Chris was on one knee, panting, his body covered in cuts and bruises.

  “We should take a break. Your body is at its limit.” Alek said with concern in his eyes.

  “I’m almost out of time. I have to get as ready as I can before my first mission.”

  Chris forced himself to stand, but something slammed into his chest and knocked him flat. The flying object began talking. As Chris looked at it, he saw that it was Marvin’s skull.

  “Take a break, kid. You can’t go on a mission with this beaten body.” The skull rolled back toward his body.

  Chris tried to reply, but he was too exhausted. For the past month, he’d sparred with Alek nonstop. He used different weapons and close combat to unlock two talents: ‘Jacks Of All Trades’ and ‘Up Close and Personal’. After all that work, he managed to unlock ‘Jacks Of All Trades’; however, he could feel that he was close to unlocking the other one, but the time was not on his side. He had one more day before he would have to complete his first assignment.

  [Jacks Of All Trades]

  Passive

  You pick up new skills quickly. However, it takes longer to master them.

  “Drink this.” Marvin tossed him a bottle of red liquid. “Be careful, it is expensive.”

  Chris nearly dropped it before tightening his grip. He twisted off the lid. The sweet scent of strawberries made him pause, inspecting it suspiciously.

  “Stop overthinking and drink it. It’s a health potion, it’ll help you heal quicker, but….”

  Marvin couldn’t finish his explanation before Chris chugged the whole bottle.

  'Did he trick me? Nothing’s happening. At least it tasted good.'

  Then the itching started. Then the fire. Chris writhed as pain surged through his body, sweat pouring down his face while his cuts closed and bruises faded. When it was over, he looked almost new.

  “As I was trying to say before you drank it all, be careful, as you’ll feel the process of your body healing faster. Now get up and wipe that sweat. I can’t believe you had so much trouble with some cuts. What will you do when you use it to heal broken bones or damaged organs? That pain is a thousand times stronger than this pinch.”

  “How can you compare this pain with a pinch?” Chris was bemused.

  “I wouldn’t know. Pain’s not my department,” Marvin shrugged. “But others swear it’s true.”

  “I hope that I won’t need to use these potions often.”

  “You'd better not, because you only get a finite number depending on the mission’s danger, and they are expensive to produce. That one was worth a month of my salary, be grateful.”

  “Why would you need one? You’re all bones.” Chris frowned.

  “I said that I don’t feel pain, not that I have no use for it. I, too, can break a bone. Now, please stop asking and say goodbye to your friend; let’s go. You have a meeting to get to.”

  “I’ll see you soon, Alek.” Chris waved back as he followed Marvin.

  “Don’t get killed,” Alek replied with a grin.

  The two went to a conference room that was situated next to the Codex’s portal. Marvin waltzed in, and Chris followed him. A massive orc-like figure waited by a projector.

  “Glad to finally meet our feisty star.” The man said, standing. “Name’s Muzga Goldentooth.”

  He extended his hand. Chris shook it and was nearly flung across the room.

  “Ops! Sorry, kid. Sometimes I forget my own strength.”

  “No problem,” Chris managed to say, rubbing his arm.

  'How do you forget that you’re that strong?'

  Marvin’s bones rattled in laughter.

  “Trust me, this is an improvement. The first time he shook my hand, he pulverized it. I worked one-handed for a month, until I got my good hand on a potion. It took me some time to get used to it, in the first days I would always drop things because I tried to take them with the damaged arm. My supervisor got mad after the third time I spilled coffee on his favorite shoes. ”

  “I told you that I would’ve bought it for you, but you didn’t want to hear about it.”

  Stolen story; please report.

  “And I told you I wouldn’t let a rookie waste his first paycheck on me,”

  Marvin replied, before slipping quietly out. For a rattling pile of bones, Marvin can move quickly and silently when he wants.

  “Take a seat, Chris. It’ll take some time to debrief you.”

  Chris took a seat, and the projector lit up with the image of a sprawling world.

  “Look here, Chris, this is where your first mission will take place. It is named the Celestial Murim, and our employer is the creator of this world, Celestial Carver. He wants us to eliminate Jang Wol. He was a good soul that disappeared for a time from the martial world, but he came back and brought with him a wave of bloodshed.”

  “Wait a minute! Why must we intervene? Why can’t the Carver snap his fingers and erase him?”

  “Because he can’t, the laws of the universe bind him. Yes, he created that world, but the universe has a list of laws that he must abide by; there are too many to enumerate. To put it simply, the Celestial Carver is the father, and the world is the child. He can guide, protect, and influence, but can’t just cut the parts that he doesn’t like.”

  “How does this work? How can he influence the development, but not intervene in its affairs?”

  “He can inspire visions, prophets, omens that Jang Wol will bring the end of the world, but those things take too much time. Sometimes there isn't enough time to wait, and you have to find a quicker solution; that’s when we intervene. We are given permission by the creator to appear and put a quick end to his problems, and as payment, we get the target's soul.”

