1 Small Beginnings

*Thud*

"What a trashy bastard, why don't you go spread your annoying music somewhere else? Filth like you should know that approaching the Saint Street territory is punishable by death."

The burly man, donned in the State's silver armor yelled while pushing me, a quite unfortunately, skinny and frail guy.

Of course, as a result I naturally fell backwards a few meters. A normal man like me stood no chance against him, who was blessed by Mana.

"I don't want to see you around here anymore, got it? Yeah, you got it. Out of here now, get going before I chop your head off."

"O-Okay, I'll go..."

I picked up my violin and my small bag that contained donations from the people walking in the Saint Street. This particular area was a popular passageway to a massive commercial and residential zone that was composed of rich merchants, aristocrats, the Holy See and their Paladins, Interrogators and Heretic Inquisitors and the most detestable... the Royal Family. They were in the center of the Central Area, living in a grand castle. It was obvious of course, they couldn't care less for the slums and the poor of the State.

I began going back to my origins, and my eternal home, the slums of the capital.

Around you could see prostitutes, criminals, starving children and women, along with unfortunate families that had been exiled to the slums for whatever grave crime, which in reality was just a cover up for insulting or disrespecting a noble.

Poverty was normalcy. Of course, this was no sacred place with only unfortunate people, innocent people. But we still did not deserve to live in this way.

It was a sad, pitiful sight. That was the world I lived in, and so the violin my father gave me and the teachings of music my mentor gave me served to make this place just slightly better.

I entertained people with songs I composed. I gave my earned money to the kids at the orphanage. It was a moderately peaceful life, with its own tough patches and challenges.

I arrived at my home and stood in front of it. It was a shabby, although small and cozy place where I could feel safe. I walked inside and laid on my bed while looking at the masterfully crafted violin in my hands.

[Life Wood Refined Violin]

-Rank: D+

-Effects: Increased violin mastery, Increased musical talent, Induces Ally buff.

-Status: Damaged

-Summary: A carefully crafted, light brown violin made from valuable life wood. Makes anyone listening to it happier, induces buff (+2 Stamina, +2 Intelligence). One of the Set pieces of 'White Bird', a legendary but forgotten musician's ancient equipment.

This Violin I had spent my entire life with, was one of my most prized belongings. It had been damaged since the day my father gave it to me, but I couldn't care less, it was as beautiful as ever.

Originally it had been my goal to find the other set pieces when I was nothing but a teenager, but I had failed countless times, thus I gave up on that foolish dream of finding something that already might be destroyed.

I dozed off with the violin in my arms. A long, long night awaited me.

----------

*Bang bang bang*

I woke up abruptly at the banging on my door.

I carefully placed the violin on my back and reached out under my bed and grabbed an old, but sharp dagger.

It was something necessary in these parts, you never know when your home might be where a crazed killer, or group of thieves wants to target.

I slowly opened the door, and I saw Thomas. He was a sweet boy from the orphanage that always thanked me with a smile whenever I visited to give them bread, stew, or some silver coins from my street performances.

"Orpheus! L-Lucy, they took Lucy!" The boy shouted while sobbing.

"What? Calm down, who took Lucy?" Lucy was one of the girls at the orphanage, characterized by her platinum hair, which usually belonged to the Royal Family, or the Noble Families closely related to the Royal Family.

"Th-These guys claiming they were from a Noble just barged in and asked for the child with platinum hair, when Sister Anna refused, they just shoved her aside and came into our room! They t-took Lucy forcefully... Uncle Orpheus, Orpheus! We need to do something!"

"We will do something... can you tell me what these guys looked like?"

"I-If I remember correctly they wore pure black coats... ah, right, they all had a spider emblem on their coats!"

"Arachnid..."

Shit, it was both the luckiest, and the most shitty situation. Arachnid was an assassination and information based noble house, due to that, they lacked forces that could truthfully serve as main forces, or in simpler terms, tankers. They mainly had Illusion Mages, Rogues, Dark Rogues and Assassins.

However...

Arachnid was one of the 3 greatest Noble Families.. They had such overwhelming influence in the city that it could not possibly be measured up to an average noble family. Even if they lacked such forces, they were still mighty, and had the connections to call upon mercenaries and help from the other 2 Great Noble Families.

"Thomas, I need you to listen closely, quickly go to Uncle Roger, and tell him Orpheus said to prepare the Exiled Forces and be sure to also tell him that he needs to send out the Rats, understood?"

"Y-yes!" Thomas nodded furiously as he ran off. The night was long, and this bloodbath was going to be even longer. The Time had come.

-------

I watched as the people moved in the shadows. Heavy rain has begun to fall. They were all the Rats that I mentioned. Skilled veterans, previously assassins or rogues that were abandoned and thrown in the slums after serving to whichever Noble Family. A Noble Family had no use for old men after all.

But we did. The slums did. Under these circumstances they were specifically ordered to collect information and do another special little task.

I hurriedly ran towards the meeting place, with my dagger in hand and my violin on my back. Even though I knew it wouldn't serve me much in battle, I couldn't go anywhere without it.

