Armet watched as some soldiers in training were practicing on how to load the cannons in the walls. They were trained by the very dwarves that made it. They didn't actually try to shoot, but the dwarves drilled the steps and the safety precautions nonetheless. They taught how to adjust the angles, how to neutralize the barrel from sparks with the stick, and how to aim the thing in the first place.
The appointed leader, Huldar, was standing besides Armet, watching the training go on.
"I have a plan for the future." Armet said to the metallurgist turned field engineer. "I plan to create a smaller version of the cannon, to be used in the field."
"The field?" Huldar frowned, then went wide-eyed. "Aye, I didn't think o' that. With this kind of firepower and mobility, it'll be a force to be reckoned with on the field, and very effective. How much smaller do ye think you want it to be?"
"A twelve pound ball shooter. That should be like… what? Twelve hundred pounds, give or take? A bit heavier if we use bronze instead." Armet said. "We can make dozens at a time, and with it, the ability to fight a force perhaps even five times the size compared to ours in the field. We'll develop new types of shots too. Like the one you created. Grapeshot."
"I like that idea, lad." Huldar smirked. "It seems ye know how to use it in the field already. Do you have military experience?"
"Not really." Armet muttered. "But at desperate times, I can become one."
"Ha! I don't doubt that. This is yer creation. Ye wouldn't have much confidence if ye don't know how to use it on an army in the field."
It was then that suddenly, Prince Stennis arrived at the walls. He's there with what Armet now knows to be the Hierarch of Vengerberg, Olcan Grandemot, one of the last of his kind. A priest with a strong political power due to the clerical council he has on his back, but he doesn't act like a priest at all, more so a politician. But then again, religion in the northern realms is always used for political needs in the guise of divine providence.
Huldar frowned at the sight of Stennis, and spat on the ground. He examined the soldiers' training and looked curious, watching intently. He looked to Armet, and approached.
"You." he said. "You are the chief engineer of Saskia's council, are you not? The one who invented these weapons?"
I hummed. "What do you need, Prince?"
"I'm curious about how it works," he said. "I have seen your thunderers, the name does it justice. It's loud and threatening. But this looks like a larger version of it."
"It's exactly that." Armet simply said.
"Interesting…" the prince murmured. "Would you give me a demonstration? I have yet to see the power of such things."
Armet shook his head. "Sorry. We're saving up on powder. The thunderers don't use much compared to this beast."
"Word of advice child, you are speaking to a soon-to-be monarch." said Olcan suddenly, interrupting, his face half hidden due to the black hood he's wearing. "If he asks, you should do it."
Armet chuckled. "If you haven't noticed, the title of the prince is just that here, a title. A reluctant honorary one. It doesn't mean anything. I am not your lesser, nor are you my superior."
"Aye, tell him lad." Huldar scoffed.
"It is fine Olcan, do not offend the man. A brilliant mind often doesn't want to be told what to do." said the prince. "But your choice in staying here is otherwise interesting. You serve Saskia, a woman who preaches about equality of all races, but a rebel nonetheless, a rebel that doesn't hold much wealth, at least for now. You could've made many more coins if you had gone to the monarchs of the northern realms instead."
"So? I don't get your point, prince." Armet said. "I was born here, and I sympathize with her ideas. I don't always agree with her, but that is the appeal. If I serve a monarch like you, if I disagree with how they do things, my head would be sooner put on a spike than actually be heard."
"For the record, I won't do that to you." the prince stated. "I value my advisor's opinion, however blunt it would be."
Armet looked at Olcan. "...I can tell."
That made Olcan frown.
"Are you trying to convince me to join you and leave Saskia? What I want, you can't give me, prince. No. You won't give it." Armet said.
"Clearly you're not in this business for the coins." The prince said. "The ideas, perhaps? A pity. You would've made Aedirn the new dominant force of the northern realms with these weapons."
The prince sighed. "Then I shall take my leave and shan't disturbed you any further."
Armet nodded. "Have a good day, prince."
The prince and his entourage left, leaving Huldar and Armet alone.
"The entire time he didntnae even acknowledge me. That peacock bastard." Huldar scoffed. "Though it is hard t' not be satisfied with how hard ye rejected him. I clearly see he respects yer work, just like us."
Armet chuckled. "The dwarves respect my work? I shall remember that for my whole life."
