“I’m an adult,” I reminded him.
“Yes,” he said as if having doubts.
While I stewed on that slight, Vasil gently wiped any remaining residue from my face. He warmed his hands with a lightly scented oil and moisturized my cheeks and neck, taking the time to massage the tight cords of muscle in the back of my neck. Did he treat himself with such careful consideration or was this special for me?
“There,” he said at last with obvious satisfaction. “Now that is a proper shave.” I dragged my thumb along the edge of my jaw, to find my skin smooth as silk. “Well?” Vasil asked.
“Passable,” I conceded.
“Passable?” he questioned with a skeptic’s air.
“All right, possibly the best shave of my life,” I admitted.
Smiling, he set aside his instruments and reached for my hand. “Come with me, Your Highness. Let me show you my favorite room of this fortress, my study.”
Vasil’s studywas more like a library, containing more books than I’d ever seen in one place, even more than the royal archives at Crystal Castle. In the middle of the room was a large drafting table with maps of all the realms laid out with care. And on top of the maps, were intricately fashioned metal markers,which I deduced signified each realm’s military capabilities, miniatures likely fashioned by Vasil’s own hand.
“I’m not planning on going to war,” he said, noticing my attention, “but it’s best to be prepared at all times.”
“I agree,” I said. My mother relied too much on her own alliances and clandestine scheming. I’d always argued that a robust military made diplomacy less necessary, and fewer concessions must be made, but my mother preferred to invest in courting foreign dignitaries and throwing lavish parties in their honor. I didn’t share that assessment with Lord Vasil, but I appreciated his similar mindset.
“So, you have metal sorcerers and archers,” I surmised. “What of your infantry?”
“I have those too.” He pointed to a figure holding a sword. The peaked ears and lack of wings denoted them as elvish. “And a skilled cavalry as well.” He motioned to a set of figurines, both elvish men and women, mounted on horses with their spears poised to strike.
“With these numbers you could easily conquer the vampyre,” I mused, for I knew their population to be much smaller. “Perhaps the fae as well.”
“The vampyre have untold resources in their human conquests, refugees of the War of the Realms, who would throw themselves on the sword to protect their masters. And the fae would be difficult to rule if conquered. Besides that, I am content with my lands and our plentiful resources. These measures are only defensive for now. I have found that the best way to maintain peace is to make the prospect of war as undesirable as possible.”
I found myself nodding along with him. This sort of exchange was not encouraged back home. Usually, I’d make a suggestion to my mother, and she’d tell me to leave battle strategy to her advisors.
“What are your threats then?” I asked.
“In addition to my aunt Catrin and cousin Sinclair, who’ve always had designs on my lands, there are several trade guilds who’ve grown quite powerful as of late and an extremist group called the Keepers of the Light who regard me as a half-breed imposter and wish to usurp me in favor of a full-blooded elvish ruler.”
Idiots,I thought to myself, for allowing their own bigotry to challenge Lord Vasil’s birthright.
“Are they powerful?” I asked.
“A few years ago, I’d have said no, but they are good at recruiting. I have some spies among their ranks to stay abreast of their plotting.”
That sounded highly suspicious.
“How do you handle the guilds?” I asked.
“I try to maintain good relations with their union leaders. Usually we can come to an agreement before a strike is ordered. When people are hungry and out of work, that’s when they’re more likely to organize.”
“That is a lot of weaponry at their disposal.”
He nodded, looking impressed by my deduction.“Indeed it is.”
“I see now why you don’t allow us to trade directly with the guilds,” I observed.
“I want to know what inventory we’re shipping to other realms, not to mention the tariffs. We rely on trade, but with every weapon we send off, there is a risk that it will be used against us.”
“If my mother were to ever become friendly with your cousin…”
“Then they’d have me sandwiched between their lands and I’d be forced to fight a war on two fronts,” Vasil concluded.
