The back streets of the royal capital Gran.
　This is the dark part of King's Landing where the people who get by with day jobs and those who have lost their family's breadwinner and are surviving on a meager income gather.
　That corner of the city, which is not deep enough to be called dark, and not grim enough to be called a slum, is called "Hikage Town" by the people of King's Landing.

　The inhabitants of the town in the shade do not like interference from others.
　Seeking help is not an abhorrent thing to do, but no one with an honest heart would ever come here.

　Seeking help from someone else makes you miserable.
　To save someone is to show them an opening.
　The town where twisted people who think like that gather. That is the town in the shade.

　That's why they don't even try to know what their neighbors are like or what they're doing.
　As long as it doesn't harm them, they are fine.
　That is the common consciousness of the people living in this town.

　Even if one of the houses that stand in the shade has been conspired in secret, very few people notice it, and even if they do notice it, they pretend not to notice it.

　It is a common old house in the shady town.
　In one room of the house, people are engaged in a secret conversation with the windows closed.

　There are about ten men and women in the room.
　One man sits in the center, surrounded by the rest of the people.

　All are dressed in the same mundane outfits that can be found on the streets of the royal capital.
　However, each person's attire is ordinary, but as soon as they sit side by side, a sense of discomfort overflows.

　A young woman dressed as a waitress sits next to the man who looks like a craftsman. Next to him sits a middle-aged man who looks like an umayabata, and next to him sits a young man with a mercenary look on his face.
　If an outsider were to look around the room, he would be struck by the lack of unity.

"It's a lot of pomp and circumstance for a young lady to reap.

　A young man dressed as a merchant in one of the car seats speaks up without reading the atmosphere of the place.

'Shut up, 'Diving Swallows', I'm still in the middle of explaining to you.

　The older man sitting on the other side of the room glared at the man called 'The Diving Swallow'.

'Do you disagree?'

　A man sitting in the center of the room dives and asks the swallow.
　That single word froze the air of the place.

　The man sitting in the center of the carriage seat is dressed as a street vendor that you would see on the main street in any town.
　But it's only his appearance that is ordinary, and the intimidation that oozes from his body is anything but ordinary.

''I'm not saying I'm unhappy about it. I just thought it was exaggerated.

　The lurking swallow shrugged its shoulders in a panic and asked the person sitting next to it to agree.

"Don't you think so too?

I don't have to. I just do what I'm told.

　The town girl-like woman - or, considering her age, a pre-adult girl would be more accurate - taunts it with a voice that is devoid of emotion.

Then shut your mouth," she said. No one wants your opinion. The fact that your tongue spins so well is a function, but if you don't know the right time and place to do it, you'll have a problem on your tongue.

"...... Copy that.

　The lurking swallow had to reluctantly accept as the street vendor-like man glared at him.
　Seeing this, the man resumed his explanation again.

''It's true that the lurking swallow is right, this number of people may be too many just to get rid of the one young lady. No matter how much the other party is a duchess who has the right to inherit the throne, she doesn't live in the royal palace.

　The diving swallow shakes its head in a heap at the explanation.
　Several people around him are looking at him with dumbfounded expressions.

　Even if he didn't bother to interrupt them in the middle of the conversation, he probably would have had this explanation if he had listened quietly.
　The gaze directed at the lurking swallow who just disrupted the scene by doing something unnecessary and broke the back of the conversation is cold.

But this time, that 'Magician of a Thousand Swords' is on the side of the target. This is not an opponent to be underestimated. That's why I've been ordered to bring this number of people to bear on the matter.

　The moment the alias "Magician of a Thousand Swords" comes out of the man's mouth, the air in the room is under the illusion of shaking.

　Of course, they don't say that they are upset, but they don't say it out loud.
　But even so, there was enough influence in that alias to disturb their minds.

''May I?''

　It was an older man dressed as a bartender who raised his right hand and asked to speak.

'Say it,'

Rumor has it that the Sorcerer of a Thousand Swords defeated a thousand horsemen all by himself. How much credibility can you give to this story?　How do you think the top brass are deciding?

　The bartender asks the question as the street vendor-esque man briefly gives his permission.
　'That's probably the information everyone here wants to confirm.

'Perhaps the rumors are true. The top brass seems to think we'll come to the same conclusion based on the information we're getting from the Imperial side.'

Why go through the trouble of forcing yourself at this time with such a monster on your side?

That's something you don't need to know.

　The street vendor coldly dismisses the bartender's question.

I'm not underestimating them either. It's because they have a monster by their side that they have gathered some of the most skilled hands in the capital. It's not like we're going to fight a war with a thousand swordsmiths.

　Just as the street vendor said, the people gathered here are all highly skilled and highly respected in the organization.
　Of course, due to travel time, they have only been summoned from the vicinity of the royal capital, but all of them have enough covert ability to sneak into the royal castle alone, and have enough strength to fight and win against the soldiers of the regular army, even if they are surrounded by about ten people.

''It's not uncommon for a hero on the battlefield to see an opening and slash his flank. In the first place, the target isn't the 'Magician of a Thousand Swords' himself. As long as we can hold him down so that he can't fight freely for a short period of time before we cut off his target's head, that's all that matters.

　The street vendor-like man then told each of them their roles, explained the flow of the plan, and finally looked around and announced.

'We'll take the decision in three days.'





Hey, come hang out with me for a second.

