The Eastern Sylvan Federation, or ESF, was one of the major nations on the Western continent, Sylvania, named after the large magical forest that covered most of its surface area. There were other countries, but most of the continent was farther north and mostly frozen wasteland. Overall, the ESF was fairly rural and more just a collection of federated city states, like Hillford.

Hillford was actually average size for the ESF, dwarfed by the capital of Rotherham, which was itself dwarfed by even an average sized Imperial city. Still, the Hillford capital building was respectful for a railway town with a population around fifty-thousand. At the same time though, it was the perfect place for nobles to hide their dirty pet projects and dungeons. The other kind of dungeon, that is.

Allen pulled Christopher’s chair out for him, allowing the professor to sit at the dinner table that had been prepared for the evening. The mercenaries posing as Federation guards were lined up at the back of the room while a few of the Governor’s servants flitted around to set the table. Allen could tell by their stern expressions that the meeting was being taken seriously, which was… actually fairly irrelevant for their purposes, but it was good to know.

[“You look really good in that outfit by the way,”] Allen said to Amelia through a separate telepathic link between just the two of them. He also allowed a bit of his own mischievousness to bleed though the link as well. Her maid outfit was fairly standard and rather formal compared to the costumes from pop culture on Earth, but it still looked good on her. Besides, she had picked it out herself, so Allen considered all teasing as fair game.

Amelia turned to glare murderously back at him. It was pretty cute, but the door opening on the other side of the room cut her off before she could spit any venom back. Allen could tell through the link that she was actually more embarrassed and flattered rather than angry, which was just the icing on the cake.

The servants scrambled to the sides of the dining room while Allen and Amelia stayed standing behind Christopher on either side, all three of them watched the line of a half-dozen people trail into the dining room, making it feel a little cramped. Most of them were guards with an average level around two-hundred, except for one at almost four-fifty. The last to enter was a shrewd looking older man dressed almost as richly as Christopher. His gaze swept over the mercenaries lined up against the wall behind Allen before hesitating on Allen himself for a moment. In some ways he seemed uncertain, but in others, the Governor was clearly confident coming into the meeting.

Name: [unknown]

Human – Scholar – Level 268

Allen caught one good look at the Governor’s eyes before realizing he was going to have to actually take the meeting seriously. Not because he thought they were in any danger, just that the usual tactics wouldn’t work; not if the Governor was actually as competent as Allen guessed. He could still very well be a sleazeball, but a competent sleazeball was much more rare and much more dangerous.

[“Okay, plan D,”] Allen said to both of his companions.

[“Excuse me? What were plans A through C?”] the professor returned.

[“I didn’t know there were any plans to begin with,”] Amelia grumped.

Allen chuckled inwardly. [“When dealing with nobles, plan A is trickery, plan B is bribery, plan C is blackmail, and plan D is diplomacy. I recommend just skipping most of the pleasantries and staying on the script.”]

[“Again, there isn’t a script,”] Amelia replied.

[“Hah, Christopher will be fine, just remember what the mercenaries told us about some of the stuff going on in Rotherham, and pretty much just make shit up. That’s what politicians normally do.”]

Amelia groaned into the link, but it was the Governor who spoke next.

“Good evening, Minister, my name is Charles Norbury,” he began with a cordial smile, sitting in his seat. “It’s my pleasure as Governor of Hillford to host your attendance, I hope you found everything well?”

Christopher pulled the lapels of his coat tight and sat up straighter than before. “Indeed, I have. I’ll admit, I haven’t been this far North of the capital recently. I always forget how much more peaceful the countryside is, compared to the capital.”

Allen tuned the introductions out, his eyes trailing over the other people in the room with a neutral expression. Most noteworthy was the woman standing behind the Governor.

Name: [unknown]

Human – Enchanter – Level [hidden]

Phantom had already told him that she was level four-hundred and forty, and Allen got the impression that she wasn’t a fighter. There were several relatively powerful auras coming off her, however.

[“Phantom,”] Allen said, casting a nearly imperceptible ripple of intent out into the ambient psychic fields.

