Inside the office, a maid came by to pour tea for Uncle Paul and me before leaving the room, closing the door behind her.

"Is it really sure for us to stay here for that long, Lord Paul?"

"Are you worried about Rebecca and the others?"

"Yes. Wasn’t it you who said they were in danger, which is why you needed me to protect them?"

The Grandduchy of Bellevue was a large territory across the kingdom, and so were its many cities and especially its capital.

Following the same expansion that Beaufort experienced after the disasters, the main cities that once comprised the entirety of the Grandduchy of Bellevue underwent a massive process that linked all the nearby cities to form a single gigantic megalopolis known as the GrandCapital, which was easily twenty times larger than the entirety of Beaufort.

As a result, there was a significant distance between the Douglas main castle, which had once been part of a different city, and the one where the royal palace was. An entire half-day of carriage riding was required of us to, from the Douglas main castle, reach the royal district, where the royal palace could be found.

For the time being, Lord Paul and I remained in another Douglas family castle near the royal palace.

Though I could understand why I was here, I could not comprehend why Lord Paul was there, as it had been two days since our audience with the crown, and as far as I was aware, Jeff and Rebecca were left alone in the main castle; their father wasn't even there, as he just before we bid us all farewell for a trip to the cold mountain of Felicty.

"It’s fine. As I told you the other day, the protection I had requested of you was not physical; our presence in the capital serves as a deterrent to any harm that could be directed at them. They are safe. As of now, I doubt anyone would be bold, if not fool enough, to try anything against them."

"I see, but may I ask what we're doing here? I understand I'm here, mostly, for the party that is tomorrow, but what else are we doing? What are you waiting for, Uncle Paul? Because you are waiting for something, aren’t you?"

From behind his desk, he looked at me, calmly sipping his tea, and then said, "Yes, I was indeed waiting for someone to—" He wasn't even done talking that, midsentence, when the door from which the maid left opened, revealing Allas, Uncle Paul's butler, who, upon receiving a nod, prompted Uncle Paul to announce, "You're in luck; you're about to see the answer to your question. Come with me. Our guests have arrived."

Following Uncle Paul and Allas, I was led to a corridor with, at its end, a door on which was carved the Hound sigil of the Douglas family.

"When we meet our guest, could I ask of you to—," Uncle Paul began, then abruptly stopped, looking at me up and down, before correcting, "Actually, nevermind."

As the doors opened wide, we walked into a room where, inside, a large table awaited us. Inside, each of the eleven men seated at that table, upon noticing our arrival, stood up.

"Gentlemen, please sit back."

I proceeded to the head of the table, where I was assigned a seat slightly behind and beside Uncle Paul's. The seat granted me a clear view of each of the people sitting at the table.

Before actually taking a seat, Lord Paul made a speech: "Before actually proceeding with this reunion, I would like to individually extend my gratitude to everyone for their presence, for I know well that each one of you considers his or her time very valuable, which it rightfully is."

With these opening words, Lord Paul proceeded to name everyone’s name at the table. It didn't take me long to understand, based on their gazes and the nods they gave me at each of their individual introductions, that the whole thing was arranged for my sake and so that I could become familiar with their identities.

As Uncle's introduction went on, I came to realize, as I had already understood from the presence of a few familiar faces, that none of the people seated at that very table were little personalities.

Each one of them, as suggested by their names and their titles, was a high-ranking noble and a powerhouse in the kingdom. Among them were even a few whom I remember seeing during our royal audience.

Introducing the last person at the table, Uncle presented "Lord Marcel Summerhall, one of Bellevue’s three grandministers."

I remembered the man clearly; he was the one who, during the audience, made the sarcastic remark on what Maa pulled out two years ago.

The man, the Grandminister, nodded at me at the moment his name was called, which prompted Uncle Paul to proceed on. "This being done, I would also like to thank you not only for your time but also for your courage, for in spite of your actual knowledge of the risks and consequences of assisting at this gathering, you still made the conscious choice of coming." Speaking these words, Uncle Paul and everyone present threw a glance at the four empty seats at the table. "Those words being said, I believe, gentlemen, that we may proceed."

With these words, it was as though the room’s atmosphere finally loosened; among them, whispers were exchanged, while some immediately proceeded to light up their cigars.

