A tall man in his forties, his dark crimson hair cut short and slicked back neatly. Clear amber eyes that seemed to take in the entire hall, observing the nobles that clamoured below. He was wrapped in a luxurious suit of red and gold, the cloth adorned with silver chains and white fur. A black and gold cape was draped over his right shoulder, a crown with five raised points embedded with severals tens of jewels resting on his head.
"Are you enjoying yourself, my dear citizens and friends? If something isn’t up to your standards and it irks you, please don’t waste your breath by making it known."
Arthas De Earhart, Ruler of the Earhart empire. He stood above the crowd, a slightly scarred hand resting on the railing of the balcony as the corners of his lips were turned up. Standing at his side was a graceful woman with long brown locks and quiet green eyes. Anastasia De Earhart, the current empress, someone who originally came from the house of Marquess Haravat.
The four sons of the emperor stood a bit behind them, peering down at the gathered nobles. Truthfully, only Abigail was born between Arthas and Anastasia, his four sons came from concubines he had in the past. As for those concubines… Due to various reasons, they had all left his side, the truth behind their withdrawal, and in some cases untimely deaths, known only to those involved.
"Today is a joyous occasion, a time of celebration for us all!"
Arthas spoke loudly, leaning against the railing with one hand while using the other to gesture widely. The air hummed with traces of magic, a few scattered mages responsible for broadcasting the emperor to the rest of the empire so that they could partake in the festivities. As such, everyone’s attention was naturally focused on Arthas.
"S, Blue 3. A, Black 7. H, Green 1. G, Black 1. L, Black 3."
Gabriel’s eyes were also on Arthas, his lips barely moving as an almost inaudible murmur escaped him. No one could see it, but something was slithering in Gabriel’s shadow. With how many people there were in the hall now, it wasn’t hard to find spots where the shadows touched so Nergal could move around stealthily as easily as a fish in water.
Why was Alice such a horrible menace in the original show? Was it just her myriad of magic affinities? No, the fire spirit she had contracted was part of it. And one reason it was such a headache was because spirits were hard to deal with, they were natural existences that were nigh-on impossible to sense if they wanted to remain hidden, it was like trying to detect a specific ray of sun on a bright day.
And while they could be sealed temporarily, there were only three magic formations that could permanently block out a spirit. Of those three, one resided in the Earhart Palace’s throne room, the second in the Kasarias kingdom’s castle, and the final one had was resting in a ruin that they had yet to unearth.
As such, Nergal was able to skitter around without anyone noticing him. Naturally, the fact that he avoided the leaders of the ducal and marquess families helped keep him hidden. One by one, Nergal reached the people that Gabriel had pointed out, creeping into their shadow. From some he took a thing or two, to others he delivered a thing or two, be it a note or something he had stolen.
Most of the nobles in the empire were gathered here today, from the highest to the lowest. Some could become allies, some would become enemies, and some of them were already their enemies. Whatever their futures held, this was not a situation where Gabriel would sit idle. Naturally, neither would Alice.
"V Black 7 to V Blue 8. V Black 3 to V Blue 2."
Alice’s voice reached Gabriel almost like a whisper. She was right next to him, always right by his side. No matter how low his voice was, she would always hear it. And no matter how seemingly nonsensical his mutter was, she could understand it. V for Vritara, Black for the colour of their suit, 7 to signify their position relative to the head of the family.
She was listing out people that weren’t part of Gabriel’s original plan so she had to be a bit more descriptive, still remaining extremely vague however. But she was confident that Gabriel would understand her intentions. And indeed, he conveyed the orders to Nergal once he returned, sending him out again.
Gabriel, and Alice for that matter, weren’t just targeting people at random. Alice was targeting her direct enemies while Gabriel targeted a mixture of current and future enemies. But Gabriel wasn’t foolish. The current them didn’t have the power or standing to properly handle those enemies. It wasn’t like with Leonardo, where Gabriel could sneakily kill him and pin the blame on someone else.
How was he supposed to kill a Marquess or their heir? The power needed to do so was one thing, especially a Marquess or a Duke, but the resulting ripples would be so great that it would be extremely difficult to not be caught. As such, they could not take them on openly, much like they couldn’t be apprehended openly thanks to the titles this investiture would give them.
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
But if one way didn’t work then you would just need to use a different way. An item from someone working for Duchess Sorin would find its way to someone working for Marquess Haravat. Something Marquess Artiom had done in secret would find its way to Marquess Haravat, who had been affected by said event.
Just a little prod, a little push to guide them forward. But more often than not, those little events was all it would take, especially when it came to prideful people like nobles. In the end, they would act against each other in ways Gabriel could not. Increased taxes, quiet take-overs of businesses, assassinations disguised as robberies, robberies disguised as common banditry.
Sometimes, a small pebble rolling was all it took to start a catastrophic rock-slide. And for Alice, Gabriel was determined to be every single last pebble.
