Chapter 4: the first chain is severed

Arriving at the airship port Markus got off the carriage and took a look around.

The atmosphere is not much different from airports that could be found back on earth, check in counters with long lines of people in front of them, busy people carrying suit cases, stores selling souvenirs unique to the region etc. The things that differentiated it from an earth airport being the various races that can be found apart from humans, namely Demi humans and non humanoids and the various applications of magic that Markus could see, there were golems carrying stuff, conveyor belts made from floating magic, flight boards being made out of magic telling the time of departure and such, entertainment relating to magic like mini model building (where you create mini-figs and scenery from your memory and frame it in a snow globe) and more, the world of Valentia was woven with so much detail that Markus almost considered worshiping the designers as his gods.

As an almost obsessive fan of the game in his previous life Markus couldn't help but be entranced by the scenery and atmosphere, achieving a level of immersive-ness that could never be achieved through looking at the screen of his computer.

"This is my stop, I've already handed your stuff to the transport golems, they'll load it onto an airship for you and as for check in, you don't have to do it since you'll be flying premium class, here's your ticket your seat should be written on it"

The coachman feebly said handing Markus his ticket, it seems he was still shaken up by Markus's threat earlier.

((It seems he still hasn't regained his grit, is it because of that little threat earlier? It's been more than 3 hours since then, are you really that spineless? Or is my voice really that terrifying?...maybe it's both, Markus was greatly feared by even his compatriots in the 6 great world powers after all, in the game when playing as Markus all dialogue options concerning intimidation had a 100% success rate))

((I do wonder though? How does a man with literally no personality whatsoever inspire such primal fear in people?))

Was it because of his doll like expression and corpse like demeanour? Or his hair that was as white as old people? Or his voice which made people rather hear a banshee over hearing it.

Perhaps it was because of his lack of care for basically everything or was it because he always seemed to be the one in control as if he had all the power in the room and he knew it or maybe it was because he was always unnaturally calm despite everything that's happening around him and even in the face of his own death, the Markus in the game was the type of existence that created horror stories with his every breath.

""Thank you, and with that your commission is at an end""

Markus accepted the ticket.

"Fuuu...finally"

Relieved that he completed his task or that he was finally free from Markus the coachman had a long sigh.

""And with that your use to me has also expired""

With a long shadow over his eyes Markus muttered in an even more dreadful tone than his normal one.

"Wha..."

Before the coachman could even react, something thin as a needle impaled the back of his neck, severing his cervical nerves in one skilful blow.

Perhaps that quick death was a mercy from Markus as the naturally fear inspiring properties of Markus's voice would have been a much more unpleasant experience.

Markus caught the body of the coachman before he could collapse like a marionette without strings and he put him back on the driver seat of the carriage while simultaneously using magic to cover the wound and delete any evidence of murder, all of this happened in less than 2.3 seconds and in front of a crowded airport no less but this was Markus after all so being able to do this and get away with it was easy.

((With the wound covered, unless they do an autopsy everyone will just conclude that he had a stroke or something))

Making sure there were no traces left behind that could indicate a murder Markus turned his back on the coachman's corpse.

((...sorry, it's nothing personal))

Although he didn't feel the same sense of revulsion from his Kazuki side as before, this murder did begin to weigh on his heart, after all the coachman was just another victim like him but nonetheless Markus pressed on.

((And with that my final link to Executor is severed))

Markus got on to the airship, an airship obtained through Executor's connections and once he stepped foot on it, he'd ironically be finally free from their grasp.

((Executor may have connections far and wide but during the start of the Markus DLC they're in the middle of a civil war that will cripple most of their operations for years to come, so that'll make this the perfect time for me to slip away from their control))

After today, subject-001 of the darkblood series code named: Markus will be nothing but a memory of the past, the person who will set foot on that airship is Markus Silver, first and only son of the Silver house of knights.

Since he still had time before departure Markus took his time leisurely exploring the airport basking in the scenery and marveling at just how many things you could do with magic here which is again as expected of a world so intrinsically tied to fantasy elements.

((A common problem when portraying a world closely tied with magic was that it was very hard to create a setting where the artistic and expressive side of magic was on full display, but this is where fires of Valentia especially excelled))

There were hundreds of ways to entertain yourself with magic here and even more ways to cook food with the mystic arts for some reason.

The scent from the food was ceaselessly inviting almost to the point of erotic, even with Markus's immovable amount of self control, he was still compelled to take a few envious glances at the people happily partaking in the food sold at the stalls.

((Although it's unfortunate, I currently don't have enough money on hand right now so I'll refrain, besides I'll have plenty of chance to enjoy this world's cuisine when flying on first class, hmm...even though they're trash, Executor sure does take good care of their agents don't they? Or is it for the sake of me to more convincingly pose as a noble's son? Well...I highly doubt the old "Markus" would have had the capacity to fully enjoy these luxuries though))

Having another bout of self mocking, Markus continued walking through the airship port with a steady pace, maybe it was because of the recent murder he committed or because of the exhaustive amount of work he'll have in the future in order to avoid his cruel fate but right now Markus (Kazuki) was trying his hardest to distract himself from those things.

This continued for about a few minutes until the announcement of his flight's departure came in.

When Markus arrived on the airship and went to find his seat, it was...well beyond anything he had expected.

First class passengers had both a private room on the top floor of the ship and a personal flight attendant assigned to them, with free servings of food and drinks anytime they want, they also had the greatest view through the windows.

((So this is what being rich feels like? I feel like my beggar soul is being crushed by the sheer pressure of this sight))

If Markus only had the soul of Kazuki inside of him he would gulp and be sweating profusely right now.

((But it's not everyday you get to enjoy this, so I'll be sure to milk this experience until it's dry))

Resolving to enjoy himself to the fullest, Markus had a pleasant flight before reaching the destination of his battle with destiny, if only this could last forever but unfortunately, like most things in life it had to come to an end, for it was only the calm before the storm.