Desin, which was now a territory belonging to the Republic of Francois, was far livelier than the ruined state it used to be in, after the East-West Alliance attacked the Southern Continent. As a city that bordered the Southern Assembly, it was a place of strategic importance, especially since it had a passageway to the Intersection.

Which meant that Gaius probably didn’t need to go to Elinaris to find a branch of the Information Brokers. The Information Brokers were a neutral organisation, whose sole purpose was to get rich off supplying information as and when needed. Word on the streets was that nothing in this world could get occur without the Information Brokers knowing, but as to how they actually achieved that was a question everyone had on their minds.

Their members were bound to secrecy, and rumours about how they would choose death over surrendering information for free came hand-in-hand with praises for their extensive coverage of all things new and juicy. It was an organisation that Gaius liked, but he had no idea how to become a member.

The boy hummed as he walked down the streets. He couldn’t do that in the North, since everyone was on the lookout for an eleven to fourteen-year-old boy walking around aimlessly and fearlessly. The heroics of the Lost Star, where word had spread about him being able to obliterate armies with a single shot, had been disseminated throughout the world — even small families with some gold to their name had been searching for him. After all, if they caught a lucky break…

Word about his departure from the North would have reached the Pinnacle’s ears by now — Gaius didn’t put it past the Kusanagis to use this piece of information for some little titbits — but no one would have expected him to show up this quickly. His name was also a problem, but ‘Gaius’ was a rather common name in the South, which had a French and Roman theme to it for some reason.

He walked into an inn. Like their buddies in the North, the Information Brokers here didn’t have implicit discrimination based on one’s cultivation or their ability to fly; instead, they would have a branch open in the largest inn of every city. So long as one had money, they would be willing to serve.

The smell of booze, roasted food and mouth-watering spices enticed Gaius’ nose the moment he walked in. The boy abruptly recalled the odd sign he saw back in the East, where someone proclaimed themselves to be the best…roasted skewers or something, the South notwithstanding, and tilted his head. For a moment, he was torn between settling his affairs first or grabbing some food, and after a few seconds of thinking, Gaius decided to handle the more important stuff first.

After buying a small pack of skewers, the boy sidled into the queue at the counter labelled ‘Information Exchange.’ No one batted an eye — there was at least three other kids further up. Based on their attire, one of them looked like a small page from an influential family, while two others looked like children from the slums.

Gaius’ eyes lingered on the two for a moment. He had a feeling that some gangs had taken root in Desin. Sure, they probably provided some food and shelter, but he knew full well how callous some gangs could be. Making a mental note to ask Tetsu for help, Gaius placed the unease he felt into one corner, and then diverted his eyes from the children.

He was in no position to help them right now. The Human God had a vendetta against him. That alone was enough to make him wonder a few times if Nakama and Isabelle should be with him in the past few months.

Where was the Human God now? Despite his fearless exterior, Gaius knew full well that Anren was an opponent he couldn’t overcome. Despite his Paragon-level strength, the boy was no match for a Demigod — Paragon Saito had demonstrated the gap in strength vividly.

The issue was the vows that Squires had to make when they became Knights. And the boy wasn’t going to surrender his free will to some unknown entity; there had to be something else—

“Customer?”

Gaius returned from his reverie with a jolt. “M’apologies.”

The woman waved her hand airily. “It’s okay. I’m the Information Broker for Desin; what information do you need today?”

“I’m looking for a family, an ex-House of the Southern Assembly that fled to the Republic of Francois,” said Gaius. “House Lorenze.”

“House Lorenze…” She rifled through a small stack of files, before fishing one out with her right hand a few seconds later. “They’re at the Republic’s capital, Interregnum. Most of the family is employed in an administrative role within the Republic’s government. Do you need their address?”

‘Yes, please.”

After receiving five gold in payment, she gave Gaius the address, and the boy nodded in thanks. He made a few more enquiries about some other people, and after spending another twenty-five gold, he was done with his questions.

“Do you mind if I ask for your name?” asked the woman.

“It’s Gaius,” he replied. “Why?”

“I think you might be a frequent customer, so it’s good to form personal connections,” she said. “I’m Claudia. May we work together more often!”

The boy stifled a smile and nodded. He wasn’t planning to return to the South for a good few years after he reached the North, so Gaius wasn’t sure why she was that confident.

“Maybe,” the boy said evasively. “Well, I have a family to talk to, so thank you for your service.”

“Thank you for you patronage!” Claudia replied back, inclining her head somewhat. Gaius wasn’t too sure what was going on, but having good customer service felt good to him, so he wasn’t too fussed about it. It wasn’t like he could read her mind anyway.

“Still, the capital…” The boy touched his face. He’d changed the mask around to reflect that of an innocent child, but Gaius had to be careful about how he used it. Crossing through Camp Umbral with the wrong face or without a disguise could be a problem, and the boy wasn’t ready to show his hand yet.

“As always,” said Nexus, who had been silent the whole time, “we have to be careful. The capital of any nation, even new ones, are where the greatest dangers lie.”

Gaius nodded. After buying another pack of skewers, the boy returned to the Intersection, heading towards the Library once more.