I was putting him in quite the situation, I knew. And here's why.

Viscount Raphael Varisis was a loyal man, I could tell that much. But that loyalty didn't seem to extend to Duchess Anastasia... strange. And here I thought they were friends. Still, he would preserve what honour he had.

Men like him loved, lived and died by their honour.

"Convince you?" He mimicked my words, bitter and confused. "Are you mocking me?"

But I shook my head, a curl to my lips like acid. Lurline's presence was fluttery, almost proud as she put her hands on my shoulders from behind with a wicked grin on her lips, looking at me almost approvingly for the first time in a bit.

She'd always been like this — it was in her nature. The Fae were fierce and loyal, but their unusual cruelty was what earned them their fame.

"Not at all," I replied evenly. "Let's say I was, theoretically, willing to spare both you and your granddaughter in exchange for enough. What is it that you're offering me? I've got, thus far, no reason not to kill the two of you just to be thorough."

I'm not as dumb as to make uncalculated offers. This is, hm, a test. Because I can tell from the way he speaks that, though Raphael was a man used to battle, he was at his most comfortable in a verbal battlefield, negotiating his way into victory with a sharp silver tongue. I had now extended an opportunity for him to get himself out of a mess and perhaps even into an advantageous situation, depending on the way he acted.

But he also knew this was likely a test, and thus knew I was scouting for his resources. There was always the chance I'd just give up and kill him anyway, and thus exposing his hand may just make me believe this all to have been an unnecessary waste of time. Raphael has to impress, but he has to pace himself — that is, if he wants to play smart.

The truth of the matter was that I am confident in my ability to escape, but, as I am, there's no way I can really defeat this man. Thankfully, though, I'm proficient in the art of bullshit.

"You…" Raphael paused, leaning back into his seat. "I cannot seem to figure you out. But you do not seem the sort to just… give up. Not like this."

I tilted my head in acknowledgement, for he was absolutely right. 

"I am not," I replied easily. "In any other circumstances, you'd be dead and I'd be burning this place down. But my… absence has left me in need of allies. So I am extending to you this offer, since you've piqued my interest: Convince me that I win more by sparing you than I do satisfaction from killing you and finally starting to get back at the woman who betrayed me, and I may just do that."

He examined my face closely, interlocking his fingers and pressing his lips to one another. What a conundrum, hm? But he relented. He could see the half-truth in my actions. Perhaps he reasoned that even if he killed me, I'd just come back and build a vendetta against him, too.

"I will take a magical oath of neutrality and silence regarding your status as the Little Monster and your plans."

Ah. A magical oath was pretty serious stuff, so I must admit I was impressed…but that wasn't exactly prime convincing. At best, that told me I lost nothing from letting him live but satisfaction. But I let him move on, as I doubt Raphael Varisis is as dumb a Man as to presume I would be content with a mutual blank. 

A magical oath is essentially a voluntary imprint on one's brain, a conditioner that stops you from doing particular things. 

They were remarkably complicated applications of neuralmagic that required skilled magicians, physicians and years of research to be crafted into Oath-Takers, expendable magical items that only the richest of nobles, or the shrewdest of criminals bothered to buy. There were, of course, limits to them, the first of which being that the receiver had to be entirely and completely willing to take in such an oath, which meant one couldn't be intimidated into one.

That Raphael believed himself entirely willing to make such an oath was… interesting. But I digress.

He hummed, watching my expression for a moment, but said nothing else. A bit bothered, I raised an eyebrow.

"That 's all? How… utterly disappointing."

But the man sighed.

"Thus far, you've convinced me that you are able to kill me and my granddaughter. Even if I were to slay you now, I've no reassurance that it would do anything but delay you back a few more years, and then you would undoubtedly take my family down." 

He paused. 

I took the chance to lean forward, raising an eyebrow despite being marginally impressed with his honesty. Behind me, Lurline had a displeased expression on her beautiful face, but said nothing. Bad cop, good cop, I suppose.

"How enlightening. Well, if that is your choice, you are most welcome to try your luck slaying me, Viscount." And I flared my Mana Core just once, focusing my conscience on my wavering connection to Lurline. Our contract was not yet reforged, but our connection was strong enough that I was able to pass a clear message: If he moves, strike.

I would not win a full-on fight. But I could, perhaps, kill him if I were to take him off-guard, with the help of Lurline's unique brand of magic. At those thoughts, she grinned, and I felt a pulse of acceptance flare in the back of my skull. 

She almost felt… eager. Out of the four Queens of the Fairy Courts, Lurline was the one I had least expected such a thirst for blood from.

