Rain changed the sound of evidence.
In a dry courtroom, evidence clicked, rustled, and landed on polished desks with neat finality. In the street, beneath Fontaine's silver weather, evidence hissed. Broken Mek cores steamed against wet stone. Loose gears rolled through shallow puddles. Blue sparks crawled across metal ribs before dying under the rain, and every drop that struck the ruined machines made them seem less like weapons and more like corpses that had forgotten how to bleed.
The Fountain of Lucine whispered behind us.
No one said much at first.
Navia stood beneath the rain with Melus and Silver close at her back, her face composed in a way that looked more dangerous than anger. Clorinde remained near the fallen Meks, sword lowered but not relaxed, her eyes moving over each damaged frame with the discipline of someone already separating battlefield noise from usable fact. Lumine crouched beside one of the cores, careful not to touch the seal I had placed over it. Nilou held Paimon gently back from getting too close, while Paimon hovered with puffed cheeks and the expression of someone offended by both attempted murder and dampness.
Greg sat on my shoulder.
Still dignified.
Still internationally protected.
Still probably disappointed that the legal system had not yet recognized his full diplomatic rank.
I kept one hand raised over the nearest Mek core, letting a thin Geo seal hold the machine's remains in place while Dendro threads drank in the control residue like roots tasting poison in soil. The signal was messy, frayed, and deliberately scrubbed in places, but not clean enough. Whoever had sent these Meks had moved quickly. Panic made people sloppy. Panic was rude, ugly, and occasionally useful.
Clorinde's eyes lifted toward me. "You marked the control traces during the attack."
"Yes."
"While fighting."
"Barely fighting," I said. "Mostly preventing murder angles and correcting my vocabulary."
Paimon crossed her arms. "You mean after saying Champion Duelist Mommy."
"I said Ma'am with emotional punctuation."
Lumine did not look up from the core. "You said Mommy."
"I spiritually meant Ma'am."
Navia exhaled through her nose. It was not quite laughter, but close enough that Melus's shoulders eased by a fraction. Silver did not react. Silver seemed like a man who filed comedy under possible security threats until proven otherwise.
Clorinde's expression remained perfectly calm, which somehow made the situation more humiliating. "For the purposes of this investigation, I will record neither version."
I pressed a hand to my chest. "Merciful Champion Duelist Ma'am."
Lumine lifted the evidence booklet without even standing.
I shut up immediately.
Growth.
Clorinde crouched near another fallen Mek and examined the exposed components. Rain slid off the brim of her hat, catching the gray light. "These were not simply malfunctioning. Their control systems were interfered with. The movement pattern suggests a directed attack, though the origin has been obscured."
Navia's gaze sharpened. "Directed at me?"
"At minimum, directed at this group," Clorinde said.
"Cowell," Navia said.
I nodded without looking away from the Dendro threads. "Cowell. And you."
Melus frowned. "Because Demoiselle Navia spoke at the trial?"
"Because she walked into court and tied today's incident to the old disappearances," I said. "Lyney being acquitted annoyed someone. Liliane being alive scared someone. Cowell breathing terrified someone. But Navia pulling Callas's shadow back into the light? That probably made the wrong person spill tea all over their respectable little desk."
Paimon shivered. "Paimon hates how specific that sounds."
"It is not specific," I said. "It is a genre."
Lumine's mouth twitched despite herself. "A genre?"
"Yes. Respectable bastards with clean gloves."
Navia repeated it slowly. "Respectable bastards with clean gloves."
Clorinde glanced at me. "That is not a legal category."
"Fontaine should update its forms."
Silver gave a low, almost approving sound. "It is descriptive."
I pointed at him. "Locked treasure chest man understands."
Silver stared at me again.
Melus finally lost the battle and smiled.
The trace beneath my fingers pulsed faintly. I took in the pattern, copied it into a tiny braided knot of Dendro and Geo, then pressed the little thread-mark into a pebble I picked up from the wet street. It looked ordinary. That was the point. The original core stayed sealed, but now we had a copy of the signal's shape, the kind of evidence that could be compared later without letting one official archive become the only throat the truth could breathe through.
