“Dame Minerva,” Leon said without the slightest trace of levity as he showed his guests inside. Since this was obviously a Kingdom matter, Elise decided to leave and make her way back to the Heaven’s Eye Tower. With August arrested, there would be a great deal of upheaval in the Kingdom, and as a representative of Heaven’s Eye, she had to make sure the guild was ready to deal with the repercussions.

“Sir Leon,” Minerva responded just as seriously as Leon’s greeting.

Roland and Brimstone repeated the terse greeting, but Leon hardly responded to them.

As they were sitting at Leon’s dining table, Brimstone noticed the bowl of apples that Leon and Elise were using as the table’s centerpiece.

“Hey, can I have one of these?” he asked Leon. Leon gave him a strange look, as if he were asking Brimstone why he was even asking under such serious circumstances, but the younger knight still nodded his assent a moment later. “Thanks,” Brimstone said. “It’s been a long fucking day, and it ain’t even over, yet…”

With that, Brimstone gratefully grabbed an apple and took a massive bite while Leon surveyed the rest of his guests. Minerva and the Paladins sat with him at the table, as did a couple of the other knights whom Leon assumed were part of August’s retinue since he didn’t recognize them, even though they were sixth-tier mages. The rest of the knights stood a few feet away from the table, clearly not intending to join the conversation that was about to take place.

“So, has something happened that led you to bringing so many people to my home?” Leon asked, not wasting any more time with pointless chatter even though Brimstone’s actions made it clear that his hospitality could’ve been better—at the very least, offering his guests a drink would’ve been polite.

“We wanted to speak with you, is that a problem?” Roland inquired, not bothered at all with Leon’s business-like and somewhat standoffish attitude.

“Depends on the topic, I suppose,” Leon replied.

“We’ll try to keep it interesting, then,” Brimstone said in between bites.

“Prince August’s trial date has been set,” Minerva said, wasting no time in getting to the point of their visit.

Leon’s eyebrows shot up in surprise, and his eyes instantly went straight for the nearest clock.

“It hasn’t even been three hours since his arrest,” he observed. “They scheduled his trial damn fast…”

“He’s a Prince accused of high treason, the Arbiters who will be presiding over the case will be clearing their schedules for the event,” Roland said with a note of bitterness in his otherwise neutral voice.

“So, then, when is it?” Leon asked.

“Next week,” Minerva replied. “We have that much time to come up with a defense, assuming it’s even possible at this point.”

“You think it isn’t?” Leon could see the doubt and cynicism in Minerva’s eyes, so he barely even needed to ask the question.

“They wouldn’t have gone this far so quickly unless they believed they had enough to make these charges stick,” Minerva said. “Obviously, they’ve fabricated evidence, probably getting many of August’s supporters who were arrested earlier in the week to flip somehow. Regardless, I don’t think things would’ve progressed to this point if Octavius weren’t absolutely certain that he could take August out this way.”

“What do you want to do about it?” Leon’s aura began to intensify, making it clear enough that he was ready to fight at the drop of a hat. “We have Caecilius verifying that it was Earthshaker who murdered Prince Trajan, and he was, in all likelihood, acting on Octavius’ orders.”

“The word of a dead man won’t be enough for the Arbiters,” Brimstone said. “They’re going to want a lot more than that. That means more than a single witness, that means physical evidence, that means a confession if one can be extracted. One man, no matter how powerful he was in life, is not enough to get August acquitted.”

“And all of that is on the assumption that we’d be getting a fair trial, which I don’t think we will,” Roland added.

“I thought the High Arbiter was legendary for her fairness,” Leon said.

“She won’t necessarily be presiding, and even if she is, Royal trials are presided over by at least five Arbiters, often as many as nine or even thirteen,” Minerva explained. “Octavius needn’t corrupt the High Arbiter, he only needs to target the rest who will be assigned the case.”

“He might not even need to do that,” Brimstone said. “If his case is solid enough, the Arbiters would condemn August even without being corrupt. All Octavius needs is the evidence…”

“Sounds like all of you have quite a bit of this figured out, I don’t see why you saw the need to come here…” Leon said with a sarcastic smile and an implication that he would like them to get to the point.

“We’d like some assurances from you…” Brimstone began, but a dark look from both Leon and Roland had the words dying in his throat before he could finish his thought.

“I think what my colleague meant to say,” Roland said, “is that we would appreciate it if you were to aid us in our endeavors.”

“I’m already working with Dame Minerva, is that not enough?” Leon asked.

