The guard who had allowed Aizen to enter the room, leading to him taking Juno, found himself on his knees in that very room. His face showed the signs of having taken a few blows, with part of it swollen and somewhat bloody. Standing behind him, arms crossed while waiting for further instructions was Kevel. Leaning against a wall close to the door was Razor, whilst Logan stood to Kevel's side. Kalvyn was looking down on the kneeling guard, doing his very best to keep his frail composure.

"So then... you heard nothing?" Kalvyn asked.

"N-No, sir. I-I mean nothing that I saw as being suspicious. After all you hear all kinds of things around here." The guard nervously replied.

"Logan... again." Kalvyn said as he sighed.

As instructed, Logan struck the guard once again, before the noble spoke again in a dangerously low tone.

"Do you not understand what happened here?"

"Sir, I…" The man tried to reply, but his superior silenced him himself with a lifted hand.

"Yes, or no."

"Y-Yes."

"Good. Then you understand that some pretty-boy looking bastard, took what is rightfully mine!? You understand that because of that, we had to pay for and offer free services, to those that wanted to spend their money on her!? What kind of business do you think I am running here?" Kalvyn said as he growled into the poor guard's face.

"Sir, please calm down." Logan suggested in a low tone.

"Be silent." His superior hissed.

Massaging his temple he looked back at Logan as he tried to calmly speak.

"Magic?"

"Most likely. It would have to be something beyond what our security system was prepared to handle." Logan replied.

"U-Useless! All of them! I knew I shouldn't have let her out of my sight." Kalvyn growled.

"Sir, if you wish, me and my men can go and look for them."

"Very well. Find them. I want her alive, and unharmed. I also would like to have him brought in alive. I want to personally oversee his punishment, but if you end up killing him, then no harm will come of it."

"It shall be done." Logan assured, with a small bow.

"Sir, what shall we do with him?" Kevel asked, referring to the guard.

"Get whatever information you can out of him, then teach him what happens to those who fail at their jobs. But keep him alive. He has work to do after all."

Kalvyn let out a low grunt as he began to walk out. He was tired of this subject and the incompetence of the people that surrounded him. His body called for the necessary relief of alcohol and women. These being the things that at the moment were capable of calming him, after some scoundrel had robbed him of what was rightfully his.

"I'm going back to my office. Tell Castro to have two of the girls delivered to me, and make sure they are appropriate for the situation."

Having made his wishes known, Kalvyn fully exited the room, leaving Logan and his men to make sure such wishes were brought into reality.

The morning had gone by smoothly, and now Aizen, Amelia, Igeor, and Juno were making their way back to the capital. Their carriage also pulled a trailer where the fake statue was being held during the duration of the trip.

Unlike the trip to E-Rantel however, Aizen did not sit next to Amelia. He had to sit next to Juno as she had seemed somewhat unreceptive to the idea of sitting next to Igeor. However, she did not have the same reaction to having the man who freed her from Kalvyn take a seat next to her. Even if at times she seemed to press her body against the carriage, trying to put some distance between them.

Upon seeing Juno, Igeor had naturally wanted to speak up about her. After all he had no idea who she was and why she was now with them. These questions came to a quick end, when upon partially parting his lips, Amelia silenced him with a simple look.

Igeor had lived a relatively long life and he had learned much. Enough to know when not to ask questions, and feign complete ignorance. This was one of those situations. Even if he knew what to do, knowing that he would have to go through the journey back with her, made him nervous, and even afraid of what could happen.

Luckily for him, everything went smoothly during their return trip, and upon arriving at the capital, outside of receiving his payment, Igeor's part in all of this was over.

Arriving at the manor, Aizen, Amelia and Juno were naturally welcomed in by several of the servants who came to take their things and help them with whatever they needed. Also among those waiting was Gaius. The elder's stern gaze stared down at them, and it went through every member of the trio one by one, before finally stopping on Juno.

"Who is she?" He asked in a monotone.

"This is Juno Ulmeyda…" Amelia began to reply, but her father spoke over her.

"It seems you are making a habit of bringing in whatever strays you find out in the street. Do tell me why you brought this one here."

"I was the one that convinced Amelia to bring her with us." Aizen informed, gaining him the man's attention.

"And you made that decision based on what? I see nothing special in her." The old man coldly pointed out.

