Evenon drummed his fingers on the desk. In front of him, two guards stood by the door, one on each side, unmoving. Only the sound of his fingers against the wood resounded. Ever faster, ever louder. Slowly, he frowned. The desire to Whisper to the messenger surged, but he knew he needed to stay calm. It felt as if time were passing by more slowly.

The minutes ticked by. He looked at the staff on the left side of the room, analyzing it carefully. He never got tired of looking at it. It was his greatest treasure. Now, the one who had given it to him was coming. As his thoughts reached this point, Evenon clenched his fist. For some reason, he just couldn’t discard the notion that Rylan had been the one who talked.

Everything fit, from the origin of the City Guard’s information to their knowledge about the students. Rylan was the one who knew the most about Evenon and his workings. Together, the two of them had dabbled in many, many illegal activities, one as the dealer and the other as the customer. That was why he was having a hard time accepting this line of thought. He knew Rylan Flameheart closely, from his habits to his ideals. In the past, he would have completely rejected the possibility that Rylan could have betrayed him, but now…

I have something that he wants.

He continued to stare at the staff. Rylan was the type of person who would do anything to achieve his goals, even if it meant deceiving his own family. Every time so far, that had worked in Evenon’s favor. However, what if the opposite was also true? What if Rylan was capable of discarding all that they had built together only to not have to pay for the staff?

No, that’s impossible.

There was no dealer like him in any of the nearby cities, including Cantavega itself. In the end, the staff was just an item. He could offer Rylan everything the kid wanted and needed to sustain his sick lifestyle. Would Rylan truly throw that away? Then, Evenon realized the flaws in his logic. If Rylan were to be disowned by the Flameheart family, he wouldn’t have the resources to keep up his lifestyle anyway. As such, recovering the heirloom would have already become his highest priority. His frown intensified.

Every time he came up with a reason for Rylan not to backstab him, he immediately thought of a counterpoint. In the end, he simply didn’t know what was correct. He stood up, looking through the glass windows. He beheld the stunning view of Cantavega’s shopping district as the sun sunk beneath the horizon. The whole room was dyed in orange tones, but Evenon was in no mood to take in the sights. His empire was beginning to tear at the seams. He turned around and looked at the door. The two guards flinched. His mana rumbled in him. It was as if the very air had become heavier. The guards shifted in place, glancing at each other.

The air vibrated. He sat back down and started to drum his fingers on the desk, but the pressure didn’t diminish in the least. His Circles revolved around his Mana Core, ready to burst into action at a moment’s notice. At that moment, he managed to perceive two new mana signatures, both weak. He was familiar with both of them. He continued to stare at the door, getting rid of his frown. After some time, a knock on the door echoed.

“Come in.”

The door opened and the messenger he’d sent walked in with Rylan in tow. The damn kid looked around as if this were the first time. It made Evenon frown again, but he only shook his head. He needed to keep his cool. It was one of the prime qualities of a successful businessman. His gaze was naturally drawn to Rylan’s bloodied, torn shirt, and the wounds on the boy’s chest. He blinked.

He actually fought?

No, it was still too early to reach that conclusion. No matter his current motivations, the lifestyle that Rylan had led was undeniable. Fighting was something he was completely incapable of; he hadn’t spent more than five minutes in battle throughout his entire life. Rylan Flameheart only knew how to selfishly drown in drugs and prostitutes. It was common knowledge that he had been stuck in the First Circle for years.

Something must have gone wrong while the soldiers were fighting in his place. Maybe a goblin got the jump on him before the soldiers killed it.

After all, they were only soldiers without magic. There was a clear limit to their abilities. Evenon continued to observe Rylan as the boy approached the desk, looking at the sword on his waist. Rylan showed no reaction to the staff, only glancing at it. The boy put the half-empty bottle of alcohol on the desk.

“…Good afternoon, Rylan.”

All honorifics were dropped. He spoke Rylan’s name directly. The boy looked at him with the same dead eyes as always.

“Hello, Evenon. I was told you wanted to talk to me.”

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The emotions they invoked were the same as before. Contempt filled Evenon’s heart, but it was now tempered with a layer of caution. There was a point to his invitation. He shouldn’t stray from it.

“Yes. How is your progress on getting the money to buy the staff back?”

Rylan shook his head.

“I have made progress, but not enough. I don’t have the gold.”

“And what about the other method? Introducing thirty new customers?”

“Who would want to become one of my associates? Even if one or two are willing to get into this life, most aren’t. I haven’t managed to find thirty people yet.”

Evenon resisted the urge to furrow his brow, carefully controlling his expression. Rylan’s words were logical, but they felt… Out of place.

“You never took this long before.”

