= Unnamed POV =

  Three hours before the assault took pce.

  I was sharpening the dagger that had witnessed the sins I carved in my past.

  I didn’t need to make this dagger any sharper; people in this organization truly knew how to forge weapons that never dulled, even when used to slice through human bone.

  People looked busy down there, walking in a hurry. I was even too rexed to be called a model member. Even so, they still accepted me as I was, as long as I was still useful for killing.

  “Hey, kid!”

  A voice came from beneath the tree. A man with scars on his face was staring at me as I enjoyed my solitude up in the branches.

  As usual, whenever that man came looking for me, he would either tell me to help pack supplies, or worse, order me to massage his muscur back.

  “Are your ears stuffed with rocks, kid?!”

  And that was the st thing he said before a gust of wind sliced through the branch I was sitting on with ease.

  All I remembered was a faint command that escaped his lips. I wasn’t even given the chance to recover from falling off the tree before I had to process his words.

  Well, what can I do? That man had been good to me, in his own painful way. Maybe I wouldn’t survive here without him. Whatever. He already walked away—maybe I was being asked to treat injured members, or maybe I’d just receive another stream of pointless chatter from that foul-smelling mouth of his.

  Whatever it was, I pushed this zy body of mine to stay useful, even though I wasn’t blessed with magic like the others.

  “Alright, first I should check the victims’ tents.”

  With the best of my mediocre abilities, I managed to stand on my own two feet. My clothes were filthy because we had trouble finding clean water after relocating.

  Even though it hadn’t rained today, at least we still had leftover stored water for personal use, though it still wasn’t enough to wash clothes…

  I was always envious when I saw the others, especially my friends who were training wind magic in the open field over there. I mean, I also wanted to master at least one element, but fate said otherwise when they couldn’t find a single trace of mana in this skinny body of mine.

  Perhaps calling myself skinny wasn’t right, because I had always been like this. I merely cked the fat to cover the bones forming this “handsome assassin” that was me, ahahaha. I spent the whole walk praising myself—who wouldn’t like being praised?

  Without realizing it, I had already passed the treatment tent. With wide steps filled with excitement, I arrived at the pce I intended to go. But unexpectedly, every wound I saw there had already been taken care of. Someone may have taken over my job. Or maybe I wasn’t asked to come here at all?

  Whatever. I pushed away those strange thoughts. Honestly, I was scared of being abandoned and losing everything I had built here.

  Maybe that was just the thought of a hopeless person; I hadn’t even built anything valuable here besides spilling blood in foreign nds.

  “You know what? The squad that went to the city of Aurathis was completely wiped out.”

  “Really? But they were elite forces trained so harshly. How could they all fall?”

  Again and again, disgusting news like that reached these ears that were sick of hearing it. But it couldn’t be denied—Silthroat had been declining tely. I was even afraid that someday all the remaining members would face the same fate as those sent on that mission to Aurathis… a city I once wanted to visit when I was still just a lowly farmer.

  “Their failure wasn’t from their own carelessness, but because Captain Valoric and his cavalry appeared, and they were incredibly strong.”

  “Wait, what? Wasn’t Captain Valoric supposed to be escorting King Suna during his visit to Dedonia?”

  “Ugh, you’re hopeless! Captain Valoric and his men were deceived and lured away from the location marked by Torveth.”

  “Torveth? That lunatic with his ideals—”

  “Shhhh, let’s move first. There’s the mute one eavesdropping on us.”

  With demeaning looks, they walked away from me—the one who accidentally heard everything. If I weren’t a member of this organization anymore, I’d make them truly mute for saying things that hurt me like that.

  Even so, I didn’t dare do anything outside of orders. That was why I used my body more than my mouth for anything that wasn’t necessary.

  And just as expected, sticking with this version of myself only made people call me “the mute.” I’m not actually mute, I just have awful social skills. That’s why my entire life here depends on that musclehead who knocked me off the damn tree.

  Without me realizing it, my stomach had been rebelling ever since I woke up from my half-hearted sleep. Good thing the people here know how to make food that won’t destroy our guts even though things have been… well, horrible tely.

  Before I could decide to stop being a useless statue blocking the path, a pair of strong hands nded on my shoulders.

  “Found you, kid!”

  Of course I recognized that voice without even turning around. Sometimes I really want to compin about how often he leaves my body sore.

  “I’ve been waiting for you in the main tent for breakfast, why the hell are you wandering around like some starving mutt?”

  He ughed while throwing those sharp words at me. Who does he think he is? Acting like he can just spit out whatever insulting crap pops into that empty skull of his.

  But thinking back, maybe that vague order earlier wasn’t telling me to come here after all, but—

  “You’re making me hungrier, kid. C’mon.”

  And yep, he immediately dragged me toward the area where more people were gathered than outside. Many of them were war veterans who decided to join this filthy organization, while others… well, nobodies like me.

