Mystery: Gray Walker

Chapter 45 The Assassin on the Verge of Losing Control

"A magic potion?!"

Green's gaze swept quickly across the room.

His gaze fell on the empty potion bottle on the floor, then shifted to Emily's desk.

A notebook lay open on the desk, filled with scattered sentences and symbols written in cursive script, along with some hastily written words like "power" and "change."

He understood instantly.

Emily secretly took the potion! No wonder she's been acting strangely these past few days! He connected Emily's words and actions over the past few days, and now it all made sense!

And judging from these symptoms, it seems like... a sign of things getting out of control! At this point, he no longer cared where Emily got her potion from.

"Emily...!" Green rushed forward, trying to hold down her violently convulsing body.

The moment Green touched her, she abruptly raised her head, her unfocused pupils suddenly sharpening as she stared intently at Green. Gone was the arrogance or cunning of the past; only pure, beast-like pain and a chilling killing intent remained in her eyes!

Aunt Sylvia was banging loudly on the door. But Green was too preoccupied to reply, much less open the door.

"Ugh—!"

Emily let out a low growl that sounded inhuman, and her arm, which was being held down by Green, suddenly broke free with astonishing strength, throwing Green half a step away.

Immediately afterwards, her body sprang up with an unnatural flexibility and speed, her five fingers forming claws, whistling sharply as she grabbed straight for Green's throat.

Swift, precise, and ruthless, striking at the vital points!

Green didn't have time to think; almost instinctively, he leaned back and dodged the fatal blow.

Emily instilled a strong sense of crisis in him, and he even had the thought of running away, but reason told him he couldn't!

scoff!

Emily's fingertips grazed Green's neck, leaving several stinging marks and even tearing a corner of his collar. Had he not reacted quickly, that blow would likely have ripped his throat apart!

"Emily! Wake up! It's me! Green!" Green growled, trying to bring her back to her senses.

But Emily's eyes were filled with murderous intent. After missing her first attack, she lowered her body like a cheetah poised to pounce, making a threatening growl in her throat, her gaze fixed on Green, searching for the next opportunity to strike.

Her body seemed to have become more flexible, with an unusual range of motion in her joints, like that of an assassin.

"Assassin's way!" Green instantly realized.

Emily ingested the "Assassin's Potion" she had hidden away! And she was clearly unprepared, sliding towards the brink of losing control!

Aunt Sylvia's terrified banging and cries for help came again from outside the door: "Emily! Green! What's wrong? Open the door! Please open the door!"

We absolutely cannot let her in!

Green's heart tightened. Extraordinary beings on the verge of losing control are extremely dangerous; Auntie's presence would only harm her, and might even provoke Emily into completely losing control.

"Auntie! Don't come in! Emily... Emily is sick, it's dangerous! Stay away!"

Green kept his eyes fixed on Emily as he shouted toward the door, trying to keep his voice calm, but the tension in his voice was impossible to hide.

"Sick? What's wrong? Let me in to see her!" Sylvia's voice was trembling with tears and confusion.

"It's...it's an emergency! It's contagious! Trust me, Auntie! Go see a doctor! Hurry!"

In a moment of quick thinking, Green fabricated a reason. He needed to buy time and find a way to keep Emily calm.

The knocking outside the door paused for a moment, followed by the sound of Sylvia running downstairs in a panic and calling for the maid.

Having temporarily distracted his aunt, Green turned all his attention back to Emily.

The girl remained in an attacking stance, breathing heavily and trembling, but her frenzied killing intent seemed to have lessened slightly due to the release of her previous attack, replaced by deeper pain and confusion.

"Emily, look at me!" Green softened his voice.

He recalled his own experience teetering on the edge of losing control, and Lillian had said that Sequence 9 was usually not too drastic. He needed to focus, guide his spirit, and feel the change.

Yes, guidance!

"Stay calm... Think about who you are... You are Emily Hayes... Think about your room, your dolls, and that hateful Grimm you..."

He slowly uttered words closely related to Emily's daily life, while carefully releasing his own faint spirituality, trying to wrap around her and soothe her raging spirit.

"Focus, Emily, believe in yourself, you can do it... Remember when you used to sneak candy and stuff the wrappers under my pillow?... And the portrait you insisted on drawing of me, making me look like a matchstick..."

Emily's body jerked violently, and the gurgling sound in her throat turned into a sob. She curled up even tighter, her aggressive stance softening somewhat, but her face still showed signs of pain.

"Yes...that's it, think about who you are..."

"who I am......"

"You are Emily Hayes..." Green didn't dare to relax and continued to speak in a steady tone, while being even more careful to control his pitiful spirituality.

"Grin...save me..."

"It's me! Emily, look at me!"

Green's heart pounded; he saw hope. But how to guide her, how to make Emily feel the change, became a thorny issue.

"Emily...look at me. I am not your 'prey'."

He looked directly into Emily's eyes, trying to remain calm, and after confirming that Emily did not have a strong desire to attack, he continued:

"I am your 'target.' Your 'mission.' Listen carefully... Your mission is: 'Observe' me, 'lock on' me, but 'don't kill' me."

Green came up with this method on the spur of the moment, just like when he took the "Apprentice" potion and let himself drift through the air. Every method must have its own characteristics.

Emily's breathing gradually slowed down, her eyes fixed on Green, but the murderous intent in her eyes was no longer so obvious. Green knew that he had found the right method!

"Very good... Now, use your senses. Listen to my breathing, calculate my distance, find my weakness... Like an assassin... blend into the darkness behind you. You must 'hide' yourself."

Emily understood, and she bowed and slowly retreated to the corner behind her.

"Yes... very good... now control your heartbeat, slow your breathing... you are an 'infiltrator,' and must not be discovered until the mission is complete."

"Yes, yes, remember this feeling... Calmness is paramount. Patience is your blade. Emotions are your enemy... Abandon 'anger,' abandon 'fear.' Right now, all you need is 'focus.'"

Green continued in an almost hypnotic voice, "I am your target, but the time is not right. Wait... wait for that perfect, decisive moment."

At this moment, Emily had gradually calmed down, her breathing became very light, and her gaze towards Green became focused.

Greene could slowly raise his hands, making a gesture of disarming, and say in a deep voice:

"Mission... changed. New instructions: 'Unlock,' 'Return to the Shadows,' 'Remain Silent'... Then slowly recall who you are. Recall 'Emily Hayes' room, the scent, and the sunlight. Reclaim 'The Assassin' from your body... It is a tool, not you."

Suddenly, Emily let out a long sigh, her tense body abruptly collapsing to the ground, motionless. Only the faint rise and fall of her chest proved she was still alive.

It worked!

"Damn it... I almost died at her hands..." Green finally breathed a sigh of relief and slumped to the ground. Looking at the unconscious Emily, he was already drenched in cold sweat. His heart was still pounding.

This is the difference between combat and non-combat professions. The most important difference is that the 'apprentice' cannot use their best skill, escaping.