Narchen.

Named after the [Supplicant] who had founded the place hundreds of years ago, the bustling city had not deviated from the founder’s vision much at all.

It was a stagnant and cutthroat place where one would sooner find themselves shanked in the streets than move up a rung in the social hierarchy.

The [Soul-King] they answered to was well versed in Necromancy, a branch of Soul-Magic which required a steady supply of bodies to explore, making the people living here the greatest resource of them all.

Yet, to take tithes from the populace regularly would only brew discontent, eventually bubbling to the point of inciting resistance.

While riots and the like could be stamped out easily due to the gulf of power inherent in a world like this, general uncooperativeness and a refusal to have children were not problems that can be easily remedied.

Attempts have been made, but failure after failure inevitably made the current system the most cost-effective outcome.

Curiously, to rear people as animals would destroy their value as samples. There was a distinct difference between those that had ambition and hope and those that lay flat, even in death. Soul-Magic was very particular in that way, requiring even the vessel to be of an exacting standard.

Therefore, a violent societal structure was engineered to produce corpses of the young and ambitious alike regularly, all without drawing the ire of the populace to the ruling class.

In a way, this was rather simple. Being such a top-down society, the [Soul-King] and her aides were able to see the bigger picture, allowing them to shift the general trend to their whims. And, failure was just another lesson learned allowing for the craft to be further perfected for the next iteration.

Through these trials, they learned that while most do comprehend that [Supplicant]s and [Soul King]s lord over them, in the eyes of ordinary people, if they do not directly feel their influence on their existence these transcendent beings become nothing more than a backdrop, something easily ignored and filtered out.

With the existence of transcendent beings so normalized, one might be able to look to the sky in wonder, but they still needed to go about their days. A passing gaze every so often was enough. It did them no good to think too deeply about things well beyond their means when survival alone was a difficult task.

As such, factions warred in the shadows, taking in new members in droves while also sending these initiates to their deaths in equal measure. It was a meatgrinder whose sole purpose was to distract people from the truth.

With this, the quotas were met, and through simply utilizing a single degree of separation, the rampant deaths were blamed upon their fellow man instead of their lord.

Although the [Supplicant] that had fashioned this system was long gone, the crime-ridden system that fed her liege’s experiments remained unchanged.

How could it not?

The [Soul King] herself was in here for the long haul, unequaled and unrivaled in this little region of hers. Her territory was not particularly special in any way, which made her unlikely to be brought down by her peers, which made up the bulk of deaths among their kind. And though she had outgrown her early years of haphazardly going through cadaver after cadaver, even her advanced studies required base materials.

Even at her height as a Tier 5 Mage, there was still plenty to learn.

Thus, a lawless place where families entrenched over generations of misrule could enforce their will upon the populous with impunity remained untamed for centuries.

These clans had their tendrils in every part of the city, polluting both upstanding businesses and seedy gangs alike.

During normal times, these families could not go overboard with their authority, still answering to the [Supplicant] that oversaw the territory on their lord's behalf.

The [Supplicant], though chosen from among them in the past, kept the divided interest groups in check, but even that little mercy was gone now.

Whether he fell in battle or was overdrawn by his master was of little consequence. What mattered was that he was gone for good, and a vacuum of power was the only parting gift he gave to this rotting husk of a settlement.

Petty intrigue would play out across the streets, though over the months it had devolved to the point where the term ‘petty’ could no longer describe it.

The cloak-and-dagger conspiracies had fallen out of favor, replaced with fighting that could be seen even during broad daylight.

To those paying attention on the sidelines, this shamelessness was a glimpse into the end of this conflict. After all, such brazen overtures that would usually be met with reprisals had instead been allowed to progress unhindered. It was a sign of weakness and it was only a matter of time before the rest of the dominos fell as well.

That things had progressed to this state meant that a new [Supplicant] would be chosen among the ranks of the connected and powerful soon, reshuffling the balance of power in the city.

Today, the talks had reached their conclusion, and a decision had been made. Tonight, blood would be shed and entire families would be slaughtered to accommodate the redrawing of the map.

However, those kinds of upper-level decisions weren’t something Lillia could have any say over.

