"You… you'll regret this! Su Li! The Electorate Council will never let you go!" Commissioner Helmut shrieked, his bluster barely masking his cowardice, then, huddled by his terrified attendants, he all but crawled and stumbled away, clutching his severed tongue as he fled toward the doors. The heavy oak gates slammed shut behind them, sealing the imperial bureaucrat's threats—and the wind and snow—outside Heisen Castle.
Within the hall, only the crackling of the fireplace remained, and the cold, austere gazes of everyone present.
Once the imperial bureaucrats had departed, Oliver, who had been frowning all along, rose to his feet and said calmly, "My Lord, a bureaucrat like Helmut is nothing but a clown. Cutting out his tongue only wastes one vial of the Electorate Council's potion. But now that we've offended the Electorate Council, our next steps may grow difficult. We… must prepare early."
