John
**Cornelius
The Sun Gate**

The air in the room, specifically around Elise had turned more than a little hostile, and clearly there was some baffoonery afoot in regards to the circumstances of his hiring; however, this would definitely not be the worst of things the spy had gotten into. For the briefest of moments, the young man glared daggers into the eyes of Elaine, shattering any facade that he had shown to her. This was followed, of course, by the gentle glare that had shown itself before.

"Lord Cyril, do either you or the Lady Elaine have questions regarding my services? If not, I'd like to take my leave for a moment. I'm unsure whether or not not it's just me not being acclimated to this northern climate, but the air in the room has turned," He said, turning his eyes to the Lady Elaine, "Foul and acidic in my nostrils."

He was purposefully being less than subtle with his communication towards Elaine. He was not one who enjoyed taking flak before doing much of anything, especially from a woman. Cornelius was not one to trust women, courtesy of Lady Heloise's *Education* In his early years.
Bobby
Elaine de Lysse
The Sun Gate

If she wasn't able to control her feelings as they raged inside her like a storm, swiping her anger and mistrust, Elaine would had stood there will her mouth open in shock and unable to mouth a word. But there she was now, expressionless and hollow as she could be appearing before the man who just confirmed to her was not only seeking trouble in their home but was marked as a threat wondering about his 'services he was there to offer'.

That before she snapped at his remark and threw blasting out of the window all her tact and cool.

She pointed her finger with her long pointy nail at the man, sharp enough to cut his throat, as her face turned a shade darker just red, as of a ripe white peach spotted with blood. She took a step forward.

"Watch how you speak in our house. It feels like you have just arrived and not only claim of services that little were requested here, but you should be informed that I am not going to tolerate such tone in my presence. Especially one that seems to be directly pointed at me."
Ronald
**Cyril de Lysse - The Sun Gate**

The man in the desk stood up. His air of passivity was gone. He took some steps and stood by the side of his daughter, seeking to intimidate Cornelius.

"Listen to my daughter, young man. You better watch your tone. I was willing to ignore the suspicious circumstances of your arrival, but this will not be thr case if you disrespect my home or my daughter."

After saying this, he returned slowly to his desk.

"Captain Armadi will escort you to the Keep Sempiternal, to make sure you're not been sent to spy on us. Whether Elaine will follow you or not is up to her."
Bobby
Elaine de Lysse
The Sun Gate

"I will not". Elaine said now once again emotionless as she approached the fireplace and stood with her back to the man.
John
**Cornelius
The Sun Gate**

A slight smirk painted itself on Cornelius' face. He'd successfully shattered any sense of friendliness between he and those he'd probably be working for.

"I will take my leave then and wait for departure."

The man paused for a moment. He'd grown up in the back alleys of Sol, known hunger, and more than once played a hand against death. Any reaction didn't show itself on his face nor body.

"Before that, though, I will say that I am a spy, Lord Cyril, but I assure you, if you were a target of mine, I wouldn't be so obvious as to discard any sense of cordiality between us."

He spoke in a different tone with a different face. It wasn't gentle and unimposing like it had been before. His face was relaxed, calm, and otherwise unflinching. His voice moved far lower to its normal range, and his back straightened, making more that a couple popping sounds as it did so.

"That would be stupid of me, no?"
Ronald
**Cyril de Lysse**

"A spy? Why would a..." Cyril made a long pause. He had not expected that answer.

His chin went to rest on his hands as his mind became absorbed by deep toughts. It was apparent that Cornelius' reveal had come as a surprise to him, even though the letter under Cyril's name had directly requested for a spy.

"In that case, allow me to propose you a contract of my own: a real one, this time," He said at last.

"Depart to the keep as planned. But you are tasked with finding who issued this letter under my name, and report it back to me. Confidentially. I suspect it's a fellow member of House de Lysse, but I need solid proof before making any accusations. There will be a generous rewards should you prove to be succesful."
John
**Cornelius
The Sun Gate**

A visible, slightly off-putting grin spread from ear to ear across his face.

"Food and shelter are all I require, Lord Cyril. I will be sure to ascertain the identity of this-"

He examined the signature on the parchment.

"Lord Cyril, would you mind signing your name just above the forgery? I'd like to see how similar they might be to determine the competency of the forger."
Ronald
**Cyril de Lysse**
**The Sun Gate**

Cyril reached for the letter, but a touch on his shoulder stopped him. Elaine. It took a while for Cyril to understand, but eventually he got what his daughter was trying to tell him.

"I will sign, but not on the forgery, it would validate the contract if it got my real signature."

He handed Cornelius a separate paper. Put side by side, the signatures were clearly distinct, but they were just similar enough that someone more or less unfamiliar with them would not be able to tell the difference.
Bobby
Elaine de Lysse
The Sun Gate

Elaine was deep lost in her thoughts. She was lost in the thoughts of struggling not to drop on the floor where she was standing. The room was spinning and the conversation reaching her ears was muffled, echoing in confusion. She did not give any sign of that to those with her. Patiently waiting for the men to finish their talk. She leaned her hand on the fireplace, barely even feeling her hand slowly burning.
John
**Cornelius
The Sun Gate**

Cornelius scratched his beardless chin. The forger was mostly competent, but he more than likely was no professional.

"It's clearly from somebody who knows your signature, but-"

He picked up the quill that Cyril had used to sign his name on the empty sheet and proceeded to forge the signature himself, and the match was almost exact. The only detail that was off was the longer trail he'd left at the ending 'e'.

"But they're no professional."