Episode 1 - The Status Window Plan

The status window I had opened on a hunch after hearing that system support was ready was riddled with holes—an incomplete, broken thing. Why can’t they ever do anything right the first time? This damn anomaly never finishes a job properly.

I pressed down firmly on Umbra Assassination Technique, the top entry among my unique skills, and a related window unfolded with a smooth ripple.

Nothing special, huh? It really was nothing more or less than an objective numerical summary of my abilities. Well, there probably wasn’t a better time than now to take a clear measure of what I could do, but what caught my eye was something else entirely.

“A curse…?”

I frowned and pressed it anyway.

“As expected.”

They always hide the important parts. I let out a heavy sigh and pushed open the tavern door in front of me. Of course, I didn’t bother knocking.

“Matthew! ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I’m here.”

“Hm? I heard you were on leave.”

“Exactly. That’s why I came.”

“Which is why I’m asking why you’re showing up at work on your day off. Are you one of those disturbing people who believes you have to work even during vacation?”

“No way. Don’t you remember what we said when we parted—let’s get closer?”

“Pfft. Wasn’t that just a greeting? You’ve got a surprisingly cute side after all. All right, then. What would you like to do to get closer to me?”

“How about a drink? Truth is, I’ve never tried alcohol before.”

Matthew stared at me while polishing a glass with meticulous care. His eyes were puzzled. He probably couldn’t make sense of the situation at all.

But you’re the biggest obstacle in our plan.

“Well, that’s fine. I’m still on duty, so I’ll keep you company at least. I am a bartender, after all. I’m used to drinking with customers while I work.”

Clack.

Matthew set the glass down with a sharp sound. He had been turning it this way and that, checking for smudges in the light.

“You’ve never had a drink? Well, you only became an adult this year.”

“Yeah. Can you recommend something decent? You are a bartender, right?”

“My, my, Lee Han. Isn’t that a bit rude? Honestly I’d like to tell you to just go drink some beer, but since you insist I’m a bartender, I suppose I must give a proper recommendation.”

He rummaged through the cabinet and pulled out a glass with a long, triangular bowl. He packed a chilled mixing glass with ice, then slowly poured in clear gin. A faint scent of pine drifted through the air.

“I naturally assumed you’d had alcohol before. You always seem like such an old soul.”

He swirled the dry vermouth once, then gently mixed the drink with the ice to finish. He strained it into the tall glass and delicately placed a single olive on top.

“A martini. I consider it an honor to be making your first drink.”

The sharp, biting aroma of alcohol. Beneath it lay a strangely natural harmony. Feeling Matthew’s quietly observant gaze, I slowly took a sip.

The tingling liquid savagely invaded my mouth. An intense bitterness strong enough to erase every other flavor passed through, followed by faint herbal notes. After the final salty touch of the olive, I swallowed. The liquid burned hot down my throat and set my insides on fire.

“The bartender’s recommendation seems pretty terrible.”

“How is it?”

“The taste is too aggressive. Are you sure this is a drink for beginners?”

I had lived a long time and once enjoyed alcohol. Martinis were familiar enough. But it seemed the body experienced liquor differently from the mind—it was brutally strong. It felt like fire racing from my esophagus straight into my stomach.

Matthew burst into hearty laughter at my slightly furrowed brow.

“Looks like you really are still a kid.”

“Why? Does not liking alcohol make me a kid?”

“If that’s how it sounded, I apologize. But when you scrunch your face up like that, you do look like a child.”

“You served me a drink that’s deliberately hard to enjoy and you’re calling me rude.”

“Didn’t you say you wanted us ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to get closer? Let’s just say I was curious about you… I could never quite figure you out. Thanks to this, I’ve learned three things about you.”

“Oh. Three things?”

“First, as I just said, you really are a young man drinking alcohol for the first time.”

“At least you called me a young man.”

“Second, your resistance to poison applies to alcohol as well.”

“Does it?”

“And lastly…”

Matthew cleared away the empty glass with a sharp clack. A faint trace of regret lingered on his face.

“That I cannot grant your request.”

‘Lee Han, the biggest variable in our plan is Matthew. As far as I know, he has always worked as a bartender in this town. He’s served as the guild’s gatekeeper for at least thirteen years.’

Rebecca had spoken in a calm, steady voice.

‘Regardless of his personal strength, in a small border town like Zachsen, the influence of someone who’s held the same position for so long cannot be ignored. So whether it works or not, go test the waters with Matthew.’

Sorry, Rebecca… I failed.

After saying he could not grant my request, Matthew had practically thrown me out. No matter what I said afterward, he remained stubbornly silent. I hadn’t even gotten to say much yet.

In my frustration I kicked at the fallen leaves blocking the path. The leaves scattered pathetically. They flew up too easily and didn’t travel ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠far at all.

Nothing ever goes right.

When Rebecca first suggested we swallow the guild, I had thought it was absurd. Umbra—an organization spread across the entire continent, a group with hundreds of years of history in information gathering and assassination. How were we supposed to devour something like that?

Even after hearing the full plan, my opinion had not changed. It made no sense logically or emotionally.

‘Lee Han, so you’re going to keep living in submission to Shylock? Fine. If your vow of atonement was that shallow, then go ahead. Keep dirtying your hands beneath him and piling up more sins. But I won’t do that.’

Her eyes had been firm, almost angry. The little girl who had once cried after losing her parents—when had she grown so much? Perhaps that pain was exactly why she had grown so quickly.

