Annotated 38-15
“I’m sorry, my dear, but in the reshuffling of responsibilities, we decided to reallocate Don Pardo’s wood-elf-pun-making duties to me. So yes, ‘dead leaves’! Ce-what-I-did-dar?”
There’s a brief moment where Syr’Nj thinks Iwatani has confessed to murdering his fellow Heads of House. The fact that we haven’t quite gone there yet makes her suspicion into ominous foreshadowing, whereas if anyone had been killed, then Syr’Nj would be like those people in a horror movie who slowly walk into the attic.
Miyamoto, of course, doesn’t really give a damn about Byron or the love Syr’Nj bore him. His muttering is just his latest venting of frustration at having to justify anything to his racial inferiors. If she’d been seen sobbing on Byron’s funeral pyre, he’d be complaining about that as “beneath the Houses’ dignity.”
I could imagine some people just going “Nope.” and backing right out. Pretty sure she’d react quite differently to finding a bunch of corpses in an attic (or whatever) or to finding out that the Heads are actully, openly murdering people now.
Devil’s advocate:
While all the heads of houses are too busy to be *constantly* available, Syr’nj has duties which often take her far away and for a lot of time. One might expect that the removal of a head… much less 3… which require a unanimous council. But that might just be impractical.
Ideally you would have the outgoing head present to make their case, but sometimes the very case is that they’re too busy!
/Devil’s advocate
It’s interesting how Iwatani is being so diplomatic with Syr’nj, again. Diplomacy is his thing, and it’s not flowery or exaggerated: just a welcome bit of respect in a somewhat hostile room.
It’s particularly interesting that he calls her an evergreen, assuring her that her place is secure. And giving her solid reasons for the absences. He’s very pointedly not speciesist here, unlike Miyamoto. I don’t quite remember what his plan is, but he seems to be presenting it well.
Iwatani’s plan, hm.
I have assumed that it was Iwatani who eventually sent the assassin after Syr’nj, so at this point he is either planning to do it either way, or he concluded after the meeting that Syr’nj isn’t going to join the conspiracy. Either way, he is smooth when planning assassinations.
I get the feeling that if Syr’Nj were in mourning, Miyamoto would take the opportunity to be both racist and sexist.
Indeed. With some people, you can never win.
I quite like the way they tarnish her with the conspiracy by saying it was her point system that made them do it
It was Pardo’s points system, as they said, but she suggested the re-evaluation of the duties of the houses. Though I can’t remember exactly why at the moment.
Because Annunziata was using the fact that the Navy had been vital to Gastonia in previous conflicts as an excuse to try to push Syr’Nj off the council.