Sergius sent me after this official from Polemys, a guy named Theo. Just like usual, he gave me the target’s current location, and a few members of the Fifth Branch would update me along the way. It’s crazy when you think about it, just how deep the corruption runs in this organization. They even have civilians involved, like bartenders and other people with easy access to information. He told me that I shouldn’t try using magic upfront, because it wouldn’t work. As usual, I didn’t question him. I had already killed my fair share of mages, and most of them can get around my magic.

  So, I made my way there after the sun set, expecting to hopefully do a good enough job to be praised. And there I found him, fitting the description. Greasy shoulder length brown hair, light brown eyes, a beard shadow running down to his neck, and a black coat complete with gray trousers that were about as well kept as his facial hair. He was wearing a pair of long, gold trimmed leather boots that seemed like they had seen better days, even though they were in better shape than the rest of his outfit. He was sitting on a bench by himself in a park, drinking from a green bottle of alcohol and rambling about something. I remember smiling, thinking this was going to be easy. Long story short, I jumped at him with the dagger I brought, aiming for the neck like usual. Next thing I know, he was gone and I was holding his empty bottle. Then I heard a voice behind me, with speech so slurred it was barely intelligible.

  - “What’s that ?... An elf ?... Haha, they really do make them in all shapes and sizes here…”

  I whipped around, shattered the bottle on the metal bench, grabbed the largest glass shard mid air and struck behind me with it, all in a single second.

  - “Desperate huh ? I’m desperate too, you know…” He said.

  He was simply standing there, the glass shard pressed against his neck. I tried applying more force, but it was like his skin was made of iron. Not even a single drop of blood.

  - “Ha… you’re a funny one…” He said as he reached his hand towards me.

  I just jumped back to buy some time and assess the situation, but the world went blurry for a moment. I did move, but instead of being away from him I was sitting on the bench next to him. He was holding me by the back of my shirt with his left hand, and my dagger was in his right.

  - “Tell me a joke, funny man…” He continued.

  - “Release me !...” I tried struggling, but it felt like trying to fight against a building.

  - “Nope… Tell me a joke, I need to laugh…”

  - “I am not here to entertain the likes of you. Father sent me on a mission, and I intend to see it through.” I tried contorting to reach for my dagger.

  - “What’s that ?... Oh you still want this ?...” He just handed me the dagger like he didn't mean to take it.

  I tried to stab him again, aiming for his eye this time. He just closed his eyelid, and the damaged blade snapped in half immediately after hitting it. He started laughing quietly.

  - “Now that was funny…” Then he slowly started sobbing, looking up at the stars in the sky. “Man, what do I do ?...”

  I was still uselessly struggling while he was rambling, hoping he’d let down his guard eventually and I could try again. Sergius had taught me to never think about retreating, and that completing the assignment came first and foremost.

  - “You said… your father sent you right ? Or somethin’ like that.” Theo said.

  - “...Yes. And I will kill you.”

  - “Maaan. Must feel real nice to still have a kid.”

  - “...” I stopped struggling for a second. “You had one ?”

  - “Well yeah. Ain’t dead, just… ran the fuck away with that guy.” He buries his face in his right hand. “I coulda stopped her, but she just… looked so damn happy. Never seen her like that, she always said she hated Polemys… At least introduce him to me !” He suddenly exclaimed. “I don’t even know what type of guy he is, this… this pip squeak !”

  I just kind of gave up trying to escape at this point. It was so visible that I was outclassed that I just sat there, waiting for the guy to kill me or turn me to the authorities. Well, the actual, good authorities. Not the ones that sent me to kill that guy. Completing the assignment ? I was ever trained to kill someone whose skin is basically made of metal, so that wasn't gonna happen. I was just done, and I think I might've just been looking forward to just being dead.

  - “She is lucky...” I finally said, resting my back on the bench, exhausted after all my struggling.

  - “Huh?! No the hell she isn’t, she could have such a better life with me back at our domain! Alice, what did your old man do to deserve that…”

  - “She has a father that cares about her so much that he would shed tears for her.”

  - “I guess I do?...” He leaned forward to get a better look at me, and removed the hood that was obscuring my face. “Whoa I didn’t expect you to look like that, after all the killin’ me talk… Then again you got the eyes. Didn’t think I’d run into someone with that look all the way over here in Specta.”

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  - “The eyes?”

  - “You got the wanderer’s stare.” He leans back. “Back in my country, that’s what we call it. The look of people who got nothing left to lose, but still try to cling to something. So they wander around battlefields like ghosts, trying to reach whatever destination they set their sights on.” He reached inside his coat, pulled out a bottle of alcohol and took a swig from it. “Buncha dumbasses.”

  - “I am not dumb.”

  - “Sure looks that way to me ! You shouldn’t throw your life away you know? There’s plenty left to live for.”

  - “...You do not know me.”

  - “I don’t need to. First thing’s first, you’re a child, why’re you talking so fancy? Hittin’ me with *do not* while you look like you’re ten years old. Nobody your age talks like that!”

  - “It is the way I was raised.”

  - “Who cares? Is free will also illegal in this country? Nobody’s forcing you to do that y’know. Live your own damn life or something.”

  - “...But father-”

  - “Who cares?! You clearly ain’t living life. Never seen someone with the eyes be happy. Why not just ditch everything and start doing your own thing? Can’t be worse than now! Worst case scenario, you end up dead and that’s it!”

  - “If I leave, they’ll call the Director again… And father will lock me inside the room with the rats.”

  - “Sounds like a poor excuse of a father to me.” He crossed his arms, letting go of me in the process. “But who am I to speak huh?! Can’t even keep my own daughter around!”

