*** Yuki ***

  "Yoing to help us," I say. Ba that dark room, this time, the pregnant wife is absent. I still y down on her bed agaiing her sit at her small desk. I did che on her wife and found she's still pregnant, but had a small smile on her face. Hopefully, my sve isn't ign her anymore.

  "I know; I've been cheg for what you may want. I don't have the access you need. I keep your presence hidden if you o do some fighting. If I join, you'll get more pany than if you ha all yourself," she answers.

  "Good enough. What we o know is how the guard shifts work. They seem random, no pattern or reason to when a switch happens."

  "Yes, we choose wheart and whose pce we take. It's brutal if you take the roll seriously; few are getting tired and have bee predictable if you look over a long enough time. I let you know if a certain guard will be w during your attack. Only two do this right now; the rest follow the rules."

  "Two days. In two days, we pn to attack. Around the time I po poison you," I say. I sit up in the bed and give her a good look.

  "Then you ighe dogs; those two won't be there unless everyone abandons them there."

  "Well, shit. We already poisoned one of the dogs. That leaves us with five left to possibly poison. Any hints as to who we should kill?" I ask.

  "No, we haven't had to fight, and I always did my work alone. I don't know how skilled any of them are. Piy of the rest, and you'll have a simir experience," she says, a slight frown on her face.

  I sense something going wrong here, so I ask, "What's wrong?"

  She gives me a slight pause, but the colr forces her mouth to move, "My wife. She's due any time now. I don't want to miss it."

  So, she does care. I shouldn't make her miss it. I wao keep w for me and to do a good job, and I 't let the small things ruin that.

  "I want you to stay in the guild if possible, so you have to behave correctly. Do what you need, I'll give you a simple signal item use it if you have to leave or 't make it. Be with your wife; my lover would kill me if I kept you from your kid."

  "Kids, she has twins," she says, a small smile returning to her face.

  "Oh, gratutions. Twins are rare," I let out, w how a lucky pregnancy had left them in such a bad state. "Did something happen whe pregnant?"

  The frowurns with a sigh before she answers, "My job. I was meant to be there with her and possibly get pregnant as well. It is one of the few ways to get a break from my duty. Instead, I got stuck at work a her alohat blew up into a big fight where I couldn't expin anything due to the secrets I had to keep. I got grumpy, my job keeping me in the slump, and I held a grudge about my wife's freedom that I want." Her frown grew, body slumping over the back of the chair.

  Perfect, a way to make her owe me even after she's been a sve. "You want out?"

  "Of course I do. I work stantly, dumb hours, and it's b. Only someone like you would even think about attag. Most would just go to the Queen a a few heads to roll. The guards are just there as a remnant from when the guild used to attack the nobles."

  "Think heads will roll for a few prostitutes? Even if they do roll, the right ones won't find themselves on the floor."

  "The assassin and handler would be killed to appease you. I don't think anyone higher than that would die. Probably, a few higher-ups will die ohe heist is over and everythiles. Losing guards without a fight happening will be too shameful. They aren't going to be happy losing that warehouse. You took out our trade ter. Money is going to be slow for a while."

  "Still not the right heads. I want those behind the attacks. They have no reason to attack Mai or Alzi. Now, we're getting off-topic. You want out; why not leave?"

  "I still have a decade before I get out naturally. If I leave, I'll be fighting assassins for the rest of my life, so it's not much better. The dogs have a year left. It seems only one will make it."

  "Getting you out early is going to be hard. Soon, I won't be iy often. I doubt your family is willing to move to my realm if I could vince my mother to let you in. I'll work on it. Do your best to enjoy the kids and prep your family for a bit of a ge. I won't be able to e up with a way for you to just quit and have everything stay the same."

  "Thank you, Mistress."

  "Don't call me that. I don't have a great retionship with that term. Ma'am is fine. Well, I've got to che a few more things, so here's the signal." I toss her the small devid sneak out of the house. She's givehe key to a side door, making it a lot easier to get in and out.

  My stop is my own house again to pn with Nakuma. Our assassinations will leave just three women that we o worry about. No, it's best to think it's four; the st dogs may still show up if something weird happens. That is what redicted, but now my sve may bring back three in the building to start. As long as she's there for the start of the heist. Maybe I should've forced her here for the start and the her leave?

  No, Alzi will find out about her, and she won't be happy to know I took her away from her kid's birth. Her wife better hold on for a bit longer or just have them now. Little mean to leave right after the birth, but they'll live.

  Hopefully, Nakuma's mole give us good information ohe information may be stored. The less time we spend, the less there is to worry about.

  In my home, I find Nakuma naked, w ht as I walk in.

  "Put some damn clothes on! What if I had a guest with me? And I don't o be walking in on another woman who is always naked. Alzi is more than enough, and she has an excuse of being a sve traio be naked! You be a proper dy!" I shout. "I will not live in a house with a bunch of naked women! I let you get away with Mai to help you see how her muscles are f; there is no need for that anymore. your breast and put something on to cover your bottom!"

  Nakuma jumps at my voice, her eyes going wide at my anger. "Sorry," she squeaks out, dawning on a robe with magic.

  "You get some leeway to be perverted, but there are limits to it. We have work to do. We aren't in the coasting stage. We 't get distracted."

  "I'll stay clothed in shared spaces, ok. I'm not distracted or not w. You fucked Alzi and risked pregnancy. Something you told me I couldn't do, yet here you are doing it. You even limit how I'm able to touch you. I'm not going to get ynant or ruin you. I'm not going to tie you to the bed! I'm here to help you get the love of your life! I'VE LOVED YOU FOR DECADES! FOLLOWING YOU AROUND, HELPING YOU, PUTTING MY DESIRES TO THE SIDE JUST TO GET YOU TO LOOK AT ME! DON'T GO BLAMING ME FOR SHIT!" Her tails and hair straighten. Parts of space split, getting fixed with a loud sp.

  "You scared me. I didn't want to be around you for years. Scared of you kidnapping me or harassing me. I'm taking this slow because I'm still scared of what you'll do. I'm letting you in slowly. I had sex with Alzi because that is what I wanted. I wanted my first time doing everything to be with her, so I did. Now I don't have to worry about you going too far and taking that from me. It's going to take time to get all the way with you. Careful pushioo far. I may snap and send you away."

  "Oh, I'll save you the worry then, and fuck off! I must not be needed if you just send me home!" Her tails drop, and the magic leaves the room.

  "That isn't what I want. I want you here. I just ime to get to where you want to be, and you aren't going to be able to push me there. I know I reach that. I see your love, and I'm trying to return it. Just give me time. Alzi likes you. I know she wants you by her side, and I would love to have you both in my life. I just have fears to work through," I say, walking towards my old friend.

  "You just needed a mage and knew I'd give up my life for you to get that whore," she says as her body disappears from the room.

  I ruo her room and fling it open to find it empty like she never came.

  She 't teleport far, and the city won't let her teleport out anyway. I'll have to run around to look for the girl. Why did I y into her so much?

  I quickly burst back outside and headed to my right in case she went to the gate. I barge past people on my way to the gate, needing to catch her. But with every street I pass and alley I head down, it seems she went a different way. I don't feel her illusion magid I don't see her colorful tails boung around.

  I make it to the gate ahe small lio get out. There is not a single illusion and nht tails to show Nakuma ing here. I wait for a mihen run around to each gate until the sun disappears. With the gates closed, I head to the brothel alone. I'll have to peek my head in to let Alzi stop w about me missing the massage.