Bold=Character speaking.

Italics=Character's thoughts.

[_]=Item/Spell/Ability.

Anything To Survive

What does it mean to be powerful? To be strong? At the most basic definition, it is the ability to inflict your will upon others. But strength appears in many forms, from political, religious, economic, to the more basic forms, that of physical strength. After all, there's more than one way to reach a goal, and as long as the goal is met, the method is irrelevant. And the most basic of all goals, is that to survive. It is baked into the cells of every living being. Every man and woman, has an instinctive need to survive, to live another day. But the world is unequal and cruel, unforgiving and harsh, and many die with each passing day.

This was the fate of a small girl, once upon a time. An orphan from as far back as she could remember. With raggedy clothes, and an empty belly, her life was nothing but suffering. Her only thoughts were to find a way to live through another day. There was no time for games. No time for joy. The only thing that was real, was the will to survive.

Being homeless in a major city is a problem. This problem is bigger, when this city, is set in a backwards feudal society, where the concept of human rights was as alien as the concept of vegetarianism to a shark. This problem becomes even bigger, when one is a homeless child. After all, children are weak and ignorant of the world, and ignorance can be fatal. Thus, it would follow that being a homeless orphaned child, in a major city where poverty is rampant, would not be considered as a good place to start life's journey. Naturally, being a woman in such a society, is an extra layer of difficulty added on top. On top of the somewhat weaker physical attributes, and the eventual complications that would arrive with puberty, the number of degenerates in a primitive society that would love to get their hands on children for any reason is absolutely mindboggling. Therefore, it would stand to reason that most people in this situation would perish. Be it of starvation, being robbed, incarcerated by the guards or a random noble or person in power. Or maybe they'd run afoul of the religious establishment, or they'd become victim to slavery. Or maybe it would just be a sickness taking hold and never letting go. For whatever the reason, this person's death was certain from the day her parents abandoned her.

But death would not claim her, not today. That was her motto, her mantra. She would not die today. Thus, each day she fought to live until the next. She learned to steal food to survive, to stave off the hunger. She learned to hide from people who wished to do her harm, and she learned to fight against those she had to. Sometimes it would be a fair fight, but more often than not, the fight would be won before it even began. If someone was a threat, they'd go to bed and not wake up in the morning. That was how she lived from day to day. Thieving from merchant stalls, wealthy nobles, mercenaries, anyone and everyone. Count up the coins, make sure to survive the day, until eventually, one day she would be rich enough that she could live a comfortable life, with a full belly and warm bed. A life of comfort, without stress or fear. This was her original intent.

But as the years went by, as she turned from a small child, into a teenager, the girl realized some things. Some lessons that the streets of Baranto, her home city, taught her. Six lessons, to be precise. The same number as that of the Gods, which she placed no stock in.

First of all, was that she was naturally beautiful, and men were suckers for beauty. It was easy to charm them, to get them to do what she wanted. All she needed was to promise them something, and they'd dive headfirst into danger, or betray their loved ones, all for a chance to sleep with her. In her eyes, men and women were dogs, slaves to their sexual nature. Originally, this was a problem. There were a few occasions where she had to stab someone who wished to claim he

Second of all, was the importance of being a good liar. Not just a creative one, for being a creative liar was easy. Not was it the importance of being a believable liar, or mixing in truth with the lies.

No, it was that, one did not need to lie all the time to be a liar. What one needed, was a story. A set story, rooted in facts, with specific details. Details that would be easy to forget if the story was a lie. What one needed, was consistence. Speak the truth consistently, and when it came time to lie, put in a small lie at first, believable at first glance. Repeat it until it became fact. Do this over and over again, and an entire person can be woven out of thin air, to be used and discarded when the time was right, while hiding her true identity.

Third of all, was the pure importance of money. Money made the world go around. Enough of it, and one could get anything. From houses to clothes, to slaves and servants. The very best of food and drink. The ultimate in arms and armor, with magic items and potions to cover one's every need. Money could be used to obtain all these things, and therefore, one could never have enough of it. Thus, no job was too dirty, no deed was too low. Taking on commissions to kill or steal from one person or group on behalf of another was something she learned to do from a young age, and time only made her better at it.

