by Pegaz
???
Rank: 4
Level: 8
This result stunned John as it was near the limit of what he knew. If the man had two more levels, the skill wouldn’t have come up with anything.
Satisfied with his leg up, John walked into the tavern. There weren’t that many people inside since it was before noon and not many people needed a drink this early in the day. John strode in and sat opposite from the man, eyes peeled on him with as much subtlety John could muster.
The man looked like he was in his forties, but John knew he could very well be a few hundred years old. He had blond hair, black stubble on his face, green eyes, and a drunken breath that could have been used as a weapon.
“What do you want?”
John glanced around to double check that no one was looking at them, then redirected his attention to the blonde before him. He made his earring transform into its mask form, and then back again as quickly as possible.
That stunned the man, which was the effect that John had been hoping for. The man put his drink down and leaned closer to John, whispering so only John could hear.
“You on a mission too? How did you find me out?”
So, I’m guessing no one else can tell who the other members are? John realised he had another advantage because of the system. He lowered his voice to reply.
“I have a specialty that makes me a good worker. If you’re here to work as well, then maybe we can help each other.”
“What kind of help?” By his sway, the man was obviously still drunk, but he somehow maintained his composure. John felt a spark of admiration ignite within him.
“You help me with brawns, and I help you by scouting.” John leaned even further in, cupping his mouth with his hands. “My specialty is seeing through things. For example, I know you’re at Immortal Rank 4, 8th Level. Am I right?”
The man was now completely shocked. He’d been using a technique specifically to disguise his immortal rank and John saw right through it!
“Impressive,” he breathed. “Fine, it’s a deal. It’ll help us both get our jobs done quicker, and then we can sit down for a drink. Now, tell me about your mission first.”
John nodded, a quirked grin on his face. “Mu family’s Matthew Mu, Rank 2 Level 1. You kill any guards he has, and maybe hold him down to let me get the killing blow. When we’re done, I can help you locate your own target. My ability has a few drawbacks, though. I only know the first four levels of Immortal rank, so my specialty won’t work on anyone higher than Rank 4 Level 9. I need more information for higher ranks.”
The man listened to John’s proposal and nodded.
“Fine.” He sat back into a relaxed posture. “I know up to the 7th Rank so that I can tell you all that. But we find my target first.”
“Deal.”
The two shook hands, calloused fingers wrapping around the other’s and giving them a firm shake.
The blonde went on to explain what he could about the different ranks. Although he had a slight slur in his speech, his information was quite valuable and John clung onto every word as best as he could.
The 4th Rank was the Creation Stage, which John was already familiar with. The 5th stage was called the Storage Stage, during which one increased the amount they could store in each brain cell. At Level 9 of this rank, one could increase the storage by about nine times what they had at the 4th rank.
The 6th rank was called the Branch Stage, and it was mainly just strengthening the Life System that the user created in Life Stage while gather more Life Power. The goal was to be able to withstand the amount of force from using every bit of Life Power they’d stored all at once without harming yourself.
The 7th Rank was the Cell Stage, and one strengthens all cells in the body in the order of Life Stage. Feet came first, working up towards the head. After Level 9, one could store Life Power in the cells too, though, not as much.
The blonde wrapped up his explanation. John found all the information very useful to him.
“Thank you,” John said with great sincerity. “So tell me, what rank is your work then?”
“Rank 4 Level 6,” the older man spat out. “Do you need to see what the work looks like?”
“Not yet.” John shook his head. “Let me go scout the area first. Wait here, and I’ll be back within ten minutes.” After another moment, he quickly added, “And don’t worry—you’re a lot stronger than me, and I’m not stupid enough to try and take advantage of you. I still need your help since my target is known to have plenty of bodyguards.”
The blond man raised his glass to him, and John walked out the tavern. He went around the corner and into an alley.
With Life Vision turned on, he did a full 360-degree sweep around his surroundings. Once satisfied, he turned Life Vision off and opened the map up.
System, remove all icons except those at Rank 4 Level 6.
What came up were seventy icons. Nodding at the results, John now had to wait ten minutes to go back. There was no way he could return to the pub after a mere minute, or else the man would suspect him of foul play. He wanted to be more inconspicuous with strangers, just in case.
And so, John waited for just over ten minutes before returning to the tavern. The man was in the exact same position, nursing his pint of ale. John approached him and took his seat across from him.
“I never got your name,” he said after the blonde’s cool gaze noted his presence. “I’m John. I just joined the team not long ago. This is my first work experience.”
A wry grin spread across the blonde’s stubbled face at John’s words. At least this boy is smart enough to avoid shouting ‘assassin’, ‘sect’ or ‘contract’.
“My name’s Michael Jones.” The blonde tilted his head. “I’ve been working for almost 700 years. Experience is the one thing I’ve got plenty of.”
John was shocked at his age. 700 years! He looked forty, at the most.
“Okay, now back to business.” John shook his shock away. “I’ve found seventy places we could work. Not sure which one you’d pick, though, so I could show you those seventy places, and then you decide.”
