"Phew... Every single day brings another endless pile of trouble. If this keeps up, I'm worried I'll collapse from sheer exhaustion before the dust even settles."
Following the intense meeting at the estate, Ratatos did something unusual. Instead of heading straight back to the Browntail Clan headquarters to manage her administrative affairs, she snuck off to Jeanne and the Doctor's quarters, venting her built-up frustration to the group.
"Just thinking about gathering search teams to track down those displaced workers gives me a headache. Right now, our family barely has anyone left who could venture out into those jagged peaks and be guaranteed to return alive."
"..."
Faced with Ratatos's theatrical complaining, both Jeanne and the Doctor maintained a serene, knowing silence, watching the Zalak chief perform without offering a single comment.
From the very moment the joint search initiative was proposed, everyone in the room had already deduced what scheme she was cooking up. Still, it was far more entertaining to let her lay out her cards herself.
Seeing that no one was taking her bait—and noticing the four of them were perfectly content playing cards on the table rather than asking about her search teams—Ratatos let out a exasperated sigh.
"It's not that we don't want to lend a hand," the Doctor finally offered under Ratatos's intense, sharp glare, hurrying to clarify their stance. "It's just... do you honestly believe that hot-headed Ursus chief will allow foreign outsiders to join his expedition? I'm pretty sure Arctosz would sooner try to hack us to pieces."
In truth, Jeanne had zero interest in dealing with the Paleroches chief ever again.
"I know it sounds inappropriate coming from an outsider, but since the Paleroches Clan is leading the search, do you really think putting a muscle-brained brute in charge of finding desperate workers is a wise move?"
The Doctor phrased her concern delicately, though everyone understood her true meaning. Arctosz's reckless behavior had left no one with a shred of confidence in his leadership.
"To be completely honest, I don't know either," Ratatos admitted, rubbing her aching temples. "I'm well aware of Arctosz's glaring flaws. He acts like a brainless beast—and as luck would have it, the one person who usually acts as his brain was sent away recently."
"Still, I know he isn't a genuinely evil man," she continued softly. "He simply prefers crude, forceful methods and refuses to use his head. He deserves to be called out for his failures, but in a crisis like this, Kjerag cannot afford to lose him."
Had Arctosz been a truly irredeemable villain, they wouldn't be wasting time sitting around deliberating—they could simply use martial force to break his influence and be done with it.
"What do you mean his 'brain' isn't by his side?" the Doctor asked, catching the unusual phrasing. "Is there some specialized Arts in Kjerag that grants a temporary boost to intellectual clarity?"
The Doctor was genuinely intrigued, wondering if such an intriguing spell existed in this isolated mountain realm. A technique that cleared one's mind for sharp decision-making sounded like something she wouldn't mind testing out herself.
Ratatos's response, however, promptly dashed her curiosity with a far simpler truth.
"No, nothing quite so miraculous," Ratatos chuckled dryly. "I was referring to a woman named Valais. She is essentially the only person in his entire clan who possesses a sharp, logical mind. Unfortunately, she's currently away on an assignment."
"Hard to imagine what could possibly prompt him to send his only advisor away."
"The missing Enciodes, of course," Ratatos explained. "Ever since the luxury train was destroyed, they suspected something was amiss. When no body was recovered from the wreckage, Arctosz dispatched his sharpest mind alongside elite guards to search the mountain passes. There might be secondary motives as well, but without hard proof, I can't be certain."
Ratatos recalled that Arctosz had only revealed Valais's absence after the Grand Elder departed. It was clear her deployment involved more than a simple search-and-rescue effort.
"In any case, I never expected you to march into the snowstorms with us," Ratatos said, her tone growing solemn. "I only ask one thing: when that muscle-brained fool and I lead our forces into the mountains, please keep a close eye on the town."
"The moment we depart, the monks of the Vine-Bear Court will remain behind in the settlement. If their broader scheme involves the clergy, they will certainly make their move. When that happens, I leave the Saintess's safety in your hands."
Ratatos spoke with utmost gravity. She knew this was no time for petty tribalism between locals and outsiders. Until this crisis resolved, she needed every reliable ally she could muster.
"Enya is our friend," the Doctor chimed in before Jeanne could answer. "If matters deteriorate to that point, we will protect her without hesitation. But anyone else falls strictly outside our scope of protection."
