"You have to give me one good reason why I knew nothing about a demon lurking just beyond my gate, Varis."
Lord Rawen’s voice carried a dangerous edge as he strode alongside Varis, the aging commander of the legion assigned to the governor’s service.
The legion had been dispatched by the county to safeguard the town and operated under the governor’s authority. Yet somehow, a demon had appeared practically at his doorstep without anyone reporting it to him.
"My lord, it is highly unlikely the demon had been lingering around the perimeter for long. Otherwise, it would have been detected," the old commander replied, his tone sincere.
"Detected by whom? Your dim-witted boys or your senile ass?"
Trevor’s sneer made Varis’s hand tighten into a fist.
The commander clearly did not appreciate his soldiers being insulted over something that had been beyond their control. Still, he swallowed his irritation and kept his expression composed.
"Well, to hell with it." Trevor exhaled sharply. "I’ve already paid for that monstrosity. I’d rather have the Count compensate me for the loss."
Trevor was anything but content with the reward he had to hand over to that irresponsible idiot who would most likely use it in utter nonsense.
Though Trevor have something in mind he could do to get some of those coins back. But for now, his focus was on something else.
He crossed his arms and turned toward Varis.
"Where have you kept it?"
"This way, my lord."
Varis immediately turned and led him deeper into the Knight Watch—the building allotted to the legion for their operations.
The demon’s corpse was worth thousands of coins alone. Its blood, hide, and wings could be processed into valuable materials, each with its own uses and market.
It was said that the blood of a living demon was more poisonous than any venom known to man. Yet once the creature died, that same blood could be refined into a potion capable of curing even the deadliest poisons.
Trevor intended to have the corpse transported to the county eventually, but not before claiming his share of the creature.
Thud.
A massive door swung open, large enough for an elephant to pass through.
Trevor stepped inside.
There was nothing.
"Huh?!"
Varis’s eyes widened as he stared at the empty chamber.
"Where is it?"
Trevor’s expression darkened.
"You tell me! Where the fuck did you put that corpse?"
Before Varis could answer, movement caught his attention beyond the doorway.
"Who goes there?"
His sword flashed free of its sheath, his body already tensing to strike.
But instead of an intruder, one of his own men rushed into the room.
"Sir Varis! Someone broke in. Gregor is heavily injured!"
Varis clicked his tongue.
Without another word, he turned and rushed outside, leaving Trevor alone with his growing fury.
Not only had he paid that worthless brat a thousand coins, but now the corpse was gone as well.
"Just fuck me."
.....
[Effect of Shadow Veil has expired.]
[Host, you have successfully completed your first stealth mission.]
[Reward: 10 CP]
[Host, upon selling the Low Demon corpse, you have been awarded Credit Points.]
[Barter Amount: 50 CP]
Additionally,
[+1 Perception]
The reward left a distinctly bitter taste in Bran’s mouth.
He had chosen <Assassin> as his second job solely because he wanted to sell the demon’s corpse and squeeze a few more points out of it.
He even risked getting caught and eventually had to push a soldier down the stairs to find an opening to escape.
But all that effort and a whole fucking demon amounted to only fifth.
"Quite stingy, aren’t you?"
The system offered no response as Bran continued along the path toward his house.
He had already occupied two slots, leaving him with only one remaining. If he used the two Golden Tokens, he could obtain another slot, but he intended to keep that option in reserve for emergencies.
The Assassin job had granted him two skills along with elevated stats.
The skills were:
[Shadow Veil: Completely erases the host’s presence for a limited duration. This effect suppresses both physical and magical traces, making the host exceptionally difficult to perceive unless someone is specifically searching for him.]
[Usage: Every second of activation consumes 1 Lumina.]
[Master Venom: Allows the host to transform his own blood into an exceptionally lethal poison for which no known cure exists. Awakened individuals with sufficiently high endurance may require more than a single droplet. Additionally, the host would be now more resistant to poisons.]
[Usage: Every droplet consumes 50 Lumina.]
"...."
Yeah, that was absurd.
Yet the mere thought of what he could accomplish with a single droplet was enough to leave Bran astonished.
Imagine slipping a drop of his blood into the goblet held by the king...
Yeah. Absurd.
He would rather keep the skill untouched unless he had absolutely no other way of bringing someone down.
[Host, upon leveling up, each of your jobs will rank up as well, unlocking additional skills. Furthermore, existing skills can also be leveled up. However, it is recommended that the host make frequent use of his current skills to become accustomed to them. Leveling up a skill may cause temporary confusion, making it more difficult for the host to master.]
Bran nodded in understanding.
Considering how slowly he was progressing, he would need at least a week before even thinking about reaching the next level. Until then, he intended to make as much use of his existing skills as possible.
’Speaking of skills... what does Demon Hunter offer?’
He had never gotten around to checking it with everything that had been happening around him.
[Demon Scent: A perceptory skill that allows the host to detect demons through their presence alone. Once the host locks onto a demon, it cannot hide from or escape the host’s perception.]
[Usage: Every second of activation consumes 2 Lumina.]
Bran hummed thoughtfully.
’So, if I lock onto a demon, I can continue sensing it regardless of how far it goes?’
[Yes, host. However, tracking it will be difficult at your current level. You must remain within a certain proximity to determine its location.]
’And what is that proximity? This city?’
[Yes, host. And slightly beyond.]
That was still an impressive range.
The only problem was that he wasn’t likely to encounter a demon anytime soon.
’Well, there’s no harm in testing it.’
He activated the skill.
And instantly froze.
He was standing outside his house.
And...
He could smell it.
That distinctive, foul stench.
It was coming from inside.
No.
It couldn’t be.
There was a demon living in his house?!