It had never worked out well for the hunters.
He found himself on the outskirts of a large city on an island found roughly where the United Kingdom would be back on Earth.
Interestingly this city was called Britania. It was too close to the reality he knew to be a mere coincidence. The city itself resembled Victorian England with its old-fashioned architecture, aristocratic factions and a King sat on the throne of a grand palace.
The only place in the city that seemed out of place was the Adventure Society building. In contrast, it was a large skyscraper which mildly resembled the shape of a gherkin.
It was made almost entirely out of glass and was way too modern to fit into the nineteenth century look of the rest of the place.
Naturally he’d avoided it.
Even the name of the place pissed him off. Adventure Society, it sounded like a group of kids playing fantasy and cosplaying as heroes. No thanks. He was a professional killer. He didn’t have time for kid’s games.
Luckily for Jack, he had a certain skill set which proved to work even in this strange world. He had been trained by the best in the world and stood among the elite warriors of Earth.
He’d entered the city of Britania under the cover of darkness less than a few hours after arriving in this new world. He hadn’t even seen one of these so-called monsters.
In his experience, humanity was the most frightening monster of all anyway. A strong beast might kill you, but it wouldn’t torture you, abuse you and slaughter your family just to send a message.
No, humanity was far more fearsome than any semi-intelligent beast could ever hope to be. He’d learnt that lesson over and over throughout his career. Most recently, destabilising drug cartels on the South American continent.
That propensity for sadistic violence was what made his job so interesting. He was under no illusions of grandeur. His job was a dirty one, he wasn’t a good guy. But if you want to protect people from the bad guys, you need an even worse guy to take them out. That was Jack.
He snuck into the city and quickly found a target. A nobleman, walking home drunk in the closed off part of town.
He probably thought his gated community provided him protection, but he’d soon learn that there wasn’t a security system good enough to keep Jack out.
He’d grabbed the man by the throat, dragged him down a shadowed back alley and squeezed the life from him. It was nothing he hadn’t done before.
Things were the same as they always were. It was a universal truth that no matter the world you’re in, death is death.
Right now he was trapped behind enemy lines and survival was his only priority.
After killing the noble he stole his clothes and quickly deposited his military uniform, along with the corpse, in a dumpster. He then set it on fire using the matches he’d looted from the man.
That was sure to cause quite the stir among the citizens, but there was no way they’d be able to identify the body with their meagre technology.
After that he had blended into local society. He’d rented a small loft space in the centre of town and soon started getting quests from the system.
They were pretty simple and they all fell under the same umbrella term: assassination.
From what he could tell, the system was omnipotent and it seemed to reward action with power.
He’d raised his level quickly and soon his activities had gleaned him the monicker The Reaper. Within a few short weeks he’d become infamous all across Britania. The unidentifiable reaper. A serial killer of ill repute, stalking the streets of Britania.
Wanted posters had appeared everywhere, of course they didn’t show his likeness. How could they? He’d left no witnesses to his endeavours.
Early on he’d been offered the choice of three weapons. He’d chosen a magical one. A wand that allowed him to channel his high mana into casting spells.
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
He didn’t have any offensive spells at the time, but he soon found another use for the wand.
After a few successful quests he’d gained a plethora of precious metals, magic stones, and items that most people would consider to be junk.
What’s the saying; one man’s trash is another man’s treasure?
After a lot of experimentation he’d managed to create a weapon much more familiar to him, a sniper rifle. He’d even created a rudimentary silencer from a tin can.
It wasn’t the most elegant looking weapon, but it did the trick.
Which brings us back to the roof overlooking the palace.
Jack laid in the rain, looking down the sights of his crafted weapon. He’d gained a few skills which increased his vision’s capabilities far beyond what a normal human could do.
He gazed down the scope, looking straight into the ball room. Tonight was the night of the royal ball and he had a new quest to complete.
You have received a new quest:
Regicide
The annual Britannian ball is about to take place. The stuffy upper crust of the city state of Britania will all be in attendance.
Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to assassinate King Edmund VII and end his wretched line for good.
The fool is the product of incest and as such has the libido of a rabbit but the sperm count of a Chernobyl survivor.
Killing him at the ball will surely sow chaos.
