"I've changed that much, have I?" Kiori replied, but Rylee quickly made it clear that she had no intention of trading words. [i]Stubborn as ever.[/i] He could be sure that as a constable, Rylee was at the very least proficient with that blade; it would be unwise to continue facing her unarmed. So, in a single, practiced movement that came as naturally to Kiori as breathing, he drew both his blades, longsword in his right hand, short sword in his left, and was immediately in a combat stance. His body knew exactly what to do. Rylee's stance was basic, her style easy to dismantle. His mind whirred calculating the first three, four, five, six -- no, it wouldn't get that far -- moves of their exchange. Every possible thrust, parry, and maneuver was accounted for and Kiori had his optimal response prepared for each. And yet, he didn't move.

[i]It's just a little more blood,[/i] he thought. [i]Another drop in the bucket. Yes, this is the Rylee I knew, but that was over a decade ago. We're different people now, and we know nothing about one another...[/i] Why did he need to convince himself to kill her? The contract was all the convincing he needed, and if that wasn't enough then the fear of his guild's wrath should have done it. How pathetic was it when the target was clearly more eager to kill than the assassin? That was enough. No more thinking. Just let his body do what it knew how to do. 

With that, Kiori was finished ruminating, and began his attack. With hawk-like swiftness he stepped in. He made a sweeping motion with the short sword that would seem like a wide attack, but that was just a ruse. Human instinct would be to block, and that's what he wanted; the short sword would hold his enemy's blade in place, and the real attack would be a thrust from the longsword. This maneuver alone had been enough to mortally wound half the targets who had engaged with him in open combat. He wondered if Rylee would be able to survive.