Months passed and today was finally the day Henry and his family would depart for the capital.
Alfred placed his hand on his son’s shoulder as they walked outside, “Henry, this journey is a long one, but we will be going through a part of our territory you have never seen before, so it should be fun.”
The carriage Henry and his parents used last time was once again parked in front of the main gate. The one difference was the much larger number of knights and soldiers that were waiting next to it.
Alfred looked at his trusted retainer and spoke with a smile. “Aron, I will leave the protection of us all in your capable hands.”
“You honor me, my lord. We will give our all to escort you safely.” Aron's voice was firm and full of confidence as he bowed deeply.
Alfred looked over the assembled troops and gave them his orders. “We move for the capital men. Don’t let anyone question our standing as the strongest sword of our kingdom.” Once he finished his short speech Alfred helped his family enter the carriage.
The trip was not difficult as the roads were well maintained and broad. The duke and duchess once more used the trip to meet with the people who were put in charge of various villages and towns along the highway. The group traveled for a while longer and finally crossed into the territory controlled directly by the royal family.
“We are now in the central region, my lord.” Aron said while riding next to the carriage.
Alfred peeked out of the carriage and replied. “Good, not long now. Keep your eyes open.”
Henry ignored their talks as he knew these men now, there was no need to fear when they were around. They were all his sparring buddies, and if someone knew how strong and capable they were, it was him. What captivated Henry was the beautiful landscape before him. People in the fields, eagles in the sky hunting their prey and the occasional deer that could be seen in the far off groves, they all gave Henry a deep sense of tranquility.
The journey continued and the carriage rolled down the wide highway day after day. Before long they started passing by various other nobles and merchants who were going to the capital or towards the East. At last Henry saw the much awaited sight through his window. The splendid city with its reddish walls and a huge castle that was the home of the royal family stood before his eyes.
The city was breathtaking, but the skies above it were dark, filled with stormy clouds. Henry looked in awe as the lightning bolts dashed through the sky and the roaring of thunder broke the silence of the land.
“Well it would appear the capital is happy we are back, Al.” Eleonora giggled as she pointed towards the massive storm in the distance.
Alfred looked at the scene before them and chuckled. “Indeed, let us just hope those nice people living in it have learned to keep their mouths shut, at least in front of us.”
“Oh, I don’t worry about that, we gave them a long lasting memory last time.” Eleonora’s voice was full of confidence as she rested her head on Alfred’s shoulder.
Henry, who knew how his parents dealt with annoying people, was not too keen to find out what his parents did to warrant such confidence. A knight swiftly rode from inside the capital and quickly cleared a path for the duke and his people. No one in the line dared to object openly, they saw the knights and soldiers marching and the splendid carriage adorned with one of the best known coats of arms in the kingdom.
As expected, the walls and the gate were enormous. The beautiful and intricately carved gate was wide open and the town guard was lining up behind it to allow the newcomers to pass directly into the noble’s quarter.
Soon they arrived before a splendid white mansion, towering and eye-catching even among the many mansions of the richest people in the kingdom. The gates were opened and the servants lined up to welcome their masters, who have returned after many years of absence. Standing before them was an old man in a butler's attire.
The elderly man stepped forward and bowed, “My lord Alfred, I am so happy to welcome you back. My lady you haven’t changed one bit, and this must be the famous little lord Henry. Please come in, do not let the rain catch you outside.”
Alfred nodded and gave the man a hug. “John, it has been too long. Let us talk inside.”
Once inside the living room they all received tea and started relaxing after the long journey.
Once he saw that the family was relaxing, John informed them that their rooms were prepared. “My lord, my lady, your room has been prepared and we have prepared all the other rooms, so the young lord can choose whichever he wishes.”
Eleonora looked over at her son, “Henry honey, if you like, you can go with John and pick out a room.”
“Any room I want? If possible, can it have big windows or a balcony?” Henry stood up and gave his hand to John.
Taking Henry’s hand John took a moment to think about the rooms that fit the boys requirements. “In that case my lord I have two rooms that are perfect for you. One is above your parent’s room and the other one is at the opposite side of the mansion. We can have a look at them whenever you like.”
“Can we go now?” Henry could not wait to see the rooms and decide which one had a better view of the surrounding land.
“Of course my lord, I am at your service.” John was pleased that there was finally an heir to his lord’s name and that he could help make that child happy.
When the two left, the remaining people sipped on their tea and conversed about the changes that happened to the city in their absence. The talks were interrupted once a new person came into the room.
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“Greetings my lord, my lady. This Belford is ecstatic to see you once more.” While saying so the man performed the customary knight salute.
“Oh, long time no see. How have you been? Like your job here, captain of the guards?” Alfred said with a smirk.
“My lord you must not jest like that. I long for the open plain and the battlefields in the east. This place is full of boredom and squalor. I have to spend my days rotting away in here, while all my friends get to play around in The Great Forest. Please forgive me and let me return home.” Belford said with his head hung low, he was a man sentenced to death, pleading his case to a ruthless judge.
Alfred put on a serious expression on the outside while grinning victoriously on the inside, “If you prove to me that you have learned your lesson I will let you return, once we head back, that is.”
“Is that true?” Belford alternated his gaze between the three people in the room. Once he was sure it was not a joke, he knelt down and started sobbing.
