Isekai Assassin: Volume 1 Read online

  I raised an eyebrow, a frown on my face. “Like what?”

  “Magic, for one,” he said nonchalantly.

  “Magic.” I shook my head, standing as I scratched at my chin. “Actual magic?”

  He nodded. “And that’s not all, but as I said, I don’t have time to explain everything. You can’t stay here for much longer. Your body can’t handle the strain of this place for too long. It’ll literally tear you apart. You want to know more about the world? You’ll have to do that on your own time.”

  I frowned, resisting the urge to strangle Weilin. “And the job?”

  He smiled again, but this time he hid his teeth. He scratched at his temple. “About that.” He paused, his eyes looking away as he tried to find the right words. “I need you to kill some people for me. A lot of them, if I’m honest. But I’m not going to just give you a list and send you off hunting. As fun as it would be to watch, you’d likely end up dead within a year.”

  Weilin stopped speaking and paced around the room, taking two steps and turning, going back and forth in circles.

  “Earth, well Earth in the distant future, has many interesting ideas.” He grinned at me. “I may have borrowed a few of those ideas when I was building my little world.

  “There is a system in place that acts as a guide, so to speak. It’s hard to explain, as you will have absolutely no frame of reference for it, but trust me. When weird things start happening, just go with it, and you’ll get used to it in no time. It’ll eventually direct you to where you need to go.”

  I stood from the table and glared daggers at the god, wishing I could wipe the smug look off his face.

  “You’re answering my questions with vague nonsense.” I shook my head. “Basically, you’re telling me just to figure it out as I go along.”

  “Pretty much.”

  The urge to sneer at the god was strong, so I resorted to turning away and biting my lip as I mentally disemboweled him. It was surprisingly cathartic. I’ve done jobs where I’ve had little to no information beforehand, but this takes that to the extreme. I’m literally walking into another world with zero intelligence.

  Despite the bullshit, I found myself smiling, and my heart sped up at the thought.

  Could be fun.

  I turned back to him and nodded. “Fine. If you’re not going to explain anything further, then let’s go ahead and get this show on the road.”

  Weilin clapped his hands, his smile growing wider. “Excellent. Knew you’d bounce back quickly.” He walked over to me and laid two fingers on my forehead. “This may be the last time we speak like this for a long while, so thanks for accepting an old god's request. And good luck, Elias.”

  The overwhelming dizziness returned in spades, and I stumbled, falling to the side as my head pounded with a migraine.

  I fell to my knees, and my hands gripped handfuls of grass as I fought to overcome the unease roiling through me.

  Wait, grass?

  Though moving made my entire body ache with a dull radiating pain that originated in my head, I forced the splitting agony away and looked up into a bright blue sky.

  White clouds rolled by, and a pleasant breeze filled the air. It was enjoyable, but I looked around, confused.

  I was in a small clearing, lush green trees and thick foliage all around me.

  Am I back on Earth?

  I glanced back up at the sky, covering my eyes to shield them from the glare of the sun. I couldn’t quite place it, but it wasn’t quite the sun I knew.

  It was smaller like it was much further away, and the color was different. Not by much, but it seemed a little whiter, less yellow than I was used to.

  In the sky next to it was the moon, but it certainly wasn’t the moon that had accompanied me on so many lonely jobs. It was larger, and the face was different. There weren’t as many craters dotting its surface.

  And behind the moon was something that made it clear I was no longer on Earth.

  There was a planet far behind the moon. It was large, an oceanic blue, nearly the same color as the sky, but only a shade darker. It was far larger than the moon or the sun, but it must have been incredibly far away, even though it seemed like it would come crashing down at any moment.

  A wave of vertigo overcame me as I stared up into the alien sky and tried not to panic.

  I didn’t think I actually believed Weilin, didn’t believe what he told me, but now I was staring at the literal proof that I wasn’t on Earth.

  I’m in another world.

