After the second debrief, Eli could feel the tense atmosphere strangling him.
Joanne sat with her arms folded, eyes fixed on the orb. He sat across from her, hands clasped between his knees, waiting for Irene to speak.
The orb pulsed.
"Why should I sit in my own hall and wait for someone to put a blade through my window? Elise, I despise being passive. The Red Moon attacks my fiefdom, and I do absolutely nothing? Impossible."
Eli could feel the visceral anger behind her placid voice, and he sympathized with her completely.
Despite the plan being almost airtight, Irene refused to simply accept it as is. It was just her nature to be relentless.
"This is my mother's legacy we are talking about. I will not let these accursed cultists desecrate what my mother spent her entire life building. The academies, the people of Sienne — they are all under my protection. Mine, Elise. And you ask me to sit back while I let my people fight for me?"