Fourth of all, was just how valuable information and secrets were. All men, and women, had secrets. Secrets they wished to be kept. While many of these were in the mind alone, enough floated to the surface. These secrets expressed themselves in various ways. A noble, preaching piety, who was secretly a non-believer. A priestess preaching chastity, who secretly had three lovers. A business preaching honesty and trust, who secretly sold illegal drugs. A knight who spoke about the virtues of honor and protecting the weak, who secretly bought slaves to rape and abuse.

Time and life in a society of degenerates taught this person to not put any faith in ideals, or words. Deeds were what was important, and as far she was concerned, what you did in the shadows was who you really were.

Fifth of all, was the importance of violence. To be specific, it was the importance of a person being able to inflict it, and more importantly, protect oneself from it. Violence was a fact of life. It was common across all the sentient races, and it was a fact of life in the animal kingdoms. Just as sure as the sun would rise in the east, so too would the strong pray on the weak. Therefore, there was no price too high, no method too dirty, if it could help protect her. If it could help her destroy those, who wished to destroy her. There would be no half-measures, no mercy. If someone was an enemy, they would be eliminated. The weak would be culled, and the strong would survive. That was the way of things. This was how life was, and this would never change.

And the last lesson was the one that enabled her to learn all these things. It was that the girl was special. Not just in her physical beauty, but she had a knack for learning all things related to combat much faster than one would normally. She learned to shoot a bow in just a few days as well as a master, how to master a throwing knife in a day, how to wield daggers, blades and short swords, how to craft poisons and medicines, how to forge documents, how to blend in plain sight, how to be a cut above the rest. It could be said that she was a genius. But the truth was, she had a Talent.

Not that she was talented. But she had a Talent. Talents are a native form of magic in the New World. One of the four ways magic could be manifested. There was Wild Magic, the magic that was the domain of the Dragon Lords. Terrifying, and without limit, though it extracted a heavy price. The price, was that of the soul. Either the souls of those who would be sacrificed to cast the spell, or the soul of the person who cast it. Sometimes, in the direst of circumstances, it would be both.

There were Martial Arts, a form of magic that was manifested in warriors and other fighters. It could be used by Rogues, Archers, just about anyone who was not a dedicated magic caster. These Martial Arts manifested themselves in different ways. From [Slash], which was as simple as its name, to [Focus Battle Aura], which made one's weapons behave as though they were magic weapons, allowing them to break through special defenses, to even [Sense Weakness], which showed the weakness of one's enemies, and how to exploit it. These abilities were native to the New World, and thus were not found in Yggdrasil. Their closest equivalent would be the Skills warriors had, but they were different in the form that, each use of a [Martial Art] would tax the body, and there was a set limit on how many one could use at a given time before the body broke down.

The third form of native magic, was that of Runecraft. Developed by the dwarves, it is a slow and methodical craft. By inscribing runes or glyphs or tattoos, whatever one would call them, into weapons or armor or other items, these objects would be imbued with qualities, depending on the type of the rune. A sword imbued with the rune with the word "Fire" would inflict fire damage upon use. A simple system. It requires no additional resources beyond the time to inscribe the rune. However, it had flaws. Three of them, to be precise. The first one was that the time needed to inscribe a rune was long, and runesmiths were rare. Because this art was limited to the dwarves only, and they themselves did not make too many little dwarves, it took an even longer time for a runesmith to be born and to learn the craft. And time was short in a world of violence. The second flaw, was the existence of Tier Magic, which could enchant items for a fraction of the time, and all that was needed was a magic caster and some materials. As an added bonus, these enchantments were often stronger, and could be more diverse. Thus, it would be more practical to become a magic caster, instead of a runesmith. And the last flaw, was that there was a cap on how many runes one could place on an item before the item itself became unstable or exploded. The cap was six runes, and the only item that held six runes, was the weapon of the Dwarf King. A mighty hammer which could shake the earth and strike fear into men and beasts. At any rate, this was the rarest of magics in the New World, simply due to the isolationist policy of the dwarves.

And the last form of magic, was that of Talents. Inborn abilities, seemingly randomly assigned to people with little rhyme or reason. Multiple people could possess the same talent, and these talents could wildly vary in both potency and specialty. These talents could be completely useless, or absolutely life-changing. If a person has a Talent that allows them to cast spells of the 4th and higher tier and half cost, but this person not only cannot reach the 4th tier, but is not even a magic caster at all, this talent would be absolutely useless. And certain Talents, such as that to know when exactly someone would give birth, while seemingly useless, would be a massive life changer to a midwife or a village peasant. And sometimes, these Talents would be extremely impactful. Such as All-Seeing Eyes, which gave one the ability to see the magical power and tier limit of arcane magic casters. And then there was the Talent which the girl was born with. There was no real name for it, as she did not discover it until she was an adolescent, but this did two things. First, it made her learn any [Rogue] related skills much faster than the average person. And the second part, it made her virtually undetectable as long as she was not in someone's line of sight.

It did not matter how strong her prey was. As long as she was not seen, as long as she was in the shadows, she could not be detected. Sure, traps and divination spells would still pick her up, as would any living thing that had a keen sense of smell. But seeing her? Hearing her steps? Virtually impossible unless one knew what they were looking for. And they never did.

Using these lessons, and her inborn talents, a small homeless orphaned girl, managed to propel herself out of the gutter, and into a life of strength. Whereas she once stole to survive, she eventually managed to become a renowned assassin for hire. She never failed a contract, and she was never caught. Life was beginning to turn for the better. As the days became years, so too did the girl become a young adult woman, and her skills grew. Her most notable ability was that she was never actually detected by her victims. She would stalk them for hours, sometimes days, and before they knew it, they were dead. Blood for coin. A thieving orphan became a master assassin.

But life is about change, and even the rottenest of people can eventually do good deeds, and the most holy of saints can commit grave sins. And though the red-haired woman was a master assassin, with the most expensive gear money can buy, with mansions, servants, and everything she could ask for, there was something missing.

She lacked a purpose. She felt hollow. Whether it be because she tired of killing one noble on behalf of another, and then killing that noble on behalf of a third, or because there was no challenge at all in any of her contracts, she didn't know, but she did know that though she had all she ever wanted, for some reason, she did not feel any happier. When she looked deep within, she saw that she was just as poor as she was as a child. She had no friends, no lover, no family, no purpose, no happiness. She had never had any of these things, yet she missed them all the same. And all the material wealth in the world could not fill the void deep within.

However, this would all change. As darkness spread across the land, and the tides of evil flooded every hamlet under the sun, her jobs began to slowly dry up. The common folk were disappearing. Merchants told of insects attacking and devouring everyone and everything in merchant caravans. The rivers began flooding the crops, and starvation set in. Monsters and demons appeared, and they made even the fearsome demi humans cower in fear. It seemed as if the end of the world had arrived. A few months ago, all was normal. Now it seemed, that life was set to be extinguished. And to further add to the ill omens, a giant meteor had fallen from the heavens and nearly destroyed the royal capital. However, not all was lost. A small band of heroes were making their name. Travelling across the land, helping the weak and wounded, bringing joy where there was none.

By and large though, it could be summed up that the entire world was shit before this entire crisis, and now it was on fire. A small group of adventurers were merely throwing water on it, delaying the inevitable. So, such rumors did not interest the red-haired assassin.

However, it seemed fate had a different plan. One of her clients, a regular, one day came to her mansion in the noble district of Baranto, in the Kingdom of Reba-Kanem. This was a surprise, as the fat nobles never got off their asses until absolutely necessary, and the assassin preferred to visit her clients instead of being visited by them. However, when she saw the noble and his son's faces, she understood why they had come here.

As a person with many connections, she understood the value of favors and friends in both high and low places. And since she was a renowned mercenary, despite being a commoner, many nobles still sought her favor. Even if they could not hire her, at the very least they hoped to ingratiate themselves enough so that she would think twice about killing them. She never did. Money was money, and the nobles seemed to never run out, always milking more out of the peasantry. Their voracious appetite was insatiable, and it seemed that they would never stop their petty conflicts and pathetic displays of wealth, power and status. The games would never stop. It would all never stop. After all, why would the nobles care about anything else? The Kingdom was massive in both land and population, and it had no real enemies to contest it beyond the Slane Theocracy in the south, with which they were on good terms.

The Kingdom was large and populated, but rotten, and in truth was ruled by the aristocracy ruled, and the King did not have much power. After all, it was the 7 Great Dukes that elected the King. An elective monarchy where the King is a puppet to the nobles. And like the hundreds of other realms that have had similar systems, the nobles were degenerates and lowlifes, used to abusing young and old and getting away with it. The very act of committing violence upon a noble as a commoner was an instant death sentence. However, no matter how mighty they were, at the end of the day, they lacked the one capacity she had they could never match. The capacity to personally inflict deadly force upon people actually capable of fighting back. Thus, when the fat noble and his young heir came that night, knocking on her mansion door, she already knew what had happened before a word was spoken.

