jackal-among-snakes-16091326
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chapter-279
Argrave picked up a ring and poured the well of magic bursting within him into the confines of the inscription wrought into the metal. Imbuing enchantments felt like he was handling red hot liquid metal, pouring it into a cast with his will alone. He attempted to speed it up… yet as one might expect, the magic danced dangerously, and Argrave quickly directed things so as to seal them off. Just as he did so, he was sealed off from the near limitless supply of power springing from the Blessing of Supersession.
“That should be five minutes, Your Majesty,” Galamon said gruffly. “Forty rings, by my count.”
“…I messed this one up,” Argrave set the ring down in a pile alongside many others. Each of the rings had Argrave’s personal symbol on them—the sun, with four snake heads at the edges of four rays.
“Then thirty-nine,” Galamon amended.
“Not good enough,” Argrave shook his head.“You’ve managed to imbue thirty-nine B-rank enchanted items, Your Majesty. Less than a month ago, you had done zero,” Ansgar reminded him. As Leopold Dandalan’s most trusted son, Ansgar had become a sort of aide to Argrave in the past month. Though sixty-two, he was still quite able on many fronts. Above all, he was trustworthy. “Your efforts are astounding.”
Indeed, one month had passed. It had taken Argrave a month of learning to get to the point to do this. Granted, his time had become much more limited ever since taking on his duties as king, but the point remained. One month, thirty-nine rings. It could be said that it was far above normal production rates… but far below what Argrave wanted with this venture of his.
“…hmm,” Argrave grunted discontentedly. This enchanting business was his sole reprieve from the mundanity of administering things in Relize. Once the politics were well and settled, he felt useless.
“These cast B-rank warding spells, do they not?” Ansgar eyed the rings. “I would advise that you distribute them first to your newly formed royal guard. Perhaps your knight-commander can handle this matter, Your Majesty,” Leopold looked to Galamon.
Galamon had become Argrave’s knight-commander of his royal knights. Indeed, Argrave had his own royal knights, now. Though only twelve, each and all were masters. Galamon had chosen the most skilled out of people in the army. From there, Anneliese had evaluated their loyalty. That number ended in twelve. Argrave disliked bringing them everywhere—even now, they waited outside.
“I had intended to distribute them to meritorious performers in the battlefield,” Argrave said. “Giving them to my guard… might come off as selfish, no?”
“I believe it would show that being loyal and steadfast brings rewards, Your Majesty,” Ansgar disagreed.Argrave rubbed his chin. “Alright. It’s only twelve—the rest will be distributed as I originally intended. Galamon?”
The elven vampire nodded. “I’ll see they’re handed out.”
Argrave rose to his feet, content. “Alright. Now, before we depart to evaluate the fortress… Leopold’s waiting.”
Ansgar dipped his head. “I believe my father is eager to meet his bride-to-be.”
“I can only imagine,” Argrave said with a droll nod. “Send for Elenore before we meet. I have things to discuss with her, and she should be there when I talk to Leopold.”
“Not here,” Anneliese interrupted. “And lastly… the man I think you should meet. Leopold,” she introduced.
Hirnala stepped up to the old man immediately. He craned his neck up to keep her eye-contact.
“I’m told you hope for a mutually beneficial partnership,” she said at once.
“…a marriage,” Leopold nodded.
“This is your home?” she looked around.
“It is,” Leopold nodded.
“I am told you are a wealthy man,” Hirnala continued. “I see that is not untrue, judging merely by this place.”
“I can confidently say I am the wealthiest man in this city… and presently its leader, at least during war time,” Leopold said steadily.
Hirnala nodded. “Good. Things are simple, as I see it—I want to live more than simply ‘well.’” Hirnala clasped her hands together. “You are wealthy and present a good business opportunity. We can forge new grounds, establish trade between Veiden and Berendar that makes both of us profit tremendously. There is no more trustworthy bind than marriage, I find—even better if we should have children. I do question if you still can, though.”
Leopold seemed amused by the notion. “I’ve done so enough, and still can well enough. But I question if there is genuinely profit to be had.”
Hirnala smiled. “A good question. We were delayed because of my cargo—a shipment of goods from Veiden, plus a tribute for the king,” her blue eyes turned to Argrave. “Something to make your men a little more equal to the army of the Veidimen. Enough to arm these men, perhaps?”
Ebonice, Argrave realized. That might help their severe deficiency of magic users, and brightened Argrave’s mood tremendously.
“Call him Your Majesty,” Galamon instructed her.
“Your Majesty,” she adjusted quickly, unoffended. “A bit unwieldy… but I will adapt.”
“Let’s see this shipment,” Leopold said, some excitement shining through. “After… we can talk details.”
“Good enough,” Hirnala said. “I hope you don’t expect me to help you walk.”
“I can walk,” Leopold said, stepping forth on his cane with more vigor than Argrave generally saw him with.
Once they left, Argrave looked to Anneliese. “She’s… exactly as you said, huh?”
“The sincerest person I have ever met,” Anneliese nodded. “Not a good thing, often. But still, I am proud to call her my friend.”
“Think they’ll stick?” Argrave questioned.
“Oh, yes. She was practically glowing at all the gold on the walls,” Anneliese nodded. “And it’ll help secure some Ebonice, even if not as much as we need.”
“Good,” Argrave nodded. “We leave to inspect the fortress today. You’ll be fine? You’ve just returned from a fairly long journey.”
“We set out once again. In truth, I am somewhat excited,” Anneliese confessed. “Apprehension, though, looms.”
Argrave nodded. “I know what you mean. I can finally get away from here. Elenore doesn’t need me. She does everything near perfectly, and I just sit around looking big.”
The prospect of a brief getaway from all of this did excite Argrave. He had to admit… he wasn’t built for mundane administration. Moreover, he wasn’t sure he’d make a competent commander in the slightest. As the days went on, he felt stagnant. Hopefully, heading to the Indanus Divide would revitalize him. Certainly, it would set Anneliese on a new path of magic…
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