As Shard walked over with a frown, the stranger waved him over, indicating for Shard to sit down. Only then did Shard notice the stranger's slack skin; his right fingers looked as though they had spent too long in water, causing it to peel, and wore a white bone ring shaped like a skull with a small snake's head protruding from the skull's mouth.
"Just waiting for you."
The stranger's eyes lit up, and although his voice was filled with fatigue, his tone became a bit brisk:
"Have a seat. It's convenient to talk since all three of you are here."
He spoke with an unusually perfect Tobesk accent.
[Be careful.]
The voice of "her" rang in his ears. Shard hesitated a moment and glanced at both Princesses before sitting down opposite the strange man.
The man tapped the table, staring into Shard's eyes, and said:
"Allow me to introduce myself—I'm Victor Vanny."
He tilted his head slightly to one side: