Guest

Shaya naturally knew nothing of what had happened in the Underworld, nor of the Grim Reaper's wild imaginings.

On the country road leading from the Britannia Imperial Capital to the harbor, carriages formed a long line as they traveled into the distance. Judging by the goods piled high aboard them, it was clearly a merchant caravan.

Inside one of the carriages, Heilang, dressed in the assassin's outfit Shaya had given him, sat silently chewing a piece of black bread as he gazed quietly at the distant sunset.

The setting sun cast brilliant golden light across the entire sky, bringing with it an inexplicable desolation.

"What do you plan to do next?"

The sudden voice at his side startled Heilang, but when he saw who it was, he relaxed slightly.

"Sir."

Shaya sat quietly across from him. Heilang had no idea how he had appeared, but he was not surprised by it.

After pondering for a moment, he said,

"Marquis Os said that organization is by the Rhine River, so I plan to take a ship there and investigate first."

"They are an organization," Shaya said. "And you are alone."

"I know," Heilang said. "That is why I plan to establish an organization as well, and use the knowledge you taught me to train a group of people."

"I do not merely want to get my sister back. When my Hidden Blade pierced Os's chest, many thoughts flashed through my mind."

Heilang raised his head to look at Shaya and said seriously, "These nobles control wealth, power, and land beyond the imagination of ordinary people."

"They already possess everything, yet precisely because of that, the demon known as desire has swelled without limit in their hearts."

"What happened to me is not an isolated case. During my years studying in the Imperial Capital, I saw far too much of it."

After a pause, he mocked himself. "But I never imagined that one day, such a thing would happen to me."

"And that I would be so powerless."

"The nobles of Britannia have become leeches clinging to this nation's veins, greedily sucking the blood of the country and its people."

"I was thinking, when something like this happened to me, I was able to meet you. But when it happens to others, who can they rely on?"

"And who can give them fairness and dignity?"

"The law?"

Heilang sneered. "The so-called law is nothing more than a tool in the hands of those noble lords."

"So, you want to become that person?" Shaya asked with interest.

"Not me. 'Us,'" Heilang said earnestly.

"I know we may not be able to save everyone, nor may we be able to do everything perfectly, but at the very least, we can light a lamp in this pitch-black night, giving those who have lost their way the courage to move forward once more."

"Let the good weep no longer, and let the wicked receive the punishment they deserve."

"Until dawn arrives."

Shaya lowered his eyes and slowly recited a maxim.

"Walk in darkness, serve the light. Nothing is true; everything is permitted."

Heilang froze, then said excitedly a moment later,

"That is exactly what I was thinking! That is the core principle of the organization I want to establish!"

He looked at Shaya and said excitedly,

"Sir, your wisdom is as vast and boundless as the sea."

Shaya showed no reaction to Heilang's flattery and merely continued asking,

"Have you decided what this organization will be called?"

Heilang nodded. "Everyone who joins this organization will surely be people of like mind. We will be brothers and friends."

"So, I want to name it after 'brothers.' It will be called the Brotherhood."

A faint glimmer flashed through Shaya's eyes as he murmured softly, "Not a bad name."

Looking at Shaya's lowered eyes, Heilang could not help asking, "Sir, was that thing related to that organization?"

Heilang was naturally referring to what had happened in the cellar.

If the other side truly possessed some mysterious power, then even if the organization he spoke of was successfully established, the knowledge he possessed alone would be of no use.

Shaya nodded. "You could say it is related."

Heilang's expression changed.

"Then..."

He leaned forward as though he wanted to say something, but happened to meet Shaya's gaze.

In that instant, all words turned to nothingness.

It was an indescribable feeling.

Though those eyes met his, they were not looking at him.

But rather—

His Fate.

As Heilang stood dazed, Shaya's voice continued.

"You should not encounter such things again in the future."

"The enemies you face will still be flesh and blood."

"The Hidden Blade in your hand will be enough to defend the creed in your heart."

Heilang did not ask what basis the being before him had for saying so.

He knew that the person before him had no reason to deceive him.

"I am glad to see that you did not lose yourself in the abyss of hatred, but found a new direction."

Shaya slowly stood and smiled.

"Then, good luck. We will meet again..."

With that, he gradually vanished from the carriage, leaving behind a silent Heilang.

Beneath an apple tree on a hill not far from the caravan, Shaya's figure gradually appeared. He quietly watched the merchant caravan depart and sighed.

"Fate truly is a frightening thing."