—
[Early June]
When Armet knocked on the doors of the chambers of the sorcerer Phillipa Eilhart, he could only hear moans from inside. Sighing, he just opened the door instead of leaving to wait another hour, and he interrupted the whole session. Inside, he could see Cynthia naked on the bed, tied on invisible ropes and eyes covered using cloth. Her body had marks of whip all over, yet she doesn't look bothered, for Armet could see that she was actually enjoying it. Meanwhile, Phillipa herself was half naked, whip in hand. As soon as Armet entered, she stopped, frowned, and dressed herself with a flick of the wrist.
"Did the academy not teach you manners?" she said. "We are busy."
"I can tell." Armet hummed, crossing his arms. "But I'm not going to wait another hour. You've been doing this since morning, and I got better things to do than wait until you're satisfied with whipping your apprentice."
Phillipa scoffed. "You just want to have an excuse to take a peek at us." she said, snapping her fingers again and made Cynthia drop to the bed. She took off her blindfold, and when she saw that it was Armet, she struck a seductive pose.
"What do you want?" Phillipa said, walking away from the bed and to her desk.
"I need magical materials." Armet said. "I'm sure you have some."
"Magical materials? Why the sudden interest?" she said, curious. "Hmm, you still have your necklace, but you're interested in magic. I don't feel the potential in you, so I'm afraid you can't."
"I dabble in runes." Armet simply said.
"Ah, that makes more sense." Phillipa said. "Even someone like you recognizes the versatility of it. It's going to be expensive, mind you. The materials are hard to find."
"I need, ahem…"Armet took out a scroll. "Amber dust, monster essence, monster saliva, monster blood, and some infused powder."
Phillipa frowned. "You certainly have studied. I have it. But like I said, it'll be expensive."
"How expensive?"
"Thousand crowns, give or take." she answered.
"You dealt in crowns? And that's a high mark-up, I can do five hundred." Armet said.
"I'm not into charity," Phillipa said. "My ingredient stock is starting to thin out. I might have a use for it in case of emergencies."
"Seven hundred."
"You're wasting our time here." Phillipa said. "It's a thousand or nothing. I'm not a merchant that you can haggle. I don't even usually sell, I'm just too kind to people these days."
"Fine." Armet said, walking to her desk and placing the pouch on it.
"I'll send it to you in the evening." she said casually, turning away. "Now get out."
—
[Early June]
In the middle of the night, Army stood in front of his workstation, watching over a half finished diagram that he's currently making. It was for those six pounder cannons that he talked to Huldar about. He made notes about the materials that they need to use on the barrels, and the mechanisms of the seat of the cannon for it to be easy to be moved. He looked at it, and still frowned. He had calculated on the approximate mass it would be, and thought that it's still a bit heavy to his liking,
"Maybe an eight pounder instead?" he muttered to himself. "Or should we use multiple sizes… no. I should improve the seat and make it a train instead."
It was then that a knock came from his door. Armet turned to the door. He already knew who it was. "Come in," he said.
The door opened, and Cynthia entered the room. The smell of her perfume instantly entered his nostrils, enticing and beguiling. She was bringing a sack with one hand, and placed it on the floor.
"Your ordered things." She said, closing the door.
"Planning to stay?" Armet asked, raising his brow at the closing of the door. "She's not going to question it?"
"She is busy. She barely even remembers to send your things here." Cynthia said, walking to the bed and sitting on it. She looked at him, and saw the half-finished diagram. "I see you're busy as well, but don't mind me."
Armet closed the diagram, and turned around to look at her, crossing his arms. "What do you want?"
"I'll be straight. Our scouts have reported that Henselt has moved to march to Vergen." She said. "In one or two weeks, a siege will happen here."
"Our scouts?" Armet raised his brow. "I haven't heard of anything."
"Don't play coy." she simply said. "You're the only one who suspects me here. In this city. I thought it was a perfect infiltration."
"Ah, the fact that you're a Nilfgaardian spy, you mean?" Armet chuckled. "How'd you know I know? Was it that obvious?"
"I came here to offer you a chance to escape and actually do good with your inventions." She ignored Armet's comment. "The empire would like you to have a position in their ranks as an inventor of weapons. They are interested in it, and would like to sponsor you on further developments."
"Well, I'm not interested." Armet said. "I thought you would have known me by now, Cynthia. I don't chase coins that much."
