“Still, to involve the Moons in a battle like this sounds a bit low,” Nero muttered. “Doesn’t really suit my tastes.”

“We don’t know how many mana circuits the enemy has, to begin with. You speak of fairness and your tastes, but they don’t matter if the enemy's alive and we’re dead.” Risti played with her cup. “And besides, we submitted to the authority of the Moons. It’s their prerogative to keep us alive and kicking, right? Submitting their mana and blood to the Moons is the fastest way of covering our own rear ends.”

“I like that idea,” Count Daybreak replied. “Normally, if something we can’t handle pops up, we ask for help from our superiors. I would ask the new Duke Istrel, but the young duke is a bumbling fool who can’t unsheathe a sword even if the handle is coloured in bright red and has a label that says ‘Pull me’.”

“That’s one heck of an insult,” Dia noted, amused. She hadn’t seen the new duke yet; in fact, Farah and Count Nightfall hadn’t seen the new duke either. In that case…

“You’ve met the new duke before?”

“Before he became the duke, yes,” Count Daybreak replied. “Hunting trip. Let’s just say that the guy wasn’t the sharpest arrow in the quiver and leave it at that. With any luck, we can bypass a useless superior and use the Moons to deal with our problems from now on.”

“The way you say that…what, do you have a method to contact the Moons?”

“Hard not to, to be honest. The Moon Emissary popped up from my county, after all. Now that the barrier’s gone, I should be able to call them for help,” Count Daybreak replied.

“Yeah, you do that,” said Nero. “We should be going soon, I guess, but just in case…”

“Just in case?”

“We’ll protect you while you contact the Moons and tell them about the Red God’s Bearer of destiny,” said Nero. “The enemy has a very troublesome set of skills that revolve around the most dramatic saves and the best timing for things to happen. For all you know, you might be killed a bit before you manage to make that all-important report.”

“Yeah, I know. I’m scared. People that can manifest out of nowhere at the worst possible timing…that’s no joke.” The count shivered. “Thanks for the protection. We should get started on it. Still, I didn’t really think of such an idea. Relying on someone stronger means you’ll be at their mercy…but it’s a bit odd for me to say that, right?”

“Coming from you?” Dia chuckled, and then toyed with the floral-print cup in her hands. “Absolutely. Someone who couldn’t even prepare for something like this…”

The count sniffed.

“Stop sniffling, old man.” Nero looked at him. “You’re a few centuries old. Anyway, we should get moving. While that Bearer of Destiny is unlikely to activate the Absolute skill again, we don’t want to bet on that.”

After rushing the count, the four of them headed into the depths of the Daybreak Palace. The sun motif, though tacky, made Dia’s mood lift.

It couldn’t be helped, though. The Moons’ influence over the Umbra…err, Istrel Sovereignty meant that the daylight was a lot weaker now. Seeing the bright suns inscribed in this place had an invigorating effect on her, especially after the creepy darkness of last night.

“Normally,” said Dia, “such bright decorations would have been off-putting.”

“Agreed.” Risti chuckled. “But I can say this with full certainty. Under the current climate, this is the best choice of inner décor.”

“I’m glad you like it, although we really didn’t have much of a choice back then. I mean, it’s called Daybreak County, so we had to live up to the name from the ancestors, right?” The count shook his head. “Unlike neighbouring Farah, there was no reason for me to forsake the name…and therefore, the decoration had to fit it.”

“So it’s your ancestor’s fault…”

“Yeah. We’re the true-blue long-lasting territory name.” The count was oddly proud about that. “Never has our name changed once!”

“Mhm, impressive.” Dia nodded. “Okay, moving on…what do you need to contact the Moons anyway?”

“We’re close. Don’t rush old men, alright?”

After walking past a huge picture with a five-coloured sun — which made no sense — the four of them stopped at a door. Cold air blasted out as the count opened it, and Dia shivered.

“Why is this room so cold?” Nero asked, wrapping himself with a layer of mana. “Dude, something wrong with you?”