I arrived upon the small shack. It was empty, with a single table and a single chair, along with the candle. The lit candle meant that the entrance was open. I traced around the walls until I found the inauspicious splinter on the wood. I pushed my dagger into it, and then headed towards the chair.

I spun it back 180° and pushed the table forward. The secret door under the table opened.

I walked inside the dimly lit staircase, as I could see the horizon widening in front of my eyes. This was the huge, underground space we used for the Exiled Forces. It spanned as long and wide as 5 football fields. The soldiers numbered over a thousand, each member was either a veteran, a combat capable young man or a talented wizard. Many talented men and women were here, in the slums, waiting like a viper for the perfect opportunity and excuse to strike against one of the 3 Great Noble Families.

Of course, it was impossible to gather 1000 men that fast under normal circumstances, however, most of the exiled made this underground base their home. So it was rather easy to rally them.

I saw Roger, a Paladin who had turned away from the Holy See once he saw how corrupt they were and how they used the believers' donations to indulge themselves in sexual pleasure, alcohol, luxurious food and expensive decorations and property.

He was left with no choice but to come to the slums, and quickly became the leader of this rebel force that numbered close to the forces of a major Noble Family.

"Orpheus, Thomas informed me, those Arachnid bastards... they need to learn their lesson."

"And they will, is everyone ready?"

"Everyone is ready but... where do you think you're going with that dagger in hand?"

Roger stared at my right hand with a raised eyebrow, it was clear he wanted to keep me away from danger.

"To fight."

"You will not. You cannot fight like the rest of us."

"I will. Even if I cannot fight, I will at least be able to stab someone with the training you gave me. And if I am not able, I shall at least boost morale and stamina with my violin. We will take Lucy back and annihilate Arachnid."

Roger sighed loudly. It was clear he did not approve of this, but there was no way to stop me from going. Lucy, one of the children of the orphanage who I considered my own was kidnapped. There was no way my heart didn't ache. And there was no way I was going to stay here, like a blind fool with no information.

"Fine..." He said in a quiet voice.

"Everyone listen up! We're heading out in 15 minutes! Do equipment check again and don your armor if you haven't already, today the capital shall be painted in blood!"

Roger shouted while raising his sword.

"URAAAAH!" the soldiers yelled while raising their weapons in response, they quickly got ready and re-checked their equipment.

Soon after, we found ourselves marching on the main street of the slums, quickly approaching the middle class residential area.

The Rats, who had been scattered up until now, gathered with the main force, Roger looked at them and they nodded. That meant the mission was complete.

As we went through the middle class area, the people closed the windows quickly while staring at us with silent eyes. They knew what was about to come.

In no time, we had arrived at the Saint Street. The State's soldiers were no-where to be seen.

"It's... probably a trap."

"It is, but we cannot waste anymore time. Even if it is a trap, we need to power through it."

Roger had failed to keep his poker face and showed a grim expression. It was definitely dangerous.

"Prepare." Roger shouted. The Exiled Forces took out their spears and swords, adopting a formation with the shield and sword wielders at the front, spearmen right behind them do they could pierce their rushing enemies, and the wizards in the far back, protected by a few select elite rear guards.

As we carefully advanced, there was oddly not a single peep.

We continued on and on to the Arachnid's main territory within the Central Area, yet no guards popped up. Hell, even the late night bars that would be bustling were empty...

"Are they that confident?" Roger asked.

"Perhaps... or maybe it's something more complicated... like internal strife with the Royal Family and the Arachnid House." I answered.

It was certainly a plausible explanation. Among the many years I had spent on the streets, it was obvious that there existed an internal power conflict between the Royal Family and the three Great Noble Families. Although they often formed temporary alliances, the power conflict still existed.

I was a simple violinist, but I still had my ways of obtaining information. It was a necessary skill when you lived in the slums.

And then, we reached the Arachnid House.

Behind the towering black gates, there was.... fear. It was more than simply fear, it was suffocating pressure. Not only were the Arachnid's forces there, numbering around 1200, there were also forces of the other Two Great Noble Families.

The most iconic were the Crimson Bulls. They were what you would classify as undying barbarians. Blessed with inhumane strength, superior endurance and unwavering willpower. On their arms or head they had a bull tattoo.

However... the real danger were not them, but those at the very far back. The Blue Shark Noble Family. A gifted family line of genius wizards, serving as the King's Court Wizards. They had immeasurable power, said to even be able to summon a meteor the size of a castle when they combined all of their mana to cast the spell "Greater Joint Summon: Meteor". They were a scary force of wizards, numbering at just 100, but even that amount was enough to contest 5000 common soldiers.

"We're fucked... aren't we?" Roger said with a bitter and crazed laughter.

"We don't need to kill all of them... we just need to send the assassins to take back Lucy and destroy whatever seems important while we distract the other forces here." I said while signaling the Rats.

They quickly moved like shadows and infiltrated the mansion while we charged into the estate.

I remained at the back, watching over the fight and giving commands when necessary.

