In Plain Sight

The sun is beginning to set, hiding just before the hills, leaving a long streak of red, orange, and yellow. It was the busiest time of the day. People are returning home from work and having meals at restaurants and stalls. Among the happy and tired mass were two men, bearing black tattoos of a snake with its jaws wide open, members of the Black Fang. These tattoos were hidden under their clothes so that people wouldn't see them.

They were eating dinner just like everyone else. They didn't care that they had their faces showing nor did they care that they were talking loudly about their mission. The streets were busy and there was no one paying attention to them.

"We got an extension... You better do your part right this time," the first man said to the second.

"Don't worry, I will..." the second replied confidently. He had no doubt that he would be able to handle this.

"Ugh... What got us into this mess in the first place," the first groaned, remembering how they all got yelled at by the boss for not carrying out their tasks quickly enough. "Oh yeah... It was that guy..." he recalled. "Curse him! It's all his fault!"

"Keep it down, idiot," the second man warned him. Even if no one was paying attention to them in public, the last thing they wanted to do was to have someone overhear what they were saying.

But the first man didn't care. There were far too many people here for their voices to be heard. It would just get drowned out, like a droplet of water in the ocean. Unless someone was really paying attention to them and only them, then there was no way that people would hear what they were saying. "Blah, it's not like people here will understand what we're saying anyway. They'll just think that we're talking about work," he said loudly, deliberately provoking the second man.

"Would it kill to lower your voice a little?" The second man was tempted to punch him in the face but that would cause a commotion which he didn't want. In the end, it was his loss and there was nothing he could do about it.

The first man knew this and he continued to speak in a loud voice, further pissing off the second man. "That person... He's also the one that hit you in the face with the tomato, isn't he?" he asked, rubbing salts in his wounds.

The second man slammed the table, almost breaking a plate. The people around them shot glances at them, wondering what was going on. "Ouch, my leg!" H faked accidentally hitting his leg against the table. He continued the act until everyone looked away and turned back to the first man who was snickering. "I'll kill you when we get back..."

"Kill me? I doubt it. My nickname isn't just for show. I've survived countless times where I was supposed to die," he boasted, not taking the second man's threat seriously.

"..."

"Anyhow..." They got too far off-topic and the first man went back to what they were talking about. "He is the one that smashed your nose, isn't he?" he asked the question again, wanting confirmation of his guess from the second man.

"You really want to die, don't you?" The man reached into his sleeve where there was a hidden weapon. It was a small crossbow that was attached to his wrist via strings. If he bent his fingers the right way then the small poisoned arrow would shoot out and hit his target, and since the arrow was small and the poison is a slow-acting one, no one would notice it at all until it was too late.

"Calm down..." the first man's tone turned serious. "I'm not trying to annoy you with this question. I genuinely want to know if he's the one," he said.

"Why?" the second man asked, not understanding why he should answer that question. If it was to make fun of him later on then he had all the reason in the world to not answer that question.

"Just tell me," he said in the same serious tone and face. "I need to know this." He said it in a way that sounded like he would die if he didn't know the answer.

The second man stared at the first man in the eyes for a minute. Neither of the two moved or blinked. They both had their hands on the table. Realizing that he was really being serious about this, the second man answered the first man's question. "Yes, he is indeed the one that broke my nose. And since you wanted to know so badly, tell me, why is it that you wanted to know so badly?" the second man asked suspiciously.

"Why? Because he's also the one that killed my brother," the first man said as a matter of fact. His voice was dangerous. The second man saw that he was holding his fork so tightly that

"He is?"

"Yes. Don't tell me that you forgot that Randel is my brother."

"Oh yeah, he is..." the second man remembered. "You two joined together... But he's not your brother by blood, right?"

"No. We're not by blood. We're sworn brothers after what we've been through."

"I figured," the man said.

"Yeah, so you're not the only one who wants that person dead. So... Why don't we make this a competition?" he suggested.

"A competition?" the second man asked.

"Yes, to see who kills him. While we're at it, let's make a little bet."

"And what would that be?"

"If I win, you give me 'that.' You know, the thing that you've been trying to sell for a while now with no success."

"And what if I win?"

"I'll give you something of equal value," the man replied with no hesitation whatsoever.

"Something of equal value..." The second man considered it and eventually agreed. "Sure. We'll do that then."

The first man leaned back against his chair, scratching his chin. "And to top it all off, I heard he took down hundreds of competitors by himself... He's not an easy opponent to deal with..."

"Difficult or not, everyone has a weakness. We just have to find his," the second man confidently said. To him, it didn't sound like a challenge at all. If it's anything he knew from working as an assassin and thief for all his life, it was that the strongest people already had the biggest weaknesses. Although their opponent might look like an unbeatable mountain, he is bound to have someone or something that he cared deeply about.

While they were chatting away about their plans, they didn't notice as another group sat down right next to their table. It wasn't until they heard their voices that it drew their attention and they both quickly turned their heads.

"Phew, what a day!" Iris said as she collapsed on a chair.

"Sit up straight, will you!" Sirks scolded her. He shoved his hands under her armpits and yanked her up.

"Hey!" The princess didn't appreciate suddenly being grabbed and pushed his arms away.

"Give me a break..." Sirks sighed. He took the seat directly in front of hers and Wompa took the next between the two, sitting slightly closer to her sister. "It's a shame that the other two had something to do..." he mumbled.

"The other two? Don't you mean just hoodie? Why are you including the elf as well? Oh! Could it be!" Iris covered her mouth but Sirks knew that she was smiling from ear to ear.

"No, you idiot. It's not like that. How many times do I have to say this."

"Huh... Even though you say that... You act all shy and weird around her like you're not your usual self. Are you sure?"

"She's a herbalist. It's best if we can get her to help us."

"But she already agreed, didn't she?"

"It's never bad to be too safe."

While the two were talking, Wompa watched them. But she wasn't the only one who was watching them. The two Black Fang members sitting right next to them looked at each other.

"Hey, isn't that-"

"Yes. They're his acquaintances or buddies, whichever one fits."

The two of them looked back at the table. The three were unarmed. They didn't have a weapon or anything on them that they could fight with. Since they were in public and there were a ton of people, it made sense that they had nothing.

"We only get opportunities like this once..." The second man wrapped his hand around the crossbow hidden in his sleeves.

"Careful, that red-head is a mage. Fire magic."

"Yeah, don't you think the red eyes are a giveaway?" He already knew that.

"Just need to make sure that you know... Anyway, do we kill them or capture them?"

"Kill them of course. Are you an idiot?" There is no way for them to capture three people when they only have two people. It was easier to poison them here and leave without alarming anyone or drawing suspicion.

"Then I'll leave it up to you," the first man said. He left his assassination tools at the base and couldn't do anything.

"Are you even an assassin?" the second one asked, shaming the man for forgetting his hidden weapons.

"Shut up and get rid of them. Though... If we can capture that red-head, it'd be nice."

"You're asking for too much... But I'll try."

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