"So! You're an Apprentice Warrior, are you? Interesting..." The Quartermaster peered at his logbook. "If that's the case, you can directly receive a level three room. Completing a set amount of missions will allow you to increase your room level. It can also let you increase the rank of the missions you're allowed to choose."
Noelle stared at the Quartermaster for a moment, and nodded. Even though becoming an assassin was dirty work, she didn't really have a choice. In the assassin business, one could choose to keep their identity a secret. Noelle must've already been recorded as "dead" within the government records.
Plus, the government investigation teams would've surely been able to tell that she'd killed her father, a General. After all, it's not like there could be some random person who distorted the information of the battle, right?
Who in heaven could have that kind of free time?
That aside, Noelle... didn't exactly have any skills outside of combat. There were very few jobs which would pay you for your fighting ability, surprisingly enough. That was why, despite some people being incredibly powerful or high ranked, they might not have much money or influence.
Thus, after the battle with the Sky Serpent and the Mech Beast, Noelle knew her options were limited, and the most freeing, open job on the market? Well, not regular market. On The Black Market?
Being a killer for hire, of course.
You were free to choose your missions! You freed others from their mortal bodies! Plus, the pay is pretty good.
That was how Noelle found herself entering The Black Markets, about 3 days ago.
...
"Sh*t, sh*t, sh*t..."
Noelle stumbled through the streets of the Outskirts, limping and observing her surroundings. She was feeling pain with every step, but she continued on her journey. First, she needed a safe place to stay. And some food.
After that, she could focus on her next step. As Noelle's eyes darted through the air, she seemed to notice an apartment block. Surprisingly, none of the lights were on.
Strange. There's no way everyone within that building is so coordinated. Unless... Noelle began to limp her way toward the building. As she entered, her growing suspicion was confirmed. It was entirely empty.
"What... how could it be empty?" Noelle knew that the Outskirts had issues with housing. Not enough people had a place to sleep, which made housing more expensive. Simply put, there wasn't any valid reason for an entire apartment block to be empty, unless there were other factors at play.
As Noelle wandered through the building, she noticed dried bloodstains - on the walls, floors, even the ceilings. This was another strange point - the No Kill rule - why hadn't any police come to check out the situation?
Forget it... I'm only a Border Control captain... I'll figure out these secrets later.
Noelle lay down in a clean spot on the floor, resting her head on her arms and curling up like a shrimp. She laughed.
"Well. I guess I'm not even a Border Control captain anymore..."
She slowly closed her eyes, trying to ignore the pain coursing through her body.
...
"So... this is The Black Markets, huh?"
After healing with Apprentice Warrior rank vitality, Noelle was outside of the large, oppressive-looking cluster of buildings, also known as the Cal Yuun District. She was wearing a green cloak which covered her head, and also wore a silver mask for extra security. It covered the top half of her face.
Having never been to any shady area in her life, having never committed any crimes until recently, she naturally felt nervous. However, remembering that she was an Apprentice Warrior, enough to be within the higher ranks of the Outskirts, she became calmer.
She stepped forward, officially entering The Black Markets.
The change was immediate and observable. The air had taken on a strange smell, people observed from hidden shadows - and why did the surrounding colours of her vision change???
In short, stepping into The Black Markets was like stepping into another world, isolated from the rest of the Cities. If it'd been a movie, then there'd definitely be a change in the background music at this moment.
"Hmm... what does that sign say... "Too bad novels can't have music?" Ohh! They're selling audiobooks." Noelle muttered as she stared at one of the stalls. It looked relatively tame - not like anything she'd thought of when picturing The Black Markets.
Noelle wasn't here to buy weapons. Instead, she was here for a job. After all, she knew that assassins had free lodging, food and more benefits. As long as they completed one mission a month. The missions themselves would have extra pay or other rewards.
How did she know this? Well... her father occasionally had... political opposition. And he'd always call a close friend of his, who sometimes even played with Noelle whenever her father felt like being neglectful.
