“That’s gross,” Solomon said, palming his sooty face.

Lykos didn’t reply, merely kneeling in a mixture of shame and terror.

“Well, let’s begin. Who do you work for?” The boy asked.

Lykos shook his head rapidly, “I don’t know, I don’t know. The deal was arranged via an intermediary and all parties were disguised.”

He looked up to see Solomon’s suspicious gaze, “I swear, all I know is that I was to bring the Meridion twins to the night auction at the slave market in Vassa.”

Solomon and Johan found their interests piqued.

“Meridion twins? You mean those two well-dressed kids?” Solomon confirmed somewhat disbelievingly.

Lykos nodded, somewhat confusedly, “I was supposed to capture five in total, but the true targets were the twins - they were named by my employer and so are more valuable.”

Solomon scratched his head, finding the man’s words difficult to believe.

‘What kind of child is more valuable than us genetically modified humans? And if his words are true and his target was specifically those two children, then what’s the point of that quota? To increase the chances of getting caught?’

“You’re certain that I wasn’t mentioned? You’re saying that I was just unfortunate to have been nearby?” He confirmed once more.

Lykos nodded repeatedly.

Solomon folded his arms in silence, reviewing everything in his mind. After a moment he realised he’d overlooked one very important thing.

‘Aside from Lord Aelfred and Peregrine, very few people know about the New Man project. It is indeed more likely that the kidnappers were after those Meridion twins and not us.’

At the same time, however, he couldn’t stop thinking about how unlikely it was that three of four new men were captured while he only managed a narrow escape.

“You said you were tasked with meeting a quota of five, but you still went after me, making it six,” Solomon stated.

“Because you were next to the girl and close by, I thought I might be able to increase my pay,” Lykos replied honestly.

“I see. Then what makes the Meridion twins so special? Why are they so valuable to your employer?”

Lykos shook his head, “I can only answer your first question. They are from house Meridion, a powerful noble house in southern Acremontis.”

Solomon took in a breath. Things were beginning to make sense.

“So your employer wished to take the heirs of a noble house hostage, potentially for a ransom or to use as political blackmail,” He concluded.

“Yes, I would guess the same,” Lykos agreed carefully.

Solomon shifted his position as he looked at the Arcadian before him.

“But Acremontis is on an entirely different continent. Between Biphrium and Acremontis, one could only reach the other by sea,” He frowned, “What are these two doing here?”

“I do not know. We were told they would be here, which is why we came,” Lykos explained.

Solomon’s brows furrowed, catching the discrepancy between his initial beliefs and what the man had said, “So you accepted the contract elsewhere? Was it in Stratvia? Or somewhere in Biphrium?”

“In Biphrium. The city-state of Balam just North of Baelmont.”

Solomon continued pondering in silence.

‘I initially assumed that he had accepted the contract in Baelmont, but it seems that they actually met their intermediary and employer in Balam before travelling here.’

Solomon continued asking a few more questions about Lykos’ former occupations, his now-dead friends’ and so on. After noting the lack of time and confirming most of his thoughts, Solomon decided that they had gathered enough information.

“Alright, I think we’re done here,” He said.

“What would you like me to do with him, young master?” Johan asked, somewhat tiredly.

“Kill him. He’s seen too much. Plus, we did also technically commit the murder of six other Arcadians. Let’s not leave any witnesses,” Solomon replied in a languid manner, as if the last few hours had been no different to relaxing at home.

Johan nodded affirmatively. As Lykos’ eyes widened and he recoiled backwards, trying to escape, a bloody rapier found its way into his throat, just beneath the laryngeal prominence.

Solomon took a final glance at the bodies and chaos behind him, shaking his head with some disappointment.

“If only the fire was still burning. Then we could have cleared all the evidence cleanly,” He then paused in his tracks, staring at the gaping wound in Lykos’s neck.

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Johan stopped too, looking at the young boy in concern. Perhaps, despite his abnormally high intelligence, strength and cunning, he was still just a child in the end. Johan awkwardly sidled over to Solomon, patting him gently on the shoulder.

Solomon looked up at him strangely.

“What are you doing?”

“…Comforting you.”

Solomon realised what Johan was thinking and didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, eventually sighing and pointing to the obvious wound on Lykos’ body.

“Make sure you obscure the wounds on all of the bodies. There’s a meat cleaver in the other room that you can use. Do it quickly, or you’ll have to throw away your rapier.”

———

The group quickly left the scene of the crime via the back alley. Fortunately for them, it was a working day and the sun hadn’t fully begun to set yet, so the routes they took were especially clear.

Soon enough, they returned to the Stone Centre of Biological Research and Development.

“I do not know where to begin,” Aelfred said sternly.

Before him, the four new men, the two Meridion twins and the two ex-bouncers stood. The new men had their heads lowered ashamedly, while Huang and Johan felt very awkward to be there.

In complete contrast, the thin Meridion twins were simply confused. They didn’t speak the language, so they couldn’t understand anything unless Montisian, their home tongue, was spoken to them.

And even then, as children of six years old, they weren’t particularly smart. At least, that was if they were being compared to the new men. Then again, many adults would feel inferior if that comparison were made too.

After Solomon and the others had explained what had happened that day, Aelfred felt an oncoming headache and had to sit down.

