Strathmore was all of these things—a lord, a liar, a man who lived to keep secrets.
But tonight, when he handed Aric yet another sealed letter, there was something different in his expression.
A flicker of something almost like concern.
Aric saw it.
And that meant whatever was in the letter—it counted.
It was in the same old ruined bathhouse, where the air reeked of damp stone and abandoned secrets.
Strathmore stood beside a shattered statue of a goddess, his trademark smirk gone.
"Before you read this," he told him, his voice low, "know that having this information places you in even greater danger."
Aric raised an eyebrow.
"I've already entered the lion's den." He unfolded the parchment. "What else is a step?"
Strathmore let out a breath.
"You'll see."
Aric broke the wax seal.
And as his eyes read the words on the inside, his heart slowed.
The letter was not simply about Lord Edgar Verrin.
It was about the one who held true power behind him.
And that power had a name.
The Scarlet Pact.
A shadowy cabal—beyond the kingdom's own founding. A cabal of clergymen and nobles who had, for centuries, toyed at pulling strings behind the scenes.
Verrin was not alone.
He was a pawn in a much greater game.
Aric refolded the letter with careful hands, face impassive.
Strathmore observed him intently.
"So," Aric said, voice steady. "You already knew about this?"
Strathmore breathed in through his nose. "Not all of it. But I guessed. I just verified."
There was silence.
Then Aric smiled. Slowly. Sharply. Precalculating.
"And yet, you brought this to me."
Strathmore laughed, a little of his usual arrogance creeping back into his voice. "I like to bet on the winner."
"Good." Aric advanced, his golden eyes glinting in the dim torchlight.
"Because if you double-cross me, Strathmore—
His voice fell to a whisper.
"Not even your secrets will save you."
Silence.
Then Strathmore smiled.
"I wouldn't have it any other way."
Aric emerged from the bathhouse with his head reeling.
This turned everything on its head.
Verrin was not just another noble to kill—he was a key to something greater.
Something that had dominated from the shadows for too long.
A rational man might have hesitated.
Aric did not.
Instead, he whispered to the System.
"Show me the path to power."
And the System reacted.
[New Goal Unlocked: Break the Scarlet Pact.]
Aric smiled.
Let the game begin.