Arcanas

Conrad steadied his breath, anxiously entertaining the idea of a new enemy to fight. The fact they had stayed concealed to this point proved they had skill in controlling their Aura, also this didn't feel like ordinary Aura either.

—Somehow it felt warm and comforting. There was no doubt, this was...

"A Diviner"

Dealing with an Enchanted user was hard enough, now he had to face someone with the same ability advantage as him. Potentially stronger too, no, definitely stronger than him.

"It's ok, doesn't look like they are heading this way. I should use this opportunity to catch up with Langley"

He muttered under his breath.

The target couldn't have gotten far, and he had to find him before it was too late. Connie took a deep breath and activated [Aura Sensory]. A skill that allowed him to detect the Auras of others around him like invisible signatures radiating from every living being.

As Aura reflected a person's sense of self, Wilfred had taught him to distinguish between them not only by strength but by the subtle differences in color and energy.

It was like reading a complex emotional spectrum through unseen light.

Connie's perception was heightened, it allowed him to tune into the Aura of everyone in the vicinity. The sheer number of signatures almost overwhelmed him at first, but he dealt with it by segmenting the ones with the color he wasn't looking for.

_Focus. Concentrate. Weed him out from the crowd_

He shut his eyes and after a short bit, he found it. It was unmistakably it, the color he saw from him earlier. One that radiated a sense of greed, fear and deceit.

—The dull and slimy green color of corruption.

_There you are_

He opened his eyes and just when he was about to get on his way. Quill came into focus, silently watching him with a cold glare. It was clear that his eyes glinted with annoyance. Probably because no matter how hard he tried, he just could not set himself free.

Exhaustion must have also been a factor in this.

Nonetheless, Connie stepped closer to him and placed his hand on the flesh of the tentacle. As expected, it was cold. He focused his Aura, the temperature around him began to plummet. Icy crystals formed under his fingertips and spread across the appendage causing it to stiffen and crack as the ice grew, eventually reaching Quill.

"You showed me what it's like on the field. I'm grateful. I'll probably come back for you if you haven't found a way to escape. So, any last words before we part ways?"

Quill silently glared at him before saying…

"Piss off"

That said. The ice engulfed him, freezing the man inside the solid tentacle.

"That should hold you for now. Until I come back at least. Or maybe I should leave you here for someone else to deal with? Mm"

Connie stood over the frozen form of Quill as the victor, his breathing was a bit ragged, and his body began to feel heavy. It was probably from the exertion of using that ability.

He ran his other hand through his damp hair, thinking about his next move. He locked eyes with Quill and in that moment, a thought crept into his mind.

_Should I… kill him? _

Connie had an unsettling look on his face.

Sooner or later, he is going to be faced with a similar situation like this. Whether to spare or kill through his own choice. He was an assassin now, wasn't he? Murderers paid to kill with no legal consequences.

This man had tried to kill him. If it hadn't been for his own strength, he'd been dead by now. These were the rules of the game they were playing, right? Quill had known them for longer than he did.

—Kill or be killed. In a world dominated by assassins, it was a simple choice.

"I'm already going to kill someone today… what's one more body?"

Connie slightly twitched the hand fixated on the frozen prison. He knew, by exerting a bit of force, he could effortlessly shatter the ice alongside Quill, killing him on the spot.

"He tried to kill me. I'd be justified in returning the favor, right?"

These words echoed in his head. There was no doubt in his mind that if he allowed him to live, he would come back to get his revenge. But he could end it right here. End a potential future threat.

He exhaled sharply. Feeling the weight of the decision of taking a life through his own choice pressing down on him.

"I'm an assassin now. What's one more body compared to the hundreds that will follow, right?"

The thought turned his stomach, and a wave of nausea hit him.

Immediately, he removed his hand from the ice, forcing him to take heavy breaths

"W-what's wrong with me?"

He wasn't sure what had just happened. When did the idea of taking another person's life so freely came from? Killing was the job, but only those who had been labelled as a target were more acceptable. At least to him.

"No. I'm not going to kill you… only one person is dying today"

Connie muttered under his breath and steadily raised his voice as he continued.

Quill's frozen eyes stared at him. He shook his head before turning away from the scene. As he reached for the exit of the room. He stopped for a moment and looked back one last time at the wreckage of the room and Quill.

"I'm not going to kill you"

With that said. He stepped out of the room, leaving the frozen assassin behind as he ran across the crumbling hallway.

***

There he was.

—Bartholomew Ed Langley.

Connie's heart raced as he spotted the target in the distance. The politician dressed in an expensive suit paced around anxiously besides a wrecked car.

Something was off though. They didn't cover any ground in their attempt too escape or if he could even call it that.

Connie furrowed his brow in confusion. All four men, including Langley were standing outside of the vehicle they used. For some reason, it was wrecked, as if it had crashed into something. But there was nothing around it to indicate what it might have crashed into.

—There were no other vehicles, no debris, just chaos.

