Extra Pages: The Author's Odyssey

One week had passed since the Artifact Frenzy Quest, and the atmosphere at Nova Academy had returned to its usual rhythm. Classes resumed, training continued, and students settled back into their routines. But one thing was noticeably different: Ella.

She was quiet now, almost too quiet. No longer did she hover near Elera, lurking with that murderous intent barely hidden behind her smile. Instead, she kept to herself, her expression distant, as though she were lost in her thoughts. It was hard not to notice the change.

The once relentless assassin had been reduced to a shadow of her former self, likely because of her failure during the scramble. She had a mission to complete, an artifact to secure, and she had failed spectacularly—thanks to my intervention.

But what choice did I have? I couldn't just let her complete her mission, especially when I knew the stakes involved. So I intervened, and she failed. Now, she was left to face the consequences of her own shortcomings.

Still, it was hard to say if this was the end of her ambitions. People like Ella didn't just give up. They regrouped, reassessed, and struck again when least expected. For now, though, she was keeping her distance, and that was all that mattered.

As for me, my life hadn't changed much. I was still Seraphina's personal secretary, juggling tasks for the student council president on Mondays and Saturdays.

Despite the weight of responsibility, it was a role I had grown accustomed to, and Seraphina's trust in me meant more than I'd care to admit.

But the absence of Yato had been a curious twist. He was out of the Academy, doing who knows what.

So for now my daily practice with him has stopped for now.

Part of me was relieved. Yato always beat up me in the name of practice.

'That Idiotic fool master of mine.'

Anyway, there is another important thing I want to do.

And that important thing is this!

==Shadow Reapers Mercenary Mission==

[Difficulty: D]

[Reward: 300,000,000 C]

[Goal: Assassinate Roan, the advisor of the chief of Boros Mafia's Southern Morino Branch.

[Roan is a notorious mafioso known for committing murder, rape, blackmail, and human trafficking. Some even say he is a Fallen Human.]

==

This was the document sent by Shadow Reapers Mercenary.

Means, my mercenary group.

It was actually Jonathan had sent me yesterday.

Shadow Reapers Mercenary has received yet another mission but this time it was to assassinat someone.

Aside from me, Jonathan there is another guy called Paul who has joined my mercenary group but he's warrior type mercenary so he can't do assassination type mission.

Same goes for Jonathan too and that's only leave me.

I'm duel waeponsit, my main weapon is sword and secondary is Bow.

That's the reason Jonathan send me details about this mission since I'm perfect candidate for this mission.

"...Boros."

It was quite the coincidence. The Boros Family happened to be a Mafia family that happened to play a role in the middle parts of the main story.

"Should I do it or not?"

Looking at the document, I felt a tinge of regret.

Since I'm the owner of Shadow Reapers Mercenary, I can choose what mission we could take.

This mission seems to be dengerous.

The Mafia in this world were dozens of times trickier to deal with than the real world's. Especially in Morino which is located near the Azurhaven where travelling crew had gone a month and half ago

Anyway, the Mafia became much tighter after Outcall, and their unity rivaled that of a country's because of monsters lessening world government crackdown.

The advisor of a Mafia branch chief... he had to be at least as strong as a [C] ranked hero.

"A fallen human...."

But if he was a fallen human, I would feel less guilty killing him.

Furthermore, 'assassination' was likely my specialty. Using the Mana Eyes and Nightshadow Bow , I could attack from at most 2km away. Though, I would have to fire within 1km since my attack power would plummet otherwise.

In any case, this mission was dangerous, but it wasn't impossible. If I approached it carefully, I could get it done. The reward alone was tempting—300,000,000 C. That kind of money would give my mercenary group the resources we needed to grow stronger, acquire better equipment, and establish ourselves as a force to be reckoned with. But it was more than just the money. There was a sense of satisfaction in eliminating someone as vile as Roan, a man who thrived on the suffering of others.

I leaned back in my chair, staring at the mission details, weighing the risks. Roan wasn't just a common criminal; he was deeply entrenched in the Boros Mafia, a web of connections that could make anyone disappear without a trace. One wrong move, and it wouldn't just be my life on the line. It could jeopardize the entire Shadow Reapers Mercenary group.

But then again, hesitation wasn't in my nature. If I backed out of every dangerous mission, I wouldn't be where I am today. Besides, Roan was a fallen human—creatures twisted by dark energy, no longer bound by the morals of regular humans. Killing him would be doing the world a favor.

I flipped the document shut and rubbed my temples. I needed a plan—a solid one. First, intel. I'd need to gather as much information about Roan's routines, his security, and his weaknesses. This wasn't something I could rush into blindly.

"Looks like I've got work to do," I muttered to myself.

The next step would be reaching out to Jonathan. He was good at digging up information, and if anyone could find out what I needed to know about Roan, it was him. Paul would have to sit this one out; he wasn't suited for stealth missions like this. But having him on standby wouldn't hurt.

I grabbed my bow from the weapon rack and inspected it. The Nightshadow Bow, crafted from rare materials, was perfect for missions like these. With it, I could take down targets from a distance, blending into the shadows before anyone even realized what happened.

After a few minutes of checking my gear, I stood up, my resolve firm. If Roan was indeed a fallen human, then he was beyond redemption. I wouldn't lose sleep over his death.

I sent a message to Jonathan: *"Prepare for the mission briefing. We're taking this job."*

With that, I began to make my preparations, plotting the next move in this deadly game. I would eliminate Roan, not just because it was my job, but because it was the right thing to do.

Ella, the scramble, the academy—those were all on the backburner now. This mission was all that mattered. It was time to remind the underworld why the Shadow Reapers were feared, why I was feared.

Because when it came to assassination, no one did it better than me.

Of course it was my first doing assassination.

But who cares? Not me atleast.