Lumine watched me finish. "You made another copy."
"I made three."
"Three?"
"One for us, one for Navia, one decoy in case someone tries to steal the obvious one."
Paimon blinked. "Which one is obvious?"
I held up the pebble.
Lumine looked at it for one second. "That is the decoy."
I lowered the pebble slowly. "I hate that you know me."
"I love you too."
Direct hit.
Critical damage.
I coughed and handed the real copy to Navia, disguised as a small Geo chip no larger than a button. "Keep this somewhere not obvious."
Navia accepted it between two gloved fingers. "Should I ask where the third copy is?"
Greg flicked his tail proudly.
Everyone looked at Greg.
Paimon pointed. "You hid evidence on Greg?"
"Greg is a secure archive."
"He is a lizard!"
"A secure lizard archive."
Clorinde stared for a moment longer than necessary. "Is this common practice among your party?"
Nilou answered with gentle honesty. "Common? Yes. Practice? I am not sure."
Lumine stood and wiped rain from her hand. "It works more often than it should."
That was basically praise.
I would treasure it forever.
Navia slipped the Geo chip away, then turned back to Clorinde. The faint humor at the table, the battle, the mechanics—all of it thinned the moment Callas's shadow returned. Rain softened the city around us, but it did not soften the way Navia looked at the Champion Duelist.
"You said my father's duel was not as simple as the records made it appear," Navia said.
Melus's expression tightened.
Silver became still enough to be mistaken for carved stone.
Clorinde did not evade her gaze. "Yes."
"Then say what you mean."
The request was not loud. It did not need to be. It landed harder because Navia was holding herself together with both hands and refusing to let either of them shake.
Clorinde's answer came slowly. "Your father did not fight like a man trying to escape justice."
Navia's face changed.
Not dramatically. Not enough for a stranger to understand. But I saw the sentence hit something old and bruised. Her lips parted slightly before closing again. Her fingers curled, then forced themselves straight. Rain slid down the side of her face like the sky had chosen an unfair moment to imitate tears.
"Then why did you kill him?" she asked.
Paimon's eyes widened.
Nilou lowered her gaze.
Lumine went very still.
Clorinde did not flinch, and I respected her for that. Some questions deserved the pain of being faced directly. "Because he accepted the duel."
"That is an answer," Navia said, voice sharper now. "It is not an explanation."
"No," Clorinde said quietly. "It is not."
The rain filled the silence after that.
There were jokes my mouth wanted to make because discomfort was easier when I could throw a ridiculous sentence at it and watch the air crack. There were spoilers my brain wanted to hurl like bricks because I knew enough about Callas, Sinthe, Clorinde, Navia, and the ugly shape of Marcel's shadow to break this conversation open with one reckless name.
But this was Navia's father.
Some graves deserved silence before answers.
I looked away first, not because I was bored, but because staring at someone's wound did not make it heal faster. Lumine saw the restraint and touched my sleeve briefly, not to stop me, but to acknowledge the effort. That one small touch kept my mouth from becoming a disaster zone.
Navia breathed in, then out. Her eyes did not leave Clorinde. "One day, I will ask again."
"I know," Clorinde said.
"And one day, you will answer."
Clorinde's voice remained calm, but the regret beneath it did not. "Yes."
Good.
Not resolved.
Not forgiven.
Not ready.
But honest enough to keep moving.
The authorities arrived shortly afterward. Not Neuvillette himself, but officers and technicians sent from official channels to secure the damaged Meks. Clorinde handled most of the explanation with professional precision, which was convenient because if anyone asked me to give an official statement, it would include the phrase "murder water people," and Lumine would have to commit stationery violence again. Instead, I stayed beside the sealed cores long enough to ensure nothing was taken before our copies were complete.
An officer looked at my Geo seal and frowned. "This may interfere with handling."
"It interferes with evidence tampering," I said.
Lumine stepped beside me before the officer could decide whether I had insulted him. "The seal preserves the condition of the cores. It can be removed under observation once the examination begins."
The officer looked from her to Clorinde.
Clorinde nodded. "Acceptable."
I leaned toward Lumine. "Trial protagonist."
