Tamara? I remember Her Highness telling me that the family split because its members followed different paths, held different ideals, and even worshipped different gods. In the end, they turned against one another... The transparent dagger I wield now, the Fangs of the Stars, came from a conflict within the family...
At that thought, Xio stole a glance at Princess Vera beside her. Her Highness seemed to know rather too much about the family.
Vera paid no attention to Xio's odd look. She merely murmured, "He's here."
Xio came back to herself and glanced discreetly toward the entrance. A hooded man pushed open the door and entered the bar, feigning calm. He even greeted Swain with practiced familiarity.
Swain owned the Dragon Bar and had once captained the Mandated Punishers team in Tingen. Afraid to advance to Seafarer, he had remained a Sequence 8 People of Wrath.
Though the drunken Swain failed to recognize the apparent regular, he still had someone lead him into the billiards room where the three Tamara Family members had just gone.
As a Judge, Xio's former Sheriff abilities had grown far stronger. Even outside her jurisdiction, she recognized the hooded man at a glance: Baron Larry, the official target of her mission with Princess Vera.
"Let's follow him!" Princess Vera said curtly.
Xio hurriedly hopped off her barstool and followed Vera. In a low voice, she asked again, "Your Highness, didn't you say Baron Larry had a Mystical Item that could mislead divination?"
Then how had he run into the Tamaras by chance? The Gnosis Society had likely come to Tingen to track him, too. That didn't sound like they'd been misled.
Xio left the last question unspoken, but Vera clearly understood. After a few seconds of silence, she explained quietly, "A woman who had