Lisa sighed in relief upon seeing Yarro make peace. The man had gotten a lot more emotional than before he met with the Deities. What did they do to him that made him more open in his thoughts? The Yarro she knew would have never gotten so hostile over what the guards were doing in the southern district. She received a thumbs up, which she took for success, then went to eat with the rest of her guards that were on duty tonight.

They ate in shifts to make sure there was even coverage throughout the entire night. She was supposed to eat early, along with a few others from her group, before the crowd got rowdy from the endless drinks. She was also here tonight to make sure all her guards behaved and was to be a point of contact for any Capes with complaints against them. Though she hoped she wouldn't need to take too much action tonight.

Her group of guards were idly chatting when Neila said something interesting. "Apparently there's no more fish in the docks."

"After what happened there I'm not surprised they all ran away."

"No, no. I mean before the Master Water Elemental. While overseeing the repairs, I was talking to one of the fisher-folks who worked there before it got all messed up. They pulled less and less fish until they couldn't get anything except trash and dead fish," Neila said.

"I noticed a lot of dead fish when I was fighting it. I thought it had done that," Lisa said.

"Well, now we know why it got angry." It made a bit of sense. Lisa filed that bit of information to tell Yarro later.

After dinner, the majority of the Capes still lingered on the edges of the ballroom floor. Small groups dotted around with drinks and finger foods. The dance floor itself was a sunken floor in the center of the room, with the band overlooking it. It was beautifully constructed with a marble floor patterned in white and beige diamonds and outlined in a thin gold line. The floor sparkled and shined from the golden chandeliers above and sconces around the room. Dancers were always going on and off as long as the music played.

Being a mere Guard Captain, she was privy to eavesdrop on various conversations without being marked as abnormal. They all ignored her, since her cape wasn’t long enough. Most didn’t even see it, or thought it was some mere decorative frills. Lisa had heard things like:

“Do you believe this Chosen One nonsense?”

“Not on my life. Queen Illa would never sponsor someone so obviously fake.”

And,

“I heard he’s actually a Peacekeeper. Why would the Deities choose someone so subpar?”

“They should have chosen one of us. Surely our superior skills and connections will get done whatever they wish.”

As well as,

“What I wouldn’t love to have the backing of a Deity. I could make so much money.”

“We could sell merchandise, and the others would be clamoring to take a piece of the pie.”

It seems Queen Illa succeeded in bringing all attention to the Deities and Yarro instead of the civil war in Lacruss or the destroyed town and docks from the Master Water Elemental. For the moment, at least. They were either on the side of praising the Queen’s work, or doubting something like this would ever happen. One group even expressed an interest in joining the fray. None of them had enough brains to realize that they were probably part of the problem.

However this was only the start of the night. They would soon become tired and bored of the conversation topic. Sure enough, as the night ticked on, the conversation shifted from the Deities, to the goings on in the country and city. What surprised her the most was that these Capes seemed to know what was happening in the southern district. One conversation was particularly interesting.

One man in an orange, gaudy suit, a medium length cape, and an extravagant mustache said “These protests are getting out of hand. If you don’t have the foreman whip them into shape soon, the books will go in the red. We can’t afford to go into debt so soon after donating to that Lacrussian company.”

A woman in a longer, sheer purple cape hooked to her gloves and a string of jewels on her high crescent-shaped bun swirled her wine glass. “It would be easier to just fire the entire lot of them and train a new batch, before the shopkeepers start to complain.”

The man nodded in understanding. Many goods do come from the Southern District, and there are plenty of residents that work the farms outside the city as well. It won’t be long until the economy takes a significant hit if the riots continue on, especially with the docks completely out of commission for the foreseeable future. Anyone with fingers in the workshops there would understand that immediately. Her guards were amplifying the problem as well, according to Yarro.

