One Shot, One Kill.

The entire kingdom was in uproar when the news broke out the following morning after the apprehension of the Black Talon group and their crimes were made public by renown Bounty Hunter, Richard Wolf. They had been found in cahoots with a group of monster bandits in the smuggling and sale of illegal products and illegal slave trade. Some reports even speculated that they were in league with servants of the Demon Lord to bring about chaos to the world.

Many of the Black Talon group pleaded and claimed that they had been under the employ of the highly influential Baroness Sinis and had only acted upon her orders. Repulsed by their lies, the people of the city couldn’t believe their allegations and demanded justice for their crimes and the people they had injured in the past.

Their trial was swift and merciless. They had all been sentenced to death by guillotine. Every last one of them would meet their end in the public square early in the morning with the proceedings ending by midday. Some of the more inquisitive people in the city were wondering why the trial was so quick to deliver a death sentence without further inquiries made nor an investigation regarding their alleged connection to the Baroness. Those that spoke in favor of the Baroness would confirm that while she had been their sponsor when the Black Talon group was just starting out, she was unaware of their criminal actions and felt heartbroken that her generosity was taken advantage of by these rogues.

In truth, she had planned this all along… She knew they would one day become a liability and had already prepared to make them her scapegoat should her business ventures were ever exposed. She’d planned for them to take the fall and bribed the right people to force the trial to be rushed and a death sentence be declared with all expediency.

The morning of the executions, the entire square was filled with a crowd people who were there to witness the deaths of the infamous Black Talon group. Every time one of their members was brought to the scaffold, they would yell profanities and insults towards these criminals. Some of the members would scream out in retaliation while others were begging for mercy right before they were placed upon the guillotine and the blade severed their heads without difficulty. The crowd would cheer whenever a member was executed and the announcement was made for the next criminal.

The Baroness was quite pleased with the events so far. She relished in these displays of barbarism from the people and enjoyed watching men suffer and beg for mercy from her. For every head that rolled, she felt her body quiver with excitement as every silenced man was one less loose end for her.

It was now time for Grove’s execution in the public square.

The entire crowd yelled and jeered at the fallen adventurer as he was being dragged in chains to the guillotine. Pelting him with rotten food and filth only added insult to the injury. The Baroness, pleased with how the crowd had received her former pawn, couldn’t help but smirk at how things had ended. She would no longer be held responsible for the misdeeds committed by the Black Talon group on her orders. She’d always been careful never to be placed in a compromising situation. The fact that she had been the sponsor of the group was actually useful for her to use them when their shady deals were found out. Playing the victim of gruesome betrayal and knowing that the adventurers didn’t like the Black Talons, she would sway the public view in a positive way by acting heartbroken by the revelation that her charity and good will had been sullied by these two-faced rogues. No one would believe the words of a filthy fallen adventurer over her own. She was a noble of the highest pedigree, she’d acted the charitable and magnanimous mistress to her people for many years… an act that made her vomit every time when she was alone.

Now, she had the sympathy of the masses and the Adventurers Guild was almost within her grasp as soon as Grove was slain. She took great delight in seeing him ridiculed and humiliated before the crowd. But something made her hidden smirk turn into a frown.

Grove was completely calm. Even with his reputation destroyed, even with the crowd growling their hatred for him, even as he walked slowly towards his own death he was perfectly calm. This made the Baroness angry… she’d taken great delight in watching men and women groveling in fear of her. She’d only seen this level of calm on people who truly didn’t fear death… and she’d only seen those eyes on that accursed Bounty Hunter that ruined her plans.

When the prisoner was ushered to the scaffold, the entire crowd went silent. The magistrate began to call out a list of transgressions and crimes done by Grove and his accomplices and had called out to him if he had any last words.

To the growing anger of the Baroness and the surprise of the crowd, Grove shook his head and remained perfectly calm, as if he were alone in this world without any concerns left.

Meanwhile, at the Royal Palace…

The Guild Master and Alana had begged the Princess to grant them an audience in order to provide her with important information regarding the misdeeds of the Black Talon group and the true mastermind behind these criminals. At first, they had received negative responses from the ministers, but when they explained that this also involved the World Traveller they had summoned, the Princess immediately accepted and granted them their audience. The Guild Master had kindly requested their audience to happen before midday, during the execution of the Black Talon group and their leader Grove.

Alana was a bit scared of the environment she was in now. Her eyes looked around the chamber she was in and was grateful to see that there was a window facing East. If things went well with this audience, she’d know what to do next. She only hoped this wouldn’t take too long… Time was of the essence, and by the sounds of the outraged crowd in the public square, the executions were close to completion. She held on to a satchel full of documents that were provided to her by the Guild Master with the strict instructions of not letting anyone other than him to reclaim them.

The Guild Master also looked worried. With all the things that had happened, the Guild had taken a big hit to their reputation and trust when it was made public that a famous adventurer group was involved in criminal activities and disrupting the peace of the kingdom. He’d always known they were up to no good, but he never had enough evidence nor any credible proof that they were involved in such things nor who their true masters were. Until now.

The Princess appeared in the chamber with a worried look. The Guild Master and Alana stood up and bowed towards the Princess with respect.

“Guild Master, I apologize for making you wait, but I had to inform my father of the situation. He is quite concerned about the decline in the trust of the people towards the Adventurers Guild and the actions of these misguided men.” The Princess let out a heavy sigh. “Please, be seated.”

The Guild Master and Alana did as commanded and waited for the Princess to recompose herself.

“So, you mentioned that this audience involves the World Traveller, Richard Wolf. Correct?” The Princess now looked at the Guild Master with some degree of disappointment. Ever since the rude Outlander had left the castle the other day, he’d never once come around to apologize or present himself with the right decorum. Now, it seems that he’s also no longer a state secret since the Guild Master and the receptionist with him knew of the World Traveller.

“Yes, your Highness. And I do apologize for not being able to maintain this a secret from other parties, but this was a choice made by the Outlander himself. I can assure you that only Alana here and myself know the truth about him.” The Guild Master bowed his head in apology which was hastily emulated by Alana.

“We will discuss this breach at a later date. For now, let us discuss why you are here and what that has to do with our mutual ‘friend’.” The Princess was in a poor mood whenever talks about the World Traveller happened.

“Then I will get straight to the point.” The Guild Master looked at Alana and nodded at her gravely. The elf girl nodded and handed the satchel with the documents she’d been protecting to him. “As Guild Master, I would respectfully request for your seal of approval to issue a bounty on the head of Baroness Sinis, dead or alive.”

“What!? Do you realize what it is you are requesting of me, Guild Master? Not only are you asking me to denounce a noble who has contributed to the wellbeing of the Kingdom but also to officially allow any person within the Adventurers Guild to hunt her down and kill her if needed without repercussions?” The outrage of the Princess was apparent, which made Alana grow worried with fright. But to her surprise, the Guild Master was cool and collected even in the presence of royalty.

“We have reasons to believe and evidence that prove that all of these criminal acts conducted by the Black Talon group were orchestrated by Baroness Sinis, your Highness. It was the Outlander who provided us with these documents which prove that the Baroness knew everything and avoided being caught by carefully manipulating the public opinion in her favor.” The Guild Master handed over the documents to the Princess who took them with some hesitation. “Your Highness, I know you are a kindhearted person and would never want to get involved in such unpleasant matters. But you need to see for yourself what sort of bad things are happening in this country without your knowledge or that of your father, the King.”

The Princess looked at the documents with a worried look in her eyes. She’d always lived a sheltered life and most of the time she’d heard about how everything in her country was perfect. But, ever since the World Traveller was summoned, her perfect world had been shattered and she became more aware of the reality of what was happening beyond the walls of the castle. She took a deep breath to steel her resolve and she began to read the documents.

