Asther got up early in the morning. Long before the sun could come out, the teen is already geared up for the day ahead. There are things that require preparation by him after all. That’s why he needs to get up early.
He took his new daggers, his flint and steel and, also a piece of rope which he also stole from Baron’s room. After this he opened the System. Making sure of things before he continued with his plans.
“Show me the information about the centipedes.”
[Yes Master]
Since Asther has leveled up, he can now see some of the information that has been blocked from him because of the level gap he had with the centipedes when he fought these.
[Information: Although they don’t use it for combat, the bodies of the centipedes are actually filled with venomous liquids. These are lethal once injected to any person. Killing them in a matter of seconds.]
“Perfect.” Asther said after reading through the whole thing. “That’s exactly the kind of thing that I need to see.”
[Master.]
“Yes? What is it?”
[Lord Vold is asking how you knew about the poison.]
“Vold huh.”
The information given by the System at that moment told Asther one thing, that the god of war is keeping an eye on him. As to how long this has gone on, he has no clue. But now he is sure that he has Vold’s attention. Although, he isn’t sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing.
“Those centipedes are creatures that live in the depths of that cave. Usually, creatures like that also need a defensive mechanism in order to survive. Of course they already have their outer shells but, I also figured that the bodies they possess might also be poisonous as well. That would be a last line of defense in case their enemies try to eat one of their own.”
[Lord Vold laughed at your explanation. He said that there’s no reason for you to be so honest and that you could’ve just lied about it to make it more interesting.]
“What good would that be to me?” Asther replied. “I’m not here to entertain him right. I’m here to finish the quest he gave me.”
[Lord Vold said that you are as cold as ever.]
“If he doesn’t enjoy the show, then he should just change channels. I still have work to do, I don’t have time serving as a pierrot as well.” The System didn’t respon to this anymore. It simply shut down.
“Honestly, what happened to not interfering with this world?” Asther sighed, leaving his house to prepare for the day ahead. For his specific quest for that morning – the assassination of Baron and his Lackeys.
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…
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The three proceeded with their plan. They went to the forest and headed straight for the area where Asther does his hunting. They know where this area is quite well. After all, Asther never leaves the spot. Not because it’s rich with wild animals and other things to harvest, nor is it because he is naturally fond of the location. No. The reason why Asther doesn’t leave this place is because, this is the only spot he’s allowed to hunt.
Since the villagers view him as a curse, they don’t want him going throughout all the land. They think that he would attract calamity and chaos when he comes. In any and every form that this might possibly come. Whether it be a horde of monsters or a sudden infection, or even the dying of crops. The citizens simply cannot take their chances, that’s why Asther is given that said space. The same spot where Baron and his lackeys drew near.
“Don’t we need a plan for this Baron?” James asked.
“Plan? What would we need a plan for?” Baron answered.
“Well, he escaped death last time so…” Chad added which made Baron turn around to face his two allies. His brows furrowing due to annoyance yet again.
“He was just lucky. Alright?” Baron insisted. “That fluke won’t happen again. Not on my watch.”
“If you say so.”
Baron already has everything figured out. As soon as they see Asther, he’d charge straight for the teen. He won’t even give Asther the chance to think of what to do. As soon as he gets close enough to his target, Baron plans to bash the head of the teen. Stunning him and proceeding to beating him up.
“We were too sensitive last time. We didn’t want to get blood stains on our hands. That’s why we threw him off a cliff and he survived.” Baron explained. “But that mistake won’t happen again. We’ll beat him up. We’ll beat him up so hard that he’ll start begging for his life. And right as that f*cker is at death’s doors, I’m gonna strangle him myself. I’ll make sure that he breaths his last with my hands ringed around his neck.”
James and Chad listened to Baron’s words and, they instantly knew that Baron isn’t joking. They know that this man is capable of the things he is saying. They know that Baron would actually do it. That he’d kill Asther in the way that he described. And that they would be accomplices to this murder…and this scared them.
Although James and Chad have always assisted Baron in torturing Asther, there has always been a limit to what they can do. They can beat Asther up but, never to a point where they’d break his bones. These two simply act tough but in reality, they doubt if they can even kill a wild animal if push came to shove. That’s why they are also a bit thankful that they aren’t the ones who need to finish Asther. That Baron would be the one to do this and that, their leader would do it quickly. They just wish that when it comes, they’d be permitted not to look because, they know that the image would haunt them in their sleep.
All these fears and worries of theirs remained unexpressed. They followed Baron’s command as they always did. Until, they finally reached Asther’s location.
“There he is.” Baron immediately saw where Asther is and pointed his finger towards the teen so his lackeys can see as well.
Asther sat behind a tall tree. His back faced the three and, there’s not much light so they can’t confirm much. But the three can’t mistake the clothes that they saw. It’s the same ragged and old clothes that Asther always uses. Something which his mother sew together for him.
