1,000,000 Karma: My Reward Is a Quiet Life-Chapter 39: Bounty Hunter’s Gambit

[...Two minutes before Thros and Bonid were encountered...]

In the deepest section of the old mines, an eroding base barely stood on its last legs. Wooden beams held up a decrepit shack, where a man sat with his legs dangling above the ground.

The bounty hunter stood there, whistling to announce his presence with some flair, "Howdy there, Cassius."

A lack of surprise came from the dark-haired man that sat on the wooden ledge fixated on the cavern wall, "Ah, a bounty hunter. Took longer than I expected for the Guild to send someone here."

Billy laughed with a playful shrug, "Sounds like you were expecting me. I guess a violent criminal like you gets bored cooped up in a place like this—been itchin’ for a fight, I bet."

With a tired groan, the pale man sat up while the dusty cloak rustled over the bloodstained, sable armor beneath, "Is that what you think I am?"

"Cassius Desmarque," Billy recalled with his hands ready at his hips as if ready to draw a weapon that wasn’t there. "Ten confirmed murders, twenty-one reports of thievery and assault. An S-Rank criminal."

"Thanks for the rundown, but I’m well aware of who I am," the wanted man said with a sigh, holding both hands up.

From swirling shadows, a blue-tipped spear appeared in his left hand, and an ebony-handled shortsword in his right.

’That’s odd. The description I was given of Cassius was a tall, thin man with light hair. He’s a bit short, I’d say, not to mention he’s fairly built, wearing armor like that. I wouldn’t call that "light" hair either–it’s blacker than coal,’ Billy analyzed with a bit of skepticism.

The man with a bounty on his head didn’t immediately rush him, but was instead pacing on the ledge as if in thought. No, he was waiting for the hunter to make a move—Billy saw that.

"Dead or alive," he called out to the criminal. "I’m impartial, but it’s your choice."

"That’s a funny way to put it," Cassius responded.

There was roughly fifteen meters between both men, as Billy had gauged, with him having a complete advantage when it came to operating at that range. He was perfectly comfortable where he was at, especially seeing the weapons wielded by his target.

"Yeah?" Billy responded. "What’s funny about it?"

"If you brought me back to the World Guild alive, they’d just be executing me soon after," Cassius explained with a meager smile. "So, it’s funny that you suggest our meeting is going to go anyway besides the obvious–with one of us dead."

There was some lament in the breath that pushed past the eccentric cowboy’s lips, though he settled his expression with resolve, "Yeah, was hoping I could save myself one more kill on my record. Guess I’ll have to do it myself."

At that moment, both men shared the same instinct–

The spear-wielding hand of the wanted criminal lifted, prompting the edge of the weapon to glow vibrantly. Before it could be moved, a projectile of light pierced right through Cassius’ hand.

"Oh?--" The dark-haired man reacted, dropping the spear.

A perfect hole was left through the criminal’s palm, letting him see right through it as blood seeped onto the dusty planks of wood.

Billy held one hand out, holding an ethereal weapon born of radiance; it had a handle with a connected barrel, resembling an invention centuries off, "I’m quick on the draw, y’see."

"I’ve heard about it, but experiencing it is something else," Cassius remarked, waving his pierced hand without any display of pain. "Billy the Kid; a prodigy with light magic."

From the twin weapons wielded so masterfully in the bounty hunter’s hands, an array of light shot forth with impossible speed. Preemptively, barriers of magenta mana formed around the hunted, intercepting the path of the ethereal bullets.

"Void of Nefara," Cassius presented the magic.

–Any confidence by the criminal was blasted through as a second volley of light came. From the surrounding walls of the cavern, the radiant bullets ricocheted, piercing right through the shields on their return.

"Ngh–" Cassius bled out of his mouth, pierced in all parts.

["Triacta": a unique property of Billy’s light separate from others who make use of the radiant element. The light he fires only stops when hitting the chosen target, bouncing off any surfaces, even allies without harm. With each bounce, the potency of the light exponentially increases–thus, defenses that worked initially are shattered."]

"Alive" is still on the table," Billy called out. "I can patch you up and bring you in. Who’s to say they won’t be lenient with you? You’ve got better odds with them than against me."

While the offer was there, some swaying came in response from the wanted adventurer, who stumbled briefly before collapsing from the ledge. It looked certain that the bleeding man would land on his face, though somehow, struck the ground feet first like a cat.

All of the experience of the bounty hunter led him stumped at the sight of the wounded man. There were twelve shots that had pierced Cassius, though Billy made sure none were fatal, it was more than enough to bring a man face-down into the dirt.

["Something’s off."]

The culmination of his life led him to that thought, watching the man that should be laying in a puddle of his own blood somehow standing, somehow resisting. A look resided in those beady, black pupils–one that defied the idea of death entirely. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

"The moment you accepted this job, your fate was decided. It’s entirely unfair, isn’t it?" Cassius said while blood dripped from the hole bore through his cheek.

’He’s not afraid to die–no, it’s not that. It’s like he doesn’t even believe he can die, even in the state his body is in. The reports on his appearance...They’re completely off, too. It’s different–the person I’m looking at, it’s a completely different body!’ Billy deduced with a racing mind.