“I’ve been caught too many times. I’m running out of options. My old man isn’t willing to give me any more money, and you already know how close I am to being disowned.”

That was because of your own carelessness.

“I understand your position. However,” Evenon stood up, “I know a man of your caliber will find a solution. Think. Is there truly nothing else you can do?”

Rylan tilted his head.

“If you have an idea, I’m all ears. What do you want from me, Evenon?”

Evenon’s eyes narrowed, ever so slightly.

“There’s… A problem. Someone talked.”

As he spoke, he carefully observed Rylan’s expression, but it didn’t even ripple. Forget about a change, the boy’s brow didn’t even move.

“But it looks like you already knew that,” Evenon continued after a few seconds of silence.

Rylan nodded simply.

“The City Guard’s moves are noticeable. Several of your dealing spots must have gotten hit already.”

It wasn’t in the realm of impossibility for a young noble to be aware of the Vaard family’s actions. Evenon narrowed his eyes. Was he mistaken? Was Rylan truly unrelated to these developments? No, it was still too early to tell. He needed to get to the main point.

“I’ll be direct. If you can help me catch whoever talked, I’ll give you the staff.”

This was the plan he’d come up with. If Rylan were truly not the one at fault, he was certain that the boy would help him in exchange for the staff. If Rylan were the one who talked, it would be better to watch him closely as he fumbled to cover his own ass. In the worst-case scenario, he would have Rylan killed. It was imperative to get rid of the source of the City Guard’s information, even if it meant antagonizing a noble family.

He's almost disowned, anyway. The Flameheart family won’t act up too much.

So far, he had been able to deal with everything the City Guard had thrown at him, but even so, his customers were already scared of contacting him because of the Guard’s movements. He was in the middle of fighting back, which meant that things could get even worse. His men were stirring up trouble and digging for information all across the city, and Isabelle was doing her part, but this meant direct conflict with the Vaard family.

I won’t stop.

There were consequences to targeting him. That was already being proven.

Rylan nodded, then pointed at the claw marks on his chest. Evenon automatically looked at them.

“As you can see, I’m being forced to do many things against my will to throw off the old man’s gaze. Fighting is only one of them. All I’m managing to do is drink; I’m even struggling to go to the brothels.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“That I need time and all the information you have. We need to catch the snitch as soon as possible.”

As he spoke, his expression barely shifted, which confused Evenon. It was like he was talking to a stone wall, but that was what Rylan had always been like. This realization gave him some reassurance. His theory about Rylan being the one could be wrong; now that he was talking to the boy face to face, he saw no reason to believe that he had changed. It was just that Rylan fit the description of who he was looking for too well.

“I can only give you two weeks, at most. This is considering that I’ll be able to throw off the City Guard for a bit.”

Rylan nodded.

“I’m sure you have countermeasures for this kind of thing. The snitch is probably one of the students. I have virtually no way of talking to them apart from conversations in public places like the Adventurer’s Guild. Still, tell me everything you know.”

Evenon clenched his fists under the desk, then slowly opened his hands. Seconds went by in silence. Fast as lightning, Evenon tried to weigh his options.

In the end, he chose to believe in the years he had spent with Rylan and everything that had happened. As he waved his hand, one of the guards ran out of the room. He opened his mouth and started talking. He explained how dealing spots of Dust had been hit, how the City Guard moved as if they were already aware of which students were his customers, and how quickly the entire operation was developing. He added a few of his theories and thoughts but left out his suspicions about Rylan himself. Naturally, he also spoke of what he was doing to retaliate; it was a type of warning.

As he talked, he carefully observed the boy’s expression. Rylan’s brow gradually furrowed and he appeared to be deep in thought. There were signs of surprise, but nothing incriminating. It was a genuine reaction to obtaining information he didn’t previously know, at least not completely.

“I understand. I’ll try to think of something in these two weeks,” Rylan stood up and pointed at the staff, “I’ll stay in touch. In the meantime, protect the staff. It is the only thing between me and a miserable life.”

Your life is already miserable.

“Wait.”

Rylan stopped in the middle of turning around. The guard that had run off ran into the room and placed a pouch on the desk, then immediately retreated. Rylan eyed the pouch with a raised eyebrow.

“What’s this?”

He grabbed the pouch and opened it. Evenon carefully watched his face. The contents of the bag were simple: Dust.

“It’s a free hit. I thought you might need it, given your current situation.”

Rylan looked at him. His gaze was hard to read.

“…Thank you. I’ll take it home.”

Evenon gave him a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

“Isn’t it better to do it here instead of risking your position even further? We’ll protect you while the high lasts. Go ahead. You can believe in us, as you have always done.”

It was his final test.