After much effort and persuasion, Rupert Walter finally managed to rid himself of the petitioning southern nobles, escaping with a stack of thick petitions in hand.
Half an hour later, he appeared at the royal palace and directly entered the council hall.
“Ah, Rupert, everyone has been waiting for you,” greeted His Majesty the King, seated at the head of the table.
Important officials at the core of the kingdom’s governnt, such as the Minister of Finance, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Military Affairs, Head of Intelligence, Court Steward, and Chief of Intelligence, were already seated.
Sitting to the right of King Rodney was none other than Princess Catherine.
“Apologies, Your Majesty, Your Highness, and colleagues, I was delayed on the road…” Rupert began.
Before he could finish, the ministers showed empathetic expressions.
Count rlin, the Head of Intelligence, remarked, “Lord Chancellor, we all understand. To be honest, I had to disguise myself to get in here today.”
“I was even considering digging a tunnel from my ho,” another chid in.
“Really, these lawless individuals need to be dealt with.”
“Many of them are from families that contributed greatly to the kingdom’s establishnt. Dare you act against them?”
Others joined in with their complaints.
Princess Catherine cleared her throat, and the room quieted down.
“Ladies and gentlen, the first agenda of today’s eting is to discuss how to appease the disgruntled nobility of the south,” she said, her voice tinged with embarrassnt. Similar etings had been held several tis before, but they had never resulted in a definitive plan.
The direct cause of this situation was the kingdom’s army’s failure to completely defeat Jars in the south.
As the commander of the army quelling the rebellion, she felt a great deal of responsibility.
The eting began with the Minister of Finance presenting the grim situation: “Your Majesty, Your Highness, esteed ministers, according to our previous plan, we were to allocate one million silver shields annually for armor and weapons manufacturing, knight training, and food reserves for the next suppression campaign. However, with the arrival of these southern nobles, we had to divert funds from various expenditures, including 150,000 from the military budget. This will significantly delay our campaign. Additionally, the royal domains usually yield about five million silver shields annually, but due to poor harvests, I estimate only four to four and a half million this year. We’ll have to reduce spending or borrow from the public.”
(Note: Silver shield, the circulating currency of the Kingdom of Ordo, nad for the shield emblem it bears, containing 23-25 grams of silver per coin)
The ministers frowned upon hearing this news for the first ti.
“Your Majesty!” urged Count Salifu Reynolds, the Minister of Foreign Affairs. “Given the situation, decisive action is necessary.”
All eyes turned to Reynolds.
“Take a few of the most troubleso as examples, strip them of their noble titles, and restrict the others, reducing their living standards until we reclaim the south,” he suggested.
Sir Benito Lacerda, head of the Kingdom’s Heraldry Office, imdiately objected, “Such harsh asures against these ancient and noble families would be dishonorable. His Majesty would face criticism from the nobility nationwide, and it could beco negative propaganda against Ordo internationally.”
“What do you propose, then?”
“At least, we shouldn’t mistreat these families. Their ancestors contributed to the kingdom, and even if they lacked rits in the recent rebellion, they endured hardships.”
“If only they had chosen death to show their loyalty when their lands were taken.”
“What are you saying?”
The room erupted into noisy disagreent, with no consensus reached.
The banging sound of the King tapping on the table brought everyone’s attention to their sovereign.
With a furrowed brow, King Rodney spoke, “Ladies and gentlen, I have already prepared myself for the possibility that reclaiming the south might take several generations.”
“What?”
Princess Catherine stood up, shocked by her father’s “preparation,” hearing of it for the first ti.
“Your Majesty!” she exclaid emotionally.
King Rodney commanded his daughter, “Sit down, Catherine.”
Reluctantly, the princess sat down, feeling it a great dishonor if the south could not be reclaid during her father’s reign.
The King turned to Count rlin, the Head of Intelligence, signaling him to speak.
Nodding, Count rlin explained to the assembly, “According to the information we have, a mysterious force supports Jars from behind. The bizarre incidents during the rebellion are all linked to this force.”
He recounted various strange occurrences known to the high-ranking officials present: mysterious fires in granaries, naval commanders assassinated by their loyal servants, fireballs appearing out of nowhere during the invasion of West Port, rebel soldiers stronger and more fearless than knights, wearing crude leather armor with protection comparable to tal armor…
“Our undercover agents in the rebel ranks confirm the presence of mysterious individuals among them, publicly identified as clergy of the Church.”
“The word ‘strange’ hardly covers it. This force, its nature beyond our comprehension and ordinary reasoning, makes it impossible to predict what other bizarre things it might do. For now, I can only refer to them as…”
“Magic, and… Wizards!”
“After all, there seems no better term to describe them.”
Count rlin’s words left everyone in silence. Fear stems from the unknown, and they faced the greatest unknown in human history, at least in Ordo’s history.
Magic and wizards, stuff of legends, but not on their side, invisible and intangible.
The King tapped the table, advising, “We can only proceed with our next steps after understanding what we’re up against. Acting rashly without knowing the true identity of the enemy will only lead to greater losses and diminished honor.”
He glanced at Catherine, who lowered her head.
“Your Majesty!” suggested the Minister of Military Affairs, “The Church detests witches and their like, right? Could we ask for their help?”
“Hmph!” the King disdainfully remarked, “The Church is already overwheld with issues in Horn Bay. Besides…”
“We can’t afford to give the Church a foothold in Ordo’s internal affairs.”
Count rlin added, “In fact, considering all the intelligence, the recent events in Horn Bay might also involve this mysterious force.”
The audacity of it surprised everyone. Ordo was a major power, and the Church’s influence could shake the continent. What force would dare provoke both these lions?
But it seed, at least for now, Ordo was being made a fool by this force. This thought disheartened everyone.
“Because I’ve decided to understand them, to make contact with them…”
The King spoke gravely.
“Even to learn from them, to possess their abilities, if necessary.”
His words left the ministers in shock.
Manipulating witchcraft had always been taboo, especially with the Church’s presence.
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