บท 625: Chessboard - II

At the entrance of the dimly lit tavern, Marlina closed her notebook and shifted her gaze away from the wooden door from which muffled groans emanated. 

Behind her, Inothea followed with crossed arms, wearing a sullen expression.

"You have no right to boss me around, Margarete."

Who knew how many times she had repeated this? Inothea, suppressing her fury, reiterated, "If you need a bodyguard, fine, I'll find you one. But it shouldn't be me—"

"Do you have such confidence in your subordinates?" Marlina glanced back at Inothea. "They disregarded my plans that day."

"I crippled them all, isn't that enough for you?"

"I do not harbor unnecessary emotions; I care only for the results. The result is... my situation was perilous, and my plan nearly failed. That's all there is to it."