Anna
Abstral waited, watching Ochre's reaction to both his clarification and Kuouo's apology / offer for aid. Ochre seemed to take both of their statements well, allowing them to rest here if they so pleased and while Abstral was not by any means tired, it was appreciated nonetheless.

Abstral sensed that Ochre was about to tell them something of great importance, the "Final clarification" An indicator of such and so he made sure to listen to what the man said next.

Most of it was simply Ochre introducing his importance and history in relation to this floor, though it was interesting that he was a descendant of royalty but yet a servant of this "Tvoktei". Abstral had never heard of royalty serving someone greater than their own blood before.

His next words about his undying loyalty most certainly got Abstral's attention. Ochre seemed a distaste for this Tvoktei yet would do whatever it was he asked of him? Made sense, he supposed, as he *Was* A servant, but still, would he really kill them on mere command?

Yet even so, his next words cut **Even deeper**. 

**"There is no way beyond this Floor other than to take Tvoktei's life."**

Abstral briefly tensed up. How were they to leave without making an enemy out of the man standing before them? He was sure Tvoktei wouldn't just allow them to leave peacefully., warlords were typically not very welcoming, after all. What would he-

Ochre's next words interrupted Abstral's thoughts but did little to ease his worries.

He wanted them to show Tvoktei, a tyrant, a warlord, mercy?

His words in regard to Tvoktei were, as the man had said, a clear contradiction, and understanding why would be useless to this situation, Ochre wanted them to choose to either confront Tvoktei and somehow show the tyrant mercy or stay here, the latter option not acceptable to Abstral, nor would he turn back.

How would they dethrone such a being, a warlord and a tyrant, without taking his life? Why would Ochre help them do so and wouldn't he

Just, as he had said, turn on them if Tvoktei willed it?

Abstral pondered all of this, he wasn't sure how much of his thoughts translated to readable expressions on his face. Ochre probably knew how they would react anyway, so would it matter if he could read them?

Finally he spoke.

```"This is quite the strange situation indeed. I will tell you now that I will not stay here, nor do I have any intention to turn back. Your loyalty to Tvoktei, though confusing given your prior words, is, I suppose, understandable."

" I do not wish to make an enemy out of you and I will do everything in my power to help you peacefully overthrow Tvoktei, but I must ask you this:

You say that whatever the tyrant wills of you, you shall do, so how can we trust you? How do we know that you will not turn on us the second he sets his eyes upon us and commands you to strike us down? You want him overthrown, you are willing to lead us to his doorstep, so by guiding us there with the intent to dethrone the tyrant, are you not already betraying him? 

Put simply, if we agree to proceed onwards and help you with your plan, if the time comes where he calls upon you to oppose us, will you even then obey him?"```
Kathryn
Kuouo nodded, appreciating the acceptance of his apology and formal invitation into the safe-haven that was the respite. Kuo too, shared a light smile, knowing that his words inflicted somewhat of a positive influence on the third heir. With that, they had gained the trust of Ochre — At least, enough to provide an elaboration on his interest with the ambitious outsiders. Kuo listened carefully, feeling the weight of Ochre's respiration following the admission of yet another bound oath on the Vektet that chained an individual by their ankles - Though, instead of being invoked by the reverent Lord, the ``Taae Chit Ezer``, the key was held by the tyrant *Tvotkei*, sovereign of the second floor. Ochre regretfully informed them of what this oath meant — Both their lives against his blade if ordered to do so and hypothetically, his own if ordered to do so, followed by words that made the bandit almost visibly flinch.

*```JSON
"𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚜, 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚜𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚊 𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠."
"𝙱𝚎𝚌𝚊𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚒𝚜 𝚗𝚘 𝚠𝚊𝚢 𝚋𝚎𝚢𝚘𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝙵𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚛 𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚗 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒'𝚜 𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚎."```*

Kuo would continue to lend his ear as Ochre contradicted those very words with a desperate request: To overthrow the Colorless Sovereign without taking his life. Despite expecting such — and even offering to partake in such a favor in his clarification earlier — it was still a heavy request that would require further elaboration for the bandit to formally accept and act upon... Although, the prospect of doing such still deeply intrigued and excited him. Abstral stepped forward first, questioning the third heir's logic regarding the oath to his spouse. The bandit's brow furrowed, thinking Ochre's initial explanation was *More than clear enough* And it was obvious to the bandit that the revealing of such mutany against the Colorless Sovereign would ostracize Ochre, no matter the tyranny imposed on the floor's people — Commoners and nobles alike. However, that didn't mean the bandit didn't have questions of his own, for he too sought answers to fill the holes in logic he felt necessary to press onward.