　A short walk south of the shady town leads to a small street that runs through the downtown area.
　A girl dressed as a town girl was stopped by a familiar voice as she walked down the street.

'......'

　The girl, who had been heading home after a secret talk with her friends, recognized the owner of the voice and immediately began to walk again without regard for herself.

You're not going to be able to get your hands on any of them. Don't ignore it.

What is ......?

　The girl who was called 'red osprey' replied sullenly.

　The one who called out to her is the man who sat next to the girl in the secret conversation earlier, the one who was called 'the lurking swallow' by her friends earlier.
　The man, dressed as a merchant, speaks to Aka Misago in an oddly familiar manner as usual.

It's a good idea to deepen the friendship between you and your friends.

No need.

　The girl's reply is curt.

　To the Akamisago, the Swallows are nothing more than business associates of the organization.
　At the same time, he is also an irritating opponent who messes with the Akamisago incessantly.
　I'm not sure that there are any words that can be used to describe the situation when we are just waiting for the decision date three days later, although we will have a conversation if it is necessary for the mission.　

'No, no, no, we're a team this time, right?　Isn't cooperation important?

My assignment is to see that it doesn't happen again. No coordination required.

'Communication is the key to understanding each other without orders, isn't it?

'It's enough that I understand the orders. I was not ordered to make friendships.

'Kah!　...... Totally, thanks for the exemplary answers!

　The red osprey tries to pass by, ignoring the diving swallow that looks up to the sky in an exaggerated gesture.

'So,'

'Oh, wait, wait, wait!　I'll give you the best information, just wait a minute.

　The diving swallow still tries to keep the red osprey back.

'I got the information I needed earlier.

No, no, no, you know what the Uraito-Taguri didn't tell you?

The 'back thread tug'?

　The Uraittendashi is a street vendor-like man who was sitting in the center of the wheelchair earlier.

　He seems to be in a very high position in the organization, and is said to be responsible for organizing the nine members of Aka-Misago and the others on this mission.
　In contrast to his gentle appearance, the vicious intimidation that he hides inside is frightening even to the skilled red ospreys.

'Yes, yes. ''That's something you guys don't need to know.''

Then maybe you're right. It's not something we need to know about.

Still not interested?　I think we should listen to every little thing about the target, I think. When an unforeseen situation arises, the lack of information can lead to a disadvantageous situation, don't you think?

......

　The red osprey casually peeks at the situation around him.

　Of course, even though there are not many people on the street, there is no telling where the conversation will leak out.
　Although Akamisago has been paying attention to keep his conversations from spilling out into the surroundings, the content of the conversation is what makes him even more cautious.

'Are you interested?'

Let's just listen to .......

That's the way it should be.

　A diving swallow walks alongside the red osprey and holds out its left arm.
　The red osprey naturally leans in close with her hand on his arm.
　From the edge, it would look like a merchant youth and a town girl walking in a friendly manner.

'So?　What do you mean by information?

It's the information that your guru withheld from you.

　At a distance, like two lovers talking to each other, the diving swallow replied in a hushed voice.

''Why do you bother to force 'The Magician of a Thousand Swords' at this point in time with a bakemono at your side?　That's what it's called.

Why?

　On the other hand, the red osprey's expression does not move.

　Unlike the lurking swallow, which has many opportunities to interact with others as a merchant by nature, the red osprey is not so good at the role of negotiation and bargaining.
　If anything, they are better at missions such as following targets and infiltrating buildings.
　It was good to be unprofessional, such as the act of two lovers talking to each other.

It seems that the client strongly requests it. I heard they've gotten a lot of money out of the client's fees.

That's it?

No, no, the question is, why is my client in such a hurry?

　Without worrying about the poor performance of the red osprey, he smiles and speaks of the information he's gleaned while forming a smile.

I've heard that in half a month's time the royal family will be holding a garden party. In the normal garden party, children who have not yet made their debut as a socialite are not allowed to attend, but this time, young ladies between the ages of 10 and 14 will be allowed to attend. In addition, Prince Karst, son of the Crown Prince, is also scheduled to attend the garden party.

What is it?

I don't understand. The fact that only the daughter of a child who has not yet made her debut as a socialite is allowed to attend means that this is an opportunity to select a candidate for Prince Karst's queen, or a meeting with the prince, no?

Is that how it works?

That's how it works. Of course, the duchess who is being targeted this time is one of them. So the client's goal is to stop the duchess from attending the garden party. It's a good thing that she's dead or else she'll be damaged.　It's enough for the client that the young lady who was attacked is scared and declines the garden party. Then you can pretty much guess who the client is. It could be someone from a noble family who thinks that their daughter will become the prince's wife if the duchess is gone. Some other dukes, or maybe some marquis: ......

It's none of my business.

　The diving swallow, which had been smiling indisputably until then, suddenly showed a sad expression.

You're a pain in the ass. Don't you ever think about it?　A young lady of the same age as you, dressed up without much effort and flocking to the prince, while you, on the other hand, do nothing but cut off the head of your target in a place where you don't get any sunshine and follow orders from above. Isn't that kind of annoying?

Regardless of whether you resent or envy your target, having feelings for him is a waste of time, and even if you did, I'm not so immature that it would dull the edge of my blade.

That's not what I meant. ......

　The diving swallow covered its eyes with the right hand of the one it had vacated and looked up at the sky.
　To the red osprey's eyes, it looked like it was struggling to hold back a heaving sigh.