Accepting the Mission

The bar was spacious and empty. There was no one inside at the moment except two people, sitting separately in unoccupied corners to the left and right, drinking by themselves without exchanging a word. At the counter sat a fat middle-aged man perched on a tall stool, quietly reading a book in his hand.

When Dole and Kadiya walked in, the plump middle-aged man finally turned around. He glanced at Kadiya, then at Dole, and a professional smile appeared on his face. "A newcomer."

That smile was far too fake. Dole inwardly snickered, then remembered that he himself was wearing a false face as well, so he had no reason to mock the man. Besides, there was something strange about this man's aura. His instincts told him that the man was dangerous, so he did not dare speak.

Kadiya strolled over and sat across from the fat middle-aged man. "Mm. Doug, I brought a newcomer over to let him get acquainted with the place."

Doug looked at Dole. With a single glance, he knew that this fellow was disguised, apparently using a disguise potion. Hm?

His interest was immediately piqued. This fellow was at least an elementary wizard apprentice?

He smiled, took out a notebook, and handed it to Kadiya. "These are all the assignments, ranked from highest to lowest."

With the strange atmosphere and this bizarre place, if Dole still did not know where he was, he would have been too stupid. He was utterly shocked. This tiny tavern was actually the base of the Assassin Guild in Duomeng City.

His heart seemed to stop. This was the underground world's most colossal behemoth—the Assassin Guild!

Every profession had its guild, except wizards. Blacksmiths had the Blacksmith Guild, warriors had the Warrior Guild, hunters had the Hunter Guild, and knights had the Knight Guild. Some of these guilds were semi-official, while others were entirely official. The Warrior Guild, for example, was wholly official, with everything funded by the Empire. The Hunter Guild, meanwhile, was a semi-official organization. Aside from submitting monthly reports, it was responsible for its own profits and losses. Dole knew all this.

The Assassin Guild, however, was a purely underground organization, the kingpin of the dark world. Kadiya's second identity was actually that of an assassin.

Dole felt as though he could barely breathe. The way he looked at Kadiya changed. This guy was dangerous.

Kadiya took the notebook and looked it over, then shook his head and handed it to Dole. With an odd look in his eyes, he said, "None of these suit me. There should be something that interests you."

As Dole accepted the notebook, Kadiya leaned languidly against the counter and smiled as lightly as ever. "You must have guessed it by now. This is the Assassin Guild—the place I mentioned where you can make money. Given what you did last time, this is where your abilities can truly shine."

Doug glanced at Dole, then at Kadiya, unable to make sense of what he was saying. What great thing had this kid done that he did not know about?

The Assassin Guild was also an intelligence guild. Yet there did not seem to have been any major incidents recently. Just a few rather unremarkable people had died.

Dole held the notebook and examined it closely, his heart growing a little heavy.

It was horrifying to behold.

Every line in that little notebook was an assignment. Each assignment meant at least one life, while some called for wiping out entire families. On just one page, there were at least thirty lives, each openly marked with a price in silver or gold coins.

So this was the underground world?

Dole's heart tightened slightly. Then he scanned the pages ten lines at a time and swiftly understood what Kadiya had meant.

"Bounty on Fele, captain of a city gate guard squad: two gold coins."

He made his decision at once. Raising his head, he looked at Doug and said cautiously, "I want to take this assignment!"

Doug tilted his head and looked at the assignment in the notebook, finding it somewhat strange. Few people would assassinate government officials, since the aftermath would be troublesome. They would rather kill some down-and-out noble or professional.

Still, as an assassin, he did not dwell on it. He took the notebook from Dole's hand and asked, "Do you have any intelligence on Fele?"

Dole shook his head. "No, but I'll investigate on my own." In truth, he did have some, but he did not dare tell the truth. In a place like this, he needed to keep several cards close to his chest.

Doug suddenly burst out laughing in the quiet tavern. He said to Kadiya, "This little brother you brought along is quite interesting."

Kadiya remained as lazy as ever and ignored Doug. Instead, he said to the wary Dole, "The Assassin Guild provides intelligence as well. You can buy it. Intelligence on a squad captain generally won't cost more than one gold coin."

Dole froze upon hearing that.

Doug picked up where Kadiya had left off. Looking at Dole, he wore a thought-provoking expression beneath his professional smile. "Providing every service an assassin needs is our guiding principle. Intelligence on Fele isn't worth one gold coin. Fifty silver coins will do. He's merely a nobody with a little luck."

Dole fell silent. Was this man hinting at something?

After thinking it over, he said, "Then thank you."

For a two-gold-coin assignment, a quarter had already gone toward intelligence. The assassin business really was profitable.

After exchanging the necessary items with Doug and paying the money, not a second sound remained in the quiet tavern. The silence was almost frightening.

Dole looked around and found the place oppressively stifling, as though this atmosphere had been deliberately created to make people feel afraid.

As someone gifted in mental perception, he could sense some indescribable thing in the world around him, suppressing something. His heart grew a little heavier.

Today, he had learned something: human lives could be sold for money.

Feeling somewhat weighed down, he quickly left the tavern with Kadiya.

The moment they left the tavern, Kadiya's lazy manner vanished, and he became cold and solemn once more.

They swiftly left the main road and turned onto another street.

By then, Kadiya had returned to his original appearance, while Dole still maintained his new face.

Kadiya was somewhat shocked by Dole's skill at disguising himself, and countless speculations arose in his mind about Dole's methods.

After entering the main street, Kadiya spoke in a low voice as they walked. "The Assassin Guild offers many other services too—money laundering, slave trading, various battle aura cultivation methods, and even some wizard meditation methods. As long as you have money, you can buy them. If you need anything, you can purchase it there. But remember to be careful. Don't flaunt your wealth."

Dole nodded.

Kadiya patted him on the shoulder and chuckled. "I think highly of you. Actually, I get a referral fee for bringing you there, so you don't need to worry that I'm after something of yours. When your strength improves in the future, we can form a team. I'm simply cultivating a future teammate in advance."

Naturally, Dole did not believe him. He merely nodded faintly and said, "Then thank you, Kadiya."

The two soon went their separate ways.

Dole headed toward the eastern district.

The streets were utterly quiet. Few people came out at night, and as he made his way along, he could scarcely see anyone. Only now and then did he catch sight of a public security patrol passing by.

Although Duomeng City was not chaotic, few people walked at night. In the shadowy corners and tangled sewers, several corpses could be lying there at any moment. It was terrifyingly disorderly.

No one wanted to die outside for no reason at all.

Dole cautiously made his way back to his little alley. As he turned the corner, he heard a squad of security guards approaching from afar, seemingly about to run into him.

His expression did not change. Facing the patrol, he walked straight toward them.

He had already changed his outfit, wearing ordinary close-fitting clothes with his head uncovered. As expected, he was questioned.