Two days passed without hassle, and Theodore managed to level up his skills in that time. Not bad, considering he'd been splitting his attention between two bodies for most of it.

[Mana Control] has leveled up! – Lvl 17 Lvl 18!

[Mana Convergence] has leveled up! – Lvl 9 Lvl 10!

[Cloning] has leveled up! – Lvl 8 Lvl 10!

[Cloning] especially had shot up. Made sense, given how much he'd been pushing it since he left Holden. First time he'd ever maintained a clone so far away. After hitting level 10, he could keep it going in parallel for a few minutes before the mental fatigue started eating at him. A few minutes weren't much, but it was enough. Enough to check on things back in Holden. Enough to make sure nothing had gone sideways while he was stuck on this ship.

The sensation was... weird didn't even begin to cover it. Being in two places at once. Feeling the ship's gentle sway beneath his feet while also standing on solid ground hundreds of miles away. Smelling the desert and town dust simultaneously. His brain kept trying to reject one reality or the other, like it couldn't quite accept both were real.

At first, he'd been careful. Real careful. Made sure his main body on the ship had its eyes closed, stayed sitting, didn't move around much. Last thing he needed was to trip over his own feet because his brain thought he was walking down a street in Holden instead of navigating a ship corridor. And the clone back in town? Kept it simple. Just walking around, checking on a few things, making sure people saw him. Nothing fancy.

But even being careful, it was exhausting. Everything required constant concentration and one mistake could mean face-planting into a wall. Or worse.

Still, two days of practice had paid off. New skill to show for it:

Congratulations! You have gained skill: [Parallel Processing]!

Parallel Processing

Type: Active

Effect: Allows for improved management of multiple simultaneous perspectives and thought processes. Reduces mental strain when operating multiple bodies or maintaining divided attention.

Now that was useful. Real useful. The skill took some of the edge off, made it easier to process two sets of sensory input without feeling like his brain was being pulled in different directions. Still exhausting, but manageable exhausting instead of mind-breaking exhausting.

[Parallel Processing] has leveled up! – Lvl 1 Lvl 2!

[Parallel Processing] has leveled up! – Lvl 2 Lvl 3!

[Psionic Resistance] has leveled up! – Lvl 22 Lvl 23!

The skill had climbed fast over the two days. Each level made things a bit smoother, a bit less jarring when switching focus between bodies. By level 3, he could maintain the clone in Holden for almost four hours before needing a break. The clone let him check on things without actually being there. Smart, given the circumstances. Theodore had even visited a bakery to eat some stuff when he was out strolling in Holden as practice. Or, sometimes, he'd just throw it at his clone back home to analyze the rune on his shoulder when he wasn't doing it himself. So far, he hadn't cracked it in the slightest.

It was weird. Eating with a clone body, the taste was there but muted somehow. His clone wasn't really perfect, it seemed.

The hardest part was remembering which body was doing what. More than once he'd started to respond to something on the ship with information he'd only learned through his clone. Had to catch himself, play it off. Nobody seemed to notice, but it was a close thing sometimes.

And the mental fatigue was no joke.

After each session, he'd have to rest for at least an hour before he could think straight again. Like his brain had run a marathon and needed time to recover. Juliana had noticed, of course. She noticed everything.

"You alright?" she'd asked after one particularly long session.

"Fine. Just tired."

She'd given him that look that said she didn't quite believe him but wasn't going to push. Yet. He'd have to tell her eventually. Tell them both. After all, he had to explain someday why there were two or more of him running around.

Nevertheless, there was lots of practice, lots of exhaustion, and a growing certainty that [Parallel Processing] was going to be one of his most valuable skills. Being able to be in two places at once, even for a few hours? The applications were endless.

Now, though, he was fully present on the ship. Clone dismissed hours ago, mind singular again. Almost a relief, having just one set of eyes to see through. However, when he did a habitual shift to the clone, he was surprised to see a letter beside his bed. This was, after all, what he'd told Cedric should be done in case something came up.

Lord Karstein had come to town. And he wanted a meeting.