```fix
"Doubt there ain't 'zactly gonna be a peaceful way of overthrowin' a damn tyrant, just so ya know. Ochre here made it clear enough that he'll have t' do anything this fucker'd order him t' do... Already heard about this too... 'bout the cowardice of this asshat, hidin' behind others that do his biddin'."```

He said, reminiscent of Vaazva's crude knowledge invoked to the bandit about the Colorless Sovereign.

** **
```fix
"I'd hate t' face off with ya bein' so nice an' all so far, Ochre... But I'll find a way t' keep you and Tvotkei alive — Given a couple questions answered first. First an' most importantly, ya say the only way t' get through this floor is to 𝙠𝙞𝙡𝙡 yer king. I've already decided that I'll do everythin' I can 𝙣𝙤𝙩 to kill him. I'm content with not takin' anymore lives on the arc, even if it means not bein' able t' go forward — But what exactly is stoppin' us if we choose t' overthrow 'im instead? Secondly, who's the first heir to take 'is place if we do go through with this? If it's gonna be some other asshat who only cares for 'imself, then there ain't much of a point, 'less ya want me to beat up every other heir that threatens reignin' the place like Tvotkei. Thirdly... What are we up against in general?"```

Kuouo reached into his INVENTORY, grabbing his notepad with the pen neatly inserted through the rings at the top. Regardless of whether or not he formally accepts Ochre's request upon a satisfactory answer of these questions, he was going to take notes to begin forming his gameplan of infiltrating whatever what was beyond that wall — Given the chance of taking out the archer threat.

```fix
"Ya said yer willin' t' guide into this 'Pearl Palace.' Includin' yerself, what kinda security are we gonna be up against? I'm no stranger t' fightin', so lay it on me. That's all I have t' ask, so clear this up an' we can get started."```

Kuouo stared at Ochre, steadfast determination in his eyes as he awaited — and hoped for — satisfactory answers. The bandit would be most observant in this moment; although he didn't want to slightly distrustful of the respite's owner, the fallacies in his rationale instinctively invoked the bandit's knowledge of living on shady streets with even shadier people. His eyes awaited the language of Ochre's movements, the sound of his breathing, and of course, for any sudden movements. Such was learning ``The Art of the Deal`` alone on the streets of New Home.
Janie
Ochre's hands remained folded behind his back, and he maintained his unerring composure of stoicism throughout the entirety of his former statements, following through with such an unmoving visage even until they finished speaking. While the matter of what he said required him to swallow his pride — which was by no means a minor one of his traits — as well as to accept a cruel, unfair, and terribly agonizing reality, he wouldn't let such matters get to his clear and logical mindset, let alone to show on his face. Instead, Ochre's elegant demeanor sustained, his silver eyes clear and wide open, as he maintained comfortable eye contact, his breaths steady, and his demeanor only slightly phased. 

There was only one thing that finally caused him to break from his unerring calm — their agreement. Ochre briefly closed his eyes, and gave such a sober exhale that it appeared the weight of several worlds had been lifted from his shoulders. A sigh of relief, perhaps; their agreement to assist, while he would not cling nor beg to acquire such approval, was a tremendous boon to his plans. There was hardly a chance to *Ever* Contact an outsider to the Second Floor, and infinitely moreso an *Outsider to the Ark, itself.* Tvoktei himself had seen to that.