Extortion. Bribery. Murder. Drug smuggling. Illegal slave trade. Association with minions of the Demon Lord. A written confession from the leader of the Black Talon group stating of the Baroness’ involvement in these crimes. Letters showing the Baroness’ connections with nobles from other countries in hopes of gaining their support in an eventual usurpation of the throne and her association with the Demon Lord’s minions proved she was a follower of the Dark Lord. The documents proving the Baroness’ involvement in these affairs were overwhelming! The Princess dropped the documents on the table in front of them and let out a gasp of shock. Never in her young life had she seen these many crimes committed by only one person. It was too much…

Alana observed the Princess as she read through the documents the Guild Master handed to her. She could see by the shocked expression in the Princess’ face that she never expected to see such evidence being stacked against the Baroness. Alana then turned towards the window and noticed that time was running out… if the Princess didn’t give her approval quickly, then Mr. Wolf would get himself into serious trouble…

While the Princess was having an audience with the Guild Master and Alana…

Richard was sitting in a corner of a room having a smoke. His eyes were fixed to what was going on outside his window. He’d been in the room all day long. Everything else didn't seem to matter much to him at that moment. He was musing that maybe it was time for him to leave this city and move on elsewhere. He’d dealt with political drama before and it always ended with someone else taking the blame and the real head honchos walking free. Unless he had a mind not to let that happen…

Feeling a bit uncomfortable, he moved over to the table by the window and began to clean up his weapons. He felt a certain calm whenever he was just doing a mindless repetitive thing like maintenance to his firearms. This time, he was taking extra special care of one of his long rifles.

Remove the bolt. Clean the rifled barrel. Adjust the trigger. Polish the wooden frame. Make the necessary minute adjustments to the scope. Oil and reassemble the machinery. Clean the ammo box and readjust. The weapon was in perfect working condition and he knew he could shoot a target over two hundred meters away without a problem.

If all went well, he’d be able to do so really soon. It was midday after all…

As the Bounty Hunter was giving maintenance to his weapons…

In the Rowdy Bull inn, the innkeeper, Ador was minding his own business, tending the bar from time to time and putting down fights between the regulars with his usual smack on the head with a mug. He didn’t like people making a mess of his establishment, but he knew it was part of the deal.

As he was running the numbers of his latest big score, a smiling fellow approached him. Ador had seen all sorts of people in his time and he knew that this smiling punk wasn’t just trying to be friendly with that grin of his.

“What can I do fer ya?” The innkeeper was feeling just a little anxious. He’d been told something like this might happen eventually. He didn’t expect it this soon though.

“Yes, sir! I’m actually looking for Mr. Richard Wolf, a Bounty Hunter working with the Adventurers Guild. I hear he lives in this fine establishment?” The Smiling Man tilted his head during his inquiry.

Mention of Wolf made the innkeeper wary of this guy.

“I don’t know this fella. People come ‘n go to this place all the time, I can’t keep track of ‘em all.” Ador was hoping this sort of answer would make the guy leave. “I don’t like ta meddle in others' privacy, ya know?”

“Of course! Certainly the paragon of discretion. And I’m certain such discretion can be ‘priceless’.” The smile on the man became a bit more sinister as he placed a small bag of silver coins on the desk for Ador. “I’m in the discretion business myself. I just want to deliver a message from the Guild Master. Seems his adventuring party is about to be promoted and we need to talk to him right away. Could you just point me in the right direction?”

Ador caught the meaning of what the smiling man was saying. He didn’t like the guy. But he did like the sound of money in his pocket. Besides, he wouldn’t get in trouble for just pointing the guy in the right direction.

“Room number 7. But I gotta warn ya. Wolf doesn’t like ta be disturbed while he’s in his room. He’s made it clear it’d be bad if anybody comes a’ knockin’.” Ador pointed at the stairs and took the bag of silver.

“Thank you, master innkeeper. I promise you, you will be properly rewarded.” The Smiling Man slowly made his way up the stairs and disappeared from Ador’s sight.

The innkeeper didn’t really care what the smiling guy was on about. He could hear the guy’s footsteps suddenly go very quiet. He could tell he was close to Wolf's room. So that’s what was going on, he thought. Then there was a sudden loud smash heard from the same room, a sudden scream of horror and then everything went silent again.

Curious as to what happened, Ador went upstairs and went towards room 7. As expected, the door had been smashed open inwards, but when he looked inside the room, it was completely empty.

