I intentionally diluted the concentration of the black lotus before adding it to Betrayer's Rest. For that reason, it only took the would-be assassin 20 minutes to wake up, which proved to be just enough time to get him tied up.

"Wh- where?" He awoke with a start, glancing around. Noticing his bonds, he pushed and grunted against them to no avail. I was a good knot tier. Underneath all the rugged garb he had on, the person in front of me was nothing more than a worn-out mercenary desperate for a quick coin. It seemed he and his buddy had taken up doing dirty work for somebody to make ends meet. Or maybe they liked the thrill.

I wasn't here to judge.

"Evening, Marcus." I stepped out from the shadows. "I always appreciate a good surprise, and good company too…a shame it's just us now." I'd pulled one of the torches from the carriage and had it in hand, using it to light my face. Just because I could see in the dark didn't mean he could.

His expression visibly pondered my words, and I allowed my eyes to wander towards the body of his dead friend, leaning the torch in that direction for good measure. Long shadows cast over a bloodied, still figure.

"No. No, that c- no." He mumbled, face paling. "You…YOU." Confusion warped to vitriol as Marcus barred his teeth, every yell sending spittle into the air. He thrashed and fought against the ropes lunging towards me with each twist, his face a brilliant red even in contrast to the firelight. "I'LL KILL YOU!" He screeched, "I'LL RIP YOU TO SHREDS! EVERY INCH-"

With a flick of a finger, I used magic to stick his lips together the same way I unstuck a lock.

'Much better.'

"I didn't do that," I laughed.

Betrayer's Rest might make you crazy, but it didn't cause memory loss.

Anger faded to confusion, which then fell into a deep, deep remorse as the moment came flooding back to him. The red on his face became a stain of shame. I flicked my finger again, loosening his lips.

"Are you ready to be next?" I asked, and his eyes flared with fear.

From Marcus's perspective, he felt like he'd encountered an evil spirit tonight. One that made him lose his wits, murder his closest friend, and now twist that same fate around him as a threat, a grin on their face. This was supposed to be a simple job. There had never been any issues before. Who was this person?

"We- we weren't going to kill you!" Marcus cried out, "That wasn't the order- rough you up a bit sure-"

I lurched forward, using all my might to slam my hand against his mouth, mashing his head with the rough pine bark. It was a pathetic maneuver, but since he was already primed with fear the point got across.

"An order? Tell me who and where, and I'll let you go."

His eyes scrambled with hesitation. I pressed harder. For good measure, I took his dagger and pressed the blade sharp to his neck until a single, tantalizing drop of blood slipped down.

"Who and where," I repeated.

He nodded. I let go.

Not trusting him for a second, I reached out to feel the state of his mind. Was he planning to lie?

"Viscount." He coughed out, "Viscount Reidthorne. He has an estate outside the walls, a mile west off the main path out of North Sonhest in the Helth Woods settlements. If you turn a sharp left at the trade road junction and head straight it's impossible to miss."

'Helth Woods? An estate outside the walls? How big is this city?'

It wasn't perfect directions but it would do. The man didn't seem like he was lying; if anything, he seemed distracted. The fear of death lapped in waves over grieving sands as he spared sad glances at his friend's corpse.

I committed the directions to memory, pulling the blade back and flipping its position in my hand.

The point dipped towards his chest, I pushed down and plunged the dagger into his heart. For a third time tonight under gleaming stars and tumbling grasses, death spilled red. The blade sunk deep and true. Pathetic or not, this man had been hired to kill me. Or 'harm me' if I believed his earlier claim. I hadn't checked his feelings on that one.

It didn't matter. Leaving a loose end like this wasn't a risk I could take.

Now confident I was alone, I began to loot the corpses. I wasn't above it. Mostly copper coins and a few silver made their way into my bag, along with an extended map of the Helth Woods, and a printed coin both the assassins had been carrying. Made of a green, matte rock, it had the carved design of a twisted rose on it. Was this the Reidthorne insignia?

After climbing a tree and getting my bearings, thankfully seeing the city lights in the distance, I hopped into the driver's seat of the carriage and pinpointed my location on the map. They hadn't taken me far out of the city, just east off the main path. If I followed the curve of Sonhest northwest I would end up in the Helth Woods. A settlement in the woods probably meant that the eastern and northern woods of Sonhest were relatively safe; it was the southern woods, the Farbeck Woods as Yiriel had called them, that were more dangerous at night.

I whipped the reigns and began my journey to the sound of crickets and the click of horse hooves.

