No lamps were lit in the tavern. Only a sliver of moonlight filtered through the windows, bringing in the faintest bit of illumination.
That little light was nowhere near enough to see by. The tavern hands and owner were absent as well, leaving the pitch-black tavern empty save for three people seated in a corner, at two separate tables.
"All right, say whatever you two need to say. I'm only here as a witness," said the person sitting alone at one table, wearing an exceedingly tall hat. Their low voice was so indistinct that even their gender could not be discerned. "You may treat me as though I don't exist."
The two people seated opposite each other at the other table did not respond. They merely sat in silence.
After a while, one of them spoke. "Since Count 'Good Horse' has characterized the assassination as an act originating within the Merchant Faction, assassinating Noble Faction soldiers or lords will now have difficulty producing much provocation or stirring things up. I think we should change targets—assassinate important figures in the Merchant Faction, and attack merchant caravans as well. Compared to the Noble Faction, where the lords call the shots, the Merchant Faction has much weaker control over its subordinates. As long as we provoke them enough, they'll easily lose their tempers and make a move."
This man was naturally the middle-aged man who had only switched careers from pirate to assassin a few years ago. In the end, he had managed to persuade the intermediary to invite the employer here for a face-to-face discussion.
The person sitting across from him was entirely shrouded in a hooded robe, their age, appearance, and gender impossible to make out. After listening to him, they remained silent for a while before replying in a magnetic