Chapter 400 - A Game Of Chess
The very same person who had the Lords apprehensive was yawning as he looked at the person in front of him. Ma was excited over their trip to the neighboring city, Aquamia.
The name was because of the city"s central business: maritime trade. Thus, Arthur wanted to make a contract to sell their goods there.
The best place to build a harbor for the maritime trade of the kingdom was where the two rivers ran closest to each other, with nothing but flat land between them. So that was where Aquamia was built, and it was the maritime trading hub of the kingdom.
"We have arranged for a meeting with the Lord of Aquamia, Marchioness Evaline of Sea," Ma reported with zeal. "The meeting will take place in a week, so we have no time to waste!"
"We have a week to waste. You are getting too excited," Arthur rubbed his eyes. He looked around, looking for Dia, but he couldn"t sense her existence anywhere. After she kissed his hand, the princess simply smiled at him and left the room, flying into the moon.
"What are you, a fairy?" Arthur mused to himself, but he wanted to see her this morning. Yet, only Ma knocked on his door, bringing stacks of paper with him.
"Seika, you have been away for too long. According to my schedule, this matter should have been handled weeks ago!" the late-twenties man shook his head.
"Ah, you have a schedule," Arthur smiled at the man"s hardworking personality. If he hadn"t used his Art to make sure none of his people were spies, he would have suspected an ulterior motive. "How about you go by yourself?"
"That wouldn"t do!" Ma shook his head. "The marchioness demands respect. If we want to take a proper first step toward a harmonious relationship with her, our Lord has to meet her himself."
"Fine," Arthur sighed. "Where is Gruen, by the way?"
"Manager Gruen is in the smithy along with Rosa. Should I summon them, My Lord?"
"No, leave them be." Arthur waved his hand and pondered. "Do you want to become Manager Ma?" As he asked, the man suddenly dropped to his knee.
"I wouldn"t dare, My Lord!" as if he was accused of treason, Ma placed a hand on his heart. "I would never bite the hand that fed me. Manager Gruen and Lady Gala were the two to pick me out of poverty, so I would never..."
"Shut up for a bit," Arthur didn"t think he would think so far ahead. Did this guy think Arthur was testing him? Well, he was wise to think of that, but that wasn"t the case. "Gruen is busy with blacksmithing, and Gala is... absent. I want someone who can take care of the sales the city has, but you already have diplomacy relationships on your plate."
"I..." the man was shocked, speechless, "I am as you command me to be, My Lord. If you want me to be a fisherman, I will bring you the largest catch in Lo River."
"Is it hard for you to just say yes, or no?" Arthur ma.s.saged his temples. "You will be the manager from now on, and you can work with Rosa to facilitate the handling of various resources and sales."
"Yes, Your Highness!"
"Let"s agree that you don"t get excited around others, alright? We don"t want you to appoint dukes and dethrone others in a fit." Arthur smiled as he glanced out of the window.
"Are you looking for Miss Dia, Seika?" Ma acutely concluded as he stood up and adjusted his clothes.
"Have you seen her?"
"No, I have not. However, I want to give you my opinion about her residency in Hidden City and what impact it would bring to the political arena."
"I don"t care,"
"But you should, My Lord," Ma"s gaze as he insisted made Arthur squint his eyes. He didn"t want to push Dia away simply for politics again, but it might not be wise to ignore it.
"Speak your mind,"
"Many know of your proposal to be the king"s advisor," Ma said as if he was narrating a saga. "A promise to build a utopia and end the war, an offer that no ruler could resist. When the people heard that the Princess of Ice and Fire became their ally, they were thrilled, but they didn"t know the price for her a.s.sistance: Alva."
"You can go straight to the point," Arthur rested his chin on his hand as he urged.
"Ever since the two of you separated, the n.o.bles began to see a new opportunity: to befriend the next ruler of Alva if the odds turned in that favor. Some n.o.bles, who disapprove of you, sought to establish a relationship with the princess and rekindle the hate you once had toward each other."
"Are you saying that I should be wary of Dia?"
"I"m saying that you should be cautious," Ma said bravely, despite the edge in Arthur"s voice. "Miss Dia"s actions of hurrying to defend the city left many confused, and it"s proof that she is on your side. Rumors are spreading that the two of you are more than just allies. A hero who saved the prisoner, and the latter who fell for him. If Miss Dia stays here any longer, I fear that many would think you want to rule Alva, and in turn, Freda."
Ma said his piece and stood there bravely. Arthur had to admit that the reality wasn"t that different despite the a.n.a.lysis being based on rumors and incomplete intel. From what Dia told him, Arthur could also make out the same conclusions.
Things were getting messier simply by Dia staying in Hidden City. However, he would never ask her to leave, nor did he want her to do so. Ma wasn"t asking him to do anything, but he simply warned Arthur that his actions might lead to a civil war. Not even the king can prevent Arthur"s impeachment if every n.o.ble wanted it.
Politics was a game of chess. One had to be far ahead of his opponents to win, and sometimes sacrifices were necessary to reach the goal. However, Dia was a sacrifice that Arthur would never make.
"I know that you wouldn"t care what anyone thinks or do," Ma seemed to be aware of his thoughts. "However, Miss Dia has her own goals as well: to rule Alva. If the n.o.bles think she is nothing more than a puppet, then her goal would be short-lived."
Arthur knew that Ma"s words were correct and needed to see further than this, but wasn"t his goal to overthrow the n.o.bility themselves? To allow Freda to stand alone without the n.o.bles eating away the portions of the poor?"
"I understand," Arthur could say nothing else, and he simply dismissed any further conversations about the subject. But, at least, he was now aware of the effect his momentary happiness had on the world.
"Our trip to Aquamia would be in two days, and the rest of the days there will be spent in the harbor and looking for proper shipbuilders."
"Hopefully, we"ll find a stone man of our own," muttered Arthur, but Ma seemed confused. Arthur simply sighed and dismissed the man before opening his window. "I guess you"ve heard everything?"
"Only the last bit," Dia descended from the sky into his room. "You have a smart follower; can I take him?"
"Is that your take from what you heard?" Arthur closed the window behind her. "You are smart enough to know that your act of rushing here was a wrong one."
"Foolish, yes," she nodded. "However, it isn"t wrong, and I won"t allow you to say that it is," she inched closer as she rebuked, interlocking her hand with Arthur"s. "I did the right thing; I did what I wanted to do."
"To fight against the strongest man?"
"To see you again," her words made Arthur"s heart, which has hardened, shake a little. He didn"t know what sort of intimacy they shared, nor did he know if it was normal to grow from liars to enemies to...
"I wanted to see you too," he replied at long last, allowing nothing but a moment of vulnerability to escape him. Yet, it felt as if this moment would bring him doom. Maybe it would. "I still don"t want to ruin your dreams. I"m not..."
"Staying here for long?" nodded Dia as she stole his sentence. "I know. I know that well, and you told me before. Yet, at this moment, I don"t care about the future. I"m doing what I feel like, and I will keep doing it, no matter how much I would regret it or how scary it is."
"We can"t stay together for long,"
"Not for long," she muttered, pressing her lips into a thin line, "just a bit. Would that be okay?"
"Alright," Arthur nodded, knowing fully well that he was doing the wrong thing. After staring into each other"s eyes for what seemed like hours, Dia left after that.