Chapter 1 Mirror

Suren had seen Mr. Mirror in action and knew she possessed a bizarre displacement technique that rivaled spatial teleportation.

It was like a reflection cast from a mirror; when the light shone, she arrived.

He didn't know how far she could teleport, but coming from Old Downton wouldn't take long at all.

Suren knew Mr. Mirror had likely arrived.

He even guessed she'd been there for a while, watching the show from the sidelines.

But because it was just a guess, he felt uneasy.

What if she hadn't come?

The enemy's killing intent was palpable, forcing Suren to fight with all his might.

But using oneself as bait ultimately required someone to reel in the catch.

...

Suren's shout startled Miro, who thought to himself that there were indeed helpers.

He wanted to kill Suren quickly to complete the mission.

But he discovered that the newcomer was even more terrifying than he'd imagined.

Immediately after that shout, the surrounding air suddenly became viscous, as if he were stuck in quicksand, with a growing sense of despair.

This technique suppressed even a fifth-tier Strength-based Assassin like himself, making its rank terrifying.

How could there be such a terrifying professional underground?!

The thought flashed through his mind.

Without hesitation, Miro turned and fled.

But,

how could he be allowed to escape?

Suren had chosen to lure him to this deserted cave precisely to prevent the battle from being discovered.

That way, Mr. Mirror could act without restraint.

The reason Mr. Mirror couldn't act casually before was for fear of exposing herself.

Not that she feared the Black Tower, but that Fallen Angel would notice.

Now that Pestoya's hidden danger had been completely resolved, there was no more cause for concern.

As long as they killed cleanly, there wouldn't be much of a problem.

Suren watched the enemy flee and breathed a sigh of relief. The cuts on his body gaped open, revealing bone in several places, making him look rather terrifying.

But as long as he wasn't killed on the spot, it wasn't a big deal.

He formed a Warlock seal, and the green six-pointed star of Life Alchemy lit up. He threw down dozens of curse crystals, and the poison and wounds healed rapidly.

Suren had mastered this "money-for-life" first aid technique with exceptional skill.

Since Mr. Mirror had personally intervened, the rest of the battle was a foregone conclusion.

Suren waited for a while, and when he heard the sounds gradually fading, he followed the trail.

He wasn't going to interfere in the battle, but to wait and collect the body.

Sure enough, when he arrived, he saw the assassin's corpse. The wounds on the body were horrific, filled with shards of glass-like blades, as if he had been subjected to the Ling Chi punishment (death by a thousand cuts).

Suren arrived just as he saw Mr. Mirror in her cloak, and greeted her, "Mr. Mirror."

Mr. Mirror tilted her head to look at him and nodded, "Mm."

Before, when he didn't know Mr. Mirror's identity, Suren always felt a sense of awe in the face of this top professional who had lived for a thousand years.

But after hearing her name, "Ophelia," from Pestoya, and confirming her identity, the respect remained, but the sense of mystery was gone.

After all, in terms of seniority, this person in front of him...

He had to call her "Senior Apprentice Sister"!

If he wasn't mistaken, Mr. Mirror's real name was "Ophelia Fei Isaac." She was Sir Isaac's eldest daughter and Pestoya's older sister!

Suren still remembered the first day he transmigrated, in the cursed space of Stormwind Manor, he saw the family photo in the study, which included this name.

Later, Pestoya invited him to the "Bloody Banquet." At that time, three people who were very important to her were made into dolls on the dining table. Besides Sir Isaac and Serreia, there was also a young woman, and that was her.

Suren hadn't expected it before, he just hadn't expected that she had really lived for a thousand years.

Because Serreia had taken Suren as a disciple, his seniority was suddenly very high, and he was on the same level as Mr. Mirror.

And the relationship was very close.

Shouting at the top of his lungs was probably like calling for a parent when he couldn't beat someone, and there was nothing embarrassing about it.

...

Mr. Mirror left the corpse, naturally waiting for Suren to harvest the memories.

Suren wasn't polite and walked straight over to devour the gray mist.

