It took some time for Gaius to convince Isabelle that he didn’t find any gratification in being scolded, but the fact that he had smiled while she called him an idiot lovingly wasn’t doing him any favours whatsoever.

“Well, at least you’re smiling,” Isabelle replied. For some reason, she was in the mood to rub his cheeks and hair, but again, that was Isabelle’s default setting whenever they were alone at home or in private. Only in the Wildlands did she not commit to such actions — she probably couldn’t find the right time.

To Gaius, though, any time was the right time, but he really couldn’t bring himself to vocalise that bit. It would sound like he wanted to be spoiled. He did want to be spoiled, but he couldn’t quite say that.

It would hurt his image.

“Was I really not smiling for the past few days?” Gaius asked. “What did I look like, then?”

“Hmm. A man with a mission, I guess? Like a soldier headed off to death?” Isabelle wondered out loud. “You didn’t look all that normal.”

A small eyeball flew out of Gaius’ pocket at those words. “He’s never normal, though.”

“Oh, hey, Oculus.” Isabelle reached out and grabbed the floating eyeball. “Totally forgot you were here. What have you been up to?”

“Sleeping?” Oculus replied, struggling slightly as it tried to worm out of Isabelle’s hand. Unfortunately, eyeballs were round, which meant that Oculus’ attempts to free itself from Isabelle weren’t going anywhere. “Unhand me, lady!”

“Oh. Okay.” Isabelle released the little fellow, who, in a moment of apparent shock, fell onto the ground. “Hey, are you alright? Why did you fall?”

“I wasn’t really expecting you to unhand me…” The eyeball groaned — somehow — before floating off the ground. “Anyway, I heard that you two are heading back to the Heaven-cleaving Fortress.”

“Uh-huh. What of it?” Gaius asked. He was in the mood to banter now, after Isabelle’s words, so he didn’t mind playing along with the eyeball. It didn’t help that Oculus’ aesthetics, which didn’t have all the usual icky bits, had grown on him somewhat.

“Well…” The eyeball spun on the spot. It made some hemming noises, twirling around like…a person who didn’t dare to speak his or her mind.

“Is it me,” Isabelle whispered, “or is Oculus actually nervous?”

“Not just you, that’s for sure. He’s definitely nervous. Or she. Or some appropriate gender pronoun, whatever,” Gaius whispered back. “It’s practically screaming ‘What should I say?’ over and over with its body language.”

“You have a very good point,” Isabelle replied.

“I always have good points,” Gaius replied. Clearing his throat, he turned to Oculus. “Go on, spit it out. Don’t just stand there and spin around nervously.”

“Well…there were many like me around you,” said Oculus. “Lots of my kind.”

“Lots of eyeballs?” Gaius asked.

“No, no.”

“Are you talking about Nexus and the other intelligent artefacts?” Isabelle asked. “Lightning, Stone and the army of sentient little soldiers?”

The eyeball fidgeted.

“Alright,” said Gaius. “Just approach Nexus normally, and that would do. Don’t do anything stupid. Anyway, were you sleeping the whole time?”

“Not, not really. Anyway, what’s wrong?” Oculus asked. “Did something bad happen? Your mental state isn’t…all that good. As if you just returned to normal. You’re barely hanging—”

“Enough about that,” said Gaius, cutting off the eyeball’s words. “Let’s head back first. I want some good food …some properly cooked food from Isabelle.”

“Your wish is my command, dear.” Isabelle grinned. “But are we going to cook in our room? Do we even have stoves? Is that even allowed?”

“You’re talking to the person who can create items. And who’s going to say no to me anyway?” Gaius clicked his tongue. “I’ll beat them up if anyone complains — it’s not like anyone can stop me now.”

“Have you forgotten how the Demon God died?” Isabelle asked.

“I’m not dumb enough to mess with the North’s Peacebringers, but I don’t think they’ll be able to hit me,” Gaius replied. “Don’t worry. I’ve been thinking up of ways to counter those weapons, in case things go…south.”

“And why would you create plans like this?” Isabelle asked.

“You know, because these are plans,” Gaius replied. “If these weapons ever take aim at me…well, knowing how to deal with them is the bare minimum, isn’t it? I’m practically someone who is on the same level of the great gods. I won’t be surprised if my name’s on the list.”

“Why would Kolya try to kill you?”

“I’m just hypothesising,” Gaius replied, flicking a glance at Oculus. “There might come a time when…I cross blades with the North.”

“So dramatic. You sure like acting mysterious.” Isabelle rapped his head.

“As Abyss Sovereign, being mysterious is pretty much in my job description,” Gaius replied. “Still, I wonder where’s Weiwu. Guy’s been gone for a long time.”

“Anyway, let’s go back. We’ve been standing around for long enough.”

Gaius sent out another wave of grey power at the ruined camp, wiping it out completely. Whatever ashes that had remained, whatever scant clues that had survived his first cleansing, had been completely destroyed. “Yes, let’s return.”

There was nothing to it — he could not risk the chance of conflict breaking out, even if he had to impede justice itself.

The Five Lands were still too unstable, too fractured. From what the Republic’s Minister of State had said, the developments of this war were now pitting one nation against the others; the governments of the Five Lands were treating the others as competitors.

Something like this could very well shatter the uneasy peace.

Gaius was about to fly off with Isabelle when she shook. The habit of checking the Twilight Observer had been ingrained in her; whenever they were preparing to leave, she would use that artefact to check their surroundings.

It was a reaction that he had gotten used to in the past few days; Isabelle would always respond in such a manner whenever she saw something disturbing through the Twilight Observer.

“What’s going on?” Gaius asked.

Isabelle hesitated.

“Tell me!”

She bit her lips. “A mutiny broke out in one of the East’s forward camps.”

Gaius considered her words for a moment. “What’s happening in that camp now? Is the mutiny underway?”

“Knights showed up. The rioting soldiers have been suppressed.” Isabelle took a deep breath. “These soldiers are about to be executed.”

Closing his eyes for a moment, Gaius said, “Lead the way.”