Karsten, Baptiste, and Edmund were gathered in a stoney room. It was a small round room with a sizable round table in the middle. There was no window and it was lit with six candles on the wall.
On the table, there was the not-so-perfect world map where it displayed the Kingdom of Egra and its adjacent nations.
image [https://imagizer.imageshack.com/img923/2095/9t5GZC.png]
“I am, 99% certain, that the Siwen will invade us soon,” Baptiste declared. He did proclaim that they’d be invaded in three years. Well, that was a lie. The reality was they were likely invaded in a year or so.
“They just will not leave us alone, will they,” Edmund retorted.
Karsten was stroking his chin.
“They want the southern land. We all know why,” Baptiste replied.
There were less monsters further south and the access to the sea was something they wanted badly. For the Kingdom of Egra, however, the sea access wasn’t a big deal since they didn’t even have a port. In fact, the kingdom lacked naval technologies to construct even the most basic ships.
“Edmund, we are sure that all other nobles are under control, correct?”
The Flissing house had a direct border with the Siwen. Thus, it had been their duty to keep very vigilant eyes on their movements. Meanwhile, it fell onto the Fenchel to watch or spy on other noble houses in order to ensure that no one was conspiring with anyone.
Since those two houses were the original vassals of the former Kingdom of Egria, Karsten trusted the two houses far more than others. This was a known fact which other noble houses could not object to, for the time being at least.
“There is nothing overly concerning. They are not pleased that our two houses are given a higher status but they do know why,” Edmund replied.
Karsten was walking around the round table at a slow tempo.
“The Siwen think they can invade us at any moment they want. It’s time to teach them a lesson they won’t forget, ever,” Karsten proclaimed.
You see, Karsten was an ambitious man, and his abilities backed him up. He was not content with the reunified Kingdom of Egra. He intended to expand the border at the Siwen’s expanse. He had been secretly preparing for a counter offense soon after the reunification war was over. Only two houses were involved in this operation: The Flissing and the Fenchel. With the Egra, they could muster only about 15k in troops which was obviously not enough to tackle the Siwen Dynasty on its own under normal conditions. Mark the words, “Under normal conditions.”
“How is the plan going?” Karsten asked Edmund.
“So far so good, sire. They are ready to unleash hell,” He replied with a confident grin.
The Fenchel house had been training what was called “mage corps”. So far, mages were never exactly used on battlefields tactically. Well, they were deployed but individually with no coherent plans. Karsten wanted a dedicated group of mages trained for unleashing hell on battlegrounds. The three houses, the Egra, the Flissing, and the Fenchel had all been training their own versions of mage corps with varying success behind closed doors. The Fenchel so far had shown the most promise with their mage corps.
For example, the Fenchel had so far eleven mages trained specifically to deal with a very large number of soldiers. When a battle began, the mage corps would move in discreetly and unleash devastating area of effect spells onto the battleground. There was just one issue with the plan. It was that the spells did not distinguish between friends and foes.
“In order to make the Siwen concede any kind of lands, we must accomplish three things,” Karsten explained with both of his hands on the map. “One, we must cripple their main army. This shall be done by Fenchel mage corps.”
Edmund bowed lightly with a palm on his chest.
“I thank you for the honor,” He replied curtly.
“Two,” The king continued. “We must occupy the land we want to take. This shall be done by the Flissing.”
“Honored, my liege,” Baptiste replied curtly.
“Once their main army is crippled and lands occupied, I shall march toward their capital to send an ultimatum.”
But their plans had a missing piece. What of the rest of the nobles? What of their armies? Well, they were sacrifices. When the Fenchel mage corps destroy the invasion army from the Siwen, they’d blow everything up, including their own soldiers. Those sacrificial soldiers would come from the rest of noble houses. This would accomplish two things.
One, this would weaken existing noble houses even further.
Two, this should cripple the main invasion army which was the main goal.
There was a reason Karsten was underestimating soldiers from the rest of the noble houses. The armies of the former Kingdom of Egria were trained and disciplined because they had been through two wars already. In contrast, the armies of the west hadn't experienced any real combat for more than a hundred years. The reunification war saw no real combat and it ended in a conditional surrender where the royal family members of the west would be allowed to join the east.
