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The replay to Sigewinne latest latter laid on his desk along with some of her stickers. It always filled Neuvillette with warmth to see them and know she thought of him with this. The Melusines love for stickers was just another art outlet many of them showed, and he loved to indulge them.
Softly, he pushed them back into the envelope of along with her letter and put both letters aside. His meeting with Wriothesly was about to happen soon, and he was still learning about the young warden. Neuvillette could tell from the few meetings they already had something was different about him compared to his predecessors, not only because he was a former inmate or the fact he carried a vision. Latest happened before in the Fortress of Meropide even if it had been a rare circumstance. No, it was his determination and how his mind worked, that set him apart.
A knock on the door announced his arrival. Wriothesly wore the same black and red suit and button-down combination he seemed to have picked as uniform for himself. A smart move indeed to show his position in a subtle yet straightforward way.
“Welcome, Wriothesly, right in time as always.”
“Good afternoon, Iudex.”
A small, calculated smile appeared on Wriothesly’s face. Neuvillette has seen this kind of smile a million times when people met him, but with Wriothesly it appeared to hide something else than simple politeness.
They sat down at the tea table Sedene prepared in advance. Thanks to Sigewinne they had been long aware of the favorite tea and snacks of the warden and set everything up to appease him even if this was a simple business meeting.
One thing Neuvillette learned in all those years, was that it was never a bad idea to do such little things to set his guest in the right mood.
“You are spoiling me as always, Monsieur Neuvillette,” Wriothesly commented, this time with a sincere smile.
“It is a matter of proper hospitality to appease to your guest’s taste.”
“That is true, but I didn’t think you would see me as a guest and not as a business partner.”
For a second Neuvillette contemplated his answer but tilted his head only a little.
“Even if this is a business meeting, you are still a guest of mine.”
Wriothesly laughed out loud and shook his head.
“I can’t argue with this.”
With an outstretched hand, Neuvillette invited him to take a seat. Somewhat pleased, he saw how Wriothesly made himself comfortable once he placed the file with the month’s production statistics and report about the incidents at the Fortress on the table. Whoever thought he could hold his young age against this man would clearly soon find himself surprised how little age had to do with determination and strength. Neuvillette was sure whoever was stupid enough to challenge Wriothesly would soon regret. Sigewinne’s letter gave him enough information to know the man in front of him didn’t only look like he was an accomplished fighter, but truly was one.
“We could raise the production of the mecha by five percent with a few minor changes to the production chain to make it more efficient. I am aware the Fortress stands on its own feet and works solely on the money the deal with you brings in, so I like to keep it running as smoothly as possible.”
“A remarkable feat, Wriothesly,” Neuvillette nodded.
He filled the teacups for them and took the files to do a quick scan over them.
“Not as much as it might appear. My predecessor was quite lazy in those regards as it seems. Or had his priorities somewhere I couldn’t figure out yet. His disappearance is still something I like to investigate but I guess this is something better kept to the Marchèusse Phantom.”
Something in Wriothesly’s tone and facial expression intrigued Neuvillette, but he couldn’t explain what it was. Maybe the urge to go to the core of things Wriothesly showed? Who could know. His morals were quite high, that was something no one could deny.
“They are investigating the disappearance and requested to visit the Fortress to interview the guards and whoever had been around your predecessor the days before it.”
“Sure, if it helps. Just give me a heads-up.”
Neuvillette almost finished the files in front of him when he stopped at an official request by Wriothesly himself. An eyebrow quirked in bewilderment, he looked up.
“Could you please explain further about this request, Wriothesly?”
“Call it an additional deal with the Palais Mermonia. I noticed many inmates keep on causing troubles to get some time added on top because they don’t know what to do when they leave the fortress. Most of them spend most of their life down there, others have no one up here. I thought we should give them a different option than keeping on causing trouble.”
“Staying in Meropide.”
“Yes. It became a home of some strange kind for many of us. You allowed me to become the new warden, not only just because I picked up the mantle and kept things running and calm.”
“No, you finished your time without any troubles,” Neuvillette stated serious.
He got up and went to the office desk.
“What are you up to?”
“Sign your request. You are right about it. We should give everyone the same option I gave you.”
Wriothesly got up and followed him to the desk with some strange gleam in his eyes Neuvillette could not clearly name. Maybe it was some sort of hope? It was not the relief or excitement he expected to see.
With a smug smile, Wriothesly leaned forward and steadied himself on the desk.
“And they say the Iudex is a stern man with no heart.”
“I assume some people might think so because of my verdicts and deem them quite heartless.”
“I was joking, Monsieur Neuvillette.”
“Oh, I see.”
Slightly confused, Neuvillette handed him the signed documents back.
The rest of the meeting was the same as usual, and again Neuvillette couldn’t help himself but finding once again how easy it was to talk to Wriothesly. When the meeting came to an end, the young warden was already halfway out of the office when Neuvillette remembered the letter for Sigewinne.
“A moment please, Wriothesly!”
With a curious look on his face, Wriothesly looked over his shoulder.
“Did you forget something, Monsieur Neuvillette?”
“Indeed, I did. Would be you be so kind and deliver this letter to Sigewinne?”
A small smile on his lips, Wriothesly nodded and turned to take the letter.
“Sure, whatever makes the head nurse happy. I promised to get her new material for stickers on my way back.”
“I am glad to hear she has everything she needs.”
Neuvillette guided him to the door once the letter went to Wriothesly.
“Goodbye, Monsieur. See you in a month again.”
“Goodbye, Wriothesly, until next month.”
When Neuvillette closed the door behind Wriothesly he noticed one of Sigewinne’s stickers somehow ended up on Wriothesly’s coat when he gave him the letter. With a huff, he went back to his desk, assuming it wouldn’t be an issue.
Little did he know that a certain young warden would complain at the next meeting about the Melusine’s placing stickers on him whenever they get a chance, and Sigewinne writing him she found it hilarious to see Wriothesly getting all embarrassed by it.