Chapter 115 Chapter 115 The person who named you must be very...
There was an awkward silence.
Luigi almost drew his sword reflexively.
He was genuinely frightened! Elio had perfectly occupied the high ground, and Luigi was sure that if he'd just crouched there, he could have leaped down silently and perfectly assassinated the two people standing huddled together below. Those two people were none other than him and Maria, by the way, if that wasn't scary enough.
But Maria stopped him in his tracks. She slapped Luigi's head and gave him a look of disapproval. Disrupted, Luigi loosened his grip on the hilt, realizing he'd nearly done something irreversible. His face flushed. They weren't here to fight.
Awkward, utterly awkward. Especially since Elio was still crunching his apple, clearly oblivious to his little gesture. Luigi didn't dare look up, but he could vaguely sense the gazes lingering on him. If losing a target while stalking was shameful enough for the young assassin, then turning back to discover they were being stalked was even more humiliating. And this situation was, of course, extremely embarrassing.
Maria, who had more composure, glared at Luigi, only to see him admit his mistake and lower his head in shame. She felt relieved. She raised her hands, revealing her palms to indicate she had no weapons, and then pulled off her mask.
"Greetings from the Sicilian Brotherhood," she introduced herself confidently. "I'm Maria, and this is Luigi. We heard about what you did at Castello Scalera."
"It's a masterpiece, we all said so," Luigi echoed in a deep voice.
The young assassin's head drooped almost to his chest. Elio gave him an amused look, pretending to have forgotten the near-confrontation. He nodded back, "Thank you. Hello to you too." Then, he took the apple core in his mouth and slid down from the roof with ease.
"But," Elio glanced between them, "I don't think you're just here to say hello."
As he spoke, he removed the apple core from his mouth and tossed it into the grass. Maria saw clearly the thick wrist guard tied around his forearm, and her eyes lit up: it was a crude imitation, a replica that Elio had assembled with a leatherworker, a blacksmith, and a repairman after the original one he had brought from the 21st century ran out of power.
Of course, that was only by Assassin standards. From the perspective of its creation, it was no different from a custom-made toy for a noble; it took Elio the better part of six months and nearly put him in debt. The only reason he didn't actually go into debt was because Giotto generously signed the bill for him. But when Elio shook his shoulder and demanded to know where he'd gotten so much money, Giotto simply smiled and said nothing, even suggesting that it wasn't even worth the price of a suit he'd bought Elio.
(It’s over. Elio thought so desperately at that time.)
Even so, this Hidden Blade was still inferior to the one Alvin had given him (which Elio had sadly kept, as its technology was so outdated), and certainly inferior to the ones currently used by the Assassins. But Maria read this into the message she needed: perhaps they were dealing with a feral Assassin, and the Brotherhood could offer some guidance... otherwise, how could they expect him to follow them?
Maria immediately extended the invitation, taking advantage of Elio's words. She had intended to remind Elio of the enormous organization he was fighting and what the Brotherhood could offer him, but she hadn't expected Elio to agree almost as soon as she opened her mouth.
Of course, he'd agreed to go to the fraternity house to "check it out," but they both knew that, like taking a child to a fragrant bakery, it was never really "just checking it out."
They circled the rooftops, returning at a leisurely pace for an assassin, though taking careful detours. Maria frankly explained to Elio the need to avoid being caught by their "natural enemies," and Elio understood. But when he finally saw a bustling hotel, he could hardly conceal his surprise.
Maria finally caught him showing a different expression and smiled. "Surprised?"
"Kind of," Elio admitted.
He also knew that Giotto would sometimes come here to meet with some "companions" in secret. But they never thought that this place might be the base of the Assassins.
Elio's expression didn't change much, but his eyes were filled with wonder. Like many other inns, the "Treeskele Inn" welcomed and sent off guests. A cat with a curly tail crouched at the door, gazing thoughtfully at Elio and his companions as they entered, as if it were the owner. A waiter carrying trays shuttled between the tables and the guests, occasionally stopping to bend over and pour them drinks. By the fireplace, several people were playing instruments. The person in the center was singing "Goodbye, My Friend," while people at nearby tables tapped their feet to the beat.
Perhaps it was the lively singing, the warmth in the hotel, or the hospitality of the apron-clad waiters who chatted with almost everyone, but Elio felt that this place had a very "brotherhood" atmosphere.