Alfred turned and looked at Anna with a victorious smirk on his face. “I told you I could break him better than your lessons. I do not think he will be making any more rash decisions.”
“I hope so. Belford if I see you doing anything unbecoming I will personally have you demoted and put on guard duty in front of that gate outside.” Anna was now angry as she lost to Alfred, so she decided to vent a bit of that anger on the person who was at fault for her predicament.
Belford bowed even deeper and with tears forming in his eyes yelled. “Please no! I will be on my best behavior, I am a weapon of war not a show knight who sits in parlors and fights in tournaments all the time!”
The back and forth continued until Henry returned with John. The family then moved into the dining room and retired for the day.
***
The next day helped Henry understand why his parents left the capital so many years ago. A line of people, reaching as far as the eye could see, was waiting outside since before the break of dawn. There were various nobles and merchants who wanted to greet the mighty lord and lady of the Sigurdsons.
“Can’t we just say we have other matters to attend to?” Alfred said while leaning on the wall.
Anna was, as always, shocked at Alfred’s remark. “We must show the basic hospitality to these people.”
Much to Alfred’s dismay his wife sided with Anna, “Yeah, Al, we should just get this over with, later on we can say that we received all we could on the first day and on the day of the party. We can just ignore them on other days.”
Alfred thought a bit about what his wife said and then rushed and knelt before her. “My wife, a genius.”
Anna was lost for words. Her lady was such a lovely child, but now she was just as bad as her husband. All she could do now was to try limiting their unsightly side to the times they were away from Henry. “My lady, behave yourself, you are a mother, same goes for you my lord. Do not let Henry see this lazy side of yours.”
“Don’t worry nanny, he will not know of this. Even If Henry asks, we will just pretend that we really have too much to do and cannot entertain guests.” Alfred puffed his chest out as he was quite proud of this idea.
Anna was left stupefied by the two. She once more praised Henry for being such a good boy while being related to them.
That day was full of empty talks and empty gestures, but thankfully it was over and after reading the story to Henry the duo had some tea on the balcony, while mocking the various nobles who had the face to show up before them.
***
The mansion has received detailed cleaning and painting during the last few months, so the only things left to do were decorations and the meals which will be served during Henry's birthday celebration. That job fell onto Anna and the boy, as his parents had to, once more, deal with various guests. Henry also attended as a playmate, if they brought children along.
One guest surprised everyone and that was count Barker, the new keeper of the swans in the royal palace.
“My lord Alfred, I welcome you to the capital. I brought my daughter and son with me, you must excuse my wife, she is feeling a bit under the weather today. I have brought a small token of my appreciation for all you do for our land. This is one of the first batches from the mine discovered in my lands.” Barker opened a chest filled with golden bars, which was brought in by two of his knights.
Alfred waved his hand and they took the gift away. Barker showed a proud smile as he took this as Alfred being happy with the gift. He then sat down opposite Eleonora and Alfred while the children went to another room to play. Once he saw the children leave Barker started speaking.
“My lord Alfred, I am so happy to see you return to the capital. This place is the beating heart of the realm and the only place fit to house a proper noble like you.”
Eleonora smiled and started to repeat the same lines she spoke countless times in the past. The only thing Eleonora felt was sadness for the children whose mother was ill. “Thank you for your kind words, count. We enjoy coming to the capital whenever possible as it is indeed the prettiest city filled with the best people our kingdom has. Please do tell your wife to come visit us once she feels better.”
Unaware of the lack of interest Eleonora had in reality, Barker responded with a wide smile. “Indeed you are right my lady, I will inform my wife of your kind words. I am sure she will be happy and get well even faster.”
Wanting to speed things up and finish this visit Alfred chimed in. “I hear you have been promoted, I congratulate you. This is a great honor for any noble.”
“Thank you my lord, I only did what I could to help the realm and his majesty saw fit to reward this insignificant me with such a great honor.” Once more the count took his host’s words at face value and showed genuine happiness on his face.
Alfred once more said a line Anna had him learn by heart a long time ago. “You are quite deserving as our lord does not give such positions lightly. I trust you will do your best.”
Thinking that Alfred was showering him with genuine praise, count Barker started talking about his new position and his connections. “Of course, my lord, I will perform my new duty to the best of my ability. I have met with lord Rufus many times while attending to the swans. He is such a splendid child I hear he is good friends with your son, and so is my daughter. I hope the three will be great friends in the future.”
“His highness is a bright and upright child, a true paragon of virtue in the future, no doubt about it.” Alfred did not want to be here any more and thus his tongue got the better of him. Fortunately his guest was not used to dealing with Alfred so he took the words as the duke's true feelings.
“Yes, such a splendid child, shame he was born second. He would have been a fine king, not that I see Highness Alexei as anything less of course.” Barker quickly corrected himself.
Alfred looked at the count and only silently nodded. The man was slimy and Alfred could not wait for the moment he would see his back. Luckily for everyone, that moment soon came.
As they escorted their final guest of the day, Eleonora turned to her husband. "Al, that gold, we should donate it to the orphanages in the capital. That way it will serve a good purpose."
Alfred could finally speak without holding back and fearing Anna’s retribution. Hugging his wife he agreed with her idea. "Let's do that then. We should take Henry to play with the children over there."