"So the general was taken down," a hooded figure spoke. Their voice was distorted by a device they were wearing around their neck, making it difficult to judge if they were a man or a woman.
"He's just a puppet, after all, not that important." another hooded figure with a distorted voice answered.
In a secluded warehouse, guards were standing by while the two hooded figures were examining the dead body of the general. The blood on the ground hadn't completely dried yet, his exposed brain matter was still looking fresh.
"So why bother with him at all if they're not going to assign anyone remotely strong to protect the puppet?"
The other hooded figure shrugged.
"I don't know. We don't question the Council's decision."
"I guess so," they still sounded doubtful.
One of them crouched down near the dead general's head and dug into the bloody wound without flinching. They seemed to be looking for something.
"Found it. Seems to be a 7.62 mm. This looks to be a normal sniper rifle bullet, but for it to pierce the general's head..." they put up the small, bloody object.
"The general was a Warrior, right?"
"A Commander, to be precise, one of the advancements for Warriors,"
"So how did a normal sniper bullet kill him? It would injure him, for sure, but to blow off his head like that,"
"Unless they used Acceleration on the bullet," the hooded figure thought out loud.
"So the killer is an Enchanter?"
"No. Only Acceleration would speed up the bullet, but it would still be too fragile to penetrate his head," they looked at the dead body and then pressed the metal object firmly with his hand.
"This was hardened as well, and it's sharper than normal."
"So Hardening and Sharpening? But those abilities belong to a Guardian and a Warrior respectively."
"Our killer is someone who can use an Enchanter's, a Guardian's, and a Warrior's ability, and can escape from Warriors without a trace..." the hooded figure stood up, "Just what kind of Occupation is that?"
"We need to report this to the Council. They should have more information about this."
"It's that guy's own fault for refusing to use defensive trinkets," they looked at the dead body, their tone cold.
"He was an arrogant one, an old-fashioned one at that. Those kinds think that technology is inferior."
"Had he carried at least a defensive trinket, he could have at least blocked the bullet. Now we are here cleaning this mess," they complained.
"No use complaining now. What else do we know about the killer?"
"They're a sniper for sure. What's strange is that none of these people prepared for snipers, even though that construction site across the street just screamed snipers." they pointed at the dark, abandoned construction site.
"These guys said they completely did not think about snipers until it was too late. And the general's assistant said something strange."
"What did he say?"
"He said he was wondering about the possibility of a sniper, but as he approached this place, that concept disappeared from his mind--as if wiped out."
"Another one of our killer's abilities? That is a dangerous one if they can completely make people not think about something at all,"
"Doesn't that remind you of someone?"
"Who?"
"I've only heard rumors, but they said there is a mercenary who always gets their job done and leaves no trace. Exactly like today. They go by the initial NB."
"What good is knowing that if no one has ever seen them? This could have been done by NB as well but that changes nothing. We are still in the dark."
"Actually, knowing that NB might have been the killer is important. That means, our enemies are able to hire a mercenary of such caliber. We need to be more careful from now,"
"I guess you have a point. This just gives me more headaches. We have to worry about the Enforcers, the Mafia, and now this party who hired NB."
"You worry needlessly. Just believe in the Council. Everything is according to their arrangement."
...
How are you, brother?
I can't believe it's been two years now since I've been transmigrated to this world. The people here call it Earth, but I call it Earth 2.0 since it's nothing like our home.
I hope in these past two years, you are doing fine. I promised that I would take care of you just like you took care of me when we were at the orphanage, but here I am now, stranded alone with no means of going home.
These past two years have been eventful for me, brother.
As I said, this world is nothing like Earth. It's like both classical and advanced cultures mixed together, but the supernatural element is common here... well not for normal people. Normal people don't know that there are people who can shoot fire from their hands. But in the underworld, it's a public secret.
When I first found myself here, I found a Tome, and that is what allows people to be Unnatural--those with supernatural power. My Tome gave me the ability to be a Memory Mage.
It sounds cool, right, brother? But the abilities are not flashy like in video games--they're rather boring.
I know you'd want to be an Unnatural too if you were here, but the process is not fun, believe me. When you want to get power from a Tome, you have to merge with it, and it was really painful for me.
Because of this power, I am able to survive in this dangerous world, so I'm thankful for that.
I've also killed people, brother, but I am sure you would understand.
Now, I am planning to leave this country after 2 years of staying here. I've accumulated enough money, so I can start over in a new country and find more clues about going home, brother.
Another reason why I am leaving is that I feel that my identity is no longer safe.
Oh, I forgot to tell you. I am using the name Norman Bates here. Not that I've ever told anyone that was my name, but I use the initial NB for jobs. Besides that, I always change my appearance and name for different purposes.
But now I need to abandon this identity and start over somewhere else. I'm planning to go to Ladenstein, brother. They said it's a safe country--safer than Mulch, at least.
I know I'm not the best at writing and my story is all a jumbled mess, but I promise I will write more, so when we meet, you can read all about my adventure here, brother.
Now I must go.
Norman put down his pen and folded the paper neatly, before putting it inside an envelope and stuffing it safely inside his luggage.
He then grabbed a passport on the table and opened it.
"Lucas Braham, 26. Born in Denver, Mulch," he said.
Norman swiped his face and his appearance began changing. He grew taller and his blonde hair turned dark brown. It was no longer straight; his hair had become beautifully wavy.
His eyes became olive green in color and his features became sharper. He was now a handsome man that exuded maturity and elegance.
"From now on, I'm no longer Norman. I'm Lucas Braham," he smiled, "A wandering merchant. Not a bad identity."
Lucas put on a pair of pants and a white shirt, buttoning it neatly. He grabbed a brown, elegant coat and left the small apartment room that he had been living in for the past couple of days.
"Gone will be the days where I have to keep moving around. In the new country, I will have my own place to call home," he said proudly, but suddenly he frowned, "But this forged identity cost too much money. The rest of my savings should be enough to buy a house and to live comfortably for a few months, but I will need to find another way to earn money,"
Lucas closed the door behind him and left without looking back.
He walked down the crowded street past tall buildings donned in neon lights. At night, the city would be lively and colorful, but during the day, it only felt like another overcrowded industrial city to him.
"At least Lenster will give me a new vibe," he mumbled.
Lucas stopped a taxi and got on. His destination was the train station, where he would take the train to the neighboring country. In the world he lived in now, he had learned that the countries were located on a big continent much like Asia on Earth, but due to the technology here, it was possible to travel abroad by train relatively quickly.
The purple taxi needed half an hour to take Lucas to the main station, and by the time he arrived, it was almost nine in the morning.
"My train leaves at ten, so I still have some time to spare," he said to himself.
However, even saying that, he still went ahead to his train that was already waiting at the platform. Lucas did not like being late, so he'd rather wait inside the train with peace of mind rather than have to hurry later.
The train that he would be taking was a steam-powered one, but it could go 200kmph at its fastest. To normal people, they only knew that it was thanks to technological advancement, but to Lucas, he knew that at least a supernatural element is involved.
"I'm sure a Technomancer is responsible for making this possible. Not that I'm complaining. At least some Unnaturals are not only useful for killing," he smiled contently, sitting in his first-class carriage by the window.