The king, in a hope to improve their combat readiness, did ask Edmund to spread words that war was coming. However, he did not expect the nobles to spend any real efforts for soldier training because he firmly believed that the nobles of the west were lazy and lax. The only two noble houses he truly trusted were, again, the Flissing and the Fenchel.
“Any words from Atra and Estana?” Karsten inquired.
“We received no words from Estana,” Edmund replied. “Atra, however, has been receptive to the idea.”
The king wanted insurance or plan B in other words. He wanted a swift conclusion. If that wasn’t going to happen, he needed to make it happen. Hence, the second invasion from the west. The Siwen would panic at that point.
“Atra is just as cunning as Siwen in my book,” Baptiste retorted. “Estana is a nation you can generally trust.”
“True, I won’t deny that,” Edmund said. “However, they are not a warmongering nation, either. We can see why they haven’t been receptive to our deal.”
“Fools,” Karsten said firmly. “Choosing to stay still is the worst a nation can do.”
In his mind, once the Siwen was taken care of, Estana was his next target.
“So, what are their terms?” He asked Edmund.
“Simple and understandable. We take the east. They take the west.”
“We are not planning to destroy the Siwen though,” Baptiste added.
Annexing too much land too fast was a recipe for a disaster. History had plenty of examples where a nation annexed another nation only to crumble on its own weight due to having to spend too much money to integrate foreign provinces.
“We will take our targets only. Should Atra want the rest, let them have’em,” The king said while waving his hand away to no one in particular. “If Atra struggles, that will be our chance to tackle them. Should that scenario occur, we are going to ally with Estana.”
Both Baptiste and Edmund nodded affirmatively. They were calculating every possible scenario. The king folded his arms and started walking around the table once again.
“I’ve been waiting years for this opportunity,” He said aloud. “I’ve been wanting to smack the Siwen. They think we are weaklings. We will show them what we are made of.”
The Siwen Dynasty was a larger nation with more manpower and economy. That much was true. At the same time, the Kingdom of Egra had its own advantages. Its first advantage was the geography. Its mountains of the west shielded it from the Kingdom of Atra. Basically, they wouldn’t need to worry about any invasions from the west. And Estana was generally a peaceful nation, leaving only one enemy in the Siwen. In contrast, the Siwen was surrounded by enemies. Yes, they had their alliances and such, but alliances were fragile promises.
“Alright!” The king clapped his hands to signal the end of the war council. “Let’s get back to work!”
Baptiste and Edmund bowed lightly at once and left the chilly room.
“Edmund, I still insist on the marriage,” Baptiste told him as they were walking in a hallway.
“Was it true that you were attempting to get rid of her?”
Baptiste grimaced but acknowledged. “True, yes. Her status is just too high to marry her off to a random noble. I figured I’d get rid of her instead of shaming her. I hope you understand my position.”
Edmund was in no position to criticize him. After all, he had already murdered his own daughter although he might claim that his cause was just.
“I am not blaming you for the deed. I do understand where you are coming from.”
“Why are you resisting the marriage proposal? Honestly, I cannot see any downsides. Yes, Flora is a bit older, but that’s hardly an issue.”
Of course, Edmund couldn’t tell him the truth.
“My son has a candidate already,” He lied, sort of.
“Is she of higher status than my daughter?”
Nope.
“It was an old promise with someone dear to me.” Edmund continued on with his lie. “I dare not break it.”
Baptiste grunted, considering his options.
“Would you accept her as a second wife then?”
Edmund was mildly shocked that he’d suggest such an idea. While polygyny was the norm, the general structure went like this: The first wife and then mistresses. There were cases of a second wife but it was very rare within the Kingdom of Egra.
“Are you serious, Bap?”
“I am, Ed.”
These two men were quite close. They were of similar ages and met each other frequently during their childhood. They were friends at core which was the reason why the king was persuaded easily to push for the marriage.
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“I will consider it but no promises.”
“I wish you could just give me an answer now,” Baptiste pressed.
Having a second wife was tricky. The reason a noble had only a wife was due to inheritance. Any children born from a wife were automatically acknowledged whereas a child born from a mistress had an option to acknowledge. An illegitimate child had no right for any kind of inheritance, making succession disputes less messy.
