"Well, if they are suggesting this, then the situation is more tense than I think we realized," said Orazio as he slowly regained his composure. He knew exactly who Karl was talking about, and that knowledge alone was enough to make the atmosphere in the room heavier. Everyone present understood that the message had come through the Sonnenbergs, which meant the assassin family was paying attention even if they had no intention of appearing themselves. That alone was enough to make several of the great houses reconsider just how carefully they needed to proceed.
None of the great houses had direct contact with the assassin family for longer than Orazio had been alive. The trade families were even harder to read, as they simply refused to speak whenever they did not want to discuss something. The assassin family was therefore almost a complete mystery to everyone in the room, despite the fact that every major faction in Europe knew they existed. They had spent generations trying to gather information about them, yet their active intelligence programs were constantly being compromised by people they could never identify.
They did not even know where the assassin family actually lived. There were several locations that they strongly suspected, but nothing had ever been officially confirmed. None of the great houses were foolish enough to send someone there simply to find out whether their suspicions were correct. They all understood what it meant to intrude upon another family's ancestral lands without permission, especially when that family specialized in making people disappear. Europe would explode if one of them crossed that line, and not a single great house or trade family would step forward to rescue the unfortunate fool responsible.
"Are they interested in joining the discussion, or will they remain behind the scenes?" asked Orazio. His voice was calm, but the question carried more weight than it appeared to. If the assassin family intended to participate directly, then this meeting had suddenly become much more important. Karl, however, simply shook his head.
"No, they are not particularly interested in the discussion itself," said Karl. "They do, however, suggest that we inform China, on behalf of the European Union, about our plans to bring these proposals before Parliament." He paused briefly before continuing. "They also suggest that we send the proposals exactly as they are now, rather than waiting until we have polished every detail."
That suggestion immediately made sense to Karl. Sending the framework in its current form would give them a foundation that could later be adapted to different cultures and legal systems. It would also allow China to participate in the process without being forced to accept a finished European solution. As Karl spoke, he noticed the relief spreading across the faces of the other people in the room, even though they were only represented by holograms.
The reaction was understandable, because none of the people present actually had a problem with the assassin family. In fact, most of their ancestors had lived during periods when families like theirs were completely normal parts of political life. The problem was that modern Europe had developed a very different public image, and being seen together with an assassin family would create questions that nobody wanted to answer. It would damage their carefully maintained reputations, regardless of how harmless the actual meeting might be.
Karl personally did not care about that distinction. He knew the assassin family well enough to understand that they followed a strict code, and that code was one of the reasons the criminal underworld feared them so much. There had been periods throughout history when the family received too few commissions to keep themselves occupied. During those times, they had reportedly turned their attention toward criminals instead.
The criminals who survived those periods were usually the ones who managed to disappear before the family became interested in them. Once the assassin family decided someone was a criminal, they seemed to possess an impossible amount of evidence proving exactly what that person had done. They also had very little faith in the prison system, which meant that being judged guilty by them usually resulted in a much more permanent sentence. Karl preferred not to think too deeply about what happened to the unlucky ones who were not killed quickly.
"You know, that is not actually a bad suggestion," said Gustaw. He tapped his fingers against the armrest of his chair, trying to hide his nervousness. "We all know that China places particular importance on protecting its citizens, so they will not want to be caught unprepared if their own people start demanding similar legal protections."
Gustaw understood the political implications better than most. His great house had been deeply involved in the events surrounding both the trade families and the reaction that followed. He was therefore very aware of how quickly old grudges could become modern political problems. The Sonnenbergs were particularly worrying because their ancestral lands had been involved, while the assassin family had simply disappeared from the public eye.
Oddly enough, that disappearance made Gustaw even more nervous. The Sonnenbergs were frightening when they became angry, but at least their actions could still be observed and understood. The assassin family was described in historical records as considerably more terrifying, and nobody in the room wanted to discover whether those accounts were exaggerated. Gustaw had no intention of allowing his discomfort to show, however, so he continued tapping his armrest as though nothing was wrong.
"Good, then send it over to China," said Fabian. "After that, can we please move on to the next topic?" He sounded tired of the delays, and nobody could really blame him. Fabian had become the spokesperson for the trade families largely because he possessed the most goodwill among the major factions, excluding the Sonnenbergs.
Unfortunately, that goodwill did not make the meeting any shorter. The great houses were already sitting on pins and needles because of the Sonnenbergs, and Fabian could see no reason to make the situation more complicated than necessary. The trade families had their own interests to protect, and none of them wanted to spend an entire day discussing political consequences when they could be working on their crafts instead.
"I believe that is all we wanted from the trade families on this subject," said Orazio. "We will send you the meeting notes for the remainder of the discussion later, but you are free to leave." He expected the holograms to disappear gradually after some polite goodbyes. Instead, nearly half of them vanished before he had even finished speaking.
Orazio stared at the empty spaces around the table in disbelief. "Well, we have been talking for rather a long time," said Samonte with a wry smile as he checked his wristwatch. "Normally, they would at least say goodbye." His comment earned a few tired laughs from the people who remained.
"That is true," said Gustaw as he leaned back in his chair. "Still, I cannot believe we misread our relationship with China this badly if they felt the need to step in." His expression became thoughtful as he considered the implications. "Perhaps we should have considered their reaction much earlier."
"No, I do not think that is quite what happened," said Orazio. He shook his head as he considered the legislation more carefully. "We simply failed to think through every possible reaction before deciding how to proceed." He looked around the remaining holograms before continuing. "If we had pushed this legislation through without consulting them, then yes, our relationship would have become strained."
Nobody disagreed with that assessment. Europe had little interest in creating another unnecessary source of tension, especially when the continent was still rebuilding its economy and infrastructure. Orazio had another reason for wanting better relations with China, however, and it was one that immediately caught Samonte's attention. "Personally, I would like to see the Silk Road restored," Orazio said.
"That is not a bad idea," replied Samonte, his expression immediately becoming more interested. The moment money entered the conversation, his attention sharpened considerably. "It would be difficult, though." The modern world had changed too much for simply restoring the old routes to be an easy task.
"Yes, but that makes this proposal even more useful," said Gustaw with a smile. "If we can use these reforms as a gesture of goodwill, then perhaps they can become the beginning of something much larger." He looked toward Orazio with renewed interest. "A legal framework that benefits both sides could be exactly the kind of excuse we need to reopen discussions."
Orazio nodded slowly. The meeting had started as an annoying legal discussion about workers, factions, knowledge, and breathing methods. Somehow, it had already grown into something much larger involving international relations, financial cooperation, and the possibility of restoring one of the greatest trade networks in human history.