The Magician & The Queen

Undisclosed Location,

"Really, how'd you get there so fast? You didn't get fooled into thinking I glowed in the sunlight right? Couldn't POSSIBLY be the case right?"

"...Stay silent."

"I think no."

Roman smiled widely, musing with a hand on his chin, his posture relaxed and his body sinking into the comfort of his own private jet's seats, "And why are we using my jet?" The Magician spoke enthusiastically, lazily fixing the buttons of his grey suit, "Don't tell me the Queen didn't think coming here through?"

Lorelei's lips twitched at the magician's onslaught but she remained otherwise silent, certain that if they weren't separated by a glass table between them, she'd already have hit him at least once, "None of that concerns you."

"Oh but it does my jailor, I'm technically being 'dragged back' as you put it." Roman's tone held barely concealed ridicule, as if the very notion of him being forced into something was nothing more than a joke.. He calmly sipped wine from his glass, "Well then, do you want me to explain for you? Or do you want to save yourself the embarrassment?"

"Stay your tongue, one eye." Lorelei spoke sternly, somewhat upset that someone had utilised the one weakness she did have, her irrational hate for Dead Apostles... Hate so intense she oft ignored her duties to pursue them.., "But no, I suppose I must give credit where it is due.." The Barthomeloi again returned to her calm self.

"I see through your facade, Roman Trambelio.... You.. are no failure."

This declaration was met with bored and uninterested clapping, "Great going, genius. Tell me something I don't know." Roman snickered, sitting up with a somewhat amused smile plastered on his face and staring out at the cloudy skies, "I have a question of my own though, humour me."

"Go on.." Lorelei straightened her posture, not willing to appear any less dignified than a man with a partially defunct leg.... Attentive, her gaze passed over the cane sitting against his seat... That was an undeniable disadvantage... Though, it made all he'd done all the more impressive.

"How come you started investigating me? I was certain I'd left no tracks." Roman closed his eye, smiling at the Magus hailed as the Queen, the strongest of their generation, possibly the strongest to live...

"Ah..." There was a momentary lapse in the Barthomeloi's calm posture, "So you did notice?" Expected, it wouldn't have made sense for him to NOT notice her investigations..

"Your people suck. Tell them to not dress in black the next time..." Roman deadpanned, not sure if they'd meant to stay undetected with their luxurious clothing and monotonous faces.

"It was advice from the Wizard Marshall, 'That boy seems erratic.', and I had some leeway.. not oft there's a chance the son of a faction head can remain in the background." Lorelei crossed one leg over the other, her lips curling up in a small grin... This was a battle too.., "Of course, the background here is you simply being an incompetent waste of space.." Those people would soon come to regret their judgements.

"As I thought then." Roman sighed, resting his head in his hand with his eye still closed, "I'm gonna have to talk to that guy sooner or later." The Second True Magician, Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg, rumoured to be able to employ a Magic that dealt with the flow of time, or rather, parallel timelines. It was good on Lorelei for deciphering the old troll's stupid shit.

"So," Roman once again turned his attention to Lorelei, "How much do you know?"

"You think I would reveal that?" Lorelei put her hands together, staring at her 'opponent' with a strange glint in her eyes, she had one over him now.

"You don't need to." Roman finally opened his eye, his lips cracking into a massive grin, "A little bit too late for whatever you hold to have any significance.. But, since it's funny, do you think my wealth is all I've built? Or my connections?" The Magician, nay, Deity leaned forward, staring at the Queen with an excited eye, "Do you think you got that information because you outsmarted me?"

Any information anyone could have on him would have previously actually meant something, unfortunately, it meant jackshit now that he was returning to the Clock Tower...

"It means shit so to say."

In an instant, Roman's smile disappeared and he straightened up again, returning to his wine and humming a tune to himself..

"So the information I procured was monitored as well.. Is that what you mean to say?" Lorelei was, frankly put, somewhat impressed... This was certainly... something. This man was no cripple at all.

"No shit, it would be like not noticing a bear staring in at you from the window." Roman chuckled, it would be stupid to assume no one would figure him out and more stupid to assume he could simply keep everything hidden. A better strategy was to reveal a believable half truth half lie that left his investigator satisfied.

"Tell me, Lorelei."

"Lady Barthomeloi."

"Tell me, Lorelei.. Do you think you came here of your own volition?" Roman stared down at the magus from the corner of his eye, towering over her by a fair bit thanks to genetics.

"I came here thinking a dead apos-"

"And who do you think orches-"

Before Roman could finish his words, the table between them was flung away and Lorelei moved to grab him by the throat, her other fist balled up and reeled back, oozing magical energy, "How da-"

"Hahahaha....." Roman laughed, pushing his cane against her chest and forcing her to sit back down, "I'm just fucking with you.." Speaking vulgarly, the magician continued to laugh for a short while longer before finally calming down and wiping a tear from his eye, "Pride eh? Great thing." Really was, it allowed him to entertain himself a lot.

"How did you even?"

"Well the old prick said it didn't he? I'm erratic." Roman smiled sarcastically, putting his hands together and only simply staring at the Barthomeloi, "As much as I would love to take the credit for the dead apostle thing, it wasn't me." He admitted truthfully, seeing no point in recieving the anger meant for someone else despite how amusing it may have been.

"I suspect it was my 'Lord Father'."

"Ah... You do take aft-"

"Don't... just don't." Roman cut off what was meant to be praise, shaking his head with a closed eye, "I assure you I don't take anything from that bloody cunt." The Magician sighed, somewhat irked by the comparison, what between the two of them was similar? Really, what?

"Lord Trambelio has some answering to do." Lorelei had returned to her usual dignified self, completely ignoring how he'd pushed her because she knew she was in the wrong, "As do you.. You will lay bare all you are before the twelve lords."

"Poor choice of words." Roman raised his glass, mostly disinterested before something clicked, "You said my father had some answering to do right?"

"...Correct."

"Mhm..." The Magician leaned forward, smiling widely, "I believe we can come to a mutually beneficial agreement..." The Barthomeloi were the few lords he couldn't convince so this was a good opportunity, one he wouldn't be thanking his father for.

"What do you propose?"

For a moment, Lorelei was certain she felt a disgusting aura ooze out of the man before her but wrote it off immediately, deeming it impossible.

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