With a subtle nod as they concluded, Ochre took a breath in, and prepared his response. Indeed, what exchanges they had so rapidly began to shoot back-and-forth upon their entry to the respite were weighty, long, and decided many major factors of not only *Their* Relations, but so too the impacts that they would have on the greater whole of the Second Floor. Ochre would let no moment to deeply think and plan his responses go unused, taking a brief, yet appropriate pause before he responded.
_ _

```cpp
"𝙰𝚜 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚜𝚊𝚢, 𝚒𝚝 𝚒𝚜, 𝚒𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚎𝚍, 𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚛𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚒𝚜 𝚕𝚘𝚢𝚊𝚕 𝚝𝚘 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒 𝚞𝚗𝚝𝚘 𝚍𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚑."

"𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚕𝚘𝚢𝚊𝚕𝚝𝚢 𝚒𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚖𝚢 𝚘𝚠𝚗, 𝚑𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛."

"𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚒𝚜 𝚊 𝚖𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚝𝚢𝚙𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚍𝚘𝚎𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚎𝚊𝚛 𝚘𝚏 𝚎𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚗𝚘𝚋𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚘𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚘𝚗𝚏𝚘𝚕𝚔 𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚂𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚍 𝙵𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚛. 𝚂𝚎𝚎𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚜 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚛𝚜, 𝚑𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚗𝚎𝚜 𝚜𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚒𝚗 𝚖𝚢 𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚜, 𝚒𝚝 𝚒𝚜 𝚘𝚗𝚕𝚢 𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚎𝚡𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚘 𝚢𝚘𝚞."```

The noble heir of the Moon-Mother's blood squinted his characteristically silver eyes, and withdrew his hands from behind his back. So he did to further explain the matter which he had just warned the two to be of a most secretive nature — one which, despite him only having recently met them, he would entrust them with, for there was little other choice he possessed. This opportunity would not come twice.

His left hand unclasped from his right, and he lifted it ahead of himself, holding his hand high and in the light of the candles. Revealed, on his left ring finger, was the only object right to fit on such a digit: a *Wedding ring.* One made of a strange, obsidian-like material and silver, coursing through with a peculiar, azure glow. Indeed, the ring seemed to hold a peculiar weightiness to it — it was an object of a vow, to be sure, yet there seemed to be something deeper, and almost strangely *Incomprehensible* Within.
_ _

```cpp
"𝙴𝚊𝚌𝚑 𝚍𝚒𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚝 𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚛 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙼𝚘𝚘𝚗-𝙼𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛'𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚎 — 𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚑 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚜𝚜𝚘𝚛 𝚘𝚏 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚋𝚕𝚎𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚒𝚏𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚊𝚜 𝚊 𝚛𝚎𝚙𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚘𝚏 𝙻𝚞𝚗𝚊'𝚜 𝚌𝚢𝚌𝚕𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚕 𝚗𝚊𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 — 𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝚖𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚒𝚊𝚐𝚎."

"𝙳𝚎𝚜𝚙𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚋𝚕𝚢, 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝚊 𝚖𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚘𝚏 𝚌𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚏𝚞𝚕𝚕𝚢-𝚘𝚛𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚒𝚙𝚞𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗, 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒 𝚜𝚎𝚌𝚞𝚛𝚎𝚍 𝚊𝚗 𝚒𝚗𝚟𝚒𝚘𝚕𝚊𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚙𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚟𝚒𝚛𝚝𝚞𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚊𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚙𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙵𝚞𝚕𝚕 𝙼𝚘𝚘𝚗. 𝙱𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚍𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚑, 𝚑𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚌𝚎𝚍 𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚑 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚕𝚒𝚟𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚛𝚜 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚒𝚗𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚘𝚊𝚝𝚑𝚜 𝚍𝚒𝚜𝚐𝚞𝚒𝚜𝚎𝚍 𝚊𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚟𝚘𝚠𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚖𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚒𝚊𝚐𝚎."