I was mostly clueless as to what was going on here, but I had come to the clear understanding that each of these people, various though most of their actual positions were, were associates of the Douglas.

While I was expecting them to immediately dive into complicated matters, that was not the case; instead, the low whispers turned into chatter that got more and more remarkable, so much so that it prompted Lord Paul to ask, "Is there some intervention you wish to make, Lord Vermillion? Lord Belsante? Lord Reevie?"

The men clearly had something to say, but instead of intervening, they all looked at each other, waiting for one of them to take the first step, until one of them decided to speak for all of them.

"Lord Douglas, my colleagues and I indeed have something to say."

"Then please voice it, Lord Vermillion; I am curious as to what it is."

"My colleagues and I have questions."

"Questions?"

"We are curious, Lord Douglas. What is exactly going on? Not so long ago, we were crippled of one of our precious associates due to the action of the aristocracy and your well-known ties with them; the week after that, you mysteriously disappeared; and less than a week after your reapparition, you mysteriously went on a month-long pilgrimage across the kingdom, only to, at your return, voice such a ridiculous demand to the crown. We would like to know what the meaning of this is."

"I have heard your words, Lord Vermillion, yet your question still leaves me perplexed. May I interpret that your actual question is "Is the boat sinking?""

"No, that was not what I meant, Lord Douglas. I am not a rat. And I would like to believe neither of us are."

"Yet, if I’m not wrong, that's what the church calls us."

"I would simply like to know what you are up to, Lord Douglas. You appear to be involved in a business that I—we believe does not benefit us in any way. Instead, we feel that whatever business you are currently undertaking —it is drawing unnecessary hostility toward us, and this from none other than the Royal Family."

Several heads at the table nodded, agreeing with Lord Vermillion.

"I see, so that’s what it was about. Since I finally understand what specifically was bothering you, gentlemen, allow me to "specifically" address it. What binds us, gentlemen, are friendship, kinship, and business. Mostly business. As such, I would like to remind you gentlemen that, in spite of having "crippled" us of an associate, the event of two months ago permitted us to free ourselves of a thorn in the side. In case it wasn’t clear enough, our cooperation and our business would no longer be hindered by Archbishop Sullivah’s rat-hunting crusades. I believe among you, there are quite a few who have already harvested plenty of benefits from that poor man's death, haven’t you?"

Guilty glances were exchanged among the gentlemen at the table.

"You may have lost a collaborator. I’m sure you’ve already more than doubled what he was worth in your eyes. You may not be rats, but we can't deny our scavenging nature."

"As for the second part of your question, I believe we are all responsible businessmen, each capable of doing our own risk assessment on businesses we undertake. Have I ever come to any of you seeking details of one of your transactions?"

At Uncle Paul's question, each of the men at the table shook their heads, satisfying Uncle Paul enough to put an end to the topic and proceed, "Perfect, I believe with this cleared, we can each return to what the Cabal is all about, which is to support each other, and that's what today’s assembly is for. If anyone has something to add, please do speak; if not, I believe it is time for us to talk about what we all live for: "business."

***

Uncle Paul’s reunion with his collaborators came, "You’ve found it boring, didn’t you?" he asked, as we were left alone after having bid each one of them farewell.

"No, it was very educational."

"If you want to lie, you’d want to learn to do it properly. Come with me."

Once again I followed him across the castle, and it was while doing so that I ventured the question, "Uncle, what kind of relationship do you hold with these people? I got that they were mostly there for business, but… like high-ranking as they are, are they really fine with the fact that you are linked with the aristocracy."

"As you’ve seen, they aren’t. If I were to describe their position towards the aristocracy, it would be similar to most nobles' opinions on it. It is just that people of their kind don’t dwell much on what isn’t their business or isn’t interfering with their business. To answer your question in simpler terms, they are not allies; unless bothered, they are what we might call "neutrals"."

"I see."

"Addressing my former question, Uncle Paul said, "As to what they are to the Douglas family and the Douglas conglomerate, consider them as the actual factor, besides our lands, wealth, and army, that mainly played into the actual fact that we Douglas still have our heads attached to our necks and still live without consequence among nobles, even after what one of us pulled out to the world two years ago."

"So that's how it was..."

"The Cabal. That’s how we used to call that administrative, collaborative board that we formed, but as of now, it is becoming less and less of a cabal and more of an organization, all thanks to Eirwein’s brothers. "

"Them? "Is it connected to what happened at Barrista Manor?"

"Yes, the Barrista family was working with an associate of ours, an old acquaintance of Mathilda and I, who, within the Cabal, was the only one who did adhere to your aristocratic claims. Under Archbishop Sullivah's watch, the Barrista's betrayal was a blow he could not recover from. Things simply took a fatal turn for him with that rash, sudden, and violent attack on the Barrista manor," he explained, his tone bitter.

"Regrettable as that loss may have been, it is with relief that I welcome the chokehold-releasing freedom the cabal today enjoys," he said, looking at me in the corner of his eyes with a slight smile on his face.

"Uncle, are you actually thanking me for getting rid of the archbishop for you?"

"Humph. It is a macabre thing to rejoice in someone's death. But I would be lying if I were to say I wasn't," he said, his lips arching into a smile, letting out a chuckle.

"If it pleases Uncle, I could... cough cough... the Holy Paladin... if Uncle knows what I mean," I proposed, feeling there was no better time to make that suggestion.

Uncle came to a halt in his stride, staring at me with an expression I couldn't tell if it was disappointment or incredulity, but when he asked his next question, I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Could you do it?"

"Easily. He is alone. He might fight back, or run, but I can make it so he won’t even have the opportunity to fight back or even consider the attempt of running away," I proposed.

"As horrifyingly methodical and expeditive as that proposition of yours was, I would rather not take it. Unlike my sister, I am a peaceful man. You are here for the apostle’s remnants. You will have it. There is still hope for a bloodless acquisition. As such, I would like to consider violence my very last resort. I would appreciate it if you were to do so too, for as long as we stand together. "

"Understood, Uncle."

Standing by the doorstep of a large door, Uncle ventured, "But if there comes a time when violence is absolutely necessary—"

The door was opened from within by Allas, who appeared to have been waiting for us.

" — Then, I will do what I need to," I finished.

"If that time comes, I’ll be counting on you," he said, nodding contentedly as we entered the room.

Inside that room, comfortably and relaxedly sitting atop a sofa, was the face of someone I thought had already left the castle.

With a sly smile on his face, the man stood up from his seat and extended his hand out toward me, which I accepted.

"Ronandt, I believe you already made acquaintance with Lord Marcel Summerhall," Uncle said, reintroducing the man.

"I believe this is our first time being anywhere where we can freely talk," the man said, shaking my hand firmly. "It is an honor for me to meet the infamous Faceless One. It is not everyday that we stand, let alone shake the hand of a fourteen-killer," the man noted in a voice that had nothing to do with the one held in either our first or second meeting that took place a few minutes ago.

"Leave the boy alone, Marcel."

Finally letting go of my hand, the man went back to his seat, so I and Uncle Paul took our own seats.

Noticing my confusion, Uncle Paul explained, "Marcel is a trustworthy collaborator. Among the mostly neutral Cabal, you may consider him an ally."

"A friend," Lord Marcel teased.

"Well, for a friend, it’s not like he would lift a finger to help if helping you meant putting him in a dire situation. If I were to name a single redeemable trait this man may have as a friend, it would be loyalty; other than that, he is no better than any other noble that ravenously awaits the day I and my family would hang from a tree."

"That was cold, my friend, yet I wouldn’t deny the veracity of your words."

In that little exchange, I had came to understand the guenine familiarity between the two men.

"Aren't you curious where our friendship comes from, Faceless One?"

"Please call me Ronandt, Lord Summerhall." I didn't mind being called "Faceless One," but somewhat, that man made me feel like I should.

"Understood. So, Ronandt, try guessing how he and I came to get along so well."

"You were childhood friends," I ventured.

"Hmm, yes. We are. My father was a close friend of his, so yeah, I was, in consequence, a friend of his and his sweet sister, Mathilda."

"Were you? I have no memories of that."

"But, Ronandt, it wasn't really how we got to really get along. When I was young, I was closer to his sister than I was to him. It was only in our late twenties that we really came to get along, a true friendship was born —in the middle of a battlefield. Romantic, don't you think, Ronandt?"

"Battlefield?"

"The past crusade," Uncle explained.

"You... fought it?" I asked, surprised.

"Of course he did. He was not a noble, not even an aina user, yet he was there besides us all, at the head of his little army."

"Someone had to, and it couldn't be my sister."

"Well, now that I think of it, I think what truly drove us to get along was that neither of us were really there because we wanted to."

"I did."

"You did, to prove a point and nothing else. You see, Ronandt, both of us stood on that battlefield because of our family. In my case, I did it because, as the second son, I needed to prove my worth, but most importantly, I had to accompany my father to the glorious death he was seeking. "Glorious death," which he, ironically, never received.

"His father didn't even die on the battlefield. He died a couple of months after the crusade in his castle."

"Just like Paul's father did a few weeks later," Lord Summerhall laughed heartily. "So over the loss of both our fathers, a friendship was born between Paul and I, one that would ultimately become the friendly partnership that it is now."

Motioning to Allas for a drink, Uncle Paul was poured a glass, to then ask Lord Marcel, who just finished his story, "Drink?"

"Isn’t it a little early for these kinds of drinks, don’t you think?" He asked, accepting the invitation nonetheless.

"I had to deal with more than I wished to today, so no. It is not too early for a drink."

"Well, at least it is done now."

"It is nowhere to be done; I have only a few worries about those who spoke today. I am more concerned about those who have maintained a mask of silence. Who knows what's going through their heads?"

"Indeed, who knows, but can you blame them? Before your arrival, most of them had their fair share of worries about your month-long pilgrimage across the kingdom. They all understand that you were investigating each of them and their partner individually; they take it as a lack of trust. Trust: a virtue upon which our little assembly was supposed to be built. Then, with that ridiculous request to the Royal Family, you betrayed their trust, Paul. "

"Trust, huh? I am a man who values loyalty over trust. I've seen where blind trust can take a man."

"Are you referring to him?"

Uncle Paul nodded, "Yes. If betraying their faith is what’s needed to ensure that nothing more of what happened with the Barristas ever happens again, then I consider the loss of their trust a sacrifice worth the price."

A pause followed, then, after a little glance toward me, Lord Paul changed subjects.

"So after we left, what was the Crown saying? How is the situation?"

"Dire."

"That much?"

"You asked the king and the royal family to hand over a relic of worship; surely you didn't expect it to go so smoothly, especially given the actual value the crown places on that remnant. For the royal family, your request is simply, as of now, unanswerable.

"In fact, the fact that you made it past the throne room without having your head cut off for voicing out such a ridiculous demand is in and of itself a miracle." Both of their gazes were directed at me.

"That is not surprising for the Royal Families; what do the Grandministers think?"

"Half of them take the same positions as the royal family, while the other half take a more neutral stance."

"Nobody voted in favor of my request?"

"Nobody. I hope you weren’t expecting me to jump into that mind-grinder position that it was."

"That is what I would’ve expected, but it seems it was too much to ask."

Letting out a chuckle, Lord Marcel proceeded, "As of now, you have the neutral "support" of the grandministries of Lilith, Felicity, and my grandministries." As of now, the Grandministry of Beaumont is on the neutral side of the spectrum, but if you can win them over, you can already count on a positive vote from Tibemcourt's grandministry. That already makes up the majority of the Duchy's ministerial votes. That would be enough to contest the royal family's negative decision.``

"All of that sounds too positive; where is the "but"."

"The "but" part lay on one single man."

"The Holy Paladin Altair."

Lord Marcel nodded. "Even if you could persuade half of the Grandminister to go against the royal will, I doubt our words would reach him with the Holy Paladin perched atop the king's shoulder whispering."

"I see, so it was that dire."

"And it only gets worse. Atop the king’s shoulder, he leers at me, waiting for me to do a single thing that would be interpreted as a ploy against the throne he claims to be representing."

"I would gladly be the leverage you expect me to be, but I am put in a situation where I can no longer be true to what is expected of me as the Grandminister of Bellevue and true to what I’d like to do. I am hog-bound in this matter, Paul."

"I understand."

"The best I can do is, under the Holy Paladin’s watch, do what is expected of me and what I always did as a Grandminister: work for the crown and the kingdom's best interests. So, unless your request is clearly beneficial to the crown, or at the very least the kingdom, I would be unable to assist."