She elbowed me lightly.
Affectionate assault continued to be a theme in Fontaine.
Once the immediate chaos settled, Navia led us away from the fountain plaza toward the accommodations she had arranged. She did not say much during the walk. None of us pushed. The city around us carried on with uneasy elegance. People had heard the attack. Some watched from windows. Others pretended not to. Fontaine had excellent posture when frightened.
The lodging Navia prepared was comfortable without being flashy, tucked away in a place that offered privacy and enough entrances to make Silver visibly unhappy. He checked every window before sitting. Then he checked them again. Melus brought towels and tea with the quiet efficiency of someone used to caring for people who forgot they had bodies when grief or work demanded too much attention.
He handed one towel to Navia first.
Then Lumine.
Then Nilou.
Then Paimon, who wrapped herself in it like a tiny flying dumpling.
Then he looked at Greg and hesitated only briefly before offering a folded napkin like a miniature cloak.
I stared.
Greg accepted it.
A tiny lizard in a napkin cloak sat on the table with princely dignity.
"Melus," I said, voice shaking, "your soul is immaculate."
Melus blinked. "I only thought he might be cold."
"Exactly."
Silver, near the window, said flatly, "It is still a lizard."
Greg turned his head slowly.
Silver stared back.
The room held its breath.
I whispered to Nilou, "Political incident incoming."
Nilou covered her mouth, eyes smiling despite the tension.
Paimon peeked from her towel. "Paimon thinks Greg is winning."
"Greg always wins," I said.
Lumine sat at the table and placed the evidence booklet beside her, visible and threatening. "No one is winning. We are resting for a few minutes, organizing what we know, and then going to Palais Mermonia."
I raised one finger. "Counterpoint. Greg has already won."
The booklet shifted.
I lowered my finger.
"Resting and organizing. Excellent plan."
Navia looked around the room, taking in her attendants, our strange group, the rain tapping against the windows, and the invisible weight of everything that had followed her since the trial. "I appreciate your help. Truly. But I will not pretend I enjoy the idea of handing everything to official channels."
"I know," Lumine said.
"Official channels gave my father a verdict and Fontaine a convenient story."
"That is why we do not hand everything to one place." Lumine's voice was calm, but firm. "We keep copies. You keep copies. If Neuvillette opens records for us, we compare them with what you already know. If someone tries to bury something, there will be too many hands holding the truth."
Navia studied her. "You have done this before."
Lumine's expression shifted faintly. "More than I wanted to."
I leaned back in my chair. "Shared evidence. Harder to bury. Harder to fake. Terrible for respectable bastards with clean gloves."
Navia's mouth curved slightly. "There it is again. You truly do have a category."
"Fontaine gave me the category."
Paimon, still bundled in her towel, lifted her head. "Can Paimon make a category too?"
"No," Lumine said.
Paimon pouted. "Paimon was going to call them suspicious rich people with murder hobbies."
Silver said, "That is also descriptive."
Paimon pointed at him. "See? Silver understands!"
Melus smiled. "It is good to have a range of terminology."
Lumine closed her eyes, defeated by democracy.
For a few minutes, the room managed to breathe. Tea warmed cold fingers. Towels absorbed the rain. Melus and Silver spoke quietly about contacts who could help secure Spina records. Navia explained what documents might still exist from the old case and which people had refused to speak before. Nilou listened with careful attention, occasionally asking questions that seemed gentle but opened emotional doors without breaking them. Paimon regained enough courage to ask whether investigation snacks were different from courtroom snacks. I began to answer with a full taxonomy, but Lumine placed one hand on the evidence booklet.
I chose survival.
Then the thread pulled again.
Not the Mek trace. The Hotel Debord trace.
The false waiter was still moving.
My hand stilled on the teacup.
Greg's head lifted beneath his tiny napkin cloak.
Lumine noticed first, of course. "The thread?"
I nodded.
Navia leaned forward. "Where?"
"Still within the city. Moving slower now. Either he thinks he is safe, or he has reached a place where he must behave normally."
Paimon lowered her cup. "Should we follow?"
"No," I said. "Not yet."