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

***

The trade junction wasn't hard to find. A large dirt circle in the middle of the woods loaded with barren shipping crates and colorful stalls was hard to mistake. It must have been a busy place during the day where caravans, wandering merchants, and shipments of goods would come and go. At night, however, it was a ghost town. Locked-up stalls stood empty of items, the well-worn paths around them bare of boot bottoms. Even the towering oil lamps had long since dimmed as it reached the early hours of the morning.

Besides the main road out of north Sonhest splitting the circle in half, there were six other paths out of the junction, two at 90-degree angles from the main road and the other four slotted in between. Two of the four roads were blocked off with gates, sealed tightly by locks. A carriage could get around it with some maneuvering, but their purpose must have been to send a message more than anything; that these roads were not to be taken without permission. I suspected they were guarded during the day. I checked my location on the map again.

'Ah.'

The gated one headed west must be towards the viscount's residence. The other gated one heading southwest towards the city... leads directly into the outreaches. So that's where those parading knights had sent their loot. With another whip of the reigns, I guided the carriage around the western gate and began the trek towards the count. The trees somehow became even thicker and darker as I progressed, vines catching along the wheels, cutting at the horse's ankles. While the other paths had shown signs of small villages in the distance, full of people who chose to live outside Sonhest's walls, this road had nothing but the thicket illuminated by moonshine.

'What a warm welcome the count offers his guests. I'll have to return the favor.'

Upon the first signs of human-made lights, I halted the carriage and made the rest of the walk on foot. I would get in and to the viscount the old-fashioned way; by breaking and entering. Pushing through a wall of vines, I got my first look at the viscount's residence.

While nothing in comparison to the castle, it was clear the owner of this mansion enjoyed the finer things. Like privacy.

The spikes across the metal bars surrounding the entirety of the building made it feel like a prison more than a home. Numerous guards scouted the perimeter, stood at gates, and marched routine paths through the estate, all accompanied by several armaments placed along the roof of the mansion. Sturdy wooden crossbows armed with iron arrows sat patient next to what appeared to be some kind of cannon. I sensed magic concentrated in a few spots around the estate, seemingly random, but suspiciously out of the guard's paths. Bombs, perhaps?

'This is doable.'

I climbed up a nearby tree branch and leaped over the iron bars. I caught the momentum by rolling into the grass, coming up in a low lunge to propel forward over, up, down, and around the various statues, fountains, and hedges of the estate. How to get in? My back was now pressed against the thick estate walls, and my front against the tangles of a rose bush. A floor above me was a balcony, the door ever so slightly cracked. A guard passed by with a yawn, his hand fidgeting against his sword hilt. He blinked up at the balcony, over at the bush I hid behind, and then slogged past.

As soon as he was gone I used the edges of a nearby windowsill to maneuver my way just close enough to the balcony that I could spring up and latch onto the edge. With a swift pull of my straining muscles, but thankfully small body, I hauled myself onto the marble and slipped through the open door. It clicked behind me. My eyes adjusted to the new surroundings.

No immediate danger, and no eyes on me. There was the sound of someone sleeping, however. A middle-aged woman wearing a thin nightgown drooled onto her pillow, the makeup she must have forgotten to take off leaving an imprint of her face across it. Ignoring her, I made it to the door out of the room and pressed an ear up against it. Nothing. It opened with ease, allowing me out into the hallway of the estate.

Now where would I find the count? On a higher floor, if I had to bet. In a central room, with big doors...something gaudy and well guarded. A few minutes of searching and ducking behind furniture led me to the third floor and around two corners before I finally found my target. That had to be it. Two guards stood outside, the only door in the building any guards had been at. They were more alert than most of the soldiers I had seen. What to do?

Recalling the windows on the upper floor, it wouldn't be viable to climb around the outside. I still had Betrayer's Rest on me, but the guards were all the way down the hall. They were not just outside a carriage door. If I tried to approach, I'd alert them and in turn, the viscount. What to...?

'Oh?'

A young girl with dark hair turned the far corner and headed towards the count's room. She wore a maid outfit and gave the guards a curt nod before continuing to head in my direction. Not much younger or taller than me, I could probably fit in her clothes and look just like her in a dark hallway.

I slinked back into the shadows and waited for her to draw near. As she approached I readied the powdered black lotus petal I had in my bag, separate from Betrayer's Rest.

Any good thief keeps knock-out powder on them. It would be silly not to.

'Time for a wardrobe change.'