But Raphael's eyes moved between us and he very deliberately remained very, very still. Perhaps he had honed his instincts enough to know when he was in danger… but most likely, the predatory grin on Lurline's face alerted him.

"I-I will be forthcoming in this regard and say that I am already under magical oath to not discuss the Little Monster, the bombing of Erenen or the fate of the Alliance's Leaders in any depth with anyone not already proven to know about them." He spoke softly. "I can, of course, speak about the Oath itself, as that is a limitation of the magic itself. Aside from that… between myself, the Duchess and the rest of the Nobles in the know, we have come up with ways to communicate one's knowledge of such matters between ourselves, but that is all I am willing to say. For that reason, I believed you when you claimed to be, well, yourself — and the Fairy Queen's presence after that, of course, helped you further."

"Get to the point." I cut him off. "Though the information is well-appreciated, I suppose." 

Raphael swallowed dryly, but hummed.

"I suppose I, too, would be anxious if I was made to wait for 50 years. So I shall be succinct — For my granddaughter's life, I offer information and a rather large sum of money — 10,000 Platinum Coins."

Again, he ignores his own life and moves back to the very beginning of our bargain — the price for the survival of the Little Lady Elizabeth, whom I had not even actually threatened. And it was not as if Raphael didn't care about his own life, either; he valued it greatly. He just put that girl's survival above even that. For one such as myself, who had very little ties to my family, the thought was both alien and heartwarming. 

I could at least respect it.

Plus, 10,000 Platinum was an inordinately high amount — probably equal to the Family's entire annual income. Platinum Coins were worth a thousand of their golden counterparts, and a modest family could live at a cost of a Gold Coin per day, which meant about 365 per year. It really was a ton of money. But, bearing in mind that this man was undoubtedly paid fortunes and fortunes for aid and silence with the Duchess, I suppose it only made sense.

"I'll take you up on that." I immediately said, not bothering to play hard to get despite Lurline's teachings. "But only if the money is given to me immediately, and the information comes by means of three answers to questions of my choosing."

"Done," he replied easily. "I will give the money to you once negotiations are complete."

Translation: You cannot kill me at least until then. Got it, old man. How clever.

I raised an eyebrow, but shrugged.

"As you will. But for your life, what will you give me?"

A pause. 

"Not asking your questions? And here I thought I had you figured out as the type who acts immediately. Very well. For my life, I will offer you access to the Varisis Mausoleum… and this."

Raphael pulled a book from one of the drawers in his table and put it on top of it, tapping his fingers against the cover three times. I watched in keen interest as it slowly opened, revealing a secret compartment — the damn book was a «Bag of Holding». How crafty! He reached in, pulling out a small box and pushing it over to me. Curious, I picked it up and pushed the lid open — and then let a gasp bloom in my lips as I caught sight of what was inside.

"Oh, my." 

I slowly lifted the signet ring. It was rusty, old and had some dried blood stuck to it… but it remained as beautiful as it had ever been. A signet ring was proof of heritance, and this had been the signet ring worn by a dear friend of Harrim's — Rose Alice of the house of Alice. She had never bore children, so upon her death in the battle of the Red Sun, the house of Alice was declared dead — and the Signet Ring worthless, for they were enchanted to recognise blood ties.

For anyone else, it was a useless trinket. But Raphael, who knew of me, knew that I could make such an item into something far more valuable. 

I grinned, pocketing the ring greedily. How appropriate of a gift this was.

"I will graciously accept your generous offer," I replied. With this, and some time studying it, I could forge myself an identity in this new world — and one that would give me a rather sizable heritance, too, should I manage to trick my way into the Elfin Bank. "So long as you answer me one extra question."

"And that would be?"

I paused. Let my expression slowly become neutral, and leaned back in my chair, facing Raphael steadily. Though nervous, the man had an almost triumphant look on his face, like he'd just made something good out of a bad situation.

"What is it that you gain from this, Viscount?"

He blinked.

"...I do not follow."

"Don't fuck with me," I immediately cut in, sneering. "I know your kind. You'll gain something from this. What is it."

And this was when Raphael Varisis grinned at me, and I realized the type of person I was dealing with.

"Absolutely nothing. All I desire is the right to remain neutral, alive and uncompromised as you take down the Duchess and her many loyalists. After all… if they are mysteriously slain, who do you think their many allies will have to turn to? Who do you think their resources will flow to? And, should you decide to confront them as the heir of Alice… who do you think will fill the power vacuum left?"

Oh, my.

Seemed to me that the little fish turned out to be a shark.