[14]

"An assassin's guild with members having their hands in conflicts big or small, between organizations and nobles alike. A guild hidden from the eyes of the public to an extreme, and faintly known to the higher nobles. Taking contracts from all over the kingdom for a price." Ais continued to explain as her eyes stared into Maria's.

"The only reason they would try to take your life is if the higher ups of the guild held a grudge against you or if a person had pinned a contract against your head."

Maria checked the condition of her body, felt it was improving faster than thought, and asked, "If it's as secret as you say it is, why do you know so much about it?"

Maria was always good at reading people and a significant portion of a person's emotion and mood came from their facial and body movement, and although Ais showed little to no expression, her eyes were still active.

She noticed the expression within Ais's eyes changed faintly, finally, she was able to pinpoint the myriad of emotions mixed within. A mixture of slight unease and guilt intertwining. However, why would she feel unease? Why would she feel guilty?

"Remember, I said I was once part of the adventure guild?" The monotonous voice of her knight drifted.

Maria nodded.

"This happened amongst that time." Her voice began to trail off, as if wishing to fly away.

She unsheathed her sword and gently placed it on her lap, caressing its silver blade as gingerly as a newborn child, she looked on as it glistened.

"This blade was given to me by him…" Her voice was still as emotionless as it had ever been.

At that time, I was a different person altogether. Cheerful and full of a desire to explore the world, a young girl with hopes and dreams to make a name for myself. I became part of a party with another man. He was a brunette with a deep gaze and a meaningful stare, he was the closest thing to a father to an orphan like myself. He taught me the ways of an adventurer and even improved my swordsmanship.

Eventually, I grew strong enough to gain the attention of Crow's Nest and they invited me to join their guild.

Against the wishes of that man, John Locke, I joined. I wanted to prove to him I could become stronger and take care of myself.

I was trained within the guild and my strength slowly grew. Then came the final test.

At that time, I still wasn't strong enough. I didn't realize the horrors that awaited me.

First; they asked me to assassinate the man that had came to become my father, and I of course refused and stormed out in anger.

However, I couldn't escape so easily.

I was forcefully dragged back and in front of me was placed a final end to it all.

A demonic beast was set loose with my father tied down in front. It was simple, kill the demonic beast or kill my father. Naturally, I chose the latter.

I charged with my blade drawn, however.....

I was too weak, at that time, a single slap of that beast was enough to send me flying. And I couldn't pierce its skin.

It crushed me.

That beast of green scales and an ape-like figure that ran on four legs, it preyed upon my father as I stood within a pool of my own blood.

I looked on with the sounds of breaking bones and...

Her hand subconsciously gripped tighter around the hilt of her blade.

...I broke.

The world blacked out in front of me as I drew my blade, spending the last of my willpower and going beyond my limits, I killed it.

Alas

I was too late.

He had already begun to pass, even with a missing arm and a chunk of his abdomen cleaved off, he smiled and held my crying face in his hand and mouthed those last words of his.

I still do not remember exactly what he said to me, the world had already become nothing more than a blur. Bruises covered my body and I ached in pain, for a full month, I could hardly move my body. I do not remember what he said, but I knew, instinctively so, he was comforting me.

Even has the life drained from him, he wiped away my tears.

"Don't cry Ais,"

I'm sure, that must have been his thoughts.

"I was too weak."

In the end...I was tossed out for that very reason.

Even as she said all this, Maria saw no tears shed from her guard. Her voice didn't falter nor did she quiver. It was as if it was a passing and drifting story, one that had nothing to do with her. However, looking into those golden tanned irises of hers, she could see the regret and desire to rewind time. She could see the cursing of herself for her minimum strength back then.

"I was offered a choice; be killed or sold as a slave with the account of telling no one of my story." Her emotionless voice drifted around the room.

"I chose the latter," she revealed a small smile that looked otherworldly strange when mixed with her beauty and lack of expression.

"Your father, the king, bought me and trained me to become your guard."

"A...slave?" Maria asked hesitantly somehow, it sounded familiar to her yet not so.

"There was no magical power that bound me, nothing to proclaim me so, it was only my status within the world. Degraded to the bottom in return for my weakness."

"I became nothing more than an item." She smiled. Again...that strange smile of hers.

For a moment, the room was silent, awkwardly so.

Arthur felt as if it wasn't in his nature to input his ideas, and he didn't have much experience in consoling someone and Maria felt just the same. Although she had experienced something more, she had no idea how to solve the situations of others when she failed to do so for herself.

"It was just the same..."

Although her memory after the event was mostly Locked, she still remembered the draconic beast that claimed their life. She could do nothing but smell the overpowering stench of blood and hear the crunch of bones.

"....we were both weak..." her voice was soft but it seemed to resound through the room.

Maria raised her head as she looked at her brother.

"Hey, Arthur. I killed him didn't I?" She asked.

He was silent for a moment before he gave a small weak nod.

"Look Maria—" he began.

However, she had already stopped listening.

Maria shivered slightly. She had never killed, no, she had never killed in this new world. Although she couldn't remember much of her past life, she instinctively felt it.

She remembered when she faced the man without hesitation and she remembered killing him without a change to her emotions.

It wasn't right. As a human being, one would feel at least some bit of unease take over them or a bit of backlash on there first kill, any kill really.

So she knew, it was all wrong.

There were only two reasons she could think of as to why she could kill for her first time without feeling anything. Without a wave of unease. She was either ill in the head or...

....she had simply done so many times before and became used to it.