  “What happens if he breaks the rules?”

  “He can go against the rules, but if he is found guilty by the Enforcers, he’ll have his power stripped and be jailed to the end of time. At the beginning of time, there was only chaos. Then, the Enforcers came and made the rules to put an end to it, but they had to make an example of a few worlds. One of them was yours, it had a creator, but there existed other deities there for a time, the deities that still went against the rules were punished or ran away into the darkest corners where they can’t be found.”

  “You mean that all those legends are real.”

  “They are as real as they can be.”

  “Why are we allowed to help them bend the rules?”

  “That’s a good question. We aren’t bending the rules as we are allowed by the Council of Enforcers to intervene. The rules ended the chaos, but they also created new problems. Since creators can’t interfere directly anymore, some worlds collapsed before their time at the hands of their own people. That happened with the worlds of the founders of this firm. As they don’t want the other world to have the same ending as theirs, they founded Reaper Inc., and with the approval of the council, we can go and rout out the problem before it festered.”

  “So I just have to pop there, kill my target, and come back.”

  “In simple terms, yes, but you have to pay attention and not kill other people. We are allowed to be there for a limited time, but in the eyes of that world, we are intruders who came and ruined its balance. If you intervene too much, you’ll be found and hunted down by the world protection system. It can take many forms: storms, beasts, even the land itself will turn on you. Imagine that they are the immune system and you are a virus, it’ll do everything to destroy you to keep the body healthy. That’s why you have to quickly find your target and get out as soon as possible.”

  “I’ll do my best to finish my mission!”

  “Don’t be stressed, as you’ll be transported near the target and you’ll be able to track its position. This is the end of your debriefing. Good luck with your hunt, kid.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  “Drop the ‘sir.’ Call me Muzga.”

  “Got it, Muzga.”

  “That’s it, now go and relax, you’ll have a tiring day tomorrow.”

  Chris went out of the room and ran into Marvin.

  “How was it, Chris?” Marvin asked.

  “It was a lot to take in.”

  “You’ll get used to it after your first assignment.”

  “I’d better. I should squeeze in more training with Alek.”

  “Your call. See you tomorrow.”

  Chris returned to the training hall. At the entrance, Alek was speaking with Arwenwel. She noticed Chris and walked away.

  “What was that about?”

  “She wanted to know how your preparations are going.”

  “She could’ve come and asked me directly.”

  “You know that she still feels bad about what you two talked about that night in the garden. She thinks that you are angry with her.”

  'I’m angry she won’t just talk to me herself.'

  “Forget it. Let’s train. I’m close to unlocking the second talent, but I need you to fight me with everything you’ve got.”

  “Last time, you were knocked out for a whole day. You sure?”

  “No pain, no gain!” Chris was fired up.

  “It’ll be your funeral.” Alek was ready for a good fight.

  They squared up for another fight. This time, Alek used his ability ‘Armored body’ and coated his fists in gleaming metal. Chris locked his eyes on Alek, waiting for the first move. He caught the twitch in Alek’s legs a split second before he lunged. Chris dodged the right hook, but the left came faster than expected. The blow crashed into his ribs, driving the air from his lungs.

  “Are you alright?” Alek stepped back.

  Chris bent over, gasping, then straightened with a grin.

  “Still good for a few rounds.”

  Alek hesitated, but nodded. Chris charged first this time, ducked under a punch, and struck Alek’s abdomen, only to recoil at the metallic hardness. While Chris was stunned, Alek swept his leg and sent him crashing to the floor.

  “What the hell! It felt like iron.”

  “My ability works both ways. Offense and defense.” Alek smirked.

  “The next engagement will be the last. Be ready.”

  “I’m always ready to give you a good beating.”

  This time, Chris shifted into a defensive stance and tried to endure Alek’s attacks. Alek came at him like a bull, fists hammering, but couldn’t find a gap in Chris’s defense. Chris endured Alek’s barrage and waited for the opportune time to strike. Finally, Alek’s barrage slowed. Chris shot a jab at his left side.

  “You are getting sloppy, Chris!”

  Alek moved to block, but it was a feint. Chris used all his strength and drove an uppercut with his left against Alek’s jaw. Again, he met that metallic defense, but this time was different; Chris felt how his strike pushed beyond his defense and staggered Alek.

  “I did it!”

  -Congratulations, you have unlocked a new talent-

  [Up Close and Personal]

  Passive

  Your strikes in close combat are sharper, boosting critical hit chance.

  Chris’s triumph lasted a heartbeat. Alek steadied himself, then swung one brutal punch. Darkness swallowed Chris as he hit the ground.

  “Good job, Chris.” Alek muttered, looking down at him. “Now enjoy your nap.”