Tobias Stalt is not a bad person. He is a man with a sound moral code; one that may clash with the companies he keeps, but a sound one nonetheless. It was admirable. I fully trusted him to keep his word and deliver my message to Ashla.

Not just for her sake, but for our sake too. I was fully confident in our ability to crush the young girl, but I too wasn't in the mood to fight another war. I had just executed a very grueling coup, wrenching control of the Order from Lichensith's hands. I am in the process of breaking that poor, misguided bastard and reforming him into something more... useful, I guess you could say. I had fires to put out caused by that wretch Zack Blaze and his outing of our participation in Eiskalt. I'm praying that Ciato doesn't tell the rest of his family what really happened to Kyla, lest I have to deal with that mess as well.

I have so much to manage now, and so much planning to do. I cannot handle another annoying pest like Icebreaker right now. I do not have the patience, I do not have the willpower, I do not have the energy.

I took a deep breath, and let it out. "You are a good man, Tobias. May the next time we meet be under good circumstances." I picked up the gold he left on the table as well as my empty plate and glass, and walked inside the tavern.