Lisa internally sighed. The riot was now out of her hands. It was time to let Lord Marshal Eris know of the situation. Perhaps she could send the army to clamp down on the destruction, at least. If only she had some help, like Yarro said. Then she would have been able to act sooner or at least notice when her subordinates weren’t doing their jobs. After Yarro had barged into her office and let her know about the permits, she had Sorochin ask to see the permits of everyone who passed through those gates. Anyone who couldn't procure theirs on the spot was fired. Yarro certainly made her job a lot easier, but she was embarrassed it had to come to this.

Lisa continued on with her patrol and onto seemingly important business conversations. Many lamented the district’s poor work ethic. They gave those non-elementalists jobs, so why weren’t they working? They should be grateful, obviously. Lisa rolled her eyes. Never mind the fact that they were either being paid in pennies, or they weren’t even paid in the official currency at all. These Capes somehow didn’t know the truth of the riots, despite knowing they exist. How they became so rich, she didn’t know.

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Later on in the night, it must have been some hour or two past midnight near the end of the party, Lisa spotted Yarro and Kael. Yarro seemed extremely drunk, and was heavily leaning on his partner in a sofa, with his arms wrapped around his neck and shoulders. Lisa walked up to them, slightly confused.

They were all alone in a quiet, dimly lit hallway. The candles either extinguished or in a pool of melted wax. As she approached closer, she noticed Yarro half asleep, mumbling, and Kael frozen in place. Their eyes met, and he seemed to be silently pleading for her to save him. She understood the situation immediately. This was a familiar sight back in the barracks and she knew exactly how to handle it. Partially, at least.

“Kael, you’re always so nice to me. That’s why I like you. I mean, of course you’re cute and all, but you have such a kind heart. You always know what to say, and you were so kind to comfort me on that day when we first met. Which is why it doesn’t make sense that you would betray me tonight…”

Betray? Yarro seemed to be drunkenly rambling. She hasn’t seen him this drunk in a long time. Who knows what he might have confessed. No wonder Kael looked so awkward, the poor guy. Kael caught her eyes, and silently pleaded with her. They were the biggest puppy dog eyes she had seen in a while.

With a silent nod, Lisa stopped in front of Yarro, stance wide, her arms held tightly behind her back. Perfectly befitting her rank as Guard Captain. “Peacekeeper!” she commanded. Her voice echoed throughout the long, empty halls.

Yarro, now startled, shot up and immediately bowed deeply. “Yes, Madam!”

Lisa grinned at the easily predicted movement and winked at Kael. “You weren’t drinking on the job, were you?” Lisa crossed her arms to play the part. This was the most fun she has had in awhile, and she wanted to revel in every minute of it. It was nostalgic.

“No, Madam!"

A disappointing answer, but he technically wasn’t under her authority anymore, so she can’t exactly reprimand him for lying. “Well, in that case, your shift is over, Peacekeeper. Head on home and get some rest.” She gave a nod and waved her hand to dismiss him.

“Yes, Madam!” Yarro bowed quickly, and hastily left the castle, completely forgetting that he came with Kael. He didn’t even look back and his entire body language was stiff until he turned the corner and disappeared from their eyes. She didn’t think it would actually work. She expected at least a little push back. A bit disappointing, her fun was over so quickly.

“Are you sure that was safe to do?” Kael asked, slightly concerned.

“He’s fine. He can handle himself. Even if he’s this drunk and won’t remember much.”

“He won’t?” Kael thought for a moment, then looked relieved. “Good, then. Things would become quite awkward otherwise.”

Lisa sensed a story there and grinned. “Oh? Did he reveal to you some major embarrassing secret?” She only probed to see if he actually confessed to him.

Kael shook his head with a small smile. “I’m not at liberty to say.”

She wasn’t expecting much of an answer anyway, but she still wanted to ask. Just in case. Kael must need some time to think about it. But maybe she could sway his opinion in a more actionable direction. "You know... Yarro, back when he was a city guard here, was quite a fun drunk." Kael perked up, oh so clearly eager to hear more about his past. She nodded along. "Yes, he drunk a lot whenever there was cause for celebration. I'm sure you know what an extrovert that man is, but when he's drunk, he was even more talkative, more clingy, and completely useless as a guard.

