Arwin knew that it would have been rude to laugh, but the expression of disbelief on Elias’ features — so stark that it was apparent even through the wrappings covering his entire body — was doing its best to break him. After all, he wasn’t about to reveal to Elias just why they didn’t care that he and Maeve weren’t human. Just because Elias seemed like he was worthy of helping didn’t mean the man could be completely trusted with every single one of their secrets. There was a difference between a working relationship and a friendship. One can turn into the other, but there’s no point jumping the gun. I’d still pay a lot of money to see the look on his real, unbandaged face if I were to reveal that our guild has the Demon Queen and a vampire in it, not to mention whatever the hell Esmerelda is. Elias swallowed and interlaced his fingers, clearly trying to control his body to prevent from letting on just how simultaneously stressed and relieved he was. “Then we will gratefully take you up on your offer. I’m certain I don’t have to stress this, but please be cautious with our identities. Others are not so kind as—” “We know,” Lillia said, a gentle note entering her voice. “Don’t worry. Not a single person in this room will ever reveal anything about who you are to anybody else. Your secret will be safe with us — but we still have some more business to deal with before the night is done.” “We do?” Elias asked. “We… are working together, yes?” “We are,” Lillia confirmed. “But you said that most teams worked in groups of 3 for the tournament, right?” Maeve nodded. That seemed to be just about all she could actually do in the purposes of conversation. Arwin was tempted to ask exactly what kind of monster she was, but that felt like a remarkably rude question. The path to power was practically paving itself — and he would use that to advance his entire guild. Getting to Adept was just a stepping stone on the road to tearing down the corruption within the Adventurer’s guild. “That’s more than enough time,” Arwin said. “A few weeks is enough time for you to get to know each other and start training — and that training can help me get materials that I can use to outfit all of you.” Elias blinked. He exchanged a glance with Maeve, then looked to Olive. “Is this okay with you?” “I…” Olive hesitated. She didn’t have the best history with working in teams. Arwin was more than aware of that. It was exactly how she’d lost her arm the first time around. She was silent for several long seconds. Then she swallowed heavily. “Can I think about it?” “Of course,” Arwin said. “If you don’t want to do it, nobody will force you. We can find someone else. Maybe Rodrick wants to stretch out his old bones.” Rodrick shuddered. “Please, no. I’m more than happy sitting on the sidelines. But we don’t have to figure this out now. We have time. Either way, I think we’ve all got a lot of work to do in the coming days. The Phoenix Circle will need the full strength of the Menagerie behind them, not just Arwin’s equipment.” Elias started to nod. Then he paused. “What does that mean?” “You’ll see.” Rodrick smiled, and a small shiver ran down Arwin’s back. Even though Rodrick was on his side, the man’s eyes could be positively sinister when they caught the light in just the right way. “We can deal with more logistics tomorrow,” Lillia said, clapping her hands together to pull their attention back to her. “For the time being — Elias, Maeve, I believe both of our guilds would benefit from getting to know each other better… and the rooms at my inn are quite reasonably priced.” Elias hesitated for several seconds. He glanced at Maeve, who nodded. The bandages on his face creased as his lips pulled into a small smile. “So long as I’m not paying a gold for each of us every day, I think we’ll be fine. Maeve and I know how important having a strong relationship is for fighting together effectively. If you think it’ll help, then we’ll stay.” “Good,” Lillia said. Her eyes flashed, and it struck Arwin that the Menagerie might have had a few too many people that could look sinister in the right lighting. “I can assure you that you won’t regret it. Do you mind sharing a room?” “Can you get two beds in it?” Elias asked. Lillia nodded. “Already done. Then, unless anyone else has anything to say tonight, I think it might be time to wind the excitement down. I’ll show you both to the room.” “Then that would be perfect. Thank you — all of you. I can speak for both myself and Maeve when I say we greatly look forward to what we hope to be a successful partnership.” Maeve bowed her head, mirroring his thoughts if not his words. The two of them both rose from the table and Lillia led them upstairs toward their new lodgings. But, as they left, not every single member of the Menagerie was paying attention to them. Olive’s eyes were still transfixed in the air before her, and her face looked to have gone a shade paler.