“It’s going to require more than just the retinue, that much is clear, I think,” Minerva said. “I think what they want is for you to move out of Trajan’s old retinue and into the direct service of Prince August.”

Leon flashed all three of them a dangerous smile. None of them felt too intimidated, but they could feel his killing intent, and some of the other knights that had followed them to Leon’s villa couldn’t help but shiver in their seats.

“I don’t want to be in anyone’s direct service,” Leon said quietly and slowly, enunciating every word to emphasize his seriousness.

It was a blunt refusal, and one that neither Roland nor Brimstone quite knew how to deal with. Neither had honestly thought that Leon would refuse; a period of reluctance, sure, but they thought that they could eventually wear him down and get him on board. The way Leon made his statement, though, told them everything that they needed to know.

“What are you saying, Ursus?” Minerva asked, her tone taking on a hard edge.

“With Prince Trajan gone, what need have I to stay in this Kingdom?” Leon wondered out loud. “I have no attachment to this Kingdom, why should I linger when there’s an entire world out there for me to see? I can’t think of a good reason to stay…”

Left unsaid was Leon’s suspicion that if he were to stay in the Bull Kingdom, it would make it easier for his enemies to find him, whether that was Justin Isynos or whoever else. It would be better to leave, and he hoped that both Roland and Brimstone knew that, since they both knew his real name.

“Our goals are aligned, for now,” Leon continued as Minerva’s expression grew both worried and angry. “So long as they continue to be, then you can count on me. Until Octavius and Petrus Duronius are dead at our feet, I’ll follow all of you. After that, though… after that, I’ll likely be leaving the Kingdom. I’ll be leaving the Royal Legions for sure, at the very least.”

Roland glanced at Brimstone and Minerva who had been almost stunned into silence, sighed, and said, “Thank you for being honest, Leon. Not many people are so upfront with their intentions, these days. Would I be right in assuming that you’re holding yourself back for our sake?”

Leon cocked an eyebrow at Roland. He assumed the Paladin was talking about the fact that he hadn’t made any active moves against Octavius or Earthshaker, yet.

“You could think of it that way, I suppose,” Leon said noncommittally. “It wouldn’t be an inaccurate way to put things…” He was really holding himself back from doing something probably suicidal, but he was a little gratified in thinking that Roland thought him strong enough to deal with Earthshaker and Octavius on his own. If, that is, Leon was accurate in his assumption.

“Then we should move fast,” Roland said. “I would say that our own forces are as consolidated as we’re ever going to get. We need to make sure we can remain in contact with Prince August, and then we need to confirm a few things.”

“Such as…?” Minerva asked.

“You, for one,” Roland said, “or should I simply assume that you’re with us?”

“Fighting for August will get me Octavius and Earthshaker,” Minerva replied, glaring at Leon as she did. “So long as August remains true to the promise he made me, then I will remain true to him. And above all else, I will remain true to the ideals that Prince Trajan held dear.”

Leon cringed internally. He could see from Minerva’s expression that she was not happy about how little he cared the Bull Kingdom. Trajan had always attempted to use his power to aid the people of the Bull Kingdom, with concepts like vengeance taking a backseat to justice and benevolence. Whether or not Trajan was successful in his endeavors wasn’t for Leon to decide, but he knew that Trajan probably wouldn’t approve of his motivations for remaining in the Bull Kingdom. Leon wanted vengeance, not justice, and he was only staying the course laid out by Minerva to honor Trajan’s memory.

Shame burned in Leon’s heart under Minerva’s withering gaze, more shame than Leon ever thought possible, though he ignored it as best he could. It would take more than shame to make him change his mind.

“Fair enough,” Roland said. “It would be best, then, if either you or Brimstone speaks with the Legates of the Legions that accompanied us east when we reinforced the Bull’s Horns. They’ve been reassigned to the Eastern Territories, but they’re still close enough to the Central Territories that they can aid us in whatever it is we decide to do.”

“And you should try to get in contact with Prince August,” Brimstone said. “Whatever we do must be coordinated with him, otherwise there’d be little point.”

“I’ll work on securing our entry and exit,” Minerva said. She had more knights than the other two did—at least within the capital—and so she would fulfill the role of the muscle of their little group.

“I have my own thing I’m working on,” Leon said, his attention momentarily turning toward Valeria in the guest room, still sleeping off whatever had managed to get her drunk earlier that day.

“What might that be?” Roland asked.

Leon almost didn’t answer the Paladin, but he knew there wasn’t much point in being secretive for its own sake.

