Blood Assimilation

Despite recognizing the owner of the voice, a blonde-haired girl about her age, whose visage reflected in her eyes, Liena still chose to redirect her attention back to the approaching Brawler Randy. However, her act of ignoring the blonde-haired girl infuriated the latter, causing her face to darken, her body bubbling with power, which she seamlessly repressed as she struggled to maintain her composure.

"Look at her ignoring us like she's above us, as always."

A black-haired girl beside the blonde-haired girl chimed in with an annoyed expression. She appeared particularly irritated, though most of her annoyance seemed directed at something else rather than Liena.

The blonde-haired girl, aware of the reason for Liena's behavior and glare, felt as though her facade had been seen through. However, despite her anger, she maintained her composure. She calmly scrutinized Liena's body and confirmed that she truly was unscathed, becoming inwardly surprised and then puzzled soon after

'How did she manage to survive those losers I sent after her? Moreover, she returned unscathed as usual. Though they were losers, those guys were still strong mercenaries notorious for using underhanded means to defeat every single one of their opponents.' The blonde-haired girl pondered as she watched Liena redirect her attention behind her, toward someone slowly approaching their direction.

Although they shared the same line of work, the blonde-haired girl had never harbored a liking for Liena. Despite being Liena's senior in terms of experience in their profession, Liena was always held in high regard for her efficiency in tackling and completing high-ranking missions. This eventually led to Liena earning the title of the Impeccable Assassin in Imperial City.

The blonde-haired girl had repeatedly attempted to eliminate Liena through notorious criminals. On this particular day, she had hired a nefarious group to humiliate her, yet Liena, as always, emerged from the encounter unscathed, defying what should have been a deadly situation.

While contemplating this, the blonde-haired girl noticed Liena gazing behind her. Following her line of sight, she observed a young man around their age range approaching with a calm demeanor and an unhurried gait, as if he had decided to take his time. Upon seeing this young man and Liena's unharmed appearance, the pieces of the puzzle connected in her mind.

'Is this person the one who helped her from her predicament?' She thought to herself, feeling it to be the case.

With that in mind, she displayed a devilish smile, raising her voice and suddenly speaking: "Who's that guy, Liena?!"

"..." Liena didn't respond to her, as she truly didn't know the identity of Brawler Randy. She recalled Sylvana learning of his name and approaching Randy, but she was never interested in Randy, much less memorizing his name. 

At the time, she had already made up her mind to not associate with him due to Randy's bizarre display of power through displaying a derivative technique of the Blood Authority skill. However, her silence in response to the provocative question prompted the blonde-haired girl's smile to grow even wider as she felt like she had hit the nail on the head.

"Is he your lover?! Didn't our best assassin claim not to have a lover and that she wasn't interested in romance?! Were you lying to everyone all this time about your romantic life? Are you finally showing your true colors, you dirty whore!"

The blonde-haired girl purposely raised her voice while berating Liena to attract the attention of those entering and exiting the building behind her and across the street. As expected, those who heard her voice stopped in their tracks, whispering among themselves while pointing in their direction as if they were a spectacle.

Liena, noticing the change in the atmosphere due to the blonde-haired girl's orchestration and choice of words, had her face turn unsightly as she finally focused on the perpetrator. The intensity in her eyes grew as she faced the blonde-haired girl who locked gazes with her, a look of derision on her face.

"Niana, you..."

Before Liena could complete her words, Brawler Randy's surprised voice rang out clearly behind her.

"Eh? Now who do you have here? Two little mice? What are you two doing here?"

Hearing Brawler Randy's words, which they felt were directed at them, the blonde and black-haired girls both displayed an unsightly expression.

"Who are you calling a mouse?" They both shouted, giving a deadly glare at the young man, whose appearance became clearer in their view as he approached their direction. Simultaneously, the closer they observed the impolite young man, the more his face elicited a familiar image in their minds.

Brawler Randy smiled as he walked and stood not far from the two girls, whose eyes widened in disbelief when they saw his visage, briefly glimpsed the night before.

"Do you still not recognize me, two little mice?" Brawler Randy playfully asked as the two girls stepped back in shock.

