A Dragon’s Curiosity

 

 

Henry gasped as he had a moment of realisation, as the plan of the elf had a certain amount of ingenuousness.

Instead of involving more parties and suffering a loss of resources, a strong offensive would balance the forces of both Barons.

While the girl‘s plan did not give Baron Bellridge any benefits, it stemmed the losses and gave him a strong position to negotiate with his foe.

Baron Summerguard did not even have a cause to call for outside intervention, as he was paid back with the same method he used first, so he either had to stop or he could not complain at all.

In his heart, he had to agree that Nisha‘s plan was a tad more refined and had a higher chance of success, though neither of them was given enough time or details to make a proper draft to deal with such a situation.

“Not too bad, both answers are viable. In the end it comes down to a clash of interests, if neither side can gain a profit, it‘s useless to persist.“

It was not the right place or time to teach them about the political implications, since he currently appeared as Duke Dharnas in court.

Yet Henry‘s plan - despite being conservative and erring on the side of caution - and Nisha‘s approach would both work to resolve the issue before it was escalated to the level of the Royal Court.

Since even the two of them could come up with a solution, the two Barons should have their own considerations to let it blow up like this, although it was unfair to compare the vision of two lowly barons with the two budding heirs of a Dukedom.

Before the Grand Marshal had a chance to ask them another question that would guide them on the right path to understanding the nature of the conflict, the ceremonial master next to the king knocked his scepter on the ground, bringing a preliminary end to the hushed conversations and the dispute between Baron Summerguard and Baron Bellridge.

 

Rapping his fingers on the armrest of his throne, King Cederic alternated his gaze between the two main characters, his expression unreadable.

Before His Majesty, neither of the small characters dared to look and they both bowed to accept his judgement.

After a drawn out pause, the king turned to his left and addressed a young man sitting in one of the lounges.

In the far right of the hall, the outermost lounge only had a small entourage of elves, who did not seem too interested in the proceedings.

Next to them, a young man occupied the prime seat in their lounge, clearly too young to be a Duke, but his position decreed that he was an important member of House Silverwood, who had its crest proudly displayed in front of the lounge.

Duke Blackburn, who was situated between the throne and the young man, turned his head with interest.

It was common for His Majesty to inquire for the position of the different factions in court before announcing his decree, giving the different Duke houses a lot of face by taking them into consideration.

It was rare for the heads of the Dukedoms to attend in person, but it was also not unusual either, mostly depending on the attitude of the Dukes and Duchesses themselves.

Some also took it as a chance to train the younger generation and give them deeper insight into the political landscape of the kingdom, so Duke Blackburn was interested in the answer of the young man from House Silverwood as well.

Since the entire attention was currently on him, the potential successor of the Silverwood house sat up straighter and tried his best to maintain his dignity.

“Your Majesty, given the accounts from both sides, it is difficult in my humble opinion to determine right and wrong in clear cut terms.

Although Baron Summerguard might have gone overboard with his desire to fight back the monsters and free the lands of the kingdom from them, it is undeniable that the Bellridge estate suffered as a result.

Perhaps the best course of action would be for Baron Summerguard to tone back his expeditions and compensate the other side for any damages suffered so far?“

Bringing out a smile with great difficulty, the young man tried to project his confidence and magnanimity, yet in Nisha‘s eyes he lacked decisiveness.

With his approach, the current trouble would perhaps get resolved, but it would lead to a bigger conflict in the future.

 

The dragon felt disappointed by his performance, Duchess Silverwood was very famous and the girl had heard of her before.

As one of the very few, the Duchess was the main force behind the Silverwood house and owned the title, her husband married into the family and was Duke in name only.

Not many women managed to claim titles on their own, it wasn‘t that they had no ambition or lacked in achievements, but that they often married into other houses and focused on management of the territory instead of governing and expanding.

The Duchess Silverwood defied all expectations and turned down her engagement in her youth and participated in the fierce competition for the title of her father, eventually winning the contest and suppressing all her brothers and cousins.

She went on to pick a rather average viscount as her partner, marrying him out of love rather than political interests.

Many rumors circulated about her as an iron-blooded lady, with many similar titles.

Seeing someone from a family like that failing to come to a decision and trying to settle with the other side rather than taking a stand, it seemed like the younger generation failed to live up to the Duchess.

Next to him, Duke Blackburn smiled brightly, though only fools would fall for his bright facade.

As someone who made it through countless trials by fire to sit on his position, he was far ahead when it came to schemeing and political moves.

The weak answer by the current representative from House Silverwood entertained him greatly and he no longer paid attention to this young man, who would have limited achievements in the future.

Following the lead of the king, the attention shifted to the other side of the throne, where the lounges of House Whitehall and House Dharnas were situated.

His Majesty, King Cederic did not even bother to ponder over the suggestion he heard, clearly giving little attention to the proposal as it was beyond amateurish.