Now, if a noble had two wives and both had children, one could foresee easily that it would get messy. A second wife would be politically weaker than the first wife, but a wife was a wife nevertheless.
“Alright, I’ve done what I can,” Baptiste conceded at last. “Let’s have a drink.”
Edmund nodded. “Sure thing. Your manor or mine?”
“Is Elias still around?”
“Aye.”
“I haven’t seen him in ages, so your place.”
Upon arriving at the Fenchel manor of Keviel, Elias greeted them and informed Edmund in the lobby.
“Your son has left the capital.” Noticing Baptiste, he added, “It has been a while, Lord Flissing.”
“Sir Hunt!” Baptiste greeted back loudly. “It’s been ages! I see that you haven’t aged one bit!”
Elias was known for looking far younger than his actual age. Indeed, the man had yet to have a single strand of gray hair. He could pass easily for someone in early 30s when, in fact, he was reaching 50. He was 49 at this point.
“I thank you for the compliment.”
“Come on! This is an informal occasion. Let us speak freely!”
Even so, only Edmund would be able to speak freely. Elias would still need to keep a level of formality. A butler led them to the dining area where two maids were busily preparing the table. This was an unannounced event, thus maids had plenty of work to do. Besides, Fabian’s manor had only two maids.
The butler poured wine into glasses gracefully as Edmund and Baptiste took their seats. Only after they were seated, Elias took his.
“I must say,” Baptiste said he took a knife and a fork. “Your son is exceptional. I was told by the king that he was the one who deduced my plot.”
Apparently, he had no shame whatsoever for his plot to kill his own daughter. In his own mind, he was doing a favor for his daughter.
“You’d be correct,” Edmund replied as he took a sip at the wine. “Hmm, nice. How old is this?”
The butler, holding the bottle, replied curtly, “19 years old.”
Baptiste widened his eyes and took a quick sip, and so did Elias.
“I do recognize the bottle. It’s from Lord Fabian’s personal collection, I believe,” Elias pointed out.
“He must be in a good mood if he opened up his personal collection,” Edmund remarked with a subtle grin.
“This IS nice,” Baptiste added. His glass was already half empty, and the butler refilled it. The bottle was already half empty at this point.
“It is my understanding that Lord Fabian is exceptionally pleased with your son,” Elias explained.
Edmund made no auditable comment to that. He smiled instead.
Baptiste pressed once more, “As he should be. He is exceptional indeed which is why I am pushing so hard for the marriage with my dear daughter, Flora. Do you not agree that the marriage proposal is perfect for each other, Sir Hunt?”
Edmund glanced at Elias.
“Perhaps, but it is not my business.”
“You are Ed’s most trusted advisor though.”
“Lord Flissing, I ask you to be kind toward your daughter.”
Baptiste didn’t quite understand Elias’ point. In his mind, he had always been kind to her. True, he didn’t mistreat his daughter. But his definition of her being happy was probably vastly different from her own definition. For him, reputation was everything. If Flora wasn’t going to get a husband of a suitable status, she’d be better off dead was his line of thoughts. Either way, he felt he was pressing too much and put an end to his literal nagging. Thus, he changed his topic.
“Do you think the war will go as his highness expects?”
“Probably not,” Edmund replied curtly while swirling his wine glass.
“Too many unforeseen variables,” Elias added. “But he does have a sound plan.”
The secret war council had been held numerous times previously. It was Karsten’s intention to repeat the same meeting over and over in order to drill the overall idea into those he trusted. Although the latest council was held with just three people, Elias had been included in the meeting a few times before.
“If his plan does work though, we will be in for a treat,” Baptiste rubbed his hands gleefully.
Karsten had already promised an additional fief for both houses, should the plan succeed. The Egra house itself would gain at least one fief as well. The expected gain was four fiefs, leaving one fief to be assigned to a new landed noble house. Whoever distinguished the most would be granted the last fief. This was something nobody outside of the secret circle was aware of.
Just as Baptiste was about to speak, two maids entered the dining area with dishes. It was a medium rare beef steak with veggies.
