The morning sun filtered through the high windows of the dining hall, but it brought no warmth. The room was freezing. The fireplace sat cold and empty, much like the breakfast spread laid out on the long mahogany table.
Lady Julienne sat at the head of the table. She looked dreadful. Her skin, usually glowing with health, was now pale and clammy. Her hands trembled as she lifted a cup of tea to her lips, the china rattling against the saucer. It was the withdrawal. Her body, having tasted the potent, corrupting mana of the Void just hours ago, was now screaming for a fix.
I sat to her right, staring at my reflection in a silver spoon.
"Lady Julienne," I said softly, breaking the suffocating silence. "About last night..."
She flinched. The tea splashed onto her wrist.
"Please," she whispered, not meeting my eyes. "Do not speak of it."
"I must," I insisted, my voice dripping with false humility. "I fear I overstepped. My... enthusiasm to show you the path of the Goddess may have frightened you. I am but a humble servant, and sometimes my methods are... unconventional. If I caused you distress, I ask for your forgiveness. I am weak to the plight of a suffering soul."
Julienne looked at me then. Her eyes were swimming with conflict—guilt for rejecting me, and a terrified longing to be back in that bed.
"No, Priest-sama," she choked out. "It was I who was weak. I... I saw things. Heard things. My faith is..."
BAM!
The double doors of the dining hall flew open.
There was no announcement. No servant opening the way.
The Soldier stood there.
He was still wearing his travel-stained armor, the crest of the God of War emblazoned on his chest. His helmet was off, revealing a face that was hard, scarred, and utterly devoid of emotion. His eyes were dead—grey, flat, and focused entirely on Julienne.
"Lady,So what is your answer?" he said. It wasn't a question. It was a demand.
Julienne straightened her spine. She was shaking, but the presence of her husband's man triggered her noble training.
"Sorry for giving a late response," she said, her voice wavering only slightly.
She reached into her sleeve and pulled out a letter sealed with blue wax.
"Take this to my husband."
The Soldier didn't move. He didn't step forward to take it. "Where is the grain? Where is the gold?"
"There is none," Julienne said, her voice gaining a fragile strength. "The silos are empty. The treasury is dust. Tell my husband... tell him that if he wants to tax this land further, he must come back and wring the blood from the stones himself."
She tossed the letter onto the table. It slid across the polished wood and stopped at the Soldier's edge.
He didn't look at it.
Slowly, his head turned. His dead, grey eyes locked onto me.
"I see," the Soldier ground out. His voice sounded like stones grinding together. "The Lady does not speak with her own tongue today."
He raised a gloved hand and pointed a finger directly at my face.
"She speaks with the tongue of the Snake."
"Watch your tone," I said calmly, taking a sip of my water. "You are in the presence of a Lady and a Priest."
"Priest?" The Soldier spat on the floor.
SPLAT.
"I see no Priest. I see a parasite. A plague."
He took a step forward, his hand drifting to the hilt of the broadsword at his waist.
"The Lady's madness... her defiance... it is all due to this 'Guest.' You have poisoned her mind with your foreign magic. You have corrupted the Villa."
"Stop!" Julienne stood up, her chair scraping loudly against the floor. "You will not speak to him that way! He has healed the sick! He has brought hope!"
"He has brought ruin!" the Soldier roared, his voice amplifying unnaturally, shaking the glass in the windows. "I watched you last night, Woman! I saw the shadows in your room! I saw the filth!"
Julienne gasped, her face draining of all blood. She collapsed back into her chair, covering her mouth. The shame was a physical blow.
The Soldier sneered. He looked at the letter, then drew a dagger.
SHING.
He stabbed the letter, pinning it to the expensive table.
"I will return to the Lord," the Soldier declared, staring at me with hate-filled eyes. "But I will not return empty-handed. When I come back, I will bring the Battalion. I will bring the Inquisitors."
He leaned forward.
"We will bring Iron and Fire. And we will burn this 'Priest' at the stake."
He turned on his heel.
CLANK. CLANK. CLANK.
He marched out, leaving the doors wide open.
The silence that followed was deafening.
"Iron and Fire..." Julienne whispered, tears streaming down her face. She looked at me, terrified. Not for herself, but for me.