Once the concentrated attention of the public and the movers and shakers in Leandar left him, the youth paled and slumped in his seat.

He did not manage to present his arguments as he had practiced them under the great pressure from the King‘s gaze and he delivered a weak stance.

To stand out among his peers at the Duke‘s household was a great honor and he worked hard to snatch this chance to attend court as the Silverwood representative, yet all his hard work amounted to nothing.

Without another opportunity, it would be hard for him to rise in the next few turns at least.

 

Following the shift in attention, the focus was now on an old gentleman from the Whitehall Dukedom.

Previously, he had rested his eyes and appeared asleep as he barely moved, but no one would underestimate the elders coming from the esteemed Houses at the top of the capital‘s noble circles.

Only geniuses managed to stand strong through several generations of new talent and still hold on to their positions, anyone capable enough to resist the corrosion of time to an old age was not to be underestimated.

Suddenly, his bent spine straightened under the gaze of the public and his closed eyes snapped open with a sharp gleam, turning a feeble old man into a true blue aristocrat in the blink of an eye.

Perhaps the elderly gentleman was from the generation of the current Duke Whitehall‘s father, or grandfather, only the long lived experts from the same generation could tell for certain.

Since the old man had experienced the late King‘s pressure, it was a breeze for him to speak under the eye of the public and King Cederic.

Brushing his white moustache with one hand, he looked at the youth from the Silverwood family without any bias for a moment, then he made his argument.

His emotions were unreadable and his aged voice had a deep timbre refined by time to it.

“Your Majesty, in this one‘s opinion, it is wrong to punish a loyal subject purely for their wish to defend the country against the threat of monsters.

Commoners pay taxes, nobles shoulder the duty of protecting them against the threats beyond the borders of civilization.

Whether it is keeping the roads intact or defending the subjects against the threat of the Wilderness, both are fundamental duties bestowed on fortunate individuals by your grace, Your Majesty.

Complaining about these matters is the same as complaining about Your Highness‘ decision and trust in them.

So, this one recommends to reject this matter from court before anyone gets accused of treason.“

Neither speaking fast or slowly, the old gentleman tore deeply into the arguments of House Silverwood and Duke Bellridge.

He did not need to say much either, his long turns of experience polishing his eloquence down to the essentials.

 

Perhaps there were small flaws in his deduction, but it was impossible to point them out and turn it into an argument, since that meant going directly against the King and his decisions.

Nisha admired his poise, the elderly gentleman carried himself with neither overbearing seniority nor grovelling subservience.

In front of His Majesty King Cederic, his spine was straight as a sword and his eyes clear as the depths of a lake.

As the public recovered from the short, yet brilliant dazzling dominance expressed by House Whitehall, they processed his words and turned thoughtful.

King Cederic himself gave the elderly man a deep look, who return to his previous bent, resting state after saying what he had to state.

Clearly, the dignity of a ruler was not injured, it was the privilege of the older generation to speak freely before those who they watched grow up.

Perhaps it would be difficult for the current Duke Whitehall to repeat the feat, but it was unsuitable for King Cederic to suppress an elderly for his opinion in court.

While the court waited for the final decision of the king, Nisha‘s eyes lit up as she connected the two Barons to their respective factions.

House Silverwood supported the case of Baron Bellridge and wanted to censor their rivals, House Whitehall in front of the king through Baron Summerguard, who overstepped his boundaries with sloppy methods.

Sadly, the current development was not favorable for their cause, as public opinion among the court session started to turn.

Sharing her discovery with Henry, the brown haired boy nodded along.

“That‘s correct, more or less at least.

Fortunately, the politics in Leandar are not as complicated as the Terus Court, or we would have to dig through generations of genealogy books and records of rumors to figure out who‘s allegiance to whom was fake or genuine and which family has a secret accord with another, only for them to backstab them against all logic because their family branch has a longstanding grudge from hundreds of turns ago.

Then again, no politics is complicated when compared to the Terus council.“

It wasn’t the first time that the elf heard how complicated the Terus Empire politics were, it was a common joke at the Royal Academy and many of the books she read at the common section of the Grand Library had similar references.

But it also did not answer all of the questions the dragon had, so she asked for clarification while the court waited for the King‘s verdict.

 

Fortunately the lounge‘s prepared for the Dukes had a silencing array inscribed, as the array of young talents behind the old gentleman from the Silverwood House discussed with animated expressions as well, while Duke Blackburn had two secretaries scribbling notes behind him.

Only the youth from House Silverwood lacked supporters, since he snatched this opportunity from others, he only had some friends without any presence and a servant from his family sitting behind him.

The Sheridan formation only had their representative, but they never needed more either since he was fully qualified to make all decisions without needing to communicate with the Sheridan Duchess behind him.