Her status in the senior ranks of her gang gave her some middling contacts, but not enough to stay up to date on the latest happenings.

Nonetheless, even with a lack of proper informational channels, she could tell that something was wrong.

Status

Name: Lillia Calla

Title: The Forgotten Blade

Age: 29

Total Level: 55 (Tier 3)

Mana: 600/1003

Attributes:

(Innate + Class + Skill)

Strength: 4 + 99 + 27 (130)

Dexterity: 7 + 170 + 50 (227)

Constitution: 5 + 21 + 27 (53)

Intelligence: 3 + 20 + 3 (26)

Wisdom: 3 + 10 + 3 (16)

Race: Human

Skills:

[F]Adaptive:

[F]Gain a Minor Damage Reduction

[C]Quick Learner

[F]Gain 10% increased exp

[E]Gain a stronger memory

[D]Gain a stronger spatial awareness

[C]Percieve time slower

Main Class: Lord's Assassin

Skills:

[B]Backstab

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[A]Neutralize Presence

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[C]Lord's Bounty

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[F]Oathsworn

[F]Gain a Minor increase in all stats when performing an oathsworn task

General Skills:

[A]Stealth

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[A] Pickpocket

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[A]Keen Vision

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[B]Shadowstep

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[C]Meditation

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[E]Poison Resistance

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Condition: None

The Suns had fallen hours ago, with the rain drizzling down not long after. Despite the bitter cold and biting darkness, Lillia was poised for action, squatting alone in a dimly lit alleyway. It was a station she took regularly, growing more accustomed to it as time went by. She had endured worse weather as well.

Looking to the sides, she saw a few puddles that had settled on the uneven roads. Public works like maintaining proper drainage networks were left to the wayside, resulting in even this mild amount of rain leaving its mark.

As expected, she was unable to see her reflection. It would be strange if she could, with all the skills she maintained currently that hid her presence.

However, she still maintained her appearance. Not out of vanity or the like, but because she could afford to. One did not truly appreciate what they had unless one have lived without it for a long time.

Veiled under a simple jet-black robe was a plain, slightly pockmarked face with common black eyes.

She had a lithe physique well suited for her line of work, but was short in stature and lacked feminine appeal. Overall, not particularly stunning, nor could she be easily distinguished from a crowd, though that was a welcome thing for an assassin.

Even if she wasn’t a head-turning beauty like so many of the noblewomen she either guarded or assassinated, she was at least presentable enough to not disgrace her house.

The place she was currently at was near her gang’s hideout, which served a dual purpose as the city’s Adventurer’s Guild. Like her gang, the guild itself was funded by the Callas.

Anyone keeping tabs on either of them knew that their actions served the interests of the Callas. Starting as a street urchin, not knowing who her parents were or what had happened to them, she’d been indoctrinated into the Calla family through that guild from a young age.

They saw her talents and trained her into the fine assassin she was today.

Over time, following success after success, she was granted the honor of taking their name as well.

Though she would never reach the status of a true born, it marked her entry into the family’s inner circle. That alone was enough.

She never believed she could stand next to their noble scions as an equal, satisfied with defending their honor and interests in the dark.

However, to be able to proudly call herself a Calla was a big step up and something she had taken with pride.

She remembered that day and all the emotions that came with it.

Alone, she could hardly afford to feed herself. Though still possessing the talent for subterfuge, her future was constantly in flux, nothing certain.

One wrong target and she was dead or worse.

All her young adult life she spent in constant vigil, ever wary of those around her.

Now, life was considerably more straightforward.

All she had to do was take note of any information that might prove useful while staking out in the family’s territories along with a few odd jobs here and there.

While it was still unpleasant to have to take hits every so often, finding herself unable to take pleasure in the kill like a few of her peers, she took solace in the fact that it was generally an easy experience.

She knew from experience that the danger in these missions came not from the mark themselves, but from the people that stood guard around them.

She was sent to assassinate those with connections and influence most of the time, assassinating those that did not spend hours of their day honing their combat prowess.

With the information channels afforded to a large family like the Callas, all she had to do was follow the instructions to the letter and do what must be done.

There were hardly situations where the situation had been relayed incorrectly.