"Priest-sama..." She reached out across the table, grabbing my hand. Her skin was ice cold. "You have to leave."
"Lady?"
"He means it," she sobbed. "My husband... the Inquisitors... they will kill you. They will tear this house apart to find you. I cannot protect you. I have no soldiers. I have no power."
She squeezed my hand, her nails digging in.
"Please. For your own safety. Go. Before they return."
I looked at her. She was trying to save me. It was pathetic, and adorable. She didn't realize that sending me away was exactly what I wanted. I needed to operate from the shadows to prepare the next phase.
I stood up slowly. I bowed my head, playing the martyr to perfection.
"If my presence causes you pain, Lady... if it brings danger to your doorstep... then I shall withdraw."
"No!"
The cry came from the doorway.
Rose, Kara, and Sofia were standing there. They had been listening. Rose was weeping openly. Kara looked furious. Sofia was biting her lip.
"You can't leave!" Rose cried, rushing into the room. "You healed Chip! You saved us!"
"I must, Rose," I said sadly. "The Lady commands it."
"But where will you go?" Sofia spoke up. She was standing in the corner, leaning against the wall, She played her part well, looking concerned. "The local Hospice is full. Probably the innkeepers won't welcome you if they heard this, they are terrified of the Soldier. you have nowhere."
The room fell silent. It was a genuine problem.
"The Slums," Kara said suddenly, stepping forward. "You can stay with us. With me and Chip. It... it isn't much. It's just a shack. But the people there love you. They will hide you."
I looked at Kara. Her offer was genuine, a testament to the devotion I had instilled in her last night. It was an option, but Chip wasn't ready yet, and settling in the slums would only expose those people to greater danger. I maintained a worried expression while waiting for a response more aligned with my actual plan.
"That is kind, Kara," I said gently. "But I cannot burden you. And the Slums are the first place the soldiers will look."
"Then..." Rose wiped her eyes with her apron. She hesitated. "There is... the Sanctuary."
"The Sanctuary?" I asked, feigning ignorance.
Rose's voice trembled as she explained, "It's 'The Sanctuary of Silent Stone,' an old monastery near the village cliffs. It's dedicated to the god of war and run by a sect of Monks. I've lived there since I was a child; they also operate an orphanage."
Pearl's eyes flickered to mine. The Orphanage. The place she had identified as the barracks for the God of War's child soldiers.
"It is secluded," Rose continued. "The Monks keep to themselves. They claim to be neutral. The soldiers might respect their holy status."
Julienne looked up, hope sparking in her eyes. "Yes... the Silent Stone. The Abbot there is a hard man, but he respects the cloth. If you go there as a traveler seeking shelter..."
I paused, acting as if I was considering it. In reality, I was grinning internally. It was perfect. Walking right into the enemy's stronghold under the guise of charity.
"An orphanage..." I murmured, my voice taking on a wistful, melancholic tone. "That... sounds fitting."
I turned to look out the window.
"You see, Rose... I was an orphan myself," I lied. "Back in my homeland. I grew up on the cold streets, fighting for scraps, with no name and no hope. It was a priest who found me. A priest who gave me bread when I was starving."
I turned back to them, letting a single, calculated tear glisten in my eye.
"If I can offer my services to children who are as lost as I once was... then perhaps my exile is the Goddess's will."
"Oh, Priest-sama!" Rose wailed, overcome with emotion. She fell to her knees, grabbing the hem of my robe. "You are too good! You are a Saint!"
Even Julienne looked moved, her guilt assuaged by my "noble" acceptance.
Pearl, standing in the back, kept her face neutral, but I felt a ping of amusement through our bond. She knew. She knew I was going to turn that orphanage into a factory of horrors.
"It is decided then," I said, my voice firm. "Pearl, pack our things. We go to the Sanctuary of Silent Stone."
I looked at Julienne one last time. Gave her a necklace a cross
"I leave you in the Goddess's hands, Lady."
Turn.
I walked out of the dining hall, my robes billowing behind me.
The Expulsion was complete. The Spider was leaving the web, only to go and build a bigger, deadlier nest right in the heart of the enemy.