System in Assassin's Creed

Chapter 6: Chapter 6: A Sack of Wheat’s Three Reales!

Alaric cupped his face with his hand and thought, ’Well I could just jump right out the window... nah, that’s too old fashioned, let’s use chakra instead.’

With a slight puff, he activated Henge.

Instantly, his body shrank noticeably. His face became uglier, fatter, and his features were rougher; even his hair turned a little brownish. He did this, hoping the change would fool the Tavern Keeper. ’I hope so...’

He opened the door to his rented room and headed downstairs.

There were more people now.

’Now that I think about it, this tavern ain’t like Malroy’s Tavern with all those goons. This one has quiet people in it.’ he observed silently, ’Good, they don’t even bother looking at me,’

Alaric walked toward the Tavern Keeper until the man noticed him.

”Anything ya need, young lad?” the Tavern Keeper asked while handing a mug of booze to a customer.

Alaric replied, ”I found some loose change in my pocket. Got anythin’ worth eatin’?”

The Tavern Keeper grinned and said, ”Aye, I’ve got mutton, pottage, gruel, fish, eggs. Can’t serve ya booze though, you’re still fresh from ya mother’s womb.”

Alaric shook his head and smiled. ”I’ll get a mutton and an egg, and since I can’t drink booze yet, a fine water’s enough.”

”Mutton and egg it is... that’ll be a real,” said the Tavern Keeper.

”A real?” Alaric widened his eyes. ”A sack of wheat’s three reales!”

The Tavern Keeper just laughed. ”What... can’t afford? I told you, nothing’s cheap in this tavern!”

”I’ll take it, damn...” Alaric said, pretending to fumble in his pocket. He withdrew one real from the System.

[-1 Real]

[Current Balance: 504 R]

”I’ll be back, lad,” the Tavern Keeper grinned. ”I’ll be back before you know it.”

’I’m never going back to this tavern again... I don’t care if I’m cheap,’

---

An hour later, Alaric wandered the village square with his Henge deactivated.

He was looking for someone to help with anything... he felt so poor now. Although 500 reales is a lot for his age, even for his family.

With no one to help, Alaric walked home with a happy mood after buying some meat from a butcher and spices from Nathaniel’s stall.

[-3 R]

[Current Balance: 501 R]

After arriving at the house with the things he bought, Alaric saw his father had an enraged look, and his mother’s eyes were swollen.

He immediately went to their side and asked, ”Hey guys, anything happened?”

Leonard’s face shifted from fuming to mixed emotions as he fell silent for a while.

Alaric dropped the things he had bought on a nearby table and asked again, ”What happened? I didn’t return that late...”

”It’s not you...” Leonard grumbled. ”The sacks o’ wheat and barley in the shed... gone... stolen...”

”D-Damn!” Alaric exclaimed, widening his eyes. ’Last I counted, there were twenty-four sacks of both wheat and barley... that would’ve been like 240 reales in the market! That’s four years’ worth of food for the Kenway household, considering we eat peasant food here...’

”We kept ’em for days, so when yer uncle Bernard returned, he’d have enough to set sail again,” Leonard said, looking down and clenching his fist. ”We wanted to get a teacher for you and Edward...”

”And now? ’Til Bernard and Linette come back, what in the devil’s name are we gonna eat!?”

’Damn it... I didn’t want to make my money decrease more... fuck,’ Alaric thought. ’And a teacher? I don’t need that, I’m smarter than most of them in this era.’

He sighed and said, ”The things I bought were food and spices, so let’s start with that. And here...”

He reached for his pocket and withdrew 6 reales, handing them to his father. ”A merchant gave me these for helping him store his cargo today.”

[-6 R]

[Current Balance: 495 R]

”...”

”...”

”This’ll help, aye... but no. Keep it for yerself, lad,” Leonard gritted his teeth. ”Use it for meals instead... you’ve got to eat.”

”Ain’t no trouble, just take it. I’ll figure the rest meself,” Alaric replied. ’Just take it man, you wanna die? With or without you, I’m gonna live...’

Leonard watched the reales in his hand and gripped them tightly. ”I promise...”

”Hm?” Alaric observed as his father looked down at the ground, clutching the few reales.

”I promise, we, Kenways, will get rich, no matter what,” Leonard said.

Alaric smiled at his dad, nodded, and then hugged his mom. ’Until when am I going to pretend I’m their kid though? Well, I am, but I’m also a man from the modern age.’

---Night Time---

After dinner with his family, including Edward, Alaric stepped outside to get some fresh air.

He left the house without delay and headed toward the shed. ’The shed’s so far from the house, of course they won’t notice the goods being stolen,’ he thought.

He gathered a little chakra in his eyes and activated his eagle vision.

Through the enhanced sight, he scanned the shed that once held sacks of wheat and barley.

Amongst the shadows, he noticed something small glowing in a gold hue.

Curious, he walked toward the spot and squatted down.

As he deactivated his eagle vision, he picked up the object.

’Metal?’ he mused. He studied it for a moment, then bit it to test its hardness. ”This is definitely metal.”

Alaric looked around until he noticed several footprints few meters away from the shed.

Not just a few... many.

’That’s weird, even if the whole Kenway household walked this path, this is too many,’ he thought.

He turned on his eagle vision again to mark the footprints, which now appeared in a gold hue. Deciding to follow them, he quickened his pace.

Minutes passed until he finally entered a forest, where he saw a bonfire and a group of men eating.

’So these are the people who stole our wares...’ Alaric clenched his jaw. His eagle vision marked all the men in red.

