The town of Mith was an absolute mess. Just a day after Locke had warned Trive to watch out for the prison guards, they had all been slaughtered in a massive prison break. All the prisoners had escaped.

Even bigger hell broke lose, when a messy body was found breathing in the prison. With the injuries, the body was almost unrecognisable. Only with the blessings of the Sun temple, with most of the surface wounds healed, was it discovered to be Jain.

Jain's health was terrible. He was barely hanging onto dear life by a thread. All attempts at conversing with him were proving to fail. He had no reaction at all. He had been quietly taken to the mansion to rest, but his terrible effort at the battle for Herish Village and his involvement in the prison break had totally ruined his reputation.

Baron Mith only seemed to have aged even further. After hearing about the matter, he didn't dare comment at all. That very morning, he left in a luxurious carriage prepared for him along with Hess. The two were heading to the Capital.

Ghost spent most of her time during the day observing Locke. As an ornament on his wrist, she could listen to his thinking. When she saw how his behavior was at odds with his thinking she was increasingly confused. 

"Locke is a bad boy." She spoke by utilizing her mental link, causing Locke to smile.

At night, she could finally freely return to her human form. She liked this form the best. She felt more...whole. When she saw Locke sleeping on the bed, she was confused. First she was scared that Locke had died,but he was breathing.

"What is Locke doing?" She wondered curiously. 

"I'm trying to sleep." Locke muttered.

"What is sleep? Why can't I sleep?" Ghost asked but felt a sudden burst of sadness.

Locke opened his eyes. Ghost was in a human form, but he could still listen to her inner thoughts. Over time, he felt their minds slowly being connected without any choice.

Locke had wondered if Ghost was some kind of parasite, but he didn't observe any harmful effects on himself, so he decided to wait and watch. 

Now he could feel her immense sadness. So he gave her a head pat. The innocent girl lay down beside Locke on the bed. One had his eyes closed, while the other copied him.

Lying down beside Locke was calming, but her mind couldn't help but go to those moments when Locke met Trive. When she saw Trive, she felt a perplexing feeling of hatred and a desire to kill him. It took a lot of effort on her part to not act upon those crazy thoughts.

The next day, Locke walked out of his room, only to hear about the prison escape. Hearing about the casualties shocked him, as well as the large scale prison break out. Jain had unexpectedly dug himself into a hole he couldn't get out from.

Locke had a big headache on his hands. The Barony's fiscal standings were already terrible, but combined with the wipeout of almost all the guards, they were extremely vulnerable. Drastic changes in the economy of the Barony had to be made to rise out of this mess.

Locke began studying the accounts of the Barony. Just before the Baron left, he requested a final audience with the aging man and Hess, his master. There he explained the treacherous situation in terms of finance and security in the Barony and the radical changes it might take to keep the Barony afloat.

The Baron had seriously heard about Locke's worries about how difficult these reforms were going to be. When he heard Locke's seriousness, he sighed.

"Even if Trive is officially at the helm, you are the only one who seems to be considering the future of this Barony. Take this." The Baron said as he handed over a scroll Hess had already prepared. "This is my power of attorney signed in your name. If you ever come in a conflict over a decision with Trive or any of my other children, use this authority to overrule them. The legacy of the Mith must not fall!"

Later, Locke and Trive paid farewell to the Baron leaving. Trive was extremely excited. He was now the defacto ruler of the territory in his own eyes!

He energetically patted Locke, this reliable brother's shoulder. Come on, we have a lot of work to do! Locke nodded, before speaking.

Trive, the Barony is in shambles. You'll need to take many major decisions quickly, or we will be bankrupt!" He said seriously.

"What?" Trive was shocked. "How is this possible?"

Locke sighed. "Let us visit the study, I will explain the important details."

---

In the study Locke used the blackboard and chalk to draw seven circles.

"This big circle is the town. These six smaller circles are the village's under Barony Mith." Locke carefully explained before he erased one of the circles.

"That, was Herish Village. Right now, you only control the town and these five villages. The people are afraid their villages will be the next Herish! Our expenses are too high, we have lost too many guards. If all the village's decide to revolt, we will be slaughtered like lambs!" Locke said seriously.

"I didn't realize matters were this serious. What do we do now?" Trive asked. He didn't seem to have any thoughts of his own.

"The first thing we need to do is rebuild our guards. However, few villagers want to become our guards because of the intense losses and the use of guards to perpetrate a genocide within our own borders! We have three options. We can hire mercenaries. We could pledge our allegiance to the Sun Temple and ask for the temple's protection, or we could request for temporary guards from Viscount Bilary, our Liege." Locke explained.

"This is such a difficult decision to make!" Trive said appearing indecisive. Locke almost frowned, but maintained his poker face.

"Do you wish me to explain the pros and cons of each choice?" Locke asked.

"Yes, brother." Trive nodded. He was increasingly comfortable with calling Locke, this dependable lad his brother.