  The moment I realized I was free, all my muscles tensed up at once. Years of training were telling me to take up what was left of my weapon again, but I remained right there on the bench, compelled by an unknown emotion. My brain was at war with my heart, and I was left completely paralyzed as a result.

  - “Oh you’re still here ? Thought you’d skedaddle.” Theo said.

  - “...I don’t know what to do. I… I don’t want to go back to father.”

  - “Hey look at you go, trying to do something on your own. Alright then, what does my brother say in these types of situations again?... Right, I shall see to your end… or something.”

  - “So you’re going to kill me after all. Go on, I do not mind.”

  - “Slow down champ, let’s put the suicidal thoughts aside for a second. I mean I’m gonna help you out a bit.”

  - “But the Fifth Branch… they have other assassins, and…”

  - “Oh yeah, real efficient ones huh?”

  - “...”

  - “That’s what I thought. From now on, consider that you’re under the protection of the kingdom of Polemys. I’m sure the king won’t mind me abusing my power a bit. Guess what, I just happen to have a room that got freed up back at my house. The Cane Guardians or whatever they’re called will think twice before trying anything.”

  - “No, you can’t-”

  - “No no’s. I’ve made up my mind, let’s see where you go from there.”

  And so he just carried me away. I didn’t even put up a fight, and just accepted the situation as is. From that point on, and for a few years, I lived with Theo. What I discovered is… that he’s a complete bum. He couldn’t take care of himself at all, and his house, which used to be a luxurious villa built for foreign officials, was reduced to nothing more than a run down shack. It took me days just to clean out the trash and stains on the walls. And yet, I remember these years being the happiest of my life. For all his faults, Theo never judged me, never expected anything from me, and never stopped paying attention to me. We’d often go shopping for various things, and I’d wear a white hoodie he bought for me to conceal my identity. He claimed that it was because he needed help carrying his purchases, but I’ve seen him uproot a tree in the garden with one hand before. He was probably just trying to get me some fresh air. Or maybe this idiot really couldn’t carry all these things without breaking them. He even mostly quit drinking during weekdays so he could teach me about the world, and how to command armies because he was really versed in the topic. He would always refuse whenever I asked him to teach me his country’s language, saying that it was too advanced and that he’d do that when I’m older. After six years though, he came back to the house without being drunk, on a saturday. I knew something was wrong.

  - “What’s up?” I asked. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

  - “...You can tell huh.”

  - “Duh.”

  - “We had a meeting with the other ambassadors. I’ll cut straight to the chase, I have to go back to Polemys. My domain’s being attacked. Normally it'd be fine, but some real nasty stuff popped up and I need to step up.”

  - “Oh no. Anyways, when’re we leaving?” I stupidly replied, starting to go around the house to pack my things.

  - “...You can’t come with me, Julian.”

  - “What? Why?!”

  - “Polemys is way too dangerous. You’ll just get yourself killed, I can’t watch over you all the time there.”

  - “You don’t need to! I can defend myself!”

  - “Julian. Do you know just how many assassins were targeting you during these six years? I sure don’t, cause I stopped counting after one hundred while trying to preserve your peace of mind. You’d be dead in a day if I left you to your own devices. And let me tell you, these guys ain’t shit compared to Polemian warriors. You’d be in the middle of an active warzone, and I can’t allow that.”

  - “I’ll die anyways if you leave me here!” I started breaking down into tears. “Just take me with you!”

  He walked over to me, kneeled down to my level and hugged me.

  - “You know I can’t do that. I’ve arranged a small escort for you, they’ll stealthily help you escape the city. There’s an unmanned boat waiting on the shore, just climb into it and strap down. I bribed a local water spirit to help you cross the sea.”

  - “So… you’re just leaving me again…”

  - “Listen up, pretty boy. I might be a deadbeat, but I’m not about to let my name go down in history as the stupid guy who lost his children twice. I’ll come back, alright? That’s a promise.”

  - “...You’re lying.”

  - “I’m not! As a show of good faith, I’ll send some family or friends over to take care of our business in Crystal Rose in my stead. If you’re ever looking for me, just ask them to contact me and I’ll come running.”

  Someone knocked four times on the door of the house right after that.

  - “Hey.” A female voice said from behind the door. “The boat is ready, quit stalling and get on with it Iro-”

  - “I’ll be there in a second.” Theo cut without shifting his attention away from me. “Be strong alright little man?”

  - “...I’ll… try…”

  From that point on, I was alone again. As Theo promised, I was extracted the same day. Thanks to all the practical skills he taught me, I managed to survive on my own for five years. But these years were far from peaceful. Ignoring my state of mind, which was a disaster, I was constantly being harassed by the mindless goons sent by the Fifth Branch. No matter where I went in Specta, they’d find me and I would only escape by a hair. It probably would’ve been easier if I actually tried to kill them, but I was already trying to move on from that life. So I ran, I ran until my legs couldn’t carry me anymore. I was constantly exhausted due to always having to be on high alert, and this is the state the mage traffickers found me in. I was an easy target by this point, so they locked me up. And there I was, in a cage, again. This probably triggered my memories, just like being in these tunnels is making me remember all this now. I remembered that thing Sergius said, about being able to track me with my blood. And I understood how they were seemingly always aware of my location, no matter how dense of a forest I was hiding in, or how recluse of a village I decided to take refuge in. So I decided that if I ever had a shot at freedom, I’d take it. Then begin my journey to Crystal Rose, kill Sergius for good and destroy that blood sample so that I can finally live in peace, or die trying.

  Theo, you said that I should be living my own life, right? Well, this is the path I chose. I hope you’re proud, dad.