The hooded figure went down like a puppet whose strings were cut, never knowing what (or who) hit him at the back of the neck.
Behind him, Anastasia stood with an upraised hand, watching her victim coolly as he crumpled. She was probably ensuring that he didn't get back up. I was amazed by how quickly and efficiently she neutralized her targets, as well as her elegant movements.
"As expected of a former Assassin," I praised her as I dusted off my hands. Unlike her, I had chosen brute force and charging directly at my opponents, which was as inelegant as you could get. "Your skills are exquisite."
"Fu fu…oh, Richard.' Anastasia giggled before she sighed and shook her head. She then turned to look at the trail of bloodied bodies and devastated concrete walls, floor and ceilings that I had left in my wake. "You put even Assassins to shame."
"I didn't even touch them," I pointed out truthfully. I had caught the guards completely by surprise, with my Leo Minor all materializing out of nowhere and maiming the majority of them from behind. I didn't even have to lift a finger. My pride of Leo Minor were still prowling the area, clawing at the bodies to check for survivors.
There probably were a few alive. Some were still breathing, but they were going to need emergency first aid. Obviously I didn't have the means nor the intention to provide them those. Reverse our positions and they would be trying to murder me at all costs.
I felt no sympathy even for those lying on the ground and groaning or whimpering painfully to themselves, their limbs twisted at unnatural angles. Granted, not all of them were incapacitated by me. A few of the silent ones were done in by Anastasia. It was easy to tell because they were frothing at the mouths.
A direct consequence of being poisoned by her. Which reminded me…I hadn't told Anastasia that I was now immune to poison, and honestly there was no need to inform her.
However, I was not a psychotic murderer either, and saw no need to go out of my way to kill those who were clearly helpless and incapacitated. If they had already surrendered, then as long as they stayed out of my way, I wasn't going to take their lives. I had better things to do with my time and energy.
Anastasia, on the other hand, was watching them thoughtfully, as if debating with herself if she should just finish them off in case they alert the others. I was struck by her beauty, but reminded me that she was a former Assassin who had once tried to take my life. Fortunately, she had now switched sides and was now a poison mage working under Feng Hai as one of his Silver Wolves. I was aware that she had deliberately arranged the video conference call in the Internet café to convince me that she was telling the truth.
Having confirmed that she was indeed a subordinate of Feng Hai, I had agreed to be her partner on this assignment to take out the Dark Church in Azpire City. Truth to his word, Feng Hai had posted an official request to Jing Tian Academy within a day, and I immediately accepted it the moment I received the email.
Once that was taken care of, I informed my dad, and then departed for Azpire City alongside Anastasia before the day was over.
And so we were now here in Azpire City, having tracked down one of the Dark Church's hideout to a specific building in a commercial district. It was silly, really. They were standing out extremely visibly with all the weird black hoods over their heads and their shadowy garb. It didn't take a genius to tell that something was up with them.
"These Assassins…" I began, but Anastasia snorted and cut me off.
"Don't insult us Assassins. These amateurs can't even begin to compare to the likes of us. They are just fools pretending to be Assassins."
"Uh, right." Anastasia had a point. Professional Assassins wouldn't be wearing hoods in broad daylight and standing around outside a building in cosplay type clothing. Nobody in their right mind would want to draw too much attention to themselves if they intended to execute an organized criminal activity. Anastasia was understandably miffed that I even could entertain the dubious possibility of them being her colleagues at the Assassins Guild.
"Not that I know many of my colleagues in the first place," Anastasia admitted, her voice becoming gentler. "The Assassins Guild take the possibility of its agents leaking intelligence and top secret information very seriously, and so conversations with each other were limited to the utmost extremes. None of us were allowed to interact with anyone we didn't need to. To protect not just our clients but also the organization itself, none of us except the sect masters and the Grand Master were allowed access to the inner circle of the guild. We are not even allowed access to any information about the other sects."
It made total sense to me. In the case where an Assassin was caught, the Guild could immediately save itself by sacrificing their agent…much like how a lizard cut off its own tail in order to escape.
"I'm guessing you're not even allowed to interact much with the members of the same sect…like you probably don't know many other members of your Veneneum Sect…"
"How did you know I'm from the Veneneum Sect?!" Anastasia gaped at me. "Wait, where did you even hear the word from?!"
"Principal Vincent Violet gave me a personal lecture on Assassins shortly after his daughter was murdered by one of them," I replied somewhat stiffly. And then I shrugged. "Sorry. I thought it was common knowledge."
"No, it isn't." Anastasia smiled sadly. "And I'm sorry for your loss. However, if we don't carry out an order, we would be the ones eliminated. You see, the Assassin Guild has no need for disobedient tools, after all."
There was something about her expression that brought an ache to my chest. I scowled and chewed on my lip, clenching my fist.
"That's horrible."
"Richard? What's wrong?" Anastasia was about to proceed down the corridor when she noticed that I had stopped. I took a deep breath and shook my head before I made to follow her.
"No, sorry. I mean, I can understand what the Assassin Guild is doing, and it's doing what it needs to survive as an organization. But they are an enemy, and we're fighting against them because we don't agree with them. It's just that…"
I trailed off. Anastasia tilted her head, and prodded.