"𝚆𝚑𝚒𝚕𝚎 𝚒𝚝 𝚒𝚜 𝚊𝚗 𝚊𝚋𝚜𝚘𝚕𝚞𝚝𝚎 𝚝𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚘 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚔 𝚊𝚗 𝚘𝚊𝚝𝚑, 𝚒𝚝 𝚒𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚒𝚖𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚍𝚘 𝚜𝚘, 𝚕𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚘𝚊𝚝𝚑 𝚋𝚎 𝚖𝚊𝚍𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚊 𝚍𝚒𝚟𝚒𝚗𝚎 𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚝𝚢, 𝚜𝚞𝚌𝚑 𝚊𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚜𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚏𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚗 𝚘𝚗𝚎-𝚑𝚞𝚗𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚍-𝚊𝚗𝚍-𝚝𝚠𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚢-𝚜𝚒𝚡, 𝚘𝚛, 𝚖𝚘𝚛𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚕𝚎𝚟𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚕𝚢, 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚐𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚙𝚑𝚎𝚝 — 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚃𝚊𝚊𝚎 𝙲𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚝 𝙴𝚣𝚎𝚛."

"𝙸 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚋𝚎 𝚊𝚏𝚛𝚊𝚒𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚜𝚞𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚖𝚢 𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚍𝚜 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚘, 𝚒𝚏 𝚒𝚝 𝚖𝚎𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚞𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚌𝚑 𝚑𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚕𝚎𝚗, 𝚋𝚞𝚝..."```

Ochre's eyes peered close and with contempt at the form of the ring which the azure presence so delicately clung to. The enchantment was not at all potent, yet utterly unbreakable. How terribly frustrating — that a single object, so small as this...

_ _

```cpp
"...𝚒𝚝 𝚜𝚎𝚎𝚖𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚑𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚜𝚒𝚖𝚞𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚝𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚊 𝚍𝚒𝚟𝚒𝚗𝚎 𝚘𝚊𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚞𝚜𝚊𝚐𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚜𝚎 𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜."

"𝚃𝚑𝚞𝚜, 𝙸 𝚊𝚖 𝚒𝚗𝚌𝚊𝚙𝚊𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚐𝚘𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚐𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚝 𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚎𝚛𝚜, 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚍𝚞𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚖𝚢 𝚘𝚠𝚗 𝚘𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚐𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜, 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚑𝚒𝚜."
"𝚂𝚝𝚒𝚕𝚕, 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚖𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚒𝚜 𝚘𝚗𝚕𝚢 𝚊𝚗 𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚞𝚎 𝚒𝚏 𝚑𝚎 𝚐𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚜 𝚖𝚎 𝚊𝚗 𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚎𝚛, 𝚘𝚛 𝚒𝚏 𝙸 𝚊𝚖 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗 𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚍𝚒𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚝 𝚙𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎."
"𝙸𝚗 𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚜, 𝚜𝚘 𝚕𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚜 𝙸 𝚍𝚘 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚍𝚒𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚕𝚢 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚝 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒, 𝙸 𝚊𝚖 𝚏𝚛𝚎𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚍𝚘 𝚊𝚜 𝙸 𝚙𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚎 — 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚙𝚕𝚘𝚝 𝚝𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚢 𝚊𝚐𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚝 𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚊𝚜 𝚂𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒𝚐𝚗."```

He concluded, again folding his hands behind his back. Such was the truth behind the matter of his supposed absolute loyalty to Tvoktei — which was, in truth, no more than his obligations as forced upon him by a false divine oath, the so-called impositions of their artificial marriage. Ochre would sooner cut his hand off than use it to serve Tvoktei, and yet he was *Absolutely bound* To do so. However, so long as the heir did not directly hear a command from Tvoktei's lips... He did not have to obey it.
_ _

```cpp
"𝚂𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚍𝚘 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚏𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚙𝚕𝚎𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚗, 𝙸 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚋𝚎 𝚒𝚗𝚌𝚊𝚙𝚊𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚐𝚞𝚒𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚊𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚎, 𝚖𝚢𝚜𝚎𝚕𝚏. 𝙸𝚝 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚋𝚎 𝚒𝚗𝚌𝚛𝚎𝚍𝚒𝚋𝚕𝚢 𝚝𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚋𝚕𝚎𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚒𝚏 𝙸 𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚒𝚗 𝚍𝚒𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚝 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚊𝚌𝚝 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒, 𝚊𝚜 𝙸 𝚊𝚖, 𝚗𝚘𝚠."