“That bastard, he’s really resting this early in the morning? He’s slacking off from his job.” Baron said.
It’s ironic to hear this from him since he himself does not need to work. As for his lackeys, their being friends with him gave them the perk of not having to work as well. While they are his friends, they also, in a way, served as his bodyguards. That’s why the other people of the village did not question this.
What they don’t understand is that Baron does not need any protection. He is the predator who always preys on the weak. It’s not the other way around. And at that moment, he’s applying this same principle again. Doing so with Asther as he began to creep forward.
“Make as little noise as possible. We don’t want him hearing us.” Baron commanded as his two lackeys nodded.
Little by little, the three got closer to their target. James and Chad had their hearts racing faster at that moment. They can’t understand why this is so. Baron’s heart raced as well but, this is for a different reason altogether. The teen is simply delighted at the thought that he would be able to kill Asther a second time. And, for some reason, thinking that Asther’s neck would be strangled in his hands gave him a kind of pleasure that he can’t explain.
These three had their heads on different thoughts. The only thing these had in common is that Asther is the focus of their heads. They all focused on the target who still looked like he’s sleeping behind a tree. Their gazes never left Asther for a single second and, because of this, they fell for his trap.
The ground below them suddenly broke apart. They couldn’t process what was happening, all they know is that, in the blink of an eye, they found themselves ten feet under the earth.
“What the hell is this!” Baron shouted as he and his lackeys got back to their feet.
“You really fell for it didn’t you?” There’s no mistaking the voice they heard from on top of the pit that they’ve fallen. It’s Asther.
“You! Get us out of here if you still want to live!” Baron ordered.
“Don’t you think that’s ironic after you attempted to kill me yourselves?”
“What did you say?” Baron got more and more infuriated. “Don’t you know who I am? I’m the next village chief! I am the ruler of this land!”
Asther finally showed himself at that point. He stood right on top of the pit, with a static expression on his face. This teen then sat and continued to look down on the three. Getting on Baron’s nerves more and more.
“Don’t talk to me like that! We aren’t equals!” As Baron said this, he saw Asther taking out something. A piece of cloth and, as Asther opened this, the teen took out what seemed to be a wooden needle.
“That’s actually something we can agree on Baron.” Asther said as he stared at the needle. “We aren’t equals.”
“I’m gonna murder you! I swear I’m gonna – ouch.” A needle pricked through Baron’s skin. James and Chad received the same treatment. Both of them getting hit by a needle on their neck as well.
“What the hell was that? You think those little love taps can kill us?” Baron said.
“Actually…yes.”
As soon as Asther said this, Baron felt a sharp pain on his chest. In the blink of an eye, this pain spread all across his body. Making him drop to the ground. James and Chad soon followed after him. Then, his vision began to dim out.
Baron didn’t understand what was happening at that moment. This isn’t what he had envisioned on his head when he plotted killing Asther that day. It was almost like he was trapped in a nightmare made by Asther. It was like he was being cursed.
Baron’s mind continued racing through various thoughts. The same thing that happens to anyone who is close to death’s doors. And…before he knew it…his whole world blacked out.
An assassination is never anything grand. It happens the quickest way possible, using the most efficient route there is. Some may call it cowardly and some may even deem it as an underhanded tactic. But whatever it is called and, however it is viewed, the reaper doesn’t care. In the end, he’s the one alive and, those that question his methods have their lives taken from them.Asther assassinated the three murderers of his body’s original wielder. He did so using a simple, yet well thought of, plan. First he went back to the cave and extracted the poison from the bodies of the centipedes. He placed all of this on a small vial that he also took from the village. He also took three parts of the centipede’s shells. Thinking that this might be useful for him later on.After this he went to his hunting spot and prepared the trap. He dug up a hole using a makeshift shovel. Combining a tree branch and the centipede shell which he tied together. With this, he made the hole needed for his trap.