"I know. What you chase is knowledge. Experience. You want your weapons to be used, and improved upon." she stated. "The empire will give you plenty of that."
"I chase knowledge and experience, true." Armet hummed. "You're not actually from Nilfgaard, are you? You're truly from Vengerberg?"
She was quiet for a moment. "I never lie about that fact."
"Why? Why betray the northern realms?" Armet said.
"You want a reason to walk away from this city? Very well." Cynthia murmured. "Mock me if you must, but I truly believe one huge empire is humanity's only hope. Many nations under one crown. With shared laws, advanced science, burgeoning industry and trade. And no wars, of course. You could be a part of that so easily, Armet. Science in the empire will flourish with your help."
"Idealism suits you," Armet let out a low whistle, bending to pick up the sack. "But me? I've no taste for that kind of world. Nilfgaard's efficient, sure, more so than any Northern throne. But that's not a virtue. It just means they're better at grinding their subjects down. Efficient tyrants are still tyrants."
"We're no tyrants, as far as I see, we have more tolerance in our realm than in yours." said Cynthia, frowning.
He gave a humorless laugh. "What's this talk of tolerance? You still keep slaves in the south. So forgive me if I don't see much enlightenment in their banners. They were clever, though. Fed off Northern bigotry, made it worse. They used the Scoia'tael like pawns, promised them freedom in exchange to slaughter and feed more wood into the fire that is the race tensions in the north, then tossed them aside the moment it stopped being convenient."
He walked back to his work station and placed the sack on top of it. "Burgeoning industry and trade? no wars? What about Cintra, and other butchered kingdoms? Nilfgaard burned their fields and factories, and whole families were wiped out. Unprovoked. Total war, through and through. You think that would encourage trade and industry? You think it wouldn't provoke endless rebellions?"
He looked back, eyes cold. "That's the thing about your empire. They don't end hatred, they use it for their own benefit. Nilfgaard didn't heal the North's wounds. They salted them. Why do you think Saskia rebelled? Part of it was because of the north itself, yes. But the problems were amplified once Nilfgaard directed her ambitions northward."
With those words, Cynthia was just silent. Armet merely sighed. "Look, you still have a chance. Stop what you're doing and join us instead. Actually joining us, not secretly spying. I won't tell."
"...And if I refuse?" she said.
Armet took a pistol from his workstation, and aimed it at her, cocking the flintlock backwards. "You have to escape. Which is not so easy here."
She sighed. "I fought for you, you know? They wanted me to kill you instead."
"I didn't kill you all this time. I think that's courtesy." Armet simply said, taking another pistol from below his workstation, aiming it once again at her.
"I really do enjoy our conversations." she said. "The only thing I regret is you refusing to sleep with me."
"I prefer redheads." Armet simply said.
"I heard." she muttered.
"Blondes like you are nice too, though. But I don't sleep with spies."
It was then that she tried to conjure magic from her hands, either to open a portal or something else, but it was unstable, as the dimeritium necklace around Armet's neck disturbed the magic around. Armet simply walked closer to her, and the magic disappeared completely. He shoved his pistol's barrel to where her heart is, threatening to unload it right there and then.
"Are you done?" Armet said.
"You're close. I can snap your neck easily." she muttered.
"Your heart would've exploded first." Armet said.
"Have you ever killed someone, Armet?" Cynthia said. "I doubt it."
"I have actually, when I was a kid, while I was travelling to Oxenfurt. Listen to me, Cynthia. Betray the empire and tell us of their plans, and you'll be spared and work with us under a truthful relationship, or I'll kill you here. Now."
She smiled. "I pity you, Armet. In a way, the empire isn't even your threat right now. Not even Henselt. But something else. Something inside your own walls."
"I'm not blind. Phillipa's an ambitious woman, and Stennis can't keep his men on a leash." Armet said. "That's why I'm giving you a chance. I don't want to truly kill you."
"You won't kill me so that I could help you get rid of Phillipa?" Cynthia raised her brow. "Very… considerate of you."
"What would it be, then?" Armet asked again.
She looked down, and closed her eyes. "I'm sorry. But kill me. Even if you let me live, they'll hunt me down, and paint a bigger target on you. They'll be afraid that you know of their invasion plans and tell it to the rest of the northern realms. My cold corpse is more useful to you. Put words into my mouth, I don't care. I'll be treated like a simple casualty anyway. They'll deny that I'm ever under their banner."
