Winging it
( Leo’s POV )
After entering the hut, Leo looked around and found that the hut was nothing more than an ordinary looking hut of a hunter gatherer, with meat, hunting tools and animal skin scattered around.
There were a few abstract objects placed inside his room at random locations and Leo easily found the eagle amongst them as he patiently walked towards it.
Once again, he was blown away by the details and immersive experience of Terra Nova Online as every corner of the room smelt different and it was detail Leo would never have thought to be possible, had he been a game developer.
The entrance smelt like burnt wood, however, the central part smelt like blood and rotting meat.
Finally the corner where the eagle was placed smelt sweet and fruity for some reason, however, Leo could not find any fruits or potions placed in that area.
” Odd-” he said as he lifted the eagle sculpture and just as the old man had instructed, lifting it revealed the hidden passage mechanism.
A trap door opened beneath the floor and Leo walked straight down it, careful to use the Floating Steps while walking so as to not make a sound.
The further he walked, the darker it became, until suddenly there was light and Leo arrived at what seemed to be an entire military base looking structure, built underground.” Whoaaa-” Leo gasped in awe as he soaked in the majesty of the Assassin Alliance headquarters, feeling mesmerized by its size and grandeur.
Everyone was roaming in fully covered black robes and almost 90% wore a face covering mask, as the entire area seemed like a Christmas Fair, with there being countless weapons shops, trading stations and poison shops open for business.
” Please provide the entrance token-” two tall and lean guards told Leo as only after he showed them the examination token did they permit him to enter the Assassin Alliance.
” Since you’re here for the examination, head to the newbie scouts, they should have an information desk set up nearby” one of the two guards said as Leo politely thanked them and headed inside.
The two guards looked at each other and then burst out laughing once Leo was gone as they could not believe their ears that someone told them ‘Thankyou’.
There was no room for kindness in the Assassin world and there was no room for emotions.
Most Assassin guilds had strict rules for conversation where no honorifics were allowed and any display of emotions was heavily punished.
“He must be from the women’s division. Maybe a bastard son of one of those vixens.
His footwork is exquisite, but he won’t survive the entrance exam if he’s a softy” one guard said to another as they chuckled some more taking turns to say ‘Thankyou’.
Thankfully, they did not suspect Leo’s identity as an assassin because his footwork was excellent, however, Leo had narrowly dodged a bullet here.
He happily entered the Assassin Alliance headquarters and had the opportunity to observe walking techniques left and right.
[ System Notification:- You have observed the movement technique [ Light Steps ], Do you wish to forget [ Floating Steps ] and learn Light Steps?
Yes
No ]
[ System Notification:- You have observed the movement technique [ Cloud Steps ], Do you wish to forget [ Floating Steps ] and learn Light Steps?
Yes
No ]
[ System Notification… ]
He was bombarded with a series of system notifications, with a majority of them being about the movement technique [ Light Steps ].
There were very few individuals using unique movement techniques, however, there wasn’t a single one who was using the movement technique of the old man called the Floating Steps.
‘Since I can’t distinguish one technique from another, it’s best not to switch’ Leo thought to himself as he opened his system screen and observed that he still had 2 uses of Floating Steps left, with each use lasting him at least ten minutes.
‘I shall learn another technique when it’s needed’ Leo thought to himself as he decided to stick with his own movement technique for now and turned his attention towards finding the newbie helpers.
Just as the guards had said, he soon found a small line before a stall where three hooded assassin’s sat with a large board in front saying ‘New Assassin’s Registration Desk’.
Leo joined that line and patiently observed the behavior and conservation of the other assassins as just by observing them for a while, he picked up on a lot of their habits.
The first thing that Leo observed was that everyone within the Assassin Alliance seemed to be in incredibly lean shape as although everyone wore loose fitted robes, Leo could not find anyone who seemed to have a muscular build or look overweight.
Ofcourse, he could understand how being overweight or muscular could be a professional hazard in the Assassin line of work, he was still surprised to not find a single overweight individual.
The second thing he observed was that the Assassin’s had incredible patience.
When standing in a line, the other candidates in front of him did not shuffle from foot to foot and did not make any unnecessary movements.
They stood still as a rock and did not even unnecessarily move their heads to observe their surroundings.
It was almost uncanny at how calm and reserved they were as Leo immediately tried to replicate their behavior.
Usually when he stood in a queue, Leo had the habit of shuffling from foot to foot and talking to others to pass the time, however, he had to control his natural instincts here as for his identity to not be exposed.
Thirdly, the final thing he noticed about these assassin’s was that they all talked in extremely hushed voices when conversing with one another as it wasn’t until the candidate in front of him was registering himself that Leo could finally overhear their conversation clearly.
‘ Provide your entrance token-‘
‘What is the name of your parent guild?’
‘Is your future tied to them or are you unbonded?’
‘The first exam is in four hours… if you’re late you’re disqualified. Next-‘
Leo could overhear the chair person asking these questions to the candidate in front of him, as he quickly opened his inventory and memorized the name of the guild the dead Assassin was supposed to belong to.
” Provide me with your entrance token” the chairperson demanded as Leo produced his invite token.
” Name of your parent guild?” He asked
“Cursed Spider” Leo replied
“Is your future tied to them?” He asked
“No-” Leo replied
” The exam starts in four hours, you’re disqualified if you’re late” the chairperson said as he slapped an identity number on Leo’s robes and rudely said ” Next-”
Leo walked off from the newbie registration desk and glanced at the number slapped on his robe.
“2501”
” So there are at least 2500 others eh? Maybe more to come” Leo softly murmured to himself as he got a feel for the competition.
So far, he had no idea as to how he was even managing to keep his identity hidden or what the future held for him.
However, since death within the game was not real, Leo was taking a chance and aiming for the skies, hoping that his broken mimic skill would help him get through any test that the assassin’s threw at him.
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