But as they crossed the lobby, reached the kitchen, and descended into the basement storage room, Elio was only more amazed. The first level contained a rather ordinary supply of food and wine, but when Luigi moved the boxes blocking it and tapped the right bricks with his Hidden Blade, the stone wall slowly and silently slid open, revealing a hidden passageway.
Elio tried his best to restrain his gaze, but he couldn't hide his surprise. He didn't even notice that Luigi's gaze on him was gradually turning into a kind of subtle sympathy: because he must be a "newbie" who had never entered any stronghold before, so he would show such an expression.
In a way, he was right. And Elio could honestly admit that he had never seen so many assassins in his life. They were scattered in groups of two or three throughout the rooms, doors open, offering warm greetings to Maria and her group.
"Newcomers?" they greeted. "I thought you were busy with that matter."
“Yeah,” Maria said with a smile, “sort of.”
"Wait," the assassins muttered in surprise upon seeing Elio, "He is..."
After realizing who Elio was, the assassins didn't ask any immediate questions, but instead followed him cautiously. Elio hesitated for a moment, ultimately deciding to pretend he didn't see them hiding behind potted plants, crouching on bookshelves, and so on. However, he couldn't help but give a hand to an assassin climbing up the wall as he seemed to be having trouble and almost slipped.
Elio himself remained silent, but the assassin he'd helped was horrified, leaping forward like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. There was a good-natured chuckle from the crowd, and Luigi even laughed out loud. Maria was probably the only one who didn't react, but she also smiled and shook her head. "You really should improve your skills, rookie."
She mercifully omitted the newbie's name, but a grumbling sound echoed from the wall. Everyone heard it, including Elio, who struggled to purse his lips to prevent laughter from escaping.
"They mean no harm," Maria said, turning to Elio. "Just like Luigi. I guess you understand."
Elio nodded. They tacitly ignored Luigi's protests of "What does that mean?" and continued inside. Their mentor, having taken the cue from the unusual commotion, was waiting for them in the innermost room. As soon as Luigi reached the door, he stopped mumbling and obediently opened it for Elio.
"Aren't you coming in?" Elio asked doubtfully, because, apparently, their mentor was the only one in the room.
"The instructor wishes to speak with you alone," Maria, who remained outside, replied softly. Luigi, on the other hand, was completely different, blurting out in confusion, "You're not scared, are you?"
Elio frowned disapprovingly. Maria twitched her lips and smacked Luigi again. But then the laughter of the elders filled the room.
"Come in, Elio," the voice said with understanding. "I will neither attack you suddenly, nor die suddenly."
The door closed. Elio walked in and spotted the Assassin's Mentor standing by a bookshelf, replacing a large tome. His hair was gray, and his back was slightly bent, far from the lithe and agile demeanor of youth. Yet, he still possessed the upright, broad-minded demeanor of someone older. With that same generosity and wisdom, the Mentor extended his scarred and freckled hand, indicating to Elio that he could sit down.
"I am Virgil Guida," he said, "Master of the Sicilian Brotherhood. You must be Elio."
He didn't sit down, and Elio certainly didn't either. He just nodded. "Hello."
Perhaps he saw Elio's consideration, but Virgil smiled and didn't ask him to sit down. In fact, he didn't immediately say what he was supposed to say. Instead, he turned back and looked at the books on the shelf again, his fingers slowly sliding along the spines.
"'Elio,' it's a very good name," Virgil said, reminiscing. "Interestingly, I just happened to come across a book the other day that talked about the origins of names. It said...oh, here it is. 'Elio,' comes from the Greek 'Helios,' which means sun."
He pulled a book from the shelf and flipped to the corresponding page. Elio took the book from his hand obediently, lowered his head, and saw all the beautiful meanings about "light, warmth and hope".
“Whoever named you must have loved you very much,” Virgil said.
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Author's Note: *"Rookie" is a play on a meme from Assassin's Creed 1. At the time, the young and hot-headed Altaïr broke three rules in a row and was punished by his mentor by being demoted back to "Rookie" status.
And in this chapter, Oreo silently estimated what the instructor would say, and thought of n situations. As a result, the instructor said: The person who named you must love you very much.
Oreo:
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