In middle of the Night
No. 26, Red Rose Street, a dimly lit townhouse stood in eerie silence, its inhabitants nestled in slumber. The city outside was still, wrapped in the hush of the early morning.
Raymond pushed the door open carefully, stepping inside without a sound. The forged equipnt was finally in his hands, but Arya had already drifted into sleep, her rhythmic breathing the only sound in the quiet room.
His gaze flicked to the magic panel. The glowing numbers told him it was around two in the morning. He exhaled, rubbing his temples as he considered his next move. Tomorrow, he and Arya had a commission to complete, a mission that required them to be at their best. Strength was everything in their line of work, and every second of improvent counted.
A thought sparked in his mind.
"It's the dead of night… the deepest, darkest hour. If there's anywhere completely shrouded in darkness right now, it's the sewers."
His pulse quickened. The perfect opportunity had arrived. It was ti to awaken the Assassin.
The benefits were undeniable, unlocking the Assassin class would grant him an additional mana points, and more importantly, the passive abilities would amplify his combat prowess significantly.
In the past two days, he'd already grown familiar with the perks of the Thief class:
Mastery of small weapons; daggers, short swords, even broken blades.
Enhanced night vision, which had proven invaluable on his recent excursions.
Superhuman speed, both in movent and reflexes.
Raymond had seen firsthand how a thief's hand speed could turn the tide of a battle. When he registered at the Adventurer's Guild, he'd witnessed a thief snatch a commission slip so fast that even a trained eye could barely catch the motion.
Night vision, agility, and speed, it was all coming together.
"If I already have night vision, then awakening the Assassin should be no problem."
Raymond opened his status panel and found the Assassin's awakening requirents:
[Assassin] Awakening Conditions: Kill a target in absolute darkness without being detected.
A grin tugged at the corners of his lips. This was exactly the challenge he was looking for.
Without hesitation, he grabbed a dagger and a long cloth, wrapping it around his mouth and nose. Then, with silent determination, he slipped out of the house and made his way to the sewer entrance.
The night was at its peak; pitch-black, with only the distant hoot of an owl breaking the silence. But Raymond moved with ease, unhindered by the darkness thanks to his night vision.
The entrance to the sewer lood ahead, its iron grate rusted and slightly ajar. A foul, stagnant sll rose from below, but he barely flinched as he descended into the depths.
His boots landed on damp stone, the sound muffled by the cloth wrapped around his face. He glanced at the ground; bluish-gray slabs covered in dried footprints. No fresh watermarks.
"Looks like no one has been down here since the Black Wind Group was wiped out."
He let out a quiet chuckle. If soone had entered today, the dampness of the sewer would have kept their footprints fresh. But here, the signs told a different story; untouched, abandoned, silent.
Venturing further in, Raymond relied solely on his night vision. He didn't bring a torch; light would only be a hindrance now.
But as he walked deeper into the tunnels, sothing was off. He expected the usual sewer dwellers; rats scurrying along the walls, their beady eyes glinting in the dark. Yet there was nothing. Not a single rodent crossed his path.
"Strange…" he mused. "It's like the sewer rats have been cleared out recently."
There was only one conclusion; soone, or sothing, had been here before him.
Undeterred, he pressed on, heading deeper into the maze of tunnels. Eventually, he spotted fresh footprints: clawed, elongated, unmistakably belonging to mutant rats.
A smirk played on his lips.
"No matter how many tis they try to purge the sewers, these things always find a way back."
The air grew thicker, damp with the unmistakable scent of rot and decay. And then, finally, he heard it; the faint, high-pitched squeaking echoing from a nearby tunnel.
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Raymond's grip tightened around his dagger.
It was ti to begin.
Raymond crouched low, his breath steady, his eyes locked on the mutant rat. It was hunched over, gnawing voraciously on sothing unidentifiable, its jagged teeth tearing through flesh with sickening ease. The dim glow of his night vision revealed every twitch of its sinewy body, every flick of its hairless tail.
This was his chance.
He considered his options. A direct attack was too risky, the slightest movent could startle the creature, sending it scurrying into the depths of the sewer. No, this required patience. Precision. Stealth.
Raymond took a slow breath and activated "Camouflage." His body lted into the surroundings, blending perfectly with the damp stone walls. The key to the skill was absolute stillness, and as a hunter, patience was second nature to him.
Minutes dragged on. The gnawing sounds continued, echoing faintly through the tunnel. The mutant rat was in no hurry, it had its al, oblivious to the silent predator lurking nearby.
Raymond didn't move. Didn't blink. He simply waited.
The first activation of Camouflage wore off. He reactivated it. Still, the rat remained preoccupied.
A second ti. Still nothing.
On the third activation, the creature finally finished eating. Its twitching nose lifted, sniffing the stagnant air. Then, lazily, it began to waddle forward, right toward him.
Raymond tensed, every muscle in his body coiled like a spring.
The rat scurried closer. Closer.
It passed right by him, utterly unaware.
Now.
Swish!
The dagger flashed in the darkness, slicing cleanly into the mutant rat's neck. Its body convulsed as the blade drove deep into its skull. Raymond gave a sharp twist; quick, efficient. The rat never even had a chance to squeal.
The sewer fell silent.
Then, a soft glow appeared before his eyes.
> "Assassin Awakening Requirent Complete: In a dark environnt, without being discovered by the target, kill the target with a dagger."
"New Profession Unlocked: Assassin!"
Raymond let out a slow breath as the notification flickered on his status panel. A smile crept onto his lips.
Almost imdiately, he felt the changes coursing through his body. It wasn't just an upgrade, it was a transformation.
As a thief, he had speed, his hands and feet were fast. But as an assassin, his entire body felt like it had been reborn. His movents were fluid, his reflexes razor-sharp.
He took an experintal step.
Light. Effortless.
If before, his body had felt like a solid mass, like carrying the weight of armor, now he moved as if he were weightless, a feather caught in the wind.
Raymond's eyes glead with excitent. Agility was the hallmark of an assassin. Unlike fighters, who relied on brute strength and flexibility, assassins embodied sheer grace and speed. Their precision was unmatched.
His mind flashed back to a previous battle, to the crazy baboon. A hulking beast, wild and unpredictable. Back then, dodging its strikes had been nearly impossible.
"But now…"
A slow grin spread across his face.
"If I faced that beast again, I could dodge its punch with ease."
The crazy baboon was no ordinary foe. After awakening its Blood Frenzy, its body had grown larger, its muscles denser. It had beco a true warrior, a creature whose strength surged in battle.
But that wasn't the real danger.
The real danger was its growth.
Every fight made it stronger. Faster. More resilient.
If Raymond waited too long, the baboon might beco unstoppable.
"Which ans… the best strategy is to take it down in a single strike."
His fingers curled around the hilt of his dagger. Instant kill. That was the way of an assassin.
But that battle was for another day.
Right now, he had other priorities.
Exhaling, Raymond shook his head. Tomorrow, he had a commission to complete, a mission that needed his full attention. There was no point worrying about the baboon yet.
With that thought, he turned and swiftly exited the sewer, his footsteps silent as a shadow.
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