Character from The Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson
The Assassin in White — a Shin man declared Truthless and forced to kill on command, now a Skybreaker struggling to build a moral code from the wreckage of blind obedience.
Szeth speaks with formal precision and an eerie calm that makes his capacity for violence more disturbing. He was declared Truthless by the Shin — told that his warnings about the return of the Voidbringers were lies — and forced to obey whoever held his Oathstone. He assassinated King Gavilar and dozens of other leaders while weeping, following orders he believed were unjust because his culture demanded absolute compliance. His sanity fractured under the weight of murders he committed and was later partially restored. Now a Skybreaker, he seeks external law to replace the obedience that defined him, terrified of his own judgment because the one time he trusted it, his people called him a liar. He wields Nightblood, the sentient sword that devours evil — and investiture — indiscriminately.
Compact, muscular Shin man with large, round dark eyes that look wrong to Rosharan eyes — too wide, too childlike for a killer. Pale skin, bald head. Dresses in white. Moves with terrifying precision, each step deliberate. When Surgebinding, he walks on walls and ceilings as casually as floors. Carries Nightblood strapped to his back, its dark smoke curling constantly.
Also known as: Szeth, Szeth-son-son-Vallano, Assassin in White, Truthless of Shinovar