Mistral is a dirty place. Vale holds itself up by its insistence on peace and inclusivity; presenting itself as the ideal kingdom. Atlas is dominated by Remnant's most valuable corporations; home to the very rich and the very poor. In Vacuo, survival of the fittest is still law; a harsh world, but an honest one. But Mistral is a dirty place. Yes, much of the finest art and creative works have come from Mistral. But it's common, if unspoken, knowledge that Mistral is the place to be if you view the law as more a set of guidelines.
Bertinelli was an old name in Mistral's underworld. An old and extinct name. The Bertinelli family once held a sizable share of power in the kingdom. But about fifteen years ago, the family was entirely wiped out by the other families they had been living cooperatively alongside for generations.
Curiously, the heads of those families involved had recently begun dropping like flies. Velestra, Mandragora, Sionis; all found dead in their homes with steel bolts in their hearts. The word going around was that a Huntress was the culprit. Few mourned the victims, but every Huntsman Academy distanced itself far from their deaths. Either this was a rogue Huntress at play, or an impersonator.
Impersonating a Huntsman was illegal in every kingdom in Remnant. But so was murder, and that didn't stop Helena from putting those men down like the dogs they were. She had to watch from a hiding place as her family was gunned down. She was nine years old. As far as she was concerned, a bolt in the heart was getting off easy.
She still had a few left on the list. Carl Grissom was the last of the bosses. There were also a few lower-level gunmen that actually fired the shots: Arnold Flass, Buzz Bronski, Max Eckhardt, and Roman Torchwick. "Following orders" would not save them from her. They would die as well.
Unfortunately, word of the recently departed had spread around the kingdom. The last on her list had gone to ground. Helena would have to pay another visit to Mistral's new up-and-comer, Lil' Miss Malachite. She had a way of acquiring whatever information you were looking for. She was giving Helena a good price, too. Afterall, what could be worth more to a woman like her than a power vacuum?
Didn't matter to Helena. Bertinelli, Grissom, Malachite: didn't matter who ran things. All that mattered was her revenge. Once she'd gotten that, she'd leave Mistral behind her. Nothing there for her but blood. She'd leave Malachite to amass her power as long as she didn't turn it Helena's way. Should she make that mistake, she'd find herself on the Huntress's list as well.