“Anne?” said Agis, gently shaking the sleeping Anne, who was hunched over on her desk. “Anne!”

Anne awoke with a start. “Huh? What’s happening”

One of the papers had stuck to Anne’s cheek. Agis reached out to pull it off and glanced over the contents.

“Players on a stage, trapped in rope? A cracked snowglobe?” said Agis. “What is this? Are you writing poetry?”

“No, it's just... bits and pieces of... prophecies I’m trying to decipher,” said Anne, snatching the paper back from Agis. “What are you doing here so early in the morning?”

“It’s almost noon,” said Agis. “And Eva asked me to keep you company while she takes the day off.”

“Oh yeah…” said Anne. It had been so long since she’d been able to sleep in that she was feeling somewhat disoriented. “She’s really taking a day off, huh? I hope she’ll really be able to relax.”

“Should I find an acolyte or someone to bring you some food?” said Agis. “I don’t know what Eva usually does as your attendant.”

“Don’t worry about it,” said Anne, getting up from her chair and stretching. “Honestly I might just go back to bed.”

Just then there was a knock at the door. Sister Marietta opened the door timidly. “I’m sorry to disturb you Saintess, but you have a visitor.”

“What!?” said Anne. “Am I even allowed to have visitors right now after... all that stuff yesterday?”

“I tried to tell them you weren’t seeing anyone,” said Marietta. “But they were quite insistent…”

Not waiting for an introduction, Countess Collette Vostelmal pushed her way past Marietta and into the room, followed closely by Lady Belle Tulinmal. “Saintess!” said Collette. “I’ve come to pick you up for my party!”

“P-party?” said Anne.

“Ah, so you never got my invitations after all?” said Collette. “I thought something might be up when I never received your RSVP. Which is why I decided to come fetch you personally! But did Corvina not even mention anything about the party when she last saw you? Ah, well. We’re here now, anyway.”

“I’m terribly sorry about this intrusion, Saintess,” said Belle, who seemed embarrassed by Collette’s behavior. “I’m not even sure why I’m here, frankly.”

“I told you,” said Collette. “Nia got to meet the Saintess yesterday, so it’s only fair that we get to meet her next.”

“Nia?” said Anne. Then she remembered. “Oh, the daughter of the Quellinian ambassador who came to help the alchemist escape the country?”

“That’s the one!” said Collette. “To be precise, she’s the daughter of the ambassador from Quellinia and a minor Baron from the Wyernwolf Empire, which is why she qualifies for membership in the prestigious Bastard’s Club.”

“Countess!” said Belle. “I’m sure it’s not necessary to use such language in front of the Saintess.”

“Oh my, are you not dressed yet?” said Collette, ignoring Belle. “Where’s your wardrobe? I’ll pick an outfit out for you.”

Anne, still struggling to keep up, waved vaguely towards her wardrobe. Collette threw open the doors and started rummaging through it.

“I really do feel the need to apologize for this unseemly behavior,” said Belle.

“Uh… it’s fine,” said Anne.

“Is this all you have?” said Collette. “This is all far too boring.”

“One of the acolyte’s, Betty, has been adding some embroidery to my shirts…” said Anne.

Collette ignored her. “Oh, well. It’s early yet.” She threw some clothes at Anne, who caught them. “Put those on and then we’ll take you to one of my boutiques to get you a new party outfit. I’m sure we can find a cute dress for you.”

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“I don’t really like wearing dresses,” said Anne.

“Then we’ll go to one of my haberdasheries and get you a stylish suit!” said Collette. “Don’t you worry. I am the name in fashion in this city. We’ll be sure to have you looking smart in time for the party.”

“Wait, Anne can’t leave,” said Agis, who’d had his bow out since the women burst into the room. “What if the humans harass her now that they know she’s an elf? Eva told us we should lay low for a while. And I’m supposed to protect her.”

“It’ll be fine,” said Collette, with a bright smile. “And if you’re so worried, you can tag along, Mr. Scary Bow Guy. Unless you really are planning to shoot a Countess and the daughter of a Duke? I’m sure a direct attack on the nobility will really help the church’s reputation at this delicate time.”

Belle sighed. “She’s not going to give up,” she said. “You’d better save us all some time and just agree to come along.”

Agis looked at Anne uncertainly.

