In Theo’s eyes, Queen Madison was a little too tall, a little too beautiful, and far too scary. Befitting of her status, she had perfectly brushed hair, some jewelry, and immolate (though somewhat understated) attire. She smiled at him in a way that reminded him of Alice.

“So, Mr. Thelza. We could idly chat about things like weapon production and trade, but frankly, I don’t care what you do on that front.” Madison watched his eyes closely, “Instead, why don’t we talk about my little sister?”

He winced at the question but regained his composure and gave a professional response, “Your majesty, I don’t understand. The second daughter of King Grivelspyre passed away years ago in the Yakaranda attack.”

“I suppose that’s true… or maybe not? Tell me Mr. Thelza, you disappeared from this estate of yours for a few days when the war came up. Where were you during your absence?”

Theo struggled to respond, “I… stayed at a hotel because I thought that there was a good chance the Demon Army would be looking for nobles.”

“Which hotel?” Her cunning was frightening. It seemed unreasonable that the Queen of Barnock would pay attention to his whereabouts, but she very obviously did.

“It was… in the southern side of the city, the side opposite from the main gate.”

“Sure, but what was the hotel’s name?”

Theo’s shoulders were tense and with every question, they rose a little more, “A-Alice’s Inn… was the name.” Telling Madison the place’s name should have been safe, since Alice had changed her name all those years ago. That shouldn’t have been much of a hint.

“Alice’s Inn? Interesting. What’s the address?”

“I… don’t remember.” That was true enough, as the Inn didn’t technically have an address.

“That’s fine. Thanks for cooperating. You saved me some time, didn’t you?”

“I’m not sure what you mean.”

“Don’t be so coy, Theodemir. Years ago, my little sister—Alisa Grivelspyre—was good friends with your mother. I had suspicions about Alisa’s death from the get-go, and since you were closely associated with her, it was only natural that you’d be added to the long list of people I keep tabs on.” Madison rose to her feet and start leaving the room, “I guess it’s time to pay her a visit… personally.”

♦

The Queen didn’t take long to find the Inn. The Warrens had been one of her favorite places to meet associates when she was still plotting her ascension to the throne, and she knew the area quite well. There with her, just in case things got out of hand, was Risitro. Both were undisguised, and extremely conspicuous.

It was late in the night by that point, and only the dim glow of lanternlight from within the Inn lit the alleyway. With evidence that someone was awake, Madison knocked on the tacky-looking double doors. After a short wait, they opened inwards.

The person answering was a colossal young man. He was huge, even for a Demon, “Hello! How are you…” Enzi’s voice trailed off when he saw General Risitro standing at the door.

“Good evening.” They shook hands, “Your name was Enzi Adeyemi, correct? You served as a solider under Lieutenant Mauli, if memory serves.”

“Y-yes.” Enzi was shocked that the General knew about someone as insignificant as him, “That’s correct, sir. What brings you somewhere like this?”

“Hmm… why indeed? I suppose the one to say should be my companion.”

Madison stepped forward. “We’re looking for my sister. Does someone called ‘Alice’ live here?”

Enzi didn’t recognize the Queen, but he did recognize Risitro. Something was very off about the situation, and even though he didn’t yet know about Alice’s past, his gut told him to err on the side of caution, “Yes, that’s the owner’s name. But they aren’t here at the moment.”

“That’s fine,” Before he could react, Madison slipped past Enzi and went inside, “We can wait.” Risitro also joined her, seemingly teleporting past him.

After establishing a firm occupancy in chair, the Queen took some coins from her pocket. Platinum. “Tell you what, Mr. Adeyemi: Bring Alice to me, and you’ll be rewarded.

Alice was up on the top floor sleeping at that point, it wouldn’t have been hard to call her down, but he didn’t. Instead, he went into the kitchen and brought out some liquor he’d bought earlier that day. Nothing fancy, just some whiskey that was barely better than moonshine, “I’d be glad to help you, but like I said, she’s not here right now. Lord knows where she went!”

“Is that so?” Madison had the same magic detection ability that every magic user did. With a presence as strong as Alice nearby, it was obvious to both Risitro and her that Enzi was lying, “That’s a shame. Pour me some of that booze, would you?”

Enzi produced a glass and poured some of it out. She gagged when she tried it.

“This tastes like poison, but I appreciate the hospitality.”

“R-right. So umm… you said you were Alice’s sister?”

“Yes. That’s correct.” Madison stared at her glass, more focused on the poor man’s booze than Enzi.

“So, uh, what’s your name? And why are you with his excellency, Prince Risitro?”

“Madison.” She took another sip.

“Madison? Isn’t that Queen’s…” Things were starting to make sense, “Oh my god…” This wasn’t just someone with the same name as the Queen, this was the Queen.

Madison glanced up at his astonished face, “I’m surprised you didn’t realize.”

He regretted speaking so casually now, “Pardon my ignorance, but if Alice is your sister, wouldn’t that make her a member of the royal family?”

“Correct,” She put the glass down, “My sister is the next in line to the throne. I can’t have her playing at being a commoner anymore.”

“I know I shouldn’t be questioning you like this, but I must ask: Why is she living out here if she’s part of the royalty?”

“You can question me however you’d like. I don’t need your subservience, so I don’t expect it from you.” She sighed, “As for the question, I don’t claim to understand to her. You’d know more about it than me.”

Risitro, after a long silence, chimed in. He was small enough to fit onto a chair, only barely, “I imagine you don’t know much of human history, so let me help. The Innkeeper here, Alissa—now Alice, I suppose—used to be one of Barnock’s national heroes. She was the greatest pyromancer in this country’s history. Because Alice was so strong, the nation was able to reduce its dependence on the Guild. She could singlehandedly handle ‘Mythrill+’ threats, which if you didn’t know, are threats that would normally require several Mythrill-ranked adventurers to deal with. Most people credit her with Barnock’s relative autonomy from the Guild’s control.”

“So, you want to use her power for something then?”

“You’re perceptive. That’s correct.”

“What for?”

“That… doesn’t concern you.” Risitro took a deep breath.

“I feel like it does. As a friend of Alice and as a citizen of this nation, I reckon that I should get to know.”

“You wouldn’t want to get involved.”

Realizing that the conversation was going nowhere, he took a seat on the stairwell and resolved to keep a watch on the esteemed guests.