"Perhaps not at first glance, but she is related to the people who sent those men after Amelia." The Shinigami remarked with a light smirk.

"Go on."

"The man who ordered the attack is named Kalvyn Portio Ranoc..." Aizen began to say, stopping when he saw Gaius' expression.

His face subtly, but noticeably changed at the mention of that name. Obviously he had heard of the noble in question. His expression showed that much. It didn't show any signs of surprise, however there was barely held back rage on the face of someone who felt personally insulted by the situation.

"W-Where do you plan to keep her?" Gaius growled, doing his best to keep his composure.

"In my room for now." The Shinigami replied, to which the elder raised an eyebrow.

"And you will stay where?"

"I will make do. After all, there will be much work for me to complete."

"I see. Very well. Go and get her settled. Amelia, come with me to my office. It seems we have much to discuss. You will join us when you're done, Aizen."

Gaius didn't even wait for a reply, beginning to make his way towards his office, with Amelia going after him shortly thereafter. Aizen made his way back to his room, and to his right was Juno, and in front of them leading the way was Adelin.

As they were making their way to the room, someone came to eagerly greet them. To be more specific, to eagerly greet Aizen. It was the maid Eva, whom took a small bow before speaking.

"Welcome back."

"Eva, don't you have work left to do?" Adelin pointed out in slight annoyance.

"My apologies. I simply wanted to welcome our guest back home."

"Make it quick then." Adelin remarked, to which Eva rolled her eyes at.

"Greetings, Eva." Aizen said, giving her a quick nod and smile.

"G-Greetings." The maid greeted back, before her eyes fell on Juno.

"This is Juno Ulmeyda. She will be staying in my room for the time being." The Shinigami informed.

Eva blushed slightly, before then looking up at Aizen with a perplexed expression. This woman was going to be staying in his room? Who was she to be granted such a thing?

"B-But if she is to stay in your room… where will you be staying?" She managed to say in a stutter.

"There is no need for concern. I will find somewhere else to spend my nights."

"A-As you w-wish. B-But if you need, I-I could try and find you s-somewhere else to s-sleep." Eva suggested, holding back her flustered state.

"Please concern yourself with your own work." Adelin remarked with a stern tone.

"Exactly. I appreciate the concern, but for the time being do not concern yourself with me." Aizen added.

"Very well."

Eva took another small bow before the trio walked away, leaving her to wonder over just who this woman was. A woman that from what she could see was of an even lower level than herself. Yet was being led directly to his room. She let out an exasperated sigh once she was far enough away, and decided to take their advice and focus on her more immediate duties.

Arriving at Aizen's room, Adelin opened the door and naturally went to go in. After all, she was to help the new guest get accommodated to the room. As she was to enter it, Aizen spoke, politely asking her not to do so as he then turned to address the other woman.

"Juno, go on ahead."

At the sound of his calm command, the former warrior gave a small nod, before walking past Adelin and into the room, leaving the maid and Shinigami alone.

"I suspect she will spend much time in this room, so I ask that measures are taken so that if that is the case, she can do so freely." Aizen informed.

"Like bringing her meals here?" Adelin asked, to which Aizen nodded.

"I see. Anything else?"

"She will need some clothing, and she may have some issues with interacting directly with men. If possible I would like for the people to interact with her to be only women."

"I understand. Then, should I go in alone and leave you here?" The maid suggested.

"It is quite the opposite actually. I seem to be an exception to this, so she should be fine around me. I will go in alone, and I would like for you to go and see if my conditions can be met."

Adelin took a moment to eye down Aizen. Whatever his relationship with Lady Amelia, she did not like the idea of some stranger coming into her superior's home, and begin to make his will known. Still, it wasn't like she could deny him what he asked for. She saw the reaction in Gaius' face when Aizen spoke that name and how he acted afterwards. She could also see the shape this woman was in, and then relented her misgivings.

"Very well. I will be back shortly." Taking a small bow, the maid left.

As Adelin walked away, Aizen entered his chamber closing the door behind him. Juno was motionless while looking at his bed. Aizen said nothing, taking the time to first put his things near his closet, so he could unpack later.

"Is this your bed?" Juno asked in an empty tone.

"It was. Now, it is yours." The Shinigami warmly replied.

