Return to Jorgaldur Volume IV: Reunion

The queen

The princess remained for a few moments with her mouth half open. She had expected exile or death, not to be given a throne she had never expected to inherit.

Kioniha looked at him. She looked around her, where all eyes were on her. No, it wasn't a joke. She had always dreamed of doing something more for the kingdom, for its inhabitants, for the future. Now, he was giving her the opportunity. However, even if her mother believed it because she had ideas opposite to hers, she wasn't stupid or ignorant.

She also noticed a certain spirit circling around, now that the battle was over. It had remained apart from the battle, while watching sadly as its people killed their own. Little by little, it had recovered, and now it was hovering around Eldi again.

"What are the conditions?" she asked.

Not for a moment did she think it would be free. She had lived too long at court, with her mother, with her siblings. Everything had a price.

"First, those that I have mentioned. Second, people's well-being has to improve, it is not enough for it to remain the same. Thirdly, the current situation is too delicate for you to marry into some noble house, since they would gain too much power and break the balance," Eldi told her.

Many looked at him suspiciously at the last statement. It is true that none of them wanted the new queen to have close ties with other noble houses, but it was fine if it was theirs. Also, what did he mean by that? More than one suspected that he wanted to marry her, thus becoming the king.

Many respected and even adored him, precisely because he had never wanted power. If he did something like that, he would become too powerful a rival. Even his most fervent allies could feel betrayed.

"Some third or fourth son of a minor noble is acceptable, as long as he renounces any right to his house. In fact, I have a perfect candidate. The captain behind you has shown bravery and loyalty. He will be a good husband for you," the visitor ruled.

This surprised many, simply because they couldn't have foreseen something like this. Although some soon began to feel somewhat disappointed. They didn't expect him to decide the king arbitrarily on a whim.

"Are those all the conditions?" the princess asked, with some excitement and doubt in her voice.

"That's all of them. Do you accept?"

"I accept!" she exclaimed, before taking the arm of her now fiancé.

That action revealed what very few had suspected, that choosing the captain hadn't been a whim. Rather, the criterion for choosing him was a crude excuse, it couldn't be coincidence. Without a doubt, Eldi Hnefa knew that the future queen loved him, and he had set the conditions so that an unviable marriage was possible.

Liukton felt uncomfortable being the center of attention, but also excited. He looked at Kioniha in disbelief. His greatest wish, the one he had never dared to mention out loud, had just unexpectedly come true. He couldn't erase a somewhat fool smile from his face.

"In the future, I leave it to your discretion, whether those conditions should remain. I hope you act prudently," Eldi requested.

"So it will be done," she assured, infinitely grateful. She was pressing the captain's arm against her, as if she feared he would escape.

"One more thing. I want to introduce you to two old friends, also visitors. This is Gjaki, better known as the Blood Queen," he introduced his companion.

During the battle, the only important thing about her was being a powerful ally. Although later, the vampiress had received many looks and murmurs. Her silver hair and red eyes were quite striking. More than one had suspected her identity. Now, it was confirmed, as well as revealing that she was Eldi's friend.

"Hi, Kioniha," Gjaki greeted, ignoring any formality. "Since you have Eldi's trust, you have mine. If you need help, let me know."

"He... hello. Nice to meet you," the princess greeted her, as impressed as she was disconcerted.

The Blood Queen's fame was fearsome, which matched what she had heard of the battle. Although briefly, her now fiancé had mentioned the existence of a deadly silver-haired woman whose identity he didn't know. Her attitude, however, clashed with that image.

"This is Merlin, king of Whenuangeru," he introduced to her the other visitor.

"My greetings, future queen Kioniha. Our countries are neighbors. I hope that from now on we will have a prosperous relationship. If you need help, we will be there. When you have been crowned and settled, I hope we can discuss the terms of a mutually beneficial commercial collaboration," Merlin greeted more formally.

"It is an honor to meet you. I will do everything in my power to ensure that our relationship is always one of friendship," she returned the greeting.

It may have seemed that Eldi had simply introduced them, but quite a few realized the significance of that.

One of the important problems that the kingdom had to face was the more than likely pressure from neighboring countries. They would want to take advantage of its weakness and chaos. Now, two of them had declared their friendship, more or less formally. Not only did it mean they didn't have to worry about them, but it was a powerful deterrent to others.

Merlin had formally declared it, that she had the support of his country. Gjaki had done it more personally, but it was no less fearsome. The Blood Queen's fame wasn't undeserved. Who was going to risk earning the wrath of someone capable of entering a fortress and killing the highest command?

Besides, Merlin's offer was certainly tempting. In the past, relations between the two kingdoms had been strained. Some nobles had wanted to annex certain rich borderlands, and had encountered resistance not only from local lords, but from the kingdom's entire army.

Merlin had wanted to teach them a lesson, and he had succeeded. That the resulting relations were cold, to say the least, hadn't stopped him in the least. Engenak may have had products they were interested in, and it might be profitable to sell them others, but he couldn't trust a kingdom that allowed its nobles to attack Whenuangeru's ones.

Now, with a different queen, and many of those greedy nobles gone, if they could establish a cordial relationship, it would be a win-win for everyone. Given that what he knew about the queen was favorable, and that Eldi was in a way the guardian angel of the kingdom, it had seemed like a great opportunity.

The possibility of trade with the Blood Kingdom was also opened. Gjaki may not have proposed it explicitly, but having the approval of the Blood Queen certainly opened many doors. Of course, Kilthana would be irritated for gaining extra work without her friend even telling her.