After a moment, he turned off the eagle vision, but the markings remained. ’Bandits, huh...’

He scanned the group and calculated in his head, ’Okay, how do I do this... There are 14 grown men and I’m still in a five-year-old body.’ He added, ’But I’ve received Hashirama’s physique and Madara’s taijutsu. Still... I’m limited by my body.’

One of the bandits finished his drink and stood up. He walked away from the group and shouted, ”I’m off for a piss... follow me, and I’ll gut ye!”

The others laughed and continued their meal.

Alaric didn’t waste time.

He moved closer, keeping a safe distance from the departing bandit. ’Good, he’s pretty far from the others.’

In the dark, with bushes providing cover, Alaric opened his System interface.

He purchased [Kunai x10 – 20 R] and a [Kunai Pouch – 10 R].

[-30 R]

[Current Balance: 465 R]

He inspected the items briefly. ’Okay... ten kunais and a pouch. I can do this... ten years of military experience and Madara’s taijutsu,’ he reasoned, ’although I haven’t trained with this small body yet... let’s try this.’

As the bandit went off to relieve himself, Alaric dropped all his kunais and the pouch on the ground for the moment.

Then he picked up one kunai and silently approached the bandit while crouching.

The bandit glanced upward at the moon.

’Chance!’

Alaric dashed forward and stabbed the bandit’s temples.

The bandit didn’t even have time to react as he collapsed, dead.

Without pause, Alaric dragged the body into the bushes. He searched the man’s belongings. Sword, clothes, even his briefs, and sold everything on the spot. A few reales found in the pockets were also added to his System.

[+85 R]

[Current Balance: 550 R]

’Tch, cheap fuck...’ Alaric muttered under his breath.

He left a single real coin right where he had killed the bandit, then went back to his kunais and pouch. Carefully, he arranged the kunais in the pouch and strapped it on.

[-1 R]

[Current Balance: 549 R]

Next, he parkoured, climbing up to a tree branch just above the spot where the coin lay.

’Soon, I won’t be parkouring shit, I’ll make chakra my best friend if I have to.’

A few minutes later, two bandits appeared, searching for the one who had been taking a piss.

”Where’s that sod Ulard? Said he was takin’ a piss... been long enough to drain the whole damn ocean!” one bandit complained.

”Hey... lucky coin mate,” the other remarked, stepping forward while his companion’s attention drifted elsewhere.

Alaric dropped down silently.

He moved swiftly and stabbed the neck of the bandit who had stepped forward, killing him instantly.

In mid-air, he turned around, using the kunai lodged in the victim’s neck as a pivot. In less than a second, he fired another kunai toward the other bandit’s neck, ending his life as well.

’Good, three down. But this body wants to throw up already. Damn... I may have been in the military, but this is a new body. Is that how physics work? Is it even physics? No matter...’

Without wasting time, Alaric retrieved his scattered kunais and searched the fallen bandits for valuables, selling everything they had, leaving them naked like the first one.

[Current Balance: 714 R]

’Good, it’s nice earning money by killing these kinds of people,’ he mused, then shook his head. ’It’s never nice to kill people, Alaric.’

He calculated, ’Okay, there are eleven bandits left,’ as he approached the nearest bushes toward the group, ’They’re all gathered around the bonfire, perfect.’

*Enhale* *Exhale*

Alaric dashed toward them.

The moment one bandit noticed him, Alaric pushed chakra to both of his eyes.

’Kronos!’ he commanded internally.

Everything around him slowed and the surroundings turned black and white.

Despite the unfamiliar yet exciting scene, Alaric didn’t hesitate and immediately tossed all his kunais upward.

”Vulcan!” The kunais froze mid-air for a brief second before all of them swiftly flew toward the throats of ten bandits, leaving only one behind... the obvious leader.

Alaric identified the leader easily.

He was the one in a little bit fancier clothes, sitting in the most comfortable seat. ’Okay, still 7 seconds left,’ Alaric calculated, then sighed.

’My body feels achy... is it too much for a five-year-old? I do have Hashirama’s physique, but my small body can’t fully utilize it. Maybe when I grow up...’

As time finally continued, the bandits’ leader widened his eyes when he saw Alaric. ”Huh, a kid?”

”Yep, this kid sent your buddies to the other side,” Alaric replied calmly, like a kid.

The leader looked around, eyes wide at the sight of his comrades lying on the ground. ”Shiver me timbers!” he exclaimed.

”Shiver me timbers? It’s night, so I guess it’s cold,” Alaric replied with a smirk.

”D-did you kill them? You? A child?!” the leader sputtered, disbelief evident in his voice.

Alaric sighed, letting his chakra flare for a moment. His Sharingan spun as he softly said, ”Genjutsu: Sharingan!”

”Tell me if you have anything that’s worth a lot.”

”I have lots of gold rings and jewelry from raiding several houses,” the leader answered monotonously. ”I’ve hidden them in a secret compartment beneath my seat.”

Without another word, Alaric walked straight toward the leader and stabbed his throat.

’Well... they move fast. I can’t see any sacks of wheat or barley here,’ Alaric thought as he looked around. ’Well... in any case... time to remove their clothes and sell everything here.’

---

’I’m guessing it’s currently 8:30 PM?’ Alaric thought as he walked the trail back toward the Kenway household. ’It feels nice to give justice to all those who have been robbed.’

[+4,515 R]

[Current Balance: 5,064 R]

’Are there any more bandits around here?’