“Things seem to be moving along splendidly, Charles.”
“You don’t know how close I came to dropping dead when the basic presuppositions of the plan I labored over for years came crashing down.”
No matter how cunning my plan and how skillful the fighters, defeating the titan would inevitably have taken its toll on the people. Though our victory was assured, we’d had to be prepared for upwards of ten thousand casualties if things went poorly. The titans were simply that powerful, especially when surrounded by their herd of countless subordinate monsters.
Except when a hero annihilated them with his absurd power!
“Fifty years ago, we could only flee in terror from the Wolf King as it stole vast stretches of land. After constant failures in his attempts to defeat the monster, my grandfather finally succumbed to illness, left with only regret. Even now, I remember how he looked in his final moments.”
When I was a child, he would regale me with stories of my great-grandfather. My grandfather, the Margrave who had ruled the Rarogne Region at the time, had died in battle against the wolf, so even my usually gentle father would wear a pained expression on his face as he cursed the Wolf King. To say my father, as both a bereaved son and a lord who saw his land stolen away by a beast, felt anguished over the matter would not do it justice.
If someone had told me I had to give away all the countryside I’d worked so hard to reclaim, I was sure I’d punch the man who did it. Then, I’d kick him. Then, I’d give him a full-on ass-kicking, for good measure.
“First, I must thank you for settling the lingering regrets of my grandfather’s legacy. I can finally visit his grave with pride.”
It seemed the impact of his grandfather’s last moments had him flinching at the prospect of paying the grave a visit. But honestly, I believed him a tyrant, to be willing to endanger his country through his repeated failed assaults on the titan. That said, one shouldn’t speak ill of the dead, especially
when the dead is one’s ancestor.
I decided that, before prattling on about the past, we should first settle business, so I removed the monster’s core from my bag and placed it on the desk.
“Here is the titan’s core. It’s too valuable to use even as a bargaining tool, so I’ve brought it as a gift.”
“Ooh! I’ve never seen such a core in my life. No wonder some say it’s worth as much as a castle.”
There was no more powerful component for creating magical tools than this. A magic sword forged from this core could sunder the earth and rend the skies. Or if instead a monster-repelling barrier were made using it, the capital could be kept safe from monsters for all eternity. Or if integrated into a ship, the ship might well be able to soar to the stars.
It would frankly be a waste to squander such potential on the frontier, so I chose instead to give it to my father and further my own standing.
“For now, I want the rank of duke, along with the right to give land to men of merit. That means the right to assign titles, as well; I wish to confer three titles of viscount, ten of baron, and an unlimited number of knights. Of course, I would ask you for permission before granting the rank of count or anything higher.”
Now that we were free to develop the plains, we should have abundant land available. Even settlements that didn’t amount to villages were part of the territory, so I wanted it to be a fast and painless process to grant titles to the leaders of such places. At the very least, I didn’t want to have to travel to the capital for every single such appointment.
“Very well. You did rid the country of that vile titan, after all. Then in three months—nay, five months—we will perform the ceremony that grants you the title of duke. The official documents regarding your rights to confer land and titles will be sent in the days following.”
Hmm. So apparently, even for a king, things like this couldn’t be done immediately. And of course, he warned me to report after the fact on any land and title assignments I gave out.
“Now, how should I reward the hero who slew the titan? There is no precedent for such an act. I’m unsure of what would be appropriate.”
“Alcina is still unmarried. Perhaps we should wed her to the hero? I would prefer to build ties between our families as soon as possible, and
marriage is the fastest and easiest way to tie ourselves to prominent men.”
Alcina was my half-sister, and the plan had once been for her to be married to Duke Heltor’s successor. If we tried to silently dissolve that arrangement for our own convenience, it would make the nobility wary of our family. Moreover, with Diane in place there, I felt no concern about building a productive relationship with the hero’s family. She had, in a sense, been raised for that very purpose, and had grown to be just the woman for the job.
“Hmm. I suspect Sir Chris would not be interested in marrying a woman forcefully torn away from an existing engagement. You must be aware of Olivia’s abuse, yes? Because of that, the hero harbors an intense disgust for Duke Heltor.”
Or maybe he was just choosing to ignore him? I didn’t know, in truth, except that I had never heard them speak of each other. Regardless, as he was a compassionate man, Sir Chris would be furious if anyone hurt a relative of his. I’d heard that he was enraged when he learned about the fellow who needlessly insulted Diane and annulled their engagement.
“Well, you see, the truth is that Heltor’s brat has eyes only for his own younger sister, Angelique. His cold treatment of Alcina had me reconsidering the marriage, so I hoped this might be a good opportunity to salvage the situation.”
My father suddenly sighed. Perhaps the rumors of Angelique’s wanton ways were true. I should mention that, as king, my father always carried a magical tool that nullified mental-interference curses, and I, of course, did the same.
“Depending on the circumstances, I may name your child my heir. Do not neglect his education, and continue to make allies.”
“Do you have that little confidence in my elder brother?”
During our last bout, I didn’t think my brother was that far gone. I wondered, then, how he fared now? Though he was engaged to that whore Angelique, one could hardly be confident that any child born of their union would actually be the fruit of his own loins. On that note, though Salima’s children were all born of different fathers, I felt no inclination to call her a whore like Angelique.
“Regarding the hero… Hmm, what if we awarded him with the title of marquis and a family name? We want his heroism to be known far and wide, so I think a grand ceremony is in order.”
That would put the hero and I at similar standing, then. Perhaps Salima should be given a countship as well. Women couldn’t receive titles, so it would be granted to her eldest son, Mahendra. Her other children and top subordinates could be knighted, as well. And I imagined that there would be many others achieving notable deeds in the coming five months. Soon, winter would come. The development plan’s execution would naturally slow when the weather turned against us, so although these people were all key to the plan’s progress, it would be no great issue to borrow them at that time for long enough to attend the ceremony.