The alcohol went straight to heart and he just couldn't lie. But the thing is, he would never be able to remember what he did or said once he woke up. Never knew how he got home either." Lisa chuckled as memories came back of her dragging him home. A trail leading directly to his door that looked like she had dragged home a dead body. She might as well have.

"So he runs off his instincts? Honest, lovable, and loud about it all," Kael mumbled.

"So, if he said anything to you, consider it his heart, and consider it carefully." She smiled, nodded goodbye, and went on with the rest of her night.

At almost 4 AM, Queen Illa thanked whoever was left for coming, and the rest of them filed out. Her and her guards organized the populace and made sure everyone peacefully left in an orderly fashion. Thankfully, there was only one scuffle over a perceived slight that her guards were able to swiftly and quietly handle.

They all had a debriefing once they got back to the guard barracks. They were all exhausted and wanted nothing more than to go him, but the reports were important for documentation. Especially since it was all fresh in their mind right now. Lisa was able to take a quick nap afterwards. By the time was was ready to speak with Lord Marshal Eris it was already almost noon.

Lisa was determined to speak with the Lord Marshal before the problem with the riots became too difficult to handle for even the army, or even collapse the economy. The Lord Marshal had a dedicated office in the castle. It’s where she would most likely be after an eventful night there. Lisa arrived at the office without any assistance, having already visited it dozens of times before. She knocked once. No answer. She knocked again, and after a moment, she finally heard a “Come in.”

Lord Marshal Eris sat by the fire with a glass of water in her hand. She looked quite pale and had a certain kind of dead eyes, and even had the main part of her outfit from last night still on. Apparently she still had a hangover, and didn’t meet with anyone until just now. Lisa looked around the room to see her cape, shoes, and various accessories laying around the office. Did she sleep here as well? “What do you want?” Lord Marshal Eris asked.

Lisa bowed quickly to her superior. “Lord Marshal Eris, I have come with an urgent report on the Southern District.”

The Lord Marshal sighed deeply and took a gulp of her water. “What is it now? All I’ve heard last night was about the protests there and the Deities. Can’t your guards handle it?” she asked with a wave of her hand.

“No, Madam. My guards have been judged as inefficient in handling the district. I was hoping you could deploy the army to stop the riots.”

Lord Marshal squinted her eyes at her. “Riot, or protest?”

“Riot, Madam. Peacekeeper Yarro mentioned to me the recent events when he told me about the guards. I would call it a riot.”

“Peacekeeper Yarro again, hmm… I believe Queen Illa also mentioned something about your guards recently from the Peacekeeper’s report.” Lord Marshal Eris stared at the fire while she thought. Lisa looked as well, and could immediately feel the comfort from it calm her nerves a bit. It must have been the same for her boss. Maybe fire helped hangovers for a fire elementalist as well. Lisa would have to try it next time she ever drank enough.

Finally her boss spoke up. “Fine. I can send three soldiers to the Southern District, but I can’t spare more than that. And I will also need to let the Queen know.”

Hold on—This wasn’t the sort of thing they should be telling the Queen. The whole reason Lisa went to the Lord Marshal, and called it a riot rather than a protest, was so that the Lord Marshal could send help and the Queen didn’t break out in a rampage. “Do you have to? I don’t think she will take well to hearing there were riots in the Southern District.”

“She won’t be happy about it, but she won’t fly off the handle if that’s what you’re thinking. I can convince her that 2 or 3 soldiers are an acceptable number to stop the riots.” Were they really so good that such a few number could handle the entire district’s riot? “It shouldn’t be that hard, especially since no one over there has an element. The riots will die down quick enough.”

Lisa bowed. It wasn’t her place to question her superior. Now that she told someone else and was certain help was on the way, it was out of her hands. Less time spent on this was more time available for her actual job. “Very well, then. I’ll leave it to you.” With that, she took her leave.