"Funny isn't it? It seems you know of their rot after all."
"The business of spying is not for the faint of heart." she said. "Do it. But again, it's been a pleasure knowing you in the short time that I have."
"I say the same." Armet hummed. "Goodbye."
After that, he pulled the trigger. The loud bang of the powder probably woke up half the neighbourhood, and Cynthia spat her own blood from her mouth, dirtying Armet's clothing. She smiled at him, red tinted her lips, then dropped to the ground.
Not even a minute later, guards rushed to Armet's workshop. Even Phillipa appeared out of nowhere, no doubt feeling the sudden loss of life of her apprentice. Once she saw the dead body on the ground, the blood on Armet's clothing, and the pistol on his hand, she frowned, her eyes filled with rage.
"What is the meaning of this, child?" she said, trying so hard not to explode in anger. "What. Have. You. Done? Explain yourself before I torch you until your corpse has nothing left."
The guards also turned to him for an explanation. Cynthia was just an apprentice in their eyes, innocent as it could be.
"She's a spy." Armet said calmly, putting down her pistol to her workstation. "She came here with the things I ordered from you, and tried to convince me to escape and join Nilfgaard instead."
"Nilfgaard?" Phillipa frowned even deeper. "Don't lie. She's from Vengerberg."
"Of course, Nilfgaard, the empire that is famous for its single race and single culture." Armet rolled his eyes sarcastically. "You want proof. You can look at her belongings. You'll find something there. She's been sending messages to her superior. About me. About us. About day-to-day operations. I'm sure you can find something."
"Guards." Phillipa said. "Take him away. You're to stay in prison until we find actual proof."
Armet simply smiled and offered his hand to be tied. "Don't touch my things while I'm away please. I'll know. Oh, and clean the blood too."
—
Inside a dark and damp cell, Armet just sat down against the wall and looked down to the dirty floor. He was still in last night's clothing. It was then that someone opened the cell door, and made Armet look up. It was two women. Saskia and Phillipa. Saskia looked neutral, but Phillipa looked annoyed.
"Am I right, or am I right?" Armet smirked.
"Savor it, child. It is not often you will see Phillipa Eilhart get fooled like this." she scoffed.
Armet shows the chains on his hand. "So?"
Saskia knelt down and unlocked the chains on his hand, and Armet stood up.
"We don't know the extent of how much information has been gained by the Nilfgaardians." Saskia stated. "It is not a stretch to say that Kaedwen might gain some of those if the Nilfgaardians wish to."
"I don't think Kaedwen will work with them." Phillipa said. "Henselt is ambitious, sure, but he's not a traitor to the northern realms. Though I think we can assume that after Kaedwen, we will have to deal with Nilfgaard next."
"Are you afraid?" Armet said.
"Don't mock me. I was just fooled once. I am no coward." Phillipa snorted. "We should tighten the guards for now. Who knows how many spies will enter this city."
"You know, I heard some interesting things about you from Cynthia." Armet stated.
"If there's one thing I have to teach you is that you shouldn't trust the words of a spy at all." Phillipa said. "They are good at lying. Or hiding half-truths."
"No, no no." Armet shook his head. "Is 'Planning a takeover on Saskia's Free State so that you and Sile de Tansarville will be the leader of the nation' a half-truth?"
Phillipa frowned. "Those are not half-truths. Those are straight up lies."
"Really? You don't plan on using this nation for an organization called Lodge of Sorceress to pursue their interest?"
"What is this?" Saskia frowned. "Lodge of Sorceress? You said Sile de Tansarville is with Henselt."
Phillipa's jaw tightened. "Saskia, you must not listen to his provocations. The Lodge is, no, was a council of female mages who sought stability after the chaos of Thanedd. Not anything else."
Saskia's eyes narrowed. "You didn't tell me you were part of such a council."
"I didn't tell you because it is irrelevant now," Phillipa said. "The Lodge is fractured. Sile is acting on her own and I my own. And if Nilfgaard has learned of its existence, it is because they mean to twist it to their advantage."
Armet folded his arms. "How convenient. Every time you're caught, you throw the blame to someone else."
Phillipa turned to him sharply. "Careful, boy. You think you understand politics because you've spoken to an amateur spy once or twice? You haven't the faintest idea what keeps kingdoms from burning."
"Then enlighten me."