Silver frowned. "If he reaches whoever sent him, we lose the chance to catch him."
"If we chase too early, he runs to an emergency contact instead of the real one. We need him comfortable enough to be careless."
Nilou's brows drew together. "You are letting him think he escaped."
"Yes."
"That sounds dangerous."
"It is."
"At least you admitted it."
"I am maturing."
Lumine snorted softly.
I looked wounded. "That was a fragile admission."
"It was a fragile lie."
Greg flicked his tail in agreement.
Traitor lizard archive.
I leaned close to him and whispered, "If the thread snaps, bite my ear."
Paimon recoiled. "Why is biting your ear the alarm system?"
"Pain is clear communication."
Nilou tilted her head. "Words are also clear communication."
"Less dramatic."
Melus looked at Greg with concern. "Will that not hurt?"
"That is the intended mechanism."
Silver crossed his arms. "I understand the logic."
"Thank you, locked treasure chest man."
"I do not accept that title."
"Too late. The narrative has accepted it."
Navia looked at Silver with a faintly wicked smile. "It suits you."
Silver's face remained blank, but his suffering entered the room quietly and sat beside him.
Eventually, rest had to end. The rain had slowed by the time we left the lodging, though the streets still shone under the gray sky. Navia led us toward Palais Mermonia with the guarded expression of someone choosing to walk into a place that had disappointed her before because the case demanded it. Melus and Silver stayed close. Lumine carried the organized evidence. Nilou walked beside Navia, not speaking unless spoken to, but present in a way that made silence less lonely. Paimon hovered near Lumine's shoulder, occasionally glancing back at me and Greg as if expecting either the thread or my mouth to explode.
Fair.
Palais Mermonia stood with all the dignity of an institution that had outlived many complaints and intended to outlive this one too. Its walls were pale, formal, and clean enough to make secrets feel like they had to dress properly before entering. Guards recognized Lumine and Navia quickly, and after a short exchange, we were brought inside.
Neuvillette received us with the same calm he carried everywhere, which was deeply unfair for a man whose emotional weather system had recently been leaking all over Fontaine. He stood behind his desk, composed, elegant, and serious, his gaze moving from Lumine to Navia, then briefly to me.
Hydro Dragon, I am still mad at you for Furifuri emotional negligence.
Greg's tail pressed against my cheek.
I had not said anything.
This lizard was becoming a thought police institution.
Neuvillette's eyes lingered on me for a second. "Mr. Shigeru."
I smiled politely. "Your Honor."
Lumine's eyes narrowed at my tone.
"What?" I whispered.
"You sound too polite."
"That is usually what you want."
"Usually, you are not polite like you are hiding a shovel."
I gasped. "A shovel?"
"Metaphorical."
"Still hurtful."
Neuvillette waited with saintly patience, though saintly was probably the wrong category for a dragon judge emotionally raised by paperwork. Navia stepped forward first, saving the meeting from becoming an investigation into my suspicious manners.
"We were attacked near the Fountain of Lucine," she said. "Rogue Meks. Their control systems were tampered with."
Clorinde had either sent word ahead or Neuvillette had already received a report, because his expression did not show surprise. It did, however, sharpen with attention. "I have been informed of the incident. I am relieved none of you were injured."
Silver's posture shifted slightly at that.
I did not look at him.
Luck, my beautiful suspicious friend. You were extremely lucky. Definitely not because I grabbed three murder angles by the throat and told them to sit down.
Lumine placed one of the copied trace records on Neuvillette's desk. "Shigeru preserved part of the control signature before the Meks were removed."
Neuvillette looked at the record, then at me. "You retained another copy."
"Yes."
"And perhaps more than one."
"Yes."
His expression did not change. "May I ask why?"
"I believe in redundant evidence and emotional trust issues."
Navia coughed into her hand.
Paimon whispered, "That was too honest."
Lumine sighed. "He means that if the evidence exists in multiple places, it is harder to destroy, alter, or suppress."
"I also meant emotional trust issues."
"Yes," Lumine said. "Unfortunately."
Neuvillette regarded me for a long moment, then nodded. "A prudent precaution, given the circumstances."