So Theodore shifted all his attention to the clone immediately, pulling his consciousness fully from his main body on the ship. No point maintaining the dual perspective for this. Karstein deserved his full attention. This was going to be delicate and delightful.

***

Theodore studied the man across from his desk. Lord Karstein sat with perfect posture, hands folded, the picture of aristocratic composure. Expensive clothes, hair immaculately styled, that practiced smile of a man who'd spent decades navigating political waters. Theodore could see right through it. The tight corners around Karstein's eyes. The way his fingers pressed just a fraction too hard against each other. The slight tension in his shoulders that spoke of barely controlled anger.

Oh, Karstein was pissed. He was just too smart to show it openly.

"Your Highness. Please allow me to express my deepest apologies for my son's inexcusable behavior. William acted far beyond his authority and in complete contradiction to everything I taught him about proper conduct."

Theodore leaned back in his chair, remaining silent. People always revealed more when they felt compelled to keep talking or weren't getting the reaction they wanted.

"I want to assure you that his actions do not represent the Karstein family's position," Karstein continued. "Or the Merchants Guild's, for that matter. We hold the crown in the highest respect, and we would never—"

"Wouldn't you?" Theodore interrupted with a deceptively mild tone.

Karstein's smile faltered for just a moment. "I beg your pardon?"

"Your son didn't just lose his temper, Lord Karstein. He ordered his men to attack me. In a crowded establishment. In front of witnesses." Theodore's tone remained conversational, but he was giddy inside. "That's not youthful indiscretion. That's attempted assassination of a member of the royal family."

Karstein paled. "Your Highness, surely you don't think—"

"What else would you call it? When armed men move to attack a prince on the orders of a guild representative, what would the crown call that?" He paused. "Treason comes to mind."

Karstein's composure cracked just slightly. The smile became more strained. This was not going how he'd imagined, Theodore could tell.

"William was acting purely on his own—"

"Was he?" Theodore tilted his head. "Because from where I was standing, it looked like standard guild collection tactics. Send the heir, make demands, use force when those demands aren't met immediately." He drummed his fingers on the desk. "Only this time, your standard tactics constituted an act of rebellion against the crown."

"That's a very serious accusation."

"It's a very serious crime. Do you know what happens to merchant organizations that order attacks on royalty? Even exiled royalty?"

Karstein said nothing, but his knuckles were white now.

"Complete dissolution," Theodore continued conversationally. "All assets seized. All members barred from trade. And that's if the crown is feeling merciful. If they're not..." He shrugged. "Well. Treason trials don't usually end well for anyone involved."

"I'm sure we can reach some sort of understanding."

"Oh, I'm sure we can." Theodore smiled. "See, I'm in a generous mood today. Your son tried to have me killed, which gives me excellent grounds to demand justice from the crown. But I'm willing to consider this matter settled if certain adjustments are made to our existing arrangement."

Karstein's practiced politician mask was back in place, but Theodore could see the calculation behind his eyes. The man was weighing options now that Theodore was putting his foot down. "What sort of adjustments?"

"Complete forgiveness of debt, naturally. Can't very well owe money to an organization that committed treason against me." Theodore's tone was almost cheerful now. "And a formal apology from the guild itself, acknowledging that their representative acted far beyond acceptable bounds, stripping William of his class, completely shattering his foundation so he's nothing but a mundane human."

Karstein's eyes widened. "Your Highness! T-That—that's! The guild council would never—"

"The guild council will do whatever keeps them from being labeled enemies of the crown," Theodore cut him off. "Because the alternative is explaining to the King why one of their heirs thought it was acceptable to order an attack on his son."

Karstein's smile never wavered, but his eyes had gone cold as winter stone.

"Of course," Karstein said finally, voice perfectly controlled. "I'm sure the guild would be... amenable to such terms. Given the gravity of William's error in judgment, I also agree to your terms regarding him specifically."

"Excellent." Theodore leaned forward. "I knew you were a reasonable man, Lord Karstein. Always been one of your better qualities."

"You're too kind, Your Highness."

