Inside the Azure Hamlet, numerous figures clad in thick infantry armors could be seen surrounding a bonfire, all of them held a glass of liquor in their hands as they shouted in cheers.
A middle-aged man with a rugged visage stood out among the crowd. The soldiers who stared at him wore respectful gazes and the badge on his brilliant armor with the image of the Empire of Eternal Faith, indicated his high standing.
"Hey, hey, hey, calm down guys! Are all of you forgetting that we still need to honor our commander?" A loud jubilant voice echoed out. The gazes of the soldiers focused on the middle-aged man as they whispered,
"How could we forget the commander?"
"Yeah, yeah, that's right, if not for the commander's close combat skills, we would've died already!"
"This glass of mine is for the Commander of the Hawk-Eye Batallion Commander Anthony! Long Live the Emperor!"
"Long Live the Emperor!"
Cheers echoed out, the middle-aged man named Anthony revealed a vicious smile as he said, "Now that we have captured the Azure Hamlet, the reinforcements from the Empire should be coming soon. Now, all we need to do is to maintain our position here..." Raising his glass, he shouted, "Glory to the Hawk-Eye Batallion!"
"Glory to the Hawk-Eye Batallion! Long Live the Emperor!"
Meanwhile just a kilometer away from the Azure Hamlet, numerous ghastly figures clad in an eerie fiery armor which seemed to merge with the environment itself, could be seen standing atop branches of trees.
Their expressions solemn as Commander Zaramias summoned everyone to a meeting, "According to the information that I received from the primary scouts, it seems like they didn't fortify the surroundings of the Hamlet." His eyes flashed in a complicated light, "However, even though that's the case, we can't just run through it and challenge them in a head-on fight, after all, they have the advantage of being at the defensive."
Scanning the soldiers around him, Zaramias stopped, he seemed to wait for something as a hand followed suit, "May I propose something? Commander Zaramias?"
A voice filled with vigor and tenderness echoed out, everyone turned to the source and found the newly-assigned Vice-Commander of the Fiery Blood Army.
Even though his visual appearance looked beautiful like a woman. They witnessed his capability beforehand and they would never dare to underestimate him just because of his looks.
Zaramias nodded his head. Dan smiled in return before pointing towards the map of the Azure Hamlet that Zaramias laid beforehand. "Although you can see that there's no trap, right here, I don't really believe that that is the case. After all, the other side knows that we're an expert in close combat quarters."
Everyone threw a dubious glance at him 'That was common sense, everyone in here knows that there's a trap, there...'
But before they could continue their thought process, Dan smirked before saying, "So here's my proposal, according to what I heard from the Commander, it seems like the Hawk-Eye Batallion is a highly organized group handled by that so-called Commander Anthony of the Empire of Eternal Faith, right?"
Zaramias nodded his head as he frowned. He couldn't help but have a bad premonition about Dan's proposal, "Yes, that's right, it's Anthony that mostly ordered the Army..."
Smiling, Dan continued, "Now then, my strategy is straightforward. What would happen if that Anthony disappeared?" His words rang loud and clear, sending everyone into a clamor.
Commander Zaramias' eyes widened, "Could it be that you're proposing an Assassination?"
Dan's eyes flashed in an amused light, "Yes, that's right, as long as we can get rid of that Anthony, we can easily clean them up."
Everyone froze. Even though Dan's proposal was sound, that doesn't mean that anyone would take such a risky mission of assassinating the enemy commander at the enemy's stronghold.
"You need not worry about who will do the deed. I will do it myself!" Dan declared, everyone stared at him with stunned expressions along with Zaramias whose eyes shone in deep concern.
"No, we cannot do that. Instead of you doing that, I will do the assassination," Zaramias replied to him with a solemn expression.
"No, Commander Zaramias, if you himself go there, literally all soldiers of the other side will recognize you. After all, your name is widespread across the two Empires."
Zaramias clicked his tongue, his gaze swept over his soldiers, but he found that none of them looked willing. None of them was willing to jump in the fire like a moth.
"Don't worry about it, I'll do the deed, but before I enter there, I will take this red handkerchief and no matter whose forehead I wrap this. That person is a comrade and should not be attacked." Dan left these words as he raised the handkerchief on his right hand.
Soon, his figure gradually disappeared into the darkness as everyone that he left, turned towards the Commander with worried expressions, "Commander, will the Vice-Commander, really be alright?"
Zaramias shook his head, "I'm not sure about his chances of coming out there alive, but I know my son. I know that he's not someone that will do something risky without confidence that he could surmount it."
Indeed, when Dan walked away from the camp, his eyes focused on the system notification that floated before him,
[Quest Name: Assassinate!]
[Quest Difficulty: A]
[Quest Objective: The leader of the Hawk-Eye Batallion, Anthony, is the core of the battalion itself. Take him out and his soldiers will go into a panic.]
[Quest Rewards: Two-Thousand AS Points]
Just the AS rewards alone convinced him to do the deed. But even though it was dangerous, why was he so confident in doing it? The answer was the power of skills.
When Dan arrived, fifty meters away from the Azure Hamlet, he spotted a single sentry which intermittently glanced towards the camp, as if waiting for the arrival of something.
Smiling to himself, Dan decided, 'He shall be the first, then.' Extinguishing his presence, Dan crouched, withdrawing a small straight dagger that he obtained from his father, Dan slowly approached his prey.
The sentry still looked as nonchalant as ever. He even yawned, looking somewhat sleepy as he stared at his surroundings. Without any warning, a deep sense of imminent danger surfaced in his mind.
But before he could withdraw his weapon, a sharp pain struck his neck and a blood arrow spurted from his jugular. His eyes widened in shock and his body slowly crumbled on the ground.
Staring at the dead sentry, Dan rolled him over his back so that he could see his face. Scanning the sentry's visage with the System, Dan activated Absolute Disguise as he dismissed the system notification before him and hid the body at a distant shrubbery.
[You successfully assassinated a member of the Hawk-Eye Batallion! Obtained 15 AS Points]