Chương 80: Chapter 78 Edited

King Cassian Aurion"Conditions," I repeated.

"Yes, Your Majesty." The Duke inclined his head once.

"He made it clear that he will appear only if his autonomy is respected. He does not intend to be treated as a subject of investigation or as a political asset." Several people in the crowd shifted uncomfortably. The heads of two intelligence ministries exchanged looks that suggested they had already been hoping to do exactly that. Adam continued.

"The first condition concerns status," Duke Vanta said, his voice carrying easily across the terrace.

"He will attend the Gala as a contracted protector of the Crown, not as a witness, suspect, or detainee. No agency of the Dominion will attempt to detain, interrogate, or restrict him during the event. He cannot protect the princess if he is concerned about being detained. Again." A low murmur moved through the listening nobles.

"That seems reasonable," my wife said calmly before anyone else could object. Adam inclined his head slightly toward her before continuing.

"He also requires the promise to be oathbound." That quieted the terrace more effectively than any raised voice could have. Several ministers stopped speaking mid-sentence. One of the Serrathis observers straightened slightly, his attention sharpening in a way that suggested legal consequences were already being calculated. Oathbonds were not ceremonial language or court etiquette. When a mana user bound a promise through magic, the promise ceased to be political and became structural.

Breaking such a bond carried consequences that reached far beyond embarrassment, affecting the individual's mana and life force. Oathbound promises were not something anyone treated lightly. My wife rested her chin lightly on her hand as she watched me.

"That is not a small request," she said.

"No," Adam agreed. I looked across the terrace, noting the subtle shifts in posture. Some of the intelligence officials suddenly appeared very interested in the fountains. A few nobles looked almost relieved. Others looked quietly alarmed.

"The oath would apply only to the duration of the Gala and the immediate hours surrounding it," Adam continued.

"Once he departs palace grounds, the bond dissolves." I leaned back in my chair and considered the room. The nobles had stopped pretending not to listen. They understood exactly what was being asked. A mercenary had agreed to walk into the center of the Dominion's political court. In exchange, he wanted a guarantee that no one here would attempt to trap him once he arrived. He wanted that guarantee bound in magic.

"And if I decline?" I asked. Adam did not hesitate.

"Then he does not attend." Talena turned toward me instantly.

"He cannot refuse. I am a princess, the heir to the Dominion of Vera."

"Talena," I said quietly.

"Be silent." My daughter had the good sense to close her mouth. I leaned back slightly and allowed the conversation around us to fade while I considered what had just been placed in front of me. ⁂ Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. Talena had to attend the Gala. That much was not negotiable. The Dominion of Ava had sent representatives to the Five Seat Martial Tournament this year, something they rarely bothered with.

Officially, they were present because one of their younger princes had enrolled at one of the martial academies competing in the tournament. Unofficially, everyone with a functioning brain understood that Ava had come to measure the strength of Vera's next generation. Diplomacy had followed them like a shadow. Ava and Vera had never been close allies. We traded when it suited us, ignored one another when it did not, and occasionally reminded each other where the borders were.

That arrangement had worked for decades. It was beginning to fray. Their Crown Prince Ardeshir Atame had already made it abundantly clear that he found Talena distracting. The young prince from Ava was powerful, well trained, and raised in a court that sharpened its heirs like weapons. That same upbringing had produced a man with all the restraint of a spoiled warhorse and the manners of a tavern brawler who had discovered silk clothes. He was strong, undeniably so, and he knew it.

That knowledge had fermented into a kind of confidence that bordered on arrogance. If Talena failed to appear at the Gala, Ardeshir would notice immediately. If he noticed, the insult would not remain confined to a ballroom. Ava might pretend to be attending the tournament because one of their princes had enrolled in an academy, and no one with a functioning mind believed that story.

Ardeshir had come to observe Vera's strength, measure its heirs, and return to a court that had never entirely trusted us to remain quiet neighbors. War with Atillia was already whispering along the horizon, though very few in this garden knew that yet. The last thing I needed was Ava deciding that Vera had grown careless or weak. Talena needed to stand in that room. She needed to be seen. If the cost of that was binding my word in magic so that a mercenary she trusted would stand beside her, that was the price.

It was a deeply unpleasant calculation. Ruling rarely produced pleasant ones. ⁂"The second condition concerns appearance." Talena frowned.

"He will arrive as he is," the Duke said.

"He will attend the Gala in his mercenary attire, mask, tactical gear, and whatever equipment he considers necessary. He will wear no court dress. He will adopt no noble presentation. He will not allow the Crown to dress him for ceremony." That earned a louder reaction. One of the court stewards actually inhaled sharply. Talena blinked.

"He's coming to the Gala dressed like a battlefield mercenary?"

"Yes," Adam said calmly. My wife's lips curved with amusement.

"That should certainly make the evening memorable." The Duke continued without acknowledging the comment.

"The third condition concerns operational authority. While he is responsible for the princess's safety, he will operate outside the command structure of the Royal Guard and any knightly order present." The captains along the perimeter stiffened.

"He will coordinate when necessary," Adam said, "and he will take orders from no one." I rubbed my temple. Of course he wouldn't.

"The fourth condition concerns personnel." Talena leaned forward again.

"He will arrive with his own people," the Duke said.

"Several of them." That triggered a far stronger reaction than the clothing had.

"Absolutely not," one of the ministers muttered. I raised a hand before the room could begin arguing.

"How many?" I asked.

"Enough that he considers the security environment acceptable," Adam replied. Talena looked confused.

"Why would he need his own people?" My wife answered before Adam could.

"Because he expects someone here to try something," she said calmly. The terrace fell quiet again. Adam nodded slightly.

"The mercenary trusts individuals he has worked with," he said.

"Large institutions he does not extend that courtesy to."

"And the final condition?" I asked. Adam paused, deliberately.

"He will protect the princess during the Gala," the Duke said slowly.

"The arrangement ends when the event ends. He will accept no permanent position, no title, and no noble contract." Talena's expression shifted.

"He refuses service to the Crown?" one of the nobles asked incredulously.

"He refuses employment," Adam corrected. Talena leaned forward, suddenly worried.

"And after the Gala?"

"He leaves," Adam said. My wife smiled faintly.

"Honestly," she said, "that sounds refreshingly healthy." I looked across the terrace where half the Dominion's elite were now pretending not to listen while hanging on every word. A mercenary who demanded autonomy, arrived in armor instead of silk, and insisted on bringing his own people into the heart of the royal court. I could almost hear the political panic beginning. ⁂"And," Adam added calmly, "he asked that the princess refrain from proposing marriage during the evening." Talena turned red.

"What? No. I cannot agree to that. That is completely unfair." I raised my hand.

"Accepted," I said. Talena stared at me in disbelief.

"Father." I looked at her.

"Daughter," I said calmly, "the man is voluntarily walking into a palace filled with people who would very much like to recruit him, imprison him, or dissect him. The least we can do is let him wear what he likes."

"Besides," came my wife's voice, warm and entirely too amused, "proximity is an important part of seduction, darling. You would do well to remember that." Both Talena and I turned to look at her simultaneously. She produced a small, almost imperceptible smile.

"How do you think I caught your father? Proximity is everything, my dear." For the first time in what felt like a very long time, Princess Talena smiled. A real one. I looked at my wife. She looked back at me with the expression she had been producing for twenty-three years, the one that meant she knew exactly what she had just done and had no intention of apologizing for it. I looked back at my daughter, who was now smiling in a way that I recognized and found deeply concerning. Oh no. What had I done.