[“I here,”] the spider responded from somewhere nearby. [“Arrow here too.”]

Allen mentally raised an eyebrow, keeping his face neutral as he wondered what Jack’s crow could be doing talking to Phantom. [“What, why is Arrow here?”]

Phantom was silent for a moment before replying. [“He say Jack try to break scrying and mental ward under city. He maybe say there is mind mage here.”] Then the spider giggled. [“Meredith also make mess.”]

“Well, that’s not too great,” Allen thought. “Hopefully he can get through it. It would be great if we could get all the information out of these slavers before they either flee or die.” Allen focused back onto the conversation as Christopher steered it towards business. [“Ok, tell Arrow to tell Jack to hurry up so we can talk, and tell him the Governor is either unaware or the leader of this cell, by my estimation.”]

Phantom sent a mental nod before releasing the link, which was weird to get from a spider, but Allen was used to it.

“I couldn’t help but notice the significant surge in the population of the slums,” Christopher said, fixing the Governor with a hard look. “Greenbell and some other smaller towns to the North and West are also experiencing this, mostly due to the refugees fleeing from the Frostgate Territory. I heard they had a… rather bad time with the Ice Wraiths this season.”

Governor Norbury nodded gravely, running a hand down his short, graying beard. “Yes, so I have heard,” he began, with a sigh. “We have taken in refugees from past winters, but never this many. I can assure you though, Minister, we plan to do everything we can to handle this crisis. We have already increased the patrols in and around the poorer districts.”

“Right, I can imagine. Part of why I am here is actually to address this issue,” Christopher supplied. The Governor nodded along, seeming visibly relieved to hear that. “Rotherham has decided that all refugees entering cities and towns after this month should be directed South. Forces will also be supplied by the capital to aid with the current refugee population.

“That’s excellent to hear. Should I assume we will receive additional funding as well?” the Governor asked.

“Indeed, of course.”

Allen followed along with the conversation. So far everything Christopher had said was true. His performance was actually really good overall. It would be sort of awkward when the real Minister arrived for his inspection and conference, but that was a bridge that Allen never planned on crossing in the first place.

“Also worthy of note is the increase in the illegal slave trade,” Christopher added. Governor Norbury’s face became grim, prompting Allen to put his full attention on the man’s mind using Inner Eye. “My colleagues and I mostly share the sentiment that this is related to the refugees. Do you have any information that might lead us to the ones trading illegal slaves. Perhaps you have received reports of refugees going missing?”

While The Governor thought up an answer, Allen could see his mind as a rolling ball of ethereal webbing. Its surface stilled as he searched his memory, then he seemed to seize on something and Allen watched him suck in a breath, yet Christopher spoke just as the Governor opened his mouth.

“I’ve gotten a report from the Capital Guard that a trading caravan calling themselves the Lanthinus company was apprehended for trafficking illegal slaves. Many of their transactions were traced back to Hillford, actually. Some of the people rescued from this caravan were even residents of Silt Valley, which if I recall correctly, is within your jurisdiction.”

Christopher narrowed his eyes as the Governor sat still in his chair. Though inwardly, his mind was a mess of fast moving thoughts. Of course, Allen couldn’t read the man’s mind, but he could still see his thoughts racing. It was a little like looking at a FMRI scan and seeing certain parts of his brain light up. That alone didn’t mean he was guilty, but it was still suspicious. On the other hand, the Enchanter woman behind him seemed to have come to her own conclusion, whatever that was.

Nothing Christopher had just said that time was false either, other than the part about a report. Allen figured that would be enough. [“He’s thinking, I can’t tell if he knows anything though.”] Allen offered to Amelia and the professor.

“Any information you can provide on the Lanthinus company would be helpful. Needless to say, the capital will be conducting an investigation.” Christopher added.

[“That didn’t seem to make him any more anxious. Point in his favor,”] Allen supplied.

With a smooth motion, the woman behind the Governor leaned forward and whispered something into his ear so quietly that Allen couldn’t hear anything. Whatever it was she had said, it solidified her boss’s thoughts.

