Before explaining everything, the gray-haired man took a deep breath first, then looked up at the sky with a wistful expression.
"Since your departure twelve years ago, the Guild has fallen into chaos. They all rebelled against Leader Edgar, then split apart and left the Guild just like that." He exhaled heavily while lowering his gaze, then looked at the girl in front of him. "Then your father—Leader Edgar also disappeared without a trace. I and the others tried to find him, but they all vanished too. Now, I am the only one left from the Assassin Guild. That's why I don't know where they are or what happened. We—were truly separated, Princess."
The girl fell silent for a moment, staring at the hundreds of people passing before her. Her hands clenched until her knuckles turned white.
"Separated?" Serelith muttered in her heart. "I guess this time, Shardrealm isn't about territorial division literally, but in another sense."
As a people pleaser, Serelith felt moved by Samael's words. She didn't know if it was because this body belonged to Serelith, or simply because she was easily touched by emotions.
"If I've been gone for twelve years, how could you recognize me?" Serelith asked without looking at Samael.
"Your appearance. Princess, your age may have increased, but you still look the same as the last time I escorted you when you were only fourteen."
A faint smile curved on her lips. She became a bit sensitive about this topic, as if the story Samael told truly belonged to her.
"Samael," the girl called, "why was I exiled back then? What was my reason for leaving for that long?"
Now it was Samael's turn to clench both fists tightly. "So it's true what Leader Edgar said—that you would lose your memories after taking that trial."
Samael continued, "Princess, you were sent to the Island of a Thousand Blades to undergo the greatest trial of your life as a Holy Princess. There, you would be alone—without parents, without friends, and even without me, your own right hand. At first, I thought the Leader was cruel for sending a fourteen-year-old child there. But later, I began to understand his reason. It seemed the Leader had already predicted that there would be a traitor within the Guild."
The man paused for a moment, looking straight into Serelith's eyes. "The Leader wanted to save you, Princess. You are the only remaining heir of the Assassins. You are his last hope to restore peace as it once was—including rebuilding the Assassin Guild that is now foreign to this land."
They stared at each other for a long moment until Serelith muttered inwardly, "Is this the main mission of this game? Do I have to rebuild the Assassin Guild from scratch?"
"But I failed, Samael," she lowered her head. "I'm sorry."
Samael's brows furrowed in confusion. "What do you mean, Princess?"
A deep sigh escaped Serelith's lips. "I failed that trial. I started everything over again. My power level, skills, abilities—I don't have any talent. All of it—I failed to achieve."
At that moment, Serelith felt as if she were about to give up. Maybe it was just the emotion of the body she inhabited. But Samael slowly shook his head and placed both his hands on her shoulders.
"No, Princess. You managed to come out of there, which means you didn't fail. You must have succeeded—you just haven't realized it yet."
Still feeling hopeless, Serelith brushed his hands off her shoulders. "You don't have to comfort me, Samael. I'm well aware that I've gone back to zero now. And you—you should leave too and save yourself. Live with a new identity. I release you from the Guild. You don't have to return, and you don't have to protect me anymore."
After saying that, without looking back, Serelith immediately walked away from Samael. She descended the bridge and blended into the crowded people below.
"System, why didn't you tell me about my past?" she muttered softly, to avoid arousing suspicion among the passersby.
[ I am merely a tool created to measure your progress and that of every player. I cannot access someone's past. ]
Hearing that answer, Serelith just clicked her tongue. "Ah, you're right. Anyway, I should return to that village to find the remaining bandits before nightfall. For tonight, at least I want to sleep at an inn."
---
Serelith's footsteps stopped on a stony road she recognized very well. It was the same village she had visited last night. But things became difficult during the day since people were busy outside.
The girl's gaze swept around her, even turning her body until several people accidentally bumped into her.
"Hey, can you move? You're blocking the way!"
"Get out of there!"
Serelith wasn't a kind or angel-hearted girl. When she was blamed for something that wasn't her fault, her pride would be wounded, making her angry—because it reminded her of something she wanted to forget for the rest of her life.
Serelith clenched both fists, then walked away from the crowd. She reached a narrow alley that was fairly dark and quiet. The girl took a deep breath. "I can't search like this. Criminals only come out when it's quiet, not in crowds. That means I probably have to wait until night—and sacrifice another night without sleeping in a comfortable inn."
The girl had already resigned herself to everything. She no longer hoped to finish her first mission today. So she simply walked leisurely, folding both hands behind her head while humming softly.
But then her gaze was drawn toward two large men whose figures Serelith instantly recognized. She stopped humming and peeked from behind the small alley.
"Aren't they the subordinates of that Bandit Leader? But they don't look like criminals. They're even doing transactions like normal people," she muttered.