  I sat down and laid back on the grass, enjoying the breeze that swept through the forest. I stayed there for a long time as I processed everything that had happened to me in the past few hours.

  It was too much, and it tugged at my sanity as I looked up at the giant, blue planet and tried not to lose it.

  My head swam, and I did the only thing I could think of.

  I laughed.

  It was loud, slightly unhinged, and seemingly unending. I laughed for several minutes straight until I couldn’t breathe, and my abdomen burned with fire. As I stopped, the end of my laughter echoed through the quiet clearing, getting swallowed by the trees and the wind.

  I’m in another world…I shook my head and tried once more to come to terms with it. It was easier this time around.

  “I’m in another world.” I grinned as I climbed to my feet.

  Best get used to it.

  Though I was still slightly freaked out, I had much more important things to worry about.

  I glanced down at myself. I wore a beige cotton shirt, matching pants, and no shoes. I also had no weapons or any supplies or equipment.

  Strike that. I’m in another world, and I’m completely unarmed. I sighed. Fucking perfect.

  But when I glanced at my hands, I stopped, pausing. My hands weren’t exactly my hands anymore. They were smoother, clean, save for the light hairs that grew on the back of my palm. They no longer bore the proof of my profession. The dozen of little nicks and cuts I’d accrued over the years. I turned them over and found that while the callouses I’d worked so hard to build were still with me, they weren’t as rough as they used to be.

  I checked myself over thoroughly. Every single scar that I’d ever gotten was gone, and my joints no longer ached. I may have been nearing my thirtieth year, but my body was that of a man a decade younger.

  As I looked over myself, I discovered something that shouldn’t be on my person.

  Clamped around my left wrist was a silver bracelet. It seemed metallic, but also elusive. It shimmered and pulsed ethereal, vanishing and reappearing on my wrist every few seconds. I stared at it, and it increased, pulsing faster and faster as if it wanted me to notice it.

  Eventually, I’d had enough of staring down at it, so I reached a finger over and tapped the bracelet.

  As soon as I touched it, it vanished, and words began appearing in front of my face.

  What. The. Hell?

  Status…loading

  I blinked, wondering if I was hallucinating.

  Loading Complete!

  Status

  Name: Elias McKinley

  Age: 29

  Race: Human

  Job: None (-50% Exp until Job Assessment)

  Level: 1

  Exp: 0/9247

  Stats

  Strength: 27

  Constitution: 21

  Endurance: 32

  Wisdom: 17

  Perception: 30

  Agility: 41

  Charisma: 12

  Luck: 19

  Job Assessment Incomplete

  Would you like to begin your assessment?

  Yes/No?

  What the hell is this?

  Words floated in my vision like they were just in front of me, but I couldn’t touch or interact with them.

  They hung in the air, waiting. Expectant.

  My mind crumpled as I tried and failed to wrap my head around it. I didn’t, couldn’t, comprehend what I was seeing. My breathing increased as the mad
ness returned.

  Stop. I closed my eyes, focusing only on my breathing. Weilin told me this would happen, that it would be too much. Don’t focus on any of it, don’t try to make sense of it yet.

  He told me I wouldn’t have a frame of reference for this, so this isn’t something I can understand. But I don’t have to.

  Just accept it and move on.

  I had to worry about too many other important things than a few floating words telling me about myself.

  Weapon. Water. Shelter. Food. Information.

  Those five things are what I needed to focus on and the order I needed them in. Everything else could wait until I’d secured my immediate survival.

  The breeze prickled over my skin, but the sun beat hot overhead, and sweat was already beading on my neck. I didn’t need to be standing around in this forest or wherever I was for very much longer.

  I needed to get moving, but first, I had to deal with the strange floating text.

  Job Assessment Incomplete

  Would you like to begin your assessment?

  Yes/No?

  Well, shit, here goes nothing.

  “Yes?”

