Playing "Assassin"

Since Count Altair brought firearms to the club the day before yesterday, invitations have been arriving one after another—some seeking cooperation, others threatening.

It wasn't until today, after applying pressure through Owen Donovan's name, that things finally quieted down.

Li Altair hadn't been idle these past two days either. He'd already had Hahn thoroughly investigate every gang in every district of Bexland.

I don't consider myself a good person, but there's no need to kill ordinary civilians. Deliberate slaughter is just "murder"—it has nothing to do with playing the part of an "Assassin."

People's definitions of "Assassin" boil down to a few types: political assassination, personal revenge, hired killing...

I don't need money, so the only option left is to play vigilante and fight oppression.

In the evening, after a round of modifications and disguise at home, Altair left Queen District alone, carrying the investigation files Hahn had gathered.

He arrived at Bexland's Dock District. This was a vital part of Bexland—through the Tassok River, one could reach inland areas like Sea County and Ahuva County, or head straight out to sea.

Because this river cut through most of Rune, countless cargo ships docked or set sail every day. Most people here earned a meager living loading and unloading goods.

The population here had nearly reached a million, roughly one-fifth of Bexland's total. This district wasn't just one of the poorest in Bexland—it was also a hotbed of public security issues.

Maybe it was because of the massive population, or maybe other reasons. Dozens of large gangs and nearly a hundred small ones had entrenched themselves here. Each gang controlled a patch of territory, monopolizing work opportunities through their claimed docks.

If workers wanted a job, they had to accept wages far below market rate, and even after finishing the work, they had to pay "protection fees" to stay safe.

Ever since arriving in Dock District, Altair had noticed a world of difference between the two areas. In Queen District, you'd never see kids in tattered clothes, their arms and legs like broomsticks—nothing but bone and skin, as if a light twist would snap them in two.

Altair looked at the abandoned wooden building in front of him, pulled out the photos from the files to compare, confirmed he hadn't made a mistake, and began scouting the area, planning escape routes... Once he had the route set, he entered the building and climbed to the top floor.

He took the rifle out of its case and attached the "suppressor."

This "suppressor" was crafted using a special secret method. The outer shell was forged from Deep Sea Black Iron, the interior filled with fibers soaked in Silence talismans, and a "Silence" talisman embedded inside.

It was a Special Item rush-ordered through a special channel—very effective, but the price was truly steep. It cost nearly 85 pounds. By Altair's estimate, the raw cost was at most under 30 pounds. No help for it—he was in a hurry to use it and didn't have the skill to make one yet.

Tonight's target was the second-in-command of the "Blood Snake Gang," Jesse Harrington. According to the investigation files, this man had climbed his way up over the corpses of others.

Ever since joining the Blood Snake Gang, he'd been ruthless to enemies, and even didn't spare his own people. He'd instigated infighting among the gang's higher-ups to profit from the chaos, personally murdered entire families, raped and killed, broken children's limbs to send them begging...

Basically, he'd committed every conceivable evil. Now that he'd crossed Altair's path, if he didn't die, who would?

After waiting nearly an hour, Altair finally saw Jesse Harrington and his underlings walk out of the gang's headquarters' main door, preparing to leave.

Because the "Assassin" pathway came with the innate abilities "Eagle Vision" and "Dark Vision," Altair didn't have to worry about not seeing clearly at night like ordinary people.

He raised the rifle, assumed a standard shooting stance, aimed, and fired.

No sound at all. After five sparks flashed from the muzzle, Altair began disassembling the rifle's components. Once everything was packed up, he slowly jumped down along the building's window ledge and walked straight into the darkness without looking back.

Night was the Assassin's home turf. Even if the searchers behind him were numerous, they couldn't track Altair's trail.

By the time he neared the manor's entrance, he saw Hahn standing at the gate waiting for him.

When Hahn saw Altair return, he hurried forward to greet him and asked, "Count Altair, did everything go smoothly? Are you injured?"

Seeing Hahn's anxious look out of concern, Altair patted his own chest and said directly, "Hahn, I'm fine. Those people were just ordinary folks—not a single Beyonders among them. How could they possibly catch me?"

The next morning, after Altair got up, Hahn reported during breakfast the news that had come from Dock District: "Jesse Harrington and four others were shot dead last night outside the gang's headquarters. All five died on the spot."

"Because of the special nature of that area, the Police Department has directly classified the incident as gang infighting, with no further investigation."

When Altair heard how hastily the matter had been wrapped up, he gave a helpless laugh. "A gangster who's done every kind of evil—this ending is the best outcome."

Alive, he might have had some value. Dead, that value vanished. If anyone used this as a pretext to investigate, there were only two possibilities: either they had a stake in it with significant value involved, or they were just a pure fool playing "righteous man."

Over the next few days, Altair continued the same routine, "calling roll" on various gang members. In that time, no fewer than twenty vicious criminals had died by his hand.

At the same time, this had put the Dock District gangs on alert. One gang higher-up getting killed was understandable—internal power struggles happened all the time. But a string of gang incidents? That wasn't normal.

Now the Dock District had been cordoned off by these gangs working together, and they were trying to catch him. But there was no need for him to lock horns with them.

Altair was exhausted during this period. To keep his identity hidden, he couldn't have anyone send him, nor could he take a public carriage, so he had to come back very late every night.

After returning, he still had to exchange sweet nothings with Vivian, and in the morning, the maids would forcibly drag him out of bed for lessons. So he decided to take a few days off and give himself a break.

His fusion of "Extraordinary Traits" only required him to play the part of an "Assassin"—no extra acting needed.

The only catch was that the "time" needed for the role was three times that of others. If someone else had used his method, they'd already be ready to drink a new Potion. But he had only digested a little over half. A few more rounds of this kind of activity, and he'd be ready to advance.

I recall that, according to the setting, assassinating "Beyonders" would be much faster than what I'm doing now. But how many Beyonders are there in this world? I can only think about it. Too dangerous—I'm a disciple of the "lay low" school.