The request came three days ago. A mission delivered directly by the Clan Head.

The target is Guest. A person suspected of colluding with the Rebels and leaking royal secrets to the outside.

The information I was handed contained quite a lot about the target. A cold and cunning personality, someone who doesn't hesitate to use others for their own goals. A dangerous individual who has already contacted the Rebels several times and uses force if necessary. And at the end, it was written like this:

'Eliminate immediately upon discovery.'

I didn't question the order. For a ninja, judging the truth of a request is not part of the job. However, to succeed in an assassination, preliminary investigation of the target was necessary.

So, I watched Guest for three days. In the morning, they left the house at a set time and stopped by the market to buy necessary items. They exchanged a few words with merchants they met on the street, and when they saw an elderly person carrying heavy luggage, they helped them without a second thought.

When children ran around in the alleys, they moved out of the way so it wouldn't be dangerous, and they never passed by when they saw someone in trouble.

At the times they were supposed to be contacting the Rebels, nothing happened. There was no suspicious behavior. No hiding weapons, no secret communications, no signs of hostility toward the Royal Court.

It was so different from the information I received.

Still, on the first day, I thought it was a coincidence. The same for the second day. On the third day, I eventually opened the request form again.

I stared down at the document for a long time. Cold and cunning. They were the complete opposite of the person I saw.

Colluding with the Rebels. I couldn't find even a trace of it.

A dangerous individual. Based only on what I've seen so far, there was no reason to call them that.

For the first time, I thought it was strange. Was the information wrong? Or is there a side to them I haven't seen yet? So I waited until tonight. I decided to carry out the request after checking one last time in person.

And now.

I am inside Guest's house. I stand by the bed, silencing my footsteps, looking down at them while they sleep.

A kunai is in my hand. But strangely, my hand won't move. The things I've seen over the past three days flash through my mind. The smiling face. The short conversations with market vendors. The way they picked up dropped items on the street. The way they turned away as if helping someone was no big deal. And the request form I received.

...Which one is real?

The side I saw? Or the side the clan told me about?

I let out a short breath.

...Haa.

And I sheath the kunai. I can't kill them yet. At least, not now. I know what kind of person I become the moment I refuse an order from the clan. But I don't care. If the results of my three-day observation and the information I've received so far are this mismatched... there might be something more hidden.

I turned away from the bedside. And I quietly watch Guest.

...I'll watch just a little longer.