With a leap to the backside of my opponent, I dodge the blow that would otherwise have cut me in two. I immediately take advantage of the fact that his movements are restricted by this position, while I have complete freedom of movement, and ram my burning claws deep into his side. His blood evaporates with a hiss as his insides are torn apart by my attack. In the next moment, I jump back and watch as a fireball hits the spot where I was just standing and mercilessly consumes the man. I mentally block out his screams and instead focus my attention on the person who just tried to eliminate me with their fire magic, without regard for their comrade.

The flames block my view, but I don't have to rely on my eyes to spot him. The trajectory of the fireball, which I could see out of the corner of my eye, leaves only one possible position at the end of the corridor. From there, I can also hear the rustling of clothing. And, of course, I can feel the magical energy the mage is gathering for his next spell. Why on earth does he think fire magic could be effective against me when my entire body is engulfed in flames? But I suppose fear of death makes living beings do very stupid things, no matter how excellent they may be otherwise.

For a moment, I consider wading through the fire to terrify him even more. However, I quickly dismiss the idea. I have been ordered to kill anyone who sees me without delay. The adults have emphasized again and again that there are to be no survivors here. And I don't question their orders. After all, I cannot shirk my duty to kill all my targets and destroy everything that is no longer meant to be. All my thoughts are focused on getting closer to my goal and fulfilling my mission. That is all my life is. I know nothing else.  

So I decide to put the magician out of his misery by pulling a throwing knife from one of the countless pockets on my hip for hidden weapons and throwing it through the flames. The dull thud of a fallen human body and the dissipation of the magical concentration at the other end of the corridor tell me that I have hit my target. Of course, what else? I can't even count how many times I've killed someone this way.

I walk through the remaining flames, most of which are slowly but surely dying as they find no fuel on the stone floor. Even the ornate walls, with their heavy, richly decorated curtains, offer only limited sustenance. But it's enough for the fire to spread. As if paving the way for me and announcing my arrival, it spreads down the hallway, setting everything within reach on fire. I hurry to follow the fiery trail because my target is on the run, and even if there is no escape, I don't want to prolong it unnecessarily. I'd rather get it over with quickly so that I can be reunited with my sister as soon as possible. And, of course, so that the adults don't punish either of us because I was too slow.

I turn left and rush after the footsteps I can hear in the distance. I estimate that there are eight people. And I assume that my final target is among them. Who else would have such an escort when the entire palace is in turmoil and most of the people here have already fallen victim to my claws? Of course, it could be another member of the royal family. However, I know that all those who are still alive should be elsewhere. Which is lucky for them, as it means they will survive this day. Because my targets are only the members of the royal family who are in the palace. Which should make the king my last remaining target, as I have already eliminated all the others.

Soon after, I catch up with them and, as expected, there are eight of them. The king, someone else who looks important, and six heavily armed guards. Four of them are clad in magnificent armor, which identifies them as royal guards, and two others are wearing only high-quality leather jerkins. These two probably pose the greater danger. Unlike the others, they are not held back by the weight of their armor.

But it is not only I who caught them. They are also aware of my presence, as the shout of one of the guards makes clear.

"Stop! Don't take another step!"

The man who screamed at me and two other guards in metal armor remain behind and block the passage, while the others flee at an increased pace.

I don't even flinch and run straight towards them. They immediately point their swords at me. When only a few meters separate us, one of them lunges at me with remarkable speed despite his armor. I assume that the royal guard is not just there for show and that he has earned his position. I duck under his blow and am already about to rip his guts out of his human shell when the other two strike me from the side with their swords. I drop to the ground in a flash and roll past the feet of the guard who attacked me first. While still in motion, I concentrate my fire magic around my claws and sever his Achilles tendon. By the time I'm back on my feet, he's already fallen to the ground. The other two turn back to me, but their movements have become indecisive. The smell of fear fills my nostrils.