I looked at Lumine.
She refused to look impressed.
I looked at Paimon.
She mouthed, "No."
I looked at Greg.
Greg, still wearing the napkin cloak because none of us had removed it and he had decided to become royalty, flicked his tail once.
I accepted that as validation.
Navia placed her hands on the back of a chair but did not sit. "We need access to records regarding the serial disappearance case. Not summaries. Records. Witness accounts. Old investigation notes. Anything tied to my father's case."
Neuvillette's gaze softened by a fraction. "I understand."
"Do you?" Navia asked.
The room cooled.
Melus lowered his eyes. Silver stood very still. Lumine remained quiet, letting Navia speak for herself. Nilou's expression turned gently pained.
Neuvillette did not answer too quickly. "I understand that the official resolution did not bring you peace."
Navia's fingers tightened against the chair. "Peace was never offered. A verdict was."
"That distinction matters," he said.
"It matters now?"
There was no theatrical accusation in her voice. That made it worse. She was tired of being angry in ways that powerful rooms could politely survive.
Neuvillette accepted the blow without visible defense. "It has always mattered. That does not mean it was properly addressed."
I watched him carefully.
Hydro Dragon had many faults in the emotional literacy department, especially when the emotional syllabus contained one overburdened fake Archon with world-ending secrecy. But he was not careless with justice. Slow, maybe. Limited by rules. Terrifyingly formal. Occasionally in need of being shaken until empathy fell into the right drawer. But not careless.
That was why Fontaine hurt so much.
The people inside the system were not all monsters.
Some were sincere.
Some were kind.
Some were trying.
And still, graves happened.
Lumine stepped in before Navia's pain and Neuvillette's restraint ground against each other too harshly. "We're not asking you to decide the truth for us right now. We're asking for the materials to investigate it properly."
Neuvillette nodded. "I will provide access to what can be lawfully released and arrange for a review of restricted materials relevant to the reopened inquiry."
Paimon crossed her arms. "That sounds like a lot of paperwork."
"It is," Neuvillette said.
Paimon wilted. "Paimon was afraid of that."
I leaned toward her. "Paperwork is the final boss of civilization."
Lumine whispered, "You once lost to a restaurant receipt."
"It had hidden charges."
"It had tax."
"Exactly. Hidden charges."
Nilou smiled faintly, and even Navia's tension eased for half a breath.
Neuvillette continued, "In addition, Cowell will remain under guard. His condition is being monitored. Given the circumstances, I will restrict access to those directly assigned and require logs of every person who enters."
"Good," I said.
Neuvillette looked at me.
"No mysterious doctors," I added. "No helpful attendants. No food gifts. No convenient transfers. No sudden illness that requires moving him somewhere less guarded. No dramatic candles near curtains. No poison disguised as soup."
Everyone slowly turned toward me.
Paimon stared. "Why soup?"
"Soup is suspiciously trusted."
Nilou blinked. "Soup?"
"Warm liquid with social permission. Dangerous concept."
Lumine covered her face with one hand.
Neuvillette, to his credit, considered this with complete seriousness. "Food and drink access will be monitored."
I pointed at him. "See? Hydro Dragon understands soup-based vulnerabilities."
The room went silent.
Very silent.
Neuvillette's eyes settled on me.
Lumine's hand froze over her face.
Paimon made a tiny choking sound.
Navia's mouth parted slightly.
Melus looked as if he was deciding whether he had misheard.
Silver looked like he had absolutely not misheard.
Nilou whispered, "Shigeru…"
I cleared my throat. "I mean Your Honor."
Neuvillette regarded me with an expression so calm it circled back to terrifying. "Hydro Dragon?"
My soul left my body, filled out exit paperwork, and returned because Lumine's evidence booklet was not done with me.
"Respectful nickname," I said.
Paimon grabbed her head. "That is not respectful!"
"It is accurate in spirit."
Lumine's booklet rose.
"Your Honor," I corrected.
Neuvillette remained quiet for one more second. Then, unexpectedly, he chose not to pursue it. "I see."
No, you do not, Hydro Dragon. That is part of the problem.
Greg's tail pressed warningly against my cheek.
