“That is quite the story.”

  Lord Kinkin Brankil was a tall, slender man with sharp features and dark, deep-set eyes. His neatly groomed black hair was streaked with silver. He leaned back and sipped his tea, gazing at the two young nobles before him. Anton and Suliel had finished telling their story. Kelsey was there, but sat to one side and had refrained from commenting. Everyone had agreed that things would go more smoothly if she kept quiet.

  They had reached Lord Brankil’s county seat, Imilford, without much difficulty; one of Lady Anat’s party had ridden ahead to give the man notice. Once they had arrived, Suliel’s mother had met with him first, presumably to give him the same story they were telling him now. In other circumstances, in different social circles, this could all have been handled by a letter and a package, carried by Lady Anat, perhaps. But the nobility never did anything efficiently.

  They had their reasons. In this case, Anton could understand the secrecy. Putting what he knew in a letter might well be dangerous. He was less sure of why Lord Brankil had to hear his story twice. Anton’s education into the ways of the court and the nobility had not reached that stage, yet.

  Lord Brankil looked at the object on the table before them. “You are handing this over to the Circle?”

  It wasn’t a question, but handing the item over was what they had intended all along.

  “Yes,” Anton said. “I realise it won’t be conclusive evidence for others, but it might help bring some to the truth.”

  “I think you underestimate its persuasive ability,” the Count said. “It fills in a notable hole in our account of the events surrounding the old King’s death. We are relying on your word when it comes to its provenance, but for many nobles, a noble's word is not to be questioned.”

  Anton wasn’t sure how that worked, what with the way that nobles lied all the time to each other, but he just nodded. If his evidence helped, then that was fine.

  “Your other concern— that of your allegiance being uncovered— you need not trouble yourself over it.”

  Anton hesitated for a moment. He knew he wasn’t supposed to question the higher-ranked lord, but his lessons hadn’t covered what to do when he needed to.

  “Why would that be, my Lord? The link between my family and the late Lord Anat leads right to you, my Lord. And you can’t be a lowly-placed member of the Circle.”

  Unless the Rose Circle included dukes, that is. Anton left that part off, as it might have been construed as attempting to get information he wasn’t qualified for.

  “True. However, the addition of the guns has triggered a new phase of our conspiracy.”

  Kelsey chuckled. Everyone looked at her.

  “What?” she protested. “He said triggered! Like on a gun! It’s a pun!”

  Count Brankil coughed, bringing the attention back to him.

  “Here in the Duchy of Tarazin, we’re in the fortunate position of having enough adherents to sway the entire duchy to our side. The main holdout has been Duke Ariman, and this item may well be enough to convince him.”

  “And if it doesn’t?” Suliel asked.

  “Then things will get… messy,” Lord Brankil admitted. “He will have no choice but to denounce whoever broaches the issue with him—probably me, and the Duchy will erupt in flames of violence.”

  He gave Anton a sardonic smile. “So you see, I have little concern over what the King suspects.”

  Anton swallowed at the thought of what that would entail. His wife was more used to thinking about political intrigue and kept talking.

  “And if you succeed?”

  “Then… the Duchy will declare for Queen Syrelle and enter open revolt.”

  “That’s…” Anton swallowed again. He didn’t know much about the wider politics of the kingdom, but this seemed pretty simple. “Isn’t that suicide? There are three other duchies, not to mention the King's armies!”

  “On paper, we will be outnumbered,” Lord Brankil agreed. “But remember, those other duchies are riddled with our allies.”

  “Which the King knows, or at least suspects…” Suliel explained for Anton’s benefit.

  “Exactly,” Lord Brankil agreed. “So he can’t bring all his forces against us. He will send a force he believes can crush us, but the odds will not be overwhelming. That’s where the guns come in. We’re hoping that they will tip the odds.”

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

  “He has guns as well, though,” Kelsey leaned forward, suddenly interested. “Not as many as you, but neither of you has used them in battle. Your tactics are undeveloped, your soldiers are barely trained.”

  Lord Brankil nodded. “We don’t think he’ll risk them on the first attack, where he thinks he’ll have the advantage. By being the first to use them in battle, both our commanders and soldiers will gain valuable experience with the weapons.”

  “As soon as he sees them, he’s gonna know that we sold them to you,” Kelsey said. “And if they work out, he’s gonna want more before he attacks again.”

  “He’s almost certain to contact you,” Lord Brankil told Anton. “When he does, I’d like you to lead him on. Declare your support, but find a way to delay shipping him any further weapons.”

  “Would that be credible?” Anton asked. “I’ll be a part of a duchy that’s in revolt.”

  “In times like these, loyalties become strained,” Count Brankil said. “Duke Ariman’s hold isn’t absolute. There will be a few barons who profess loyalty to the King. Some of them will even mean it, at least at first. In any case, it’s not about whether he believes you or not.”