Governor Norbury cleared his throat. “Ah yes, I remember now. The Lanthinus company,” he said, seeming relieved. “They were found to be selling cursed items and chemical weapons, so I banned them from doing business in Hillford. Unfortunately, they just set up shop right outside of the Hillford city border, so there was nothing I could do. I was just about to send a request to the capital when they suddenly disappeared. I’m sorry to say that I simply forgot about it. I have been very busy lately, as I’m sure you can understand.” The man looked shaken as he finished his exposition with a forced smile. Christopher’s face had remained unchanged throughout the entire thing, which was more than a little unsetting.

[“He looks very nervous,”] Amelia pointed out.

[“I agree,”] Christopher added.

[“That’s true,”] Allen began, his attention moving between the Governor’s slightly frazzled mind, and the calm mind of the Enchanter standing behind him. [“But that doesn’t necessarily mean he’s guilty of anything. There’s a difference between guilty-nervous and innocent-nervous. Try showing him the papers.”] Allen suggested, trying his best to keep an eye on two minds at the same time. He wasn’t a lie detector, but he still had a good idea of what a person’s mind looked like when they were caught red handed. He had yet to see anything like that for certain.

“If you wish, I can look for any public records there might be,” the Governor started, “but I couldn’t do much to help you with a private investigation.”

“Why don’t you take a look at this,” Christopher said, taking a few papers out of his inventory. It was most of what Jack, Shoam, and Clara had managed to find in the past few days of tracking down the Lanthinus company’s dealings, as well as the company’s own ledger with all the false orders of bulk potatoes and radishes. Among those false orders were a couple that were delivered to the Charles Norbury himself.

The Governor picked up the documents and glanced over the first page. Allen watched his mind pause mid-thought just as his eyebrows snapped together. He looked over his shoulder at all the servants in the room and swallowed a lump in his throat. “All of you, out please,” he said in a commanding tone.

Allen nodded at the mercenaries, and they left with everyone else, leaving only the five of them. The Governor signaled his Enchanter assistant and waited for her to throw up a quick privacy barrier. Allen checked with Phantom, confirming that it was only blocking sound.

The Governor took a deep breath and tapped the stack of papers against the table. “I have to say, this is concerning,” he began. “I do not recall buying several thousand potatoes,” he said with genuine confusion, Allen was sure of it. “How is this related to the slaves? Someone could have forged my signature?”

“Yes, well, the slaves were pack in with the potatoes, Governor,” Christopher said.

That revelation made the Governor’s mind contract even further, a sign of confusion and anxiety; the innocent-nervous kind.

[“Alright, I’m eighty percent sure it’s not this guy,”] Allen said to both his companions.

[“Who is it then?”] Amelia asked unhelpfully.

Allen figured it must be someone close to the Governor with the ability to act in his place to cover things up. If the Governor himself really wasn’t involved then the whole ordeal of tracking everyone down would be a lot easier due to the split leadership. Allen was just about to get Christopher to ask a few questions when he felt someone contact him through telepathy.

[“Whew, glad that’s done with,”] came Jack’s voice. [“I just dispelled this psychic barrier enchantment; it was fairly powerful but not above level five-hundred. I’m still looking for the mage who constructed it, gotta be around here somewhere. Anyway, we found a dungeon, the other kind of dungeon of course. I sent Arrow to give you an update. Uhhh... We also found Meredith’s trail of fucked up transmutations too, so this has to be the place. How’s it going on your end? … Allen?”]

Allen would have replied, but something else had caught his attention at the same time. He had just been ignoring the Governor’s assistant for the past few minutes since her mind hadn’t seemed to be doing anything, but right as Jack’s message came though, he had clearly seen her body tense as a ripple of thought went through her mind. It was just a small ripple, but Allen had clearly seen it happen. At first he thought she was just zoning out since she hadn’t said anything, like Amelia, but the mental ripple had revealed her mind to be highly regulated instead, as if with a skill.

[“Allen… are you alive?”]

[“Yes, I’m here,”] Allen said, struggling to keep a straight face, [“and it looks like I found that psychic mage you were looking for.”]