"Oh, I get it. During the day, they disguise themselves and blend in with the other villagers as ordinary citizens. Then at night, they carry out their thefts. That means I also have to disguise myself to catch them."
Serelith turned around and went to the back. She looked left and right to make sure the place was empty and no one was around. Then she whispered softly, "Inventory!"
Several small boxes appeared in front of her. She took out a purple potion. She hesitated for a moment, since she still needed it.
But for now, completing the mission was more important. So Serelith grabbed the potion, and the boxes in front of her vanished.
"I don't have any other skins. So to get a new skin for disguise, I need coins. And to get coins, I have to sell this potion."
Without waiting any longer, the girl left the alley and walked along the row of shops on the roadside. She kept checking each store name one by one.
And right when she saw a shop labeled 'Alchemy Shop', she stepped inside without hesitation.
"Welcome to the most complete Alchemy Shop in this village. Do you want to buy a health potion? Strength potion? Buy HP? MP? I can brew anything according to your wish. So, what do you need?" asked a woman wearing a pointed hat. From her appearance alone, Serelith could tell she was a witch.
Serelith only responded with a smile. She reached into the small pouch at her waist and handed the woman a potion about the size of her palm. "I want to sell this. How much can I get for it?"
The woman took Serelith's strength potion and examined it closely. She even raised it high to see the details. "Hey, this is a level one potion. I can't give you much for it."
"You can't fool me. That's a level three potion. Even though it's quite common, there are some rare ingredients inside it."
The woman froze, clearly flustered. She didn't expect the girl before her to be knowledgeable about alchemy. "But still, I can't give you much. You see, my shop is in a village. Not many people come here to buy my goods. I'd lose money if I bought your item at a high price."
"Give me twenty gold coins."
"That's too expensive, Miss. Even a level five potion doesn't sell for that much."
"Are you kidding me? I used to be able to buy a level two potion for twenty-five gold coins. So why can't I sell mine at the price I'm offering now?"
"The world has changed, Miss. I don't know what era you're from, but now, everything has become cheap. And selling prices have dropped too. I can only give you thirteen coins. If you don't want it, then so be it."
Serelith racked her brain. She glanced outside, where the two bandits were already walking away from their earlier spot. She had no other choice.
"Fine. Give me thirteen gold coins."
After getting the coins, Serelith went to a clothing shop. She picked something that fit her budget and changed into it. It was a tight mini skirt and a crop top with long puffed sleeves that revealed her shoulders.
Serelith removed the hair ornament on the right side of her head, then tied her hair up into a single ponytail. She looked at her reflection in the large mirror provided in the store. Not only that, she also changed her makeup to be bolder than before.
[New skin detected! It will be automatically added to your inventory!]
The girl ignored the words floating before her and quickly left to search for the bandits. She kept walking along the stone-paved street for several minutes before stopping when she saw the people she was looking for sitting at a diner.
Thankfully, they were still there—she hadn't lost them.
As she approached their table, Serelith suddenly dropped herself beside them. "Ouch!"
Her skirt slightly lifted, and both men immediately helped her stand. "Hey, are you okay, Miss?"
"It seems I twisted my ankle a little. Could you help me find a healer? I'm new to this village, so I'm not familiar with the area," Serelith replied in the softest tone she could muster.
The two men exchanged glances and grinned meaningfully before nodding together. "Of course. We'll take you there. After all, what kind of man could ignore a beautiful girl like you in pain?"
Hearing that, Serelith smiled flirtatiously. "Ah, thank you. I knew you were good people."
The two men supported Serelith as they walked away from the diner. And just as she expected, they led her through a quiet alley. The moment they did, Serelith broke free from their grip and punched both of them upward across the face.
They staggered back, clutching their faces. "Hey, what the hell are you doing!?"
"What am I doing? Obviously finishing a mission."
Without hesitation, the girl kicked both of their "lower areas" at once while they were still covering their eyes in pain.
"Ahh!" Both men screamed and instinctively grabbed their crotches.
Not wasting the opportunity, Serelith pulled out two daggers she had hidden at her waist and leaped high. "Wound Carve!"
[-10 MP]
After shouting that, she immediately slashed their heads off in one motion. But she didn't stop there—somehow, Serelith tore apart their bodies until blood splattered everywhere.
[Mission accomplished! You gained 45 gold coins and 25 stat points!]
"Good," muttered Serelith, wiping the sweat from her face. "Add all the points to mana. Looks like this battle since last night has consumed too much of my mana points."
[Request accepted!]
[Would you like to view your stats now?]
"No. I need to satisfy my thirst first," she muttered, her eyes fixed on the pool of blood before her.
This time, Serelith didn't think twice. She grabbed one of the bandits' heads and sucked out all of its blood, gulping it down like an Oscar dying of thirst in the desert.
"Holy Princess?"