"And what is it?" Oliver asked. Again, it seed like Skullic knew more than he let on.
"A Pandora Fla," Skullic said. "You already nad it aptly yourself, did you not? Did your father tell you about such things? I had not thought him to be well acquainted with the matters of the arcane."
"I could say the sa for you, General," Oliver replied. "You make it sound as though it's an oddity to know."
"Of course it is," Skullic said, "I'd wager only a handful of the most serious scholars have plumbed into it quite as deeply as I have."
"Are you a fan of the arcane, General?"
"Hardly," Skullic said. "I'm a 'fan' as you put it, of matters that concern and my n. I knew a month ago I'd likely receive a request asking for the liberation of that Fort, and I did my research. I found traces of occupation long before we last assud. Thousands of years ago, rather than hundreds.
There was ntion of occult happenings there, including the Pandora Fla, though it seems most of it was a falsity."
"It's a danger," Oliver said, "what do you plan to have done with it?"
"I'll order it destroyed, if at all possible. If not destroyed, then I'll have my n seal the way towards it," Skullic said. "Before I make a gift of it to Lord Barlow." Find more to read on My Virtual Library Empire
"A gift?"
"Of course. You didn't think I would waste my n holding it, did you? Those are not my lands. It would buy far more political advantage as a gift than it would to hold it. That is what you have bought , Patrick, with your assistance," Skullic said. "I ntioned that I would work you for my benefit, did I not?"
"You did…"
"And now you have served three highly-placed n. You did so in the na of the High King, as we'll have proclaid. You did so under my banner. You did so for the benefit of Lord Barlow and his people… Oh, and I suppose it's to the benefit of Lord Blackwell too, to have his charge perform heartily," Skullic said.
Only when it was laid out like that, did Oliver realize the significance of what he'd achieved.
"You see," Skullic said, reading his face. "You might know how to swing a sword, but you're unaccomplished at getting the most out of it. Yesterday you won a great victory – and you've clawed a fitting political reward for it. Now, your deeds might not ring out in all four corners of the country, but even the High King will not be able to contain their whispers."
Oliver nodded slowly, hoping that was true. The hole that he was sitting in politically seed almost impossible to escape from. If, like General Skullic said, he'd made those sorts of waves in a single mission, then he couldn't have been happier.
"Of course, I promised to reward you for your service to ," Skullic said. "You've made that an easier deal than I thought it might be. They're a tightly knit sort, Northman's n. I'm surprised to see that you've managed to earn their favour already. There will be a month before your next mission, but next ti you ride with them, as a noble, you shall do that which is expected of you.
The whole force shall move under your command. Though you would be wise not to usurp the command structures already in place entirely."
"The whole force?" Oliver's eyebrow twitched. He'd expected Skullic to work him far harder before he trusted him with a hundred of his n.
Skullic smiled in response. "What's that? Are you intimidated by the prospect? You who told that you wished to walk the path of the General? Well, you've shown aptitude, and I am rewarding you for it. Would you turn that away?"
"No, no I wouldn't," Oliver said firmly. "Though, I just didn't expect it, given how reluctant you were to give just ten n."
"The benefits of being a young General," Skullic said dismissively. "I'm more open-minded than the rest. You've been compared to your father a great deal, young Patrick, but I think I might see a flicker of sothing in you that exceeds him. I might gamble on that – to my benefit. Of course, with a hundred n under your command, I would expect far more from you."
"I would push for one more thing," Oliver said.
"Oh?" Skullic raised an eyebrow. "Another hundred n? Co. Don't be greedy."
"Not that. My retainers," Oliver said. "And Lady Blackthorn. They've asked for the opportunity to ride with next ti I attend one of these missions. If they seem fit enough for it, I would like to be able to bring them – at my own discretion."
"Now that's dangerous territory," Skullic warned. "They haven't been cleared by Royal Decree to fight as you have."
"Are my retainers not an extension of ?" Oliver asked. "If you asked the Skullic House to defend a city, you would an the whole Skullic House, would you not?"
"You would…" Skullic agreed reluctantly. "That would clear Idris – though he's of age anyway – and the other few beneath you. I wouldn't clear Lady Blackthorn. Besides, she's a servant of the Pendragon Princess now, since her father has declared himself to her."
Oliver perked up. "Is there a possibility there… If by alliance, would the Royal Decree sohow extend to the Pendragon House? It would give Asabel political backing as well, if her own were fighting with ."
"Tenuous," Skullic said, shaking his head. "Dangerous too. You'd be shaking the hornet's nest, just for the sake of one girl. Perhaps it would work to the benefit of Asabel too, so it would be for the sake of two girls, I suppose. Is that a risk you want to take?"
"I don't like the way you phrased that," Oliver said, twisting his lips, "as though I'm doing it for the sake of a woman."
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