Do as was told and a clean kill was what awaited.

Her trust in them was absolute, and she was rewarded for that trust with simple missions and steady promotions.

However, recently, things were getting dicier and dicier.

She could already see a few of the cracks beginning to show.

More and more of her subordinates were dying. Her current assignment would usually have been given to someone under her, but they lacked the personnel.

There were also instances of information being relayed incorrectly or not quickly enough, though she was able to make do with what she had been given.

Her skill carried through when all else failed.

However, despite these blows, she still held up her faith and loyalty.

They had uplifted her from her status as a street urchin, housed and fed her, introduced her to the class that fit her, and gave her purpose.

She was hardly an ungrateful person, even though it was unlikely for her to repay this debt even with her life.

So, she would fulfill her duty and stand alongside them and brave the present storm together.

As the time drew closer and closer to midnight, the people out on the streets trickled out into nothing. Those with a sense of self-preservation knew better than to stay out late into the night.

Then, the stillness was broken, rousing Lillia into attention. First came the sounds.

*Click* *Click* *Click*

Footsteps. Hurried footsteps. Footsteps, not masked and without proper technique.

Inexperienced? Someone young? This late at night…

Drawing closer. Directly at me?

From the darkness, a figure made its way into her vision. Despite the lack of proper lighting, she could see it clearly. Her [A][Keen Vision] allowed her to see in the dark with a clarity close to that of during the day.

The person’s speed did not indicate them being of a high level like her.

As they approached, she was able to see their face. He was ill equiped to travel so late at night, wrapping himself in what seemed to be hastily worn leather armor. It wasn’t fastened properly, resulted in him trying to hold it against himself as he ran.

A laughable display in normal times, but she had a bad feeling from the panicked expersion on this person’s face.

Especially since he was a new recruit, taken in from the adventurer’s guild. Not particularly strong or noteworthy. A weak warrior taking odd jobs lured in by a lack of advancement in his normal career. It was a common story, and one shared among most initiates.

She didn’t know his name, but he should have been off duty today. Being a new recruit, he should still be at the Adventurer’s Guild, where room and board were provided as he awaited further orientation.

Something must have happened for him to be like this.

As the man drew closer and closer to her position, she became sure he was approaching her on purpose. However, she debated whether to break stealth and contact him. While a shadow like her was supposed to become close to nonexistent while on the job, it seemed like whatever was going on was an emergency.

Finally, as he stopped mere meters away from her, she could no longer tolerate it. He was looking back and forth, scanning the area with a guarded gaze, expecting something to be here. It was unlikely for him to leave without her making herself known.

While maintaining most of her abilities, she allowed herself to voice her concerns.

“How did you know I was here?”

Lillia could see his eyes pick up at her voice, as though by hearing her he had grasped a way out of a doomed situation.

“Rom told me. We need to run. Quickly. They'll come for you too.”

“What do you mean? Who are 'they'?” Even though the recruit had named a person she had frequent contact with, she didn’t know enough about the situaton to simply follow him. While she had been anticipating something to go wrong for a long time, this panicked individual had given her nothing to make her trust him. He could be leading her into a trap for all she knew.

Her refusal seemed to have irritated him greatly, however. In frustration, he tried to reach out in the direction of her voice, but it was impossible for him to do so without her approval, to say nothing of whether he would even be able to pull her along even if he was able to grab hold her.

It seems he isn’t thinking clearly. Is it the distress causing this?

Understanding that his actions were meaningless, he stopped to catch his breath before making another attempt at convincing her.

“I don’t *gasp* have the time to explain! The Callas *gasp* are finished! 'They', the Choe, have won. We need to get out of here. Out of the city! There’s nothing we can do ab-...”

“What!?”

That was hard to believe, and it was so unexpected that it had completely fried her ability to respond coherently. Even though she had been trained to think on her toes and respond to crises with alacrity, she didn’t expect something like this to happen.

The downfall of her backer was something she had mused over, but not in such a dramatic and immediate way.

It was so shocking that her concentration had lapsed for a moment, causing her to drop her stealth. This would usually not be a problem, as she could simply reactivate everything once she had sorted everything out, but it seemed fate would not allow for her to steadily contemplate what to do with that information.

