Hughesin decided to relent at one point. Sitting down and helping himself to the food offered, he spoke of his trip to Kebrilio’s estate and the plan he had. Kebrilio, like they expected, went straight to the Sovereignians after Hughesin left. It was a reaction that made the two of them believe Fantasia was really a secret member of the Sovereignians.

The meal continued rather decently for the both of them. Somiret was enjoying the food in front of him, and Hughesin was now a little more calmer and able to formulate proper sentences. It also pleased the former that this matter was undergoing another development.

An informant would later interrupt the meal with yet another piece of information, one neither aristocrats knew what to make heads or tails of. According to the informant, laughter was heard earlier that morning from Flania’s room. It didn’t just belong to a single person, but the informant mentioned that the servants could at the very least identify Charle and Kebrilio’s loud voices as one of them.

Somiret had a certain level of understanding on the core members of the Sovereignians. Charle was one of the few members he thought formidable. A man hidden in the background and wouldn’t readily let his emotions get the better of him. Anything that could make such a man laugh surely had to have an important meaning behind it.

Of the people that laughed, Somiret knew Kebrilio the best. The magus, as talented as he was in the field of maguscraft, was not a resourceful man. He had no skill to speak of in anything but magic and was thankfully of a rather conscientious person. Somiret was glad. Men like those would never be a dangerous opponent to fear. They were the type to constantly second-guess their decisions and be swayed by their conscience when a decision had to be made.

But there was something else about Kebrilio laughing that puzzled Somiret. Kebrilio could rarely be seen smiling after the previous chancellor, Roth, died. The pressure following Roth’s death squashed the friendly and easygoing nature of the man and forced him into a state of stoicness.

So what could possibly make Kebrilio laugh so much? Somiret had to find out.

The two were even more confused when their informant reported Kebrilio having been seen departing the Sovereignians to travel for the estate of the archiereus, Myron. But it also confirmed the same thing for them both. Kebrilio had the habit of seeking advice from his friend Myron whenever he was beset with a difficult problem. Most of the time, these difficult problems concerned those close to Kebrilio, so the two agreed that the magus must’ve visited Myron on behalf of Fantasia.

That in itself highlighted two things:

One, Fantasia was indeed an important person to Kebrilio

And two, everything was still a complete coincidence. Kebrilio, in this case, assumedly went to Myron for his ability to predict Fantasia’s future.

Neither of the two could comfortably say they believed the second point, though.

It did leave Hughesin with an immense amount of joy. Sleep fail to come for him last night due to his worries. He was so fearful that the true love he never thought he’d have would actually be a member of a conspiracy against him.

All in all, Somiret was conflicted. The events that transpired last night were beneficial, but it saddened him that it was Hughesin that benefited most. If, Somiret wondered with some regret, everything was a coincidence like it seemed like, then he had missed out on a gem.

The two came to the simultaneous realization that nothing more had to be said anymore. Their long-standing cooperation had allowed the two of them to come to a silent agreement.

The table clattered with noise as both men stood at the same time. Somiret pushed the platters away so he could stand up while Hughesin was already walking briskly out the door and calling for the servants to prepare a coach for two.

Hughesin was already seated inside the coach by the time Somiret was dressed and out the door. Stepping onto the coach, Somiret sat down and allowed himself to be escorted to Hughesin’s estate.

Their houses weren’t too far away from one another. The only reason it took Hughesin so long to bring Fantasia home was because he had the coachman deliberately take a detour.

※※※

A coach came to a stop in front of the estate belonging to Hughesin. Two men stepped out from within: Hughesin and Somiret. Together, they entered the estate and to a room with a window facing Fantasia’s room.

The two barely just reached the window when they saw Kebrilio and Hughesin’s mother step into the adjacent room. They were then distracted by the strange actions of Fantasia—refined women would never eavesdrop so obviously like she was doing! It was undignified, but also strangely refreshing, for some odd reason. Fantasia’s lively nature and the way she climbed the fence was forever endeared by them, but both had differing emotions about it.

For Hughesin, he felt rather appreciative and cheerful.

For Somiret, the sight was equally pleasing to the eyes, but his tongue tasted something bitter. He recognized that bedroom; that was Hughesin’s personal bedroom.

Only a few were allowed in to Hughesin’s room. It had plenty of personal effects from his past that Hughesin didn’t want most people seeing. Only those he knew and trusted enough with his past would be allowed in.

Somiret also knew that women weren’t normally allowed into that room. If Hughesin had a woman to warm his bed, then he’d choose one of the hundreds of rooms here in the estate than his own. They were all completely and comfortably furnished so that his guests could enjoy the night better. Any room was allowed but his own.

There was plenty Somiret knew about Hughesin. He knew how the many normally thought and how he’d react to certain situations. But there was one thing about Hughesin that Somiret could never predict. Saludy. He feared the woman, to be honest. Her influence spread far and she was very capable at whatever she set her mind to. Her lending aid to Hughesin meant that Somiret’s own plans would have to be scrapped and remade.

He was beginning to doubt his own influence and connections, frankly. Perhaps it was time he, too, sought for external aid?

It pained him that the first person he thought of was his troublesome sister. Domineering and arrogant since childhood, his sister had been the perfect playmate as a child. The two were as thick as thieves and children and were often told that they were like brother and brother rather than brother and sister. She was reliable on many things, one thing she excelled at in particular was playing with the hearts of women.

And that was what made Somiret’s head hurt most. He didn’t know when exactly his sister awakened to her new sexuality, but it caused a great amount of excitement amongst his friends when they found out. Hughesin made the most noise when he found out and began to compete with her, seeing which one of the two could win over the hearts of others. Somiret also remembered his sister being the winner more often than not.

It was because of this competition that the two earned their nicknames as the top womanizers in Waldsk. One was a massive pervert and the other was a female pervert. Many a times, Somiret would listen to his sister rant about how unfair it was that she was placed behind Hughesin despite having a higher victory count. The only reason, he and his friends would often explain, she was placed second was because Hughesin had a greater and more destructive body count.

Somiret actually felt annoyed at the fact that his sister was coming to mind now. He knew his sister and what she was like. She was the type of person to never help someone unless there was something in it for her. And even then, those matters had to actually be interesting for her to even consider the matter.

He found himself reluctant to even ask such a person to help him. It’d be more likely that his sister would take the prize herself rather than help him achieve it. Losing out on a young lady like Fantasia would be upsetting, considering how refreshing he thought of her. If his sister were to lay her hands on Fantasia, Somiret was sure it’d only take two days at most to corrupt the girl; and that simply couldn’t be allowed to happen.