"Miss Izaniya, I beg you; may I have a moment of your time?" -Said the older man. He was fat, with receding hairline and gaudy clothes which did nothing to hide his disgusting figure., but luckily a cloak hid both. He was one of the 7 Great Dukes. He was Amar Erso Sardono, the local lord of Baranto. An extremely wealthy figure, and one that the red-haired woman learned earlier on would be better to keep alive as a cash cow, instead of eliminating him for a potential big one-time payoff.

"Amar? What are you doing here at this hour?"-Replied the wealthy woman, her bright green eyes staring deep into the man's soul, looking for any sign of weakness.

"It's my son. Look at him! Some damn commoners did this, and I can't find them!" – Shouted the noble, while holding his young heir, making sure he would not fall. Amar's son wore a cloak that hid his deformed face. Linen blindfolds obscured his eyes, though it was evident that he was staring at nowhere. The boy had a look of pure misery on his face, as if his entire world had crumbled overnight. He looked absolutely pathetic, and one could see the dried blood on his clothes.

"Yeah…that looks bad. Get in, I'll have the servants make some tea." – Replied the woman, opening the door, feeling genuinely curious that a commoner would dare go against not just a noble, but one of the 7 Great Dukes. These men had power that eclipsed that of many independent kings. One did not just assault one of their heirs and live to tell the tale.

A few minutes later, a young servant girl brought 3 pairs of tea and set them down on an expensive table. The two guests had seated themselves opposite the young assassin. She wore an elegant nightgown, and had no weapons on her person. Despite this, she could easily kill the man opposite her in a few seconds using nothing more than her own hands, and for this reason, she felt completely in command. Few would be able to host an impromptu visit of one of the 7 Great Dukes, but she was one the few who could not only do so, but do it without stress and while maintaining complete control.

"So, tell me my friend, what happened?" -Said the woman, trying to appear friendly and concerned, though the truth was she could not care less.

"It's my boy. My sweet boy! Look at him! They took his eyes, they tortured him! Those damn commoners! I want them dead! I WANT THEIR FAMILIES DEAD! I WANT THEM ALL DEAD!"-Shouted the noble so loudly, that the young servant girl hid behind her mistress, fearing the noble's wrath. It was at this moment that she was glad that her mistress was always calm and composed, and she never mistreated her servants. It was at this moment that she was reminded how much she adored and respected her mistress, and how she would never betray her.

"What happened? Who did this? I doubt mere commoners would have the stones or ability to do this to your son." – Questioned Izaniya. She already knew what happened. A classic story. A young noble thought he was the top of the world, and waved his cock around until he hit someone who didn't tolerate it, and this person punished the little shit. Izaniya was mighty and quick, but she knew that there were warriors out there who were stronger than a hundred trained knights, and these people did not tolerate insults from anyone.

"My son was making his way to the auction house, looking to purchase some fresh merchandise. He had eight bodyguards with him, yet those idiots couldn't protect him! Some witch and her boyfriend attacked my sweet boy in broad daylight, for no reason at all! They beat him, tortured him and took his eyes. And…and…"- The man shuddered, being unable to finish the sentence. The words were stuck in his throat.

"What did they do to your son? It's okay, you can trust me, I need to know to do the job."- Izaniya had a feeling what the final thing was.

"They…they castrated him!"- The man said. He was clearly under a lot of stress, and his tears began to flow down his face. In contrast though, his son was completely silent. It looked as though he was not even here, like he was off in his own little world.

"Oh… My condolences." – Lied Izaniya. Truth be told, she knew it couldn't have happened to a worse guy. She knew the kid was spoiled and rotten, thus she did not at all feel it was undeserved, even if the attack was unprovoked.
"We can't, we can't fix him..."-Said meekly Amar.

"Ali, can you tell me what happened?"- Izaniya turned towards the young noble, and thought that for a moment she was looking at a zombie. His face was sunken and pale, one could see the remnants of tears and snot long dried on his once handsome visage. And she knew this boy from experience. He was loud and boisterous, and rarely shut up. Yet here he was, sitting as meekly as a sleeping kitten. The diagnosis was clear. The kid was traumatized.