Just as Wolf had left it when he paid his bill and left the inn early that morning…

“Yer leavin’ already Wolf?”

“Yes. Things are about to get a bit hairy around here, so I don’t want to stick around for too long.”

“Well, can’t say it’s a relief. Ya always paid extra fer the ‘discretion’ fee. Hahaha!”

“About that.” Wolf placed another bag of gold coins for Ador before he left. “There’s a chance that someone’s going to come looking for me. Probably says he knows me or he’s working with the Guild. You know I work alone, and my requests come from the Guild Master and a specific receptionist. Until this person comes around or a good long time has passed, don’t let ANYONE enter the room.”

“Why not? I gotta make a profit ‘ere ya know?”

“If you or anyone else doesn’t want to disappear from existence, I advise you not to let ANYONE enter the room until someone comes in asking for me or at least two weeks have passed. I’m not joking, Mr. Ador.”

Now that he looked inside the room, he realized that whatever Wolf had done to the room, was set as a trap in advance.

“Poor bastard… I did tell him not to disturb the Wolf didn’t I?”

When the Smiling Man had been given the job from the Baroness, he believed that this was a simple request. To find this “Bounty Hunter” and kill him without reservations. Such was the request from his mistress, so he would simply get it over with, collect his money and his “special reward” from his mistress. He did enjoy being “scolded” by the Baroness, and the sweet pain it brought him was his sole purpose to serve her.

He arrived at the Rowdy Bull inn where he’d been informed by the locals that this was the place his target lived in. As usual, it smelled of cheap liquor and even cheaper men. None of them could hope to achieve the same level of satisfaction and praise he did. He was an assassin belonging to the most delightful mistress of all, Baroness Sinis. He’d kill every last one of these mutts without a second thought if she just smiled in approval to him. Ahh! The delights of servitude!

When he approached the innkeeper, he kept his usual smile to ease the gruff looking mutt. As usual, most of these mutts gave up any kind of information for the right bone. With a small bag of silver, he learned that his target rested in room 7 of this dilapidated pig sty and claimed he never wanted to be disturbed. How quaint! A bounty hunter who enjoys privacy.

He made his way towards room 7 and slowed his steps a bit. He knew the bounty hunter was skilled and wary of intrusion. If he took the innkeeper’s word as the truth, then this man was ready to attack anyone who disturbed his peace. He also knew that this Richard Wolf was skilled in firearms, so he could easily shoot at him if he wasn’t careful. He wasn’t too worried. His mistress had given him a special amulet that would shield him from normal projectiles and ensure that no bullet would reach him. All he’d have to do is rush the bounty hunter, capitalize his confusion, shoot him and stab him with his long knife. He’d kill him quickly and collect his reward from his mistress soon enough…

He stood by the door and waited a moment. Taking one look through the keyhole, he glanced inside and saw the room was mostly quiet save for the sounds outside the window. On the bed was the bundled figure of his target sleeping soundly under the covers with a hat covering his face from the light.

This was the bounty hunter who had caused so much trouble to his mistress? Just another mutt who was going to be sacrificed, just like those mutts of the Black Talon. Something stopped him from getting too full of himself. He recalled the innkeeper’s warning and decided to be careful. Taking his lockpicking tools, he slowly undid the lock. To his surprise, his target shifted in bed a bit. Has he been noticed? He couldn’t be subtle anymore.

He took his pistol and his long knife in each hand and readied himself. He’d rush in, shoot then stab the man before he could react.

Using his enhanced speed and strength, he rushed through the door destroying it in the process. The moment he passed through the threshold of the door he suddenly found himself staring at nothing but the emptiness of the sky!

His eyes desperately darted everywhere and realized he had been teleported to the stormy skies thousands of meters above the open seas!

Screaming in horror, he looked back to the door he’d just burst through only to find that the threshold had closed up behind him after a magic circle with intricate marks vanished.

He never should’ve taken the job… he never should’ve left his mistress’ side… he never should’ve disturbed the Wolf’s respite as he was warned… he was going to die… he’d never again see his beloved mistress… he only had a few seconds before he passed out and would never again open his eyes… as promised… he had disappeared from all existence as he fell to his demise…

Wolf was still cleaning his weapons when the communication circle appeared on his right ear. He looked towards it, heard what was being said and nodded. The MOGO's trap had worked...