Anne looked at Agis, then at the nervous Marietta, and then at the two noblewomen. “And Lady Corvina will be at this party?” she asked.

“Of course!” said Collette.

Anne considered this for a moment longer, and then shrugged. “Fuck it, let’s go."

“But Anne—” started Agis.

“You’ll be there to protect me, so nothing that bad can happen, right?” said Anne, smiling at her brother.

Agis lowered his bow a little. “I mean, I guess.”

“Great,” said Anne. “Now everyone get out of my room so I can get dressed.”

----------------------------------------

Eva sat at a small table outside of a cafe, sipping a cup of coffee.

At nearby tables, everyone was talking about the events of the previous day.

“The higher-ups in the church ought to be treated as traitors.”

“Hiding something so important—”

“The Saintess, an enemy of the state…”

“Maybe not all elves are—”

“Surely the Goddess wouldn’t choose a bad person.”

“What if she’s not chosen after all?”

“If the Goddess didn’t choose her, how do you explain the miracles? Idiot.”

The mood in the air was tense, but unresolved. Clearly, the public didn’t yet know what to make of things. The outcome of this whole debacle would depend on who managed to gain control of public opinion first—the Bishop or the Emperor. They would both be scrambling to figure out how to take advantage of the situation.

Maybe I should go find the Bishop and— No. I promised Anne I would take a day off, thought Eva.

Eva had no choice but to trust in Bishop Geist’s considerable skill as a manipulator. Eva didn’t like to admit it, but the Bishop had managed to maintain the church’s power this long for a reason. And for the moment, their interests were still aligned. So there was no reason not to trust her.

Eva took a sip of her coffee and wondered if Anne had gotten enough to eat for breakfast. Anne needed to keep up her strength, even if she was just going to spend the day resting. Maybe she could just go check in real quick and—

No. Eva slammed her fist on the table. Agis had made it clear that on a day off you’re not supposed to do any of the things you usually do for work, no matter what. She’d just have to trust that Agis was properly looking after Anne.

Eva was not comfortable trusting other people with important work.

Eva felt bored and restless just sitting there, like her soul was trying to crawl out of her skin. She held her head in her hands while she tried to figure out what to do with the afternoon that was stretching ahead of her like a yawning void.

Agis had given her a list of tourist spots she could visit—marketplaces, famous buildings, gardens, tours—but none of it appealed to her. What practical use did Eva have for any of the pedestrian trivia she could pick up on those kinds of tours? What possible joy or peace could she derive from looking at a flower in a garden that wouldn’t pale in comparison to how she felt looking at Anne’s face every day? It was all pointless.

An idea occurred to her… it was probably pushing the boundaries a little bit, but surely visiting a pub was an acceptable day-off activity? And if she took her time walking over there, that would be leisure, wouldn’t it?

At a slow pace, it took her about half an hour to walk over to the particular pub she had in mind, a small hole-in-the-wall place called the The Rusty Trumpet.

Eva approached from the back alley, where she ran into a large young man with dirty-blonde hair who was hoisting a cask of ale onto his shoulder. His face lit up when he spotted Eva.

“Sister Eva!” he said. “It’s been ages!”

“Bernard,” said Eva, with her usual gentle smile. “I’m afraid my church duties have been keeping me rather busy these days, but I’ve come by to see how everyone is doing.”

“Everyone will be glad you did,” said Bernard. “Come, come in, there’s much to catch up on.”

Bernard led Eva into the back room of the pub, where he set down his cask. “You’ve got perfect timing, actually,” said Bernard. Then, in a low, conspiratorially voice, he added. “We’ve recently got a new member of our cell. He’s been really eager to meet you.”

“Is that so…?” said Eva.

Bernard nodded. “He’s really into political theory and you’ve always been way more advanced on that stuff than any of the rest of us,” said Bernard. “He’s here right now.”

“Will you point him out to me?” asked Eva.

“Of course,” said Bernard, leading Eva through the door into the pub proper. He pointed over to a corner table. “He’s the fellow over there. The older one, with the big scar on his face and the purple hair. Hard to miss him.”

At the corner table, deep in conversation with several other pub patrons, sat Ulrich Vend, dressed in street clothes. When he looked up and spotted Bernard and Eva looking at him, he smiled, raising his tankard towards them in greeting.