"He… he isn't speaking. He hasn't said anything the past two days, ever since the guards brought him back. I had the priests and the Mages Guild take a look at him, and they can't treat his wounds. And they used even 4th tier magic to heal him. He's still blind, and he still can't have any children of his own… And he won't even speak. He doesn't even eat or drink water anymore, we had to force the water down his throat, or else he would've died of thirst! Don't you see, someone took my sweet boy, and broke him! AND I CAN'T FIX HIM!" – Bellowed the fat noble once more, this time sadness turning into rage. From a certain point of view, one could even call him a loving father, looking to get justice for his loved ones.

"I'm so sorry this happened to you. I'll do all I can to make sure you get through this." - Replied the woman with a sympathetic tone.
"What do I want, what do I need to get through this? Justice? No, I don't want justice. I want vengeance. Before Surshana takes me, I will have vengeance on the bastards who did this." – Said Amar, with a cold voice. This time, there was no emotion involved. It was a promise.

"I'll need all the details in order to proceed."- Said Izaniya.

"Sure, whatever. But first…" – Said the noble, before plopping down a bag of gems on the table. The loud thump could be heard all across the mansion.

"What's this?" – Again, Izaniya feigned ignorance.

"Funds. I'll give you ten more bags just like that if you accept, use them to do whatever is necessary to kill those bastards. I'll give you even more if you're successful. And if you bring them to me alive...I'll give you anything. Everything. Everything I have. If you can bring me the people who did this."

Izaniya thought for a few seconds. She had little reason to take this contract. She was wealthy, and the duke was getting old. Though refusing the offer might scorn him, she knew others who would gladly offer her their patronage, so it would not be a major loss. Why should she bother to strike against people that could easily blind and castrate one of the most important people in the Kingdom on a mere whim? That would be a death sentence for most people.

However, she was Izaniya. She was the master assassin, the undetectable, undefeatable, inescapable rogue that struck fear into the hearts of all. She had long since entered and surpassed the Realm of Legends. She had a perfect Talent, she could cast up to eight Martial Arts at once, she had gear that put that of Adamantite adventurers to shame. She had killed dragons, liches, vampires and everything under the sun at the mere age of twenty-one. She had done nearly everything. Thus, that void inside her compelled her to accept. To be challenged. To delve into the unknown, to stalk deadly prey, prey that could fight back. So, she said the only words she could.

"I accept."- She said, much to the relief of Amar.

"Thank you! Thank you!" – Said the duke, while bowing. He bowed so quickly, so lowly, that his giant forehead slapped the table and turned over the two cups of tea which he and his son had not touched. In comparison, Izaniya had calmly picked up the cup of tea mere moments before the foreheads assault on her belongings.

"Duke Amar, please raise your head. Now, tell me everything, from start to finish."- Said the green-eyed woman, who felt excitement for the first time in a long time.

After a long conversation that lasted until sunrise, Izaniya had learned what had happened.

The young heir, also known as Ali Amar Sardono, had gone to the local auction house alongside his eight guards to purchase merchandise. The merchandise had been a pair of elven women. After all, there was only one auction house in the city of Baranto. Slavery was a long and established institution and tradition in the Kingdom of Reba-Kanem, and elven slaves were the cream of the crop, and they were obviously the most expensive. Thus, only the wealthiest could afford them. So far, so good.

After leaving the auction house, the young noble saw an extremely beautiful woman who was dressed like a mage. From the description of the guards, this woman was tall, beautiful and had shoulder length bright blonde hair and ocean blue eyes. She also wore an outfit of blue and gold, and seemed exquisitely dressed. Furthermore, she was described as carrying a black staff with a red gem on the top, and she was escorted by a tall knight, clad in full black armor. The knight was described as carrying four distinct and exquisite swords, two on his hips and two on his back.

As Ali was making his way home, he slapped one of his slaves for crying before he turned and walked towards the young female magic caster. Two of the guards remained behind to watch the slaves, while the rest escorted him, to make sure the young lord was kept safe. Both of them had apparently provided nearly the exact same record of the event, so their memories were probably working as they should. The other two guards also provided a similar record, but they could not hear the start of the conversation. Apparently, it went something like this.
The young lord had walked up to the female magic caster, and had asked her.

"Greetings my lady. Can I ask, would you care to join me for a night of the wildest pleasure you can imagine?" - The young lord said with a shit-eating grin.