Despite the condition of the wanted man, the words spoken with complete resolve drove Billy to take them to heart, keeping his weapon raised, "The artifact–the one you found, when you killed your party. What was it?!" Billy demanded an answer.

"Your end, my beginning."

–The words given sounded like anything but a straight answer, yet the hunter felt he had heard enough to understand.

In a world of magic and mysteries, one that explored its endless depths was forced to overcome its many trials and tribulations. Billy’s mind raced, finding himself on three possibilities:

A.) The unknown artifact granted Cassius powerful regeneration.

B.) It allowed him to alter his body entirely, to change his appearance or even bypass wounds.

C.) The artifact allows for the possession of other people.

’I’d wager its possession, but then what’s the condition? Does he need to make physical contact?’ The bounty hunter quickly analyzed.

While his mind raced for answers, the man with a dozen holes in him rushed right towards him. The instincts sharpened with years of experience brought Billy to quickly flick the barrel up and fire—squelch.

Dead center through Cassius’ chest, light bore a tunnel of flesh. Anybody else would have to fall there, yet he found the man still approaching him with an unwavering look embedded in his eyes.

Billy pulled both triggers with seamless finesse, guiding two shots through each of the other’s knees, causing a sequential "splat" and "crack."

Finally, the task that seemed impossible was done–Cassius fell to a knee.

A sigh left the bounty hunter’s lips, almost having to reprimand himself for momentarily believing his target was some kind of immortal being.

"The condition is touching me, isn’t it?" Billy questioned, pointing the barrel right at the man’s head. "Hate to break it to you, but my aim is second to none."

While victory felt certain, all that confidence was challenged by the lift of the knelt man’s gaze, still yet to have that calm resolve diminished in his eyes.

"The condition is much simpler than that."

"What?" Billy questioned with a slight tilt of his head.

Cassius’ gaze matched the bounty hunter, "The Passenger. That was the artifact I found."

"Passenger...?"

"It wasn’t a weapon nor a jewel, it was something greater than that...malevolence given form," Cassius explained as blood seeped from his open wounds. "Greed, Envy, whatever sin you want to call it–that’s what it is."

"Spill it already," Billy demanded, letting the barrel hum with lethal radiance. "What is the condition?"

There was a pause while blackened blood spilled from the hole in the man’s chest before finally, he spoke, "Death."

"--" For a moment, Billy was silent before repeating the simple answer. "Death...?"

"When I die, I take control of whoever is the one that dealt the killing blow," Cassius explained, looking intently into the hunter’s eyes. "Like I said, the moment you took this job, your fate was sealed."

"You’re lying," Billy rejected with a dismissing shake of his head.

"We’ll see," Cassius said, tapping near the hole in his sternum. "Time is running out. I might have thirty seconds left, at most...Well, that’s to say, you have thirty seconds left."

It was a gamble that placed their very souls on the line–a gambit that the prodigal hunter was not ready for. Each second only increased the rapidity of his heart; it felt like his brain was swelling in his head, aching with desperation to find a way out, if he even believed the criminal’s words.

While a part of him rejected it as a blatant lie, a "bluff"--it matched his own deduction. Beyond that, the look in Cassius’ beady, black eyes; they wavered not even with a pierced heart.

"When I learned what this artifact is capable of, I knew what I had to do," Cassius said with weakening words as his body bled out. "I didn’t kill the others because I was afraid they’d claim it. I killed them to make sure the World Guild sent a truly capable bounty hunter–somebody with extraordinary talent."

"You mean...?"

"Indeed," Cassius confirmed. "I couldn’t predict it’d be you exactly, but it seems luck has favored me. There’s a whole lot I can get done as the famous "Billy the Kid."

The sly words from the criminal led to a mixture of fear, confusion, and rage from the tenured bounty hunter, who rejected the entire proposition by pointing the barrel at his own head. While he kept his finger on the trigger, somehow, the look in the killer’s eyes didn’t waver even then.

"That’s a choice," Cassius commended. "You could prevent me from taking your body if you kill yourself, and we’ll both die here. Or, maybe I’ve just been talking your ear off about something that doesn’t exist."

It was an obvious bluff, but those words alone brought hesitance, enough that the trigger remained stagnant while the hunter drew breath.

"I’ve seen it, multiple times now–what awaits after death. It’s dark and empty, devoid of anything at all," Cassius recalled, slumping down into the puddle of blood beneath. "We’ll both be there soon, but I’ll be the one dragged back out of it."

"Wait–!" Billy shouted.

There was nobody left to talk to; the figure dressed in armor was now motionless, face down in the blackened puddle. All he could hear was his own breathing along the leaking blood, his heart thumping against his chest.

A thousand thoughts raced through the bounty hunter’s mind, all leading him to one action as he pulled–

"Huaaah...!"

A desperate gasp for air came as if emerging from the depths of the ocean, leaving the weapon dropped as he clutched his chest. He regained his breath, drenched in sweat as a smile slowly curved onto his lips.

"Goodbye, Billy."