Before they can recover, I jump up to the ceiling and use it to pounce on one of them from above. Surprised by my unusual angle of attack, he is too slow to raise his sword and falls to his knees, gasping for breath as he tries to hold his destroyed throat together. In the meantime, I have thrown myself onto the man who was trying to hoist himself up on his still-intact leg. He crashes to the ground with a clatter, and my fire claws in one of his unprotected armpits put an end to any further attempts to fight for his life.

The sword of the last remaining man comes down on me from above, but I deflect it slightly with my sturdy claws so that it hits nothing but his fallen comrade. I immediately take advantage of this position and let him share the same fate as the man I took out first.

While he collapses in disbelief, I'm already rushing after the other five. Since everything happened in a matter of seconds, they haven't gotten very far and have basically just been watching my fight. The king and the other person, who is not a fighter, stare at me with sheer fear in their eyes.

"A child? No! Who are you? What do you want from me?"

The king's shrill voice hurts my ears. Another reason to get this over with quickly.

"Whoever sent you, whatever they're paying you, I'll pay you more!"

He'll pay me more? Well, I suppose anything is better than nothing. But even if he gave me his entire kingdom, it wouldn't save him. My mission is to kill him. And I will fulfill my mission.

"Don't you know who I am? I am King Estolf the Fourth! Ruler of Eldien! I was crowned in the name of the goddess Liahjia! I am her representative on Earth!"

"And? Does that make you a better being? Just like all other life, yours will also come to an end," I reply emotionlessly.

"How dare you! Guards! Kill her!" he seems to have mustered enough courage to give orders to his subordinates.

But before they can obey his command, the remaining guard, clad in metal armor, falls backward with a knife in his eye. Unfortunately, the other two have deflected the blades aimed at them with magical shields. But I can already sense their uncertainty, as they were only able to react at the very last moment. They have probably already seen their lives flash before their eyes. Perhaps I should have been a little quicker? So that they couldn't offer any pointless resistance. However, it doesn't really matter. Their faces are contorted with dismay, and they turn their eyes away from me in panic. They look at the man in fine robes who is slumping lifelessly to the ground and at the king who is falling to the floor with cries of pain. Of course, I could have killed him instantly, but he serves me much better as a distraction for my remaining opponents. Because that's exactly why they don't pay attention to me for a brief moment. In a split second, I close the distance between us and ram my claws into the chest of one of them, right where his heart is. With a jerk, I pull my hand out again and grab the last person standing between me and the king. The two of them are probably part of a shadow unit, a hidden special unit of the royal guard, which is why they are capable of magic. But perhaps it would be more accurate to say that they were part of this special unit, because at that moment, my fire magic pierces his magical shield and consumes his right arm. Pain contorts his face into a grimace, but he still swings the magically enhanced sword in his other hand at me. But it is nothing more than a last desperate attempt. Weak, clumsy. Once again, I concentrate the fire magic around my claws even more intensely than it already is and let the flames cut through both the metal of the sword and his body with ease. Piece by piece, the blazing, burning parts of the man fall to the ground. I turn my gaze away and focus on the last remaining person.

"No! No! This can't be! No one can just take out my elite guard like that! No one is strong enough to fight them! They brought down entire kingdoms on my orders!" the king still refuses to accept reality.

"Well, then, it is only fitting that your own kingdom be brought down," I reply.

"No! You're just a child! And a miserable cat-creature at that! A lowly creature! An animal!"

Panicked, the man who just a short time ago sat enthroned above everyone else in his kingdom tries to crawl away from me like an insect. No, insects have their uses and play a crucial role in the grand scheme of things. His role, on the other hand, is over. With a quick movement, I cleanly sever his head from his torso.

I tilt my head back and stare motionless at the ceiling for a few moments, but soon pull myself together. It's time to go back and deliver the head as proof of a job well done. Then maybe I'll be allowed to wash. But probably not until the next job comes along. And hopefully I'll be able to spend some time with my sister again. I really hope so.