The order to put hallucinogens into Mrs Blunt's drink came from the very top of the Bretonian government, yet without the knowledge, let alone approval, of most of those in it. It was carried out by no other but an SIS agent. This was for two reasons: firstly, Bretonia wanted to improve relations and an excuse was needed to replace Blunt, even though she had just had a successful mission (albeit not thanks to her competence, but rather to Kusari's willingness, to determine the level of which was the very reason of her being there); and secondly, should Kusari have taken offence at her antics, Bretonia would stand innocent, because substance use is easier to hide than incompetence -- or, in an extreme case, falsely accuse Kusari of drugging Blunt in the first place. But since everything had been proceeding smoothly, it was in Bretonia's interest to keep the affair quiet for the time being. Blunt was recalled, but instead of being fired, she was given a cozy office job at home. Joyce knew nothing of this, but he knew that mentioning Blunt could reverse the progress that's been accomplished (as expected to know by his superior), so on the second thought, he decided to intentionally forget about her.
It is obvious enough, but it should be pointed out that Joyce was a man and relatively old too, as he was 61 -- the exact kind of person that Kusari traditions preferred in politics. And he was quite a political animal, a political beast more likely. He was a man of good manners and good intentions, but if he knew that a certain Donatien Alphonse François, Marquis de Sade from Ancient Earth, said: "In an age that is utterly corrupt, the best policy is to do as others do" -- then this would be his motto. It was because of this that his weakness were much younger women. He was fascinated with the ancient Kusarian geisha culture, because in their apparent innocence he found comfort and refuge -- from his own corruption. The Kusarians didn't know this yet, but it was only a matter of time before they would find out.
"This one's perfect", Joyce referred to the same bonsai that Blunt had laughed at before. "So tiny, yet it's the product of so much devotion. That's what I like about your people, Mr Toshinori. You understand the relevance of the little things." He cued at the cup of gyokuro in his hands. "There's several little things in the Treaty of Rishiri that are immensely important. For example, Clause 2, where Kusari considers a part of our and our allies' space its sovereign territory. Or, interestingly, the Reparation Agreement: the term used is the war, it doesn't say which war though it obviously refers to the most recent one, yet it doesn't free Gallia from having to pay reparations for the first war, the one in 818. Or Clause 4, where Kusari de facto claims the entirety of Tau-23 -- does Clause 4 really exist? AHN published the supposed treaty and all the clauses you've decided to show us match with that document, yet you seem to have forgotten that Clause 4 should also be relevant. Is there anything else that you forgot to mention?"
![[Image: IeOloj2.png]](https://i.imgur.com/IeOloj2.png)