Assassins Aren't Trained—They're Born
“He was the ringleader of the human traffickers. Deserved to die, that bastard.”
Jang Chil said, picking his nose.
Hmm. I'd just been thinking of selling the instructors off as mine laborers...
Would that count as human trafficking too?
“You got some special hatred for human traffickers or something?”
“Of course. You forget the guys who dragged us here? Human traffickers are worse than murderers.”
Ah... So even without his memories, he'd been nursing that grudge.
Wouldn't it be better to just become a murderer than get stabbed by Jang Chil while trafficking people?
“Nah, that's not right. Traffickers don't kill people, do they? Better than murderers, maybe?”
“They killed some too. That guy, that one—definitely killing him.”
Jang Chil nodded lazily toward an instructor passing in the distance. His face showed no hint of murder; it was the same bored expression and drowsy voice he'd use to say something like, “Gotta chop firewood tomorrow. Such a pain.”
Hmm. Not a good sign. This guy's a prime candidate for the Soul Oblivion Pill too.
“The one who didn't pull No. 92 out when she drowned.”
“Ah. I see.”
Thinking of No. 92 brought a wave of gloom. Should I kill that bastard?
After a moment's thought, for the sake of Jang Chil's soul, I said,
“Getting blood on your hands isn't a good thing.”
“I'm already soaked in it—what's a little more?”
Jang Chil held up his hand. It was rough and callused, not a drop of blood on it. But the way he looked at it was strange.
Just to be sure, I asked,
“You said you took care of that last job, right?”
“Killed the ringleader and all his underlings while I was at it. Dealt with the clients too... Probably a bit over thirty.”
Gasp... Not just one kill? You're the murderer here?
Jang Chil hadn't just done one job—he'd dug up a whole grave of them.
Buddy, I'll save your soul no matter what. Even if you forget me, I can't just watch you swim in a sea of blood.
I need to make more Soul Oblivion Pills somehow. To redeem these damned souls rotting away in these mountains...
* * *
What the hell is going on?
Sa Gyo-du swallowed hard as he saw Gi Jangno sitting in his own office chair.
Bi Jangno, who was supposed to come, hadn't shown, and instead Gi Jangno—the one with the worst beef with Bi Jangno—had arrived.
Gi Jangno was fiercely critical of the assassin training camp's system.
His exploits from his active days were the stuff of legends back at headquarters. The epitome of an assassin—a textbook case.
While Bi Jangno was quick to kick shins, rumor had it Gi Jangno killed with a utterly impassive face.
“Training assassins like this? Pathetic. Bi Jangno's a fool. Assassins aren't trained—they're born. You just gather trash and end up with trash.”
Gi Jangno grumbled flatly, tossing a thick stack of documents onto the desk with a thud.
Training reports cross-verified trainee submissions against those from undercover inspectors.
The inspectors' reports were compiled at headquarters and copies sent to the mountain camp.
Usually delivered by messenger, but this time Gi Jangno had come personally.
Gathering his courage, Sa Gyo-du asked,
“Is something the matter with Bi Jangno?”
“Bi Jangno? Dead.”
He said it with all the apathy of announcing the neighbor's dog had croaked.
“Pardon?”
“Chased Haeyeonmun's Hyeol Hwa, ran into bad luck with Sangyang troops, and got killed.”
“Ah... I see.”
Sa Gyo-du stared blankly at the documents.
This time we've got real talent. Pick out four for Ten Perfect Assassin and special grade, and I'll acknowledge your merits—make you branch chief in a big city for your remaining days. Keep an eye on No. 50 especially...
Bi Jangno's promise had turned to empty words. Sa Gyo-du blinked in dazed shock.
“What're you mulling over? Bring the camp's operating ledger.”
Gi Jangno said. He'd volunteered to clean up after Bi Jangno's death.
The four elders oversaw two halls each.
Bi Jangno was dead, but his underlings in the Fifth and Sixth Halls were numerous. Gi Jangno planned to use the cleanup as an excuse to weed them out.
Sa Gyo-du flinched inwardly. Lazy as he was, he was sharp. Sensing the play, he tried to cut ties.
“I just arrived as replacement recently, so I haven't touched the finances.”
Gi Jangno eyed him impassively.
“Bring it.”
“Yes, sir.”
A chill of killing intent ran through Sa Gyo-du, who meekly complied.
He handed over the ledger and left with the inspector reports.
Damn it. We're screwed.
His nape prickled.
No. Graduation's coming up anyway. Thirty-three assassins. Four specials... No. 50's Ten Perfect Assassin material. Even Gi Jangno can't ignore results like that.
Rifling through the reports Gi Jangno had given him, Sa Gyo-du noticed No. 50's was missing. He checked twice, thrice—only No. 50's was absent.
“?”
He returned to the office and cautiously asked Gi Jangno, occupying his chair.
“Seems there's a slight error. One trainee's inspection report is missing...”
“Huh?”
Gi Jangno blinked before replying.
“Oh, the guy who died with Bi Jangno... He was the undercover inspector. Can't file reports from the afterlife, can he?”