“Thanks for the help. You can close the gate to the ocean’s sky.” The circle vanished which made Wolf take another puff from his cigarette. He’d planned to have his old room rigged against intrusion since he left this morning. It cost him quite a bit, but he knew it was worth it. He hadn’t expected it to happen so soon, but it helped him relax a bit. He wouldn’t have to worry about watching over his back for a while.

The plan was going well so far. Now all that was needed was the signal… He checked the time… Grove would be executed very soon. He’d have to make a move quickly.

He grabbed his long rifle, took a small box of bullets and rushed up the stairs of the tower room he’d been holed up in all day. His window was closing fast…

When he arrived at the right spot, he had a clear view of the public square where the scaffold had been set for the public executions. Taking a look through his binoculars, he scanned the area for the people he was looking for… he saw the Baroness and soon after he noticed that Grove was being dragged towards the scaffold and to the guillotine.

It was now or never…

In the castle, the Princess was struggling to make heads or tails of the situation.

Baroness Sinis has orchestrated for the Black Talon to serve as her “hidden hand” to disrupt Guild operations, used several proxies to create “easy requests” which turned out to be insanely difficult missions that cost the lives of dozens of adventurers, welcomed the criminal underworld with deals involving illegal goods and illegal slavery, and, worst of all, was a Demon Lord worshiper herself trying to bring the destruction of the Kingdom of Alkines for the sake of the Dark Lord!

This wasn’t like the tales she’d heard of good versus evil. This wasn’t like the stories of heroes charging against the forces of darkness with shining swords and brave followers. This wasn’t what she had expected all along. Just like the World Traveller had said before…

Evil wasn’t standing around in ceremony waiting for the forces of good to marshall their strength. They were already affecting the people from within and she was never made aware of this until now. With all these things happening, she realized she could no longer remain idle.

“To think that such bad things were happening in our kingdom right under our noses. It shames me as Princess of this realm to see that I have been blind all this time.” Princess Alice couldn’t help but shudder at the thought of what she was about to do. At her whim, a person would live or die.

At her whim.

“Your Highness, the time to act is now. If we do nothing, then the traitor will escape our grasp and will continue to spread poison in our country. I beg of you; give us your seal of approval.” The Guild Master took a written document which stated the intent of making an official bounty against Baroness Sinis, to be brought dead or alive by command of her Royal Highness Princess Alice.

The Princess looked at the document for a moment. Still hesitant… still afraid… still a child… Even the World Traveller had spurned her and ridiculed her after he was summoned. He said she wasn’t special and that he would do things his way. Her methods had been too naive and full of child-like intentions. This was her chance to cast aside her childish folly and grow up. If she could help her people with this one act of cruelty, then so be it.

Taking a pen and inkwell, she took the bounty document, signed it with her own name, took some wax and pressed her signet ring upon it. She stood up and made a grand gesture of command to the people assembled.

“It is official now! Tell the World Traveller, Richard Wolf, to deliver the Baroness Sinis to justice with all expedience!” Everyone bowed their heads and said “Yes, your Highness!” in unison.

The Guild Master looked over at Alana and nodded quickly. The elf receptionist went over towards the window and asked that it be opened immediately. One of the servants did this and allowed the wind to enter for a moment. The sounds of the town square had fallen silent for a moment… it was time… There was a sudden sound of cheering after the guillotine fell…

Alana focused what little magic she had into her hand and shot out a long stream of light that streaked across the kingdom sky just bright enough to be seen by every person in the town square and other high places.

The sudden crack of thunder was heard, and a few seconds later the sounds of screaming and panic were heard from the town square.

“What has happened?” The Princess asked with fright as she looked over the balcony from where Alana had shot out her beam of light.

It was the elf receptionist who answered with a saddned voice.