Meanwhile, the surrounding people, including Liena, were shocked by his words. The two assassin girls shuddered as they recognized his annoying yet familiar tone of voice, pointing at him.

"It's you!" They exclaimed in frightful tones as if encountering their nemesis.

"Yeah, yeah, it's me. How many times did I hear this today?" Brawler Randy remarked, experiencing a sense of déjà vu. He turned to lock eyes with Liena, who observed the unfolding situation with bewilderment, pondering the connection between Brawler Randy and her coworkers.

He shifted his gaze back and forth between Liena and the two assassin girls, asking quizzically: "What is it with you people? Do you all react with 'It's you!' when you see someone you've met before?"

Liena was stunned by his words, but she regained focus as she discreetly approached the Assassin Guild's building. She mulled over a solution to rid herself of both pests—the jealous coworkers eager to harm her and the persistent young man who wouldn't cease his pursuit.

While she didn't understand the relationship between Brawler Randy and her coworkers, their confrontation indicated they weren't on good terms. She also discerned that Brawler Randy was confronting them based on what they had said about her and him, but she couldn't care less about such trivial matters. 

At present, her sole concern was her mission. Therefore, she intended to use her Guild's rules to rid herself of Brawler Randy. As for the two coworkers, she doubted they would dare follow her and create a scene in their Guild's building.

With her decision made, she surreptitiously approached the Assassin Guild's entrance, which was only three meters away. She was well aware that the Assassin Guild did not permit entry to those who didn't belong to their organization. Trespassers without proper identification would either be turned away or apprehended, depending on their actions when facing the Gatekeepers.

Brawler Randy was unaware of Liena's scheme beneath her guise of feigned engagement in the ongoing situation. Although he noticed her standing close to the building not far from them, he didn't think much of it, assuming she was currently looking in his direction.

He hoped that his actions in suppressing the two girls he encountered once before after his trip to the casino in Entertainment Street would increase his favorability with Liena and facilitate communication between them.

After expressing his thoughts, Brawler Randy didn't wait for a response from either side. Instead, he turned his attention back to the two frightened blonde and black-haired assassin girls he had defeated before and coldly stated: "You two didn't get beaten up enough last time that you decided to cause trouble for me again, is that it? Do you want to go at it again and see whether or not you'll come out alive this time? I'll remind you that this time, I'll break a few of your bones to etch my unforgettable marks on you so you won't dare appear in front of me again. In the event you manage to survive my thrashing today, then only endless torment would await you."

As he coldly addressed the two assassin girls he initially encountered at the casino as workers of the establishment, Brawler Randy suddenly sensed the presence of the person he was defending approaching the gate of the assassin building. 

While he was distracted, Liena had already reached the Assassin Guild's entrance. After swiftly undergoing an identification check from the Gakekeepers that seemed to manifest out of thin air to confirm her identity, she proceeded to the gate of the Assassin Guild's establishment.

"Huh?"

Turning around in disbelief, Brawler Randy fully witnessed the event unfolding by utilizing his 360-degree periphery vision granted by the Transfigured State. As if mocking him, Liena turned her head around to gaze at him once before entering the Assassin Guild's edifice. Brawler Randy could have sworn he saw a devilish smirk on the corner of her lips as she took a step into the gateway.

"What is she…" Brawler Randy was at a loss for words as he observed her figure entering the gateway, the gate shutting tightly behind her. Simultaneously, the two obscured Gatekeepers, shrouded in mysterious power, began blending into their surroundings as if they were immaterial entities.

Abruptly snapping out of his reverie after witnessing this scene, Brawler Randy ignored the two frightened assassin girls and approached the Assassin Guild, his hurried voice echoing outward.

"Liena, wait for me!"

Just a meter away from the Assassin Guild's edifice, Brawler Randy watched as the two Gatekeepers, who were turning illusory, suddenly became real, gaining physical form. One of the shadowy Gatekeepers then spoke in an apathetic and chilly voice toward him.

"What business do you have in our Assassin Guild? If nothing important, I'd advise you to turn around and head back where you came from, vagrant."

The tone was detached and derisive, with the source not deeming Brawler Randy worthy of their attention.