[Acquired Memory Fragments of 'Miro Giles' *7]

[You have obtained a piece of information: 'I didn't expect the New Deal to fail... Kill this Fick, and the Regaedi family will not be held accountable by the Clan Council for the sake of its survival...' ]

[You have gained a wealth of assassination knowledge.]

[You have acquired 'Air Kick Skill' and comprehended the movement technique {Floating Aerial Kick}.]

[You have mastered a large amount of 'Tier 1-5 Alchemical Knowledge'.]

[You have comprehended incomplete Tier 5 Wind-based Laws and mastered the elemental condensation technique {Arcane Art - Wind Element Severance}.]

[You have mastered a large amount of Assassin-type combat experience, Melee Experience +411]

[Mental Strength +4.6]

Professionals who could advance to Tier 5 were all exceptionally talented.

This guy's soul fragments didn't disappoint.

As expected, he harvested many Assassin-type professional abilities, but those Assassin skills required physical attribute support. Although Suren could use them, their power was far from as sharp as that of a professional Assassin, making them slightly impractical.

However, the Assassin skills were secondary; the most important gain was the high-level incomplete Wind-based Laws!

"Wind Element Severance?"

Suren digested the memory and immediately understood the power of this Alchemy technique.

This wasn't an ordinary skill that anyone could learn, but a subtle understanding of elemental manipulation.

It was somewhat similar to Void Step; it couldn't be learned just by studying it, but required a lot of time to "comprehend."

It was also an ability that professionals below Tier 3 couldn't possibly master.

If {Adamantine Body} was about attaching layers of Gold Element barriers to the body, then {Wind Element Severance} was like attaching a "sharp" temporary enchantment to the body or weapon.

The reason that assassin could easily cut Suren's threads was not only because the dagger was sharp, but more importantly, because of the "severing" attribute at the elemental level.

This was a very practical and powerful high-level technique.

It specialized in dealing with tough, thick-skinned targets, used to cut through defenses!

"If it's conducted to the puppets through the threads, the puppets' physical damage ability will be greatly improved..."

Suren had already thought of the practical application of this technique in conjunction with the Ghoul Marionettes.

Relying solely on the sharpness of weapons was already somewhat weak in high-level professional battles.

If the enemy had a few layers of body protection techniques, it would be difficult to break through their defenses.

And the defense-breaking effect brought about by the same Tier {Wind Element Severance} was at least several times higher than the effect of {Sharpness Runes}!

The combination of the two perfectly compensated for the Ghoul Marionettes' shortcomings in defense-breaking ability.

Gaining knowledge was one aspect,

but by stripping away the memories of this Regaedi family's "Assassin Commander,"

Suren finally understood the identity of the original owner of this body.

...

After stripping away some fragmented memories before, and now stripping away some more, he had roughly pieced together a rough map of the surface world.

The surface world had two major empires: the island nation "Ruin Empire" and the "Mafa Mechanical Empire" on the eastern mainland.

The two great empires faced each other across the sea, separated by the Ruin Strait.

Besides these, there were various small kingdoms, duchies, and independent territories.

But most of them were dependent on the two great empires.

In addition to these, there were large expanses of icy plains in the northernmost region, called the "Savage Lands," where polar trolls, orcs, giants, and barbarians were active.

That region was a synonym for chaos, primitiveness, and barbarism.

"King of the North Sea" Oleg and his band of Vikings came from the northern ice plains.

Of course, this was only the territory known to the two great empires and nearby areas. The knowledge in Suren's stripped memory fragments was limited to the regions where humans were active.

There was too much unknown in this world.

South of the Mafa Empire was the endless mountainous region called the "Magic Beast Mountains." Various magical beasts were active there, and it was rumored that centaurs, mountain dwarves, and half-elves... these ancient intelligent races lived there.

Then there was the vast sea west of the Ruin Empire. No one knew where the end of the ocean was; it was a paradise for ocean races and various marine magical beasts. Ancient adventurers' travelogues and bards' songs sang of islands where dragons lived, islands with beautiful snake women, and Nightmare Islands sealed with evil gods... and so on.

Hidden in the depths of the sea were endless treasures buried in the dust of history, sunken ships full of gold and silver, ancient wars, the treasures of pirate kings...

