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Once the meeting of alternates has concluded, it's back home for the resident monarchs. Zevros grouses about his alt not being reachable yet. And then he grouses about his alt not being a man for - for reasons. Edarial tries very, very hard not to think about those reasons, and makes a face every time it's brought up. Zevros has mercy on his twin, and Edarial doesn't have to make many faces before Zevros's desire to screw himself isn't brought up again.

He also tries very hard not to think about how all of his alts have killed someone. This time, he's not as successful. Edarial's not sure if Prime's killed someone before the fiasco that was finding him, so he might be absolved for that, but the other two certainly chose to. Neither of them regret it in the slightest. He knows this because he asked, quietly, privately. It was in the defense of their matching Bells. That's - he doesn't know how to feel about that. That's worrying.

Obviously, the solution is math. He asks both alts for their - mental numbers, the factors behind them, and then he scurries off to crunch his own and compare with what they have. Iobel didn't want to have a competition, but - this isn't that. He's comparing notes. If he's - likely to kill someone in defense of her, he'd like a heads up first.

Copious amounts of math is completed. Edarial is - kind of frightened by the results. He gets up, and he goes to find Iobel. Because according to Adarin-math, he is probably capable of killing people in her defense.
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Iobel is sitting at her desk in her room, with Cricket on her feet, taking inscrutable notes on something. She's left the door to the room open, and looks up when Edarial approaches.

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"Hey," says Edarial, looking - troubled. Troubled is a good word.

"I think I would kill someone in your defense," he blurts, because he has no idea how to gently ease into that topic.
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"...Okay?" says Iobel, thoroughly wrongfooted.
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"I. Um. Did math." That is a terrible explanation. He is so terrible at this. "I have no idea what to do with this information."

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"Why were you doing math about killing people in my defense in the first place?"

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"Because it's - the kind of thing I feel like I need to know in advance. If I could be a murderer. And - both Cypress and Max had extremely specific reasons for killing. That being," he motions to her, "in defense of someone else."

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"Bells," specifies Iobel.

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"Yeah. Bells. And - I'm not assuming that because they did, I will, too, I - did math."

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"The - point system thing."

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He nods.

"You were bothered by it, before," he says, softly. "I can skip the topic, if you like?"
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"I'm not bothered by the idea of having a rank in a point system at all, I was just bothered by how the others were obviously all set to have a - fun contest about it."

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Edarial blinks.

"... Are you worried that your - rank in a point system is abysmal?"

He sounds bewildered. "Because it's not, you're beating Phix in at least one factor."
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"I was thinking I'd obviously lose by a dramatic factor the same way I'd have lost against either one in a - a race, when my flying spell is so disappointing and they've got wings and a flying tree branch respectively. I am?"
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He nods. "Phis is planning to fix things, which is great, but you are already working on fixing them by being queen. And have shown that you are capable of doing so. So you're definitely winning there. And - it's only about two points behind Phix. Ice is about six points ahead of her, if you'd like a comparison scale."

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"I'm behind Phix by less than Phix is behind Ice? Really?"

She sounds like she might not entirely believe him.
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"... Yes? Why wouldn't you be? She's got the huge factors of being able to resurrect the dead, and their empire is - all stable and perfect and everything."

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"I don't know, maybe I - misunderstood what it's supposed to measure."

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"It also measures love. Or some aspect of it. But it's not as large of a factor."
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"I had my understanding of the weightings wrong, then, I guess."

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Edarial smiles a little. "I - sorry, I should have realized."

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"How would you have known?"

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"I have no idea, but I'm occasionally mad at myself for not knowing everything. So."

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"What is the breakdown? If you don't mind saying."

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"Seven point six for intellect, twelve for wanting to help the world and using monarchy to do it and actually manage it, three point five for being systematic and logical about it, two for sticking to morals, four point eight because you're good with magic and trying to figure out immortality with it. Then, token point for being alive. And the - remaining four point six is - um. Complicated."

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"Do you want to skip the remaining four point six?"
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