Seraphis stepped into the
Assassin’s Guild
, her cloak shifting slightly as she moved past the dimly lit entrance. The scent of ink, old parchment, and faint traces of dried blood filled the air—a smell she had grown used to over the years.
The guild was always bustling.
Mercenaries, assassins, and information brokers
moved about, exchanging contracts, selling intelligence, or simply drowning themselves in ale at the far end of the room.
But Seraphis had one destination in mind.
She walked past the contract board, ignoring the fresh
kill orders
posted that morning, and headed straight for the guild’s front desk, where a familiar face greeted her.
Sophie.
The young guild representative sat behind the counter,
her auburn hair tied back in a neat bun, green eyes scanning a ledger filled with mission details.
Unlike most assassins, Sophie didn’t wield weapons, but she was one of the
best information brokers in the guild
—and one of the few people Seraphis actually tolerated.
As Seraphis leaned against the counter, Sophie looked up, raising an eyebrow.
“Didn’t expect to see you back so soon,” she remarked, setting down her quill. “Finished another mission already?”
Seraphis smirked. “Not today.”
Sophie folded her arms. “Then what brings you here? Need another job?”
Seraphis shook her head. “Actually, I came to invite you to my
new home.
”
Sophie blinked, momentarily stunned. “Wait.
You?
Inviting me to your house?”
Seraphis chuckled. “Yeah, yeah, don’t look so shocked. We’ve known each other for a while now, and honestly… you’re one of the few people I actually get along with.”
Sophie tapped her fingers on the counter, a sly grin forming on her lips. “You mean one of the few people you haven’t threatened to stab?”
Seraphis smirked. “That too.”
Sophie laughed. “Alright, now I
have
to see this place. Knowing you, it’s probably some hidden dungeon filled with torture devices.”
Seraphis tilted her head. “It’s more…
fortress
than dungeon.”
Sophie’s eyes widened slightly. “Wait, you built a fortress?”
Seraphis simply smiled.
Sophie exhaled. “You know what? Fine. I’ll go. Just don’t try to recruit me into whatever weird assassin cult you’re planning.”
Seraphis chuckled. “No promises.”
A Visit to the Guild Master
With Sophie agreeing to visit, Seraphis turned away from the counter and made her way
up the stairs leading to the Guild Master’s office.
Unlike the rest of the guild, which was filled with
rowdy killers and smug mercenaries
, the upper floor was eerily quiet. The wooden door to the office was slightly ajar, and from inside, she could hear the unmistakable sound of someone
snoring.
Seraphis sighed.
Pushing the door open, she stepped inside to find
Guild Master Garrick
slumped in his chair, feet propped up on his desk, a bottle of whiskey resting in his lap.
His gray beard was unkempt, and his usual black coat was tossed lazily over the back of his chair.
Seraphis crossed her arms. “Really?”
Garrick let out a deep snore before suddenly jolting awake. His
scarred face
twisted into a half-dazed expression as he blinked at her. “Huh? Oh. It’s you.”
Seraphis raised an eyebrow. “You were drooling.”
Garrick wiped his mouth, grumbling. “What the hell do you want? If it’s about a new mission, I got a stack of them right here.”
Seraphis shook her head. “No, I actually came to
invite you somewhere.
”
Garrick narrowed his eyes. “Invite me? Are you
setting me up
for an assassination?”
Seraphis smirked. “Tempting, but no.”
Garrick leaned back, crossing his arms. “Alright. Where the hell are you inviting me to?”
Seraphis sighed, as if annoyed by what she was about to say. “I
don’t like you all that much.
You’re weird, you tell horrible jokes, and frankly, you smell like a tavern on a bad night.”
Garrick grinned. “Flattering.”
Seraphis continued. “
But
, you’re unfortunately one of the
only
people I know besides Sophie. So… I’m inviting you to see my
new home.
”
Garrick stared at her for a moment before bursting into laughter. “You? Owning a house? What, did you kill some noble and steal their estate?”
Seraphis smirked. “I built it.”
Garrick stopped laughing. “...You what?”
“I built it,” she repeated. “
Inside a mountain.
”
Garrick’s mouth twitched. “You’re serious?”
She nodded.
The Guild Master rubbed his beard. “Huh. That’s… either the
most insane thing I’ve heard this week
, or the
most impressive.
”
Seraphis leaned against the doorframe. “So, you coming or not?”
Garrick exhaled, then grabbed his coat. “You know what?
Why the hell not.
I need a break from this place anyway.”
The Journey to the Mountain
The trio set out from the guild that afternoon.
Sophie, despite being
used to gathering intelligence in dangerous places
, seemed excited. She walked beside Seraphis, occasionally
bombarding her with questions.
“So, how big is this place?”
“Big.”
“Like, ‘big enough for one person’ big, or ‘big enough to fit an entire army’ big?”
Seraphis smirked. “You’ll see.”
Garrick walked behind them, occasionally grumbling about
his aching knees
and how “
kids these days don’t respect old men.
”
As they climbed higher into
Mount Kaelthorne
, Sophie’s
excitement turned to awe
as she saw the
massive stone entrance
carved into the mountain.
“Okay…
this
is a lot bigger than I expected,” she admitted.
Seraphis strode forward, placing her hand on the rock. With a flick of her wrist, the
hidden mechanism activated
, and the
massive stone doors rumbled open, revealing the Grand Hall inside.
Sophie’s jaw nearly hit the floor.
Garrick let out a low whistle. “...Damn.”
Inside, the
obsidian walls gleamed with silver veins
, the
chandelier of enchanted crystals bathed the hall in a soft glow
, and the towering
stone pillars
lined the chamber like the interior of a royal palace.
Sophie turned in a slow circle, taking it all in. “Seraphis… this isn’t a house. This is a damn
kingdom.
”
Garrick nodded in approval. “Not bad, kid. Not bad at all.”
Seraphis simply smiled.
She had built this place as a sanctuary. A
fortress
in the shadows.
And now, for the first time… she was
sharing it.