There it is! He’s the mastermind, all right! Their conversation had been very confusing, but it was clear he was hiding something. Liz kept her hand under the table and extended her index fingernail.
No. Not yet, she decided. Attacking him head-on without knowing what tricks he had up his sleeve was too risky. It was better to wait for a more guaranteed opportunity.
“Anyway, good night, Liz,” Zenos said as he stood up.
“Good night, Zenos,” Liz replied with a smile, smirking internally.
Yes. Good. The perfect time to strike would be once he fell asleep.
***
In the dead of night, when not a soul was awake, Liz’s eyes snapped open.
She’d pretended to sleep on the bed by the front door and waited for the perfect moment. It was time. After taking a few deep breaths, she cautiously got out of bed.
“All right. Here we go,” she whispered to herself, ready to conclude her brief yet never-ending infiltration. Without a sound, she headed toward the bedroom at the end of the hallway.
Mastermind or no, he’d be defenseless if she attacked him in his sleep.
Liz paused in front of the bedroom door, quieting her breaths, scanning for any presences within. The quiet sounds of two people’s steady breaths filled the air. “Now,” she said, slowly and carefully opening the door. Her eyes, accustomed to the darkness, spotted two beds—the elf girl slept in the back bed, and Zenos in the one closest to the door.
She silently extended the nail of her index finger, still holding her breath as she approached Zenos’s bed. His right hand was sticking out from under the covers, and all she needed was a tiny scratch.
“Do you need something from Zenos?” came a sudden voice.
Liz yelped awkwardly, startled. Cautiously, she shifted her gaze to the bed in the back, where the young elf girl lay propped on one elbow.
“What do you need at this hour, Liz?” the girl asked, expressionless, in a flat tone that only made her scarier.
“Oh, sorry, I was just... I was looking for the bathroom, and...”
“Ah! I see. The bathroom is on the opposite side of the hallway,” the elven girl replied in a cheerful tone, seemingly relieved.
“Yes. Thank you,” Liz said, backing away from the bedroom in a tactical retreat. What a terrifying girl. How did she wake up just then?
Liz chewed on her nail as she made her way to the bathroom down the hallway. She’d thought she’d been sufficiently sneaky, but maybe they were more guarded than she’d anticipated.
Well, no matter. Even his elven attendant would have to sleep at some point. All she had to do was be steadfast and wait until then.
And she did. She waited very steadfastly. Liz was a woman willing to wait as long as it took for the sake of her plans, after all. Then, just as dawn began to break, Liz finally crawled her way back to the bedroom.
“Why does this have to be so difficult?” she muttered quietly, cursing under her breath as she opened the door without making a sound. This time she made sure the two were asleep before approaching silently, and once again extending her fingertip toward Zenos’s right hand.
“What do you want with Zenos...?” the elf girl asked again.
Liz froze in place.
But the girl only mumbled in response—she’d been sleep talking.
Don’t scare me like that, Liz grumbled inwardly, breathing a sigh of relief. She touched her fingernail to the tip of Zenos’s finger, and scratched it lightly. Yes! Mission complete!
***
Amid the morning sun and the chirping of birds, Zenos opened his eyes.
He sat up and looked toward the bed next to his, where Lily was still sleeping. One long stretch later, he headed for the examination room. Liz was supposed to be sleeping on the bed there, but when he opened the door, he found her already sitting up.
“Good morning, Zenos,” she chirped.
“Oh, morning, Liz,” he replied. “You’re up early.”
“Well, not so much that. I barely slept.”
“Are you all right? Well, I suppose it’s strange to sleep well in an unfamiliar environment, especially since you’ve lost your memories.”
“Indeed. A lot happened, you see. But it’s okay now.” Liz confidently got off the bed and a fearless smirk spread across her features. “You’ll do as I say now, you see. With this, the slums will be ours.”
Zenos cocked his head in confusion.
Liz smugly pointed at the floor. “Kneel!”
Well.
About that.
Yeah.
After an awkward silence, Zenos tentatively spoke up. “Uhh...”