“Not my fault. It’s the Cold Moon Jade Screen that’s making it really cold,” Count Daybreak replied. “Uh, it’s the means of communication between me and the Moons, just so you know. Come on, before the Red God’s Bearer of Destiny decides to off us somehow.”

Filing into the room, Count Daybreak approached the jade screen, which was a shimmering, tri-coloured mirror of sorts. It was a mesmerising sight to behold, and Dia wanted to reach out for it.

“Don’t,” said Risti. “It’s going to freeze your fingers off or something. Maybe you’ll become a vassal of the Moons just by touching it, and your skin would start glowing in three colours.”

“That’s scary…”

“Knock it off, kids.” The count took a step forward and touched the screen, which rippled. “Moon Emissary, I, Count Daybreak, request an audience to inform you of news regarding Bearers of Destiny.”

The screen rippled, and a simple full moon appeared. “Speak.”

Count Daybreak glanced around uneasily, and then produced the blood-soaked cotton and the mana instruments that Risti had sold for an exorbitant price. “The Red God’s Bearer of Destiny has appeared in my domain, attempting to conduct a blood sacrifice and to assassinate me.”

“Your news is welcome. We will hunt him down.”

The full moon on the jade screen faded, and Dia blinked as the two items that Count Daybreak was holding vanished with it.

“That’s it?” Nero asked.

“What a letdown,” Risti muttered.

“Are you guys perhaps mistaken about something?” Count Daybreak asked. “Look here. Normally, the Moon Emissary doesn’t even respond to normal reports or whatever. I’ve tried contacting them a few times, and they only ever respond if you tell them that you have really important issues…although you probably don’t want to lie about the severity. It’s rare that we actually got a promise, you know.”

“Really?” Dia asked. “How many times have you tried talking to the Moons anyway?”

“Twenty-odd times,” Count Daybreak replied. “They responded very rarely, but they do issue summons sometimes. Like when the second Moon-aligned Bearer of Destiny died.”

“Moon-aligned?” Dia asked.

The count cleared his throat and turned away from the screen. Pushing the door open, he walked over to a nearby window and said, “Let’s see if there’s any lightning bolts or moonbeams falling on certain areas, shall we?”

“You know, you’re not doing a particularly good job of changing the subject…”

“Hush, dear child, and speak not truths.” The count looked out. “Still, I suppose the Moons will be watching and waiting. Since they’ve taken his blood and mana, I daresay, they’ll act the moment the enemy screws up. The moment he lets out some blood or mana…”

The count snickered like a stereotypical villain.

“Alright, enough of this villain-like act. The more we play into it, the more it feels like the Red God’s Bearer is a hero or something,” Dia replied. “Let’s just move on to our next goal, which is going home. We’re done here, and your county has been screwed over enough by an unfortunate turn of events, so much so that none of us feel like screwing you over anymore.”

“Of course, if Count Nightfall sends us here again because you sent assassins after him…” Risti smirked. “We’ll be very pissed. And you won’t like it.”

“Finally, the issue of our payment.” Nero folded his arms. “Bust out your treasury keys. It’s time to take our rewards! Don’t even think of weaselling out of it either.”

“Don’t worry. A noble never reneges on his words—”

“—until it’s the right time to do so,” Dia completed. “A person can tell their truth their entire life, just so they can tell the right lie at the right place. But I don’t think the time to lie is now, is it?”

The count looked at Dia. “I have no idea how that little girl got a double as bright as you.”

“Just get a double yourself,” Dia replied, annoyed. The way the count put it insinuated that Princess Dia — which was actually herself to begin with — didn’t deserve a subordinate of such quality, and she didn’t like it.

“Good doubles are hard to come by, alright? Not everyone can find someone like you.” The count shook his head. “Still, I wonder how Duke Lustre is feeling. His daughter, to date, hasn’t even sent a single sign back about her wellbeing. If you can contact your mistress, you should definitely tell her to write back or something.”

Dia didn’t know whether she should feel pleased or not about that particular statement, but the second bit drew her attention somewhat. Of course, with Aunt Lumine already aware of her whereabouts, this didn’t seem to be a problem, but her father probably wanted a letter.

Still, how would she even send it?