It was strange. He considered that some sort of force field was put up but the panicked people passing in and out of it suggested otherwise.

The air was thick with panic, probably from his little stunt earlier. Langley's three bodyguards stood close to him with their firearms drawn out. They formed a barrier between him and the crowd of people, Langley however was yelling at them frantically.

"Be my shield! I won't allow it to end here. Ranulf and Quill, where are those two when I need them? Damn useless assassins."

His eyes were darting around, clearly rattled by the situation. Connie didn't question it, so long as he was given another chance to redeem himself, he didn't ask why or wonder about it.

—Breath.

Connie's body moved with an unnatural grace and speed as he made his way towards the group simply by walking. Rushing in recklessly would be foolish, not to mention there might be another assassin that might pop out. So, he just allowed the panic and confusion of the crowd to do the work for him.

People were scattered everywhere, shouting and running. Connie was just another face in the chaos. Another figure blending seamlessly into the crowd.

He silently moved through them with ease, his steps almost ghostly as he approached the first of the bodyguards. Oblivious to his presence, the man was diligently scanning the area for threats.

Connie calmly extended his hand and lightly grazed the man's neck. The touch was barely perceptible, but in an instant, the man's muscles stiffened, his body seemed to have been locked into place as if frozen by invisible chains.

_One down_

He moved to the next guard. With another light touch to the nape, the guard's body froze, his eyes widened with shock, but he was powerless to move.

_Two down_

Langley continued to shout, oblivious to the fact that his protection was crumbling around him. Connie still kept his ghostly pace, his hand moved toward the third and final guard. This one seemed to be more alert, his eyes nervously scanned the surroundings, but that didn't matter.

Connie slipped behind him and rested his fingers on the man's neck. The guard twitched briefly before his body was locked in place like the others.

_Three down and now_

The politician was still barking orders, but his eyes widened, and his mouth opened in shock once Connie suddenly came into sight. By that time, he had already stopped moving so it made it easier for Langley to be able to see him.

To an outside observer, it was as though he had teleported. In a flash, Connie was standing directly in front of the politician, who was slightly taller than him.

"Where did y—who are you?"

Langley asked as he stammered. Connie said nothing, his eyes locked on the man's own. In his hand, he held a gun— a souvenir he swiped from one of the paralyzed guards.

He raised the gun slowly, pointing it at the man, his hand trembling as he did. Langley's eyes widened even more as the barrel levelled with his head.

 "—! What are you doing standing there?! Can't you see my life is being threatened? Kill him already!"

Langley shouted at the men, but they didn't respond. They stood there motionless.

"Well, wha—"

"They won't answer you. By understanding the body's natural flow of energy, it's easy to disrupt the nervous system or the nerves. Even a single touch is enough to cause paralysis. They won't be moving for a while."

Connie responded with a cold, detached and distance voice. This caused the mouth of Langley to quiver, and he stumbled back, falling onto the ground as he did, landing on his butt with a thud. He looked up at Connie with a pale face and eyes darting between the young assassin's face and the gun.

Given the fact he hired assassins to protect him, proved that Langley knew what he was dealing with.

"W-wait! Please! You don't have to do this. I can pay you! Double, no, triple, four times whatever they're giving you"

Langley raised his hands to shield himself from the inevitable.

"Sorry but your offers mean nothing to me"

"A niece! I have a niece!"

The politician immediately said without a second too soon. And continued.

"She—she's all I have. I'm all she has left. Please, don't do this! Think about her, I can't die here, not like this!"

—Family?

Connie felt himself starting to hesitate. He gritted his teeth, fighting to steady himself. The thought of doing the same thing that had been done to him to another gnawed at him. His heart began to beat faster.

_Pull the trigger. Pull the trigger. Pull the trigger. Pull it. Pull it. Pull it! _

His mind screamed at him to get it over and done with already, but his body refused to obey. And Langley spoke again, his final words broke through the haze in Connie's mind.

"Krista… please, I need to be by her side a while longer"

Connie's eyes widened as he heard the name, whoever she was. Langley's last thought, his plea, was for her.

In that moment Connie felt himself calming down. His tensed body began to loosen up and he lowered the gun, he wanted to throw it away, but he knew that wasn't an option. However, it was different this time.

Looking back on the fire of his old home, he understood it now.

"I understand, mom"

He whispered to himself.

Langley looked up at him. His eyes filled with desperate hope, thinking that perhaps he had convinced the young assassin to spare him.

"And thanks, Mel"

But that hope was shattered the moment Connie raised his gun again and his finger tightened on the trigger.

BANG.

The sound of gunshot rang throughout the air. The bullet pierced Langley's skull and his body crumbled to the ground.

The last person he saw was Connie with glint red eyes looking down on him and his last word was…

"Kris….."

Connie stood over him, his chest rising and falling heavily. He lowered his hand as he stared over Langley's lifeless body.

"I, I did…it….I did it. I did it. I did it. I did it. I did it"

—I killed a human being.