Cobra heard the soft click of the door behind him and braced himself for whatever was in front of them.
Turns out, there wasn't much to see.
Windows, larger in here than in the previous room, illuminated a nearly empty space, save for three things. A chair, a man, and a single spool of thread with a multitude of colors that glowed so brightly Cobra found himself squinting. Then gritting his teeth as the sounds of the man's soul came upon him in full force. There was no mistaking it.
Percy's eyes were open, yet a milky film over them made it look like he was looking into the unknown. He gazed vaguely in their direction and suddenly, the film vanished, and he stood up, clutching the spool in one hand. "Welcome, welcome you two! It's such an unexpected pleasure to be able to see you again." He wore a smile, a nauseating grin, as he spoke. "I was just telling Cobra the other day, but I'll repeat it for you, Lucy. Thank you so much for helping me achieve my dream." Despite thanking Lucy, he continued looking only at Cobra. Strangely, he seemed to be avoiding looking directly at her.
"If I'd known what you were up to, I never would have contributed to it!" Lucy said. Percy's expression didn't change, but his eyes appeared to darken for a moment. "You knew we were coming, did you not?"
"…I had a feeling. Quite literally. One particular person announced themselves to me, and I took a stab and guessed that one or both of you would be involved."
Cobra almost swore. So his suspicions surrounding Macbeth interacting with the string were correct. Even wearing gloves must not have prevented Percy from ascertaining their potential arrival.
"Did you also guess the reason in which we came here?"
Percy shrugged. "Based on your reaction to things in the past, I could be wrong. But go ahead and explain. Maybe I'll be happily surprised."
The way he spoke of them, like he knew them already, still unnerved Cobra. Memories of events involving both Cobra and Lucy cycled through his mind as he spoke to them. They were from limited points of view, but they contained just enough information to make it feel like he really did know them. He tried his best to close his ears to them, lest he become completely incapacitated by the swirling thoughts and memories.
"Alright, I'll keep it brief," Lucy said. "What you're doing is cruel, and needs to stop. Return anything you've stolen from the people who visited the Love Doctor booth. That's all we're asking."
Percy closed his eyes as if thinking. Despite not being able to clearly read him, Cobra could already anticipate what he'd say.
"That's about what I thought…and I do hate to disappoint, but I'll have to respectfully decline. However…I do have my own proposition if you'd like to consider it instead."