Chapter 1 Angel's last mission
The stars burned brightly beyond the glass walls of the spacecraft.
Countless lights stretched across the endless universe, beautiful and peaceful.
Yet Bailili knew better than anyone that beneath that beauty hid darkness.
The darkness she had lived in for thirteen years.
Standing before the observation window, she stared silently at the distant planets.
A cold wind from the ventilation system brushed against her long black hair.
Her beautiful face remained expressionless.
In her hand was a small silver device.
One button.
One command.
One war.
If she pressed it, the military fleets of the Eastern Star Continent would launch thousands of antimatter missiles toward the Northern Star Continent.
Billions would die.
Entire planets would become graveyards.
And this...
Was her final mission.
A bitter smile appeared on her lips.
"Master really thinks highly of me."
At eighteen years old, Bailili had countless identities.
The world's youngest business queen.
A legendary pianist.
A gaming champion.
A scientific genius.
A celebrity known across several star systems.
But all of those identities were fake.
The real Bailili was something much darker.
An assassin.
The number one assassin of the Celestial Shadow Guild.
A weapon raised by blood and pain.
A monster created by another monster.
Nobody knows her a real identity but yet her alias name alone is enough to command fear from kings. She is known as "ANGEL" of course it is because people are to afraid to call her a devil.
Five-year-old Bailili still remembered that rainy night.
The night her parents died.
Their aircraft had exploded during a routine journey.
Within a week, her uncle had taken everything.
Their companies.
Their wealth.
Their properties.
Even her home.
Then he sold her.
Sold his own niece for money.
Like a piece of unwanted trash.
That day, she was taken to the Celestial Shadow Guild.
The place she called hell.
Her master had personally trained her.
No.
Tortured her.
Children who failed were beaten.
Children who cried were punished.
Children who tried to escape disappeared forever.
Survival was the only rule.
She learned martial arts.
Swordsmanship.
Marksmanship.
Poison.
Psychology.
Disguise.
Hacking.
Finance.
Politics.
Music.
Business.
Anything that could help an assassin infiltrate a target.
Anything that could turn a human into a perfect weapon.
And Bailili excelled at all of it.
Because failure meant death.
By eighteen, she stood at the top of the guild.
Number One.
The strongest assassin among millions.
But strength never brought freedom.
The guild still owned her.
Until three months ago.
Her master finally made a promise.
Complete one last mission.
And she would be free.
For the first time in her life, Bailili believed him.
For the first time, she dared to dream.
She dreamed of traveling through the stars.
Of living a normal life.
Of seeing the sunrise without blood staining her hands.
But now she understood.
Freedom had never existed.
This mission itself was a trap.
A mission impossible to complete without becoming history's greatest criminal.
Her communicator suddenly rang.
A cold voice echoed through the room.
"Why haven't you pressed the button?"
Bailili closed her eyes.
Master.
Even after all these years, hearing that voice still made her remember countless nights of torture.
"I won't do it."
Silence.
Then came laughter.
A terrifying laugh.
"Won't do it?"
"Billions will die," Bailili said quietly.
"Since when did you care?"
She lowered her gaze.
Good question.
Since when?
Perhaps after spending years among ordinary people while wearing different identities.
Perhaps after building companies.
Perhaps after helping others.
Perhaps she was never truly the monster he wanted her to become.
"I won't press it."
The laughter stopped.
Instantly, the room became colder.
"Then die."
The communication disconnected.
At the same moment, alarms exploded throughout the spacecraft.
WARNING.
WARNING.
MULTIPLE HOSTILE SIGNALS DETECTED.
Bailili's eyes narrowed.
They came quickly.
Too quickly.
The guild had already prepared for this outcome.
Dozens of red dots appeared on the radar.
Then hundreds.
Assassins.
Her former colleagues.
Her former friends.
The people who once fought beside her.
Now hunting her.
A self-mocking smile appeared on her face.
"Of course."
The Number One Assassin had become the guild's target.
Explosions erupted outside.
The spacecraft shook violently.
Metal screamed.
Fire spread.
Bailili grabbed her weapons and rushed forward.
The hunt began.
For three days and three nights she escaped.
For three days and three nights she fought.
One assassin after another fell before her.
But the enemies never stopped coming.
NO: Two.
NO: Three.
NO: Four.
All of them joined the pursuit.
Every one of them was a terrifying existence.
Even Bailili couldn't face them all alone.
Her body accumulated injuries.
Broken ribs.
Burns.
Bullet wounds.
Blood soaked her clothes.
Still she ran.
Still she fought.
Until finally-
A blade pierced her chest.
Another entered her back.
The stars above became blurry.
Bailili collapsed onto a deserted asteroid.
Blood spread beneath her body.
The universe was silent.
For the first time in thirteen years...
She felt tired.
So very tired.
"Looks like..."
A weak laugh escaped her lips.
"My freedom came a little late."
Her vision darkened.
Memories flashed through her mind.
Her parents.
Her childhood.
Her dreams.
Everything she never had.
Then strangely...
A novel appeared in her thoughts.
A romance novel she had read months ago while pretending to be a wealthy heiress.
A ridiculous book about four powerful men and a foolish villainess.
She remembered mocking it.
"If I were her, I'd build an empire instead."
The darkness swallowed her completely.
Her final heartbeat faded.
And somewhere beyond life and death...
A mysterious light began to shine.
Unseen by anyone.