"…that…?"
"Don't get me wrong." I exhaled wearily. "I'm actually relieved that Instructor Feng Hai spared your life. I'm not that naïve. I'm aware that you are essentially a criminal…an Assassin whose hands have been tainted with the blood of others. So, when I think just what kind of treatment you would receive at their hands after I captured you…I feel a little guilty."
"I tried to kill you, you know?" Anastasia reminded me gently, even though she must be finding my naivety annoying.
"Oh, yeah. I have no regrets about defeating and capturing you. It's just that…you were used as a tool by the Assassins Guild…treated as a weapon and sent to kill whoever they wanted, and then conveniently disposed of when they no longer have a use for you. That annoys me. But…" I gritted my teeth. "And while Instructor Feng Hai spared your life, he…hired you again. I feel that you're not being treated fairly, if you get what I'm saying. Like…you're being treated as a tool, hired and used at the convenience of others. I don't mean to be critical of Instructor Feng Hai, but I hardly think he'll get sentimental and spare and hire you if you're of no use to him. The only reason he did so was because he saw value in your combat ability."
I scratched my head.
"It probably is unfair to judge Instructor Feng for being practical. And I know there really isn't much else you can do…you were brought up your whole life to be an Assassin, trained and reared as one. Instructor Feng can't simply let you go…and there's not a lot you can do if you go out into society now. Who's going to hire an Assassin or let one enroll in their school? Even so…it's just that...will you ever get a chance to decide what you really want to do with your own life? Do you have a dream…or something you want to do, something that doesn't involve fighting or killing?"
Instructor Feng was correct in his decision to hire Anastasia. I was just being naïve and stupid. I knew that. However, I just felt sad that Anastasia couldn't decide her own life choices. It felt as if, after being released from the Assassin Guild, instead of being free, it ended up being Instructor Feng who decided what her life should be like.
However, just because Feng Hai was correct didn't mean that he was right.
"Never mind, ignore me. Sorry. I'm just rambling too much. I don't even know what I'm saying. I'm just being naïve and unfair. Instructor Feng probably did the best he could under his circumstances. Even he has his own limits."
"…fu fu…Richard…"
Anastasia shook her head and giggled.
"Thank you for seeing me as a person, not a tool. But that is how it is. That's how the world works. I can't change the fact that I have been trained my whole life to be an Assassin. There is nothing I can do to change my past. All the sentimentality and positive feelings in the world won't wash away the blood I already have on my hands. And believe me, I have spilled a lot of blood over the years. I'm not going to whitewash my deeds just because I'm a beautiful girl like some anime or light novels do. I am a criminal, no matter how you look at it."
Then her smile grew and she leaned in.
"But you are right. I do have a dream…something that has nothing to do with assassinating and fighting."
She practically waltzed around, as if being in a great mood after listening to my naïve rant.
"I always wanted to become a bride."
"…huh?"
Now that was totally unexpected. I didn't expect a cold, ruthless Assassin like Anastasia to have such a girlish dream.
"That's assuming I can find someone willing to marry me, of course."
"You definitely will," I replied. "You're so beautiful…but that's not the only good thing about you. You're also intelligent, skilled and have a great personality.'
I quickly amended my statement, because beauty was such a superficial quality and I was aware that not all girls liked being told that they were just beautiful. Beauty wouldn't last forever, after all. Marriage was beyond your partner's physical appearance. You were going to spend your lives together, even after the both of you grow old and wrinkled, your hair turn white and your senses dulled.
"My beauty is artificial," Anastasia told me with a wink. "I'm an Assassin, remember? We're designed this way…through surgery if necessary. Female Assassins, in particular, use seduction as part of their arsenal to take out high-profile male targets. It's so easy to get a man to lower his guard by appealing to his sexual desires."
I gulped, once again seeing Anastasia for who she really was.
"But thank you. I don't think you're being entirely honest, though. I don't have a great personality, and in any case, you don't know me long enough to be able to tell that. I appreciate the sentiment, though."
"Ha ha, sorry." I shook my head and continued down the corridor we were currently traversing. It terminated in a huge door at the end, which most likely led to another hall. Changing the subject, I dismissed my Leo Minor and got ready for another summoning spell. No doubt there was a welcoming party inside the hall, waiting to ambush us the moment we went through the door. "Wait for a minute, Anastasia."
"'Anastasia' is a bit long, isn't it?" Anastasia took a step forward, a mischievous glint in her emerald eyes. "You can just call me 'Ana'."
"If you're all right with it…"
I wasn't able to finish my sentence because Anastasia placed a finger on my lips to silence me.
"I wouldn't ask you to address me as such if I'm not all right with it," she told me with a wink.
"A…all right, Ana…"
I couldn't help but be taken aback by her forwardness. She smiled dazzlingly.
"By the way, Richard…"
"Hmm?"
"If no one is willing to marry me, you should take responsibility and take me as your bride."
"W…what…?"
I never got to finish reacting because Anastasia kicked the doors to the hall open and boldly stepped inside.
Then chaos erupted.