Objective:
Kill the king during the ball 0/1
Reward: The satisfaction of destabilising a corrupt country. Also, a permanent 10% increase to the intelligence stat.
*WARNING*
This is a timed quest. Failure to complete it before the ball ends will result in a punishment.
Jack didn’t take kindly to being threatened. This punishment threat was the first of its kind he’d seen in this world.
Most quests didn’t come with strings attached. Still, he relished a challenge and the 10% increase to his intelligence was a good reward.
Intelligence seemed to govern the amount of mana he had and that was his most important stat. Especially since he’d created his sniper rifle.
Besides, it wasn’t going to be a difficult quest. He had the perfect vantage point, the perfect weapon and a perfect view through the poorly designed windows which looked straight into the ballroom.
He’d laid atop the roof for hours. His whole body was numb from the cold, rainy weather. It didn’t bother him much though. He’d endured far worse back on Earth.
He’d watched the snooty nobles lounge around laughing pompously, drinking their expensive drinks, and wearing their expensive clothes. All whilst their citizens slaved away to make them money whilst starving and living in squalor.
It was a truly detestable country. Not that he cared much about the suffering of others, or about politics. Still, he would have no remorse for the victim he was about to kill.
It was almost time. As if right on schedule, the king made his grand entrance.
Only four hours late to his own party. What a prick. Jack thought critically as he moved his scope over the chest of his target.
The man was the personification of inbreeding. His jaw jutted out oddly, his forehead was too big and he wore a long fur cloak, dyed red, which trailed behind him.
The impracticality alone was enough to send Jack into one of his famous rages. Though he was a professional and wouldn’t allow his own emotions to impact his ability to complete a task.
He took a deep breath, steadied his heartbeat, breathed out slightly. He’d already taken the wind and bullet drop into account so he aimed slightly to the left and above his target.
He called it bullet drop, but that wasn’t really an accurate description. His rifle shot pure magic power.
He used a skill to infuse his mana into the rifle and when the target finally stood still to address the crowd, he fired.
The magic shot zoomed out of the rifle, almost silently, then it broke the sound barrier with a crack that echoed across the quiet noble district.
It shattered the window and in less than a second he saw red mist in his scope as the king dropped to the ground, a gaping hole through his chest.
I can hear the screams from here. He chuckled to himself as he pulled the sniper back into his inventory. It was time to go.
Just as he was about to jump off the roof though, he found himself in a dark hall. Had he seriously been teleported again?
He looked around, summoning his weapon once more. It wasn’t designed for close quarters but a gun was still a gun.
The hall had roman columns on either side and there seemed to be the shadow of a throne or maybe it was an altar.
“Put that away, I have no interest in harming you.” A powerful voice boomed through the hall.
Jack squeezed the trigger but before he could fire off a shot the rifle disappeared.
“Fast reactions. I like it.” The voice chuckled.
Suddenly the room lit up as braziers burst into flame on each column and Jack could finally see who was talking.
Or more, what was talking.
Sitting on a throne of bones was a hooded shadowy figure. It had no face, but its outline seemed humanoid. Looking into the space between its hood, Jack saw only the void.
He trembled with fear, but also with a strange excitement. It had been years since he’d felt emotion this powerful. It was a truly foreign feeling at this point.
“Who are you?” He demanded, curbing his emotions as he’d been taught to do.
“I am the god Diako and I want you to join my organisation.” The shadow said in a terribly powerful and deep voice.
“And why exactly should I do that?” Jack responded brazenly.
“Because I can set you on a path to power beyond your wildest dreams. If you don’t believe me, then perhaps let me show you what I mean.”
A notification popped up on Jack’s interface.
Diako, The God of Shadows has offered you the following class:
The Reaper (unique)
Having made a name for yourself in the city state of Britania through murder most foul, the unique class The Reaper is open to you, and you alone.
Selecting The Reaper class unlocks the following skills:
Faceless man
Silent shooting
Basic weapon maintenance
Selecting The Reaper class will award the following stat points per level:
+10 perception / +10 intelligence
Jack read through the class offered to him with bated breath. It seemed so powerful. He didn’t know the specifics of the skills, but a unique class offered only to him. One that offered 20 stat points per level on top of the 5 free points he automatically knew he’d gain.
“What is this?” He whispered.
“This, my child, is just the beginning.”