“The job is done…”

Unaware of all the things that were happening at the time, the Baroness was angered by Grove’s continued stoicism in the face of his own demise. She took pleasure in watching men suffering and belittling them. Even her favorite assassin entertained her some with his wanton desire to be “scolded” and “disciplined”. He served his purpose adequately, but as soon as she heard that he’d killed that pesky bounty hunter, she’d have him slain in order to find a new toy to play with.

But first, she had to see this worthless adventurer dead… He knew too much and no doubt had told many things to many people… the bounty hunter, the interrogators, the Guild Master and that filthy city elf receptionist… She’d deal with them eventually.

Grove had been placed in the guillotine and the drums rolled. She felt satisfied, despite the setbacks. She could rebuild, get more malleable minions, perhaps add some of the Demon Lord’s servants into her service so as to bring the swift annihilation of the Kingdom of Alcainez and that ridiculously naive Princess. But while she was pondering on what would happen next, she caught sight of something that surprised her…

Grove was staring right at her with a smile…

The guillotine fell and Grove’s head was severed from the body, still clinging to the smile he’d given her… this sight made her nervous… Why would he be smiling in the face of his own death?

Could it be that he had known something she didn’t? Every other member of the Black Talon had screamed or begged or yelled insults to the crowd before they were killed. Grove hadn’t… he wasn’t afraid… he hadn’t begged nor hurled insults… he was calm and accepted his fate… like a man who had no unfinished business!

Her eyes caught something in the sky… there was a bright beam of light coming from the royal palace. What in the world could that be? In her peripheral vision she saw the glint of something in the distance…

Like the glint she’d seen on a telescope… Impossible!

Wolf had already set his mind on killing the Baroness regardless of what happened in the end. He readied his long rifle and took aim at the Baroness’ head. From experience, he knew that careful nobles always carried protective magical items to shield them from attacks and reduce the chances of being slain. He knew this, because he had learned his lesson in the first two worlds he had travelled to and his fight against Grove. Since then, he took their idea and incorporated it into his own doctrine. By what his scope could tell him, the Baroness had some high quality protection from normal projectiles and magical attacks. It would take the power of an archmage or the strength of a cyclops’ hammer to break through her defenses without problems.

In his case, he only needed one bullet. One shot, one kill.

He took the small box of bullets and took out one particular looking bullet with a black head and green casing. Just touching it was uncomfortable for the bounty hunter, so he slipped it into the rifle’s chamber and cocked the bolt. He readied his long rifle and waited.

He saw Grove being moved into the guillotine. He could see the look of concern on the bitch’s face even after the blade had fallen and severed Grove’s head.

From the royal palace, he saw a beam of light coming from the balcony facing East. Alana confirmed it. He could officially kill the Baroness.

One deep breath. He held it in. Saw the Baroness look up at the beam of light. Then she turned to look at where he was. He pulled the trigger.

The Baroness saw a sudden flash of light from where she saw the glint. Suddenly there was a loud crack of thunder. In the span of two seconds she saw that her magical defenses from projectiles and magical attacks had activated but had been pierced without resistance. She felt like something had hit her in the forehead, leaving a hot sensation inside of her head that went through her and out of the back of her skull.

How? How could she have been shot like this…? How could that filthy Bounty Hunter have shot her with all of her defenses? HOW!?

Before she could figure out how she’d been killed, her body hit the ground and the light had already left her eyes and her heart stopped beating from the gunshot in her head.

He felt the recoil from the shot. As usual, this special “magic-armor-piercing” bullet passed through the magical defenses like a hot knife through butter. MOGOs engineered this bullet to become stronger the moment it tried to pierce through anything with magic.

He saw the woman’s head jerk back after the bullet went through her head and fell backwards. Scope confirmed the target was dead. He pulled the bolt from his long rifle, collected the casing and sent it to the MOGOs for recycling.

He rushed out of the tower he’d used for refuge and vantage point. At ground level, his trusted horse, Avenger, was already waiting for him with its saddle bags loaded for travel. Putting his rifle away into his bottomless satchel, he mounted on his horse, tossed his cigarette and rode out of the city walls.

“I’m done with this place…” Spurring his horse, Richard rode off into the wilderness while the entire Kingdom erupted into chaos.