Divine Beast Ascension

Chapter 171: Pondering Mertin’s Intent

Knock, knock, knock...

Hearing the ringing of the knocker outside his courtyard, Oli stretch as he got out of bed. He quickly made his way outside, admiring the first sunrise of the day.

“Sorry to wake you so early, but we need to talk.”

“What’s... What happened to your shoulder?”

Rubbing one hand over the bandages around his bare chest, Jonon tried his best to smile. “It’s just a scratch. We can talk more about it inside if you’ll let me in.”

“Sure. Come on in.” Jonon let himself in and followed Oli to the lounging area. Quickly noticing the strange look in Jonon’s eyes, Oli asked, “What’s got you so troubled? It’s only a scratch, right?”

“I got this from Mertin.”

.....

“What?”

Jonon nodded with a faint smile. “I got him too, but he won the fight... He really has become an elder, leaving me behind before I even knew it...”

“But why were you fighting? Did he come back last night?” Oli questioned.

“I’d also like to know more,” Vloz entered the room, laying down beside them. “Mertin came last night and you two shared a private conversation before leaving. I missed the conversation but you seemed to leave the place on friendly terms for the most part.”

“As expected of a perennial with dark affinity. There’s no hiding from you,” chuckled Jonon, trying to quell his own nerves and worries about the situation.

“Explain that too since I didn’t know about any of this,” added Oli.

“Then I’ll start at the beginning...” Mentally revisiting the happenings of last night, Jonon readied himself to experience it again from a new perspective. “After talking with my father, I hurried to inspect Mertin’s and Melida’s offices. Nothing was too suspicious about Mertin’s office until I found a key hidden in a compartment of Melida’s desk drawer. I’m not sure if she knew it was there, but it made me more cautious. Upon a more thorough inspection, I found a small safe hidden into the back of Mertin’s bookshelf. That’s where I found it. Mertin’s secret account book...”

“Then you know what’s been taking place without your father’s permission?” asked Vloz.

But Jonon shook his head. “No... It had a protective formation written in blood, likely to destroy its contents upon opening from anyone besides the person linked to the book.”

Nodding slowly, Vloz questioned, “then how do you know it was the account book?”

“Because, for as long as I can remember, Mertin always put little notes in his books or his scrolls,” Jonon answered with a tiny, somewhat-satisfied grin. “I didn’t see much, but I know that’s an account book linked to the Libarn Guild.”

“But why would he hide it in a safe? Would Mertin undergo routine inspections of his void ring? If not, why would he not keep it on his person?”

“I don’t know...” sighed Jonon, feeling the tender wound under his bandages. “That’s why I’m asking you for help. What do you think of all this?”

“What about your father?” asked Oli.

Shrugging, Jonon answered, “He’ll learn about it soon, but I’d rather we figure out somethings before informing him. So, what do you think of it?”

“Hmm... Did Mertin not explain anything? From your depressed tone and your injury, I assume Mertin gave you no hints to the truth of the situation?” Vloz deduced.

Jonon shook his head and sighed, “I know it’s more complicated than I had expected. Mertin was more cautious than usual, careful with every word he said. His responses were too well-tailored for our conversation to be unplanned and spontaneous. I want to think he’s planned through a similar scenario and was merely acting on the plan, disregarding any spontaneous answers.”

“Then we should try to understand how and why Mertin wanted your encounter to end how it did. Understanding Mertin’s perspective may offer a new look as to why you weren’t killed, why he bothered keeping an account book in such a strange place, and more...” Vloz suggested, putting his mind to work. “Any thoughts, Oli?”

“I don’t know Mertin very well, so I’ll ask a few questions first.” Looking at Jonon, Oli pointed at the man’s wound. “Why would Mertin leave you alive and not on the brink of death? Would killing you now make the most sense for him, if he’s abandoning the family and working against you?”

“He wouldn’t kill me,” Jonon replied empathically. “He wouldn’t be against killing me if I was trying to kill him, but otherwise he wouldn’t. Mertin’s not that sort of man.”

“Which somewhat explains your injury... What about his personality? He manages the family, so I would assume he’s calculative and understands how to manipulate people more than you, right?”

“That’s right.”

Building off that, Oli asked, “Then how did you two come to fight? Was it an immediate thing or–

“I tried to initiate a fight from the start, but he diffused that and talked for a while instead. Eventually, we decided to fight and bet on our own victory, offering either answers to my questions or the return of the account book to the victor,” answered Jonon. “We rented a chamber in the old market to maintain our privacy. Then he won and I returned the unopened book before he said goodbye.”

“So he beat you and you gave up the book without question? Then he simply left without a word?” Vloz asked succinctly.

“Pretty much...” Sighing, Jonon stated, “He was colder than ever, but it felt forced. He refused to let me ask what was bothering him and never gave away any motivation he might have. Considering his negotiation skills, I should’ve expected that to happen...”

“He’s calculating yet he somehow forgot to take the account book the first time he left?”

Oli’s question left Jonon stumped, blinking in confusion. Vloz grinned slightly as he wondered the same thing as Oli. But Oli was the one to continue voicing their shared theory.

“What if Mertin wanted that book to be found?”