"What?"- Had replied the young mage, who seemed to make a half-confused and half-revolted face.

"Well, I recently purchased those two beautiful elven slaves over there. And then you caught my eye. So, I came over to ask, if you would like to join the three of us tonight for a bit of fun at my estate. Trust me, it'll be fun." – The young lord had replied.

The magic caster's look of disgust had changed to that of pure confusion, and then anger. After that she replied with infernal rage.

"Fuck off. Turn around, and get out of my face before I burn your slaver eyes out. Disgusting tribal primitive." – Spat the sorceress with venom.

"Tribal? Primitive? I shall one day be lord of this land! You have no idea who you said no to!" – Said the young lord, whose handsome face and beautiful icy blue eyes had been morphed into a disgusting image. His raggedy light brown hair was cut in a typical fashion. He could be described as cute on the outside, ugly on the inside.

"Oh, is that a fact? Listen boy, I'm being generous here. Turn around and get lost" – The witch had replied, who did not seem at all fazed by the young lord's threats.

"Bitch! You shall be mine tonight! I'll take you while your boyfriend watches, before beheading you both! You'll rue the day you crossed me!" – Said the young lord with pure rage. Then he unsheathed his sword. It was at this moment that the other two guards joined in.

"I doubt it." – Said the sorceress. She and her friend did not at all seem to be frightened, despite being surrounded. They were completely still. They did not move a muscle.

As the eight guards and the young nobles approached the two commoners, they were trying to back them into a wall. To prevent the magic caster from escaping. After all, they understood what their lord wanted. The woman was to be kept alive at all costs, while the man being kept alive was merely secondary. Most important however, was that their lord be kept alive. If he were harmed, they would lose their heads.

"The nerve of these people. I get dragged here to kill oversized locusts and ancient giant death trees, and if that's not enough, now I have inbred feudal monkeys trying to rape me. Maybe I should let the Demon Gods win, would save me the trouble of dealing with these idiots." – The woman had said to her partner in black. He was also as cool as ice, and from behind his black helmet, came out a voice, calm and gentle.

"Now now Tsukasa, we came here because we had a job to do, not to start trouble. We're burning daylight, so we should just [Teleport] out of here."

"I'm not letting these idiots insult me and live." - Her reply was instant.

"Fine, deal with them and let's get out of here. I swear, you're so angry all the time, you really need to relax, you know?" – Said the dark knight, who seemed more concerned about his friend's mental health than her safety.

As the two companions chatted, the guards made their way toward them, cutting off all apparent escape routes. Once they were all in position, they lifted their spears in a threatening manner. The tallest of the guards, probably the man in charge of them all, who only answered to his lord, took a step right in front of him, raised his sword in the air, and shouted.

"You are going nowhere! Surrender and you will live!" - Said the tall soldier.

The woman merely lifted her hand, and spoke words that brought chills down everyone's spines.

"Playtime's over. Time to burn. [Napa-!] "– but before she could finish casting the spell, her friend had grabbed her hand and interrupted her.

"You idiot, were you really going to cast [Napalm] in the middle of a city?" – Said the black knight in a panic.

"Yea. Why?" – Replied the sorceress.

"You would've killed the slaves!" – Said the knight, who spoke as if he were talking to a literal child and not an adult woman.

"Oh. Ooooooh, right. I forgot about them, sorry."

Their conversation however, was interrupted by the young lord. Ali wasted no time in gloating.

"Hah, I knew you were a softie. Face it, you cannot fight back without harming them. So just surrender now, and I promise to be gentle." – Said the young lord. Though he was threatening, the truth was that he did not wish to damage the perfect face of the sorceress in front of him. In his mind, she would make a perfect concubine once he broke her in.

"I have a better idea." – She replied, as an evil grin appeared on her face.

"Oh, yeah? What's that?"

"This. [Mass Sleep]."

And those were the last words the guards heard before falling into a deep slumber.

After that, the information started being unreliable. From the eight guards, only two managed to show up, and they themselves did not know where they were. They had been gone for three days, and they were not able to recall anything between the incident near the auction house and them waking up in front of the city gates alongside the young master. The two elven slaves had completely disappeared, and could not be found. And worst of all, the young master's condition. He spoke not a word, he was dirty, bloodied and broken, emasculated and humiliated. Something happened to him, and these people were responsible.

