The Union

Cobert doesn"t like the current atmosphere in Solon. The people were restless so business was slow. For a merchant like him, wars are bad for business. Well, it actually depends on the type of merchant. There were merchants who benefited during war time. They were those that sell weapons, iron, food and sometimes, "experts" like a.s.sa.s.sins and saboteurs. But Cobert was not one of those merchants. His goods were gems and jewelries. These things were valuable during peacetime and worthless during wartime.

Cobert decided that he needs to Nirvana soon. Staying in Solon will not do him any good. He had been going back and forth between Solon, Nirvana and Holm for the past decades. He buys cotton and silk from Holm, gems from Nirvana, and Ironware from Solon. This was his life, a merchant"s life. But Cobert"s heart still lies with Holm. He wa.s.s a Vanadian and that will never change. His wife lives in Holm along with his sister-in-law and nephew. Oh how he miss little Ben. That nephew of his was very cute! He was slightly jealous of his brother for having such a wonderful son. Cobert had always wanted to have a child but his wife was barren, or maybe it was him who"s impotent? Who knows.

Cobert went inside his house. He sat down and poured himself some wine and took a sip. Ahhh.. Hadean. Hadean wine never changes. The sweet taste of the Hadean wine tickled his tongue. Cobert sighed and thought about Holm. He missed the city. He miss little Ben. The little rascal should have grown so much by now. He will buy him a present along the way. But first he needs to go to Nirvana.

Cobert grabbed his pen. He will write a letter to his brother regarding his decision to come to Nirvana. Solon right now is not good for business. His merchandize was left unsold. Luckily, all he had right now were gems and light products so his travel will be light even though he failed to sell them all. Of course Nirvana would still be the same.

But before his pen could touch the paper, a carrier pigeon arrived. He recognized the bird. It was the bird his brother uses in sending letters to him. Why would Escanor write me a letter…letters, he corrected himself after seeing that there were three letters attached to the pigeon"s leg. Cobert looked at the letters, every single one of the letters was sealed with a red wax! But only one of the letters was addressed to him. The other two were addressed to Earl Mathias Beyron! And Baron Marvin Blunt! Good riddance. These were all powerful people. What was his brother up to this time? Cobert can smell trouble brewing. He opened the letter addressed to him.

Brother,

Vanadis needs our help. I have met Princess Lucia just a few days ago. Yes, the same Princess Lucia who helped my wife give birth. Brother, I feel indebted to her and I know that you respect the Royal Family too. The princess is asking you to give the two letters to Earl Beyron. This is important brother. The fate of Vanadis depends on this.

Escanor Melin

So it was trouble after all. He doesn"t want to get involved with politics, but the involvement of Princess Lucia made this different. He wanted to help the princess. She helped his sister-in-law give birth to little Ben so he will return the favor. He was a Tulosan and it was his duty to help the princess. Escanor said that the fate of Vanadis depends on him delivering the letter. Cobert closed his eyes. It seems he needs to postpone his trip to Nirvana.

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Earl Mathias Beyron received a request for audience from a merchant. Normally, Mathias doesn"t meet with merchants but this particular merchant really insisted by standing outside the gate of his villa from evening to dawn. In the end, Mathias received the merchant.

" What is your name merchant? What do you want to talk about?" Mathias asked. He was slightly annoyed that this merchant had the guts to force him into a meeting. But he was also impressed by his courage.

"Cobert Melin sire. I bring letters addressed to you " the merchant was shivering from the cold so Mathias ordered one of his maids to prepare some hot tea. The maid prepared two cups and poured tea into them. Mathias took a sip. His face lightened. He always preferred tea over wine.

"I"ll call you Cobert then." Mathias took a sip again "Cobert, you should have given the letters to my a.s.sistant. "

"But they"re red-sealed letters sire. I want to hand them to you personally. " Cobert protested

"Red-sealed?" Mathias questioned "Who sent them?" If it was an order from the King, then he won"t be getting it from a merchant but from a soldier. If it was from an important n.o.ble, then they have carrier pigeons bound for Solon. Who would send red-sealed letters through a merchant?

"Princess Lucia Vanadis" Cobert said. Mathias frowned. Lucia Vanadis. He had heard of her before. She was the princess Timothy will marry next month. Their marriage will seal the alliance between Vanadis and Castonia. But why would the princess contact him? He hadn"t met her in the past. They should be strangers to each other.

"Where are the letters?" Mathias opened his palms and demanded for the letters.

"Here sire" Cobert handed him two rolled papers. Mathias examined the letters

The wax of the seal was red. And the seal…Mathias" eyes widened. Why…why would she use this seal? How did she know about Leo"s Tear? Did Timothy expose them? One of the letters was addressed to him. The other was addressed to Marvin.

"Thank you." Mathias trembled. The contents should be very important. He cursed himself for making the merchant wait all night. " I..I will read these. You can go now."

"Thank you sire. I"ll be on my way." Cobert bowed and turned around.

After the merchant left, Mathias immediately opened the letter addressed to him.

Earl Mathias Beyron,

Timothy is in danger. The King sent him along with 2000 militia to face the 10,000-strong Tulosan army. The plan was for him to meet with the two armies from Thespelae and Munico so that he"ll have 12,000 soldiers against the Tulosans. But the King tricked Timothy. The Wismarines sent King Leopold an alliance request on one condition-to cut all ties with Vanadis. To prevent the alliance, our wedding must be canceled. The King decided that the only way to cancel the wedding without ruining Castonia"s name is to let the Tulosans kill Timothy. The king did indeed sent messengers with actual orders to the two castles. But he also told the Wismarine Emissary to kill the messengers. They managed to kill all four messengers, but my guards managed to retrieve one of the letters intended for Thespelae. Despite of this, Timothy would still be outnumbered. He"s in danger. Before he left, he entrusted me with this seal. He trusts me so you must also trust my words. You know Timothy is not a fool. Please do everything in your power to send him a.s.sistance. He should be somewhere in Mercus Plains in four days as of the writing of this letter. Timothy needs you.

Lucia Vanadis

Mathias was silent for a long time. He was slightly annoyed that Timothy told the princess about Leo"s Tear. They will have no choice but to let her join too. Well, another member wouldn"t be so bad. Furthermore, she was the second princess of Vanadis. Their fellowship needs people like Lucia. The only question is, does she have the same ideals as they?

Regarding her letter, Mathias felt his anger surge. He knew that the King dislikes Timothy but who could have thought that he would do this? Let his son be killed for an alliance? What an evil thing to do. He was a father himself and he would never even think of doing such a thing to his daughter. He loved his daughter so much and he would never trade her for anything in this world. Regarding Lucia"s request, he felt defeated. Mathias can"t do anything to help Timothy. Solon had 2000 militia at the ready. But mobilizing the militia would mean going against the King"s orders. If he mobilized the militia, then the King would brand him as a traitor. Mathias would be sentenced to death. It will be worth it if his efforts would be able to save Timothy. He would gladly give his life for his friend. But what could 2000 militia do? Even if he mobilized, they would have a combined strength of 9,000 against 10,000 Tulosans. In the end, they would both die. Mathias decided to not help Timothy. It will be better for Leo"s Tear to lose a member rather than two.

The only a.s.sistance he can provide Timothy was to send the other letter to Baron Marvin. He knew that the Baron can"t help Timothy but it was his duty to send the letter anyway. Solon still had pigeons bound for Knightsend so he sent one.

"I"m sorry Timothy"