Or perhaps a cave somewhere on land hid a secret treasure left behind by an ancient civilization...

The deep historical background added a strong touch of the unknown and mysterious to this world.

It was like a thick book. When you opened one page, there was an even more exciting page underneath.

Page after page, until you could finally turn to the magnificent era of the gods creating the world.

...

The Regaedi family of the original body had a rather special status.

It was a territory that depended on the Ruin Empire, but it was different from other territories.

Strictly speaking, they were exiled royalty, the former royal family of the Mafa Empire.

More than a hundred years ago, a certain Mythic Goblin relic was discovered, and a technological revolution broke out. Steam machinery and various mechanical technologies sprung up like mushrooms after a rain.

Some alchemists began to be enthusiastic about studying various machines.

The new school of "Mechanical Alchemists" was born as a result.

They studied Mechanical Alchemy, creating and inventing various mechanical equipment. The power of machinery gradually affected life, and Mechanical Alchemists used their knowledge to create mecha warships, steam airships, mechanical equipment, and all kinds of super-powered guns. Even ordinary people who had not been trained could use mechanical equipment to possess the combat power of a professional...

But technological revolutions usually meant conflicts with certain ancient orders.

Machinery replaced manpower, abolished slavery, and gave commoners rights...

The mechanical revolution made the nobles feel that their rights were threatened.

The reason why nobles were nobles, in the final analysis, was because they had a sense of superiority in enslaving their fellow human beings.

Initially, those powerful Mechanical Alchemists founded the "Mechanical Cult."

As time went on, this organization's influence among the common people grew.

The nobles felt a sense of crisis that the order was about to collapse.

Therefore, the Mafa Emperor "Regaedi XI" began to suppress the Mechanical Cult, wanting to nip Mechanical Alchemy in the bud.

Then...

the ending was tragic.

The Mechanical Alchemists overthrew the decadent Old Mafa Empire and established the New Mafa Mechanical Empire.

And the "Regaedi Family," as the royal family, began its exile.

Finally, with the support of their old rival the Ruin Empire, they occupied a southern island as their territory, where they remain to this day.

And now the two major empires of the surface world were much like the situation in Old Downton, which was also the two factions of alchemists.

The Old School and the New School.

...

"Always thinking about restoring the country, this script is so familiar..."

Suren digested that memory and finally understood why the original owner was being chased.

Because they were royalty a hundred years ago, and now the people of the Regaedi family were still proud of it, even regarding themselves as an ancient family equal in status to the royal families of the two great empires.

They were always thinking about restoring the country, contacting various forces everywhere...

And because the Mafa Mechanical Empire was growing stronger day by day, some divisions had also emerged within the Ruin Empire.

They faced the same situation as the Old Mafa Empire back then. The mechanical revolution would shake the rights of the rulers and change the original social order.

The most important thing was the defeat in the war.

This war, which had been fought for a hundred years, went from the Ruin Empire's overwhelming advantage at the beginning, to a stalemate in the middle, and now it was gradually weakening...

Among same-tier professionals, Old School Alchemists indeed had an absolute combat advantage.

Especially in the top professional circles, the gap between Mechanical Warriors would only grow larger.

But cultivating a Tier 3 professional required many years, as well as a one-in-a-million talent and countless resources;

and creating a combat mech equivalent to a Tier 3 professional only took about a day on a production line.

It could be predicted that the Ruin Empire would decline in the future.

Therefore, some people in the Empire also wanted to reform.

Then there were various power struggles.

The current head of the family, who was also the original body's father, Kelson Regaedi, was a staunch royalist. After all, they had once been royalty themselves, so they naturally wanted to maintain the original order of noble supremacy.

About a year or so ago, the revolution succeeded, the New Party came to power, and Ruin Emperor Bonaparte IX was forced to abdicate, soon dying in depression.

Kelson happened to be in the imperial capital and was also implicated, being detained to await trial.

His descendants were either exiled or imprisoned, and the original body was one of the unlucky ones.

The Regaedi family was now flourishing, with even more members than it had a hundred years ago.

