Assassin at Range: The Sniper’s Lethal Power

Finding the assassin mentor Edith requires a bit of finesse.

Because Edith isn't located in the city, but rather in the underground black market outside the city.

This suits the assassin's character well.

It also causes a lot of trouble for players who are used to finding NPCs within the main city, especially since ExoGenesis has no quest guidance or friendly guards directing you where to go.

As a result, many new players, after eagerly leaving the novice village, end up in an awkward situation—wondering where to find their class mentor.

Fortunately, players are quick to discover things, and soon enough, they track down all the class mentors and even uncover some insider information.

For instance, the assassin mentor Edith in Davi City is known to be a mysterious figure, often seen wearing a veil that hides their gender.

However, behind the scenes, Edith is the daughter of the city lord, who, for reasons unknown, became an assassin and took on the grisly work of ending lives.

Her skill in this business was so impressive that ExoGenesis officially recognized her as the assassin class mentor.

NPCs with multiple identities like this are not rare in ExoGenesis.

As Tristan was lost in thought, he walked out through the western gate of Davi City, heading toward the rift outside the city.

The rift is to the west of Davi City, stretching hundreds of meters, its length seemingly endless, dividing the land as if struck by a divine hand.

According to rumors shared by NPCs, this rift was created by a god's casual strike.

The underground caves beneath the rift are numerous and intricate, eventually giving rise to the black market.

The city lord once tried to clean out this area, but the attempt backfired, and the city lost many soldiers in the process.

With refugees needing a place to settle, the lord simply gave up and left the area unchecked.

When Tristan reached the entrance of the rift, two NPCs with the titles "Brawler A" and "Brawler B" emerged from a corner, blocking his path. They spoke ominously, "Little brother, you're lost, aren't you?"

If these were random NPCs from the local area, they'd likely drag Tristan into a corner and dispose of him.

But because he was a player, he didn't have to worry about that, as long as he didn't provoke them.

ExoGenesis offers players protection in these situations.

Tristan didn't waste words and directly said, "I'm looking for Edith."

The two NPCs paused for a moment, but didn't move to block his path. They asked, "Who are you, and what do you want with Edith?"

Tristan showed them Horreo's letter. "Horreo sent me."

The name Horreo was enough to grant Tristan passage. The two NPCs no longer impeded him, stepping aside to return to their posts.

Tristan stowed the letter and began heading underground.

The rift is divided into two parts.

The upper part is a slum, where NPCs who couldn't make a living in Davi City tend to wander.

Below that lies the true black market.

Tristan's priority was to complete his class advancement quest, so he didn't have time to explore the slum for side quests.

He knew that the slum also held some opportunities.

"I'll come back after completing the class advancement and getting a store," he thought.

He turned a corner and activated Shadow Stealth.

The slums weren't as orderly as Davi City, and with his current level, wandering around here could easily cause trouble.

To avoid drawing attention, Tristan decided to Stealth all the way to Edith.

Soon after, a few burly NPCs stood at the end of an alley, looking confused.

"Where did the outsider go? He just vanished."

They'd been planning to rough up the "country bumpkin," but it seemed they wouldn't get the chance.

Tristan watched as the NPCs left, not making a move.

It wasn't that he was particularly merciful; it was just that now wasn't the time to clean out the black market.

Simply put, the game hadn't reached that version yet.

Putting the small incident behind him, Tristan quickly moved through the slums and arrived at the entrance to the real black market.

The wrought-iron gates were covered in barbed wire, and muscular NPCs with hunting dogs patrolled the area.

Tristan estimated that with his Bronze Grade LV4 Shadow Stealth, he wouldn't be detected as long as he stayed clear of the hunting dogs. He slowed down and moved carefully.

He recalled that if an assassin player reached Edith without being discovered, they could gain additional rewards.

Of course, even if he walked in directly, he'd still be fine.

Before ExoGenesis descended, players were protected.

Unless they were NPCs from opposing factions, most NPCs would only make things difficult for players instead of attacking them outright.

Other players, by now, might have gotten tired of all the sneaking around and just walked in.

"Why bother with all these steps for a game? It's exhausting," they'd think.

But Tristan wasn't like that. He understood ExoGenesis' true nature. No matter how hard or tedious it got, he would push himself to perfection.

Using Shadow Stealth, he avoided several patrols and pressed on.

At this pace, he would reach Edith in just a few more minutes.

Looking around, today seemed like a relatively peaceful day in the black market. There were fewer street brawls, and not many bodies lying in the corners.

Thanks to this, Tristan was able to easily reach Edith's location—the Rose & Poison Tavern.

This tavern was Edith's territory and one of the safer spots in the black market.

The tavern's wooden door creaked as it opened, but the inside was eerily quiet.

The NPCs inside immediately tensed. It was clear that someone had activated Stealth.

Anyone bold enough to Stealth in here was either confident or looking for trouble.

The NPCs all placed a hand on their weapons, ready for action.

Soon, Tristan's figure emerged from the shadows.

When the NPCs saw him and recognized he was an outsider, they cursed under their breath and lowered their guard, returning to their drinking.

Tristan tightened the cloak around him and approached the bar, placing a silver coin down, and said in a low voice, "I'm here to see Edith."

The tavern immediately fell silent.

Many NPCs looked at Tristan as though he were a corpse.

"How dare he speak Edith's name out loud? This outsider must have a death wish."

But instead of the anticipated bloodshed, an NPC dressed in black walked down from the second floor and approached Tristan.

"Follow me," the NPC said.

The tavern's patrons were shocked.

Who was this guy? How did he manage to meet Edith?

Tristan couldn't help but smile inwardly, his confidence growing.

This was the self-assurance that came with being a player!

No matter how strong Edith was, at worst, he'd respawn at the nearest point.

As long as the player didn't act recklessly, Edith wouldn't strike. Tristan was confident he wouldn't make such a mistake.

He followed the black-clad NPC upstairs and stopped in front of a wooden door.

The NPC gestured for him to enter before vanishing into thin air.

Tristan was calm.

As the assassin mentor, Edith had a group of high-level assassins under her command. It was perfectly normal for them to Stealth.

He knocked on the door, and a voice from within, gender-indeterminate, spoke, "Come in."

Tristan pushed the door open, and the room plunged into near darkness.

The lavishly decorated room was dimly lit by a single oil lamp hanging on the wall, casting limited light.

"Is it you who wanted to meet me?"

The voice came from behind a desk. A figure, cloaked in shadow, lounged in a chair with their feet propped up on the desk, their sharp eyes fixed on Tristan.

Tristan didn't respond right away. He glanced at the shadows cast by the oil lamp and said, "Edith, is this how you welcome guests?"