“I only just enrolled you into public school and you’re already causing so much trouble,” He grumbled.

“It’s too boring. Those kids are all still trying to learn how to speak and write. Some of them don’t even know how to use the toilet by themselves,” Aleister complained in response.

Aelfred turned his authoritative gaze to scan across the new men, before eventually resting on the two blood-stained ex-bouncers.

“I suppose you’re waiting for additional payment?”

The two nodded, “Yes, lord. The young master here promised an additional 20 gold.”

Aelfred shook his head, “What he has promised you is of little concern to me and you’ve already received a large sum of money from him. The 20 gold you have is enough to live frugally off of for years, even split between you.”

Huang and Johan were slightly disheartened, but didn’t talk back. Even they could recognise the person before them. Just the very opportunity to leave a good impression on him would be worth more than the 20 gold they had initially come to collect.

“However, in light of the help you have provided my… children, I will certainly not be stingy with rewards,” Aelfred added.

Han couldn’t help but snicker quietly at the old man’s contradictory words. Retracting 20 gold, yet claiming he wouldn’t be stingy was an interesting rhetoric.

Aelfred noticed this, but paid no heed, “You both previously worked as security guards, correct? I suppose neither of you have families or land here.”

Feeling a faint premonition of good fortune, Huang and Johan nodded in unison.

“Then I shall help you. Submit a citizenship and land application by the end of the week, and I shall approve them. That is all.”

The two quickly bowed in gratitude, thanking Aelfred profusely. It eventually took the older man’s stern gaze to force them out of the room. Once the two left, he turned to look at the lost Meridion twins.

“Did you two come here with family?” He asked in fluent Montisian.

Surprised, the twins both responded with non-verbal nods. Though they were tired, weak and hungry, they still retained their aristocratic manners.

“I see. Well, it would be cruel to force you to leave alone, and it would be equally as such to deprive you of comfort and rest. Lillian, fetch Alpha-1 and see to it that these two are catered to. They may use the guest rooms on the 9th floor for now.”

Lillian smiled at the twins, holding out her hands for them to clasp, before leading them away. With a hint of a smile, Aelfred watched them leave. When he turned to look at the three remaining troublemakers, the goodwill on his face vanished.

“Whose idea was it to skip school and go gambling? Again?” He interrogated, despite already knowing the answer.

“It was the two of us,” Han admitted, directly giving himself and Aleister up.

“Then you should know the consequences of such an action. Especially considering how you put the lives of yourselves and others at risk,” Aelfred followed up.

“Yes lord,” the two guilty boys chimed.

“Your punishment is tripled. Now get out of my sight,” Aelfred barked.

Once Han and Aleister left, only Aelfred and Solomon remained. They stared at each other until eventually Aelfred broke the uncomfortable contest with a cough.

“You did well.”

“I know.”

“…” Aelfred stroked his white beard with a sigh, “I can’t help but be concerned for your mental state. As a child, you are already burdened with genius intellect. At the same time, your lack of care towards human life is worrying.”

Solomon couldn’t help but nod in agreement. While he intrinsically felt little compassion for strangers and non-new men, he understood that the consequences of his actions still had an overall negative effect on himself and others.

After all, just because he personally didn’t care about someone or even hated them, it didn’t make murder acceptable.

“Of course, what those Arcadians did is not justifiable, and your course of action not only managed to save your siblings, but also acquired valuable information,” Aelfred advised. He continued, “I just want you to spend some time to reflect and consider things more broadly. I know it’s a lot to ask of you, especially with what you’ve been through, but it’s better to do it sooner than later. The longer you put it off, the worse it’ll be.”

Solomon nodded solemnly, with an air of vicissitude that did not belong on a four-year-old boy.

“I understand.”

Aelfred finally smiled, ruffling Solomon’s black hair affectionately. Solomon folded his arms, a clear sign that he was in thought. Noticing this, Aelfred retracted his hand and waited for the boy to speak.

“I just feel that things aren’t as simple as they seem. If the goal of the kidnapper’s employer was to abduct two specific individuals, why make up that number with a quota? Surely that’s counter-intuitive?” Solomon asked aloud.

Aelfred also crossed his other arm over his beard-stroking one, mimicking Solomon’s pose.

“Regardless, it’s very unlikely for anybody to have targeted you and the other three specifically. Very few people know about the true nature of your existence, and I have not published my paper yet. What that Arcadian said is plausible; you were all just caught by coincidence,” Aelfred reasoned, “Besides, it’s not every day a kidnapper stumbles across unparented children, ripe for the picking. In that regard, perhaps it would have been more unlikely for you four to not have fallen into their sight.”

Solomon grinned but quickly turned serious again, “You’re right. I just feel a great deal of frustration at my inability to solve things completely. While I managed to uproot those Arcadians, the mastermind and their true goal is unconfirmable. With the Meridion twins, Meric and Meritsa staying with us, we will be the focus of their attention regardless of whether us new men are their true targets or not.”

“Solomon, you are still just a child and have much to learn. Go and wash up. Have dinner with the twins and see if there’s anything you can learn,” Aelfred smiled, like an affectionate grandfather, “We can discuss this matter later, once you’re rested.”

Outside the room, listening in on the conversation, was Han. He had an unreadable expression on his face. After a while, he heard the sound of Aelfred standing and quickly left the scene.