  “It isn’t? But…”

  “It’s about delay,” Lord Brankil explained. “The longer he thinks that more guns are on their way, the longer it will take for him to bring his second force down on us. We need that time.”

  “What for?”

  “For our allies to spread the word of Queen Syrelle, for more nobles to be turned to our side. His reputation will have suffered from his first loss, so his second strike must be successful if he wants to keep his throne.”

  The Count frowned pensively. “While we stand as a beacon for all that follow the true Queen, he will gather his forces. He’ll need to pull troops from loyalist desmenes, which will leave them vulnerable.”

  “To the neighbouring kingdoms?” Anton asked.

  “Possibly, but our relations are peaceful at the moment,” Lord Brankil told him. “To our fellow Circle members in the other duchies.”

  “I see,” Anton said slowly. “There will be other, smaller uprisings all around the kingdom. Baronies turning against their neighbours and so forth.”

  Anton didn’t like the sound of that. It was one thing to fight a battle in a righteous cause. Even if your enemy was deluded instead of evil, it was still for a cause he could believe in. Setting barony against barony didn’t sit right. He knew how most noble houses were linked by marriages, and he knew how the most bitter divisions formed when families fell to fighting.

  “I doubt that it will come to open warfare, not until the outcome of the second battle is known,” Count Brankil said. “No lesser nobles will want to stick their neck out unless they see our path to victory. They may declare, but they will keep their troops at home.”

  “So the second battle will be the most desperate one,” Suliel mused.

  “It will. For the first battle, he will send only what he thinks he needs. For the second, he will send everything he thinks he can spare. That includes his riflemen, of course. But by then, we expect our troops to have a few more levels.”

  “Will you be calling for our house’s soldiers for the second battle?” Suliel asked.

  “No. Your barony, or at least your dungeon, is a strategic asset.” Count Brankil gave Kelsey a sour look. She gave him a sunny grin in return.

  “While we expect the King to attack Tazebrook, he may avoid the ducal seat. Or split his forces with the goal of securing your weapons. You will need your troops at home to defend against that possibility.”

  Suliel frowned. “We’re not exactly near the King’s lands,” she said. “He’d have to go through the Duke’s holding to get to us.”

  “And the fastest road from Bures to Kirido goes through Tazebrook,” the Count agreed. “But armies need not follow roads. He could prevail on Duke Angount to attack from the north, pass through southern Tarazin, or even send a force along the coast. What I’ve described is only a vague forecast of what is to come. Plans will change as events unfold.”

  “How will we be informed of these changes, my Lord?” Suliel asked. “The mechanical bird that my father used for messages disappeared when Magister Tikin left.”

  “Likely it was his to begin with,” Count Brankil told her. “Such devices are rare. No, we have to rely on slower methods. It means delays, but we’re well-used to working around such inconveniences. Use your best judgment if events take us out of what we’ve discussed here.”

  “Don’t worry, boss!” Kelsey said. “We’re great at improvisation.”

  The Count gave her another look, and then sighed.

  “Assuming we win, or at least survive the second battle, King Kalond will find his support slipping out from under him as more of his nobles declare for the Queen.”

  He stared into the distance, as if he could see the future he was talking of.

  “You can expect to be called up at that point, when we begin the march towards Bures.”

  “And what of the Tiatian Empire, my Lord?” Suliel asked.

  “The Empire?”

  “You said that our relations with our neighbours are peaceful enough that we can expect them not to take advantage of our troubles,” Suliel explained. “The Empire isn’t our neighbour, and I’ve been told that it is casting covetous glances in our direction.”

  “That… isn’t widely known,” the Count said, frowning. Suliel shrugged in reply.

  “Am I wrong?”

  “No,” Count Brankil admitted. “The Queen is negotiating with representatives of the Empire. They have provided the Circle with some support. It remains to be seen if they regard the Queen as the more reliable party or if they are merely setting her up for a fall.”

  “Or perhaps they mean to strike while our nobility fights among ourselves?” Suliel suggested.

  “That’s possible,” the Count admitted. “However, they don’t know about the guns, nor our accelerated timetable. So we think they may be unprepared to capitalise on the disorder we cause.”

  “I was hoping for a more reassuring answer, my Lord.”

  Count Brankil snorted. “You’re young. You’ll learn soon enough that there are no reassuring answers in politics.”

  “Perhaps you’re right,” Suliel allowed. “One final question, then. Where does the Circle stand on the children of the King?”

  “To our knowledge, they are innocent,” Count Brankil said. “They think their Aunt is dead. When the truth comes out, we can hope that they denounce their father, but it seems unlikely.”

  His voice hardened. “Should they turn to our side, or even just refrain from taking arms against us, they will not be harmed. The chances of that, however… one cannot expect a child to turn against their father.”