Vale watched as Rose entered the office.
Her usual carefree demeanor was gone, replaced by a grave seriousness that immediately set her apart from how he had known her. Her posture was straighter, her expression focused, unmistakably professional. Vale raised an eyebrow slightly, curiosity stirring as he shifted his attention toward Rikin, who was already moving to greet her.
"Ah, Rose," Rikin said warmly, offering a polite smile. "I'm glad you could make it."
Rose nodded once, curt and restrained.
"Is it true?" she asked.
Rikin's smile faded just enough to signal the weight of her question. He nodded.
Rose's eyes widened for a brief moment before she composed herself, inhaling deeply. When she spoke again, her voice was steady.
"Then shall we get down to business?"
Rikin's grin returned, sharp and confident.
"Of course."
Vale's gaze drifted away from them, settling instead on Eskar.
The red-haired boy leaned against the far wall, arms crossed and eyes closed, as though removed entirely from the room. He had remained in that exact position for hours, only shifting when the monk Vale believed to be Samuel approached him earlier. Eskar seemed calmer now, more stable, but Vale still found him difficult to read. There was something distant about him, something unresolved.
Tharion, meanwhile, had been half-asleep on the leather couch. He yawned loudly, stretched, then stood up.
"Let's go," he said casually, glancing back at Vale.
Vale nodded and followed him without hesitation.
The shift in movement drew everyone's attention. Conversations quieted. The air changed. It was clear to all present that the meeting was about to begin.
As they gathered, Rikin snapped his fingers.
The floor beneath them responded instantly.
With a low, mechanical hum, the surface fractured and reassembled itself, panels sliding apart with precise, deliberate motion. From the center rose a massive triangular table, its dark, polished surface reflecting the light above. It was large enough to comfortably seat all of them.
There were twelve in total.
Vale felt a flicker of surprise as he realized that most of those present belonged to the Rosemary family rather than the G.V.O., which he had expected to dominate the meeting. Nonetheless, everyone took their seats as if guided by instinct, each position clearly carrying its own meaning.
Vale found himself seated beside Callum, roughly midway along one side of the table. On his side also sat Caesar, Levianthé, and Evelyn, a familiar grouping that immediately put him at ease.
He exhaled in quiet relief.
Across from him sat Yuki, Samuel, Cleo, Fe, and Rose, their expressions composed and attentive. To Vale's right sat Rikin, Barbatos, and Wolfgang, their placement unmistakably denoting authority and influence.
Eskar did not take a seat.
Vale noticed his absence and reasoned it out quickly.
'He's not part of this,' Vale thought. 'At least, not officially.'
Carefully, Vale placed the small ravens and Ember upon the table before him. They settled quietly, their presence oddly grounding. Vale smiled faintly at them just as Rikin cleared his throat and rose from his seat.
"All right, everyone," Rikin began. "I assume you have all been briefed on the purpose of this meeting?"
One by one, heads around the table nodded in agreement.
Wolfgang stroked his beard thoughtfully before looking up at Rikin. When he spoke, his voice carried a thick accent, deliberate and measured.
"I apologize, sir," Wolfgang said, "but I must clarify something. We have attempted every known method. Chimera's condition had shown no signs of improvement, and then, without warning, she began to heal. No indicators, no precursors, nothing."
Rikin's expression hardened. His usual levity vanished, replaced by cold professionalism.
Vale's heart began to race.
He could feel it, he knew he was about to be mentioned.
"Well," Rikin said, gesturing toward Vale, "this child, Vale, possesses an energy signature that proved perfectly compatible with Chimera's own. Upon contact, he transferred that energy to her. The result was immediate stabilization of her abilities, allowing her to begin regenerating naturally."
Rikin paused briefly before continuing.
"More importantly, this stabilization appears to have restored a significant degree of her mental control and sanity."
The room shifted.
Multiple gazes snapped toward Vale, sharp, curious, probing. Cleo, Fe, and Wolfgang studied him openly, while others, including Rose, regarded him with narrowed eyes, as though attempting to peel him apart layer by layer.
Vale kept his posture steady, forcing his breathing to remain even.
"Of course," Rikin continued, "we are still unaware of the precise mechanism behind this phenomenon. Our scientific division was not present to conduct live analysis during Vale's interaction with Chimera. That oversight is currently being addressed."
Samuel tilted his head, having caught onto something in Rikin's explanation. He raised his hand.
"Yes, Samuel?" Rikin acknowledged.
Samuel's voice was gentle, respectful.
