Prince Nathaniel was a great co-worker with a brilliant mind, and it pained her to manipulate him like this. Nonetheless, Sirona had to remind herself to not let any sentintality cloud her actions. No matter what happened in the end, Atticus’s plans ca first. Everything else was second in the grand sche of things.
While Sirona might not exactly agree with her old friend’s thods in attaining his goal, she still respected how headfast and steady he had remained despite everything that had happened. He was a respectable king, and while he may not be the best husband, Sirona admired how he managed to maintain such a great act ever since Daphne arrived at Vramid.
However, Sirona greatly doubted that it was an act as the months passed by. It beca clearer and clearer — especially to a woman’s intuition — that Atticus had already fallen in love with soone whom he should never have. His adoration for Daphne was only going to complicate things in the long run.
And if Atticus ultimately gave up his plans for her, Sirona would rely be sorely disappointed. Not because the plans fell through — especially since she didn’t mind it too much if it did — but because he might not be the king that Sirona and Jonah had always thought he was.
After all, it was always most disappointing to realize that the people placed on the pedestal weren’t actually who they were in reality.
"A land rich in tal ores..." Prince Nathaniel echoed, rubbing at his chin.
Sirona didn’t miss the way he kept sniffling. If she were to make an educated guess, either Prince Nathaniel had caught a cold from staying out too late and working such insane hours, or perhaps he was just testing to see if he still slled like the sewers.
She had to resist the urge to snort out loud and simply tell him to pop so pills for his flu. She was more than happy to mix up a batch of herbs for him if needed, but she was sure that a genius doctor such as Prince Nathaniel would no doubt take offense with her words if spoken.
On that sa train of thought, there was no way Prince Nathaniel would’ve been sick, in that case. He would’ve cured himself easily if he was. That ant that Atticus was right. Again.
Prince Nathaniel must have been with Daphne to examine the bodies.
"That would an Xahan, wouldn’t it?"
Sirona smiled gently, careful not to overdo it. She had no doubt that Prince Nathaniel must be on his guard as well, if he was in cahoots with Daphne in all of this. That would an that he was also suspicious of her.
"King Calarian would no doubt have so kept in his own treasury," Sirona said. "There are reports of mines found in the lands of Xahan as well."
"And you’ve spoken to King Calarian about this already?" Nathaniel asked, an eyebrow quirked. "It would be rude to pop in without a word in advance, wouldn’t it, Healer Sirona?"
"Please rest assured, Your Highness," Sirona replied. "My king had already written word to King Calarian in advance. We’ve received news of his confirmation regarding the ore deposits, as well as King Calarian’s expressed agreent to help us with his research. After all, it would be unfortunate if there were vampires who had managed to escape to Xahan. Without a cure ready, the results could be catastrophic."
Prince Nathaniel humd. "But surely King Atticus had already captured or slain every last one of them, isn’t it so?"
"Better safe than sorry," responded Sirona. "And King Atticus had always been playing on the safer side of things. He doesn’t enjoy making unnecessary bets."
"What about King Cyrus?" Nathaniel asked. "Does he know that his sons are now being treated as guinea pigs for experints?"
"Well," Sirona said, "we were actually hoping that you could present the idea to King Cyrus. After all, your experints reaped incredible results and brought a favorable change in condition for Prince Silas and Prince Alistair."
There was no need to ntion the fact that the latter was jailed and sealed away like a cursed artifact. All Sirona needed to do was to butter Prince Nathaniel up and stroke his ego enough so that he could be the one to propose the idea to Reaweth’s king. After all, King Cyrus certainly liked this ek prince much better than his son-in-law, given how tyrannical the latter was.
Prince Nathaniel’s finger stroked his chin back and forth, his gaze focused on a faraway object. He seed deep in thought, humming softly under his breath as he pursed his lips. In the end, he sighed and flicked his long sleeves, nodding.
"It would be beneficial to get more ores for experints and actual serum doses," Prince Nathaniel agreed. "It could also completely heal Prince Silas, and perhaps even return Prince Alistair to a clear mind."
Although that was what he said, Prince Nathaniel highly doubted that Prince Alistair would ever return to a clear mind― he never had one to begin with. The ghost of a smile that quirked on Sirona’s lips told Nathaniel that she thought the sa too.
Nathaniel thought back to the elents, a possible theory on what were the things King Atticus was trying to gather. In this case, the iron ore would be a perfect fit to represent the elent of tal. That would an that he was one step closer to accomplishing his goals, if Nathaniel’s guess was right.
Daphne needed to know this as soon as possible. They needed to figure out what exactly King Atticus hoped to achieve, and if his plans were any bit nefarious.
"When do we leave?" he asked. "Right after we ask King Cyrus, I’m assuming?"
"Actually..." Sirona trailed off. "Prince Nathaniel, if I may be so bold, it might be better for you to remain in Reaweth."
The smile on her face might be cordial but there was just sothing about it that sent shivers down Nathaniel’s spine.
"Of course, this is simply for the convenience of the experints." Sothing flashed across Sirona’s eyes, an emotion that Nathaniel couldn’t quite na. "It would be the best scenario for us all."
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