Juno's hand grabbed onto her stump, holding back a sob. Not one of sadness, or one happiness for Aizen's selflessness. It was one of disgust for what her mind had first imagined when she had laid eyes on it. It wasn't rare for her to share a bed with her former owner. No, it was something that happened rather often as the man enjoyed the superiority he held over her. It disgusted her, that after spending so much time suffering at Kalvyn's hands, part of his depravity had seemingly affected her.

"There are no second intentions here, Juno. I have no wish to use or abuse you. After all, I am not your owner, or absolute master. At best I may be your superior, but that does not mean that I will force you into doing anything you do not want to do." Aizen softly spoke, bringing her back from her thoughts.

"I-I didn't mean…" Juno mumbled, looking down.

"I know. I simply wish to make things as clear as possible. You are free now, so do as you wish. For the time being, I will make sure no one stops you from doing so."

"W-Where is the bathroom?" Juno asked as she looked back to Aizen.

Aizen simply motioned to the door in reply. Juno didn't say a word, walking past him whilst barely avoiding walking into the Shinigami. She almost ran into the bathroom, most likely wanting to go and clean 2 years worth of filth from her mind and soul.

Aizen's attention then went to his bags. There should be no need to take care of those now, even his notes shouldn't be that much of a worry, since he had written the most significant of them in Japanese. Now, he had other things to do. Of course, he still wanted to say more things to Juno just to make sure she would settle in perfectly into the situation, but it seems she had other plans. He couldn't really blame her for what she wanted to do at a moment like this.

That aside, he had to go deal with Gaius and Amelia. To be honest he wasn't that worried about what the elder would say. His reaction to Kalvyn's name was enough to tell Aizen that he knew something about the noble. Enough to have been genuinely flustered by the situation.

Arriving at the office, Aizen had apparently stopped Amelia mid-sentence with his presence. Stopping whatever she was about to say, she looked upon him with no visible sign of being annoyed by the interruption. Instead she leaned back onto her seat, motioning for him to do the same. He noted this did not please Gaius, to see her giving directions to people who were entering his office.

"Just in time, Aizen. I was about to ask my father why he reacted like he did when you mentioned the name of the man who sent people after me." Amelia informed with an amused tone.

"I see. Then I did not miss much." The Shinigami remarked, taking a seat next to Amelia.

"Who said you were allowed to sit?! If I remember correctly this is my office." The elder growled, but his daughter was more than eager to ignore his complaint.

"Let's talk about serious things now, shall we?" Amelia hissed.

"You dare speak to me like that!?"

"I simply want to know what you know of the man known as Kalvyn Portio Ranoc." She insisted without concern.

Gaius' face reluctantly softened, yet he failed to hide the rage boiling within. He leaned back on his chair and began to ponder on something. The old man seemed to remain like this for a good amount of time, his eyes going to Aizen and Amelia from time to time, before falling back into meditation.

"Where did that woman come from?" He finally asked, looking at Aizen.

"She came from an isolated manor not too distant from E-Rantel."

The elder's face stiffened, as what seemed to be something he had feared became a reality. He leaned forwards, his hands falling on his desk, as he carefully chose his words.

"You will do nothing about this." Gaius growled.

"Why am I not surprised?" Amelia mumbled with a sigh.

"Be silent, child! You must understand that some things go beyond what even I can do." Her father tersely argued back.

"I take it that you know what that girl was doing there?" Aizen asked.

"Yes, I know. And the fact he sent men after Amelia, i-is…"

Gaius fell into silence, gritting his teeth in anger. It was an act that placed into jeopardy everything he had ever worked for. It wasn't something that under normal circumstances he would tolerate. However, he lacked the necessary power to make any kind of affront towards a noble like Kalvyn.

"I see that you find the subject very... upsetting." Aizen remarked.

"Do not mock me, Aizen. That aside, my word is final, you aren't to get involved with him. It is too much of a risk. Especially now that you stole from him."

"He has no idea who took her from him, so that won't be an issue. And when it comes to not taking any action, I'm afraid that will not be possible." The Shinigami informed.

"We have already decided it. This conversation is not for us to get your permission." Amelia added.

The elder let out a frustrated grunt. Looking upon Amelia and Aizen like one would mad men. Did they not understand what such a thing could do to all the work he spent his whole life on?

"You will risk throwing all my work away, for this!? Do you know what he will do to us if he finds out!? Those men that walk around with him aren't just for show. They will cut down anyone that get in his way." Gaius growled.

