Nathan stood in his exquisite hotel room in front of a large mahogany bed, engrossed in the papers he held in his hand. Every once in a while, he bent down to look at the map spread over the only table in the room. The horseshoe-shaped island on the map was covered with hand-written labels.

Nathan picked up a marker and jotted down another label, a smile spreading over his face. But a sudden knock on the door snapped him out of his thoughts.

"Coming," he called. "Oh, Pyke. Come in."

"Hi, Nathan," Pyke said. "I see Rafael gave you a map. How are the preparations going?"

"I take it that Rafael told you about the plan?"

"Yes, he did."

Nathan walked towards the map. "Doing pretty good. There are still a couple of unknowns, but I should be able to confirm most of them during today's dinner. Some extra steps need to be taken before the test starts, and some strings need to be pulled. But considering the limitations, I think the plan is doing exceptionally well."

"You're enjoying this aren't you?" Pyke laughed.

Nathan chuckled. "Why wouldn't I? It's satisfying when people do what you want them to do. And even more so when they don't even realise they do."

"Can't argue with that," Pyke said, reaching into his pocket. "Can you tell me what this was all about?" He handed Nathan a small piece of paper.

"Oh, this." Nathan took it. “’Make me go last and make my RTD a 9',” he read. "This was part of the plan. I won't bore you with the details, but essentially, I needed to attract everyone's attention for the second part of the plan to work. And what better way to do it than to display strength unlike any other? Last place is the most memorable, and if anyone turned out to be stronger than I expected, I could just work a little harder to keep from being overshadowed,” Nathan said in one breath, never turning away from the map.

"Jesus, you really love your plans, don't you?" Pyke laughed. "I usually like a more straightforward approach, but I admire your patience and planning. Keep it up."

"Thank you."

"If you'd like to broaden your skill set, I'm always down for a session of pickpocketing and sleight of hand."

"You can do that?" Nathan said, glancing up at Pyke.

"It's one of the things I'd say I'm good at."

"That's pretty damn cool!" Nathan smiled excitedly. "I'll gladly take you up on that offer once this whole thing is over. I'll teach you some cold reading in exchange, if you'd like me to."

"I've heard from Rafael that you're good at that. He knows some basics, too, but he was never anywhere near your father. He was probably nowhere near as good as you are, either. It's a deal," Pyke said, stretching out his hand. "This time, no notes. Please."

"No notes," Nathan said, grabbing the man's outstretched palm.

"You do know I had to change a lot of stuff at the last second in order to fulfil your requests. I hope I'll get an extra cold reading lesson for free," Pyke winked.

"Make it two for the extra trouble."

"Great. I'll see you around, then. Don't forget, dinner starts at six."

"Don't worry, I definitely won't. I need to be there the whole time, anyway."

"Good. Well, enjoy the rest of your evening. And that," Pyke said, pointed at the map.

"Roger."

Nathan checked his phone as Pyke left. 5:55 p.m. He might as well head down. Grabbing a pen and paper in case he should need to pass more notes, he flung open the door to leave. But as he did, he saw someone he hadn’t expected.

"Oh. Maya, wasn't it?" he said.

"Ah, yes. I—I'm sorry. I mean, me and my friends wanted to go and secure some good spots in the restaurant before it got crowded. Would you mind joining us?"

Nathan paused. "I don't see why I couldn't do that." With a glance to his right, he took in the group of three bystanders. For some reason, Maya wasn't moving. "I don't think you should keep your friends waiting," he prompted.

"Ah! Yes. Let's go."

The group of five was the first to arrive at the restaurant. According to the waiter, they were given the best seats in the house.

"Fancy," exclaimed Simon, looking at the menu. "I wonder if they cook as good as they fight."

"I doubt it's the assassins cooking here, you moron," Maya said.

"That was a joke," Simon growled. They glared at each other.

Nathan ignored the bickering, scanning the menu in search of something to keep him full for a long period of time. But his concentration was interrupted by a sudden question.

"So, Nathan,” Maya began, “I’ve been wanting to ask—do we know each other?”

"Do we know each other? No. Have we met? Yes," Nathan replied, his eyes still on the menu.

"Where have we met? Wait. . . don't tell me. You were that man who saved me back there!"

"'Saved me back there' is rather vague, but I would assume we have the same event in mind." Nathan raised his eyes from the menu and smiled slightly.

"What do you mean by 'saved you'?" asked Simon.

Maya twisted towards him. "You remember how I said I was almost shot?"

"Yeah, you said you barely escaped."

"Well, that was a lie."

"How can you say that with a straight face?"

"Practice. Anyways, what really happened was that somebody shot at me. But this guy," she said, pointing at Nathan, "he jumped in and knocked the guy out so he couldn't hit me. Or something like that. I had my back towards him back then and it was dark, so I didn't recognise him right away. So it really is you, huh?"

Nathan silently studied the menu.

"You're awfully unsociable, you know that?"

"I've been told."

"But you don't seem to care."

"And you're awfully perceptive."

The waiter’s arrival interrupted their exchange. After they ordered their food, the table went silent and people started flooding into the restaurant. Surprisingly, not all of them were contestants. Nathan wasn’t sure who they were, but from the way they walked, they definitely weren't cleaning ladies or cooks. They were dangerous.

"Here they come," Maya snarled, noticing a group in the doorway. The man at the front constantly smirked. Three of his four lackeys looked as if they owned the place. The fourth walked behind them, staring into his phone.

They stopped at an occupied table in the middle of the room. "Fuck off. This is my spot," the leader shouted.

There were four people seated at the table. To the best of Nathan’s memory, they were all independent candidates who had formed their group after the first exam. They had all passed with around seventy points, so they weren’t exceptionally strong. Judging by the way they deserted the table without a fight, they knew it, too.

"Fucking arrogant idiots. Can't you do something about them?" Maya asked Nathan.

"Huh?"

"Could you do something about those idiots?" Maya repeated, pointed at the group of five sitting down to their plundered table.

"And why would I do that? They’re still useful. Especially Mark and Mike."

"What are you talking about? What use could those idiots have?" Maya snorted.

"Even a blunt knife is good for spreading butter."

"You mean to tell me you think even those morons have some use? What use could they have? Bunch of arrogant incels."

Maya was growing heated. She opened her mouth to say more, but before she could, Simon stepped in. "I think that's enough, Maya. I don't want any more trouble tonight. Please."

"Fine."

"So, Nathan—where do you know the supervisor from?” Simon asked, changing the subject. Manny and Ann perked up.

"I know his father."

"His father?" Simon tilted his head.

"Yes. He's my mentor, so to speak. His father and mine taught me everything I know."

"Is your father also an assassin?!" Maya shouted.

"For god's sake, Maya." Simon rubbed his left ear.

"I'm sorry," she said, embarrassed.

Nathan chortled. "Yes, he's an assassin as well. But I think that's enough about me for now. What about you? How did such a weird group end up at this entrance exam?" Nathan bent forwards, resting his chin in his hands.

"Well, that's kind of a long story," Manny piped up. "I knew Simon from when we were kids. We used to go to the same middle school. I met Maya through Simon, since they were best friends from even before that. I never really talked with her that much, but I knew her. And somehow, we ended up here. But you knew some of that already, didn’t you?"