“I’ll have you know I paid 500 dupla for them.” That was the only thing Fisher could say. Without any proof, he couldn’t really declare anything. Unless… He was the third highest-ranking individual at the table. Jimmy was at the lowest rung—just a noble’s bratty son who thought his status would grant him an easy time through the guard. It would have been easy to use his power and discredit the plaintiff with falsified stories. Because at the end of the day, a man with a nearly spotless record was more trustworthy than someone who ran to their father when something even remotely uncomfortable happened to them.  

“Let’s agree that you are telling the truth…” Nicholas’s wrinkled hands removed the red stole from his neck and folded it carefully upon the table. He narrowed his eyes and spoke like his voice was a knife. “Why would they take a paltry 500 dupla? The Wihos’s estate has an income of such a level that 500 dupla is a drop in the proverbial ocean.” 

“If 500 wasn’t enough, I’d have gone up to a thousand. If that wasn’t enough, then two thousand. Four thousand. Hell, even ten thousand was what I was willing to pay because life is worth more than  coin. I believe we have gotten off track. Governor?” 

“Captain Fisher is right. Bishop Constantius, we did not come here to discuss a slave. We are here to come to a decision upon the alleged use of force and if he stepped out of bounds.” 

“You’re damn right he did! My boy’s only 16!” proclaimed Mr. Wihos, whose face had started to become moist with sweat. It was warm in the meeting room. With its four windows and a brightly shining sun, it wasn’t that hot. Fisher was comfortable in his black armor. Though perhaps Mr. Wihos's favoritism for baked sweets was responsible. He was up there in size, though not as round as the late Parrel Keywater.  

“Mr. Wihos, it was the young man sitting to your left that threw the first punch in retaliation of my freeing the slave I had just purchased. After taking him to the ground, your son attacked me, and I neutralized him. Perhaps their distaste for authority and inability to follow the commands of their captain is a result of poor parenting? I did tell them not to do anything foolish, but my words must’ve not reached them.” 

Mr. Wihos’s face turned as red as an apple. And so did his eyes. It was like a blood vessel had popped. He turned to Blasé and demanded him to do something about the captain.  

“Mr. Wihos, you are asking me to discipline a guard—the captain, in fact—that protects all of Canary just because your boy threw attacked in response to something Captain Fisher was legally within his right to do? I won’t do anything because he did nothing to reprimand. In fact, it was a case of self-defense since he was the victim. Perhaps your son and his friends can take this as a lesson and learn from it?” 

“You son of a bitch!” With his anger on full display, Mr. Wihos started to approach the governor, but Fisher, Mire, and Tim stood up and placed their hands on their weapon.  

“And perhaps you can learn from this as well. If you take one more step forward, I will consider it a threat to the governor's life… Do you wish to try your luck with me, Mr. Wihos?” growled Tim. He had been silent during the entire meeting. He activated Pulmoni Oxygeni and just observed. A small amount of steam started to rise up from his grey scales.  

Mr. Wihos grabbed his son by the collar of his shirt and nearly dragged him out of his chair. Jimmy’s friends and their fathers followed behind, though with less abusive behavior. Once they had slammed the door shut, Fisher and his subordinates sat down. The only Koena amongst them halted his racial skill.

Feeling my lungs slowing down is always a sensation I’ll never get used to.   

“Gods, this was such a waste of time. Make sure to keep an eye on him in case he does something stupid,” Blasé said, exasperated. He scratched his chin, but that was when Nicholas spoke up.  

“I don’t think it was that bad. Without it, I never would have known where Captain Fisher stood. Captain, I urge you to reconsider your stance on this slave and place it back where it belongs.” 

“I’m not going to do it.” 

“I urge you to do so, Fisher,” Nicholas insisted.  

Fisher shook his head. “I’ve said it multiple times, and I won't repeat it. It does not matter how many times you ‘urge’ me, but I will not give up their location. In fact, I’m even thinking about going a step further and implementing a new order that forbids members of the guards from holding slaves.” 

