The trees in the courtyard were silent, heralding another night across Nagalon. However, it was too quiet. Not a single owl called, leaving only the rustle of leaves on branches.
Watching through the open window of Orochi Moon-Born, an assassin perched upon the branch, light as a cat, analyzed his target. The beaked mask was directly pointed at Orochi, two beady eyes watching through the black-tinted lenses of the mask.
Taking out a scroll from his pouch, Theo Crowmen looked at the death contract. The Crowmen were the boogeymen of the King, the men in the dark who took those unworthy to be in the light back into the shadows.
The drawing of the Seventh Moon-Born showed a child who had never once stepped into the light, yet already had enemies who wished for a premature death. Regardless, what surprised Theo was that a Moon-Born had requested the contract from the royal assassins.
Peering through the window, Theo used Insight, unsurprised to find nothing interesting. The rumours were true, the boy truly had no Spirit Power. It was better for a noble child to be dead than to live like this; Theo would be doing him a favour.
Chuckling, the young assassin wondered why he even bothered for an excuse. A contract was a contract. It's just business, as the Crow Mother would say.
Watching carefully, Theo had to wait for the maid to leave. Althea was her name. Best to avoid her. He had been notified about the elf, and her danger level was critical. It was made clear to avoid the elven ranger and make sure things did not get messy.
The guards had circled for the third time underneath his tree before the elf finally left the bedroom. Finally, thought Theo, this is my time.
Just as he was about to use a skill to propel himself through the window, the child target moved, turning his back to him.
Perfect. For Theo, this was just another night. Through the heart would mean less mess, and whoever wanted him dead could just cover the scar and say the child died during his coma.
Words fell in a whisper. "Quick Step."
In a flash, stepping three times in midair, Theo made it to the windowsill, hurling himself inside and landing as if there where cushions under his feet. Using Quick Step a second time, he was behind the boy, a sleek dagger drawn, ready to plunge into the target's heart.
As the knife thrust downwards, Theo felt his blood pumping, eyes widening, feeling the Black Crow inside call out in joy.
"Null Mirror."
Huh? Theo looked up at the raised dagger, his arm suddenly going limp. The dagger seemed to have met some force, clanging off the boy's back as if it had struck iron.
Confused, he tried to pull back, but his feet gave way. What was going on?
Instinctively, Theo's hand went to his chest. Dropping the dagger, his palm cupped a pool of his own blood.
Falling to his knees, suddenly too weak to stand, his vision started to blur, the crow inside whimpering.
Hiss.
The sound of a predator closing in on its prey. A prey that could not fly away.
"Well. This is convenient."
Theo looked up, blinking, finding the child standing over him.
Wait. Child?
Looking into those deep royal purple eyes, he suddenly felt like he wasn't before a child. The colour of his eyes didn't match the description Theo was given. It didn't make sense. The child shouldn't have had any spirit contracts.
"Monster…" Theo's breath hitched, suddenly realising this was it. The Black Crow spirit beast inside grieved upon realising the end was near.
This was death.
Oblivion had come to greet the Crowmen.
╰┈➤.
[𝙾𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚟𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝙼𝚎𝚜𝚜𝚊𝚐𝚎]
𝚂𝚢𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚖 𝙵𝚎𝚎 𝙿𝚊𝚒𝚍. 𝚃𝚒𝚖𝚎 𝚎𝚡𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚍 𝚋𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚎𝚎 𝚍𝚊𝚢𝚜.
The assassin lay before Orochi in a pool of blood. He had just killed someone and felt nothing.
Squatting over the man's body, Orochi lifted the mask, watching the life drain from the featureless face beneath. It was strange. The man had no ears or mouth, his face nothing more than black stretched skin with two eyes. As if his entire existence had been crafted for killing, never to be identified.
"Someone wants me really dead," Orochi muttered, sure of it.
Patting down the body, he found a folded piece of paper tucked within the assassin's midnight-black garments. He was about to open it when the doors to the room widened. Orochi turned to see Althea standing there.
Had she come back after hearing the commotion?
Quickly he raised his hands. "Calm down, let me expla—"
But Althea was deathly serious. Gone was the nervous girl.
In her place stood someone with hardened, veteran eyes.
The maid dashed forward, grabbing Orochi by the collar in one hand and pulling him as if he weighed nothing. The light child's body was nothing to a superhuman elf. She swivelled on her feet, pressing Orochi under her bossom, covering him with her body.
"Head down, young master."
The tone was so commanding and surgically cold that it almost took Orochi aback, but his instincts told him to listen. He let her take control as she sprinted out of the room.
Halfway down the hallway, Orochi heard an unnatural, animalistic sound coming from the bedroom. Like a thousand crows converging on one point, the noise was deafening, forcing him to wince.
Althea turned the corner, dropped to one knee, and covered his ears with her hands.
Three.
Two.
One.
Kaboom.
The explosion ripped apart the master bedroom of the guest wing, the roof tore, flung apart by the force. A scorching fire roared out of the exposed room, feeding upon the open air, growing like a beast unchained. Death and ashes filled the air as shouts and screams from neighbouring houses and guards rang out.
Word would soon reach the main castle. The Seventh Moon-Born had died.
( ˶°ㅁ°) !!
[𝙾𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚟𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚂𝚒𝚐𝚗𝚊𝚕 𝙳𝚎𝚝𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚎𝚍]
[𝚂𝚗𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝙶𝚘𝚍 𝚂𝚢𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚖 𝙾𝚗𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎] …
𝙾𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚟𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝙾𝚛𝚋 𝚂𝚝𝚊𝚝𝚞𝚜
𝙷𝚘𝚜𝚝: 𝙾𝚛𝚘𝚌𝚑𝚒 𝙼𝚘𝚘𝚗-𝙱𝚘𝚛𝚗
𝙰𝚜𝚌𝚎𝚗𝚜𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝙻𝚟: 𝟷 -> 𝟸
𝙴𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚗𝚊𝚕 𝙲𝚘𝚒𝚕 𝙾𝚊𝚝𝚑𝚜: 𝟷
𝙱𝚘𝚍𝚢 𝙲𝚘𝚗𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚝𝚞𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗: 𝟸𝟶/𝟷𝟶𝟶
𝚂𝚔𝚒𝚕𝚕𝚜: 𝙽𝚞𝚕𝚕 𝙼𝚒𝚛𝚛𝚘𝚛, 𝚂𝚑𝚎𝚍𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐, 𝙸𝚗𝚜𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝, 𝚂𝚗𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚂𝚎𝚗𝚜𝚎, 𝙴𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚗𝚊𝚕 𝙾𝚊𝚝𝚑 𝙲𝚘𝚒𝚕
𝙳𝚊𝚒𝚕𝚢 𝙼𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚊𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝙵𝚎𝚎: 𝙰 𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚎.
(𝚃𝚑𝚛𝚎𝚎 𝚍𝚊𝚢𝚜 𝚕𝚎𝚏𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚙𝚊𝚢 𝚏𝚎𝚎.)