Scene: The Monkey Bars – Central Park Playground Thursday, 10:45 AM. Phoebe W. was at the top of the tallest monkey bars, not climbing, but sitting—a power position that allowed her to look down on others. She was dictating a very complex dramatic scenario involving a lost tiara to a smaller child below.
Caelum, accompanied by his newly appointed Herald, Miles D. (who was polishing the chrome dump truck with unnecessary diligence), approached. Miles stayed back slightly, guarding the perimeter.
Caelum spoke without looking up, kicking a stray pebble.
"Phoebe. Your older sister, Blair, is wearing the wrong jeans."
Phoebe almost fell. This was an atomic bomb of a statement. Middle school status was paramount to her. She scrambled down, landing perfectly.
"You don't know my sister! She got those from Paris!" Phoebe hissed, trying to mask the tremor of fear.
Caelum sighed, pulling up a small, sleek tablet (the System UI disguised as a child's toy). He quickly flashed a detailed, time-stamped photo of Blair standing near a dumpster behind a SoHo boutique, then a cross-referenced tag showing the jeans were a mass-market version.
System Path Upgrade: The Mercenary Pact (Activation) • Target: Phoebe W. • Status Barter: Verified, Insider Middle School Intel offered for Inquisitor Service.
"I know her schedule, her current crush, and that the only thing holding her social life together is a rumor about her family having a villa in St. Barts—which is leased, by the way," Caelum stated mildly. "I can give you a direct feed of verified intelligence about the middle school scene that will make your sisters listen to you."
Phoebe's eyes widened. Being the source of truth, the one with undeniable leverage over her sisters, was a prize worth any alliance.
"What do I have to do?" she asked, her voice tight.
Caelum smiled, a genuine, tiny smile that was more unnerving than his usual composed expression.
"You gather information. Specifically, I need details on why the parents are actually panicking about the EAAR. The surface reason is the contract. The real reason is fear of the unknown. Also, I need to know which freelance nannies are the best, and which ones have a secret weakness."
"And Miles?" Phoebe looked at the Herald, who immediately stood a little straighter.
"Miles is the Herald. He broadcasts the truth I give him. You are the Inquisitor. You find the truth they hide." Caelum gave her a second, deeper instruction. "Find out who is closest to Elara Vale now. I want her circle to be empty before she can execute her Plotting (Dormant) trait."
Phoebe nodded, a mercenary glint in her eye.
System Notification🜂 Royal Court Role Confirmed 🜂 • Ally: Phoebe W. • Role: Inquisitor (Contract Bound) • Network Integrity: Information Flow now operating at Tier 2 (Internal Nanny-Net Access).
Caelum took a deep breath, surveying the park. The sandbox was just the staging area. The real playground was the city's hierarchy itself.
Thought Log – Caelum Virelion "The foundation is laid: the Herald controls the narrative broadcast; the Inquisitor controls the data intake. The Nanny Economy is now compromised. Soon, the chaos will stop being external to me and become a service I provide."
He looked toward the far side of the park, where a flash of blue fabric, too sharp and expensive for casual play, disappeared behind a tree line.
Elara was moving. The social counter-attack was imminent.
New System Objective: Counter-Intelligence Preparation • Target: Elara Vale (Plotting, Rising Threat) • Goal: Identify her current resource advantage. • Recommended Skill Deployment: Royal Court: Inquisitor (Phoebe W.) tasked with locating Elara's new, secret source of status/support.
Caelum turned to his new Inquisitor and gave a silent command that only she understood: Scout.