This part of the palace was quiet and dark. This was pleasing to Gareth. He liked the quiet well enough, and its relative emptiness was a stark contrast to the hustle and bustle it had been the past week as he laid in wait. For a whole week he had endured being around countless people, pushing, shoving, sweating, making noise... all for the capture of one girl. But now, he couldn't help but feel it was entirely worth it. He had gotten to see such a wonderful view, and the only things that stood in his way were a few guards that were, thankfully, relatively easy to knock out without any fuss. Afaede was a kingdom of relative peace, and it showed in the palace's calm demeanor.

Still, it had been no walk in the park. It had been a grueling week of planning routes, contingencies, and talking to people. [i]All for the glint of gold...[/i] His employer should be satisfied with the quality of his work. Nobody had recognized him on the street, and nobody had seen even a hair on his head since he first set foot in the palace. If it were any busier, if patrols were more frequent, it would be easy to come across his trail of unconscious guards. But his target was in sight now. Even if he got ambushed by three or four guards, it would be too late.

As he melded into the shadows, calming his breaths, he watched the prince and princess interact. He had no interest in the prince, but the girl, his target, did interest him. She was a fighter, he could tell from her bearing. Perhaps a bit of a tomboy. Gareth ran a hand through his disheveled hair, closing his eyes for a minute. It was not going to be an easy trip, that was for sure.

The princess was looking out over the balcony, at her city, to be sure. It was a beautiful sight, but for Gareth, it was simply a distraction. And a good one at that. Once he had confirmed the departure of the prince, he left his post in the shadows, sneaking up behind the girl, where he would snake a hand around to grab her mouth, reaching for his sword with the other hand, but not moving aggressively beyond that. Holding this pose, he spoke to her before she could get a word out.

"If you don't struggle, I will not hurt you. If you scream, you're going to sleep. Either way, you're coming with me. What'll it be, Princess?"