  As soon as I said the word, a heaviness entered my head. It was like a fog trickled into my skull and settled over my brain. Flashes of memories appeared and disappeared in seconds. My life growing up on the farm, my parents, my brothers and sisters. My years on the streets. The jobs and lives I’d taken. All of it was gathered up, sifted through, and cataloged in what seemed like seconds.

  Then the presence faded, and a new set of words appeared in my vision.

  Job Assessment Complete

  Job: Assassin

  Grants a boost to stealth-based skills

  Faster increase for stealth-based skills

  Faster increase to Agility, Perception, and Endurance

  Bonus experience for completing job-specific quests

  -75% Experience for completing unrelated quests

  Do You Accept Assessment?

  Yes/No?

  Do I accept that I’m an assassin? Well, of course.

  Before I could even think about doing anything, the words changed.

  Assessment Accepted!

  Skills Analyzed.

  Because of your extensive experience with your job class, you are awarded the maximum number of skill slots for your level (Level 1). A total of 4 skill slots have been made available to you.

  Selected skills will automatically be increased to the Journeyman level (Level 25) and you will receive a portion of the experience you would have gained for leveling them up.

  Please choose.

  Immediately, a list appeared, extending well past my sight. It listed out every single one of my skills I’d gained from my years as an assassin. My basic ones like combat skills, infiltration, and even forgery and poison making. Every single one of them, basically my entire life, listed out for my perusal.

  And I had to pick four.

  It was like asking me to choose between my favorite weapons. But I had to make a choice. I needed to get moving.

  But it wasn’t that simple. I stood there, staring off into space as I went through each and every skill for an hour or two while I made my decisions.

  In the end, it was hard to make up my mind, but I chose.

  Passive Skills

  Small Blades: 25 (Journeyman) +25% Damage with Small Blades

  Stealth: 25 (Journeyman) 25% Harder to Detect

  Intuition: 25 (Journeyman) +25% to Sixth Sense

  Assassination: 25 (Journeyman) [Assassination has been upgraded to an (Active Skill)]

  Active Skills

  Assassination: Next strike that targets a vital area deals (25%) Critical Damage

  Cooldown: 24 hours

  Experience gained: 10% of total skills

  250 Exp!

  Level: 1

  Exp: 250/9247

  Having chosen my skills, whatever the hell that meant. I read the description provided to me, and my eyes immediately swam as more words I didn’t understand appeared before me.

  I ignored the information that confused me and blinked away the messages. Deal with it later. I told myself over and over.

  Looking up, the sun was still high overhead, so I guessed it to be about midday, if not a little later. Though I was using Earth’s timetable to judge it by, my instincts told me I wasn’t off the mark.

  Weilin also told me that Xenai was similar to Earth in a lot of regards. I’m hoping that it includes the time of day.

  Now, let's go and find a weapon, then a place to drink.

  As soon as I took a single step, however, more words flashed in front of me.

  Beginners Quest!

  A quest given to everyone when they acquire their job. You may choose between one of three options.

  Easy: Slay 10 Rabbits in the Romera Forest

  Exp: 100

  Currency: 50 Vahn

  Medium: Slay 5 Wolves in the Romera Forest

  Exp: 200

  Currency: 100 Vahn

  Hard: Slay 8 Bandits in the Romera Forest

  Exp: 300

  Currency: 200 Vahn

  I snorted and brushed my hair back, wiping the sweat away from my forehead. No way am I running around the wilderness trying to stab a bunch of harmless bunnies like a jackass. I may have been a killer, but even I had a code.

  The second job seemed more my speed. But I hadn’t been hunting, actually hunting, in a long time.

  Which left one option.

  Looks like my first job is going to be taking out a group of bandits. I chuckled to myself. It was good to know that there would always be work for someone like me, even in a strange new world.

  The first thing I needed to do was get my bearings and figure out where I was and where I needed to go.