Slam! 

Taking a cue from Mr. Wihos, Nicholas slammed his wrinkled hands down, his left one crushing his crimson stole. “No! I cannot allow that! That will not come to pass! First of all, do you expect such an outrageous order to be amicably received? What about those that had paid for their slaves? Do you think they will allow their property—their very investment—to be taken away?! Secondly, just think about the quality of the prayers?! These slaves were enslaved for a reason! They were weak. W E A K! Governor Blasé, you have to stop this!” Nicholas whipped his head around. Eina was busy with an attack skill on the tip of her tongue if his outburst started to turn violent.  

I have been thinking of outlawing it while bringing in more money. Father wants this city to be prosperous… I still don’t know why, but if it’s his orders… Well, I don’t see how a small test run could turn disastrous. I can easily make up the lost revenue with the treasures from my Warden days. If I sell everything in my reserve, I could sustain Canary for another few years. Even longer if I sell Qina’s stuff. And longer than that if we include our nadrium and enchanted gear.  

“Nicholas, I may be the governor, but my expertise lies in the overall status of the city. For things relating to its defenses, I have no choice but to defer to Captain Fisher because no one knows more about that subject than him. In addition, he’s been captain longer than I’ve been governor.” 

“Bishop Nicholas,” said Eina, speaking for the first time. During this entire meeting, she was neatly taking notes in a large binder, which would serve as proof this meeting actually happened. “Governor Blasé is a man that wants the best for Canary. He will not make any decisions without consulting the proper advisors. In this case, I agree with him that we need to hear the captain's thoughts on it.” 

 “Thank you, Eina. Captain, what harm can you see coming to the city if you go through with this? If you were to put this order out, what detriments can we expect?” 

Before Fisher could speak, Nicholas had another angle he could argue from.  

“If you do this, just think how many criminals are going to be freed? Could you sleep at night knowing that you’ve allowed murderers and rapists to intermingle back into society?” 

“The only thing I have to say to that is this: bring me proof of their crimes.  If they're criminals, then there must be a record, right? I agree that this is the only way to make sure the truly innocent are freed.” 

“Then you realize that it is criminals who are made into slaves? If the weak are pathetic enough, they turn to crime. When caught, enslavement is what is awaiting them,” Nicholas said.  

“You and I both know that there are hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of slaves in the world. It is highly unlikely they're all hardened criminals. I don’t want to bring up memories of a horrific time, but recall the three markets that were destroyed a few months ago. If you do, you will realize that a not-so-insignificant portion was made up of children. I believe I even recall seeing reports of a child that wasn’t even old enough to walk. Are you telling me, with definitive proof, that all of those children were hardened criminals—murderers and rapists— who deserved to be enslaved?”  

“…” 

“The world is cruel, and it is naïve to not consider that a few bad eggs have paid off those in charge to produce a deed of ownership with a false charge. In some cases, what about a parent that willingly gives up their child to someone? Perhaps to a noble whose wallet is bigger than their ego? What crime has that child committed? On top of that, what about the people forced into enslavement because of debt? Really, I could go on and on about the nefarious ways people avoid the ‘criminal’ requirement. You can’t just declare all slaves are criminals without proof of their crimes. If I go back to your claim that they’re property… If you take it literally, then a slave stealing from a store would be the same as a bucket stealing from a store. 

“As for your question—“ Fisher was interrupted by Nicholas standing to his feet.  

“I can see that we are opposed in our beliefs. It doesn’t matter what you say because I won’t budge from my position. As the bishop, I must stay affirm in my beliefs. As the captain, you must do the same. For your sake, captain, I urge you to think everything through before making a decision. Governor, I apologize for my unsightly outburst earlier. It was not becoming of a man of my position and status. I should have known better.  Now, if you’ll excuse me…” Nicholas grabbed his stole and wrapped it around the back of his neck. With a final nod, he left and gently closed the door behind him.  

