Lost in thought, Annan returned to the City Lord's Mansion without noticing Gale's sorrowful expression. She had even stopped swishing her tail.
Idelia had gone to inspect the school, so Annan found Olmedo in the Office and told her how the meeting had gone.
"It seems that Ratfolk Elder still doesn't know you very well," Olmedo said. To think the elder had tried to threaten Annan by handing him leverage...
Annan wasn't picky about who he dealt with and had no fear of being branded a Ratfolk collaborator. But the Stuen Ratfolk would probably worry about being branded collaborators with humans themselves...
"What do we have that might interest the Stuen Ratfolk?" Annan was still pondering the question.
"Whatever they want, their aim won't change: corrupting the heart of Free City."
"True. So we should give them some dead skin off our feet."
"What?"
"Something that comes from us but is no use to us."
"It sounds as though you and the Ratfolk are both enjoying this game of cat and mouse," Olmedo remarked offhandedly.
She had said it without thinking, but her words sparked an idea.
"Did you just say 'cat and mouse'?" Annan stared at Olmedo.
Under his intense gaze, Olmedo grew a little uncomfortable. "Yes... Why?"
Why didn't I think of it sooner?
If he brought out Cat and Mouse, it would cause a sensation no smaller than the debut of the first Magic Film. Its reach might even far surpass The Mage Tower's Fall.
After all, Cat and Mouse truly appealed to all ages, and Free City was no longer what it had been when Annan first arrived.
"What did you think of?" Olmedo could no longer contain her curiosity.
"What kind of dead skin to give the Ratfolk."
"Ugh..."
Dead skin wasn't quite the right