A food flask and an old satchel

The day in the garden at the Tower was as peaceful as ever, but it was far from peaceful in the Goto mansion. Councilman Maverick had visited again! He wasn't just asking about their business but also about his younger twin daughter. For the first time, Lord Goto was overjoyed by the fact that his children were forced to go to the Tower; otherwise, this sleazy councilman would have sunk his greasy hands into his daughter.

"We have given you more than half a year's time," the councilman said, tasting the tea Lord Goto graciously brought out to receive him. "So good! Where did you get this?"

Goto tried his best to fawn over him; the councilmen sent to him in the past were lusty men too, but they weren't very bright, so he could get away with a lot of things. Maverick, however, was a different story. Not only was he smart and devious, but his tasks were almost impossible to accomplish. Keeping his wealth was a guarantee in the past; now he didn't know if he could keep his life. "It is said to be smuggled out of Glotulzcha, councilman."

At that, Maverick put his teacup back in the saucer and sighed, "Do you think you can deceive me? Nothing has ever been brought out of Glotulzcha. I sometimes wonder how they replenish their food in that perpetual winter of theirs."

To that, Lord Goto had no answer; after all, he had been told the tea was indeed from the north. He could only grovel before the councilman. Just as he was thinking up ways to send the councilman away, a servant rushed in without giving his greetings.

"Butler, a man came looking for his son; he said he left his boy with you a year ago," the servant said.

The Butler, in confusion, excused himself to go to attend to the matters, and councilman Maverick, not surprisingly, decided to go and watch the show. A rough man stood outside the gates with a woman dangling a sword from her waist. "Where is my boy? He should be thirteen this year, but he is sickly, so he is often mistaken for an eight-year-old."

In a moment of realization, the butler sighed and patted the man's shoulder, then ordered a servant to go in and bring an item out. All these, Lord Goto and Councilman Maverick watched from a hidden spot behind the gates that even he, the lord of this mansion, didn't know existed. The councilman must be skilled in the art of eavesdropping. Distasteful!

The servant returned swiftly, holding a worn-out satchel with some containers in it. The butler thanked the servant as he took the satchel from him and presented it to the man and the woman. "The Tower gave an order to bring all the children in the household away, and your son was unfortunately here when that happened."

The woman took the satchel and rummaged through it, throwing aside the containers in it. At the bottom were a piece of paper and a ring with a strange symbol engraved on it. Lord Goto's sight was failing due to his age and his lack of talent, so he couldn't quite see the patterns on the ring. Councilman Maverick, on the other hand, was in his youth, and although no one had seen him use his magic, he could not be underestimated.

"Why didn't he take the satchel with him?" The woman inquired as she put the paper and ring away.

"There was no time," the butler explained.

The man nodded to the butler, and the woman happened to look in their direction. Whether she saw them or not remained uncertain as she left with the man without delay.

Councilman Maverick whipped out a hand fan from nowhere and swung it furiously. "I never expected the trip to your place to be this fruitful. We have to hasten up the plan; I will be coming for the proceeds in a week."

Lord Goto stood by the gate until he saw the councilman's carriage disappear in the distance. He went to his study and drafted up a letter to be sent to his sister-in-law, then dispatched a servant with the fastest horse in his mansion to deliver it. That night, Subarasii Raito came alive with a thousand lights as always, unaware of the tumult in the heart of the lord, who lives on the outskirts of the town.