"𝚁𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚞𝚛𝚎𝚍, 𝚑𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛, 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚜𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝚒𝚗𝚍𝚒𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚝 𝚖𝚎𝚊𝚗𝚜. 𝙸𝚝 𝚒𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚒𝚖𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚒𝚗𝚏𝚕𝚞𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙲𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙼𝚘𝚘𝚗 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚕𝚎 𝙸 𝚛𝚎𝚖𝚊𝚒𝚗 𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎. 𝙼𝚢 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚛𝚊𝚍𝚎𝚜 𝚎𝚡𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚍 𝚋𝚎𝚢𝚘𝚗𝚍 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚙𝚒𝚝𝚎, 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠?"```

Thus concluded his response to Abstral's concern, and, by extension, some of Kuouo's. He shifted his silver glance back toward the furry bandit who had found some ease in the respite, but still seemed rightfully observant of the heir himself, and gave a light nod, closing his eyes as he pondered further his answer. Another pause, another moment to think; Ochre was not in a rush, and he was certain that he should make him clear in every step along the way.
_ _

```cpp
"𝚃𝚘 𝚊𝚗𝚜𝚠𝚎𝚛 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚏𝚒𝚛𝚜𝚝 𝚚𝚞𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗..."
"𝙸'𝚖 𝚌𝚎𝚛𝚝𝚊𝚒𝚗 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚏𝚊𝚖𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚊𝚛 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚝𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚛𝚞𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚝𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙰𝚛𝚔. 𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚑 𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍 𝚋𝚢 𝚞𝚗𝚒𝚚𝚞𝚎 𝚌𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚊. 𝚂𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚋𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙵𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚛'𝚜 𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚙𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚐𝚞𝚊𝚛𝚍𝚒𝚊𝚗, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚋𝚢 𝚐𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚛𝚎𝚚𝚞𝚒𝚛𝚎𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜."

"𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚂𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚍 𝙵𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚛 𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍 𝚋𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚊𝚌𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠𝚕𝚎𝚍𝚐𝚎𝚍 𝚂𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒𝚐𝚗 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚜𝚒𝚝𝚜 𝚊𝚝𝚘𝚙 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙼𝚘𝚘𝚗-𝙼𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛'𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚎. 𝚂𝚒𝚖𝚙𝚕𝚢 𝚙𝚞𝚝, 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚝𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚛 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚘𝚙𝚎𝚗, 𝚕𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚂𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒𝚐𝚗 𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚘𝚠 𝚒𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚎 𝚜𝚘." 

"𝚂𝚞𝚛𝚎𝚕𝚢, 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚜𝚒𝚖𝚙𝚕𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚞𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚛𝚎𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚑𝚒𝚖 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝𝚏𝚞𝚕 𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚛 — 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚒𝚜 𝙴𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚊𝚛𝚢 𝙲𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚆𝚊𝚡𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝙶𝚒𝚋𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚜, 𝚝𝚘 𝚊𝚗𝚜𝚠𝚎𝚛 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚜𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚍 𝚚𝚞𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 — 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚐𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚏𝚊𝚟𝚘𝚛 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚘 𝚊𝚜𝚌𝚎𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚛𝚍 𝙵𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚛 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚋𝚎 𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚒𝚝 𝚝𝚊𝚔𝚎𝚜."```
_ _

```cpp
"𝙻𝚘𝚐𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢, 𝚒𝚝 𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚎𝚜 𝚜𝚎𝚗𝚜𝚎."

"𝚄𝚗𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚞𝚗𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚕𝚢, 𝚒𝚝 𝚒𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚊𝚜𝚎. 𝙰 𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚕𝚎 𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚙𝚞𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙰𝚜𝚌𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚛𝚍 𝙵𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚛 𝚙𝚛𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜 𝚒𝚝 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚋𝚎𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚜𝚘."

"𝙾𝚗𝚕𝚢 𝚊𝚗 𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐥𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞𝐝 𝚂𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒𝚐𝚗 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚘𝚙𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙰𝚜𝚌𝚎𝚗𝚝."