  We sat at the farthest corner where fewer people gathered. A female attendant came over and served us two bowls of porridge seasoned with spices I didn’t understand at all.

  Even though everyone here looks like they have their own roles, outside this pce they’re nothing more than killers who care only about money. And honestly, that attendant from earlier? She’s a killer too.

  “You know, kid? There’s a reason I insist so damn much on making you feel comfortable around here.”

  He asked me that while spooning the still-hot porridge into his mouth. Meanwhile, I was busy wondering why everyone else was eating the same menu again. Stupid, I know—st week we were literally still eating porridge.

  “Because if I’m gone someday, you’ll be the only one who makes sure things still run properly.”

  But seriously, I’ll never understand the job distribution here. Why can’t they just pce me with the ones gathering ingredients? I could actually help, since I know the forest near here really well.

  “And the next thing you need to remember is—”

  That’s enough. Maybe I should just run away if my pay ever gets high enough to keep me alive somewhere far from here. I’ll rebuild a wide field, find a woman who fits me, and spend the rest of my life with her. After that, I’ll clear my name so these bastard Silthroats can’t hunt me down. Haha… actually, should I escape to Turesa or Ismorin?

  “Hey.”

  Everything shattered when he tapped me again, pulling me out of my fantasies. What does he want now?

  “Are you even listening to anything I’m saying?”

  Wow. He actually looks serious this time. Too bad I wasn’t listening at all. But why is he staring at me like he’s trying to rip me open and peek inside my thoughts?

  “Y-yes! I-I’m listening, I’ll make sure everything goes well.”

  I had no choice but to lie. I don’t want that hand on my shoulder to move even a bit and crush my bones.

  “Thank you. That really eases my heart, knowing you’ve truly changed.”

  Weird. A buff brute who’s always rough with me suddenly thanks me with that kind of sincerity? He’s never thanked me before. Don’t tell me his porridge was poisoned?!

  “Well then, I guess that’s all I can tell you. If I don’t return today, do everything I asked, alright?”

  “W-wait!”

  Huh?! Why did I suddenly talk?! He was this close to walking away! Great, now all eyes are on me. I need to do something fast before this turns into a full-on humiliation.

  But instead, my legs moved on their own like they’d gained a mind of their own. I abandoned my bowl of untouched porridge and before I knew it, I was standing right in front of him. His dumb face stared back at me with a smile that felt… different. Like the light was missing from it.

  “I’m coming with you!”

  What the—?! Why did I say that?! No, no, no! I need to take it back before this spirals out of control. Why can’t I control my own damn body?! Someone, help me!!

  “Come then, we’ll attend the briefing for the mission I’ve been assigned.”

  Welp. That’s it. My fate’s sealed. He dragged me again toward a pce I didn’t even know existed, forcing us to push through thick, thorn-filled bushes. My body couldn’t resist, couldn’t even think. I felt like a corpse being dragged around.

  After a few minutes of being hauled through that mess, we reached a fairly wide clearing hidden under thick trees and brush. Around fifteen people were already there, fully equipped. From what I’ve learned over my three years in this organization, that number usually means missions with high mortality rates. Don’t tell me…

  “Alright, everyone’s here. I’ll say this once, then we move. Understood?!”

  “Yes, sir!”

  Everyone shouted in unison with that harsh tone—clearly the man standing on the rock up there was the mission leader.

  “Listen well. We’re hunting a woman living in the grassnds near the southern forest of Aurathis.”

  He paused, scanning each of us.

  “According to recent intel, she can manipute her surroundings and wields high-level Conjuration and Transmutation magic—especially ice. Close-range combat is highly discouraged.”

  Oh someone please wake me from this nightmare. I couldn’t even pull my hand away from the man holding me. Even he was unusually quiet.

  “There’s a small chance Captain Valoric will be at the target’s home, but he should currently be assigned in Aurathis.”

  As soon as Valoric’s name was mentioned, the crowd turned the atmosphere into mockery. I don't even know why he’s so hated. But one thing’s clear—the man clutching my hand had gone completely silent, just like me.

  “But if Captain Valoric is present, do not fear his bde. The key is maintaining distance from our target.”

  “And most importantly—King Rowan will pay us handsomely if this mission ends in a great success!”

  Everyone roared with excitement. Hard to believe King Rowan, infamous for being stingy as hell, would actually pay us. Completely insane…

  “Yes! Show that spirit! Let’s make them suffer for sughtering our brothers!”

  “Remember! Our goal is to return with the target’s head—untouched, not even a scratch! Understood?!”

  This is the first time I’ve heard them ask for an intact body part. Usually they just leave destruction everywhere. But oh well—maybe King Rowan really will pay if we show solid evidence.

  Still… thinking about it just makes me sick.