"The Count Albart had once been one of Mephisto’s subordinates in life, the very man who had assisted him during the attack on Invinctus. Unfortunately, he had sacrificed himself during the battle that followed.

As for Captain Bernard, he had been a brilliant officer operating in Invinctus before falling at Mephisto’s hands.

Both of them had died. And today, they had returned in new bodies. My genius has transcended the boundaries of life."

Stein rejoiced as he gazed upon his successful experiment. His mad laughter echoed through the laboratory like that of a scientist who had just achieved the impossible.

Mephisto, however, paid no attention to the outburst. His eyes remained fixed on the results of the experiment.

"Imperfect," he said, abruptly cutting off Stein’s laughter.

"Impossible! This is perfection! Transferring the memory of one being into another body... I went even further: I transferred a human’s memory into the body of a Calamity. Admire my masterpiece instead of complaining."

Mephisto did not bother arguing. He preferred a demonstration.

"Kill each other," he ordered simply.

At that command, the two Calamities charged at one another. Their bodies lunged forward, ready to collide in a brutal clash...

When Mephisto raised his hand.

"Stop."

The two creatures froze instantly, as though time itself had halted.

Seeing them react with such mechanical obedience, Stein grimaced. He suddenly understood where the problem lay.

"They did not inherit the essence that made them who they were," Mephisto declared in a calm yet definitive voice. "The resurrection is incomplete."

Indeed, Bernard would never have obeyed Mephisto with such docility in life. The Calamity possessed his memories, certainly, but neither his will nor his ideals. Everything that had made Bernard unique had vanished, leaving behind nothing but an obedient shell.

And as for Albart, though he had once been loyal and obedient, he had never been capable of restraining either his tongue or his emotions. This new version of him retained none of those traits.

Stein could only admit, with frustration, that his experiment was not perfect.

Grimacing, he grabbed a syringe and stepped toward the two creatures to inject them.

Mephisto stopped him with a gesture.

"Leave them."

Stein stared at him in disbelief.

"I need to dissect them to see what went wrong!" he protested.

"Let us wait a little longer. Observe them."

After a brief hesitation, Stein set the syringe down, visibly disappointed.

He returned to his computer, compared the collected data, and resumed grumbling to himself under his breath, muttering inaudible complaints.

Without paying him any attention, Mephisto shifted his gaze back toward Albart and Bernard.

"From now on, you will remain in this laboratory."

"You could ask for my opinion sometimes, you know? I cannot stand seeing failures like these wandering around all day!" Stein complained.

Mephisto ignored the remarks entirely.

He was about to leave the laboratory and return to his quarters when Stein, still typing on his keyboard between complaints, suddenly spoke:

"Lord Saphis sent a message."

Mephisto stopped immediately.

Stein handed him a sheet of paper without even looking up. Mephisto took it at once and read its contents.

He read it again. Once. Twice. Three times.

His antennae trembled.

("The Order is discreetly withdrawing part of its troops stationed in the West.")

("The clashes may have calmed down, but that alone does not justify a troop withdrawal. Why would they take such a risk?")

("Unless they need to deploy them somewhere else...")

He pondered. Eliminated possibilities.

("Another front? But I see no major conflict requiring reinforcements. Then...")

"They are preparing an operation... but where?"

He found no answer. The sheet revealed nothing more.

A heavy silence settled over the laboratory, disturbed only by the irregular clicking of Stein’s keyboard.

Then Stein, without taking his eyes off the screen, scratched his head as though he had suddenly remembered something.

"Ah yes, I almost forgot. Lord Saphis said he would be coming here. He leaves you free to act accordingly."

Mephisto abruptly lifted his head.

("Lord Saphis is coming here. Personally.")

His thoughts accelerated.

("If the Order is moving its troops... if Lord Saphis himself deems it necessary to come here...")

The realization struck him brutally. Almost painfully.

("The target... is us.")

After the recent events, the Order should naturally suspect that something was taking place within the Kingdom of Vermin.

("I had predicted it would take another two or three years before the Order took the threat seriously and decided to intervene.")

His estimations now seemed mistaken.

The Order was going to strike first, crushing their plans before they could even hatch.

"If Lord Saphis has decided to intervene, then he intends to use this attack to force us to accelerate our plans," Mephisto concluded.

His voice, when he spoke, was lower than usual.

"I must speak with the King."

That was the only possible conclusion. Everything now fit together.

But an audience with the King could not be obtained through mere desire.

His reputation had certainly ensured that the King noticed him, but that did not grant him the right to request an audience with His Majesty whenever he pleased.

The King himself had to summon him.

And for that, he had no choice but to make himself indispensable.

("I must become remarkable enough that even the King cannot ignore me.")

Mephisto had barely reached that conclusion, and grasped the full scale of the task ahead, when a servant delivered him a message.

"A royal emissary?" he murmured.

He immediately destroyed the sheet, erasing every trace of its existence, before leaving the laboratory, not without warning Stein first:

"I have visitors. Hide yourself and do nothing that might draw attention to you."

Mephisto did not wait for a reply. His steps were already quickening.

As were his thoughts.

The King had sent an emissary directly to him. That could only mean one of two things.

Either he stood in the sovereign’s good graces... or the opposite.

And even Mephisto preferred not to consider the latter possibility.

He quickly made his way toward the reception hall.

His expression betrayed none of the storm raging within his mind.

There, a group of Calamities awaited him.

At their head stood a duke whom Mephisto recognized immediately.

There were no civilities, no exchange of pleasantries.

The moment he saw the marquis, the duke raised his voice. An undeniable and crushing authority radiated from him.

"Order of the King for Marquis Mephisto d’Hyménoptère."

The impact against the floor was abrupt.

Mephisto and all his servants knelt in unison.

"Receive the royal decree," proclaimed the duke in a voice that made the very ether of the hall tremble.

"Marquis Mephisto d’Hyménoptère, the King summons you. For your loyal services, he binds you to Princess Zara as her tutor."

The duke paused, allowing the weight of the responsibility to settle upon the marquis’ shoulders.

"Three duties are entrusted to you: protect her breath against every shadow, awaken her mind to the secrets of power, and forge her will for the trials to come. This charge shall remain yours until the princess can bear alone the weight of the bloodline she embodies. Thus has the King willed it, thus must the world accept it."

The silence that followed was broken by a resonant, unified response from Mephisto and his servants:

"The King commands, the world obeys."

"Rise," ordered the duke once the ceremony was complete.

("Tutor?")

Mephisto slightly raised his head.

Behind the emissaries, concealed within their shadow, stood a caterpillar.

("Is that her?")