“As for your question, I expect a few to throw a fit since I know asking them to give up their slaves is nearly unheard of. But if we ask them to show definite proof of ownership and proof of their crimes, and they are severe enough, then perhaps they should stay enslaved. If those things can't be produced, I think we can claim a case of false enslavement. I do expect a degree of pushback. Both from my men and the general public.” 

“Eina, do we have any—“ 

“I have that right here, sir. Out of Canary’s guards, 33 own at least one slave. As for the total? It comes to 104 slaves.” 

“I don’t suppose you have anything relating to their contract or criminal records?” 

Eina shook her head. “I do not. I do have a few places I can look, but if I come up empty, then we have no choice but to question each individual.” 

“With your permission, I'd like to suggest something,” Fisher spoke up.  

“Go for it,” replied Blasé, now a bit more informal.  

“Eina, would it be possible to get a list of names?” 

“I’m already on it,” replied Eina as her hands scribbled an inked quill across a blank page.  

“Mire, you and Tim tell Riley and Rita to lead two teams. Each will take half of the names and go around questioning them for proof of an ownership contract and a criminal record. If anyone decides to give them trouble, just have them say it’s a direct order from me. This way, it’ll be over sooner, and they can get some leadership experience. I can't just have them guard a door all day.” 

“Gotcha, but those two are guarding the entrance,” Mire replied.  

“Tobba is scheduled for a patrol, but I’ll take it. Have him cover for Rita and Riley.” 

“Yes, sir!” replied Mire. She stood up along with Tim and saluted their captain. A few seconds later, they were out the door with a list of names in hand. 

“Sheeesh!!! Finally!!!” exclaimed Blasé, and not a moment too soon. He leaned over and rested his chin and his arms on the table. Eina tapped him on the head with a quill.  

“You’re supposed to be the governor. Act like it,” she reprimanded him. “It’s unprofessional to sprawl out like that in front of Captain Fisher.” 

“Does it matter? He already knows we’re our father’s children,” he murmured.  

“That is true, but while we’re in public, you have to act like the governor because you are the governor.” 

“And these names… These stupid names… I heard someone call out for Claus the other day, and I answered…” 

“Bear with it, Blasé. It was your idea for these fake names,” Eina said. She took off her glasses and stored them inside her Dimensional Storage. Without them, she looked less like a librarian and more like the beautiful girl next door.

And once again, I’m alone with the third biggest secret in Lando. I live in a world where the children of an emperor of a different country have direct leadership of a city in an entirely separate kingdom...And that isn’t the most surprising thing…

“But to be serious,” Blasé said. “The meeting mentioned in the letter wasn’t about Jimmy. I am sorry we wasted so much time on that.” 

“It’s not a big deal, governor. That was going to come up sooner or later, and I’m glad it was taken care of. If I may ask, was it about Jeri and Sea?” 

“Yes, it was. I’m sorry as well… We looked at the visitor’s log, but there was nothing strange about it.” 

“I did the same thing. It was just Sea’s mother. Oh, I didn’t really discover anything. Even walked around and met other people, but hardly anyone was in a talkative mood. I suppose it’s my fault because I was away.” 

“I don’t think it was. They died of blood loss after biting their tongue. Unless someone nearby was available to render aid, there was nothing we could have done. And yes, they acted oddly... But I felt nothing that indicated they had suicide as a possibility. If anything, the blame belongs with us,” Eina said. Fisher heard the clack of her heels as she crossed her left leg over her right.  

“Wait… What did the good bishop mean when he was talking about a story?” Blasé asked.  

“I went to visit the church Jeri and Sea had started to attend before their deaths. That led me to the church in the noble district, and I met with Nicholas. Honestly, with how he was talking, my instinct believes he is the criminal.” 

“Interesting… Could you explain that?” asked an inquisitive voice. Eina’s mind was running at full power, ready to take in the forthcoming information. She was a smart one. Her brother was just as intelligent, but that was the natural result after being taught by a dryad. A dryad who had assisted the first emperor in creating Keywater.