There were probably tens of thousands of people with that surname in "Auren Territory."

The main family was weak, but the branch families were stronger.

They thought the head of the family was doomed to die, and the branch families within the Regaedi family began to act up, with the branch families taking the upper hand.

In order to eliminate future troubles, they planned to kill all the descendants of the main family.

This was why the original body was exiled and still had a bounty on his head.

But unexpectedly, a few months later, the plot reversed.

The Empress made a strong comeback, suppressing various dissident parties with iron-fisted methods. The revolution failed, and the Bonaparte dynasty was restored.

Then, the original body's father would soon return to the territory...

It seemed that the members of the branch family had no intention of letting the original family head return to the territory alive.

...

Suren, as a transmigrator, had absolutely no interest in any family infighting.

He didn't want to be a "descendant of royalty" either.

But seeing this situation, the other party was planning to exterminate them all.

But it wasn't a big problem. The surface world was infinitely vast, so he just needed to avoid the Regaedi family.

Thousands of thoughts flashed through his mind, but only a moment passed in reality.

Mr. Mirror on the side quietly watched Suren digest the soul fragments.

Clearly, she had also realized that Suren had guessed her identity.

Although he couldn't see her face clearly, she seemed a little... helpless.

Suren looked at this big shot who had come to save his life and sincerely thanked her, "Thank you, Mr. Mirror."

Mr. Mirror shook her head, seemingly not caring, "Not bad."

Suren knew that these words were naturally referring to the previous battle.

Being able to rescue him so quickly meant that she had arrived long ago and had been watching all along.

Her purpose was self-evident; she naturally wanted him to personally face a Tier 5 enemy and feel that sense of oppression.

Suren also felt that he had handled it quite well. At least a Tier 2 being able to hold out against a Tier 5 for so long was enough to make anyone proud.

But unexpectedly, after a moment, Mr. Mirror said something else meaningful, "Without experiencing death, you will never understand the Laws of Death, nor will you be able to comprehend things at the level of 'intention' and 'energy'... Without nurturing intention and energy, it's like a person without bones. Even with a body full of skills, your achievements will ultimately be limited. No one can explain that thing, not even the {Death Harvester} can reap it; you can only comprehend it yourself."

As soon as Suren heard these words, he knew that Mr. Mirror was giving him guidance on some very high-level cultivation techniques.

After thinking about it slightly, each word seemed to be imprinted in his heart, and he immediately gained some understanding.

He looked serious, "I'm grateful for your teachings, Mr. Mirror."

Hearing these words, Mr. Mirror shook her head slightly and actually took the initiative to say, "You should have guessed my identity. In the absence of outsiders, just call me... Senior Apprentice Sister."

Since they were of the same generation, it was naturally inappropriate to call her "Mr."

Especially since she was his mother's disciple.

Suren listened and nodded, "Okay, Senior Apprentice Sister."

Mr. Mirror didn't intend to stay any longer, and said, "It just so happens that we need some information from the outside world. Amyrich has gone to deal with the people on the city walls, so you don't need to worry about that."

After a pause, she looked at Suren and added, "Also... be careful yourself."

Suren nodded.

When he looked again, Mr. Mirror, draped in her cloak, had already dissipated before his eyes.

...

Suren looked at the corpse on the ground and silently put it into his storage space.

Without lingering, he immediately left the battle scene.

Although Mr. Mirror's words were very subtle, they all meant the same thing:

He immediately understood.

People's mindset would change in a comfortable environment, without them even realizing it.

This was instinct.

Suren was awakened by this one sentence.

When he had just transmigrated, survival was a problem, and he had to be vigilant at all times.

Now that he had met all these powerful allies, he subconsciously had a sense of reliance on enjoying "comfort."

If it had been him alone, or if he wasn't sure that Mr. Mirror would definitely help, he definitely wouldn't have entered the city if he had any doubts.

Because he was certain that Mr. Mirror would help.

That was why he thought he could take the opportunity to hunt and harvest a Tier 5 professional...

He had indeed been a little reckless.

This Senior Apprentice Sister looked cold, but she was still quite concerned.