“Good timing!” Baptiste was getting tipsy and was happy to embrace the beef steak. He had already gone through two glasses of wine whereas both Edmund and Elias were yet to finish their first glasses. The bottle the butler was holding was nearly empty. Baptiste ended up drinking the rest of it and demanded more. Another bottle of wine was brought in, but it was just a decent one that was 5 years old. He was already too drunk to be able to tell anyway and ended up emptying two more bottles before passing out on the table with a fork in his hand.
The butler glanced at Edmund who had finished only a glass of wine. He was silently asking him what to do.
Wiping his mouth off with a piece of white cloth, he stood up while giving out an order.
“Send a man to the Flissing manor. Tell them to send a carriage to take him home.”
The butler made a light bow and walked out at once. He then gave an order to Elias.
“We are leaving tomorrow morning.”
“Understood.”
Meanwhile, Karsten was on a balcony of the castle within Keviel. He had a good overlook view of the whole citadel as well as its immediate vicinity although it being night his visibility wasn’t good. From afar, a levitating man was approaching, but Karsten didn’t go alert as if he was expecting him.
As soon as they were in a conversation range, Karsten demanded.
“Report.”
“Nothing is amiss, sire. Both houses are loyal to you.”
“As it should be, and the task I asked of you at the last minute?”
“Lord Fenchel has gone a great length to hide traces. On paper, the child is an illegitimate son of his who he later acknowledged. In truth, he is adopted.”
Karsten folded his arms. “So, he is not a Fenchel?”
“He is. He is the son of his own sister. Therefore, the child does carry Fenchel blood.”
“Nothing too wrong then. He has no son and has adopted his sister’s son.”
“Correct, sire.”
“Good.” He took a small coin pouch from his belt and handed it over to the levitating man. “As promised.”
“I thank you.” Then the man flew away into the darkness of night, and Karsten turned around to enter his bedchamber. He took a bell on a night table next to his bed and rang it. A guard entered promptly.
“Yes, your highness?”
“Call Isaac.”
“As you wish.”
Within minutes, a man dressed in scholarly attire entered. He wore a gray robe with blue linings and had short gray hair with dark brown eyes.
“I’ve answered your summon,” Isaac bowed lightly with a palm on his chest.
“The background check on the child is done. There is no problem.”
“I see. Shall I go ahead with drafting the document?”
“No, send a letter to the Flissing first. He is trying to tie him up with his daughter. Tell him to cease.”
“Your highness.” He quietly reminded Karsten. He had a tendency to take things for granted.
“A compensation, huh.” Folding his arms, he walked around in a circle. “Your opinion?”
“Money would be the easiest way. It’s important that we do not displease Lord Flissing at this point. We cannot risk disturbing the plan.”
“Money won’t solve this problem though. Isn’t that right?”
“True, sire. However, I do not think he thinks highly of his own daughter, given the fact that he hatched a plot to dispose of her. Money should suffice.”
“Ture, true…,” He continued walking in a circle with his arms folded. Eventually, he stopped. “Let’s give him a choice. Offer him 5 gold coins or a chance for his daughter to marry my second son as a mistress.”
Isaac gave it a thought and agreed.
“Very well, I shall draft the document and send it to the Flissing. I believe he is still in the capital. Thus, a response should be swift.”
“Good. Go.”
Bowing, Isaac left the bedchamber at once.
Karsten had a very good impression on Ewald. It was hard to believe that an eight year old was able to deduce a plot which even he didn’t manage to piece together. Granted, he never gave it too much thought, and it wasn’t important for him. That, of course, did not alter the fact that he observed a rare sight. A boy with such potentials needed to be tied down. Thankfully, he had an unmarried daughter whose age was within an acceptable range. Her name was Lillian Egra, a ten year-old second princess. He was originally planning her marriage proposal with Daniel Flissing. With Ewald in the scene, however, it was very easy to switch the target. There was another reason that he was very willing to switch his target for Lillian’s marriage. It was that he was uncertain whether house Flissing would survive the war. The settlements were right at the border after all.
One might mention that Lyatan was one of their fiefs that was positioned further down to the south, but the city was nowhere near its former glory of being a trade hub. In fact, it wasn’t a city at all. It was more than a large village at the moment, meaning no member of the Flissing resided there because there was no infrastructure to support the high standard of living. Therefore, should things go sour, and both Dido and Fort Dio would fall, members of the Flissing would be in harm’s way. He was sure they would come up with a way to ensure the safety of the Flissing members, but no one would know what would happen in war.