Aizen saw as Amelia shifted in her seat, seemingly affected by the fact her father was more concerned with how going after Kalvyn would affect his business, and not what it could mean for her.

"I see you've got your priorities sorted out, father. However, as much as it pains you, I plan to go ahead with this. That pig thinks that he can even consider using me like he did Juno?! He's sadly mistaken. We will not only take him out, but also…" Amelia began to roar back, when her father spoke over her.

"Silence! You want to throw your life away, fine! But I want to have nothing to do with it. The less I know about whatever you two are planning the better."

"Whatever makes things easier for you, father." Amelia remarked in a disappointed tone.

"You will show respect when addressing me. Remember that you are my daughter and this is my home."

"What about the girl?" Aizen asked, before Amelia could speak.

"As long as you keep her, and your plans, a secret I will allow it." Gaius replied.

"That will be all then. Thank you for your time." Aizen coolly stated.

Getting back up from his seat, Aizen took a small bow, before motioning Amelia to leave with him, which she reluctantly did. Closing the door behind her, Amelia let out an annoyed sigh, before walking past Aizen taking the lead.

"I did not expect him to affect you that much." The Shinigami pointed out.

"He didn't. It was his attitude that annoyed me. That he is far too obsessed with his 'work' to look around him."

"Perhaps you give him too little credit. Couldn't this be his way to try and protect his possible successor?" Aizen argued back.

"Ugh. Moving on. What now?"

Aizen gave her a slight smile, which only served to further infuriate her. The whole conversation with her father had already gotten her into a less than pleased mood, meaning she really didn't want to deal with his little games.

"We have a month to prepare. I will do my part, and you do yours." Aizen calmly replied.

"Oh? That simple?"

"Yes."

Indeed it was that simple as said month passed by rather quickly. Those who had been informed of Aizen giving his room to Juno had questioned where he would be staying. Some assumed they would be sharing the bed, while others joked he would be sleeping on the sofa. However, none of them got it right, as many noted that Aizen spent many of those nights out of the house. Leaving either by the front door, or even through the window of his room.

This latter means of exit was noted by Eva, who in her ever-growing fascination with the Shinigami had taken to keeping an eye on him from time to time, even if she was unable to do so when he left at night, since he would just vanish.

It also didn't take long for Eva's interest in Aizen to be noted. First by Adelin and then by Amelia, whose also growing in interest for whatever Aizen was doing at night, decided to confront the maid with it.

"You wished to speak with me, Lady Amelia?" Eva asked, having been summoned to her superior's room early in the night.

"Yes. I wanted to talk about something with you." Amelia replied, focused on putting on her nightgown.

"It has come to my attention that you like to stalk Aizen around." She added, finally looking at the maid when she was through.

"I-I do not mean to be rude, but I do no such thing. I-I simply do my work." Eva informed, shifting slightly.

Amelia let out a laugh, visibly mocking Eva's words, and amused by the maid's weak lies. As if she would be either convinced, or was completely ignorant of the maid's interest in him.

"Work that involves stalking him, going above and beyond in order to earn his favor. And there was also that time, you 'accidentally' dropped tea on his lap, which you followed by 'carefully' trying to clean the mess you made."

Seeing that her intentions had become fully clear to her competition, Eva gave an almost released expression, followed by one that almost gave her a superior look. If Amelia knew what she was trying to do, there was no more reason to try and keep it hidden from her.

"Is there an issue with that, Lady Amelia? I am free to pursue whatever man I choose."

"Not at all. As long as it doesn't affect your body. We don't want you to tire yourself out with a lost cause, now can we?" Amelia remarked, taking a seat on her bed.

The maid's expression shifted to a visibly annoyed one, not seeming to bother with putting up an appeasing façade to her superior so as to keep her pleased.

"Are you scared of some healthy competition, Amelia?" Eva asked.

"An amusing thought, if you could actually compete."

"E-Excuse me? I am sure that if a man like Aizen can waste his time on a woman with a reputation such as yourself, then my chances should be pretty acceptable." Eva quickly retorted.

"Such tone and rudeness. Is that any way to speak to your superior? To insult her to her face?" Amelia questioned, in a calm manner.

Immediately the maid understood what she had said, and that it meant almost certain firing and possible ruining of what little reputation she has.