The man nodded and stood up. He drained the last of his ale and strode out the tavern. John followed, spouting directions at every given chance.
After an hour of searching, they found Michael’s target. It was the twenty-sixth person on the list, a man situated nicely in a big mansion with flocks of guards patrolling the place. Michael had information about the man’s guards which showed they were at the right place, or else John couldn’t identify him for Michael.
John turned Life Vision on again and swept the grounds.
“The strongest one in there is your target, but there’s a person hiding behind him.” John squinted in observation and Michael listened closely. “I’m guessing when you sneak up on your target from behind, that guy will strike you too. The hidden person is Immortal Rank 4 Level 1.”
“How can you tell he’s hiding from here?”
“His location,” John answered plainly. “He’s lying down on the floor above your target, but facing his back. I’m assuming he’s there to stop anyone who tries to make a sneak attack.”
Michael nodded, content with the explanation. “Okay, wait here. When I’ve finished this job, we’ll go to your target. We can go back to the sect together then.”
“I was planning on getting some books from this world since my specialty doesn’t work without the knowledge.”
“Alright then,” Michael chuckled at the odd request. “I’ll help you get as many books as possible. I only come out when it’s mandatory contract time, though this time, you’ve made it a lot easier. Once this job is done, I’ll have plenty of free time again.”
Michael’s mask covered his face and hair, and then he disappeared before John’s eyes.
Thanks to the map and Life Vision, John was able to track Michael’s movements. He saw Michael dodge the patrolling guards and slip into a window on the third floor. With an
alluring grace, the assassin silently killed the person who was lying down inside that room.
Michael reached down and pulled his arm up. John assumed that the motion he made was to open a trap door of sorts. He watched in awe as Michael used it to approach his target…and then his hands moved in opposite directions.
He snapped his target’s neck.
A few minutes later, Michael returned next to John with the man’s head in hand.
“This has got to be the easiest contract I’ve ever taken,” Michael let loose a hearty laugh. “Next time the mandatory contract is here, I want you to come with me again!” He took off his mask, revealing a ragged smile.
“If I’m free and you offer some of the payment, then sure.” John shrugged with a grin on his own face.
They went to find John’s target next. However, there were hundreds of Rank 2 Level 1 indicators in this part of the city alone. He started asking around for the Mu family’s estate location, trying to be as discreet as possible.
An hour later, both Michael and John were wearing their assassin masks and robes. Michael had just killed thirteen guards and was stepping on Matthew Mu, who was pinned face down onto the floor. As promised, he was waiting for John to finish him off.
John nodded at Michael and used Crush Grip on his target’s neck. With a fierce and swift motion, he tore his target’s head off to bring back as proof.
‘Ding!’
1 Life Pool Unit has been added.
John smiled at this notification.
Chapter 10
Anti-Assassins
Killing a Rank 2 Level 1 immortal got me 1 Life Pool unit! That’s just the purified number, though. It’s roughly 10% of the total Life Power, which means that I would have earned 10 units from this guy.
Hopefully, this number increases when killing stronger people. What’s the maximum amount of Life Power you can store at Rank 2, anyway?
John picked up Matthew’s bags and checked inside. There were bronze, silver and a few other coins that he recognised. John looked at Michael, gesturing to the coins.
“Are these things universal currency or something?”
“Yes, every world has these coins.” Michael reached into the bag and lifted a single bronze coin to show. “Oh, and most worlds have an Adventurer’s Guild. Your ID card can access any of their banks too.”
That part surprised John. “So, each world doesn’t have its own currency?”
Michael laughed. “They used to, but since coming into contact with the rest of the universe, they agreed to use these type of coins for currency. The rest fell into place.”
“I guess that makes sense.” John was curious now. “How did they get to different planets before the teleport runes?”
“I’m not 100% sure,” the blonde mused. “I’ve only heard rumours or myths. Supposedly, there were beings strong enough to travel through space, so powerful they didn’t even need to breathe. After millions of years of travelling, they were the ones who planted the runes.”
“Then... what about things like the Adventurer’s Guild?” John quirked an eyebrow. “Do they have something like a home planet? Are the ones on other planets branches?”
“Yes, they have their own home planet.” Michael’s eyes darted around to make sure they were still in the clear. “That’s where they deal with all the paperwork. They use runes to communicate, something like live projected images.”
John was about to continue asking questions when something caught the corner of his eye. He still had Life Vision on so he looked over, and saw two people rushing towards them.
“Incoming!” John shouted to Michael.
Michael, who’d suspected the presence of the attacker, snapped around in one fluid motion. There were two guards rushing at him and John.
John turned off Life Vision and checked the two people out with his Immortal Eye skill.
???
Rank: 4
Level: 7
???
Rank: 2
Level: 2
“The guy on the left is just one level below you, and the other guy is one level above me!” John called out, unable to hide the delight in his voice. “Perfect match up! I need to test a few things.” He smiled under his mask
“You sure you can handle him? Don’t let your guard down.” Michael prepared for the fight.