He was confident that he would be able to reclaim Dido. Alas, the fate of captured members of a nobility wasn’t often pretty, especially with the Siwen. They had a habit of outright executing them if male. If a female noble was captured, she would be raped and taken in as a slave. Only the Siwen was overly harsh against the Kingdom of Egra which gave more motivation for Karsten to do something about them, like crushing them for good.
His thought was disturbed when he heard someone enter the bedchamber. There was only one person who could enter the place without announcing prior. He didn’t even have to look at the person to know what she was.
“My queen,” He welcomed a woman with his arms open. She was the queen of the Kingdom of Egra, Corinna Egra. She was actually his distant cousin. When the reunification war was concluded, he chose to take a wife from the Egra family of the west.
Because both families had no physical contact for a hundred years, there were little chances of inbreeding. Thus, their marriage proposal was approved easily from both sides.
“I met Sir Knell on the way,” She said softly. Her appearance was decent with autumn curly hair with blue eyes. One wouldn’t outright brand her as beautiful if she wasn’t the queen, but she was fine in her appearance.
And Isaac’s last name was Knell.
“Oh, so he told you.”
“He has. Ewald Fenchel, the heir to the Fenchel? Isn’t Daniel Flissing better in terms of age?”
Ewald was 2 years younger. Daniel was a year older than Lillian.
“True, but Daniel is average at best. This Ewald kid, however, shows great potential.”
He went on to explain the event involving Flora Flissing and what had transpired during the royal party. He sounded somewhat excited in his tale.
“You seem excited,” She remarked. “Which means this child is the real deal.”
Princesses were, whether one admitted or not, political pawns. Their feelings didn’t matter. Their job was solely to establish useful connections and give birth. The only exception was when she was the sole heir where she might, just might, be able to inherit a seat of a household.
Because Karsten had two princes already, the princess had been educated from an early age that they’d be married off as soon as an opportunity arose. Of course, on the upside, they’d never suffer financially unless her kingdom fell.
“I will trust your judgment,” She conceded. She didn’t really have any powers anyway. Her opinions mattered only if they were positive. She learned this hard way during the early stage of their marriage. While Karsten appeared to consider her opinions, they didn’t seem to have any effect on his final decision if she opposed him. Only when she was in agreement with him, she was able to slightly alter outcomes. Therefore, she knew that there was no point at all in attempting to change his mind. What she was going to do, however, was adjust minor details. She didn’t have to but she was going to, just out of spite.
“But why don’t we propose the deal a little later? I heard he is only eight? Lillian is ten. Why don’t we wait two years?” She suggested.
The marriage deal with the Flissing was originally her idea. She was certainly not pleased that the whole deal was canceled at his whim. She knew she could not oppose him directly. Thus, she was going roundabout.
Traditionally, a female of noble lineage married on their twelfth birthday. In reality, however, marriage talks would go on before that age in order to secure her future groom. Upon reaching twelfth of age, she would move into her groom’s house and be properly educated for her role before being allowed to move into her husband’s quarter. This period would last two to three years, allowing the couple to sleep together at the age of around fifteen or sixteen.
It was a bit different for a princess, however. She would remain at the royal castle even if her marriage deal was confirmed because it was the general belief that the royals had better educators. Exception was made if the bride insisted on joining her husband’s house sooner.
“Two years?” Karsten considered her suggestion. She wasn’t too wrong in her statement that Ewald was indeed a bit too young at this point. Lillian herself was ten. Waiting two years wasn’t a huge deal. They could always obtain a verbal promise and sign the documents later.
Still, Karsten being Karsten made an alteration to his queen’s suggestion.
“One year should be fine. I want this to get signed soon.”
The queen knew she pushed enough. She wasn’t going too far to earn his ire.
“Very well.” She faked her defeat.
It was only then he looked up and down on her. She wasn’t in her nightgown, meaning she didn’t come here to sleep together. While she did bear him four children, it was a loveless marriage regardless.
She bowed lightly to him before departing the bedchamber. Once she was gone, he approached the night stand one again and rang the bell. A guardsman entered promptly.
“Yes, your highness?”
“Call Szekeres.”
“Understood.”