"Power. Not honesty." Phillipa said. "And if you wish to survive what's coming, you'll stop trying to make enemies of your allies."
Saskia stepped between them. "Enough. Both of you. Whether or not your Lodge still stands, and if their agendas are still going or not, we are still facing tough times ahead. But I am warning you, Phillipa, that I am not to be your puppet. I have been betrayed once by someone who was close to you, and I would be naive if I thought it would be the last of it."
Phillipa merely frowned, but didn't say anything more.
"We should focus on the task at hand." Saskia said. "The spy gave us one thing at least. The early report of Henselt's forces moving. We should make preparations."
—
A week later, Armet stood upon the walls of Vergen with a telescope in hand, watching in the distance the Kaedweni army camp by the river Pontar. The distance of it is not even a mile away from the walls, so close. The camp that is on the south of the river is the small minority of it though, as most was on the other side.
He closed his telescope and turned to Saskia and Stennis, who were standing beside him. They are already wearing battle armour. Even Armet is wearing it too, albeit, much more simpler than the two.
"We can shoot them from here." Armet said. "Disturb them in their sleep and while they are building their nest and siege engines."
"From here?" Stennis frowned. "Your cannons can shoot from here?"
"The maximum range is one mile. But it's not very accurate. In this situation however, accuracy isn't the priority." Armet said. "It's up to you, Saskia."
"Do it. Show them we are not to be trifled with." she muttered.
Armet nodded. "We'll shoot sporadically. To keep them tense, keep them sleepless."
Armet then walked away to Saskia and raised his hand to get the attention of the men. "Load the cannons!"
There were around five cannons on this side of the wall, with the other five on the other side. The soldiers moved quickly, and although it was the first time they actually will shoot it, they practiced. First they load the powder, then the ball through the muzzle. Then they stabbed the sack of powder from the small hole at the end of the barrel, and a long match stick was lit up to prepare. Armet took out his telescope again and looked towards the makeshift camp of the Kaedwinis, before ordering the command.
"Fire!"
Each of the cannons' powder were lit up by the match sticks, and not a second later, a barrage of explosions sounded from the walls like a domino, shaking even some of the buildings inside the walls.
From the telescope, he watched as the cannon balls traveled through the air and hit the encampments. Some shattered the wooden palisades and scattered splinters all over the encampments, injuring and even killing some soldiers and guards. Some just hit the camps entirely, probably injuring a dozen or so men inside it, but one missed, travelling to the air instead and didn't hit anything. A soft smile appeared on Armet's lips, but the satisfaction was far from over.
He too could hear the cheer of the soldiers. They probably have never seen anything like it. In a siege, usually the defenders can't usually fight back like this.
"Reload!" he shouted.
The inside of the muzzle was neutralized by another stick, and the cannons got loaded up again, before pushing it to the previous position. He looked through the telescope again. He could see they're trying to pull the wounded to the healing tent and repair the broken things, but Armet wouldn't let that go on peacefully.
"Fire!"
Another barrage of explosions echoed throughout the city. Once again, solid cannon balls hit the encampments. Some hit the palisades. Some hit the camps themselves. This time, nothing missed.
"Reload!"
Armet said again, but this time, he stopped looking through the telescope. He turned to one of the commanding officers of the wall. "Shoot again when you think it is best to shoot again. Save up on the powder. But don't let those Kaedwenis rest. Make them always afraid of a volley. If you see them building a siege weapon near the walls, make that a priority."
"Aye, sir!"
Armet gave the telescope to that commanding officer, and walked back to Saskia and Stennis.
"That was… impressive. And frightening." Stennis said. "I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end."
Armet merely nodded. "We can't do anything more than wait, now. At the very least, they'll send a messenger to request a parley. At most, a full suicidal assault. We can theoretically maintain this siege forever, as long as their army doesn't reach the south of the city and actually block the path for supplies. But right now, what they're doing is not really a siege, just a show of force. A show that they clearly failed to perform on."
Saskia looked amused. "You act differently now."
Armet raised his brow. "Different how?"
"Like a commander, instead of a mere engineer."
"I'm no commander yet." Armet muttered. Another barrage of cannon fire sounded in the background, he could see Stennis flinched from the sound. "So? What's our next move?"
"Like you said, wait." Saskia said. "We shall gather at the war council now to discuss what to do in different scenarios. But first, I would like to talk to you in private."
