The meeting ended.
Neo walked outside and stood on the balcony, bracing both hands on the railing as the cold wind washed over him.
Sunshine in a Vien winter was like the gold coins a miserly merchant hid beneath his bed, not something readily shown to others.
Alfred came out and stopped beside Neo. He took out a pack of Thunder Order God Church cigarettes, drew one out for himself, then handed the rest of the pack to Neo.
Neo took it and flicked his wrist. A cigarette flew out, flipped through the air, and fell neatly between his lips.
Click.
Alfred struck a match and lit Neo's cigarette first.
"How wonderful. For Kallen, for all of you, everything is back on track. No, it's returned to a better starting point."
"You're right. Today's meeting is destined to go down in history."
"Even as a bystander, I found it rather exciting. It felt like stepping into history."
"No, you're not a bystander."
"So you've already started treating me as Kallen's subordinate?"
"I don't see it that way, and neither would you. If this were a gamble, you'd be the partner standing beside the young master, looking at his hole cards with him and discussing whether to call."
Neo turned toward Alfred, blew a smoke ring, and smiled. "I'm curious. How do you stay so focused?"
"In what respect?"
"Your enthusiasm for something. Is it love? Faith? Habit?"
"Are you ruling out my answers in advance?"
"Heh. I want your honest answer."
"There is no reason." Alfred looked toward the rooftops ahead. "We always spend too much thought and energy considering our reasons before doing something. In reality, that's just an illusion. Most of the time, whether you do something has little to do with the reasons you thought of beforehand.