‘Even if you abandon your vow, I will keep it until the end. I can’t watch you commit any more sins. That was my resolution. I know it’s reckless and makes no sense. But the die has already been cast, Lee Han.’

I let out a long sigh.

Yeah. I just have to do what I have to do, and do it with everything I have.

A small mountain cabin. I knocked in a precise rhythm—knock, knock-knock, knock.

“It’s me.”

“Whoa. You scared me.”

The door opened as though there had been no presence behind it a moment earlier.

“Jun.”

“What brings you all the way out here? You here for training or something?”

“Where’s May?”

“May left on a mission. Hey, don’t just stand there—come in and sit down.”

It looked like an ordinary mountain cabin. I closed my eyes and held my breath. One… two… five. New kids, then.

“Two new recruits?”

“The world’s a dangerous place these days, ya know. We picked up some orphans who lost their parents near the border.”

“Did you report it to Matthew?”

“Come on, I’m the instructor in charge now, not Matthew. Do I really have to report every little thing? I won’t work them to death the way they did in our time.”

I let out a small chuckle at his brazen attitude.

“Fine. Do as you please.”

“Huh, I didn’t know you were the type to cling to authority, hyungnim. Should I start reporting everything to you from now on?”

“You don’t listen to Matthew but you’ll listen to me?”

“I listen to you, hyungnim.”

Why was this guy acting so creepily obedient all of a sudden?

“What’s with you today? It’s weird coming from you. I get all flustered when you act like that.”

“Why? It’s not new. You know I’d do anything you asked, hyungnim.”

“Heh. Anyone can say pretty words.”

“You’re really making me feel bad today. You must have a favor to ask, right? Just say it comfortably. Ever since you saved my life and May’s, I decided I’d do whatever you asked. If you told me to die, I’d die.”

Jun brought over tea with leaves floating in the hot water he had boiled.

“It’s cold out. Have a cup.”

Originally Shylock should have grown old and died in the borderlands. But after meeting me, the man had grown greedy. The Zachsen branch had no decent personnel aside from a handful of insignificant assassins. Of course, they were sufficient for cleaning up small fry, and any big jobs could simply be handed off to other branches, so it had never been a problem until now.

But if they wanted to expand their power, establishing an independent fighting force was essential. That was how the first generation of orphans had been born in Zachsen.

A project to gather children with nowhere to go and raise them as assassins. Well, assassin training was harsh no matter where you went, so it had been quite brutal. We had started with around twelve children. The only ones who survived were me, May, and Jun.

It had been training harsh enough to kill a person, but not quite enough to guarantee death. If only that bastard Shylock hadn’t interfered… Well, looking back now, it was like I had cut my own flesh. I had helped both of them purely so I could survive, so I never understood why they were so grateful. If we were keeping score, the other nine…

Let’s not dwell on it.

Slurp— The warm tea heated my body.

“Thanks. I did have a favor to ask.”

“Go ahead.”

“At an important moment… well… In other words. Can you become my ally?”

“Isn’t that obvious?”

“Huh?”

“Hyungnim, if you thought I was just saying empty words, let me make it clear—I’m on your side no matter what the situation. That’s a given, so I won’t even count it as a favor. Same goes for May.”

The guy thumped his chest with a solid sound. I really didn’t understand how someone like him had become an assassin. May was strict—would she feel the same?

“All right. Then if I end up in danger, please protect Rebecca for me.”

“…Over you, hyungnim?”

“Yes.”

“You always ask me to watch over sister Rebecca’s safety, so it’s not really a new favor, but you said danger… Did you cause some kind of accident?”

“It seems that way.”

“I’m not sure if I can put her before you, but I’ll do my best.”

“Thanks.”

The mountain cabin in autumn had originally been unremarkable. If it hid a purpose like this, it was even more so. It was far more organized than when I had last visited. And the strange sense of unease I had felt since arriving only grew stronger.

“You leaving?”

“No, I just wanted to say hello while I was here.”

“Ha, haha. Hyungnim, maybe next time for the hello…”

I smoothly lifted the broom and pulled back the carpet. A handle was visible on the exposed floor. To anyone who didn’t know, it might look like a simple storage hatch.

It was a place I had entered and exited dozens of times before. The training ground where assassins were forged. These children must be… the second generation.

“Uh, uhh. Do you really have to say hello right now?”

“What, are you hiding something from me?”

“N-no… it’s not that.”

I trusted the guy, yet he was acting so strangely awkward. I opened the door without hesitation and walked down the revealed stairs with steady steps. Jun kept rolling his eyes nervously behind me. What exactly was he hiding?

At the bottom of the bleak staircase, a door emitting faint light came into view.

“I don’t know the password. Open it.”

“Uh, ahem. It’s me, Jun.”

“Shylock.”

“Baldy.”

At the word “Shylock,” someone inside flinched and grabbed a dagger, but an answer immediately came from beside me.

“...?”

“….”

When I looked over in disbelief, even Jun looked embarrassed and averted his eyes.

“That’s… the password for today.”

…Well, it wasn’t as if anyone actually liked Shylock.

Creak— The door opened.

Jun, whatever you’re hiding, please don’t betray my trust.

“Jun! Jun! Did you buy something tasty?”

“Julie tried to sneak out earlier! Scold her!”

….

“Jun, since when did this place become a playground for kids?”

“Ha, haha. Hyungnim, the kids are growing. What kind of training do they need? It’s enough if they can protect their own bodies. I’ll handle any dangerous work… Ha, haha!”

I shook my head slowly.

What a soft-hearted guy.