The three messengers led the way to the location where Shui could meet Pon. Along the way, Shui decided to seek some answers from them.
"So for how long has your young master been paying attention to me?"
"The young lord has a keen interest in the talents of our manor, especially shocking talents such as yourself."
"I'm honoured. And for him to send escorts as soon as I arrived, it seems that an opportunity to be of aid is fast approaching."
"...You may interpret it as such."
"I see. However, I must remind you that my power is not to be used in an uncouth manner."
"Hmph! You have no need to worry. The young lord's cause is righteous, and his means no less."
"That is good to hear."
Shui used roundabout language to make his intentions hard to grasp, but he was able to get the answers he needed from their reactions. He confirmed that Pon had been paying attention to him from soon after his arrival at the manor and that he needed his help for an upcoming event. He also figured out that his subordinates saw him as a wise and fair leader. To avoid rousing their suspicions, he didn't ask many questions, but he was able to get a preliminary idea of Pon's character and intentions.
'Now, I just need to meet him.'
Although the core section was large, a couple of minutes was enough to get them to their destination. Shui had expected that they would speak inside a residence as a measure against curious eyes, but instead he was led to a quiet garden with a gazebo at its center. Nonetheless, he detected arrays and structures that could prevent anyone from eavesdropping, so some thought had likely been put into choosing this location.
At the center of the path through the garden to the gazebo, a young man with long black hair waited for them. Though he didn't always like the compliments he received, Shui knew that he was handsome and took pride in that fact. However, even he had to admit that this young man wasn't far from him in terms of charm. Shui's aura would give him a big advantage, but in terms of appearance alone, they could be considered equals.
The young man wasn't just outstanding in looks either. He had a serene expression that seemed like it wouldn't change even if the sky fell and a peaceful aura that could soothe weary hearts. His cultivation was also in the late Earth Realm, easily making him one of the top figures among the younger generation in Silver City. Even if it was just a surface-level impression, with both a prestigious background and the skills to match, he was someone that could be described as perfect.
"Thank you for making your way here. I am known as Pon of the Xin clan, but you may refer to me as Pon."
"But young lord!"
"It's fine, Dee. I have decided that he is my equal, and I expect that he will be treated as such."
"...Yes, young lord."
They seemed to have their own ideas, but the messengers backed down after Pon's response. Shui sensed that the man called 'Dee' and Pon were closer than any ordinary master and servant, but it was too early to touch on that topic.
"My name is Shui. I hear you have some business with me."
"Yes, I do. Please, Shui, follow me."
Pon then turned around and headed to the gazebo. It was far too late to consider leaving, so Shui followed him without hesitation. When they reached inside the gazebo, Shui found two chairs around a table with a prepared tea.
"Feel free to have a seat."
Shui took Pon's advice and sat down on one chair while Pon took the other. The two faced each other with the table between them, and each took the cup of tea placed before them. Shui didn't think it would be poisoned, and there were few poisons that could work on him to begin with, so he calmly took a sip.
"It's good. What tea leaves did you use?"
"Thank you; I grow them myself, actually."
"So, I've let you show off our meeting; isn't it time you told me what your purpose is?"
"As expected, you could tell."
"It would be hard not to, considering the circumstances."
Even if Pon was no longer under surveillance, there was no way Shui would be allowed to walk freely without being watched. He didn't bother to count how many there were, but he could sense that there were observers following him since he entered the core section. He wasn't sure at first, but after meeting him, Shui was certain that Pon wasn't stupid enough to overlook that, so it must have been done on purpose.
"Now then, where to start. How much do you know about how I came to be replaced by Mater as the head disciple?"
"Nothing too specific. Just that you lost in a duel with him."
"Yes, that much is true, and I won't make excuses for why I lost, but I hope you can listen to the story behind that duel."
"Go on."
"When Mater became my junior brother, I didn't feel much pressure; I just hoped that we could get along and compete fairly for the position of manor lord. My advisors warned me that he was a schemer, but I considered tactics another aspect of strength and welcomed its use. However, I underestimated the lengths he was willing to go to defeat me.
Almost a year after he became the manor lord's direct disciple, he challenged me to a duel, and while I won't get into the details, a day before that duel I was ambushed by several opponents using poisoned weapons. I was able to fend them off, but not without injury. I tried my best, but though I could beat him at my full strength, Mater wasn't an opponent I could defeat in my weakened condition. Later on I found out that he was the one who orchestrated the ambush, but when I tried to challenge him to a second duel, I became targeted by assassins on a regular basis.
By then he was strong enough to face me as an equal, so I knew I wouldn't be able to defeat him if I had to handle other threats at the same time. As a result, I went into hiding despite the objections from my followers."
"Didn't they know the full story?"
"Mater is a crafty man. It was hard to say who would have been on my side even if they did know."
"Traitors, huh? Troublesome."
"Yes. Until recently I had accepted his victory despite his disagreeable means and was planning on withdrawing myself from the competition to choose the next manor lord, but I've found myself questioning that choice due to his latest decisions."
"His latest decisions?"
"Indeed. I already knew that he was a ruthless character, but I still think he's too obsessed with oppressing junior sister Kate. While I acknowledge that with her talent she might become a threat to his position in the future, if he's allowed to kill any talent that might surpass him, the manor will stagnate at best and degrade in the worst case. And to make matters worse, he was complicit in that horrible incident involving the inner section disciples."
"An incident? What incident are you talking about?"
"Hmm? Were you not aware of what happened to the other disciples from your Heaven clan and the Glaize clan?"
"Yes, but you mean to say that Mater was involved?"
Shui was sceptical because while they were somewhat connected to Kate, he couldn't understand why Mater would take the risk of getting them killed when such an act could strip him of his status as the manor lord's direct disciple.
"I was suspicious as well, but after investigating the incident, all the pieces appear to lead to that truth. Unfortunately, I lack strong evidence, but would you still like to hear what I discovered?"