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The steel amongst Sir Leander’s gauntlet clicked and clanked against one another as he watched the features of the Princess Emeline Blakesley, second of her name and appointed Royal Overseer of the walled city of Ewenor, with barely restrained annoyance. His own facial features were as still and dull as that of a stone itself, the only tell was the crinkling of steel against steel on the gauntlet he wore as he clenched and unclenched his fist. It was all he could do to calm himself under the scrutinizing gaze amidst the princess’ entourage of sycophants and pompous fools who stylized themselves the leaders of this outermost city along the empire’s borders. Sir Leander stood unwavering and unconcerned of their useless prattle as they sat atop their dais, looking down on him within the antechamber. Great stained glasses lit up the antechamber in a myriad of bright colors as they recounted the history of the empire in a luminous retelling. It was an opulent craftsmanship, made to draw one’s eyes to but one of many adornments that decked the halls of the Princess’ Keep while the city walls of Ewenor itself lies neglected and dilapidated. Sir Leander tried not to focus on that fact for now, he need not to sour his mood further.
He recounted his reports, focusing on stating the facts when he had patrolled the nameless country roads that didn’t deserve the cartographer’s ink to be etched on any map.
“….multiple garrisons no longer sending communications, trade and traffic from the outlying villages have halted. From these facts, we can garner that there is something amiss in the border regions. We need more patrols and reinforce the city watches – – “
A yawn broke through followed by a barely restrained gaggle of laughter amongst the nobility. Leander took all the self-control he could muster not to jump over the dais and throttle the fool for thinking this is but a joke to them. For the briefest millisecond, he saw a slight twitch in the princess’ lips before being concealed.
Aside from that single twitch, there was not a change in the princess features. When Leander looked at her eyes, he highly doubted she even comprehended nor cared at the severity of the report. She looked as if she was above fretting over such trivial matters, as if the threat mecidiyeköy escort were merely a band of rabble causing a ruckus.
“Your grace,” Leander continued, trying to ignore the haughty mien of the nobles atop the stand, “I implore you to reconsider these deployments, it would leave our lines too thin and spread out and we have yet to hear reports from our scouts,” Sir Leander reasoned, using all his years of discipline to restrain the annoyance from seeping in to his voice. He had been told he had trouble controlling his tone when speaking with his betters.
“And why not?” Piped in a lord, dressed in a ridiculous attire of heavy frills and an overexaggerated wig that had been the craze back at the capital some three seasons back, “Are our troops not adequate enough to deal with these-these…. brigands?” he waved dramatically as if to brush Leander’s concern aside.
“No,” Leander quickly retorted, the back of his jaw already tightening, “Our footmen are drilled on a daily basis. Disciplined and calm in the heat of battle. It is a known fact. Perhaps too well known, that our enemy wouldn’t want to meet them in an open field or suffer direct confrontation. Instead, they would use ambush tactics and try to our catch forces off guard,” it is one of the oldest tenets when waging skirmish, the prediction of enemy goals helps the commander to understand the prediction of enemy movement. To do something as dividing one’s forces against an unknown enemy with unknown numbers was just a recipe for disaster. Leander had the urge to smack his forehead at the prideful stubbornness and stupidity of these so called ‘nobles’.
“My order stands Sir Leander,” finally came the pristine voice of the Princess.
“Milady please, we can resolve this threat with little or no casualties on our forces if we take the necessary precaution!” Leander almost regretted it as soon as he said it. Almost. To second guess the Princess was a death sentence. If it had been said by anyone else, they would have had their heads on a spike before a full minute had passed since the last syllable was uttered.
The Princess bristled. The nobility gasped, covering their lips with fans and dainty hands. If it had been anyone else, they wouldn’t have gotten away bayan escort with it. For Sir Leander was forsworn to the Duke and a widely revered figure among the common folk. As someone had told him, he had clout. Something the Princess both envied and despised of him, as he was told.
“SILENCE SER!”
But it was not without consequence, as a score of Castle Knights stepped forward, hands on the hilt of their swords, ready to hack Sir Leander in a few dozen pieces. All it would take would be a simple command from the princess, “Do you dare oppose the will of her Majesty?! Of the Royal Blood!?” yelled the Knight Captain.
Leander bit down on his lip, to make an enemy of the Royalty overseeing the region would be catastrophic. If their target had only been him and him alone, Leander would have little cause for concern. But the stupid and spoiled are capable of cruel despicable acts. It is well known that Leander was a Knight Errant, one of the few that still roams the greater expanse of the empire, servicing the common folk from the abuses and mishandlings of the nobility under the protection of the Ancient Laws was among his tenet.
“I made no such insinuation,” This, Leander must admit, was his loss. He raised both hands as a gesture he wanted no further conflict, that he was no threat. This, at the very least, eased the tension amongst the Castle Knights’ collective shoulders but still they wait, poised and anticipating on the final command of their forsworn liege.
“Forgive my tone Your Majesty. This morning’s ambush had me taking a rock to my helm and fell of my horse afterwards before being dragged a quarter mile through mud and grime all the while being waylaid by the brigands as soon as my steed stopped. Perhaps I am still addled by the injury.”
At this remark, one of the nobles couldn’t help but guffaw in laughter, which was immediately followed by another noble who giggled trying to imagine the spectacle of the supposed renowned warrior and not five seconds later, the infectious laughter spread through the gathered council, their laughter bouncing off the acoustics of the antechamber. Leander noticed the Princess gaze making a quick glance to both left and right of her court before allowing her lips to lift in nişantaşı escort a smirk herself.
She raised a lacy gloved hand for her Castle Knights to stand down and the twenty half-drawn blades were once more retracted, hissing back into their sheaths.
“Please, good Ser, do not force yourself after suffering such a debilitating injury,” The Princess enunciated, her words were laced with honey but Leander saw the venom glinting in her eyes before he himself cast his head down to not escalate the situation further, “These rabble would be dealt with in good time, they are no match against the splendor and glory of the Empire’s might. Please, rest yourself good Ser.”
“By your leave, your grace,” The preening sycophants were quick to give the Princess their feeble lauding for being gracious and forgiving. Leander had still to maintain the stoic façade as soon as he exited the antechamber, these worms can be surprisingly quick to catch the merest hint of affront and then go scurrying off to gossip.
And with that, Sir Leander’s meeting with the Royal Overseer of Ewenor came to a close. The Knight Errant strode out of the antechamber and into the sprawling halls of the keep. The grounds themselves were kept pristine and bordered with exotic flowers from half-across the empire away. The grass saw more nutrition and water and care than the average peasant that labors out in the fields outside the city beneath a sweltering sun. Flowering trees of redbuds, magnolias and white dogwood were in full bloom, casting the keeps’ environs in an almost ethereal beauty to behold.
As Ser Leander surveyed the grounds with a barely restrained scowl at the needless opulence and extravagance, he found another reason as to why the Princess was quick to dismiss his earlier insolence.
He hadn’t been in the region a full month but he had heard tales of the Princess’ famed gatherings. A party in which the Princess held several times a week, inviting the cream of the crop of Ewenor’s high society. Nobles, business magnates, heiress were but a few examples of those the Princess deemed worthy of her company within the threshold of her magnificent keep. It had only been mid-day still and the Princess’ soiree was in full swing. They wined and dined from the Princess coffers, stuffing themselves silly with delicacies and gourmet meals that the mere cost of which could feed a commoner’s family for an entire week.
Leander shook his head and headed off away from the premises, fearing for the future of the city and its people.
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