[Lion City]

“Still no response from Zen?” said Alfonse. He was the leader of Blood Tachi, one of the nine divisions of Black Midas. The figures of Alfonse and a dozen other assassins blurred through the night. They moved along alleyways and streets, unnoticed by the passersby.

One of his subordinates shook his head. “None, sir.”

Several days ago, they’d lost contact with the assassin stationed in Lion City. Although Zen was not among the elite of Black Midas, he was still part of the reconnaissance group. Each of their members specialized in concealment magic and escape. If Zen was dead, he must have come across a noteworthy opponent. Someone skilled enough to catch and kill such a skilled assassin.

Once they had entered Lion City, Zen would have contacted them. As moments passed, their suspicions grew.

First Blood Tachi visited Zen’s house, located in the Commoners District. After searching it, they found the encrypted message sent directly by the leader of Black Midas. Zen had received their message.

Although the room was neat, the windowsill held a fine layer of dust. It must have been several days since Zen left home.

“He probably went ahead and kicked the bucket,” spat one of the assassins. “That idiot.”

“This is why the Reconnaissance Division is trash. They can’t even wait for us to arrive,” said another. “Stupid bunch.”

“Enough,” said Alfonse. Like the other members of the group, he was clad in pure black, revealing nothing but his crimson eyes.

“Seth. Can you track where he went?”

A female voice replied, “Sure, sure.”

The female assassin took out a small vial filled with strands of hair. She chanted her magic and a small hexagram glowed under her feet. She pulled out the strands of hair and scattered them around the magic circle. After a long time, the magic circle broke into numerous particles of light. A small sparrow made of light manifested before them.

“Guide us there,” Seth said to the sparrow.

The sparrow flew around the room, then flew through the window. The members of Blood Tachi quickly followed.

To the assassins’ surprise, the sparrow led them to a nearby building, a run-down inn close to the Middle District. They entered discreetly and followed the bird to a room on the second floor.

“Nothing’s here,” said Alfonse, looking around. The room was tidy, with a small bed and a wooden table near the window.

“Strange,” mumbled Seth. “My tracking magic has never failed me before.” But just like their leader said, there was nothing here.

“Who are you people?” said a trembling voice. The innkeeper stood in the doorway, agape, with a lamp in his hand.

Alfonse nodded at his subordinates. On cue, the assassins struck the innkeeper, and he fell to the ground. The old man coughed twice as he struggled to get up. “What are you doi—”

A cloth was stuffed inside his mouth.

“Old man.” Alfonse crouched and stared him straight in the eyes. “Did someone die here, several days ago?”

Unable to speak, the old man shook his head.

Alfonse looked at Seth. If the innkeeper did not see a corpse, then why had the tracking magic pointed here? It did not make sense.

“He’s probably lying,” said Seth. It was the only possible explanation. “Listen, Gramps. I’m going to remove your gag, but if you shout, I’ll kill you.”

She removed the cloth from the old man’s mouth. “Now, I’ll repeat the leader’s question. Did anyone die here?”

She took out a dagger. The old man shivered and stuttered, “I r-really d-don’t know! No one died here! I swear to the gods!”

They were at a dead end. It was clear the old man wasn’t lying.

Seth looked at the sparrow sitting on top of the bed. Why did it lead them to this place?

“Leader, look at this.” One of the assassins came into the room, holding a logbook. “I looked through the lists of guests in this inn. And look at what I found.”

Alfonse looked at the name his man pointed at. He creased his brow as he read the name out loud. “Lark Marcus.”

He wasn’t expecting the name of their target to pop up here. For a moment, Alfonse stood there, contemplating.

He realized why the sparrow had led them here. Looking at Seth, it seemed that she’d also arrived at the same conclusion.

“Zen is dead,” she said.

Alfonse nodded. “Change of plans. We shall go directly to Blackstone Town.”

“Understood,” replied his men.

“Hear that, old man?” Seth giggled. “We no longer need you. Bye bye!”

She covered the mouth of the old man and struck his neck with a dagger. Blood spurted out, the body twitched, and she chuckled.

What kind of man was this Lark Marcus? He had killed Zen and completely concealed the dead body. Just thinking about this made Seth shiver in ecstasy.

She could not wait for the moment when her dagger pierced his flesh.