Just as Asther planned, he came back in the afternoon. There’s a bit of problem that came with this. That is, due to his skill [Cleanup] he can’t get the rabbit corpses anymore. Instead, he is given finely cut parts of it and he has to explain it to the guard Thomas who, was approaching him again.“You don’t seem to have anything on you today. That’s gonna be bad for you.” The guard said, making the bones on his fingers pop.“Actually, it’s the other way around sir.” Asther opened the big cloth pouch that he had on his back. On this are the parts of the rabbit. The hair is already taken away from it, leaving only the flesh and the parts that can be eaten.“I figured that you’d have trouble skinning the rabbits so I did it myself.”“You saying we can’t skin a rabbit?”“No sir. I just didn’t want you to waste your precious time on something that I can do myself.”“Well would you look at that.” Thomas brushed the hair of Asther. “You’ve been doing a good job since yesterday kid.”Everyth
Although life may seem unfair to the original Asther, there are actually rules and regulations implemented in order to ensure that there is justice in Jhinn. This is done through the use of a sacred spell that is given to every juror that resides within a place. These jurors are individuals who have been blessed by the goddess of justice herself. And, through the spell bestowed upon them, nobody can utter a single lie.This has allowed aristocrats to be taken down from their high positions. This has also allowed a lot of good willed people to rise into power. This has allowed the weak and the powerless to get the justice that they wish for.Although it may sound good on paper, this system is not fool proof in itself. There are a lot of things that are lacking in it. For one thing, the jurors themselves can be bribed. Given the right amount of money, they would fake the results of any trial or interrogation. Other than this, there are also cases where a juror’s life is threatened, thus
“This is nonsense! Why is he still alive.”“Like what I told you Gunther, I used Judgement on him and all the accusations that you placed on him are proven to be false.”The juror met up with the elder within the later mentioned person’s house. Gunther, the elder of the village, thought that the juror would bring him good news. After all, this person is also indebted to them and to all the favors that they have granted the old man.That’s why the expression on his face easily turned sour when the juror talked of Asther’s innocence. Something which Gunther cannot accept no matter how much the juror tried to explain things reasonably.“He’s the village’s curse. There’s no way that he’s not involved with this.” Gunther said.“You do know that simply giving him an ominous title such as that doesn’t prove anything right? For all we know, the real culprit could be anyone from your village.”“No. That’s not possible. I know how fond my son is with torturing that piece of trash. There isn’t a
Unlike what the juror thought, Asther actually slept early last night. He didn’t stay up reading through the books. The reaper knows that it’s valuable for both the mind and the body to have a proper amount of sleep. This allows him to be at his optimal condition. Performing at his best so as not to have any delays in his plans.Due to this, Asther also woke up early. He got up from his bed and, as he looked around, he saw that Thomas is still asleep on the bed opposite to his. There is a lamp that lights up the place, revealing the walls of rocks and wood, as well as the wooden table in the middle of the room.There are also chests and other items placed at the side of a wall. These are things owned by the juror. And as to why he just left it there with the boy who is labeled as a curse is something which Asther has yet to understand, nor is he planning to understand it at the very least. The only thing that is of interest to him are the books that he wants to continue reading.“Okay
The meal is nothing like what Asther expected. The boy thought that he would see some common food on the table. After all, there’s no reason to prepare anything extravagant. He’s not even an honored guest in that house. He’s a prisoner and, the person who’s guarding him isn’t special as well. That’s why the luxurious looking meal didn’t makes sense to him.“Take a seat, the food will go cold if all you do is stare on it.”“Yes your honor.” Asther waited for Thomas and the maid to be seated first. It’s only after this that he decided to take a seat himself. Choosing the spot at the side right after the maid.“No. You’re sitting close to me kid.” The juror commanded.“As you wish your honor.” Asther replied, changing places with Thomas who is at the left side of the table.“Dig in everyone. I promise you that the food my maid prepares is something to die for.” The juror claimed.Thomas didn’t hesitate to take a bite. As for Asther, he looked at the food closely for two seconds. Then he
As soon as breakfast finished, Asther went back to the basement of Boreas’ house. Thomas isn’t there anymore and, the teen expected this. There must’ve been some level of humiliation brought upon Thomas because of the conversation at the dining table. That’s why this guard is not there.Asther believes that this person went out to get some fresh air. He has no idea about the hobbies of Thomas but, he’s sure that this guard would go somewhere near the walls and talk with his palls.“That would take him some time to come back from…perfect.” Asther opened the System window. He has learned to control this to an extent that, it won’t suddenly pop out without his consent.He activated the feature [Silent Mode]. Disabling any notification given by the System which allows Asther to chose the time when he wants to see these. And with Thomas not being there, the teen thought of no better opportunity to proceed with this.[Congratulations! You have successfully finished the optional quest.][10
Night soon came and, just as Asther planned, he commenced his escape from Boreas’ house. During the day, the teen offered to assist the maid in her duties. Normally this would not be allowed but, since Boreas favors the teen, this has been overlooked. Allowing Asther to do as he pleases.During his time helping the maid, he has also imprinted the details of the house in his head. He saw all the windows and all the doors. He found all the planks of wood that created a sound when stepped on. He also saw some traps that have been laid out within the house, should there be cases of anyone breaking in.By taking all of these into account, Asther is able to plan a perfect escape. And so, in less than ten minutes, the teen is out of Boreas’ house – finding himself in the middle of a night-filled street.Asther chose midnight as the starting point of his mission. During this time, all of the villagers are already sleeping. As for the guards, they won’t pose much of a problem for Asther. He ha