Chapter 3: Assassin

Crackle

Clack

Yeonha could see a tiny bit of the scene outside the closet through the gap between the doors.

Haru was trembling in fear while trying to hold his breath beside her.

'A wall... of Ice?'

Crash

The giant ice wall broke apart as a man with long red hair and eyes dropped from above.

"Hi again, Hwee-ah." The man smiled as he stared at Haru's mother.

"Tanae..." Hwee-ah responded as a streak of blood leaked from the side of her mouth.

Bzzzt

"Where's the boy?" The man named Tanae smiled as red lightning crackled from his right hand.

"That's... none of your business!" A giant scythe made of ice materialized next to Hwee-ah as she grabbed onto it and swung it.

Crash

"Huff... Huff..." Hwee-ah looked injured as she was now kneeling with one leg.

Yeonha started to tremble in fear, and Haru started to cry silently next to her.

"Must you... really do this?" Hwee-ah spoke out in a raspy voice.

"Sorry Hwee-ah, the hidden blade never accepts a request we cannot fulfill. Blame your sister." The man spoke out with a smile.

Yeonha noticed one of the two silhouettes on the ground behind the man moving.

They were her parents.

'Dad...? Mom...?'

Her dad slowly got onto his knees and glanced at the corpse next to him. "Hana..."

"Hmm? Ah, he survived that? Oh, I can sense a bit of qi in him. I didn't expect a cultivator to be in such a rural village like this."

Bzzzt

Tanae spoke as red electricity started to gather in his right hand again.

"Don't do it, they have nothing to do with this." Hwee-Ah stood up while glaring at the man.

"You know we cannot leave witnesses, Hwee-ah. We're assassins, after all."

Shhk

Yeonha watched her father's head drop from his body.

Thud.

"NOOOOOOO!"

Yeonha dashed out of the closet and ran toward her father's body.

"Yeonha! No!" Hwee-ah yelled out in panic before taking a glance at the closet.

'Thank goodness, Haru is still hidden.'

Only one of the closet doors had opened as Yeonha dashed out and had closed back on itself right away.

She knew such thoughts were not suitable as another child was in danger, but she not could not help being relieved that it wasn't her own child that had run out despite witnessing the death of the little girl's parents.

"Yeonha! Stop!" Hwee-ah created another wall of ice to prevent Yeonha from running into her death.

Bang

"Dad! Mom!" Yeonha cried out as she banged onto the clear wall of ice.

Thud.

Her dead's headless body collapsed onto her mother's silent corpse.

"Sorry, kiddo. I'm just doing my job here. You see, I'll be the one to lose my head if I don't kill that woman next to you" Tanae smiled as he approached the wall of ice. "Took us long enough, right? Eight years of running... Just accept your fate, Hwee-Ah."

"..." Hwee-ah tiredly stared back at Tanae before taking a glance at the girl.

She had led to the destruction of the little girl's life and possibly even her death.

"Tanae. Please, at least let the girl go. She has nothing to do with this." Hwee-ah spoke out.

"You know that's not possible, Hwee-ah. She's a witness. It's not an assassination if there are witnesses."

"Are you saying... you're going to kill everyone in this village?" Hwee-ah glared at the man in anger as giant icicles materialized behind her.

"Hwee-ah. Everyone in every town you've visited and everyone you've met in the past eight years have died. My orders were to erase you." Tanae smiled as he unsheathed his sword for the first time during this battle. "It's been a long journey, but I hope we can finish it here."

"Haha..." Hwee-ah thought back to all those who had helped her and her son during their run and was filled in agony after realizing their death.

Crack

At that moment, a crack appeared on the wall of ice.

Yeonha had collapsed in front of the wall of ice a while ago, and the two had been ignoring the girl, but wispy strands of black qi started to emerge from her body. It was as if her shadow was moving.

"Ah, now that changes the story. A shadow qi user is always helpful to the sect."

Crash

Tanae's eyes shined as he crashed through the wall of ice.

"No!"

Shshshshk

Thud thud thud

Hwee-ah sent out the icicles she had been forming, but none met the target.

Boom

Screech

Hwee-ah had been pushed back from the impact of Tanae's attack.

She quickly regained her posture before realizing Yeonha was in Tanae's arms.

"Blade 17" Tanae spoke out.

Shhk

Tat

A man appeared out of nowhere and stood beside Tanae.

"Yes, leader."

"This girl has an affinity for shadow, take her. I'll finish things over here." Tanae handed over the now unconscious girl as he turned back around at Hwee-ah.

"Alright, Hwee-ah. The girl gets to live. Of course, she'll become one of us."

!!!

Becoming a part of them meant a fate worse than death.

"No, let the girl go!"

A giant sword of ice materialized in her hand as she dashed toward the man named Blade 17, but a streak of lightning blocked her way.

Crash

Bzzzzt

"Thank you for helping us find another candidate, Hwee-ah." Tanae smiled. "Let's finish this now."

Zzt Bzzzt

The red electricity started to intensify on Tanae's sword as Hwee-ah reached out her senses to sense Haru.

Haru was now looking through the tiny gap in the closet and had witnessed everything.

[Haru... My son... Mother always loves you...] A voice ran inside Haru's mind before he saw her mother's feet slowly turning into ice.

"Hwee-ah, what—" Tanae's eyes opened wide in shock.

That was a forbidden technique that would take away the user's life in exchange for power. Burning up her life energy in exchange for the depleted qi.

"If I'm dying... you're coming with me." Hwee-ah's eyes shone in white as dozens of giant petals appeared in the air.

"Rose of eternal ice."

"Blade 17! Run!" Bzzzzt

The man named Blade 17 quickly ran away as Tanae's body exploded in electricity.

"Fall." Hwee-ah whispered.

Boobooboobooboom

The giant petals of ice crashed onto where Tanae had been standing, creating a giant explosion.

Cough

Hwee-ah's legs were now frozen as the ice slowly crept up her lower body. Her arms were starting to freeze up now as well.

She desperately reached out her hand and created a tiny icicle, an act which further accelerated her state of slowly becoming frozen, to hit the man named Blade 17 running away.

Swsh

Thud

"Argh!"

The Icicle hit the target, but could not leave a fatal wound, as it only hit the man's shoulders.

"Ah..." Hwee-ah looked around the area as the ice slowly continued to creep up her body.

She noticed the closet had now broken apart from the explosion along with the remaining bits of the house. "My... Son..."

She glanced back at the giant rose made of ice before her as the ice crept onto her heart.

Ba thump

Ba thump

Ba... Thump...

Ba...

...