  My immediate surroundings told me nothing but that I was in the middle of the woods. Trees surrounded me in an uneven circle and offered no direction for me to go in.

  Going by the now slowly descending sun, I judged my directions and marked north with a nearby stick. The terrain was mostly flat, so there was nothing really for me to do but to find a river or source of water and follow it.

  That was my plan, but first, I had to get out of the clearing.

  I began the arduous task of searching my immediate surroundings before I started my hike through the woods. The trees were grouped close together, and the foliage was dense, obviously neglected. There were no signs of life or tracks in a complete circle for a few hundred yards in any direction around me, so I had to assume I wasn’t near civilization.

  There wasn’t really anything left for me to do but leave.

  So, with a little trepidation born from venturing out into the unknown, I began walking.

  I hiked through thick woodlands for about fifteen minutes until a new sound joined me beside the chittering of animals and the chirping of birds.

  Water rushed nearby.

  I stopped and listened, pinpointing the echoing sound. Elation filled my heart, and I took off toward the sound, my mouth as dry as a desert. The tree's leaves turned the forest into twilight, but as I broke through the underbrush, bright sunlight once more enveloped me as I stepped out of the woods and found the river.

  Well, river might’ve been a bit of a stretch, but I wasn’t about to complain.

  It was more of a burbling brook than anything, but the small stream was about a dozen feet across and calf-deep from my estimation. The water was a crystal-clear blue and ran between numerous small stones.

  I checked my surroundings, made sure I was alone, and crouched under an overhanging tree, letting the shadows cast by the many leaves obscure me. It wasn’t much, but it would give me a split second if anyone came upon me quickly.

  The water was cool as I cupped my hands and dipped them into the stream. Freshwater sluiced over my pale skin as I brought my fingers to my lips. I took a sip, swirled the water around my tongue, and then spit.

  Tastes clean, no poison or foulness t
hat I can taste, but of course, that doesn’t tell me everything. I knew the dangers of drinking water from a stream back on Earth, but I needed to stay hydrated if I would be hiking through the wilderness.

  The risk of getting sick from the water was low, but it wasn’t zero.

  Look, Weilin. If you could keep me from getting ill from the water, I’d really appreciate it.

  I felt a little silly, saying a prayer to a god, but I actually had proof he existed, and if it kept me from getting sick, then I’d take it.

  With mild trepidation, I drank deeply and slaked my thirst.

  When I was done, I wiped my mouth and was about to leave when I spied a rather large rock sitting in the stream. I leaned over the bank and snagged it out of the water.

  It was just large enough to sit comfortably in hand and had a sharpish point to it that would work as an improvised weapon.

  I stared at the rock in hand and raised an eyebrow as another fit of laughter came over me—a rock. A few hours ago, I had the best equipment money could buy, and now I’ve been reduced to rags and a rock.

  Oh, how the mighty have fallen.

  I shook my head and cleared my thoughts. I’d found two of my necessities, but I still wasn’t that much better off than when I arrived.

  The river flowed downstream, and I followed it for about an hour or so until the scent of woodsmoke drifted past my nose. I paused, sniffed, and confirmed the smell.

  Not natural, hints of roasting meat, which means I’m near people. It could be the bandits I’m supposed to deal with.

  Let's find out.

  I followed the smell and soon crept out of the woods. I found a small farmstead in front of me.

  There was the main house, which looked to have been built from the trees that surrounded the forest. It was quaint, a long two-story with a tiled roof. A cobblestone chimney rose from the roof and bellowed smoke that brought a succulent scent to me and set my stomach rumbling.

  I hadn’t eaten since the morning before the Dorset job, which seemed a lifetime ago now.

  Next to the house was a small and worn wooden barn that looked big enough to hold a couple of horses. A large field sat beside it that grew what seemed like corn stalks. There was also a chicken coop and a pigpen with a single pig inside.

  All in all, it seemed to be a small but well-off farm in the middle of nowhere.