With the Prefect's direct intervention, both crises tilted in Emery's favor.
The explosion in the lower slums was swiftly declared a criminal incident. Emery's role was reframed as the victim who had acted in desperate self-defense. The charred remains of the thin magus were gathered from the debris, while the wounded grand magus was shackled and taken into custody by the station guard.
Unfortunately, the Sealbond did not remain in his possession—it was seized by the Alfa Station authorities and logged away as evidence. Still, he had not come away empty-handed. With the recipe crystals destroyed in the explosion, the spoils became his: three hundred million spirit stones and the very pill he had auctioned earlier.
The outcome was more than satisfactory. After all, Emery never expected to cash it in on the sealbond. From the beginning, the Sealbond has been the means to uncover the identity of the corporation that dared to mess with him.
The Zypher Corps.