From the report of the two guards, Izaniya managed to build a a foundation. She would've liked to collect more evidence, but fate was not kind. Lord Ali had left the auction house at dusk, and at that point few people were walking the streets, thus there were no witnesses. The six guards were completely missing. The two that did show up, were executed. And the crucial witness as to what had happened, did not even speak a single word.

Still, there was enough evidence to start a hunt. First of all, the woman was an extremely powerful magic caster. Based on what the dark knight said, she could cast 5th tier spell [Teleportation], and this was no easy feat to accomplish. Izaniya herself knew that the number of mortal casters that could cast this spell could be counted on both hands. Furthermore, she wore expensive robes and had a magical staff, so she was probably a hardened battle veteran. After all, she did not seem threatened in the slightest. She also mentioned fighting the Demon Gods, and a giant death tree, so she was probably skilled in fighting deadly opponents. Still, while powerful, she was unknown.

As for the dark knight, Izaniya had an idea who he was. Bards had recently started singing stories of a supposedly half-demonic knight with four dark swords, and he was extremely skilled with a blade. Thus, his identity was easy. He was the Black Knight. Though it was safe to say that, bards being bards, had overexaggerated his prowess, he was a deadly foe. One of the deadliest Izaniya would have ever faced. And he was not alone. He had an entire party of people, all of them with similar strength. In other words, he was a warrior, who was tough to kill and would best be left alone. The magic caster on the other hand, was an easy target. She was impulsive and had a fiery temper. Not like Izaniya, who was calm and cold. The magic caster, would be a viable target.

After gathering information around the city to find out the potential whereabout of her prey, Izaniya equipped her most potent equipment. And she even wore a unique ring, which would help block three casts of 4th tier magic and below on her body, before breaking. This was an extremely expensive ring, and it was the only one she had, only to be worn in emergencies. But this, this would be a good time to use it. Yes, there would be no better time to use it. As Izaniya carefully prepared herself, she finally felt excited for the first time in years. She felt fear, she felt hope, she felt a ray of emotions that warmed her numb heart. But suddenly…she woke up.

She remembered that she was not in her mansion. She was not stalking the magic caster. She could after all, distinctly remember that her quest to assassinate the caster had ended in utter failure. Her only failure. Though her failure to assassinate her target happened over a year ago, she was still somewhat bitter. Sure, she made some friends and finally gained a purpose, but her perfect record had been stained. One she had hoped to correct. As these thoughts swarmed in her mind as she slowly woke up, she opened her eyes to the face of a young man with gray eyes. He was handsome, yet at this moment, Izaniya remembered what had happened mere moments ago, and her heart started to beat rapidly. She did not feel attracted. She felt afraid. And it was clear why.

"Wakey wakey sleepy-head. Did you have a good nap?" – Said the man, with a tone that one would use when talking to a lover or a child. There was not a hint of malice behind it, but she knew better. This man was bad news, and when she thought about how he had slaughtered the demons in that village, she remembered why. This man was a warrior, yet he cast a 7th tier spell without any issue. Was he a hidden Demon God? Or even worse, was he one of them? One of the visitors? Those two had been incredibly powerful, and the laws of humanity seemed to hold no sway over them. What if there were more? What if the two she had met so far, were mere weaklings? That was why she had been cautious while following him, why she was prepared to use the treasure to escape if she was noticed. She knew that in a straight fight, her Talent was useless, and she would be slaughtered like a lamb.

A million panicked thoughts, and no answers. However, while she gradually awakened, Izaniya realized something. She was not standing, or sitting. She was being held by her collar. She was floating in the air. She was floating… in the air? Impossible. Or was it?

"You! Where am I? What happened?" – Izaniya said as used her hands to hold on to the arm that held her by her collar.

"Now, now. Don't panic. My hand might slip if you move around too much."

"Slip? What do you mean?"

"Look down." – The man said with a slight chuckle.

And then, Izaniya did as she was told. And she gazed upon a terrifying sight.

She was in the middle of the air. Hundreds, or perhaps thousands of meters above the mountains. She was in the middle of the sky, higher than any bird, and the man that held her life in his hands seemed like a cat playing with a mouse before the inevitable kill. This man, was a peerless warrior, stronger than the Black Knight. He was someone who could cast invisibility magic, shoot out lightning, and hover in the skies. Such a being, with this much power, should not exist. This man was far more terrifying than any monster. More terrifying than any Demon God she had faced so far. And worst of all. He was human. Or was he? Though his face appeared human, as far as she knew, it could be a mask. Not that it mattered now.