Ahh… She really did turn him into a twisted person.
"…And with all that said, I do hope you all enjoy the festivities we have planned today? There will be good food, good drinks, the best musicians we could scrounge up, and naturally, rewards aplenty for the brave souls that acted for the sake of this country!"
Arthas finished his speech while Gabriel and Alice worked quietly, eliciting a thunderous applause from the nobles in attendance and the common populace that filled the streets all across the empire. He removed his hand from the railing and made his way down the stairs with slow steps, his every move oozing with a regal pressure that made it hard to take your eyes off of him. It was as if the jokes he kept making previously were just illusions.
He waved his arm when he reached the bottom of the stairs, signalling an attendant that was waiting for him. The aide used some magic, the floor of the hall beneath the balcony rising up into a podium that Arthas naturally stepped onto. Once again, he stood a bit above the rest of the crowd, his sons gathering behind him while the empress stood at his side.
"Abigail, come here."
He waved at Abigail, who stuck close to Caine, the two whispering to each other. She looked to be hesitating for a moment, but with the emperor giving an order she naturally had no choice but to comply. She stepped away and onto the podium, taking her place amongst her siblings. The emperor allowed his gaze to sweep over the crowd after Abigail returned to his side. He loosened the sword at his waist, using it almost like a cane as he placed it in front of him.
"Arioch Arie Barong, come before the emperor."
The emperor’s voice was low, a commanding and inviolable tone filling every word. The one called for had no choice but to respond.
"Arioch presents himself to the Bright Sun."
Arioch stepped away from the other people of the Barong duchy and knelt down in front of the podium, his head lowered as the emperor stood above him.
"You were first on the scene when the beast broke free of its seal, and you were in command of the men that helped beat it down. Those that perished for our empire were under your direct command at the time."
That was the tale they were going to spin. A beast had been sealed in the north long ago and had broken free of its shackles. It was just a coincidence, a horrible stroke of bad luck. Really, how could anyone be blamed for something like that?
"You have my condolences, Arioch Arie Barong, it is a terrible thing that others should die so that others may live in peace. But you can hold your head high and look at the citizens that get to live in peace thanks to their sacrifice. Look at their smiles, hear their laughter, and know that your men are at peace as they head to their next life. Wherever they end up, I am sure that they are proud of their choice."
The emperor naturally had to bring up the people that died when the seal on the claw was broken, nothing made peoples emotions act up more than a noble sacrifice. Arioch had his head lowered reverently, gratefully. But Gabriel guessed that he was probably gritting his teeth.
The two hadn’t spoken much, but from their few interactions Gabriel got the image that Arioch wasn’t someone who liked it when his men, and especially their deaths, were used like this. But with the emperor being the one to say it, Arioch would have no choice but to keep his head lowered and accept it.
"I thank you, your Highness. I am sure that they can move on with bright smiles, knowing that even you grieve for them."
The hall was silent except for Arioch and the emperor, even the dukes stayed silent as the two talked. Arthas raised the sheathed sword he had been using as a cane, resting the tip on Arioch’s shoulder.
"They are people whose loss has made the empire emptier, we should all grieve for them. The reward I will present you with will also partly serve as a way to pay back their noble sacrifice."
His voice was slow and heavy, it was to the point that one might think that it was his own siblings that had perished. But it worked. Gabriel could feel a somber air from some of the nobles in the hall, especially the lowest-ranked and youngest ones. It was exactly the mood Arthas was trying to create before he announced the reward.
"Let it hereby be known that I, Arthas De Earhart, exempt the Barong Duchy from paying taxes for the next 10 years! I will also allow them to double the number of knights they can raise for those 10 years, let us hope that even just a handful of those new knights have as much heart as those who passed for our peaceful lives!"
As a duchy, the Barong estate naturally paid an exorbitant amount of taxes each year, saving on those meant that there were a lot of scrapped projects that they could go ahead with. Equally, the permission to raise more knights wasn’t small. There was a limit to how many knights and soldiers the various estates could have, it was there to lower the chances of revolts. To double that limit? If the Barong duchy used their time wisely then their strength would rise by many magnitudes.
"You are too magnanimous, Your highness."
Arioch lowered his head further, almost as if the sword on his shoulder was exerting pressure on him. But his head remained lowered as Arthas pulled back the sword, the tip touching the podium as he used it as a cane again.
"Nay, I only ever give out exactly what others deserve. You may take your leave, I am sure you wish to grieve in your own way."
Arioch gave a low nod and turned around before rising. From start to finish, he had never given the emperor a single look. An excellent subject filled with reverence, surely. The mood in the hall slowly rose as Arioch returned, he would only be the first. And indeed, the emperor spoke up again before long.
"Gabriel, former servant of House Vritara. Come, it is time to claim your name."