"𝙰𝚌𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠𝚕𝚎𝚍𝚐𝚎𝚍 𝚋𝚢 𝚠𝚑𝚘𝚖?——𝚗𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚃𝚊𝚊𝚎 𝙲𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚝 𝙴𝚣𝚎𝚛, 𝚠𝚑𝚘, 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚊𝚜𝚝 𝚏𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚑𝚞𝚗𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚍 𝚢𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚜, 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚛𝚎𝚏𝚞𝚜𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚊𝚌𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠𝚕𝚎𝚍𝚐𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚢 𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒 𝚊𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚝𝚛𝚞𝚎 𝚂𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒𝚐𝚗."

"𝙸𝚗 𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚜, 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚟𝚒𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚏𝚊𝚟𝚘𝚛 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚃𝚊𝚊𝚎 𝙲𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚝 𝙴𝚣𝚎𝚛 — 𝚊 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚌𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚌𝚑 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚝𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚌𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜 — 𝚘𝚛, 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒, 𝚋𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚎𝚊𝚕 𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙰𝚜𝚌𝚎𝚗𝚝."```
_ _

Ochre elaborated, slowly shifting his sights to one of the few windows within the respite. Squinting, he stared not with hatred, disgust, or even something such as the feeling as melancholy or helplessness, but the fire of *Determination.* To see a goal through, to fulfill his own wishes — and without spilling blood so not to make him the very thing he despised.
_ _

```cpp
"𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚙𝚒𝚝𝚎 𝚒𝚜 𝚍𝚎𝚍𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚌𝚑 𝚘𝚏 𝚊𝚗𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚖𝚎𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚔 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚎𝚊𝚕 𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙰𝚜𝚌𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚂𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚍 𝙵𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚛. 𝙼𝚢 𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚎'𝚜 𝚊𝚖𝚋𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚋𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚘 𝚞𝚗𝚜𝚑𝚊𝚌𝚔𝚕𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚜𝚘𝚌𝚒𝚎𝚝𝚢 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒'𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚗𝚍𝚜, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚊𝚐𝚊𝚒𝚗 𝚘𝚙𝚎𝚗 𝚒𝚝 𝚞𝚗𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚘𝚌𝚒𝚎𝚝𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚛𝚍, 𝙵𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚝𝚑, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙵𝚒𝚏𝚝𝚑 𝚏𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚛, 𝚞𝚗𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙲𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙼𝚘𝚘𝚗 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚐𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚊𝚖𝚋𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙰𝚛𝚞𝚎."

"𝙸 𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚗𝚘 𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚠𝚊𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚗 𝚝𝚘 𝚔𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒. 𝙸𝚝 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚊𝚗 𝚒𝚖𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚋𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚖𝚎, 𝚢𝚎𝚝 𝙸 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚖𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚍𝚘𝚣𝚎𝚗𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚒𝚗𝚍𝚒𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚝 𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚖𝚙𝚝𝚜 𝚘𝚗 𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚏𝚞𝚕 𝚛𝚎𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚋𝚞𝚒𝚕𝚝 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚖𝚢 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎-𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚍 𝚛𝚎𝚟𝚘𝚕𝚞𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚊𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜."

"𝙱𝚞𝚝, 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚊𝚜 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚘𝚕𝚟𝚎𝚍," He said, locking eyes with Kuouo, the once-empty and stoic glare of his silver eyes now resounding with a warm familiarity — acknowledgment, a sense of camradarie, and deep respect,
"𝙸 𝚛𝚎𝚏𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚊𝚗𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚘 𝚏𝚞𝚛𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚖𝚢 𝚘𝚠𝚗 𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚜."

"𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚒𝚜 𝚊𝚗𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚠𝚊𝚢, 𝚋𝚎𝚌𝚊𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚎."```

Ochre said, as if uncertain himself. He did not directly state that he had an alternative, yet the deterministic look in his eyes seemed to suggest he did.
_ _

```cpp
"𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚛𝚍𝚕𝚢, 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚊𝚐𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚝 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙻𝚞𝚗𝚊𝚛 𝙷𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚖, 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚌𝚔𝚎𝚍𝚗𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚘𝚌𝚒𝚎𝚝𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚓𝚞𝚛𝚎𝚍 𝚒𝚗 𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎 𝚊𝚜 𝚂𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒𝚐𝚗 𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙲𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙼𝚘𝚘𝚗."

"𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚙𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚗𝚘𝚋𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚢, 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚌𝚘𝚛𝚛𝚞𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒'𝚜 𝚓𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚘𝚒𝚜𝚝 𝚝𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚝, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍 𝚜𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚜 𝚊𝚔𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚘 𝚖𝚢 𝚜𝚎𝚕𝚏, 𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚌𝚎𝚍 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚘 𝚘𝚊𝚝𝚑 𝚋𝚢 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒. 𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚜𝚎 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚎𝚗𝚎𝚖𝚒𝚎𝚜."

"𝙴𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚊𝚛𝚢 𝙲𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒 𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚖𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚘𝚗 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚎. 𝚂𝚑𝚎 𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚑𝚞𝚛𝚕𝚎𝚍 𝚐𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝 𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚘𝚠𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚜𝚒𝚕𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚍𝚘𝚠𝚗. 𝙱𝚞𝚝 𝚜𝚑𝚎 𝚒𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚎𝚗𝚎𝚖𝚢."

"𝙴𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙿𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚜𝚜 — 𝚖𝚢 𝚖𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛, 𝚁𝚎𝚞𝚔, 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚊 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚝 𝚊𝚜 𝚋𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚔 𝚊𝚜 𝚊 𝚗𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚗𝚎𝚠 𝚖𝚘𝚘𝚗 — 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚢𝚘𝚞, 𝚒𝚏 𝚒𝚝 𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒'𝚜 𝚘𝚊𝚝𝚑."```
_ _

```cpp
"𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚌𝚎𝚛𝚝𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚕𝚢 𝚘𝚙𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚋𝚎𝚌𝚊𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚜𝚎𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚜 𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚛𝚜— ... 𝚠𝚎𝚕𝚕, 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚎𝚡𝚌𝚎𝚙𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚘𝚏 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞," He said, staring briefly at Abstral. His white hair was entirely unrelated to this Floor, yet served as an incredibly powerful tool for blending in to its local population.

"𝙰𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚗𝚘𝚋𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚜𝚎𝚎𝚔 𝚝𝚘 𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚍𝚘𝚠𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚑𝚎𝚕𝚍 𝚊𝚗𝚢 𝚜𝚘𝚛𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚊𝚖𝚋𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚒𝚗 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚝. 𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚒𝚍𝚕𝚎, 𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚐𝚗𝚊𝚗𝚝, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚐𝚕𝚞𝚝𝚝𝚘𝚗𝚘𝚞𝚜 𝚊𝚜 𝚜𝚠𝚒𝚗𝚎. 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚝𝚢𝚙𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚜𝚠𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚘𝚠 𝚊 𝚋𝚒𝚛𝚍 𝚠𝚑𝚘𝚕𝚎, 𝚒𝚏 𝚒𝚝 𝚖𝚎𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚒𝚝 𝚍𝚒𝚍 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚏𝚕𝚢 𝚏𝚛𝚎𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚕𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚛𝚎𝚖𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚎𝚍 𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚑."

"𝙱𝚞𝚝 𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚕𝚕, 𝚗𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚖 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚕𝚊𝚖𝚎."

"𝙽𝚘𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚏𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚛 𝚏𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝𝚜 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚛 𝚘𝚠𝚗 𝚟𝚘𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗. 𝙰𝚕𝚕, 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚒𝚏 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚋𝚢 𝚘𝚊𝚝𝚑, 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍 𝚋𝚢 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒'𝚜 𝚛𝚞𝚒𝚗𝚘𝚞𝚜 𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚜."```
_ _

Ochre turned his back to the two, briefly pacing about and around his desk, and seemingly filing through a small storage-space located at the very rear of the respite. His tone seemed densely serious, and his eyes remained persistent in their focus, as he was most certain to continue explaining to them the intricacies of his plan—

```cpp
"𝚆𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚌𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚎𝚊? 𝙾𝚑, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚜𝚔 𝚃𝚊𝚊𝚜𝚑 𝚒𝚏 𝚜𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎, 𝚊𝚜 𝚠𝚎𝚕𝚕?"```

—nay, not immediately. First and foremost, they were guests in his respite. A respite should be a place one finds safety and comfort in. He hadn't treated them truly as guests up until now — an oversight which he was going to fix.