John watched silently as Zuri walked over to the tunnel on the other side of the chamber. She returned a short while later with another person, a small-framed woman wearing a black robe; the robe of the Shadows of Death.
The woman had brown hair down to her shoulders, and appeared to be in her early twenties, although her true age was most likely a decade or more older than that. She was quite pretty, but the scars and blood on her face marred that beauty.
John had not seen her face before, but based on her frame and the robe she wore, he could guess who it was.
Shadow Four.
He had seen her bound to one of the torture devices, naked, with only her head covered by that vision and divine-sense blocking bad all the prisoners had worn. Shadow Four had a haunted look in her eyes, obviously still recovering from the brutal torture she had experienced, if she would ever recover at all.
The two walked over to John's location, stopping a few yards away. Shadow Four looked up from her feet towards John, haunted eyes studying his features. John stared back at her, feeling pity for this small woman who had suffered untold brutalities.
"This is Shadow Four," Zuri introduced, gesturing to the woman.
John nodded his head in greeting.
"John."
Shadow Four smiled lightly, her haunted eyes lighting up for a brief second, revealing the beautiful and lively woman she had been before this event.
"Thank you, for saving me from this nightmare," Shadow Four said sincerely, her smile vanishing a moment later, returning the haunted look to her face.
Shadow Four was an experienced cultivator, and although she had not seen John fight, she could feel the aura of the one who had taken action, and had battled the others. There was only Zuri and John here, so despite his shockingly low cultivation, Shadow Four knew he had been the one to save her from her miserable fate. Who knew how long Galvsten would have tortured her for information about the Guild before he finally did away with her.
John nodded wordlessly, unable to form the right words to say.
Zuri placed a comforting hand on Shadow Four's shoulder, her mouth parting several times as if wanting to say something.
"Galvsten said that my identity was revealed by you, as well as other details regarding the Guild," she eventually said to Shadow Four. During their interrogation, Galvsten had revealed that Shadow Four gave him information regarding the Guild, including Zuri's facial description and status as Shadow of Agony. She had also revealed quite a bit more about the Guild, including locations of their hideout, and members of their branch.
"Is what he said true?" Zuri asked, expression pained as if not wanting the answer.
Shadow Four hesitated for a moment and then nodded, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.
"It's true," she said with pain in her voice. "I resisted for as long as I could…but…eventually, it was just too much to bear," she mumbled through trembling lips, the memories no-doubt haunting her.
Zuri closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, face scrunched up in pain. She breathed out and opened her eyes, looking as if she wanted nothing more than to comfort Shadow Four and tell her everything was going to be alright.
She eventually did the first part, embracing Shadow Four in a tight hug. Shadow Four melted into her embrace and started crying, her body trembling. The two embraced for quite some time before Shadow Four somewhat regained control over herself, and pushed out of the embrace.
She wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, and glanced towards John once more, who stood there silently, arms crossed over his chest. Shadow Four studied his face one more time and then nodded her head, the radiant smile returning again for a brief moment.
"I can rest easy knowing someone like you has joined the Guild," she said warmly. "You're strong, and Boss will no doubt be safe with you around."
John nodded, a slight frown appearing on his face. Shadow Four's words seemed to be like words of parting more than anything else. He glanced sideways to Zuri, who wore a grimace of pain on her face.
A dagger appeared in her hand a moment later, trembling slightly in her grip. Shadow Four noticed the dagger and smiled lightly, reaching out towards Zuri.
"I won't allow you to do it," Shadow Four said, grabbing Zuri's hands, and then yanking the dagger free. "Tell the others I'll miss them."
Che!
The dagger, held by Shadow Four, pierced towards her chest, ramming deeply into her heart. John's eyes went wide with surprise as he watched Shadow Four pierce her own heart, and then use her own Qi to explode it from within.
She slumped to the floor, life quickly fading from her body, the sad smile lingering on her face as she died. The chamber fell silent for a long time.
"What the hell just happened?" John finally broke the silence, asking for answers.
Zuri's sad and pained eyes shifted to him and then back to Shadow Four. She bent down and picked up the lifeless woman, eyes filled with grief.
"You would have learned tomorrow during your test, but you can learn this part now," Zuri said, staring at her dead friend's face. "When you join the Guild, there are only a handful of rules, and this is one of them. If you ever reveal classified information regarding the Guild to someone not in it, your life is forfeit. Shadow Four knew the price of her actions, and killed herself so I did not have to do it myself."
She shifted her eyes to John once more, then walked towards the distant tunnel.
"Let's go," she said softly. "Reinforcements should have already arrived."
John nodded his head and followed Zuri. They entered the tunnels where the prisoners had sheltered in, hundreds of eyes locking onto Zuri and John. Some eyes were haunted, some appreciative, some dead inside.
The two made their way to the top of the tunnel and Zuri took out a transmission disk, putting it away a moment later. She tapped her hand on the formation to the side of the tunnel entrance, parting the door leading to the mansion above.
The door parted, revealing three figures standing at the tunnel exit. Three figures dressed in the black robes of the Shadows of Death Guild, two in the Middle World Expansion Realm, and one in the Late World Expansion Realm.
Assassins from the Guild Headquarters!
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