The alarm blarred consistently, its sounds echoing through the room. On the other side of the bed lay the infamous Deathmaker, dressed in his pajamas, dozing through the cacophony.
He continued to sleep until a knock on the door startled him awake.
"Good morning, Mr. Rey! It's time to wake up. The Chief summons you and the other S-Class Assassins," a voice called from outside.
Slowly, Rey opened his sleepy eyes. Despite being a deep sleeper, he was always alert. He turned to silence the alarm and reluctantly rose to his feet, still clad in his night clothes. He made his way out of the bedroom.
"K? You were sent to wake me up? I was expecting that other noisy butler," Rey remarked, rubbing his eyes as he glared at the newly assigned butler.
Agent K, one of the Assassin Guild's butlers, was tasked with serving selected assassins. Only S-Class Assassins received a butler due to their notorious reputations.
"Mr. 0 left service, and I am the new butler assigned to you. The Chief informed me about you and asked me to bring you to the meeting room, by force if necessary," Mr. K replied, a warm smile on his face.
In his mid-fifties, with a white beard, Mr. K was surprisingly muscular.
"Well, there's no need for that; I'll come on my own. I never miss a meeting, after all," Rey Castle—known as the Deathmaker—responded. His last name, Castle, was bestowed upon him by the Chief of the Assassin Guild.
Still in his night attire, he descended to the meeting area, greeted with respect by everyone he passed, a privilege granted to S-Class Assassins.
"You are Mr. K, right? Can you summarize what you think will happen in the meeting?" Rey asked calmly, smiling as he strolled with his butler behind him, hands in his pockets.
"Well, let's put it this way: You were captured by the Vermax Empire, placed on death row, escaped, and failed your mission. Killing the princess was a mission given to you, and yet you failed."
"May I ask why?" Mr. K inquired, his tone calm.
"Well, I found her somewhat interesting. Trust me, I didn't fail the mission; I merely refused to complete it. There's a difference. If I had wanted to, I could have killed her, but I chose not to," Rey explained.
"Is that so? Don't you realize you're damaging the reputation of the Assassin Guild?" a calm yet authoritative voice interjected. Rey sighed, knowing what was coming.
In an instant, they were transported to the meeting room, courtesy of a special device that allowed the Chief to summon anyone within the Assassin Guild.
"Hello, Chief! I've missed you," Rey called, waving with a smile.
Before him stood the Chief, surrounded by the S-Class Assassins: the Blood Sword, the White Widow, Bjorn the Cleaver, and the Fist of Madness.
The Chief, an old man in his seventies with pure silver hair and gentle eyes, had created the Assassin Guild after retiring from his previous endeavors, which included driving demons from the North.
"Rey Castle, you are a member of the Spectrum Six, the six S-Class Assassins of the Assassin Guild, yet you failed a simple mission: to assassinate the princess of the Vermax Empire."
"You worried some of the executives when you were put on death row by Emperor Argilac of the Vermax Empire. What do you have to say about this?" the Chief asked, his eyes cold.
"Well, you can't blame me, right? I'm only a child. Besides, the princess was quite interesting, which is why I didn't kill her. I didn't fail the mission; I just refused to complete it," Rey replied.
"We've heard that already, Rey. But that's unacceptable. Your client reported you to us," the Blood Sword said, puffing smoke from his nose, holding a cigarette delicately in his hand.
"If the client wants her dead, let him kill her himself. I'm not accepting the same mission twice; it's not my style. I'll take my seat now," Rey said, approaching the table and sitting down, facing the Chief.
"You will be punished, but let's save that for later. There's a reason this meeting was called," the Chief said, sighing. He pulled out a scroll and placed it on the table. Mr. K, standing behind him, gently opened the scroll.
"What's that?" Rey asked, curiosity piqued.
"The demons of the East are making their way toward the South. We know there are levels to how demons are ranked; we hardly come across horned demons, but marked demons have been sighted."
"Although we're short on battle suits, the Western Empires are stealing our kills and taking their bodies. Our Qi source remains imperfect because the recipe was lost seventeen years ago," the Chief continued, taking a deep breath.
"Seventeen years ago? Are you referring to the Baylor Slaughter Incident?" the White Widow asked, noticing the murderous gaze of the Deathmaker, who remained calm.
"Boy, what's with that glare? I know the Baylor Clan was your birthplace, but it also symbolizes humanity's greatest defense. The Baylor Clan discovered the technology known as Qi."
