There were more than ten Magisters. How could one person beat ten – most importantly, how could any limited group of people beat – the likes of Bergan and Drace?

'These are no tales', Zargabaath continued. 'Let's say I know what I am talking about. These people are dangerous. They call themselves the Mighties – the Mighty Four. Three of these houses are known to us. Their names are commonly mentioned in the capital, in the same way as any other noble house of the Empire. At worst, they are cited among the very high nobility. No one, including their neighbors or their numerous servants, are aware of their power. To avoid disclosing their schemes, which often involve tax avoidance, they use their own sons as secretaries instead of employing external people. As for their armed training, nobody ever witnessed one. Each generation has a leader and an heir – leader when the parent dies –; both of them can master the ultimate strike I mentioned. All of the Mighty Four worship their own kind and enslave the rest, and strongly dislike House Solidor. That is reason enough for us to keep a close watch on them.'

'Very well, my Lord', I said. 'But how can I recognize the Mighties if no one knows they are Mighties?'

'By their names. And if you meet one by any chance, they will have a specific number of feathers in their hair with a specific color. Each number and color depends on the house they belong to. House Terramolina are the number one peril; they wear four yellow feathers and they are a house of knights, so they should dress as such with tones of yellow or beige. House Feynis are wealthy merchants, knights and green mages; they wear fancy clothes and three green feathers. The second house is unknown to us – I deduced they use an alias with fake identity papers, which I am actively looking for. Two blue feathers. And finally, the first Mighties are House Murena; one red feather. They are no real threat, because they are the ones we know the most…'

'… since Lord Gramis signed a contract with them to marry Lady Ephedrine, his first wife. I assume the leader of the Murenas is her father. He must be feared both because of his power as a Mighty, and because you cannot break contracts easily, especially when you deal with very high nobility and honor vows.'

Judge Zargabaath's eyes blinked at my sentence; he remained speechless for a while. Then he smiled, as if he had accomplished that day's mission:

'I see you know more about our land's customs than one might think. Moreover, you concisely demonstrated that the message was clear.'

He added in a sigh:

'No, Lord Lucius – Ephedrine's father – is no fighter. His attention got drawn to pointless activities and he never awoke his potential as a Mighty. However, despite all the gil offered at the first imperial wedding, he knows no shame in using all sorts of illegal organizations to earn and hide money, more than any of the other houses. Keep an eye on this, Gabranth.'

'Yes, my Lord.'

I immediately inferred that this Lucius, and House Murena in general, were far from being his friends, and that eliminating them would make him utterly rejoiced.

I looked at the table, while Zargabaath was probably looking for some way to end the interview. I gasped, then raised my wary eyes at him:

'Judge Palnissen has told me that you were born to a family of nomad merchants, and the manured-tailed godwit is one of the birds that travel the most. Your Honor has provided me with a green-patterned cheque for the clinic. Feather House does not accept ordinary gentry as its patients; it is a healthcare center especially put in place for the feathered Mighty Four. While waiting for my mother, I saw there an old yelling lady harboring a red feather on her forehead – she must be Lord Lucius's wife, because her traits bore similarities with her daughter Ephedrine's, whose portrait I saw in Nabudis. All the others were hiding their foreheads or wearing a hat. In order to allow my mother to enter this Mighties-only place, my Lord, you gave me that green cheque with the godwit. A cheque under your alias in the army, but a cheque belonging to House Feynis nonetheless.'

There, Zargabaath's attitude changed completely. He clenched his fists, his eyes ran from myself to the walls at dazzling speed, and at some point, I believed he would hit me and I'd leave the room as a corpse. After all, why would someone in debt turn their suspicions against their savior? Civil identities were at the top of the army's taboos. All Judge Magisters, bar Zecht, worked under an alias. It was an untold law to never ask a fellow military member, even new soldiers, about their civil name and identifying information about their life before joining the divisions. Nevertheless, I had that intense need to know.

'This, Gabranth, is why I called you, and no other, for this subject.'

I let out a sigh of relief. He had quickly come back to the paternalistic Judge he always had been.

'That cheque was indeed from House Feynis. But as Judge Magister, I have eyes and hands in various locations of the country. I have access to the same places the Mighties do, and can sometimes borrow some of their tools. No, I actually have access to some of their favorite places, because there are places only Mighties are allowed in – such as Feather House indeed –, and others where only they and their relatives by marriage – such as Lord Gramis – are allowed. I shall send you the complete list of these locations via Vitu.'

'Very well, my Lord.'

He got up and was preparing to follow me to the door; but when he saw me still sitting, he said with a smile:

'There are other things I like to do with my gil. I shall call you again in the next weeks, in order to show you a place you might like.'

I nodded, and stood up.

'By the sound of your voice, Your Honor', I said, 'I could tell that the Mighties that frighten you the most are House Terramolina. Am I right? Are these knights that… mighty?'

His arm, which was about to hold the door handle, stopped mid-air.

