The Impossible Assassin

In a virtual reality where players adventure as heroes, the NPCs, called Natives, are designed simply to support the world - providing services, guidance, and resetting with each New Dawn. They exist only to serve, with no memories between resets, no autonomy, and no ability to harm players.Cain is a blacksmith's apprentice in Woodhaven, a Native like any other until something unexplainable happens. After witnessing a brutal raid by a player group called the Crimson Grins and watching his parents die, Cain somehow retains his memories through the New Dawn reset that should have wiped his mind clean.This anomaly cascades into something unprecedented: Cain gains awareness of the system itself.