"Then I will leave you two alone. I shall go to the war council. But be quick, we have many things to talk about." Stennis nodded, and left the hoardings on the wall.
Armet turned to Saskia after seeing the prince left. "What do you want to talk about?"
"There are… things that I have realized these past months." she said quietly. "About who I have surrounded myself with."
Armet raised his brow. "I don't get where this is going, Saskia."
"Phillipa, and the nobles. I'm very much closer to them than I am to Yarpen or Cecil. At least in terms of how I present myself." she said. "You gave me warning on how you disagree with me on creating just another kingdom in an otherwise Free Pontar Valley. And lately, seeing how there is evidence of Phillipa not being truthful with me, I feel like I should put more trust in you and ask advice from you."
Armet chuckled. "She's been here longer than me. I admit that I am biased against Phillipa, so maybe you should take my words with a grain of salt in matters concerning her."
"See? You admit it yourself, and speak plainly to me about your bias, and that makes me realize that I am doing the right thing." she said. "I want this state to produce men like you, Armet. Men that don't need to be of noble birth to be great. Or have special attributes in their being so that they could conjure magic. You and your ingenuity alone. I want that to be the base of this new nation that we are building. A place where merit is placed above all."
"A meritocracy." Armet hummed. "I have no protest against that. But again, why must you talk to me in private about this?"
"Because I want you to be the face of this nation." she said. "If anything happens to me, I hope you can rally the people and unite under one banner once more."
Armet frowned. "What is that supposed to mean?"
"If the people somehow lose their trust in me. Or if I'm gone." she continued. "You may not have been that public that much to the people, but they saw your inventions, and respect you through that. I'm sure after this siege, they'll respect you even more. You're the only one that can continue this. Not Yarpen, he is already Mahakam-bound. Not Cecil, he's more suited here as the alderman. Not Phillipa and her schemes. Definitely not the nobles, nor Stennis. But you."
Armet chuckled. "I've been here for a mere two months, Saskia. You trust too easily."
"You've been here for two months, yet you've changed the dynamic of this council by a lot. Twice you could've run and gotten more benefits from your invention, but you didn't." Saskia muttered. "Soon, I will bring someone that might cause controversy. But I'm sure you'll see how useful they can be in our situation. In times of desperate need, perhaps I might show another version of me that people won't so easily accept. That is why I am talking to you about this, Armet."
Armet sighed. "I make no promises. In the end I'm just an engineer. Not a leader like you."
"Stop using that excuse." she said. "You know you want more than to be called that."
She patted his shoulder and walked past him. "Let us go to the war council. Remember my words, Armet."
—
When all had gathered in the council room, only Yarpen was late to the meeting. He strolled casually as the last member to arrive and sat down in his seat.
"Sorry, the lads're nervous so I have to give them some pep talk," he said. "But I love the sound of the cannons finally ringing out! Ha! Never in my life did I think we as defenders can cause so much damage to the enemy morale like this. Early in the siege no less."
"Alright, Yarpen, settle down." Saskia said. "Let us now talk about the matters of Kaedwen and how we deal with them. We've talked about this event for weeks now, and now it actually came, we can see our plans starting to roll out. The cannons show their effectiveness instantly, they cannot approach any closer, and they can't even build a siege engine due to the pressure of the cannon fire. Armet says they have only two choices. A frontal assault, or parley. They're in no way capable of a prolonged siege in this state."
"Not true," said Phillipa. "They have another way of defeating us."
Armet nodded. "I know what you will say. Sappers. And I agree. But we already anticipated that."
"Which is why we'll start to watch fer diggers below our walls now. A barrel of water will do the trick." Cecil added. "The mines are closed, and some men are stationed there to keep watch of miners as well. Some of our miners even volunteered to guard. Some are on stand-by t' counter the sappers."
"That is good news." Saskia nodded. "Anything else?"
"One other way." Armet said. "Subterfuge. They may not be able to blockade our supply lines to the outside, but they can infiltrate it. Or even worse, perhaps the spies are already in our walls. They can incapacitate the cannons and open the gate, or even kill all of us through poison. I suggest we seldom drink and eat before someone tested it first."
"You suggest that someone should die for you first just so you could avoid poison?" It was Olcan who spoke. "It was not a very… aligned suggestion for you all, is it? You who preach equality, yet you want to be treated like kings."
"It was a great suggestion." Phillipa said. "Why are you fighting against it, Heirarch? At the end of the day, this can protect you as well."
