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"Hmm... this place really is peaceful."
Damian muttered to himself as he blended with the crowd while looking at the scenery. Though it had been some time since the war against the demon army had ended, it seemed that it was only he who was still stuck in the past...
In all honesty, back when he was crawling in the trenches of the battlefield, he'd never imagined that the war would end. The battle between their forces and the demon army seemed to always be at a standstill.
If he were to be asked when the tides of the war shifted in their favor...
"...Hmph. I see he still tries to make himself look as perfect as possible in his statues, eh?"
He couldn't help but sigh as he stared at the golden statues of the seven brave warriors and mages of the Hero coalition.
The other folks around him looked at the sight with marvel, but knowing all of them, he couldn't help but wonder why...
"Mommy, mommy, look! That's the hero, Julius, right? They look so cool! I want to be like them someday!"
"Fufu, don't worry, my dear. I bet you will."
"..."
As he listened to the kid behind him, Damian suppressed his urge to say, "Please don't be a garbage human being like him..."
But alas, the situation was more complicated than that. He could face severe capital punishment for saying something like that out loud. Besides, he was part of the reason why the man he loathes so much is hailed around the world as the person who defeated the demon army despite there being more to the story.
At the end of the day, he was just a grunt who did his dirty work in the shadows. In the first place, claiming credit was not in his code as a member of the Phantom Order anyway...
"...I suppose it's time to move along."
He muttered as he began to head out.
Though the academy was way on the other side of the city from where the airship landed, it wouldn't even take him five minutes to arrive there by running at full speed. Part of the reason why he didn't do so immediately was because he wanted to scout the area.
Even if he was provided with a complete map of the place as well as some pieces of info, an assassin should master the terrain personally and familiarize themselves with every nook and cranny, no matter how big the place is.
So far, he had visited the common areas that were generally considered safe. Now it was time to head out to the more infamous locations... Looking at the map, Damian's gaze landed on the corner of the island.
While Thorfen Academy was indeed leagues better than other Imperial cities in terms of management and technological advancement, it wasn't a utopia. From what he'd heard, this particular part of the island is where ruffians and dropouts of the academy hang around doing whatever they please...
The academy had tried to suppress them in the past... but they still kept coming back.
In the end, they were forced to accept that if there's light, there would inevitably be darkness.
As Damian arrived, he was greeted with the familiar stench of death.
This place was completely different from the other parts of the island, which were the picture-perfect image of order and prosperity. What he could see here was something that used to be similar but was corrupted by evil...
There was a red-light district that lured all the lonely souls and wrung them dry for all they were worth.
In other parts, he noticed that folks indulged in all manner of drugs.
And the rest?... well, they weren't doing pretty things, that was for sure.
To Damian's eyes, this place seemed to be a tumor on the island. But nevertheless, this place seemed to have its uses. Shady people more often than not know far more than those who aren't, and if he plays his cards right, he'd be able to get some info about this great evil for sure.
"Or maybe this was the great evil that oracle was talking about..."
In which case, it'd make things easier for him. He could destroy a tumor in a place like this and kill the folks managing it overnight.
But he shouldn't get too hasty. He'd have more time to explore this place in the future.
The sun was about to set soon, and he needed to go to the academy by then, so he figured to stop his reconnaissance for now. As he began to discreetly jump from roof to roof, his eyes caught something that piqued his interest.
It was the sight of an elf being surrounded by a gang of folks who seemed to be drunk.
He halted in his tracks before erasing his presence and moving close.
"Please just let me be on my way. I have to find someone; it's really important..."
"Oh, but keeping us entertained is also really important, young lady."
"Yeah, that's right! Come on, little miss, why would you come to this place if you weren't down to being dirty?... hehe, damn, your body really is something."
Damian couldn't help but agree.
The Elves were a species naturally blessed with beauty. There's a saying that the ugliest elf could pass as a princess in a human kingdom, and this girl was a testament to that. Her blonde hair was glistening like the morning sun, and her emerald eyes had a certain charm to them which captivated seemingly all who looked at her.
Her skin was white and seemingly free from all blemishes, and her curves were out of this world.
But what really caught his attention was the black uniform she was wearing.
It was the uniform worn by those attending the academy.
He never really liked involving himself in anything other than his mission, but as things stood, he figured he should do something to help her without exposing his identity. There were plenty of ways to take care of those drunks, but before he could do anything...
"You've left me no choice..."
Her eyes glowed, and as she placed her hands on the ground, the earth trembled.
"W-What the-"
"This is!-"
Tiny roots began to emerge from the ground, quickly growing into massive branches that surrounded them before incapacitating them. The speed of her spellcasting impressed Damian, so much so that he was able to immediately discern her identity.
The length of her ears was long, even for elven standards, which could only mean she was of nobility.
A high elf, so to speak.
And among the small group of high elves, he'd only heard of one person who chose to leave the grace of the Yggdrasil tree and travel all the way to Thorfen Island to pursue a higher level of education... she was the high-elf Mellaina, a person who was said to be the most beloved in the elven race.
He couldn't help but wonder why someone like that was roaming around this place, but he could find that out later. For now, it seemed that she had everything under control. In fact, he felt like he wasn't even needed there...
"You bastard!"
But since he was here, he figured he'd help her a bit.
Taking out a dagger, he threw it at the man who was sneaking behind her. The dagger swiftly brushed through the wind, and before anyone knew it, his skull was pierced before his body was sent tumbling onto the floor.
"-!"
The rest of the folks who were restrained looked at the sight in shock. Of course, the elf was equally surprised as well. She looked around to see where it came from, but someone like her wasn't nearly skilled enough to notice an assassin of Damian's caliber.
"Well, I should get going..." As he thought about this, he quickly left the scene.
And after he left, the elf stared at the sight of the fallen man behind her...
"You bitch! How dare you, I swear to god I'll kill you the moment I break free of this!"
"He had a family, you monster! How could you even think of doing something like that!"
"You slaughtered him like a dog, you damn-"
She tried her best to ignore the ramblings of the drunk folks she restrained, but it was getting annoying the more she listened to it.
"...I'm gonna need you to be silent, please."
Saying this, she manipulated the massive branches that were binding them to toss them away from her.
They flew up in the air, and in all honesty, the chances of them just hitting a random building and dying were a possibility.
But at this point, it didn't matter. They reaped what they sowed.
And more importantly, she found it...
"..."
As she removed the dagger that was stuck in the man's head, she closely inspected it. The way the dagger was made was light and easy to move around with. And how it was crafted... was awfully similar to Imperial craftsmanship.
"This definitely seems like something a professional killer would use. And if it's issued by the Imperial military, then that means..."
Her eyes widened as a realization dawned upon her.
"He's here..."
She tightly gripped the knife and placed it closer to her chest.
A smile spread across her face as she looked at the sky.
"Professor Damian..."
Soon, she began chuckling. And her ominous figure laughing in the dark alleyway frightened all who saw her. It didn't take long for the rumors of a frightening, chuckling elf to spread around the slums of the island.