"That is more than enough," Ratatos breathed, a visible weight lifting from her shoulders. "Securing a promise like that from a warrior of your caliber makes this visit a success. Until then, I leave Kjerag in your hands."
Ratatos offered no formal promises of rewards or treasure. Such material gestures held little meaning for Jeanne and her companions; it was better to etch the debt into her heart and repay it when peace returned to the realm.
"Take care of yourself out there too," the Doctor added with a small wave as the Zalak chief prepared to leave. "Don't go getting yourself killed in a snowdrift. You still owe us a mountain of favors, so you'd better make it back alive to settle the bill!"
Ratatos paused at the doorway. She was well aware that venturing into the treacherous glaciers carried immense danger—perhaps even a confrontation with Enciodes's hidden forces.
"Don't worry about me," Ratatos said, tossing her head back with a confident smirk without turning around. "If there's one thing I excel at, it's staying alive and escaping tight spots."
With that, she slipped out into the cold night, leaving the four companions exchanging quiet glances in the warm room.
"So, what's on the agenda now?"
"No idea. Back to cards?"
"Jeanne, get out of the rotation!" the Doctor groaned, throwing her hands up. "Any game involving blind luck is completely ruined when you're at the table!"
"Fine, fine. I'll just sit behind Alina and play as her strategist."
And so, another evening of casual downtime began. In a remote corner of the world lacking basic infrastructure or modern communications, playing cards remained their primary source of entertainment.
Since Alina's card skills were admittedly lacking, Jeanne basically operated as her shadow controller, quietly nudging the gentle Elafia toward victory after victory.
"I just hope this whole ordeal wraps up soon," the Doctor sighed, staring at her abysmal hand of cards. "Sitting around with nothing to do every day gets dull fast. I'm actually starting to miss Amiya nagging me about unfinished paperwork."
While the Doctor and her group were passing the time with cards, Gnosis stood alone inside a quiet guest room at the Browntail Clan estate, gazing out at the frosty mountain landscape. He looked thoroughly bored.
Yet despite the monotony of house arrest, he made no attempt to step outside. Beyond the wooden walls, at least five elite guards kept a constant watch on his quarters, monitoring his every movement from the shadows.
He sat by the window, calmly reviewing Enciodes's master plan in his mind, strategizing how he might subtly assist his old friend from within his current confinement.
Knock, knock.
"Forgive the intrusion, Mister Gnosis. May I come in?"
Ratatos had returned home and immediately sought out the Liberi scholar who claimed to serve her.
"Please, enter."
Before Gnosis could even finish his sentence, the heavy wooden door creaked open. Her polite request was merely a formality to preserve a thin veneer of respect.
"To what do I owe the honor of a visit from the Clan Chief?" Gnosis asked, a subtle trace of mockery in his cool voice. "Has Enciodes finally been located?"
"We haven't found the man himself just yet, but we've uncovered a few promising leads," Ratatos replied, her expression offering a tight, artificial smile that carried not a shred of warmth for the suspected double agent. "We plan to head into the mountains tomorrow, and I would like to invite you to join our expedition."
She tilted her head, watching his face intently for any crack in his composure. "When we finally track Enciodes down, you'll have the perfect chance to exact your vengeance upon him. Doesn't that sound marvelous?"
Gnosis maintained his cold, stoic expression, looking completely unbothered, as if the entire affair was of no consequence to him.
"That is indeed wonderful news," Gnosis replied smoothly, keeping his voice carefully neutral. "I look forward to tomorrow's search. Hopefully, we will find our hidden friend."
"Excellent. We march at dawn," Ratatos declared, taking a step back toward the hallway. "A joint operation between the Browntail Clan and the Paleroches Clan to track down the missing workers and Enciodes. You had better prepare your gear."
"May I ask how you determined that Enciodes is aligned with the displaced workers?"
"That, I'm afraid, remains a classified matter," Ratatos smiled coldly, stepping back and shutting the heavy door behind her.
Once the latch clicked into place and the sound of her footsteps faded down the corridor, Gnosis slowly clenched his fist.
He needed to find a way to convey this critical news to Enciodes out on the snowfield before dawn.
As for what lay ahead, he would simply have to adapt on the fly when the search parties made their move tomorrow.