Fine. I would behave.
For approximately four breaths.
Lumine cleared her throat, rescuing me from myself. "There's something else. At the Fountain of Lucine, I heard a voice."
Neuvillette became still.
That stillness was subtle, but it changed the room. His gaze sharpened, not with suspicion toward Lumine, but with a deeper attention, as if someone had struck a bell only he understood the shape of.
"A voice," he repeated.
Lumine nodded. "It sounded like a woman. Distressed. Faint. I couldn't make out everything."
Navia looked toward him. "The fountain is connected to the disappearances?"
"I cannot conclude that without investigation," Neuvillette said carefully.
I watched him.
You hear the rain, but you still do not know whose tears are mixed into it.
Hydro Dragon, your emotional education is overdue.
Paimon turned toward me. "Why are you glaring at him?"
"I am respectfully observing."
Lumine glanced at me. "You look like you are planning violence."
"Emotional violence. Educational."
Neuvillette looked at me again. "Should I be concerned?"
"Not yet."
Lumine hit me with the evidence booklet.
"OW. Proper channels have attacked me."
"You deserved that through official and unofficial channels," Paimon said.
Navia pressed her lips together, and I could tell she was trying not to laugh despite herself. That was good. If Navia could still almost laugh in a room where her father's case had reopened, then the wound had not eaten every chair at the table.
Neuvillette turned back to Lumine. "I will arrange for the fountain's recent phenomena to be examined as part of the broader inquiry. However, the serial disappearance case requires testimony beyond official records. There are people connected to Callas, the Spina di Rosula, and prior incidents who may provide context unavailable in the archives."
Navia's eyes sharpened. "Poisson."
"Yes," Neuvillette said. "And others who knew the circumstances surrounding your father's final days. If you intend to reopen this matter, you will need their accounts."
Lumine nodded. "Then we go to Poisson."
Paimon lifted her hand. "Is Poisson reachable by boat?"
The room paused.
Everyone slowly looked at me.
My face went pale.
Navia, apparently remembering the Aquabus conversation, looked apologetic and amused at the same time. "There may be some travel involved."
"Define travel," I said.
"Movement between places."
"Too broad. Suspiciously broad."
Lumine's lips twitched. "You'll survive."
"That is what people say before maritime assassination attempts."
Nilou touched my arm. "We will help."
That did unfair things to my heart.
I placed a hand over my chest. "For Goddess support, I will endure."
Paimon groaned. "He is dramatic again. That means he's fine."
Neuvillette, who had somehow watched this entire exchange without deciding to expel us from government property, folded his hands. "I suggest you proceed carefully. If today's attack was connected to Cowell's survival and Demoiselle Navia's involvement, those responsible may continue to move."
The thread tugged faintly at the edge of my senses.
Still moving.
Still hidden.
Still confident.
I smiled without humor. "They already are."
Neuvillette's gaze sharpened. "You have a lead?"
"A moving one."
"Can it be followed?"
"Eventually."
"Why not now?"
"Because it still thinks it is free."
Navia looked at me, understanding flashing in her eyes. "The waiter from Hotel Debord."
Lumine nodded slowly. "Your trace is still active."
"For now," I said.
Greg's tail brushed my neck once.
Not stopped yet.
The meeting ended with documents promised, access arranged, and the direction set. We would go where Navia's grief had roots deeper than court records. Poisson. Witnesses. Names. The old shape of Callas's case. Not the whole truth yet, but closer.
As we left Palais Mermonia, the rain had thinned into mist. The city shone under it, all polished stone and wet railings, beautiful enough to lie convincingly. Navia walked beside Lumine now, quieter than before but steadier, the kind of steady that came not from peace but from having chosen a direction. Melus and Silver followed close, and I counted their steps without meaning to.
Alive.
Still alive.
Keep it that way.
Nilou noticed me watching them and did not ask. She only moved closer until her shoulder brushed mine. Sometimes she was dangerously kind.
Paimon stretched overhead. "So next is Poisson, old witnesses, Callas's case, scary water, suspicious waiter thread, and maybe no more Meks?"
"No promises," I said.
