Prologue

Zane had lived a life full of hardships. Born on a red moon, his parents feared that he would bring curses on them so they left him in a forest to die.

Perhaps it was because he was born on a blood-red moon, but Zane was a prodigious killer. At 3 months old, with a fang of a giant python, asserted his dominance over the monsters who roamed the grounds.

When he was 5, he encountered an old man in the forest. Seeing the dangerous kid, he mistakenly believed that Zane was a criminal who cultivated a technique that caused him to look younger. Thus, the old man threw him into an infamous island called Prison E; namely, the section called the Isle of Hope, better known by its nickname of Hell on Prison E.

It was named the Isle of Hope because every 10 years, it gave one prisoner their freedom; however, in order to choose which prisoner was freed, Prison E became a battle royale, in which the last one standing was freed.

Zane, after 8 years of continuous massacres, managed to win his freedom with only a fang of a giant python and the clothes on his back. His chiseled face and blood-red eyes as he walked out of the killing frenzy gave out a mature vibe that didn't match up with his age.

He was quickly recruited by the assassin group known as the Bloody Skull and became a lead killer in his squad.

On a mission to assassinate on a duke, Zane was set up to be the new zither instructor of the duke's daughter. The problem was, Zane had never touched a zither before this.

Hence, Bloody Skull gave him 4 weeks to learn the zither under a master zither instructor. To the shock of the instructor, Zane only needed 5 days to reach a mastery level far beyond his own.

After reaching the duke mansion, Zane began to whole-heartedly teach the little girl. He slowly began to lose his cynical heart and killing intent. Rumors of his music skill began to spread after the duke's daughter became famous with her zither music.

After the duke "mysteriously" died, Zane was invited to be the Imperial Zither Instructor in the palace. He agreed as it allowed him to enter the inner circle of the royalty.

His fame slowly began to spread as his zither skills improved. He enchanted the continent with his skills. His reputation skyrocketed when a rebellion occurred in the palace. He revealed to the world that music could be used as a weapon when he enchanted the rebels to commit suicide, causing him to be dubbed the Zither Emperor.

Simultaneously, Zane became known in the underworld. The assassination of the duke merely made him slightly more famous than normal assassins. It wasn't until he massacred the Prison E out of boredom did the underworld realize how dangerous he was.

If either of his identities became exposed, he would be targeted, hence Zan became alienated from his peers. Things went well until he was sent to assassinate the king. Zane, codenamed Reaper, and his partner Grim easily infiltrated the palace but was met with rows of guards. Realizing that it was a trap, Grim shielded Zane.

"Run and don't come back! I-"

He was interrupted by an arrow through his heart. Seeing his partner's lifeless body, he was filled with rage. His black eyes turned blood-red as he started a killing frenzy. He was hit by arrows and slashed by swords but went on as if he didn't feel pain. He spared none, not the king, the servant, or even the slaves.

The grievous wounds took its toll, however.

In his last moments he yelled, "Grim, your partner Reaper has avenged you!"

Perhaps in the next life, Zane thought, I'll trust more.