"First," Liz said, stig a finger up—and Natalie couldn't help but have a fshback to the st instance of a teammate structuring an argument for her. Except that had been Ana ving Natalie to cum inside her, so it was a rather different situation. "I don't think your css is going to stay a secret for much longer, even if you wa to."

  "Oh? Why not?"

  "Not with, you know, um…"

  "What?"

  "You know." Liz tried to give her a Look, as if she didn't want to say it ht, but Natalie just returned fusion, because she didn't know what Liz was getting at.

  Liz coughed. "How obvious you're being," she said. "Or us, as a team, not just you. The waking Passions isn't even a plete secret to begin with, seeing how Elida probably knows, which means the Parda-Halt family does. So with the general cept out there, bined with the ridiculous rate yrowing at, and how we're all wearing skimpier armor by the day, and not to mention that, when it es to Lust specifically, you, um, well, will probably have worked your way through half our css by the end of the year—"

  "I don't get around that much," Natalie protested.

  Liz paused, then tactfully decided not to press the point. "Not to mention whatever else will be going on with your css in future levels, it's pretty clear that people in the know will make the appropriate dedus. I think sooner or ter, people will know you're a padin of Lust, even if you started being a lot more careful. I wouldn't be surprised if a few people, more than Elida, have already figured it out. It depends on what everyone knows … which is another reason to 'get into the loop,' so to say. So we have a better idea of what's going on too."

  Natalie made a noise of agreement. There wasn't much to refute in her logic. It would e out on its owually. Maybe the biggest giveaway was their equipment. While it ossible to get revealing armor from dungeon drops, why in the world would their whole team be getting such ridiculous items with such sistency? And every passing week would have them equipped in even lewder items, likely. Especially now that Natalie could mine and issioite gear.

  "Fair point," Natalie ceded. "But there's a lot more to the situation than just me being a padin of Lust."

  Liz defted slightly. "Yes, that's true," she said. "And you could probably get away with keeping all of that a secret, the specifics at least, for much longer." A small frown tugged at her lips. "But that doesn't mean it's the right thing to do. Particurly for the wellbeing of Valhaur and its people, whose leaders o be informed about a growing threat."

  Liz hesitated slightly, as if w whether to press that point. Natalie had mixed feelings. She did have loyalty to her kingdom, but at the same time, she had a much greater loyalty to her friends and family. And herself. It wasn't remotely a simir dilemma to her as it obviously was to Liz. She felt no acute, specific obligation to the . As was maybe fair, sidering the huge trast in their upbringings. The was literally Liz's family; Natalie had grown up out in the try.

  "But I also think it's the right choice for you as well," Liz said. "On a personal level. It's not just about obligation."

  "You think so? Seems like involving myself with the Beaumons would be a major headache," Natalie said mildly. "And almost certainly turo just another pawn of theirs."

  Liz winced, and quite noticeably, didn't disagree. "It's not that you'd be a pawn," she said. "Or, rather," she struggled with how to phrase it, "Everyone is, to aent? Even the highest-ranked delvers in Valhaur ko the King. Well … t extents." She shook her head. "What I'm trying to say is, it's a two-way street. I won't lie and say involving yourself with the Beaumons won't pce certain expectations on you, especially ter in your career, but it's not like you'd be getting nothing iurn. Sponsorship from the Beaumons, especially the King's attention, es with opportuhat's just how society works. I wouldn't call it being a pawn."

  "I had this versation once," Natalie mused. "Camille was talking to me about it."

  "Camille? From our css?"

  She nodded. "She seemed to think I'd be throwing my lot in with the Beaumons simply because you were on my team. Not eveioning all the other stuff."

  "Well, yes, I suppose that wouldn't have been unlikely, even without the extenuating circumstances, assumiay teammates in the long term."

  Natalie sighed. "You're n with anything you're saying. This has obviously grown too big to keep to ourselves." As much as she wao remain low profile and have a 'normal' year at Tehat wasn't going to happen. Already wasn't happening. "But there's oig point."

  "Which is?"

  "Malice."

  "Malice?"

  "We tell the Beaumons about everything, except for her."

  "Oh?"

  "Don't take offense," Natalie said. "But I don't trust your family. I only trust you. And I also don't think you could overrule anything the King wanted," or even that Liz had all that much sway, since she wasn't even his daughter, but rather his brother's daughter, "so Malice has to stay a secret. Because I'm vihey wouldn't just let her be. I don't know what they would do, but I'm not going to roll the did find out."

  Liz hesitated, then slowly nodded. It was clear it was a heavy cession—her loyalty to her family went deep, and she didn't want to hide anything.

  "That's … fair."

  "We could feed them any informatio from her, though," Natalie said. "We even say we have a way of talking to dungeon monsters, through…" she winced. "Through erotite arrows and al boss fights." Heavens above, expining all of that to the King of Valhaur would be iing, to say the least. In some ways, it would be more mortifying than having to expin her css to her own parents. "We'll just mentioning the capture core, and that we have persistent tact with al bosses like Malice."

  Liz perked up at that, that they would give all the perti details, just leaving Malice out. "Yes, that would be fine." She sighed. "As long as they know everything, whether they're told about Malice herself doesn't matter."

  Natalie nodded. "Though," she said. "I'm surprised you're so uned with the actual telling them part." Amusement twitched at her lips. "I mean, what are your parents going to think about you being on a party with a padin of Lust? As her support? Don't you think they'll … make some assumptions?"

  Liz stared at her, then bnched.

  "Uh," she said.

  Natalie ughed. Everyone had their blind spots. Liz apparently hadn't sidered the implications there, too worried about the 'big picture.'

  "M-Maybe we'll ght to the King," Liz finally said, a bit strangled-sounding. "There's no need for my parents to know. Yes, definitely, we'll ght to the King."