"Paimon wanted promises!"
"Fontaine is not in a promise mood."
Lumine looked back at me. "And you are not allowed to provoke Neuvillette next time."
"I did not provoke him."
"You called him Hydro Dragon."
"Affectionately."
"You threatened emotional violence."
"Educationally."
She stared.
I smiled.
She lifted the booklet.
I looked forward. "Poisson sounds lovely this time of trauma."
Greg suddenly bit my ear.
Not hard enough to injure.
Hard enough to make me yelp like a wounded treasure hoarder.
"OW! BETRAYAL ARCHIVE!"
Paimon screamed. "WHY DID GREG BITE HIM?"
Nilou's eyes widened. "The thread?"
My hand flew to my ear, but the pain cleared the fog instantly. I reached inward, following the Dendro-Anemo line through rain, stone, footsteps, and the faint map of movement I had tied to the false waiter's heel.
The thread had not snapped.
It had stopped.
Lumine saw my face change and came closer. "Where?"
Navia's expression sharpened. "Did he reach someone?"
I looked toward the city, toward polished roofs, expensive windows, and the kind of respectable silence that knew how to keep its gloves clean.
"Somewhere respectable," I said.
The mist drifted across Fontaine like the rain had not finished giving testimony.
Behind us, Palais Mermonia stood bright and formal. Ahead, Poisson waited with old wounds, older loyalty, and the names Navia had not been allowed to save. Somewhere across the city, my thread had stopped at a door polished enough to make murder look like business.
And that meant the old wound had finally begun bleeding in the right direction.
________
End of Chapter 196
Quests Completed:
Secured the rogue Mek evidence without allowing immediate official evidence-tampering, accidental or otherwise.
Confirmed the Meks were tampered with and likely directed toward the group after Cowell survived and Navia reopened the old wound in public.
Created multiple copies of the Mek control trace because redundant evidence is harder to bury and excellent for emotional trust issues.
Designated Greg as a secure lizard archive for sensitive investigation data.
Deepened the tension between Navia and Clorinde over Callas's duel without detonating the full truth too early.
Confirmed Callas did not fight like a man trying to escape justice.
Allowed Navia to demand the answer Clorinde is not ready to fully give.
Reached Navia's arranged accommodations for a brief cooldown, towel distribution, and Greg's napkin-cloak ascension.
Maintained surveillance on the Hotel Debord listener without breaking the party's POV rule.
Established Greg's ear-bite alarm system despite objections from everyone with normal communication habits.
Brought the investigation to Palais Mermonia through proper channels, reluctantly and with multiple backup copies.
Handed Neuvillette a copied trace record while keeping other copies safely outside official control.
Warned Neuvillette about soup-based vulnerabilities around Cowell's protection detail.
Accidentally called Neuvillette "Hydro Dragon" out loud and survived through suspicious politeness.
Raised Lumine's Fountain of Lucine voice experience with Neuvillette.
Threatened educational emotional violence against the Hydro Dragon and received evidence-booklet justice.
Received the next canon direction toward Poisson and witness testimony connected to Callas's case.
Detected the Hotel Debord thread stopping somewhere suspiciously respectable.
Rewards:
+1 Mek Evidence Preserved
+1 Navia Evidence Copy
+1 Greg Secure Archive Status
+1 Napkin Cloak Royalty
+1 Callas Wound Deepened
+1 Clorinde Restrained Guilt
+1 Lumine Proper Channel Diplomacy
+1 Neuvillette Official Access
+1 Cowell Guard Detail Upgrade
+1 Soup Suspicion Protocol
+1 Hydro Dragon Slip-Up
+1 Educational Violence Threat
+1 Ear-Bite Alarm Activation
New Passive Unlocked: Redundant Evidence and Emotional Trust Issues.
New Hidden Quest: Find the Respectable Door.
New Debuff Acquired: Hydro Dragon Was Said Out Loud.
New Party System: Greg Bite Alerts.
New Investigation Status: The Thread Has Stopped Somewhere Respectable.
Warning Added: Some Doors Are Polished Enough To Make Murder Look Like Business.
Next Quest: Poisson Remembers.