"M-My apologies, I…" She began to say, when Amelia interrupted her.

"Too late. But don't worry. I won't do anything about this. I'll just satisfy myself with watching you crash and burn on your pursuit for Aizen."

"A-Am, I dismissed?" Eva nervously asked, to which Amelia simply nodded.

As the month went on, after her conversation with Amelia, Eva kept on trying to get Aizen's attention, failing every time. That was until one night, where she was lucky when Aizen decided to stay in the library, which was always empty at night.

Her strategy was simple and bold, presenting herself to the Shinigami completely naked, hiding in no way her intentions or how far she would go to get what she wanted. Only after she vocalized this, did Aizen look up from his books to examine her, as their eyes meet he gave her a calm and charming smile.

It was as if time had stopped. Eva's attention went all to the Shinigami, ignoring everything around him. His gaze held her in place, commanding her attention. This trance was broken when Aizen pushed himself back on his chair, looking at her as if he was waiting for something.

"Well?" He asked.

"I-I…" Eva mumbled, having lost her ability to form any coherent words.

"You are a maid, are you not? Do you plan on having me do all the work for myself?"

"N-No."

Needless to say, cries of passion echoed through the building during most of the night, sounds that soon were recognized as coming from Eva.

In the morning, Amelia got up earlier than usual, not being at all pleased with the idea of another woman having been with Aizen. It wasn't like it bothered her, what bothered her was the fact that she did not like to share.

Much to her surprise, and Eva's, the man who had the luck of spending the night with her had been in fact Swim. The poor guard, who had to now deal with Eva's various accusations at having tricked her, could only say that she had been the one to drag him to the library asking him to spend some time with her.

In the end, nothing came from this. That was outside of Amelia questioning Aizen about the situation, not believing that as obsessed as Eva seemed to be she would go and sleep with Swim.

"You don't know anything about this?" She asked, looking at Aizen who was taking some notes in his books.

"I gave her what she wanted. Perhaps not how she wanted it, but it was what she wanted." The Shinigami replied, still focused on his notes.

"What did you do?" Amelia asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"I made her see what she wanted to see."

"Explain." She demanded, forcefully closing his notebook

"If you insist. I have the ability to summon a weapon called Kyōka Suigetsu, which has an ability I call 'Perfect Hypnosis'. It allows me to control one's five senses."

The moment Aizen had completed his explanation, Amelia seemed visibly bothered by it. She took a few steps away from the Shinigami, before then turning back to face him and spoke.

"That's... a rather useful ability. Can you do that with anyone?"

"There is no need to be concerned. I haven't used it on you."

"Is that supposed to reassure me? Eva was fully convinced that it was you. How can I be so certain?"

"I suppose you can't. You will just have to believe my word."

Amelia did not look convinced. She eyed the Shinigami down trying to find the small dents in the armor that was his expression. It wasn't like it didn't seem he was speaking the truth, however she couldn't be 100% certain. After all she was becoming more and more familiar with him. Such familiarity made her consider even more of what he was saying, and how truthful it was.

"You better hope you are saying the truth, Aizen. Just remember who needs who in our situation." Amelia said with a subtle twinge of annoyance.

It was towards the end of the month, that Amelia managed to get her hands on one of Aizen's notebooks, her curiosity finally having got the better of her. Unfortunately, she couldn't read a thing of what was written on the book's pages, being unfamiliar with the strange symbols depicted on it.

The best she could do was admire the strangely masterful drawings made on some of the pages. Some were the anatomy of certain beings. Others were landscapes, which she was unfamiliar with. One was a desert with the moon shining down on it, while another was a depiction of a land similar to what she had heard about in the south.

This prying didn't last long, as after putting the book away where she thought it would not be found, Amelia woke up with Aizen sitting on a chair next to her, notebook in his right hand. Her eyes lazily fluttered as she spoke.

"Don't worry. I couldn't read a thing of it." Amelia informed with a muffled yawn.

"I don't mind. This one didn't have much critical information, outside of my failures to duplicate the results I had in my previous experiments."

"Oh? Is that an issue?" Amelia asked, wondering what this meant for his plans.

"Not at all. It just meant I had to find another solution..." Aizen replied with a confident smile as his left hand went to the jewel under his shirt, the Hōgyoku, which seemed to hum at his touch.