With the Duchess...
"Welcome, and excuse me for the delay, Milady" the Duke says as he enters the room through a set of massive double doors.
He then turns towards the Duchess's companion, a bit surprised that it'd be a man, but clearly recognizing him as lesser nobility "Pleased to make your acquaintance, Lord...?"
"If you will follow me, more adequate accommodations have been arranged for the occasion in the nearby room" he says as he turns to walk through the same doorway he entered through.
He waits for both guests to take a seat, or not, should they so prefer, before taking a seat himself. His expression sours a bit "From your rather unusual company for the occasion, I assume it is as I feared?"
He sighs deeply "Baron Traviath, it is no secret that the nobility of Severance is less than fond of my dynasty. My grandmother was hardly the most beloved person around. It is also no secret that, Your Grace being of eligible age for marriage, many of your Barons wish to, themselves, marry their heirs to you".
"With that in mind, and noted that Severance's population will not, for their own part, dare speak against their Lords, I'd like to extend you an invitation to a stay in the city of Stormport, so that you might see, for yourself, how the peasantry has fared under my rule. That, I dare say, would be much truer a test of my character"
He then stands slowly, turning to look outside though a window¹ "I will, of course, understand if you'd rather simply take the words of your Barons for granted. Odds are I might do the same were I in your position, though that would, indeed, be a shame, that, even if not in our own generation, our people will yet see blood shed over this misunderstanding"
"I will not press that claim in my lifetime, at least for as long as you, yourself, rule Severance, but as I dare not deprive my dynasty of its ancient holdings, nor can I guarantee my children or grandchildren will not come to do so" he says, masterfully feigning regret.
¹push him, you know you want to!
Later, at the Council...
The Duke lowers his head in respect before the Prince "You honor me with such an appointment, Your Highness".
"Currently, I believe, our priorities lie not in accounting for a census of the land, or even productive investments, but rather, the growth of our cities and bolstering of trade, which we have been starved of. That, of course, goes hand in hand with the bandit problem ravaging the landscape"
"If we scour a fief individually, we run the risk of the bandits merely, for the most part, migrating to a nearby region and resuming their activities. That, as we speak of the welfare of the Principality as a whole, and not merely the Crown lands, is less than optimal a solution"
"We have more than enough men available within our levies to take care of the problem, the real issue at hand is that we lack any coordination on that regard. Were we to concert a simultaneous assault upon the bandits' encampments, we might be able to altogether drive them from the country, or at least drive powerful enough a blow that they will be reduced to a shadow of their former selves".
"That said, though I am not Marshal, I propose that the Crown enforce that all of its vassals conduct a simultaneous attack a month from now. The time in-between should necessarily employed in scouting the countryside for the bandit encampments. For optimal effect, the nature of the move should be kept a secret closely guarded to those strictly necessary".
"Every major noble should be privately informed of the required scouting a week from now, another letter to arrive three weeks from there, by royal couriers, to commence reprisal operations across the countryside".
"That is my view on the more pressing issue at hand, though there is more to be said about the treasury"
"Trade is most profitable done through our maritime lanes. Trade north of the Principality is, so to say, none to speak of, and likely to remain so, such is the nature of the northerners, barbarians, for the most part, barring the dwarven settlements. That makes Severance little attractive as a port, double so as it remains one of the more unsettled parts of the realm".
"That leaves us two options when determining where maritime trade would flow from and to in the Principality, Ciall, whose ruler is not currently amongst us, and Stormport, my own fief. Though I am, of course, biased in that regard, Ciall's merit is in being our southernmost city, and therefore the nearest location for trade flowing north from the south, whereas Stormport bolsters a larger population, and therefore larger docks, as well as being the port historically and regionally connected to Stormborough, as trade flows upstream and downstream from river Storm.
"That said, the building of better bridges between the three coastal fiefs, the improvement of the roads connecting Stormport to Stormborough and the expansion of Stormport's docks are all viable options, provided that the banditry issue is dealt with first"
"On the diplomatic front, and I am also not Chancellor, an alliance with Drymark, one way or another, would be directly conductive towards trade flowing in from the south, both by sea and by land, whereas negotiations with our eastern neighbours could also prove profitable. A census, however, is much too expensive, and currently largely unnecessary"
"Alternatively, should we opt for expanding our trade with our eastern neighbours, improving the roads leading there from Valleyfall and Whitehall could prove a very promising notion, something to be considered, truly".
"That said, there is yet much more to be said, and just as much to be done, even as the Crown and Lord's funds only go so far. Those issues are already more than we can immediately deal with, and so I'd submit them to your judgement, Your Highness, rather than speak of further, less pressing matters".
"I hope that my rambling proves, in some way or another, useful to you, my liege, all things considered".
Even later, with Baron Landemourne...
The servant goes in for a short while, before returning "The Duke will now receive you, please, go right in and His Grace will speak with you. The door at the end of the hallway".
As you enter, the Duke turns his attention away from what seems to be a letter in the works, directly to you "Greetings, Baron of Landemourne, and soon to be Count of Whitehall, or so we hope".
"It would seem you have quite the perfect timing, as you've caught me right as I prepare to leave for Stormport. But enough of that. What is it that brings you here today, Your Lordship?"
Even later, no really, even later...
The Duke encloses the letter he wishes sent to the Duke of Valleyfall, ordering the courier to make haste, before turning to other travel preparations. Another letter is set aside for Stormport proper, announcing his arrival.
"To Your Grace, the Duke of Valleyfall,
The news concerning the King's edicts must have reached you by now. If by some twist of fate, they have not, I regret to inform you that the King has retracted both of your Count vassals, Whitehall and Woodsedge, which now count amongst the Crown's numerous direct vassals.
As part of the realm, I'd like to express my condolences for your losses so soon after the conclusion of an already tiring civil war. As my brother in rank², however, I'd like to go further.
The two of us have much to gain from each other's support. I would like to extend a private invitation to Stormport, at the earliest occasion, so that we might speak of such matters I cannot therein allude to directly.
My blessings,
Severan, Duke of Stormport".
The Duke returns to Stormport, under heavy escort, his newfound retainer in tow.
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Topic: You are King: New Realms: IC Thread (Read 13617 times)