After half an hour of pondering, you finally make your pick. Tarren the Harpist shall win the contest, and become the state's bard. While leaving your tent, you consider the many ways you could expand your Chamdhi, considering things such as subjugating the Khami, brutal conquest of the Petty Jarldoms, alliances and plain diplomacy. You walk back to the site of the contest, and announce your pick. Both the peasantry and the nobility seem to like him quite a lot, judging from the amount of loud cheers you hear around you. With the pick announced, the contest has come to its end. The populace quickly disperses, and the air around you is filled with the sounds of hard work. Oddly enough, you notice a fair amount of people loitering around, doing nothing, and even a few homes that could be permanent. In the buzz of people, you head towards Countess Brunhilda of Kilvidhi's tent, taking the black wolf's teeth with you. Her guards let you in, and she turns around surprised, quickly fashioning her hair a little to appear better. You kneel in front of her, hold up the teeth, and swiftly propose to her. Even though this is as loveless as a proposal could possibly get, she still blushes and stammers, before accepting. You ask her adviser to come over to you, and bid him to pinpoint a date for the marriage together with Ludhar, preferably as soon as possible.
In the middle of summer, you head back to your keep in Kildhula, and take your entourage with you. The journey is short and pleasant, the lush fields around you filled to the brim with crops almost ripe for the harvest and green pens filled with fat cattle. The harvest, and with that your tax incomes, will be good this year.
Once you have arrived at your keep, you immediately start issuing your orders. Tarren the Harpist shall receive a beautiful estate in the rich district of the Grand City of Nilvestra, something bigger than the dreams of most peasants, let alone the dreams of an orphan boy. Once you bring him this news, you see his glittering eyes fill with joy, hope, and admiration. He heads off immediately, accompanied by his new small entourage, consisting of two guards, a maid and a cook. The second order you make is for Ludhar to hire some prospectors and find some fresh, richly filled bronze deposits. You also send out a letter to your best bronze smith and tailor, to fashion you a great suit of armor and a beautiful, fitting cape made from the skin of the black wolf. It would be a perfect thing to wear at your soon-to-be wedding.
After issuing these simple orders, you move onto more complicated matters. Firstly, your couriers and diplomats are to offer vassalization to all lords and ladies between your Chamdhi and the Chamdhi of Kuredh. If they accept, they become a part of your Chamdhi, if not, diplomatic ties as well as estimates of their armies are to be made. Your couriers hurry away, and only a week later you hear the first good news; the old, childless Jarl of Nilkuredhol has granted you his Jarldom, so that it won't be torn apart by a succession war after he passes away. Soon, the news reaches you that both the Petty Jarldom of Vedilage and the Lands of the Twin Cities (Mondov and Vemdov), have granted you a significant amount of, although not heavily populated, land above the river Estra. These small baronies, municipalities and villages have all sworn their fealty to you, as the De Jure, and now De Facto ruler of the lands of Aradh. Other than that, there have been no more generous donations, and your diplomat to Chamdhi Kuredh even got expelled, so your scouts had to do a lot of estimating. Relations and estimated amount of troops to the following countries are:
Sedhstagh: Afraid, 1.000
Twin Cities: Warned, 1.500
Vedilage: Neutral, 2.500
Edhilla: Friendly, 3.000
Chamdhi Kuredh: Arrogant, 5.000
Soon after, both your custom fit harness and your prospectors return. Several new deposits have been found, and mining has already begun. With your garb ready, the wedding can commence.
The great halls of your Kildhulan keep, lavishly decorated for the occasion, are filled to the brim with onlookers, nobles and peasants and all in between, as you walk down the aisle. Your beautiful armor, engraved with depictions of dangerous hunts, bloody battles and daring raids, draws the attention to you, and your magnificent cape allows you to emit an aura of masculinity, vigour and strength. Slowly you proceed, until you reach the end. After you, your fiancee walks, all by herself, since she lacks a father to accompany her. She is wearing a beautiful dress, made from the fur of white stoat, and a crown carved from the teeth of the black wolf is perched upon her head. The traditional ceremony, carried out by Kildhula's Grand Sainteur, quickly proceeds, and your countries are soon united. Only two hours later, you find yourself trying to conceive an heir, whilst the party goes on outside your bedchambers. The rest of the night you only remember as a vague, black mist, and you awaken next to your new wife the following morning, with a fresh stack of papers next to your bed. You silently leave the bedroom, and ask one of your clerks to read them aloud. The letters are sorted as usual, starting with a report of your country's state at the moment:
Population: 16.000 (+5.000)
Manpower: 6.000 (+1.500)
Wealth: 120
Titles: Chamdhi of Nivula (titular), Lands of Aradh, County of Kildhula and lands of the North, County of Trondheim, Grand City of Nilvestra, County of Kilvidhi, Jarldom of Nilkuredhol
Resources:
Food (average)
Wood (plentiful)
Bronze (average)
Secondly, there's finally something on the dynasty report!
New Member: Urhilda av Laade - Kilvidhi
Age: 16
Talents:
Archery
Intrigue
Charismatic Speaker
As usual, a report of happenings within the realm:
>A small town has been founded on the site of the Grand festival, named Tarrenadh, or "Tarren's Land"
>There's been a minor Khami raid in the Trondheim area
>A merchant caravan has arrived in Kilvidhi. They sell exotic animals from lands far away, as well as other foreign objects.
Unusually, one can find a map on the bottom of the pile, displaying your new borders, as well as countries found because of your increased influence, or your connections to Kilvidhi and Nilkuredhol.
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Topic: [SG] Chamdhi Nivula; the life of Grand Jarl Ulric (Read 5289 times)