Interlude: A New Proposal

My brother-in-law had left me red in the face, the fool had just ordered me to rescind the engagement between Alice and Sir Kenneth, ending the union between our houses before it even started. The devastating consequences of this decision would have an unfathomable effect on the future of my domain.

I had been buttering myself up to the Ignes Empire in hopes of gaining access to their trade and weapons in exchange for the surpluses of our magic crystal stockpile. They were always busy building new powerful technology; by having my domain become their main supplier, it would have forced them into sharing their creations and discoveries with me, furthering our own advancement as well.

“She is to guide our heroes to the Sanctum, do not interfere with her mission or with the heroes themselves or I will have no choice but remove you from your position,” my dear brother-in-law scolded.

Because of him, now all of my scheming and planning was becoming undone right before my very eyes.. I banged my fist on my chair’s armrest. “You- You have no right to meddle in my daughter’s affairs.”

“I do, after all, the king himself would sooner get rid of you before daring to go against the will of the gods,” his words were as furious as his eyes.

“Damn you.” I wanted to yell fouler words at him, but even I knew there was a limit to how much he would let slide. It was only because of my wife that he was telling me what to do instead of forcing me by royal decree. Our discussion should have ended there, but his anger continued to permeate intensely throughout the room, all of it focused on me.

“Even if it wasn’t for her being the oracle, I would have never let you get away with selling her off to the Empire.”

“I was not selling her off, I was just helping create a more prosperous future for my domain, and by extension, the kingdom itself. The King would never chastise me for such a just cause.” If he was going to use the will of the king, I would just throw it back at him.

“You are no man, you are a coward.”

I stood up, pointing my finger at him. “How dare you call me a coward.”

“How dare I? While your son is clinging for dear life, you sit here planning schemes in collusion with the Empire. When your daughter was under attack, you were in discussions with the man you were to force onto her. And when my sister cried at the suffering of her children you had no compassion in your heart for anyone other than yourself. If not a coward, what else would you call a person of such low caliber?”

His speech stunned me to silence. I could only watch as he headed toward the doors.

“Nath- Hmn. Sir Nathan, let Sir Kenneth back in.” He didn’t bother turning around to acknowledge my order. I wasn’t even sure if he had heard me. As I wondered whether or not I would have to fetch the young man myself, Sir Kenneth appeared.

His smile seemed blissful, yet his eyes were raging with as much anger as Nathan’s had earlier.

“You called for me, Duke Uriel?”

I cleared my throat, choosing to take my seat on the throne once more. “Yes, it seems I have some rather unfortunate news for the both of us.”

I explained in the simplest of terms that his marriage to Alice would no longer be possible.

“That is a shame,” Sir Kenneth said as he brought his hand to his mouth. Concealing his smile from earlier only made his dark gaze more prominent. “I suppose this means that future plans between your domain and the Empire are going to fall through then. Though it's an even greater loss for me, Alice would have been the perfect fourth wife for me.” He lowered his hand in order to lick his lips as a snake would, a shivering display of his demeanor

That said, having the young man himself come to the same conclusion as me was making the current situation far too real for my liking.

“Well, I suppose I should head home then, I will have to report all of today’s events to my father.” Sir Kenneth turned to the exit.

I couldn’t let him leave, he and the Empire were just within my grasp. That was when a brilliant idea came to me, the gods had truly gifted me a brilliant mind.

“Wait Sir Kenneth.”

He stopped on his current step, turning his head slightly to gaze at me. “Yes?”

“You can’t have Alice anymore, a shame I know. But, what if you were to marry Katherine? I’m sure she’ll grow to be just as beautiful as her sister in due time.”

Sir Kenneth grimaced at the notion. “I wouldn’t be opposed to eventually marrying the girl, but she is only ten years of age, correct? Far too immature for my liking. I also hear that she doesn't have as much magical aptitude as other girls her age. Maybe we can resume talks in seven years from now, once she hones what little skill she has at the academy.” Sir Kenneth continued to walk towards the doors.

He was truly intent on slipping away from my grasp, my best chance in closening ties with the Empire. But I had nothing of worth to offer the boy himself, yet I had to secure my connection between his family and my own.

“Wait,” I cried. Sir Kenneth turned around with, what could only be called, a disgusted look of pity in his eyes.

He sighed, pinching his nose as he took a deep breath. “Yes?”

What I did next would have been made a mockery of, had anyone else seen or even heard about it, yet it was all I could do. I bowed until I was laying my head and chest on the floor, close enough to kiss his feet in the event he ordered me to do so.