Needless to say, it was utter defeat for us. We were getting slaughtered by the second and the Rats were no-where to be seen with Lucy. We had to hold out more.

I was getting anxious, extremely anxious as I continuously tried shouting commands, but the sounds of iron hitting against each other and screams were drowning my shouts out. Roger was getting bloody, his Holy Aura skill which provided an overpowered buff to all his nearby allies was a strong card, but he himself couldn't hold out anymore.

'Fuck! Fuck fuck fuck FUUUCK! I can't do anything, shit, I need to do something!'

But there was nothing I could do. I was a weak person with no talent, I couldn't even get through the armor of even one of those guys from the Crimson Bulls, let alone injure them.

However, my luck hadn't run out just yet. Just then, the Rats came out, carrying Lucy who seemed unhurt.

They quickly came towards me and reported.

"We found some important documents inside and stole them, it was a bit hard finding the girl since the Illusion Mages of Arachnid had placed a Presence Nullification Barrier and Invisibility Barrier, but we managed to get through it."

"Good job. Take Lucy and head back to Base B12, take the other orphanage kids with you along the way! Stay safe, and make sure you're not found out. If I survive, I'm going to visit with the codename Darkness, understood?" I shouted as the roars and screams were yet to stop.

"Yes! Understood!" The Rats nodded and disappeared into the shadows with the unconscious Lucy, our objective was complete.

I shouted as hard as I could, straining my throat too much.

"Retreat! RETREAT!"

I passed my orders individually from the rear, as they also began to shout for retreat up to the first ranks.

However, a grim view dawned upon me as the soldiers rushed past me, retreating into the dark of the Saint street, leaving me baffled at the sight.

Roger, with 5 swords stuck in him, lying a bloody mess on the ground.

I approached his body as the enemy forces watched me oddly.

"Roger! ROGER! W-wake up! Roger wake up! You dumbass, you're my only savior and friend, wake up! You can't die in a dirty place like this!" I shouted, but my words couldn't reach Roger's ears. Tears began streaming down my face as something welled up in my throat. I couldn't breathe.

No.

I couldn't even move. I watched his pained expression. It was the expression he had died with. It was dishonorable for such a great man to die with such an expression in an unworthy battlefield.

"I'm sorry... I'm sorry... It's all my fault. I thought we could beat them... I thought we could kill them.. I was wrong."

The soldiers of Crimson Bull, approached me with ridiculing grins.

"So, little violin man, turns out your pathetic forces couldn't kill more than 100 of us after all... this man alone killed 30, a respectable fighting strength I must say, but he's a fool for ever joining this fight."

"You... You bastards, how dare you?! You corrupted motherfuckers. Shit, shit, don't you dare call him that!"

"Look at the little musician getting mad, what are you going to do, play me a sad so-"

I lunged forward with the dagger I had kept hidden behind me, I aimed at the bastard's neck and...

*Slash*

I cut open his throat, as he stumbled back.

"How's this for a sad song? Your gurgles while drowning in blood are more than enough music, though."

I was quickly restrained by the other soldiers, as a wizard hurried to use recovery magic on the dying soldier.

"Hurry! Get this bastard out of my sight as well, kill him and dump their bodies in the Grand Canyon! They don't deserve a proper burial!"

A commander ordered. Then, another Crimson Bull soldier took me and headed off for the Capital's exit.

He didn't speak a word, and neither did I.

It was dead silence.

After some time, we had reached the Grand Canyon, which I couldn't even see the end of.

The soldier stopped in front of the cliff and set me beside him. He removed his helmet and stared at me.

I noticed something on his face, a burn, it was the mark of a slave, a triangle wrapped by chains.

"That... a slave... how?" I was confused.

"When I was young... I was captured by a noble's forces. My family was murdered, and I was sold off as a slave to Crimson Bulls. However, I've never forgotten my origins, my mother, my father. They too, came from the slums like you... The corrupt nobles, the disgusting, filthy barbarians... I've seen all of it, but what can a single man like me do? I would accomplish nothing even if I rebelled. That's why... deep inside me, I hoped you would have won today... but it was impossible as I expected. That's why... I'm doing you this last favor. I'm not going to kill you. I'm going to give you this."

[Life-Saving Necklace]

-Rank: B+

-Status: Normal (One Time Use)

-Effects: When owner receives fatal damage, saves the owner by setting the HP to 1%.

-Summa....

It was an excellent item, possibly worth a manor.

"This is a legacy from my father... up until today I've never had to use it, thus I'm giving this to you." The soldier said with a solemn expression.

"Is this... really alright? What's your name?"

"Andrew, it's Andrew. I'm going to have to throw you off this cliff, so no evidence remains, however you're going to survive. I don't know what you're going to encounter down there... but by all means, take revenge."

The soldier patted my shoulder and put the necklace on me, tightening it so it would not fall off during the fall. He gave me one last bittersweet smile.

"Thank you, Violinist. And goodbye."

The scenery began to change.

I was falling, and it was going to be a very painful fall.