"First... I need a Pathfinder, right?" Noelle muttered to herself. She wasn't sure on how to get one... but that uncertainty was quickly fixed as someone came to block her path.
She looked up, breaking from her reverie. The man in front of her was tall - towering over everyone, almost twice the height of the average man. He had a snake tattoo on his face which went from his forehead down to his right arm. The snake's head was at his forehead, its mouth open and ready to strike.
The man leered.
"Hey there, pretty lady. You haven't been to The Markets before, have you? I can tell." He smiled in a sickening way. "Why don't you come with me? I can show you around... and also give you a good time."
Noelle smiled as well, clenching her fist beneath her cloak.
"Sure. Give your best shot."
...
"So this is your Pathfinder, okay?"
The man was currently showing Noelle how to use the Pathfinder.
He turned out to be a Guide, one of the professions someone could take within The Black Markets. His intimidating presence and looks were carefully cultivated by him - one of the best things you can do in a fight is intimidate your opponent. That way, they wouldn't fight with you and would instead run away.
"And all you need to do is pour your points into it. The more points you add, the more locations will show up." The man took out a few points and converted them into digital coins, before demonstrating.
Noelle nodded along. The Guide turned around and smiled in that same sickening way again.
"Now, there's a little secret to these Pathfinders which other people don't know about." He leaned in conspiratorially. "If you tell the Pathfinder what kind of locations you want to see, they'll be the only ones that show up. You can save money that way."
Noelle's eyes widened at the secret. There's so much I don't know. Thank heaven that I found this Guide.
"I want to find the Assassin Alliance." Noelle spoke into the Pathfinder. When the Guide heard this, his eyes also widened.
"WHAT? You're really gonna go into that den of crazies?" He looked somewhat panicked. "Hey, those guys are super dangerous. It's your first time, so you don't know. But some of their assassins can kill people above their rank!"
Noelle smiled. "Thank you for the warning. But... I'm going there to find a job."
The Guide suddenly looked like he'd swallowed a lemon. This... How could his luck be so bad???
Even though he was an honest worker, his appearance often led to small chances when it came to guiding people. And now, just when he'd thought he was in luck, the client turned out to be one of those crazy assassins???
"Cough. Well then. I... don't think you'll need me to escort you then! In fact, why don't I pay for the location's reveal." He straightened up, inputted a large amount of digital coins into the Pathfinder and gave it to Noelle. He then turned and walked off at a high speed without turning back.
"No need to worry about paying me! I'll just see myself out." His voice came drifting back, though he himself was long gone.
Noelle shrugged, and went off on her way.
...
As the strange backflash which had seemed to override her thoughts and replay her memories slowly faded away, Noelle found herself back in her new room - one of the level three rooms.
It had an on-suite, two bedrooms (which she didn't need), a study, a kitchen, a bathroom/shower and a moderately large training room. Truly, luxurious stuff.
She didn't have much on her - only the cloak and mask, which had been bought from a random store outside The Markets. The owner also mentioned that for some strange reason, the store had already sold out on their black cloaks. Otherwise, Noelle wouldn't have picked green.
As for weapons, she didn't need them. After all, her entire body was one, thanks to her Apprentice Warrior status. More than that, though, was the fact that she could conjure any weapon she wanted.
She left the room and headed to the main hall, where a huge noticeboard behind a counter was filled with missions. Even though it was somewhat impractical to use a noticeboard, the leader of the Assassin Alliance demanded it, saying something along the lines of "It gives off an authentic vibe! Like those assassin guilds in anime."
That was also why there was a clerk managing the missions, seated behind the counter.
She marched up to the counter and looked at the missions posted on the board, choosing not to talk with the clerk yet. Her eyes passed over the various missions. Things like "Help hunt the Invisible Dragon." or "Kill Francis Stone." were discarded.
Noelle was looking for protection jobs.
Even though the place was called the Assassin Alliance, it was more like mercenary work - one could even save a cat from a tree if paid properly.
As her eyes continued to pass over missions, she finally found one.
Yeah, that'll do.