A blonde man trotted forward in a dark alley, holding a lantern to light his surroundings. He stopped outside a prison cell and shone a light on its occupant.

The prisoner squinted her eyes against the sudden light. Her shaky hands rose to cover her eyes as she shouted out, "Who are you?"

The young man said while looking at the food tray,

"You always nagged me to finish my plate. Why did you leave yours untouched?"

He continued while munching on an apple, "Did you think it had poison in it?"

"Huh... I doubt you came to this dismal, murky dungeon to act as a caregiver."

"I thought you, of all people would appreciate its beauty."

"Are you so afraid of your prisoners that you would deprive them of sunshine?"

"It's designed to disorient their sense of time and induce sleep deprivation, driving them to desperation as they lose track of how long they've been locked away."

"You take too much from people too quickly, and that will be your undoing. Have you forgotten what I taught you? Desperate men are the most dangerous."

"Didn't think you still cared about me that much..."

"..."

He asked, while chewing on the apple seeds, "Aren't you going to ask me what happened to the rest of your spies?"

This caused her to smirk.

"Do you want me to praise you? You're still just a little kid seeking approval. Come closer, I'll pat your head."

"..."

When no reply was forthcoming, she added, "If you've come here to gloat, then spare me."

The man took out a piece of paper from his pocket and slid it to her.

"This arrived earlier, read it."

She stared suspiciously at it for a few moments; eventually, her curiosity got the better of her as she picked up the letter and started reading it.

Her eyes turned foggy as tears flew across her face. When she finally managed to control her voice, she asked:

"What happened to the children?"

"The children? Who knows, we both read the same report."

"He thought of you as his own son."

He lost his composure and shouted out,

"He made his own choice! He shouldn't have cowered in the face of responsibility. He should have owned up to his mistakes."

"Using that jealous traitor to do your work for you... How many like him do you have dancing to your tunes?"

She pleaded in a soft voice,

"Leave me. I don't wish to look at your face any longer."

All dignity is lost in the face of death, especially that of one's life partner and soulmate. As the footsteps disappeared into the dark, Zenobia finally allowed herself to feel sorrow as she broke into tears.

---

"Are you done with your visit, my lord?"

He asked him angrily

"Didn't I tell you to make sure she is well-fed?"

He replied ,strugglin to get the words out: "We always served her our best meals as ordered, but she wouldn't eat them."

The red-headed lady commented, "Hmph! Let that old vixen starve if she wants to."

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He glared at her as he wrapped his slender hands around her throat, saying, "Force feed her if need be. If she's that thin the next time I come..." He started squeezing harder before releasing his grip.

*Cough cough* Kaethna was left gasping for ear as she thought to herself "Why is he obsessing over that prisoner?"

He then turned to the middle-aged servant and asked:

"The guests have just arrived. They're all waiting for you in the meeting room. Please follow me!"

He opened the door, which led into a lavish hall, and put on a clay mask before he entered a room.

Inside, there were five individuals wearing wooden masks. They all stood up upon his arrival and knelt down.

He invited them to sit, raising a toast,

"I wanted us to share a meal together and talk about things. Thank you for making time to join me here. Cheers!"

Everyone replied in unison, "Cheers!"

He then stated,

"Marco, you did well dealing with the assembly hearing. We now have the admiral's complete trust."

Marco replied,

"As we expected, there was fierce opposition in the assembly house. I believe the merchant companies are now scrambling to finish all their dealings within the kingdom. Gianni was highly opposed to the war as we thought "

A second figure finished his bite before noting,

"Even though he formally chose my uncle as company director during his tenure as an elder, he's nothing more than a figurehead. All the top brass and counselors on his side report directly to my grandfather, but they are swayed by profit above all else."

A feminine voice from under the mask of the third commented,

"Don't worry, Niccolo! Now that the rumors of a potential conflict and an approaching famine are out, we can proceed with the plan as things are settled in the treasury."

Niccolo replied,

"Well done, Luna. It needs to happen before the upcoming elder election. If my grandfather returns to his position as the Patron, we won't have any chance of success."

He added,

"The last reports suggest that my uncle's convoy is sailing up the Svanka River, trading with both the kingdom and the northern coalition."

A bulky figure scoffed while struggling to fit food through, eventually removing his mask altogether.

"How do you eat with these on? I understand that merchants pursue profit like a moth to a fire, but how could he be so foolish?"

Marco scolded him: "Don't be so barbaric, Becan! Cut it into smaller pieces."

He said, while attacking a piece of meat, "We know everyone in here already, why the hassle?"

Luna chuckled,

"Maybe it's so we don't have to look at your ugly mug!" before adding,

"Still, it's understandable. The plan to incite the northern coalition to reignite the conflict is still in the beginning stages."

Marco interjected,

"It doesn't mean we can't use that to our favor; we have several squads stationed there."

Becan asked,

"Should get rid of him?"

This caused Niccolo to cry out,

"Have you gone mad? Absolutely not! My grandfather would spare no expense in finding the culprits. It's too risky!"

The Captain calmed him down saying,

"Excuse these men, they have the mentality of a soldier. They believe only way to truly get rid of someone is to kill them. You don't need to murder a merchant to ruin them."

Niccolo inquired,

"So what are we to do, Captain?"

The captain explained,

"There's a lingering hatred and distrust across the river due to the long history of bad blood. We need to spread rumors on both banks about how the convoy favors the other side."

Niccolo said,

"That could make them angry, but will the locals act upon it? The convoy is heavily guarded, and the elite sailors will easily fend off any attack."

The captain asserted,

"All we need is to give them a justification. We can order our operatives to set fire to the cargo when it's moored."

Niccolo's eyes shined,

"The company has a lot riding on this convoy. Grandfather will be furious. And I can't begin to imagine the look on my uncle's face when he comes back empty-handed, hahaha! Drifting on a piece of wood."

He continued after wiping his tears,

"I have placed some of my own people at the convoy. I will instruct them to cooperate."

Luna asserted,

"We will delay selling off our stockpiled supplies until then, which will help us ensure the support of the counselors in the succession fight."

The captain noted

"I think we should call this a day! Becan has already dozed off!"

Luna's face frowned as she whispered,

"What an uncultured brute..."

Marco muttered, while grumbling, "I still can't understand how he gets that gigantic body of his drunk this quickly."

"I'll take care of this guy. If you'll excuse us, Captain."

Marco then carried him to a chamber with the aid of servants and left him to sleep off his hangover.