"Duchess Georgina... came looking for me?"
At his housekeeper's report, Lorne's heart sank slightly. His intuition told him that a sudden visit from a senior member of the royal family at such a sensitive juncture probably meant more trouble.
"I understand."
"I understand. Arrange an appropriate reception when the time comes. We'll speak in the drawing room. Remember, no one is to interrupt us," Lorne instructed.
"Understood, sir." Asnia nodded solemnly, her expression turning serious as well.
In Loen, anything involving the royal family was a serious matter, requiring the utmost care and attention.
After returning to his study, Lorne sat down and began considering why the royal family had suddenly sent someone to see him.
He absently reached into his pocket and casually set aside the slightly odd Five Soli banknote he had just received from his housekeeper. Then he took a one-penny coin from his pocket and gently tossed it into the air.
The coin spun through the air before landing heads up in his palm.
"Heads... so the royal family isn't coming to this meeting with malicious intentions, and it won't cause me any direct harm..."
"Beyonders of the Arbiter pathway seem particularly sensitive to the levels of those around them..." Lorne recalled the information he had read in the Society's internal records about the Beyonder pathway controlled by the royal family.
"Could my advancement to demigod have been exposed?"
"Hard to say..." Lorne sank into thought.
"Although the Disguise Cufflink has Antigonus's power concealing me and can block most attempts to pry, there's no guarantee it will always work. With the royal family's resources, who knows what special Mystical Items or hidden High Sequence Beyonders they might have..."
"Besides, my performance when I disrupted the True Creator's descent ritual was admittedly a little too impressive..."