"Are you sure that organization is something he can handle?" Cassifa asked.

"Fate will make the two evenly matched," Shaya murmured.

He silently raised his hand. Golden specks of light swirled around his palm, lively as sprites of light. They were the fruits borne from the seeds he had planted.

The Fate Power residing within Heilang would gradually grow as destiny came to pass. He had reclaimed a portion of it, but Heilang's fate had not yet run its course, so there would be further returns.

This was the "payment" he had received.

Shaya quietly looked at the specks of light in his hand and wondered curiously.

Following Fate brought growth, but what if one defied Fate?

However, he did not dwell on the question for long. There would be plenty of time to try in the future.

As he reclaimed Fate Power, he discovered an interesting phenomenon.

Many memories had appeared in his mind—every skill Heilang possessed, all the assassin techniques such as stealth and assassination that his Fate Power had manifested.

As Fate Power was reclaimed, those manifested things returned with it.

Of course, it was more like recovering a copy. Heilang's skills and abilities had not disappeared as a result.

That was rather convenient, Shaya thought.

Fate Power did not provide any obvious direct enhancement to his strength.

If he wanted greater power, he had to use Fate Power to transform it, but doing so would entangle him in karma. Just as he possessed magic now, yet had to bear the fate called "Hal."

The benefit of this method was that while gaining the powers manifested by Fate Power, he did not need to worry about bearing "fate" himself, because someone else was already bearing it.

Although most of the skills he gained from Heilang were useless to Shaya, one of them was quite interesting.

With a thought, he activated a special sense.

In that instant, the entire world became completely different in his perception. The green grass beneath his feet and the apple tree beside him were no longer lush and vibrant, but had turned a dim gray.

Yet some things became especially conspicuous, such as the wheel tracks on the road and Heilang in the distant carriage. It felt as though he had gained another pair of eyes, and the entire world unfolded before him from a clearer perspective.

Without question, this was Eagle Eye from Assassin's Creed, an extremely practical special ability and one of the few supernatural powers in Assassin's Creed.

Viking assassins also called it Odin's Sight, while the people of Ancient Greece called it Athena's Sight. It was a sixth sense possessed by humans of certain bloodlines, capable of reading the emotions and intentions of everything around them.

It could even see many traces invisible to the naked eye, ignore all kinds of obstacles, distinguish friend from foe, and lock onto targets.

The capabilities of Eagle Eye seemed to vary somewhat from person to person.

Shaya's assessment of it was: extremely practical. Even ordinary scouting magic was not as useful.

What puzzled Shaya even more was that he had apparently not used Fate Power to manifest this ability, so why had it appeared in Heilang?

He considered the background behind Eagle Eye. This power was the result of humans being created by the Isu.

Although everyone possessed this potential, the descendants of humans who had interbred with their creators possessed more of the genes necessary to activate this sense, making them more likely to display the ability.

It was not difficult for Fate Power to grant someone an ability like Eagle Eye, nor did it necessarily need to manifest a background such as the "Isu."

But if the corresponding background was lacking, then during the course of Fate's operation in an unknowable future, something akin to a "bug" might appear, causing Fate to become unable to continue.

Therefore, when weaving a fate, the more complete the corresponding "background," the better.

That was also the specific reason Shaya had not manifested Eagle Eye.

Conversely, if a similar background already existed, the operation and manifestation of Fate Power would become much easier.

In Assassin's Creed, the Isu were the gods of mythology, while gods also existed in this world, so the backgrounds seemed to overlap.

Of course, their combat power might not be comparable.

And coincidentally, from Os's words, it could be learned that Heilang seemed to possess some kind of special bloodline as well.

Burgundian.

Shaya recalled that he seemed to have heard that name somewhere before.

But since he truly could not remember, Shaya did not dwell on it.

Perhaps this bloodline had not played any role, because humans in this world might have been created by gods.

And regardless of which condition had been met, with this ready-made background, Fate Power barely needed to expend anything to grant Heilang Eagle Eye.

Come to think of it, Heilang had studied away from home for years and was unlikely to have seen Marquis Os often. The reason he could recognize Marquis Os at a glance might have been Eagle Eye at work.

As he compared his conjectures with the knowledge the old man had given him, Shaya silently nodded. He now had a somewhat clearer understanding of how Fate Power operated.

"Shaya."

Cassifa's voice interrupted Shaya's thoughts.

Shaya furrowed his brows in confusion and heard Cassifa say,

"The guest you mentioned seems to have arrived."