"May I ask why there were no scientists present during such a critical test?"
A flicker of regret crossed Rikin's face. He sighed softly.
"It pains me to admit this," he said, "but we simply could not intervene in time. Vale entered the restricted area without being detected. When Barbatos became aware, he moved to intercept, but by then Vale had already entered Chimera's lair, accompanied by her servant, Mirage."
Rikin folded his hands behind his back.
"Given the circumstances, Barbatos elected to observe the interaction before taking action."
Murmurs rippled around the table.
Several members exchanged uneasy glances.
Cleo raised her hand.
"Objection," she said coolly, resting her head against one palm.
Rikin turned to her and nodded.
Vale felt his tension spike.
Cleo's gaze locked onto him briefly before returning to Rikin.
"Vale is the newest member of our family," she said. "The Rose of Skill, if I recall correctly."
"Correct," Rikin confirmed.
Cleo's eyes hardened.
"Then am I to understand that you deliberately placed one of our own in mortal danger based solely on an assumption that he would survive?"
The air grew heavy.
Before Rikin could respond, Barbatos raised his hand.
"If I may," Barbatos said.
Cleo glanced toward him, unimpressed but allowing him to speak.
"Respectfully, Miss Cleo," Barbatos said evenly, "had the situation deteriorated, I would have intervened immediately. However, engaging Chimera without her provocations already active carries a risk I refuse to take lightly, particularly when the lives of everyone in this facility are at stake."
Cleo scoffed, leaning back in her chair.
"I suppose your answer will suffice," she said dismissively.
Rikin surveyed the room in silence, then sighed once more. He pinched the bridge of his nose, the weariness finally breaking through his composed exterior. When he spoke again, his voice carried no theatrics, only blunt authority.
"Listen," he began, "I know our circumstances are far from ideal. That much is obvious. But we don't have the luxury of waiting for perfection."
He lowered his hand and looked directly at everyone seated at the table.
"So I'm going to be very clear," Rikin continued. "You can support this meeting and remain here to help devise a viable solution, or you can leave. I am giving you that choice now. If you do not wish to be part of this discussion, then stand up and walk out."
The room stirred.
Several people looked up at him in surprise. Vale felt it as well, he had not expected Rikin to be so direct, especially in a room filled with some of the most powerful individuals in the world. Still, Vale found himself respecting the approach. At a time like this, blunt honesty felt necessary.
Silence followed.
Seconds stretched on. However no one moved.
Rikin exhaled slowly.
"Good," he said. "Then shall we try again?"
No one interrupted him as he continued.
"As you are all aware, we have attempted to heal Chimera for a long time," Rikin said. "Every method available to us was deployed. None succeeded, her powers destabilized her physical and mental state at an accelerating rate. Any attempt to supply her with external energy resulted in catastrophic failure."
His gaze darkened.
"We lost many good men and women in the process."
He paused, then turned his eyes briefly toward Vale.
"However," Rikin said, "those days are behind us. Chimera is healing, and rapidly. At this pace, her sanity will be fully restored sooner rather than later."
The weight of that statement settled heavily over the table.
"When that time comes," Rikin continued, "she will awaken into a world she does not recognize. And that is why we need your help. Not to contain her, but to guide her, to help her adapt."
The room remained silent.
Then Rose spoke.
Her voice was cool, controlled, and sharp enough to cut through the stillness.
"What exactly are you suggesting, General?" she asked. "Are you proposing we turn Chimera into a weapon? Because if that is your intention, I will oppose it."
Rikin stared at her for a moment, genuinely taken aback. Then he pointed across the table at Barbatos.
"If I wanted to create weapons," Rikin said flatly, "I would have started with Barbatos, not her."
It was a blunt statement, but an effective one.
Barbatos was human, controlled, predictable. Chimera, until recently, had been none of those things. Weaponizing Barbatos would have been infinitely easier.
Rose studied Rikin for several seconds, her eyes narrowing. Finally, she leaned back in her chair.
"Then we won't have a problem," she said.
Evelyn spoke next, her tone careful but firm.
"Sir, I understand your intentions," she said. "But how exactly do we plan to treat someone as powerful as Chimera once she recovers?"
She hesitated, biting her lip.
"I mean no disrespect," Evelyn continued, "but it's entirely possible she may be stronger than Barbatos."
The room tensed.
"And if that's the case," Evelyn said quietly, "what if this becomes another Dagon?"
The name fell like a stone into still water.
Silence swallowed the room.
Every person present understood the implication.