"I am simply pointing out your hypocrisy," said Olcan. "You can go ahead with the rule, if you wish."
Armet sighed, then turned to the Hierarch. "Anything you want to say, Hierarch? Before I show all of us something."
The Hierarch frowned. "What are you getting at, child?"
Armet stood from his seat. "Prince Stennis, I hope you see this not as an offence, but as an eye-opener. Guards. Bring the runesmith in."
The door then opened, and they suddenly brought a dwarf with a bald head and a red beard. He stood facing the council. He particularly doesn't seem to have done anything, and was strong enough to face the pressure of the eyes of the council.
"What is the meaning of this? Who is this?" Olcan asked.
"You see, after Cynthia, me and Cecil argued that we should tightly guard the every move of people around here." Armet said. "So Cecil and I thought it would be a great idea to have someone follow around the people that we thought were high risk. Which means you who come from the court of Stennis."
"You were spying on us?" Stennis frowned. "How… professional of you, Armet."
"Thank you, prince." Armet hummed. "And not even a week after we implemented that, it already bore fruit. One of our watchers found Hierarch Olcan here visiting Thorak, our resident runesmith. Thorak, speak."
He gruffed, and only threw a piece of parchment to the table. "He told me to make this."
Saskia opened the parchment, and turned wide-eyed. "This looks like… my favourite goblet."
"Correct. One that is identical, but rigged so that someone could put a poison in it easily." Armet said. "Which means…"
"Olcan…" Stennis frowned deeply. "What have you done?"
"This is all but lies!" Olcan shouted angrily. "Who are you to accuse me, the hierarch!?"
"The evidence is here, Olcan. Unless you have other evidence that can refute it. Thorak confessed that he took coins from you to make that goblet. But we've pardoned him in exchange for his testimony. So? What say you?"
"I—" Olcan struggled to speak. "This is nothing but lies!"
"If it's a lie then prove it wrong." Armet said calmly. "Prince Stennis, anything to say? By default, you are an accessory to this attempted assasination. You are his liege, easily could've commanded him to do the things he did."
"I have nothing to do with this." Stennis said, clearly angry at Olcan. "I came here for peace, to prove that I can be a good monarch. And I cannot do that if I assassinate a good general that is vital to the defense of the kingdom. If Saskia wishes, I will strike this poisoning priest myself."
Olcan laughed desperately. "You side with them prince! How dare you! You will regret that. You'll be the ones who reap the consequences for murdering a servant of the faith."
"Guards, search his room." Phillipa, who've grown a bit bored of the arguments, spoke loudly. "Find any traces of poisons. Leave no stone unturned."
The guards nodded, and soon rushed towards the outside to search the room of Olcan. The council waited patiently, with them mostly annoyed by the blabber of Olcan trying to accuse everyone here of lying without actually giving evidence. It was then that the guards returned, and came back with a vial.
"What is that?" Yarpen asked, frowning.
Phillipa examined it, and smelled it. "Thaumador. Magepain. A particularly nasty poison."
"Guards…" Said Stennis darkly, his fist clenching. "Hang Olcan down by the square. Let everyone see it."
Instead of obeying, the guards turned to Saskia, who in turn sighed deeply. "He is not my subject to punish. Follow his orders."
The guards nodded, and started to drag Olcan out of the council. Meanwhile, the man just shouts profanities.
"I did this for you prince! That wench is a monster! You will see when the time comes that she is not—-"
And then, the door closed, and the council became quiet again. Armet meanwhile, grabbed the vial, and threw it out the window, which made everyone look at him.
"Why'd you do that lad?" Cecil asked.
"Right now I don't trust any of you." Armet bluntly said. "And I don't want to give that deadly poison to anyone."
Yarpen grumbled. "Ergh… Fair."
"In any case…" Saskia muttered. "Armet, Cecil. Good work."
Armet merely nodded. "I know this isn't the right time, and trust me, I would rather this council be dismissed right now, but, I have an opinion considering the parley. That we should not, under any circumstances, accept it."
Stennis frowned. "Why?"
"I agree with him." Phillipa said. "It is useless. Us coming to him is just giving him more cards to use. Let us sit here with our long range cannons, and them there being sitting ducks for it."
"...We shall discuss this later." Saskia muttered, clearly a bit tired and shook after today's events. "This council is dismissed for now."