"Just in case you get any ideas." – The man said before pulling out a blue gem out of one of his coat pockets. He held it in his hand for a few seconds, before putting it back in his pocket. It was the gem that Izaniya had planned on using to teleport out of here. Now, the chain of events was clear. Izaniya had been stalking this man, he had discovered her, she prepared to activate the crystal to escape, and in the next moment she was floating in the sky. The thought of harming this person never even crossed her mind, as she was unsure if she even could, and if she could, if she should. She knew that this man could drop her at any moment, and she would die. Furthermore, if he was killed while holding her, his spell would end, and they would both fall together.

"Do you understand your situation now?" – The young man asked once again, calmly. He was in complete control, and had no reason to feel threatened at all.

Izaniya could do nothing more than nod affirmatively.

"Good, now you and I are going to play a game. I'm going to ask questions; you will answer them. If I don't like what I hear, or you tell a lie, there's one less finger that will hold your clothes, and by extension, your life. The game ends when I run out of questions. Now, before we begin, do you have any questions for me?" – The terrifying man said.

"What happens if I answer all your questions?" – Izaniya asked.

"You live." – The man said with a slight smile

"And if I don't?" – Izaniya asked once more, this time somewhat hesitantly.

"Then we see how big of a red stain you'll become if dropped from this height." – The man replied without a hint of hesitation, as he then flashed a charming smile.

Izaniya's face froze at what he said. It seemed that even if she answered his questions, he could still drop her to her death. And she did not wish to die. Not as a child, not as a young adolescent, not now.

"I understand." – Izaniya said, this time with a hint of motivation, and this seemed to please her torturer. She was probably facing sadist of the highest degree, but she would outlast him as well.

"Good, good. First, can I have your name?" – The man said politely. The dissonance between a man politely asking for a maiden's name while holding her thousands of meters above the ground, above certain death, was too precious. Izaniya could not help but chuckle as she replied.

"I'm Izaniya."

"Oh, Izaniya, is it? Interesting, interesting… Tell me Izaniya, do you agree with the terms of the game? I ask you some questions, you get to go back to your life. What do you say?"

At this moment, Izaniya had a choice to make. She knew what kind of questions this man would ask. He would ask her about her companions. About the people who had given her a home, friendship, warmth and purpose where before there was none. About her family. He would ask her to betray them all, just to get a chance that she might return to another empty life. Would she betray them? Would she betray the people who accepted her despite her flaws, the people who brought a purpose greater than themselves? She thought for a second. And the answer was clear.

She thought back to her life as a starving orphan in the muck, beating and stealing from the other children, robbing the old of whatever money they had so she could buy some stale bread. And the answer was obvious, as she had been doing it all her life.
She would. She would sup with the Devil if it was necessary. Without hesitation. All to survive.

"I accept." – Izaniya said, and at that moment, she truly felt like she had made a deal with the Devil. Little did she know, looking back on this moment, that was exactly what she had done

"Excellent! Now, let us begin."

Sorry for the long wait between chapters guys. But I was super busy with work, and couldn't afford to write at all during the weekdays. But, as compensation, the chapter is much longer. This one is 7.5k(without the author's notes at the end) words long! My longest chapter yet.

In other news, I will be taking a break from writing for a bit. Could be a week or two, don't rightly know. Need to take my PC to get it repaired, and that means I won't have a place on which to write. Still, I promise to make it up to you guys.

Also, I just wanna say that I've read your reviews, and all the positive vibes are really helpful. They help give me motivation to write. As you've probably noticed, this story will be somewhat of a slow burn, as I don't want to make the mistakes other Overlord fanfic writers do, and blast through the story. I want this written properly, I want you guys to enjoy it, I want it to be good.

Now, I just wanna say that, I'll probably release the chapters on the weekends, so don't expect any mid-week chapters. But, the chapters will be slightly longer. Of course, this only applies once I get my PC back from repairs. Hopefully, this chapter will tide you guys over until then. It was a real blast to write, and I had fun writing Izaniya. As for the sorceress and the Black Knight, there will be more content involving them in the future, so just relax and enjoy the ride.

As always, if you guys enjoyed the writing, make sure to follow/favorite it, and leave any reviews you may have. With all that said, I believe it's time to sign out. Until next time!