"It’s impossible..."

Zero Order’s declaration hung heavily until the three aristocrats on Leomaris’s left spoke.

"Isn’t that a bit harsh, Zero Order? I don’t think he would make such a request without something to back it up."

"I’m with Shelly on this. We might need this information."

"We can settle this with a different reward. Money... artifacts?"

That was the moment Leomaris knew he still had a chance. His life was on the line, but even if they saw him as a threat, Rosay was a call away. And Zero would change his mind once he heard what Leomaris had to offer. He was certain of that.

Through the chaos, Leomaris took a deep breath and let it out, steeled himself and aced the mountain before him.

"You used Einstein to retrieve the hymn ’Le Mythe des Quatre,’ did you not?"

As soon as the words left him, the room fell silent before someone spoke in a confused tone.

"Who is this Einstein? And why would we send someone like that over Le Mythe des Quatre?"

Leomaris didn’t respond. Desperate, but smart enough to know that showing it wouldn’t get him what he wanted. He would meet their questions with silence until he had it.

"To be specific, you sent him after the Devil’s Fruit, Taste of Darkness, and, more importantly, the hymn."

The weight of what Leomaris carried was finally beginning to sink in for everyone. Zero Order, however, remained silent. And Leomaris did the same, ignoring every question asked until Zero Order himself spoke.

"I understand now, Apostle of Death. You hold valuable information worthy of making you an exception. However, why should we trust you?"

Leomaris shrugged. "This was Einstein’s seat, was it not? I have already made myself comfortable in it. That alone should speak for our trust."

A touch of cockiness crept in. Things were going far more smoothly than he’d anticipated.

"Why talk about trust when what Einstein has could be handed to one of the Twelve Churches for a handsome reward? I know other Sovereigns would pay a fortune just for the Devil’s Fruit alone, let alone the hymn and Taste of Darkness."

This time, calmer, the woman beside Leomaris spoke again.

"By Einstein, you mean Butterfly. How do you know him? How did you learn his name?"

It was the question he’d been dreading. Arcane Mercenary wasn’t an answer he could give, and claiming to know Einstein personally would raise more questions than it answered. Silence was the only move. He offered it and left the room to interpret.

Then, as though composure had finally become more trouble than it was worth, Zero Order spoke.

"Butterfly went on a mission with his faction to collect those items. He hasn’t returned in over a month, and from the way you speak, I assume you already understand how important they are to us."

Truth be told, Leomaris’s knowledge barely scratched the surface. Einstein had never returned, that much he knew.

He’d killed his entire faction for the Taste of Darkness, the final ingredient standing between him and becoming an Archmage. And without those ingredients, the Crimson Order would be disbanded. Beyond that, the novel had given him nothing.

"Exactly how did you come into contact with Butterfly?"

Leomaris leaned into his seat and let his expression go flat. It was the most honest thing on his face in a while.

"Why does that matter? I am the only one who knows his location. Do you want to seal this deal, or should I take my information elsewhere?"

His body shivered the moment he threatened. Zero Order’s presence landed on him like a weight, sinister energy bleeding through it.

For a moment he was certain he was going to die. And if that certainty had shown on his face, if anyone had seen it, the negotiation would have tilted entirely out of his hands.

Then the woman at the far edge of the table spoke. She had said nothing the entire meeting, nothing, and the fact that she chose now made it worse. Everything Zero Order had already put him through, and now this.

"Gathering First Orders for a meeting is no simple task. Each of us here holds enough influence and power to be seated among this council. Yet you, Apostle of Death, have not proven you belong among us, and still you make such bold claims."

She paused, and the room listened. Not out of obligation but out of something closer to instinct, the same instinct Zero Order commanded.

"This has gone beyond trust and belief. It is now a matter of pride and hierarchy. We cannot give you what you want because you are beneath us... Complete the mission Butterfly failed, and only then will we consider you an equal."

Leomaris gulped back bile. No one questioned her words, and that told him enough. Everyone agreed. But this wasn’t what he wanted.

He had come here to sell information and gain a foothold not to be conscripted into an organisation he didn’t belong to. He could actually die from a spider bite out there.

Besides, Einstein had already used the Taste of Darkness, which meant bringing back all three items wasn’t a difficult task. It was an impossible one.

"Why would I work for an organization I don’t belong to? I’m sure you can make a better offer."

For the first time in the entire meeting, Zero Order did something human. He laughed. It didn’t help. If anything, it made things considerably worse for Leomaris’s already fragile emotional state.

"You really are amusing. You made me laugh."

He took a deep breath and steadied his gaze.

"The Crimson Order demands reputation, potential, and unwavering faith in the Goddess. You possess none of them. You have proven nothing, achieved nothing, and as you stand now, you are beneath even the Third Orders."

Leomaris’s palms went slick, his body shrivelling under the weight of those words. It made sense now why Zero Order had called it impossible.

The Crimson Order wasn’t built for someone like him to simply walk into. But if he was going to walk in anyway, he refused to do it on his knees.

Being looked down upon had a cost. If they treated him as a nobody from the start, whatever position he earned would hollow out over time. He’d be First Order in name and nothing more than that.

Without a moment’s hesitation, he let the fear go and put something else in its place. Something fearless, confident, and genuinely dangerous, worn with the ease of a second skin.

He folded his hands gently on the table, let his golden eyes cut through the fog obscuring his face, and fixed Zero Order with a death stare.

Every word that followed felt like a threat, and the cold, slow tone they arrived in made each one land harder than the last.

"You wouldn’t dare look me in the eye and laugh while spitting such insults. I know your situation, and yet you still think you’re in any position to argue? Influence? Tell me, what will remain of yours if none of the three items arrive?"

He gave his words a beat.

"Einstein is dead. I killed him. Everything you want from me — come and take it if you can. Power? I don’t think any of you truly understand who you’re speaking to... or what you’re standing in front of."

He got to his feet and felt every eye in the room find him. He knew he was pushing too far, but he couldn’t afford to be disrespected.

If he allowed that, no position in the Crimson Order would save him from his father’s wrath.

"I will be waiting. Try anything foolish, and you won’t live long enough to ever see your Goddess again. If war is what you want, come. I’ll welcome it and end it just as gracefully."

He reached for the ring on his index finger and pulled it free.