Gi Jangno had never held trainees from the camp in high regard, so he couldn't care less about inspection reports.
His eyes were glued to the ledger. The massive funds flowing from headquarters for the camp's operations—he'd root out and crush everyone who'd skimmed.
“Out. I'll call if I need you.”
Gi Jangno muttered absently, nose in the books.
No choice, Sa Gyo-du yielded his office and headed to the instructors' meeting room.
The instructors eyed his grim face anxiously as he entered. All Bi Jangno loyalists, they were sweating Gi Jangno's arrival.
One instructor probed Sa Gyo-du's dour expression.
“Inspection?”
“No. Bi Jangno's dead. Gi Jangno's... digging into us to purge.”
“Fuck... Using us as sacrificial pawns in headquarters power games?”
“Wanna die? Lower your voice.”
Sa Gyo-du tossed the report stack with a thud.
“Training inspection reports. Cross-check with trainee submissions and flag anomalies.”
Sa Gyo-du dug through the pile of kids' training reports and found No. 50's.
No. 50's report was simple.
He'd poured effort into killing Cheongsu Gate's Hwa Cheon-gang, but the target suicided at the last moment, botching it. Then he targeted a local tyrant's son in Jungyang County, but an assassin called Jara Daegong beat him to it. Finally, for his low-rank mission, the Choyang County magistrate obligingly dropped dead of a stroke.
This punk messing with me?
Won Seung had written the plain truth, but Sa Gyo-du couldn't buy it. Targets dropping dead ahead of him every time?
In his own twenty years as an assassin, he'd never seen such coincidence.
“Bring No. 50.”
Moments later, Won Seung arrived.
Sa Gyo-du shook the report.
“You call this a report?”
“Pardon? What's wrong with it?”
“What's wrong? You pretending not to know?”
Sa Gyo-du lunged, kicking Won Seung's shin—Bi Jangno faction's signature move.
Thwack!
It hurt enough to bring tears.
You bastard, you need Seven Treasures Soul Separation Powder, not Soul Oblivion Pill!
Sa Gyo-du's fate was sealed right then.
“Targets killing themselves? Makes sense to you?”
“What can I do? It's the truth.”
Sa Gyo-du scanned Won Seung's aggrieved face and saw genuine innocence. He pondered.
Could coincidences really stack like this?
Then Sangyang flashed in his mind.
Wait, Bi Jangno died to Sangyang troops? The inspector too. Yeah, all in Sangyang...
Sa Gyo-du stared at Won Seung like he'd seen a ghost.
He'd boozed through his time here, but never ignored Bi Jangno's orders.
From restored grade sheets and instructor testimonies, he'd roughly picked four specials, including checking Won Seung's record.
This kid was Dokgoe's poison apprentice. Ak Gyo-du got poisoned first.
Fierce light glinted in Sa Gyo-du's eyes.
This was the most dangerous time for camp instructors. Kids hated them. Among trainees back from missions tasting blood, some harbored grudges and assassinated instructors without a second thought.
In his second camp, one instructor got killed at the end.
This kid?
What if he'd killed Hwa Cheon-gang, the tyrant's son, the magistrate... even Bi Jangno and the inspector?
For legendary Ten Perfect Assassin stock... possible, right?
Absurd even to him, but once planted, the thought stuck.
That innocent face pouting grievance now... if it hid depths.
A shiver ran through him.
No way. But I gotta check.
“Fine. Dismissed.”
As Sa Gyo-du waved him off, Won Seung rubbed his shin.
“Just the thing to tell you, Instructor.”
“What?”
“Dok Sabu's poison formation... I think I can solve it. Got a manual by chance during training and studied it.”
Hmm...
Sa Gyo-du's wild suspicion hardened into conviction.
This punk... inherited Dokgoe's legacy.
If he'd gotten Dokgoe's inheritance, it explained things. Not even a Ten Great Expert would tangle with Dokgoe—Hwa Cheon-gang least of all.
More plausible than three targets suiciding: Dokgoe's disciple slaughters them all and plays dumb.
Then why deny it?
Kids chased high scores for graduation perks—they'd drilled that in. So why downplay for lower marks?
Sa Gyo-du said,
“Yeah? Then dismantle it.”
“Understood.”
Won Seung's eyes gleamed faintly; Sa Gyo-du caught it.
After Won Seung left, Sa Gyo-du summoned an instructor.
“From now on, watch him twenty-four-seven. Every move.”
“Pardon?”
The instructor griped at the hassle; Sa Gyo-du kicked his shin clean.
Thwack!
“Gah!”
“Every breath! Report it all!”
“Got it.”
Then he called his sharpest trusted instructor.
“Go to Sangyang. Verify No. 50's training kills.”
“Huh?”
Thwack!
Even the smart one got shinned.
Shin-kicks really got things moving.
“You blind? Emergency. Screw up, we're all dead.”
Sa Gyo-du explained the situation.
“No max results this batch, Gi Jangno's faction purges us. You know what purge means for us, right?”