“I’m looking into some contacts I have in the Royal Guard. Might be able to smuggle Princess Cristina out of the harem, along with her and Prince August’s mother.”

“Oh…” Roland muttered.

“We… didn’t even think of that…” Brimstone added.

Leon could understand. Cristina and August’s mother weren’t politically active and stayed cooped up in the Royal harem all day. For all intents and purposes, they didn’t exist according to most of the court.

“You sure you’re able to get in there?” Minerva asked, her tone still short and terse after Leon’s blunt admission that he wasn’t going to stick with the Bull Kingdom.

“No,” Leon honestly replied. “I just have a couple of friends in the guard who might be able to do something. I know they’ve gotten the Princess out before to watch the triumphal games, so if need be, I think we can get both ladies out of the city.”

“That would be quite the balm for Prince August’s nerves, I should think,” Roland said. “Princess Cristina and his mother have always been his greatest concerns.”

“Really?” Minerva asked with a tone dripping in sarcasm. “He doesn’t ever show it.”

“Of course he doesn’t, why would he go wearing that sort of thing on his sleeve when he has so few friends in the capital?” Roland asked. He would’ve said more, but a quick glance at the clock stopped him from doing so. Rising from his seat, he said to Leon, “Thank you for your hospitality, Sir Leon. Sir Saturnius and I have a great deal of other work to do and must take our leave, but I hope to meet with you again and discuss how you might be able to assist us further, if you would be willing to do so.”

“I doubt I would be, but I see little harm in sitting down to speak,” Leon said, a wild look flashing across his face for the briefest of moments. He wasn’t thrilled about the prospect of speaking with Roland, but since the Paladin knew his true identity and was still only of the sixth-tier, Leon figured it would be fine to at least hear the man out. It was probably only to urge him to help August’s cause in the Northern Territories, anyway, and if anything were to go wrong, Leon still had Xaphan almost literally up his sleeve.

Roland nodded again, and he and Brimstone departed, pausing only for Brimstone to repeat Roland’s thanks for Leon’s hospitality, despite Leon’s rather severe shortcomings in that department.

Minerva, however, remained in her seat, staring at Leon, looking away only to quickly order the remaining knights in the villa to wait for her outside. Leon raised an eyebrow as the knights filed out of his home, but he remained silent until they left. Minerva had a purpose for doing this, and he was going to let her begin first.

The knightess seated across from him made him wait what seemed like an eternity, as even after the other knights had left, she stared at him without a word. With how intently she stared, he couldn’t take it for very long.

“Is there something you wanted to ask me, Dame Minerva?” Leon asked.

“A few new ways to stick people with sharp things… is that the only lesson you learned from Trajan?” Minerva responded. “Did His Highness not impress upon you anything more meaningful?”

Leon’s stoic face twitched in a half-smile, half-frown, and he didn’t know what to say.

“Are you a mercenary?” she continued, staring almost accusingly at Leon for what she saw as his lack of loyalty to Trajan’s memory. “Now that he’s gone, are you just going to pack and go, like any of this isn’t your problem? You are, as you have stated, a Valeman, but that doesn’t exempt you from the responsibilities that this Kingdom has given you. That Trajan entrusted to you.”

Averting his gaze from Minerva, Leon almost cringed his bones into dust as he remembered the oath that Trajan made him swear when forgiving his rash actions in the stone giants’ crater and taking him into his retinue.

“I understand the need for vengeance,” Minerva said, her tone softening, “I have that same need. I want nothing more than to see Petrus Duronius strung by his own entrails. However, we can’t lose sight of who we are and the ideals we stand for in the process.”

Reluctantly, Leon nodded, if only to relieve some of his own discomfort at this confrontation. He knew Minerva wasn’t saying that they should go easy on their enemies, but that they simply should keep in mind why Trajan did everything that he did and not to forget that in the course of their own endeavors.

“I… I will keep that in mind,” Leon softly said. “I’m not going to change my mind about leaving the Bull Kingdom at some point, but I will keep this in mind…”

“That’s all I ask,” Minerva said as she rose from her seat and made to follow the Paladins out of Leon’s home.

Leon stayed sitting at his dining table for a long time, even after Minerva left the villa, only rising to see her to the door and to shut the gate behind her and her followers. He had a lot to think about, and only two weeks to do it in, for he had to ready himself for the inevitable shit-show that was going to be August’s trial.

To that end, after about an hour or so of quiet contemplation, Leon finally turned his eyes back toward Valeria in his guest room.