Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Nothing Is Easy

"Hurry up and go. We’re hungry."

"Yes, sir!"

I left the warehouse to gather provisions.

A quiet rural village.

The wooden buildings were all worn down, and there weren’t many large structures in sight.

It was my first time getting a glimpse of the outside world, but I didn’t feel any excitement.

That kind of feeling is reserved for when you have the luxury of time. And though I had expected something like this when I swallowed that bug— Boom —I never imagined it would lead to my fate being sealed as a human bomb.

Wearing a grim expression, I walked toward a building that looked like a restaurant.

"Please pack some bread, soup, and drinks."

"How much would you like?"

"Enough to fill this bag."

The leader had ordered enough provisions for a few days, so I brought a large leather bag with me. After placing my order, I looked around the restaurant.

People were scattered at various tables, chatting away.

It was an ordinary scene from daily life.

But I couldn’t blend into that peaceful landscape. My gaze was fixed on the door, and my expression was clouded with conflict and hesitation.

‘This is my last chance to escape.’

I hadn’t planned to run at first.

But after recovering some of the newbie assassin’s memories, I began to think it might be possible.

I’d gained an eye for survival and a sense of situational awareness. I even had a rough idea of the local geography.

‘I could survive in Blyer Territory, though the odds are slim.’

However, that option was one I didn’t want to resort to unless absolutely necessary.

The chances of dying were too high. I could end up dead before even making an attempt.

‘They didn’t seem suspicious when I left. There were no signs of a watcher either.’

I checked the thick forest behind the restaurant. It looked like a decent escape route. If I could shake off any pursuers, I might have a chance to survive.

Although I had Boom implanted near my heart, I knew someone who could remove it.

‘Should I go for it, or not?’

I wasn’t usually the indecisive type, but when my life was on the line, hesitation naturally crept in.

‘Yeah. This is my best shot at surviving.’

I was just about to make up my mind and lift my butt off the chair to run when—

"Sir, your food is ready."

The restaurant owner came out, holding a leather bag packed to the brim.

That was it. I’d grab the bag and make a run for it.

After confirming the contents of the bag, I started to close it. But then—

‘Huh?’

My eyes fixed on something inside the bag, and a sudden alarm rang in my head.

"That’ll be 1 gold and 20 silvers."

"Ah… yes."

I handed the coins to the friendly restaurant owner and quickly left.

The internal conflict I had felt moments ago now seemed ridiculous as my feet instinctively carried me back toward the warehouse. I didn’t even glance at the forest I had considered as my escape route.

My heart was pounding hard in my chest.

‘I almost died.’

There were seven disposable spoons for the soup.

The restaurant owner had packed them in, but I had never mentioned how many people would be eating.

Could the restaurant owner know about the warehouse?

It could be a coincidence.

But the newbie assassin’s memories included information about Crux’s hidden safe houses.

‘The assassins had been far too relaxed when I returned to the warehouse.’

If they were that laid-back during a mission, it meant the location was incredibly secure. If this village was one of Crux’s secret safe houses, I’d be discovered the moment I tried to run.

"Damn it, nothing’s ever easy, is it?"

The peaceful village now looked completely different to me. The people walking around seemed more like watchmen.

I decided to put any rash actions on hold.

Gritting my teeth, I reentered the warehouse.

* * *

‘This tastes terrible.’

Having been spoiled by the taste of bread in the capitalist world, this bread tasted like a chunk of rock. At least dipping it in soup helped it go down.

The flavor was awful, but I forced myself to keep eating as much as I could.

After all, there’s a reason people say "strength is national power."

"Newbie."

"Yes!"

We were all gathered, eating, when the leader called out to me from a distance.

Stuffing more bread into my mouth, I quickly ran over to him.

"Did anyone visit?"

I nodded vigorously, and the leader’s gaze lingered for a moment on my heart before moving away.

I didn’t miss that glance.

‘This bastard...’

[Leave the newbie in the warehouse. He’s already got a purpose.]

That was what the guy who had given me the bug said while looking down at me yesterday. I hadn’t given it much thought at the time, but now I understood what he meant.

This leader bastard knew about the Boom parasitizing my heart. He had already known what would happen to me.

"Any other messages?"

I handed him the mansion map and the bundle of cigarettes I’d received from the man. I also reported the details of the mission briefing.

"The operation begins in three days, huh..."

The leader muttered to himself, inspecting the bundle of cigarettes. Then, for a moment, he stared at me intently.

What’s with that look? It made me uneasy.

"Did he leave any other special instructions?"

"No, sir."

"Alright, then."

The leader didn’t ask any more questions about the mysterious man.

From his reaction, I could tell that the man was of a higher rank than the leader.

After shifting his attention to the map of the mansion, the leader gestured for me to leave.

Back at my spot, I quietly observed the assassins around me as they rested.

‘How strong are they?’

I didn’t have much information about their abilities from the memories I’d gained. Of course, all these assassins were nothing more than cannon fodder for the villains, so I didn’t have high expectations.

What I was really curious about was my own strength.

As a rookie assassin, meant to be discarded, I had assumed I’d be completely useless, but on further reflection, that wasn’t quite the case.

Actually, by my standards, I seemed pretty skilled.

‘Seems like a waste to use me as disposable fodder.’

It wasn’t just because my life was on the line—there were clear signs that Crux had invested a decent amount into training this body.