'Their bodies are nearly invincible, and one of them – not necessarily the leader – can get in one blow what the entirety of one of our divisions obtains after a full day of battle. Their swords look like black rust but, combined with their innate myst that grants their bodies unimaginable resistance and strength, they are a threat to our whole continent of Valendia. And they like to make it known that the legendary sword of their ancestors, combined with the one of their current leader or heir, makes an even more devastating double weapon. And they are trained since childhood to kill you with any type of blade. Beware of these people. If you hear the name Terramolina – or TM – in any circumstance, immediately warn me or Vitu. With the difference that they aren't after land, being the object of the TM's wrath is the equivalent of a declaration of war from Rozarria. As a Landisite male, you should be even more cautious.'

I didn't know what Landis had to do in this, but I had enough food for thought; so I bowed down, promised to apply his advice, and left the office.

As soon as I got back to the Twenty-Sixth, Lady Drace appeared from her bedroom, this time armor-less. She was probably tired.

'So? What news of Zargabaath?'

I took a step back. My position was difficult… Surely, these Mighty Four sounded dreadful, but wasn't that precisely a reason to inform all Judge Magisters? I was not even one of them. Why did he choose me and not the lady that commands me? Did he not trust her? Did I have less the traitor's appearance? I who was nothing close to an Archadian?

'So?' she repeated. 'I am curious. What is the topic and what should we do about it?'

Following the logic that I had to bear Judge Drace much more often than Judge Zargabaath, I had more interest in disclosing than keeping. However, I knew how the Order worked and took the risk:

'I am sorry, my Lady. That conversation cannot be made known, even to Judge Magisters.'

Drace looked at me with plain anger. Then she closed her eyes. I knew I should add no more words. When she was this way, anything could happen…

'Very well', she eventually sighed. 'You successfully passed the test. I trust you both to make good use of that information, for the well-being of the Empire and Lord Larsa.'

'I shall do all I can to achieve that, Your Honor.'

Her look shifted to something more personal, but that I wasn't able to decipher. She was smiling, but there was something charming with her eyes and cheeks. I enjoyed the sweetness of her face, but my goal was to rest in the antechamber, until office work. She seemed disappointed to see me sit down, and moved back to her bedroom.

As soon as she closed the door, instead of lying on the bed, I got up. Lady Drace often used the room as a library – with or without my presence – and frequently changed the shelves' content according to her mood. I had read the summary of all the books displayed at that moment, except a couple of ones which had already been there a few weeks earlier. I never was intrigued by the title, but I decided to pick one up nonetheless:

With You On The Bridge

The author was a woman by the name of Phronia Cedar, and the publication year was 637. Quite an old book. It was apparently made for a peculiar audience:

"You. Me. Our last day. We tried. We failed. We lived. Now it's time for our next adventure." When love is not enough, when all you attempt faces invisible hurdles and you see only danger, it takes untold courage to take the right decision. With cunning style and vivid descriptions of the Khiav river, Phronia Cedar lets you embark in a rollercoaster of emotions.

'Ah! You finally decided to pick up that masterpiece.'

Drace had slyly come back, with a big sincere smile and her hand on the open door.

'Do you like that author?' I asked.

'Of course! Who doesn't know Phronia? She was the giant historian who wrote the History of Things, winner of her Akademy's year's final contest, and a fashion designer across Ivalice, in addition to being a poet. How I wish to have been born earlier to meet her!'

'Was she an Archadian citizen? The Khiav river is in Bò.'

'She certainly was. All white Hume woman, unlike Bò inhabitants.'

I covered my chin with my free hand:

'That summary makes me feel unrest. This story definitely has eerie vibes. I don't have the feeling Phronia was very happy.'

'Oh, she most likely was. I mean – with all the success she's had in everything she did! But unfortunately, she died way too soon, at age 38. She lived alone, had no friends and left no family, so I doubt we learn the truth about her death anytime soon. She only patronized a former student, who didn't know anything.'

Now the mystery was even more intriguing.

'Is the book about a couple?' I enquired.

'It is. A woman and a man standing atop a river, and looking at the nature around them, seeing only the love story they shared, and which they find no solution to anymore.'

'How does the book end?'

Drace lowered her head.

'They commit suicide together. Both of them jump from the bridge and their corpses are carried along the river.'

That was the hint I was looking for. Lady Drace needed that kind of books to give birth and death to the feelings and attachment she forsook the day she received her plate as Judge Magister. Such a scenario did not say any less about its author:

'Was there any man keeping Phronia company?'

'Oh please, Gabranth', Drace said. 'Phronia Cedar was a respectable woman and a guardian of the ancient imperial customs which she documented so well. She would never go as far as keeping a lover hidden. Her stories were not inspired by her own experience, which makes her imagination even more admirable.'

I blinked, then nodded and put the book back on its shelf.

'I need to rest for an hour', I said.

Drace's body immediately shook, turned left and right, and almost bowed to me:

'Oh! Of course! I… I didn't want to disturb your sleep at all! I'm leaving. But tell me, what did you plan afterwards?'

'Offaly Supreme Court verdict tomorrow morning. But tell me: are you responsible for my appointment as orchestrator Judge there?'

Her face turned much more confident; she crossed her arms and raised her eyebrows:

'If you're looking for something responsible, consider that brain of yours. I have enough to deal with on a daily basis to tell the civil courts who they've got to pick, when they have the best candidates right in front of them.'

She showed her sincere smile again and left for good.

That time, I didn't want her to leave.

But since I did not have anything professional to add, it was probably for the best.