“Don’t worry about me,” John snickered. “I have many ways to run if need be.”
The man on the left charged at Michael, and the two of them disappeared from view. John was left alone with the other attacker. While they were wearing masks and robes too, instead of black and silver, their robes were red and green. The cloaked figure continued to charge at John but came to a halt once within striking range. They both stood in tense silence before John spoke up.
“Who are you?!” John spat with malice.
The attacker merely stood there, as if sizing John up. After a few seconds, the attacker replied curtly in a smooth voice.
“Anti-Assassin Group.”
“Oh? If the target were someone with morals, I would say you’re right to go ‘Anti-Assassin’,” John sneered at the man as he raised Matthew’s disembodied head to show it off. “But with pieces of crap like this guy, I disagree.”
“All life is valuable,” was the attacker’s only reply.
“Should have told that to this guy. He killed a whole family for profit.”
No response.
The tension increased three-fold, and John felt like the fight could begin at any moment so he placed Matthew’s disembodied head into his Storage Space.
“Oh, before we fight,” John wondered if the attacker could sense his mischievous smile behind his mask. “You’re not... a woman, are you?”
The attacker tensed up, and John knew right away that he hit the nail on the mark.
“I could tell from your voice,” he chuckled playfully. “I wouldn’t want to hit you in the wrong place and get called a pervert, or anythi—”
Without waiting for John to finish, the attacker charged at him with an inhuman speed.
Albeit caught off guard, John’s reflexes kicked in and he was able to parry the attacker’s blow with ease. He caught sight of the Life Power in the attacker’s feet as she rushed forward. As he blocked the attack with his forearm, he wondered if he could mimic her technique.
That must be the basics of fast travelling with Life Power. I’ll give it a try.
He pumped 10 Life Power units into each foot, then pushed himself backwards.
WHOOSH.
BANG!
In an impossibly abrupt motion, John was launched backwards. His body made an impact with objects, but because of his speed and force, he destroyed them all and kept flying through space. Eventually, he came crashing into a wall and found himself buried deep within.
Holy shit...
Feeling sore from the impact, John crawled out of the wall and patted himself down.
My Life Power is so much stronger than the rest! 10 units caused this! I need to try 1 unit and go from there. No, wait, can I go lower than one? How about 0.1?
John was now scared of the strength of his Life Power.
He put as little Life Power into his feet as possible, which turned out to be 1 unit. Still a bit wary, he dashed forward to test it. His speed was extremely fast, but it was stable enough for him to control.
Smiling, John looked over at his attacker. She was standing at the ready, watching every one of John’s movements. John wondered if she was shocked by his display of power, or maybe she was amused by his lack of experience. He dashed up to her, ten feet at a time as that’s how far 1 unit of Life Power carries him.
Within range, he decided to try out his clothing’s transformative properties. At the command of his mind, his clothing changed into armour. It was a silver bodysuit, with his left arm lined up and down with spikes, while his right arm was dressed in chainmail. His left shoulder was guarded by an extra thick sheet of metal, resembling small shields. His
torso was plated in a form-fitting metal, as were his legs and even his boots.
So, left arm for defence, right arm for attack? Either way, looks good. John smiled at his new look.
The attacker firmed her stance, doing her best to maintain her composure. She was more than familiar with shapeshifting clothes, but those typically belonged to at least Rank 6 immortals. She only happened to know because her own clothes shared the same properties.
He must be someone important in his sect.
John waited for her to make the first move. His mask hid his cocky smile as he sized up his opponent. He needed to keep an eye on her feet when she used them for an attack, but other than that, it would be smooth sailing for him thanks to the system.
Seconds passed, and John grew impatient.
“Well?” he taunted. “Ladies fir—”
Once again interrupting his sentence, the attacker dashed forward and brandished her sword. In a liquid motion, she took a ferocious jab at John’s neck.
John brought his left arm up and caught the sword by the blade, just narrowly evading the lethal blow. He crushed the blade in his hand, pushing his way toward his opponent.
The anti-assassin didn’t miss a beat. She dropped the sword and leaned back, kicking out with her right leg. John twisted out of the way, again narrowly avoiding her attack. He dashed to his right, appearing on the woman’s left side. Although her eyes darted over to him, John moved too quickly for her to react in time. He drove his fist deep into her torso, aiming at her liver and knocking her into the air.
Satisfied with the blow, John took a couple of steps back and let the anti-assassin fall onto the ground. She landed with little grace, a tired mess on the dirt. It was apparent that, even though her technique was well-honed and at a higher level than him, she was unfamiliar with being hit. Something clicked in John’s head.
“This is your first time in the outside world,” he said slowly, “isn’t it?”
She struggled to lift her head from the floor, clutching her left side. Her protective clothing had saved her from any permanent damage, but she was still finding it hard to breathe. She carefully raised her eyes to meet John’s, a fiery expression hidden behind her mask.