Either something was going on within the organization, or this level of skill was nothing special in this world.

It had to be one of the two.

Which only made me more curious about the strength of the others. They’d be the best data points for comparison.

"Gather up."

A little later, the leader called for the assassins to assemble.

"We need to reach Blyer Territory, where the target is staying, within two days."

"Are we leaving right now?"

"Pack up and get ready."

With a nod from the leader, the assassins began bustling around, preparing for departure. I grabbed the food bag and an herb bundle and followed them.

It was early morning.

The village was quiet.

The assassins headed toward a stable attached to the restaurant.

Seven horses were prepared.

After we led the horses out, we left the village without anyone looking back.

At that moment, I was certain.

This village was indeed one of Crux’s secret safe houses.

My decision to hold off on running was the right one.

Snort—

The sound of hooves hitting the dirt echoed into the night as the assassins melted into the darkness of the forest.

* * *

‘Whew, I dodged a bullet there.’

I’d seen horses at the racetrack, but I’d never ridden one before.

Suddenly, I found myself in front of a horse, with all the assassins looking down at me from atop theirs.

‘If I said I couldn’t ride, they’d probably kill me.’

Cold sweat ran down my spine at the unexpected situation. I thought this place might become my grave, but there was hope.

The newbie assassin knew how to ride.

And now...

"Hyah!"

I was having the surreal experience of riding a horse with ease, borrowing the skills of the body I now inhabited.

I rode through the forest without hesitation, as if my body instinctively knew what to do.

If I could pull off the assassin’s techniques as smoothly as I was riding this horse, my chances of survival had just increased, even if only by a fraction.

Thud, thud, thud—

The group moved swiftly, taking only brief breaks.

Riding through the endless forest all day was a novel experience in its own way.

I was astonished by the vastness of the forest. When I later learned its name, I was even more shocked.

‘The Forest of Laub!’

One of the main villains, a mad wizard, was hiding in this very forest.

If that villain spotted us, we’d all be wiped out, but I reassured myself that it wouldn’t happen.

This party wasn’t prey for that madman—we were prey for Kamel.

As expected, the journey went smoothly. However, during each break, I was assigned watch duty by the leader.

I was the only one who had to stand guard every time.

‘I’m so tired I could die.’

Rubbing my tired eyes, I glared at the leader up ahead.

That bastard had no sense of decency. If he made me stand watch again, I was ready to push back.

"We’ll rest here for a bit. Newbie!"

"Y-yes!"

"Stand guard."

"Leave it to me!"

Yeah, right.

It’s not like I had a choice.

This was tougher than being in the military. Disobedience meant death.

So I obediently took up guard duty again on the second night.

‘It doesn’t feel like they’re messing with me, though.’

There wasn’t any particular malice in the way they looked at me.

I wasn’t sure why, but it seemed like they were deliberately trying to deprive me of sleep.

Whatever the reason, I didn’t mind.

I needed time to come up with a plan to survive anyway, and standing watch gave me the perfect excuse.

Each sleepless night gave me more clarity. Several viable plans had started to take shape in my head, and I was refining the details bit by bit.

I ended up not getting any sleep as we made our way through the forest.

Then, on the second evening—

Screeeech!

"Prepare for battle!"

For the first time, I encountered a monster in this world.

* * *

This world was full of various monsters.

The monsters that ambushed our horses from the thick vines were Gnolls with thick, gray fur.

They walked on two legs, with hyena-like heads and wielded axes as big as humans.

Neighhh—!

"Newbie! Guard the horses!"

"O-okay!"

Two of the horses were felled by the axes the gnolls hurled. One of them was the leader’s horse, which, for some reason, made me feel strangely satisfied.

I kind of wished he’d just die.

Unfortunately, the leader rolled off his fallen horse and immediately led the assassins in an attack on the gnolls.

The numbers were about even.

I silently rooted for the gnolls.

Please, kill them all.

But that hope was in vain.

Twang! Twang! Twang!

A volley of crossbow bolts struck the gnolls, bringing them down in no time.

With their formation broken, the assassins quickly closed in, employing their dagger skills.

Now, I could finally observe their combat abilities.

They moved swiftly, striking vital points with precision and delivering killing blows.

Their movements were agile and deadly.

These guys could easily kill three or four regular people in the blink of an eye.

However...

‘They don’t seem all that strong.’

I now had a point of comparison.

This rookie assassin’s abilities were clearly too valuable to be discarded so easily.

‘You’re going to stab like that?’

Guarding the horses, I mimicked some of their moves. I didn’t think of running. The battle was over so quickly.

As I watched the fight, I tried imitating their hand movements on a small scale.

It felt strangely familiar.

I had the sense that I could copy all the moves they were making with my mind.

The problem was whether or not I had the mindset for it.

"…Hmm."

I glanced down at the corpses of the gnolls who had been slaughtered.

It was my first time seeing dead monsters, but for some reason, I didn’t feel any revulsion.

Maybe it was because my personality was changing, mixing with the memories of the assassin.

If I felt the same way when I saw a human corpse…

‘That wouldn’t be good.’

Could I, an ordinary office worker, actually kill someone?

Could I lock eyes with my opponent and still swing my dagger without hesitation?

If it came down to it, I had already decided I would.

I didn’t want to die.

The next morning, I arrived at Blyer Territory, where the villain Kamel Blazer was staying.