Neither man's smile reached their eyes.

"There is, of course, the matter of ensuring this sort of... misunderstanding doesn't happen again," Theodore continued. "I'd hate for other guild members to labor under the impression that I'm somehow vulnerable to intimidation tactics."

"Naturally. I'll make sure the message is clearly communicated."

"I'm sure you will." Theodore stood, extending his hand. "Thank you for coming personally to resolve this matter, Lord Karstein. It shows real character."

Karstein rose as well, taking the offered hand. His grip was firm, controlled, confident, but his eyes were anything but. "It was the least I could do, Your Highness. Family honor demanded nothing less."

Theodore hummed to himself. Karstein was definitely going to try something. This was going to lose him his position and punish him greatly by the guild, so he was definitely not going to sit idle.

Regardless, when all this was over, Theodore dismissed the clone and returned back to the sandship, sitting in the lounge, watching the usual crowd go about their business. The noble factions still glared at each other from opposite corners. The two strong presences—the woman at the bar and the man near the nobles—still pretended not to notice each other while obviously keeping tabs on everything. Standard afternoon on the ship.

Freya had wandered off again, probably to harass more passengers with combat tips they didn't ask for. Juliana sat across from him, reading some book she'd picked up at the last stop. Peaceful, quiet, too quiet, maybe. Theodore was starting to get that itch between his shoulder blades. The one that said something was about to go sideways. Two days without incident was making him nervous. In his experience, quiet stretches like this usually meant trouble was building up somewhere, getting ready to explode. For him, anyway.

"You're fidgeting," Juliana observed without looking up from her book.

"Am not."

"You've adjusted your sleeve six times in the last minute."

Okay, maybe he was fidgeting. "Just thinking."

"About?"

"About how—"

A commotion from the entrance drew his attention. Freya was back, and she'd apparently made friends. Or enemies. Hard to tell with her sometimes. She being very annoying these days, and very childish, as well. It wasn't her usual self, though he couldn't blame her for playing around. All this was an act on her part anyway, she drew amusement from it more than anything. So, while it was annoying to deal with sometimes, he didn't mind.

She was talking animatedly with a young man who looked torn between terror and fascination. Poor guy was nodding along to whatever she was saying while clearly looking for an escape route. His eyes kept darting toward the exit, but Freya had positioned herself perfectly to block any retreat.

"—and that's why the standard grip is completely wrong for desert combat!" Freya was saying, gesturing enthusiastically with her hands. "Sand gets everywhere, changes the balance. You need to adjust for the environmental factors or you'll end up dead. Here, let me show you—"

The young man's eyes went wide with panic. "I really should get back to—"

"Nonsense! This is important stuff. Life-saving, even. Now, pretend I'm a sand drake coming at you from the left—"

Theodore stood up. Time to rescue the poor guy before Freya traumatized him completely. He'd seen her "demonstrations" before. They usually ended with someone on the ground wondering what had just happened.

"Freya," he called out. "Stop terrorizing the other passengers."

She spun around, looking offended. "I'm educating!" she protested. "This is valuable information!"

"I'm sure it is. Let him go."

The young man shot Theodore a grateful look and fled like his ass was on fire. Probably the fastest he'd moved the entire voyage. Freya watched him go with a disappointed expression, like a cat whose toy had just been taken away.

"I was just getting to the good part," she complained, making her way back to their table.

"What was the good part?" Juliana asked, though her expression suggested she might regret asking.

"How to use a sand drake's momentum against it to access the soft spot under its throat. Very useful stuff." Freya dropped into her chair with a huff.

"I can see why he ran."

"People don't appreciate practical knowledge anymore." Freya slumped dramatically. Then, perking up like she'd just remembered something: "Oh, by the way, there's definitely something weird going on with those two groups. They're not just political rivals."

Theodore leaned forward. Now this was interesting. "Oh?"

"Overheard some interesting stuff. Something about shipping routes and territory disputes. And maybe some light smuggling. Hard to get details, but there's definitely more than just ideological differences happening."

***

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