𝖌𝖚𝖒𝖚𝖘𝖘𝖊𝖗𝖛𝖎

f o r t y

note - when i say mansion or castle, i'm referring to the traditional japanese castles. search if you don't know what i mean.

~

at last, hiroto and [name] finally arrived at the entrance of their home. the towering, traditional castle had six stories and each floor was dedicated to certain people or exist for certain reasons. the first and second floor - from the ground - was dedicated to visitors, wanted or unwanted. the third floor was dedicated to the servants of the household, the fourth floor was dedicated to the brothers of the family and the fifth was dedicated for the women of the family. the last floor, the sixth, was dedicated to the head of the family; the father.

[name] and her father entered, immediately greeted by a group of loyal servants. hiroto waved them off as he pushed through while [name] greeted the servants back and followed her father. the two travelled the long flights of stairs to the fourth, where [name]'s mother rested. they entered her room silently.

there on a beautiful bed rested a thin, pale woman. hiroto carefully approached, kneeling beside the bed to take a hold of the woman's hand ever-so gently.

"ahmya.. how are you feeling?" he whispered, making the woman slowly open her eyes and smile at recognition. "are you in any pain?"

"no. the cold i had caught earlier this month has finally disappeared, so i feel much better. thank you, my love," the woman whispered back weakly, eyes moving towards [name] who stood across the room at the entrance. "[name], you're back. how was the exam? did you pass?"

[name], for the first time in days, smiled genuinely and brightly. she stepped forward and copied her father, but on the other side of the bed. the two hadn't had a chance to talk when [name] first returned.

"of course, mother. please take a look at what i have brought back," she asked, rummaging through her bag and retrieving her hunter license. "this is my hunter license. it allows me to enter 90% of countries that limit immigration, 75% of restricted areas in the world and provides free access to 95% of public facilities."

as her mother examined the license, [name] anxiously stared like a child waiting for a compliment on their work. the woman smiled proudly.

"this license is proof of your hard work, and you've worked very hard, [name]. i'm very proud of you," she whispered, patting [name]'s head.

[name] gratefully accepted the show of affection. she stared down at the blankets of the bed, feeling a warmth grow in her chest and she felt tears well in her eyes. she buried her face into the soft material of the bed to subtly wipe her tears. she didn't need her father to see her like this any time soon.

"[name], after you're finished talking with your mother, come see me up in my room. i've got a job and i'm taking you with me," hiroto demanded firmly before leaving the room.

ahmya, [name]'s mother, and [name] continued to converse on the events previous to their meeting hours. once the room began to darken, [name] excused herself and headed towards her father's room.

the two immediately began to discuss the minute [name] entered the room.

"we've got a noble as a client today, so everyone except your mother and most of the servants have been hired. we are to protect the noble and kill any suspicious persons. we'll be hiding in the shadows and overlooking while the noble travels out of the city to another noble's residence. we leave once he arrives at the other nobles residence," hiroto explained. "i've already explained this to your brothers, so ask them if you don't understand something or have a question. we'll be leaving in an hour. you are dismissed."

~

[name] began to wrap up her preparation, tightening the straps on her bag and slinging it over her shoulder. she swung her room door open to immediately meet with two pairs of sharp eyes; her brothers.

"osamu, isamu.. what a surprise meeting you here. why are you up here? on the fourth floor? when we're supposed to be on the first?" [name] asked, the corner of her lips curling up. "have you come to torment me again?"

"you wish you got that much attention. we just left after saying our goodbyes to mother. now if you would excuse us," one of the brothers snapped back, pushing through to leave the scene and head downstairs.

the other brother was quiet. no words escaped his zipped mouth - his eyes said what his mouth did not. they were sharp and narrowed on the girl. he then began to whisper.

"if you are not going to say your goodbye to mother we should get going, [name]. unless you'd like to stay here and do nothing, as your presence would mean nothing in the mission anyways."

"bold of you to talk that way when you failed your last mission," [name] commented, making the male grind his teeth and bark at her in defense. "if you're done screaming like a child, we should hurry up before father scolds us for our tardiness."

with that, the two headed downstairs to meet with their father and brother, who patiently waited on the first floor entrance. they were solemnly conversing on the job at hand. [name] approached her father and brother.

"i apologise, father, for our tardiness. are their any updates on the mission?" [name] inquired, making hiroto shake his head. "then, shall we get going?"

~

hiroto, osamu, isamu and [name] arrived at the employer's residence with ease and without detection. the four quickly greeted the noble before the mission commenced. they first accompanied the noble into a bull-drawn carriage.

the plan of the mission was to have [name] inside of the carriage with the noble as direct protection while her brothers and father protected the carriage from afar. the only other person on the carriage was the carriage driver, a servant hired from the [last name] residence who was experienced in the area.

[name] quietly entered the carriage after the noble. it was a tad small for two people, but the two managed. she seated herself and prepared her weaponry, checking for any damages and storing it where access was quick and easy.

"say, miss [last name]," the noble called out suddenly, making the female lift her head. "i'd like to ask you about your job, if it is alright with you? i'm just a tad curious as someone of my nobility."

"of course, your majesty."

"at what age were you introduced to the business?"

"at birth, your majesty."

"hm.. how harsh. the minute you were birthed?"

"perhaps at birth was an exaggeration. i was introduced the moment i began to consider my surroundings and not focus on surviving - so around the age of three, your majesty," [name] explained, expression straight without emotion. "is there anything else you would like to know, your majesty?"

"please, you need not add 'your majesty' after every sentence, miss [last name]. i'd like to ask how you were raised in such a household. was freedom such a thing?"

[name] paused, biting the inside of her cheek.

"no, your ma.. sir. i was not given much freedom other than freedom of speech. every child in the family was raised harshly - is what people not raised in the family would say - and we were trained to torture and kill. there's not much to it besides training to kill, sir."

"i see.. i don't mind if you don't answer this one, miss [last name]," the noble began lifting his head to stare firmly into [name]'s eyes. "how many people have you killed, and how do you feel killing them?"