Chapter 39: Assassin with an agenda
As his subordinate scurried away like he had just been granted amnesty, Jin Chen closed his eyes restoring his inner peace. But the universe seemed to be playing a joke on him because someone disturbed him again. As the saying goes there is no rest for the wicked.
The person didn't immediately enter the main hall but he could smell her perfume from where she stood. Her name was Lan Lee, a top assassin in Equino with no loyalty to any of the guilds. She was the type hired to do dirty work no questions asked.
She refused to be restrained and limited by guild rules but despite this, she always gravitated towads Jin Chen throughout the ages. Maybe it was because he had once saved her that she was like that.
Lan Lee took out her hairpin and her long white hair that had been tied up into a half ponytail flowed down like a soothing waterfall as she threw the hairpin in Jin Chen's direction with a force so powerful that one could hear the whooshing sound of the hairpin cutting air.
Jin Chen on the other hand felt that hairpin coming his way but he didn't panic. He remained seated in the same position as the sharp hairpin aimed for his forehead to crack his skull. But just as the hairpin was about to send him on an early trip to Valhalla it stopped mere inches before his face.
Seeing this Lan Lee grinned like an immortal enchantress as she ambled over in slow strides. Her footsteps were light like she was walking on fluffy clouds. Right above those platform heels were long slender legs as smooth as butter but they weren't as eye-catching as her outfit.
She was wearing a gold dress that barely left anything to the imagination and silver wrist braces on her wrists that were especially dazzling. With a swing of her hips, she walked over to him and grabbed the hairpin that was still spinning midair in front of Jin Chen.
He finally opened his eyes with the dark cracks on his neck gradually spreading as though silently expressing his displeasure. "What do you want?" he asked with a hint of impatience in his voice.
There was a slight ripple of emotion in Lan Lee's pitch-black eyes but she suppressed it as always and responded, "I heard the grandmaster of the Arogue guild has been experiencing rounds of bad luck lately. A certain someone seems confident that he is ready to take you down for ruining his pretty face," she said with her hand ambiguously stroking his shoulder.
Jin Chen grabbed her wrist and spoke, "if you have something to say then say it or leave my city?" in an icy cold voice as though addressing a stranger.
The reason why he treated her as such was because she wasn't one to be trusted. Jin Chen had been burnt once and wasn't willing for it to happen a second time.
Unable to hold back her grievances her emotions burst out as she transformed into her true self. Her eyes were a glowing grey with a luminous crescent moon on her forehead. A vivid blue line ran down from the crescent moon on her forehead to the middle part of her upper lip.
She looked like a fantasy creature that could steal a man's soul but in front of Jin Chen, it meant nothing. Her charms had seized to influence him a long time ago. She harshly broke Jin Chen's hold on her wrist and said, "I came here to help you yet you have been especially rude to me. Why? Huh? Are you still holding on to that mistake I made that one time?"
Jin Chen suddenly took out a shiny dagger from who knows where and pressed it on her neck till he drew blood. "I am not the kind to give second chances neither do I need your help so go back to whatever hole you crawled out from and don't come back," he threatened before withdrawing his dagger.
He had not only saved this woman but also kept her beside him only to get stabbed in the back. She was the reason his tharok died. Lan Lee had led him directly into an ambush which resulted in such a big tragedy. She apologized back then trusting Du She and had been trying hard to compensate Jin Chen ever since but her attempts were futile.
Her knees softened as she watched him walk away from her making her heartache. But just as he reached the main entrance she suddenly recalled something and yelled, "I can help you find that outlier within your borders. The longer he is left in the wild the more problems you will have."
It seemed her words were working so she continued, "I heard the bounty for that outlier is going to increase and once your citizens find out they might kill each other just to get him first. Du She wants to use this to...," but she was cut off before she could finish.
"How much?" he asked with his back facing her.
"Two, two hundred thousand Qin. You have less than two hours to find him before everyone finds out about the bounty.... but I can help you find him," she said hoping he would give her a second chance.
"Your debt is repaid... now don't come back. Arogue doesn't welcome you," he said in a chilling tone cold enough to freeze hell two times over. He fixed his sleeve before saying, "Are you going to walk out on your own or do I have to find someone to carry Miss Lan out?"
These words were like a sharp knife piercing through her heart but she also knew she couldn't stay. She decided to secretly catch that outlier for Jin Chen so she could redeem herself.
But of course, Jin Chen knew nothing of it let alone the two novices who were about to get hunt down by one of the top dogs in the business of killing people.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone