The sun just rose over the Saint Michel Bridge, and a small café on the Left Bank, frequented by students and journalists, had already opened its doors.
By the window, Arthur, Heine, Eld, and Great Dumas sat around a round table, with four steaming cups of black coffee and a basket of freshly baked croissants.
"Mercy!" Heine slammed a fist on the table, causing ripples in his coffee cup: "Arthur, you are too merciful! For dealing with a charlatan like Liszt, you shouldn't show any leniency."
Heine grew increasingly agitated as he spoke, his criticisms becoming sharper: "Liszt loves to brag that he's the Paganini of the piano world, but in reality? You are the true Paganini of piano, and 'Clock' is clearly your piece! He always puts on a Messiah's airs, as if Paris owes him a shrine! But in truth? Arthur, you are the one who climbed out from the coffin of St Martin's Church!"
