“Of course. There are several in the world. Let’s see. Pallass has one, there’s Belchan’s traditional elected [Prime Minister]…the Collectives of Xemic in Baleros…I couldn’t name more than twenty the world over, even in smaller states though. Which one are you from, then? Probably Pallass, isn’t that so?”

“Uh—possibly. Why does it matter?”

Seraphel eyed Cara and the [Actress]’ perfectly smooth expression. Cara knew she was impossible to read—her face, at least. Unfortunately…Seraphel just tapped her lips as she recalled a minor detail.

“Of course, Pallass is a Drake city. So the odds of a Human living with the Drakes and Gnolls is remote.

Garuda or Dullahan would be more likely, even. Strange that you wouldn’t know that. Which means you probably don’t hail from Terandria or Izril.”

The [Singer] blinked. Was it just her or was this a…trap? No. She instinctively felt it wasn’t. There was no hostility in the way Seraphel was phrasing everything. She was giving Cara a rather arch smile, but that was competitive in nature.

This was a game for the [Princess]. Cara tilted her head from side to side. In any other situation she would have loved to play. But today? Now? She looked past Seraphel at the horde. The [Princess]

followed her gaze and her slight smile slipped away.

“Apologies. It seems now’s not the time. Rest assured, if we survive this, I will investigate your past at my leisure. I doubt very much whatever secret you’re hiding could be worse than being eaten by zombies.”

Cara’s lips twitched. She looked at Seraphel. Strange what a few minutes of conversation did. But then—

that was at the heart of acting. Getting to know and falling in love with a character you might only know for a few hours at most was good acting.

But this was no stage. So—Cara hesitated. And decided to be honest. Seraphel was the first person she couldn’t trick in any way. It was—almost welcome.

“I don’t hate you. I’m sorry about judging you. But I do think rulers aren’t necessary. We don’t need

[Kings].”

“You say that. But in my experience, Humans turn to someone to lead them. Even in most democracies, there is an elected leader. We need someone to follow. In dark times, we crave someone to inspire, to be our very best. Like him.”

Seraphel pointed. Cara followed her finger and saw him on the walls.

Lord Lantal. He wasn’t fighting. He was resting, clearly tired. But where he stood, the people around him fought harder. They seemed to take something from him. It might have been a Skill—but maybe not.

“Look at him.”

The [Princess] watched Lantal too. Cara glanced at Seraphel.

“That is what a good [Lord] is. A leader, a champion of the battlefield, and a just ruler in times of peace.