“I will do anything, so please, marry my Katherine.”

I had my eyes closed tight, awaiting the laughter that would surely come from Sir Kenneth. Instead, I was met with a low yet joyful whistle.

“That right there,” Kenneth said, “that is what makes someone a true man.” I heard his bones crack lightly as he crouched down and placed a hand on my shoulder. I raised my head. His smile was wide and overbearing, every word that left his lips echoed throughout the hall. “A Duke who is willing to beg and give his anything and everything for his land and people, that is what makes one worthy of their title.”

Sir Kenneth pulled me onto my feet, dusting my robes with his hand as he patted me. “Alright then, I suppose I accept.”

“That is- that is wonderfu-”

“But there is something I want first.” He was putting a condition first over the marriage, but that was fine with me, I had managed to get him to stay. A small roadblock was nothing compared to losing out on the Empire forever.

“Name it, I’ll do everything in my power to grant you your desire.”

His face contorted with satisfaction. I wasn’t as religious as my wife or her brother, but if I was ever asked to describe what a true devil looked like, I would refer them to a painting of Sir Kenneth's current face.

“Then I ask for a single thing.”

“Just a single thing?”

“In order to take Katherine as my fifth bride? Yes, just a single thing.”

“Fifth bride? I’m sorry Sir Kenneth, I was under the impression you only had three wives.”

“Thats the thing, the one thing I want is for the hero who goes by the name Marisol to become my fourth wife.”

Had it been anyone else, I would have said yes in a heartbeat. Why did it have to be her? Asking for that girl was akin to the same thing as wanting Alice. It was impossible.

“Hmn? What’s wrong? Is that a no?”

Nathan warned me that I couldn’t interfere with the heroes. Agreeing to this was akin to betraying the king himself. As things stood currently, there would be no way for me to escape with my head attached if I agreed.

“I’m afraid, I am in no position to offer her up.”

I watched Sir Kenneth’s face, expecting it to fill with anger or overflow with disappointment. Yet, his face was full of determination.

“I’m guessing it has to do with how this kingdom worships the heroes. You find that in the Empire, much like other nations, we hold no such reverence for them.” Sir Kenneth began pacing back and forth, more pep with each step. “That said, I am familiar with how the heroes are supposed to work, one hero for one champion.” I nodded at his simplification of the legends.

“Yet, there were four heroes summoned. I wonder, would things truly go awry if one of them were to go missing? After all, there would still be three heroes leftover, that is two more than the legends say should exist.”

I sighed. “Even if that were the case, I can’t give the order, the king would have my head for doing something so blasphemous.”

Sir Kenneth scratched his chin, his gaze was on the beautiful stained glass of the hall. He muttered to himself until he snapped his fingers and pointed at the glass.

“That’s it.” His face lit up with a crude smile forming on his lips. “You don’t have to do much, Duke Uriel, if you could just supply my people with a few of your top of the line crystals, I believe we could deal with the heroes on our end.”

“Really, just a few crystals?” I was dumbfounded, I knew our high tier crystals were powerful, but I wasn’t sure they would do much against the heroes, especially if their powers of legend were to be believed.

“Yes, yes. Just access to some will do.”

“What is your plan?”

Sir Kenneth laughed. “Trust me Duke, it would be better if you didn’t know. You’ll just have to trust me.”

“If I agree, will you truly marry Katherine?”

“Yes, it might take a few weeks at most, but I will marry her as soon as Mirasol becomes mine.”

“A few weeks?”

“It would be best to carry out my plan while they are being led by the oracle to the royal city. It would be much more effective for me and a safer choice for you. After all, we don’t want any of this being traced back to you.” Sir Kenneth extended his hand, offering it to me.

I hesitated for a moment, placing my trust in him could mark the end for me. Yet, as I weighed the positives and negatives, I recalled why I even had to make a decision in the first place. Everything had been going smoothly up to this day, if it wasn’t for that so-called hero, Noel, and his friends, my plans wouldn’t have been revealed to Nathan, and I wouldn't have been forced to make such deals behind closed doors. By agreeing to the deal, Sir Kenneth would take someone precious from that scum, a terrible blow against him but a wonderful retaliation that would surely quench my wrath.

As I imagined the pain on the bastard’s face, my hand had already become clasped with Sir Kenneth’s.

“It's a deal.”

If this was truly a deal with a devil, then I was ready to become the demon that signed it.