"But they were betrayed by their fellow humans and are no more. You needn't worry; you will have your revenge on those responsible for the Baylor Slaughter Incident," the White Widow assured.
"I'm already enacting my revenge. First, I killed Prince Adrian of the Vermax Empire, one of the five responsible for the Baylor Slaughter Incident. My father was the head of the Baylor Clan."
"My mother created the technology that the Western Empires now boast about. They're the ones responsible for the Baylor Slaughter Incident, yet they've ignored it, acting as if it never happened."
"I will have my revenge and kill every last one of them," Rey declared, a deathly aura radiating from him.
"Calm down, Rey. We're aware, and we're here to help. But we also need to deal with demon hunting. The West and the South are the primary targets for the demons coming from the East."
"It will take a lot for them to reach the North. That's why we're short on demon skins to amplify and create weapons. Their hearts are modified as cores to enhance our bodies to fight against demons."
"The West has Huntsmen, we have Assassins. Though the West seeks our downfall, they understand the gravity of waging war against us. They can't directly declare war until they have the advantage," the Chief asserted with authority.
"We must ensure they are on the losing side," he added.
"So, boss, what do you want us to do?" Bjorn the Cleaver asked.
"Do you want us to destroy some demons to retrieve their bodies, or do you want the formulas for Qi?" Rey inquired, crossing his legs and placing them on the table, embodying the spoiled brat of the Assassin Guild.
"I would like the formula to complete Qi. As far as we and the world know, Qi is currently incomplete because the Baylor Clan refused to share the secrets of complete Qi with anyone."
"Now that the Baylor Clan is gone, Qi remains incomplete. If a demonic wave begins, I doubt we'll survive. In total, there are more than a thousand single-horned demons out there."
"If they all make a move…" the Chief paused.
"If they all make a move, humanity will be in grave danger. But single-horned demons rarely work together. Only a triple-horned or quadruple-horned demon can control double-horned and single-horned demons."
"I doubt they will make a move without a plan to dominate us," Rey said with a smile. The Chief stared at Rey, who grinned gently; he had been a father figure to Rey Castle all along.
"Rey… you are a Baylor. Don't forget that," the Chief reminded him.
"Yeah, yeah, I know. Why don't I return to my plot to assassinate everyone responsible for the Baylor Slaughter Incident? After all, I am Rey Baylor," the Deathmaker said with an evil grin.
**Meanwhile**
Between the borders of the Southern Province and the Eastern Province, bodies lay scattered across the blood-soaked field as terrified screams filled the air, the stench of death hanging heavily.
Shrieks echoed through the atmosphere as creatures of great evil prowled the area.
Demons of various shapes and forms loitered about, single-eyed or eyeless demons seen devouring the corpses of soldiers who had come to eradicate them, surrounded by their malevolent kin.
The last surviving soldier cowered in fear, overwhelmed by the demonic ki saturating the space. Countless demon eyes fixed their gazes upon him.
"P-P-Please… spare me! I'll do anything! I have a son!" the soldier pleaded, his eyes widening in shock at the sight of glowing eyes surrounding him.
"Where is he?" a demonic voice inquired authoritatively.
Demonic waves radiated through the air, burning the oxygen around him. The soldier screamed in pain, tears flooding his eyes
"W-W-Where… where is who?" the soldier stammered in shock.
"Where is he? The one who bears the mark of Death? The last son of Baylor! Where is he?" the demonic voice pressed again, this time with greater pressure, causing the soldier to choke.
"I… I… I don't know! Please spare me!" the soldier pleaded desperately.
"It seems I was right. The last son of Baylor exists, but finding him will be a pain. However, he exists, and I must find him. He is the one who bears the mark of Death; he belongs to the demons," the demonic voice echoed, becoming increasingly louder as dark clouds of ashes filled the air.
From the ashes emerged a figure, glowing red eyes piercing through the darkness and pale skin standing firm. Every demon present fell to its knees, bowing before this figure.
It was a mythical triple-horned demon, towering and imposing, as the soldier, overwhelmed by its presence, was already dead from fear. The triple-horned demon approached the fallen soldier, bent down, and pulled out his head.
"Such pathetic weak creatures! The fact that the mark of Death was born into the body of a mere human irritates me. But what do I know? Very soon, he will be reborn… the Lord of Nemesis!"
"And so will begin the Harvest!" the triple-horned demon proclaimed with an evil grin, devouring the soldier's head right on the spot. It tossed the skull aside as it slowly turned to leave the scene, the bodies of the humans feasted upon by every demon present.