An uninvited guest had made his entrance, paving the way for a horde of men heeding his call, like a houndmaster and his dogs.

“I knew letting him run was a good idea. He was not like the others, you see. Rather than running wildly, he had a direction. Came straight this way.”

From the shadows came a mountain of a man. Dressed in priestly garbs that did not fit his countenance or demeanor, he made his way forward. As he walked, he boasted loudly to the cronies that followed in his footsteps.

Motioning his hand forward, he signaled a few people trailing him to let loose their crossbows. They were trained on the man that led them here, knowing that such weapons could hardly find its mark on her.

Seeing as she had already been exposed, she kicked the damn recruit to the side, saving his life. However, whether he would live for much longer would have to be seen.

As things were, his chances of survival were looking slim to none.

That little event didn’t seem to bother the uninvited guest, however. His eyes still looking at the scene dispassionately, his one good eye lazily trained on nothing in particular. It seemed he did not care much about whether the man lived or not and was only guaging her intent.

From the way she handled the matter, he knew he couldn't take advantage of her softer side today. It was useless to try to get her to do anything with a hostage.

Understanding this, he turned his head, steeling his gaze straight at Lillia. The extra had been completely removed from his mind in an instant.

In an ardent growl, with his arms outstretched as though administering a sermon, he enunciated each word clearly, as if afraid she would mishear.

“Join us! We. Will. Be. As. One!”

Then, just as suddenly, his menacing demeanor was put away, his face adopting a cheerful smile.

“Thanks for showing up, by the way. It’s useless to run now. We have you on lock.”

“As you have already heard, the Callas are finished. Now’s a fine time to switch sides, wouldn’t you say?”

“We could use an assassin like you. See, we’ve known each other for years! You know us, we know you. Made quite the name for yourself in this city. That mark on us a few months back? Almost got under our skin. Good on you! Good on You! Really.”

“We can put that behind us, though. Your ability deserves that much, at least.”

This was the Enoch Choe she was familiar with. Ever in his own little world, though with the strength and background to warp the city to his twisted vision. Even if she were to surrender, which she wasn’t, he was the last person she would turn to.

“I’m no traitor.”

Not wanting to waste her breath on this psychopath, she delivered a curt response as she put her focus on charting a path out of here. Once she got these mad dogs off her she could go about confirming the information she had at hand.

Still refusing to believe the centuries long Calla clan had just been leveled overnight, she needed to see everything with her own eyes.

Even if she walked straight into the center of the fighting where her meagre level of 55 could hardly make a difference, she would gladly die in the service of her household.

“Truly? We already have a few who’ve agreed. Bos and Rikart ring a bell? They got snagged by my brothers, though…”

Enoch looked wistfully to the side. Lillia turned her gaze in the direction he was looking at. It was the noble’s district near the heart of the city.

Was that where he was before coming here? That makes the next part a bit more challenging. It might be infested with their forces over there.

“Worry not, even though you lack their overwhelming strength, the treatment you shall recieve under our care will be no worse. We dare say you shall find bliss in our loving embrace. We will be as family.”

"I already have a family. They took me in years ago. I will not be joining a monster like you. Nor will I join your even more monstrous kin"

“Perhaps you fail to properly understand the current situation. Let us remind you.”

Seeing that her expression did not indicate any willingness to join him, he prepared himself to continue with his speech.

Lillia had charted a path and was ready to run. She didn’t want to humor him much longer.

“Our eldest brother Kalan Choe has already pledged in as the next lord [Supplicant]. When mistress Rafflesia returns -”

“You dare! Chase, men. Do not let her escape!”

Did he really think I could be moved by his words?

Making a mad dash backward as “the Prophet” was making his mad ravings, she tried to get away.

Within a second, she had already made it across the alleyway, and by a minute she had already lost them. However, she understood what he meant by having her “on lock”. Though lacking in people that could match her speed, they would be relentless in their pursuit.

While Enoch wasn’t exactly the most stable of people, he was a savant in divination. She had no way to escape for long. However, she did not need to run for long. She only wanted enough time to verify the situation.