"For the past year," Mistblade said quietly, her tone as measured and even as ever, "I've barely used [Endless Autumn: On the Chessboard]. With the intelligence network I've built and my own analytical ability, I can already determine precisely who benefits the moon fox clan's future and who doesn't.
"I don't need a skill to tell me who's a piece worth keeping and who's a piece to sacrifice. Even Orpha has praised me many times for it."
Her voice was steady, magnetic, with that natural rhythm that made even the dullest of subjects sound like poetry. It was the kind of voice that made people want to keep listening, no matter what she said.
"You're talented," she continued, her eyes glinting in the soft orange of the dying sun. "You're brilliant at games. You have terrifying battle instincts. But you're like another Lightchaser—someone who despises restraint, who craves freedom, who doesn't care about power or position. And unlike her, you don't even have your own people."
