“This is Russel Nolan,” Mathus introduced the man. “A lawyer under the employ of the count and has been on retainer for about 12 years now?”
“Yes sir,” Russel affirmed. The man took the smart hat from his head and held it over his heart as he bowed to the daughter of the raven. “It is a pleasure to meet you, young miss, as Mr. Mathus said, I am Russel Nolan.” as he stood his sharp eyes gazed over the young girl and Ravina felt uncomfortable under his gaze. It was only for a moment and quickly softened as he continued. “I was told you have some legal questions, and I would be happy to assist you, my lady.” There was a smile on his face that did not reach his tired eyes. Ravina could not tell if this was because of his lack of sleep or something else.
“Please, have a seat,” Ravina gestured to the chair across from her. Russel nodded and seated himself. Meanwhile, Mathus silently bowed and removed himself from the group. He was smiling when he turned. Happy to be of assistance to the young raven.
He nodded as Siet passed him, pushing a tray with a tea set on it and some confectionaries. “Good work,” he whispered, causing the young maid to blush slightly at the compliment. With a shy smile on her reddened face, she greeted the pair at the table with an, “Excuse me,” as she set the tea cups before the two in delicate saucers. She poured the tea while the two of them waited patiently.
When she finished, Seit started moving the extra chairs away from the table, careful not to make a sound that might interrupt them. After a sip of his freshly poured tea, Russel inquired on the subject of the meeting. “So what does the esteemed daughter of Count Ravenshield need a lawyer for?” again there was a sharp glint in his eye that disappeared soon after Ravina noticed it.
“I uh, well, Madam Pelmen asked me to look into something.” Ravina stumbled to answer his question, still not quite feeling up to going back to work. In fact, her brain had already released the cells for the day. Each one was annoyed to be suddenly called in again. “And I need to know the laws relating to mines…” she began to explain the issue, tripping on her own tongue every now and again however she eventually explained and expanded on the mining issues and the things she had already learned. Russel was impressed by how well she already knew about the mining industry, despite having a short time to review it and being a more recent addition to the noble family.
“It was smart to request a meeting with an experienced miner.” Mr. Russel praised her. “You seem to have a good grasp of the situation now.” he paused, taking another sip of tea, enjoying the refined flavor. “Unfortunately from what you are saying there is no legal justification for any action." He finished off his tea, and while Seit returned to refill his cup he picked up a small biscuit and popped it in his mouth.
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“So it should be ignored?” Ravina blinked at the words, shocked she didn't think about that herself. If the solution was simple to ignore the issue…yeah, she would be angry. Thankfully Russel did not agree.
“No, they put in a legitimate request. House Ravenshield is the Principal House, and as such the minor branch house of Ravenquil and Ravenwatch, who are both branch families of the main family, expect the issue in which both parties can not come to an agreement, to resolve the matter.” He ran a finger over the rim of his teacup as he waited for the new cup to cool down a bit.
Disappointed the tea was still too hot he repeated, “Both heads couldn't agree so they asked a major house to find a solution instead. I am just saying there isn't anything regarding the legal right that you can do about it. I can look into it more. After all, the law is very complex sometimes, however, I don't think we're going to figure out any legal way. If there was one they wouldn't have to ask their lord.”
Ravina hated how much that made sense. While Russel picked up the teacup, she absentmindedly tapped her fingers on the table, her eyes drifting over the flowers, painted beautifully by the dying sun.
“If I may.” a soft clink echoed from the tea saucer as he put the cup back down. “Most cases have the head of the family supporting such repairs. After all, as the head of the house, Ravenshield is responsible for the branch families. Of course, there are reasons to cut the branch from the tree but neither side has done anything to deserve such pruning and even without the mine, both families are in a strong position. Ravenquil produces a lot of academics and controls more than a dozen schools throughout the territory while Ravenwatch bolsters a large military force, while they are not that strong they are many and are used for aid missions across the county. I would suggest using the emergency funds to cover the cost and force both families to mine the vein for a return investment. You can gain a return to the funds within the first year after the repairs are complete and the vein is mined. Then you can have them send another payment as a fee of sorts”
“The emergencey fund?” Ravina repeated, her eyes narrowed. She had never heard about this before.
“Yes… did you- what I mean is that house Ravenshield has an emergency fund for such things. It might cost a lot to repair the mine but there is a clear return of profit so it should easily settle the matter. The branch families won't be happy but the matter will be solved.”
“So we would gain money by paying for the mine's repair and then taking the vein?”
“Until a set price. I would say the repair of the mine plus half is fair. Then they could share the rest of it and once the vein is dry they could block out both the mines and return to business as normal. House Ravenshield can use the funds gained to send a supervisor to ensure both parties don't repeat the same mistakes.”
“Sounds reasonable…” It was a fine no win solution. “Honestly that seems like the best solution.”
With a smile, Russel leaned back in his seat. It creaked under his weight. “I’m happy to help.” he sipped the rest of his tea slowly, enjoying the end of his day in the garden.
Meanwhile, Ravina stood, “Thank you for your time, Mr. Russel. Have a good day.” She finally retreated inside the manor and back to her room.