Odit Berenkest withdrew his finger, lingered in place for a little longer, then slowly turned around and smiled at Yu Lian. "She's dangerous, and her psychohistory is dangerous too. Of course, dangerous as she is, she's not all that important. It's only when she's gone that she'll become important. Uh... Young man, are you going to fight me?"
Yu Lian had already charged up behind the old man, but in the end he'd been a step too late. He could only sigh, force a smile, and raise both hands. Taking two steps back, he shrugged. "Not at all. As a gentleman with a heart full of love, I only wanted to stop you from destroying a beautiful flower. Besides, you were once the Commonwealth's highest-ranking leader, and a professor of law who directly helped draft the Commonwealth's civil rights and financial legislation. You should understand the importance of the rule of law better than I do! I thought you'd take her into custody and bring her to a fair trial."
"Perhaps I would have, once." The old man smiled. "But with a brat like you around, I'm no longer inclined to do that. She has to die. It's important that she's gone, of course, but it's even more important that you're left without her."
"Is it really okay to be so blunt?" Yu Lian's eyes widened. "What about the rule of law? The rule of law that's the Commonwealth's guiding light? What about basic humanitarian principles?"
"Seeing a little killer like you lecture me about the rule of law makes me want to laugh."
The old man stroked his long, immaculate beard, so magnificent it looked like a work of art, and laughed heartily. Then he explained in a tone that sounded like he was teaching a class:
"The fundamental