The moon shone brightly in the sky. The small city of Baska was way smaller than Oak. However, it held a certain appeal with which Advent World’s home city could not compete with. Perhaps it was the fact that Baska was quite the noveau town. It had been a small post village where a legion of rune knights and hundreds of mercenaries made a living. For years, everything Baska had was scores of fighters and warriors stationed within. Being in the road to the west, the small village was a key location for the magic council’s efforts of keeping peace within the country. However, time always brings changes, and Baska had not been able to escape them. The war between demons and angels had ravaged the land. Throughout the whole continent death and destruction had ascended from heaven and hell into humanity. Kenzo had been witness to it before. Since his arrival at Fiore one year ago, he had seen thousands of small rural villages destroyed and pillaged, even small cities had been reduced to dust or now survived as ghost towns. People fled their homes and places of birth in search of safety. The cities that had guilds had seen a massive migration exodus. It was truly a humanitarian crisis.

However, within crisis, there is always opportunities. That was the case for the small village of Baska. It might have a small place, lacking many stores and amenities people from bigger cities could enjoy. But the thing it had above any other place, was fighters. Fighters willing to repel the forces of evil, bandits and pillagers. As such, Baska saw a tremendous increase in population during the past years. Now, the small flourishing city of the west had become a beacon of light for this new world. Hundreds of merchants and entrepreneurs had decided to invest in the city. Its infrastructure and public services had increased with the stream of immigrants that came along.

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Many cultures, skilled people and wealthy patrons had turned their eyes to Baska and made it into an economic hub for the region. It was the champion of a world where people made their own destinies, forsaken by heaven. A world where nobles and royals had no jurisdiction, and the common man dictated his or her truth. In a certain sense, it was the prime example of what Advent World was set to bring into the country. For that reason, controlling Baska was of utmost importance. That was the reason why Kenzo had returned to the city once more.

A couple of days prior, Kenzo had made first contact with the city in order to obtain information. In the plans of the guild, Baska was the next objective for Advent World. Only after conquering Oak would they move into the merchant town’s territory. However, they would need every advantage they could gather. Kenzo was tasked with getting to know the city’s ins and outs. Previously, he had completed a quest for one of Baska’s most notorious shop owners. Through the task, he was able to meet some of the most influential merchants of the country. This time however, he would gather information for the other face of society. Everywhere he went, Kenzo had found that it was the same. Whether it be in Bellum, Desierto, Joya or Fiore. Each country was infinitely different from the other. However, they had all in common. Human nature was twisted, no matter the ethnicity or language one spoke. Where there is light, there was always dark as well. It was no exception in Baska. Even if the city held a huge concentration of rune knights, there was a blooming underground and crime society in the city.

While drinking in the tavern the day before, Kenzo had heard a rather interesting conversation. He was enjoying a specialty beer from the house, apparently imported from the country of Bosco. It was unlike any kind of beer the man had ever tried before, in the good sense. It’s taste was stronger than regular beer, but it didn’t cross the line of tasting like distilled alcohol. There was a palatable aromatic scent of fruit that perfectly balanced the beer’s natural bitterness. All in all, it was simply a masterpiece. As the mercenary relished in his newfound discovery’s flavor, the people next to him began talking.

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“Have you heard about the recent rumors?” A man with a large brown beard spoke as he dragged his tongue, clearly drunk and obnoxious to the loudness of his tone. ”You mean those recent sightings near the graveyard? Those are just fairy tales told by a bunch of kids that like to play pranks on the neighbors” A red haired male responded, noticeably more sober than his partner. ”Nooooo!! I’m telling you, *Hip* I saw them the other day as I was waaaaalkinng back home” The drunk male took a pause to control his hiccups before continuing. ”There was a man standing between the graves…. I saaaaw- *Hip* him bringing the dead to live. He’s Cain the necromancer… A beast I tell youuu. He doesn’t have a human face! He has the skull of a demon instead” Kenzo looked at the male as he finished speaking. ”Yo! Mister~ Sorry for interrupting, but I was hearing what you said. Is there any chance where I could find this Cain fella” The blue haired mercenary took advantage of the poor man’s drunkenness to approach him in the friendliest manner possible. ”AAaagh my friend! I do not know why would yo- *Hip* you ever want to find a demon like that. Buuut, I suppose that you’d find him if you go to the graveyard too.”

The information he received was more than enough. Getting out of the inn, Kenzo went to the graveyard at the outskirts of the village and found Cain while he prepared a ritual. After a rather comical exchange, both men became acquainted. Today, that acquaintance had transformed into a job.

The quest this time however, was a rather unpleasant one. Kenzo was not someone above killing for money. It would be hypocritical of his part to say it was too low. After all, he had been a mercenary for a decade. However, assassination jobs were just not his cup of tea.

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Yet, that was the task he was requested to take. Kenzo would deliver, but only under his terms. According to Cain, he needed a body for an experiment he was conducting. He didn’t go much into details about its nature, but he told Kenzo that the body needed to be pristine and fresh. This detail was of utmost importance, as a damaged body would not make the cut. His job for the man was to kill someone without being noticed and delivering the deceased body to the necromancer. Kenzo agreed in the end. He would find someone in Baska and kill him, but he would first need to do some research. Asking around the markets of the city, inns and bars, he finally heard about a serial killer that was in the run. He had kidnapped and slaughtered three women in the last week. He would choose his victims to be young ladies with red hair.

He would become the perfect target for Kenzo. After tracking a girl that met the serial killer’s criteria, the mercenary made sure to follow her steps throughout the day from a safe distance. When night came, the girl sneaked out of her house to meet with her lover in secret. The stable boy and the girl hid their relationship from her parents, so they had to meet in the darkness of night. However, the appointment that day had been a ruse. Orchestrated by the serial killer, the man sent a message to the girl posing as her lover. He made sure to set the appointment at the perfect place to commit a murder. What he’d never expect, was that the one dying that night would be him. As promised, the mercenary was able to sneak behind the killer and slit his throat in an instant. He had just managed to drug the girls, so she would never know what happened.

Since the killer had made sure the place was safe to commit his attack, Kenzo’s job was simply made easier. Hastily, the blue haired warrior took the fresh corpse to Cain and received his reward after it was inspected. The necromancer gave Kenzo his contact and told him he’d be willing to give him some more jobs in the future if he was ever interested. For the moment, what Kenzo only needed was a bath.

-EXIT-

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