It took a few minutes for Fisher to explain the oddities and ‘unnatural’ enthusiasm the bishop had about the qualities of prayers.  

“I lucked out when he had a book of every Divine Being, but nothing immediately jumped out at me. I did see a few about hypnosis…” 

“From what I could tell, it was like their very soul had been forcibly rewritten with an... ‘order.’ Ah, here’s something else. Fisher, Blasé and I kept something from the public autopsy report. When the surgeon performed it, he made a specific note detailing the smell of their organs. He said it was similar to the scent rotten corpses emit… Keep in mind that he said they had been dead for at least six hours before being found and another fifty to sixty minutes before he examined them.  

“That just adds another mystery to a growing pile? And speaking of additional knowledge, I have some information about Arcton. Do you two recall reports of a ‘Monotonia?’” 

The twins nodded.  

“That, as it turns out, is a drug. One that is highly addictive. I’ve heard it can transform a normal man into a blubbering mess who can’t live without it.” 

“Who told you this?” asked Blasé.  

“My source does not want me to reveal their identity. In addition, I went to great lengths to learn this information. Forgive me.” 

“Then is this source trustworthy?” Eina inquired.  

“They are. With how the refugees were acting…and how violent a few became…I believe we can trust my source’s words.” 

“This Monotonia… You’re sure it doesn’t have a place in this mystery?” 

“I am. I spoke to the pair of victims involved in the Jeri and Sea case, and they stated that their odd behavior only started when they approached Canary.” 

“I do recall you telling me that… It’s impossible to swallow a pill and only have it work when near a specific location, right?” 

“That’s correct,” replied Eina. She crossed her legs again and felt a headache approaching her way.  

“So is it possible to conclude that Arcton—what transpired there— has no role in this mystery?” Blasé asked, already knowing the answer. He was just as bright as Eina, but he liked to ask the obvious questions out loud because he loved his sister’s voice.  

“Yes, it is. The only suspect we have is Nicholas, and I’m hesitant to call him that because we have nothing but a passionate dream of ‘high-quality prayers.’ I don’t know what that even means…” 

“Then we’re right back at square one..” Exasperated, Blasé vocally sighed and raised his tired arms. He rolled his neck, cracking it once or twice. “Without hard evidence, there is absolutely nothing we can do. Even implying he’s behind it will have drastic consequences. It’ll really be a political nightmare considering how many worshipers the church has.” 

“I agree… Unless we want to skirt legality, our hands are tied,” chirped Eina. “How can you prove something impossible to prove? Do you think there is an artifact at hand? I would say a Skill Item...But there are no skills that can control minds. You suggested hypnosis earlier, but what happened to them wasn’t simply that. The most surefire way to break being hypnotized is the sudden infliction of pain. Biting through your tongue fits that to a tee. If they were to shout and scream for help, someone would have come running. I don’t want to deal with absolutes, but I think we can disregard it. During our Warden career, Blasé and I have fought against our fair share of villains with Hypnosis as a passive skill. We’re well aware of its limitations… Ah, he had a scepter, right? In addition to the book?” 

Fisher nodded and explained the backstory behind it and concluded he didn’t get a chance to touch it. He did add that the bishop took it with him when it was for his service. That piece of info certainly scratched some heads. He also found it pertinent to talk about Klee, the hulking individual that worked as Nicholas’s assistant.  

“There goes that theory. An artifact is an item that does something that can’t be explained. Pure mind control would—“ 

“Necromancy… Eina, Necromancy!” Blasé explained. He jolted awake and slammed his hands down on the table.  

Eina narrowed her eyes, running the gears in her mind before shaking her head. “Nicholas is infatuated with the church. The Forbidden Skills are forbidden for a reason. The most commonly accepted theory is that they were sealed by the Gods and Goddesses after war broke out thousands of years ago. Remember? That’s what Veris told us back when we learned under her. If the Gods had to seal them away, why would a man of faith use something the Gods obviously disliked? Even then, would Necromancy have something to control minds?” 

“Perhaps not,” Blasé said while raising a finger. “But it can revive the dead. We’ve fought a few necromancers during our time at Warden. They’re rare, though. Incredibly rare.” 

“Raise…the dead?” Fisher murmured… 

“That’s right. We encountered one that summoned a child from the town graveyard. The child’s bite could spread a disease… All it took was a few hours, and 1,000 people were infected… Wait, Blasé, the ones we’ve fought… None of them could bring someone back with their entire mental state intact. Most could only utter a phrase less than ten words long… Jeri and Sea spoke full, cohesive sentences. And their personality only changed the closer they got to Canary.” 

“So we’re back in the same boat? We can’t do anything? At this stage, I’d say we hold him hostage. If we can get him to forcibly summon his ID, we could be golden.” 

“We can’t do that, Blasé.” Eina rubbed her head. Like her brother, her days and nights have been hard and dreadful, with very few hours to actually sleep. “Kidnapping a Bishop? A man second to only the Cardinal in Adenaford? For a hunch? On the chance his ID reveals information that doesn’t help our case, we’re ruined. Word will spread to our father, and we’ll be called back… Do you want that to happen?” She glared at her brother, sending a message with her eyes. Do you want to give all of this up? We worked so hard to join the Imperial Guard, and now you want to potentially throw that away? 

Eina did know how heartless she was being. In her mind, abstaining from their task to potentially discover a truth that really didn't harm them or their goal wasn't worth the effort. Only a few nights prior did they reaffirm their decision to see their mother… Potentially freeing a hundred or so slaves, if falsely enslaved, was far away and beyond less damaging when compared to kidnapping a man more powerful than most nobles.  

“In the end, the only thing we can do is wait?” asked Fisher. His mind turned to Servi and how she would have accomplished this legal nightmare of a task standing in front of them. She’d have an answer in no time at all… Either through The Shadow’s Embrace to spy… Or through torturing… Especially if this had a chance of harming Momo… Asking them for help would be the easiest way, but I cannot disturb them… They’ve suffered through too much to be dragged into something that is really my responsibility.  

“By the by, Fisher,” said Blasé. “Have you heard from the financier who wishes to fund your orphanage? I am worried they’ve gotten cold feet.” 

“I have. They’re suffering from an illness right now, and the middleman representing them said they wanted to wait until after they’ve had the chance to recuperate.” 

“That’s understandable. Just let me know when they’re going to hand over the money. Oh, and since the circumstances are hazy, I would like to meet with them at least once. Do you think you could arrange that?” 

Servi said she had met the governor and his sister during the night of the slavery attacks. 

“I can certainly ask, but I doubt the middleman will be receiving any further requests until the donor is better. I’d say maybe a month? They didn’t say how bad the illness was.” 

“I see… I hope they pull through. I’ve had the company do their best on that design document I gave you. Make sure they get it, okay?” 

“I will, sir.” Though they already have it… I just have to wait for Servi to get better.  

“Good. Now… Unless there is anything, I believe this meeting can be adjourned. Eina?” 

Eina’s golden ponytail swooshed from side to side. “I can’t think of anything else. Blasé, should we set aside another one for next week? Considering the situation with Nicholas, it may be advisable to share information on at least a weekly basis.” 

“Fisher, are you good with that?” 

“I am,” said Fisher to the captain. “When my men get back with their reports, should I use a messenger spirit?” 

Blasé nodded. “Use a trustworthy one to deliver it to us. Oh, but be sure to look over it first and send your notes and recommendations with it. With that said, we’ll meet again on August 8th.” Blasé rapped his knuckles against the table and stood up. He and his sister walked out first, leaving Fisher behind. He walked around the table and pushed the chairs back under the table, then left to go to his office.  

Once he had taken a seat, his eyes went to the portrait of his family. A loving finger reached out and brushed against Marissa's drawn face. A smile appeared on her husband’s face, and a new determination welled inside his breast. For the first time, an actual readiness to tackle the day fueled his hands and eyes as he set about reading the reports that were waiting for him.