When Richard arrived Belany and Hector were both excited to tell him of their success today. He was one of the few in the clan that knew that these two were training with Derek to beat Elton and Feros and of course he would never let that information slip.

Once he heard of their success he was delighted and thanked Derek profusely for his efforts. This training meant more than just winning a silly competition. It meant that if his children were ever under real threat they would have a better chance of surviving.

After thanking Derek he grew more serious. “I have come to get you four. Ovid, inform your mistress that she needs to bring her apprentice as well. The Prince of Serris has arrived with two knights and a small retinue. He says he is here to complete the Pilgrimage of the Sword. The Patriarch is preparing to meet him in the clan hall and all clan members are expected to appear. After we greet him there will be a feast in his honor and an excellent opportunity for you all to socialize with the rest of the clan.”

Richard was very similar to his grandfather and daughter. The growth and prosperity of the clan were of the utmost significance to him so he took every opportunity he could to mend the relationships in the clan. He would even use the arrival of a foreign dignitary as an opportunity to promote harmony in the clan.

Belany was instantly excited, she hugged her brother and said, “Prince Kylin of Serris is said to be an outstanding figure in our generation. He has participated with distinction in many of his father’s campaigns and it is said that his statecraft is even stronger than his father’s. If we can make a good impression on him while he is here we might benefit in the future.“

Richard smiled. He was pleased that his daughter understood things so clearly at this age. She would really be a pillar in the clan as she got older.

Ovid left to go get his mistress and Rebekah and Derek chatted with Richard while they waited. Once Ovid, Eona, and Alicia joined them the eight of them left together. Richard was pleasantly surprised to see that Eona was cured of her ailment and they all happily chatted on the way down the path.

When they all gathered at the clan hall they stood in attendance as they awaited the arrival of their guests. He had been given a residence near the chapel reserved for powerful people that had come on pilgrimage for the duration of his stay and was given time to freshen up while the clan had gathered in the hall. Once everything had been prepared the Patriarch sat in the clan magistrate's seat and ordered Richard to invite Prince Kylin and his knights to the hall.

Derek and his family were positioned towards the end of the hall closer to the entrance than the head of the hall. Only important servants of the clan who were not of the clan were positioned any farther. All in all the room had a little over three hundred people in it.

After a while Richard returned with Prince Kylin and his knights. Kylin was a handsome young man with a powerful build and golden hair that made him look like a young lion. He was dressed in the white and red of his house colors and his hand rested comfortably in the hilt of his sword. He strode in confidently flanked by his two knights. Each of them had iron grey hair and faces that looked carved from stone. One was slightly taller than the other with an aura of command and the other had a scar running down the side of his face that seemed to match his scowl perfectly.

As they walked down the hall they were bowed to slightly by the members of the Thorne clan. This was a marked difference from the full bow of the servants. The Elders and Patriarch didn’t even attempt to bow, though the Patriarch did stand from his magistrate's seat as a polite gesture. This was the pride of an ancient clan and Kylin had known to expect it.

When Richard arrived at the head of the hall he introduced Kylin to the Patriarch and the Elders ending with, “and these guests are Prince Kylin of Serris and Sirs Duncan and Kenneth of Serris.”

The Patriarch laughed and said, “It is good that you three have come, it has been so long since we have had pilgrims here that we had almost forgotten that this Redwyrm of ours was the destination site of a pilgrimage. In honor of your arrival I have ordered the preparation of a feast.”

At this he signaled some servants who began bringing long tables and chairs into the hall and covering them in dinnerware and food. A table was set near the head of the hall with space for the Patriarch and his family, the guests and the Elders and their families.

The guests were placed so that they could see the whole hall next to the Patriarch. The nearby tables were filled by members of the inner families of the clan. Further out were the tables for the branch families and distinguished servants. As everyone ate some of the servants began to play music for the hall.

The feast was quite lavish and Derek and his family got to eat quite well where they sat. They chatted happily among themselves, ate, and listened to the musicians. They were pleasantly surprised when Ander came to sit with them. He had been invited due to the special nature of being a disciple and a Runic Smith. The other people at the table largely ignored them and Derek was fine with that. He would rather be ignored than deal with rude behavior from them.

At the first table, Prince Kylin and his knights had just been introduced to everyone at the table. Prince Kylin cast a confused glance at the other two men, the taller one merely shrugged. The Prince spoke up, “Patriarch Daren, after traveling this far we expected to meet the son of Sir Jared here today. Why is it that we haven’t been introduced to him?”

The Patriarch was taken slightly aback. He knew that the Kingdom of Serris had some connection with Jared. Jared had died in service to them. For a few years the King of Serris had sent a tribute to Jared’s family, but that had stopped years ago. Why would they be interested in his son now? He quickly hid his shock, neither of his guests noticed it, and answered, “Oh, Derek? He’s the younger one with the hammer medallion down there. He is eating with his family. Would you like me to bring him up here to introduce him to you?”

When he said that Kylin smiled, “No, I will trouble you to introduce us tomorrow when everything has quieted down.”

The feast lasted into the evening, when the Thorne clan and their guests started returning to their lodgings. When they entered the guest house Kylin turned to the taller knight, “Father, this Thorne Clan doesn’t live up to its name. Though the arrogance of some of their members seem to match the rumors, we have destroyed clans a hundred times more powerful than them.”

The taller knight laughed, “Son, ancient clans often only have their pride and nothing more. This one may not be much but as Sir Jared showed us back then, when facing demons even having only one Demon Warrior of Thorne can save the lives of hundreds. Put up with their arrogance, so long as they don’t overstep themselves it is just words. This Patriarch Daren seems a decent sort. He could make a decent ally and it never hurts to have friends like this. Especially if we ever have to face demons again.”

The taller knight was actually King Kenneth of Serris not Sir Kenneth. He laughed at his scowling friend, “Duncan, did you see? They have a disciple of the forge god here. What do you say we go down to his place tomorrow to get a new lance or one of those famed warswords this clan uses?”

The scarred knight laughed, his face becoming lively once more, “Yes, haha, so long as you are paying for the smith, I will buy us drinks while we wait. We can even get a weapon for this young pup of yours while we are at it. It will be just like the old days when you didn’t have a kingdom to run and we could go errant for years at a time.”

Kylin laughed at his father and this knight of his. In Serris this behavior would have many old ministers and magistrates up in arms but here they could just be the old rogues they wanted to be. He pondered for a moment, “Why do you think they put him so far down? It appears they had him seated among the servants. Does this child lack his father’s promise?”

His father looked over, “Son, we will find that out later. When the father was dying in that hospital tent I promised that I would make sure his son was taken care of. Over the last sixteen years I have sent tribute to his family to help with their expenses, the same as I do for knights who swore loyalty directly to me. I have already done more for this outsider than I should. We will see what effect this had in the next few weeks.”

Kylin nodded, “That’s right. In a few days they will have their third trial for their coming of age ceremony and a few weeks later is the final trial. We will see the caliber of this boy then. It should be quite interesting.”