The royal duke of Poitiers was waiting in a private room in Château du Loire. The room had been designed for the royal family or very high officials to use if they needed privacy. He duke had come after strategy meeting with the Fey Danan delegation.

The room was very close to the chamber they had used for the strategy meeting. He was preoccupied, he had been right in assisting the meeting instead of the trade discussions. The balance of power in Loire was going to change.

The alliance with the Fey Danan empire was important, Loire was surrounded, the empire and Zel shared its borders, and to the east the warring hills, orc lands. The empire needed the alliance as well, the war with Zel had been expensive, they bled too much. Faerun had never been their intention, that much was true, the spy master had managed to confirm what the empire claimed.

The empire was a war machine, one that had stretch too thin, but it was highly functional. If Loire pushed them, a hammer would fall, a blood bath for both parts, but Loire would face worst. No, the alliance was the correct course of action.

The king, his father, had been “unwell” for some time. He was too stubborn, he was misjudging the empire might, and the damn joust had not helped. It did not matter their best knight was beaten, no, the king rejoiced considering they won 2 events.

His father mind had been slipping, but this, this was something else. Someone had been placing ideas in his father head, he had not been able to identify the culprit, but many old nobles were thinking the same. He was truly worried it was someone from the empire, that idea had kept him from sleeping.

Some resented nobles from Faerun, perhaps? The shadows still lurking in Zel? Some sick plot from any of the conquered regions? or worst, an intricated plan from the imperial house. There were to many actors on the scene, that was too dangerous. The empire had many dissidents, the imperial house had done and incredible job in keeping order, and eliminating the bad apples, but like any rot or sickness, it spread.

There were to many possibilities, he could do nothing unless he managed to shorten then chances, and it needed to be fast. He was waiting for someone, a chance, a gamble. Before his father fell ill, he once told him, there might come a time, where he had to make choices, based on nothing other than his gut. The duke laughed at that time, but he was doing just that, today.

He was making a gamble, if he was right, it would mean little in finding what was happening, but it was a starting point, a foundation. Loire needed it, the duke revised the artifacts he was carrying, a truth stone and a protective charm. He had personally inspected the silence spell inside the room, and he had placed an extra ward against scrying, the castle already had many, but he had to be sure. He was one of the best mages inside the kingdom, he specialized in shields and wards.

It was funny how the chance had presented itself, luck or fate if you were that kind of person. They had been certain the empire would send princess Vania, as part of their delegation, but in the last moment, they sent their North Star. They have had little time to gather as much information as they could about the prince, he had felt relieved, and after what he had seen, he was convinced it was for best.

They had considered a marriage with the imperial family to secure the alliance. The King gad been against at the beginning, he did not want his blood to mingle with the “dirty” fey blood. Necessity had made them push for the marriage, and in the end, they were willing to offer Loraine. They had spent an entire day considering the benefits and drawbacks, in the end, they had agreed it was needed.

He knew the marriage, could weaken his position as king when he took over the reins of Loire, but they could strengthen themselves without worrying about the empire, it was a price he had been willing to pay. He had spoken with his sister, she stepped up to the challenge, he had never felt so ashamed and proud at the same time.

When they saw that the empire was not demanding for a marriage, they push for it, a wedding between the imperial family and Loire high nobility, they offered their sister. He had almost passed out when the prince told them he intended to marry someone else. He thought the prince might had felt insulted as they pushed the marriage on him. He had felt relieved when the prince said found someone who was from the high nobles of Loire, he had even been open about the possibility of him being rejected, and if that were the case, he would accept anyone they propose. He had brought reason and duty, but it seemed as he had truly found someone he fancied. He had felt assured, the empire wanted the alliance as much as them.

How had his father felt then, he did not know? The imperial house could be consider of higher status than Loire royal family, the Lachdanan le Fay had “filthy fey blood and still they had preferred a lady of lower status, instead of the kings daughter. After the prince left, his father was genuinely ecstatic his house would not mix with fey blood.

He on the other hand, he had a complicated reaction. Happy, because his sister would have a chance to marry someone she chose, worried because they did not know whom the prince wanted to marry. Upset because his sister was without a doubt the most beautiful flower in Loire.

When the prince left, to ask his mysterious lady. The King had every spy, follow the prince, they reviewed the possible candidates the prince could choose from, and it turned out there were several options. They worried about duke Lebrun, he had been an old enemy of the king and his dukedom shared borders with the Empire, he had two daughters eligible for marriage, the oldest was already being courted, the youngest was sixteen, and was good looking. They had panicked for a moment, as the spies lost track of the prince, until they reported he was heading for the Lunebleau estate.

Half and hour later, they receive confirmation the prince was on their way back, with lord Damian, his son lord Luka and lord Percy. They knew they had accepted his proposition. They did not know if he had proposed someone from house Lunebleau or Beaumont, he had thought it would surely be lady Noelle or Danielle, they were both incredibly beautiful ladies. They preferred the prince would choose house Lunebleau, they had always been loyal, and he liked lord Luka, especially since René had marry him.

House Beaumont had always been impartial, the problem was, they shared borders with the empire, and lord Rowan have had differences with the King before. They did not had to wait much, and as the prince told them, he had been accepted by lady Frey Lunebleau, easing their worries.

The King peace of mind lasted shortly, and he was now eager to try and strip house Lunebleau from as much power as he could. They duke understood his intention, but still they would gain much more, and if they pushed too hard house Lunebleau would answer, and they now had an ally that could tip the scale. The duke sighed, it has just been a few minutes, but they had felt like an eternity as he waited, then a knock on the door happened.

"He is here with me" a voice came from the outside

"Let him in" The door was opened by Sir Claude Belmont, behind him came lord Luka Lunebleau, he was surprised as he was led into the small room.

"I'll see than no one comes this way" Sir Belmont, bowed at the duke and closed the door behind him.

"Please, Luka, sit down" the duke pointed to a chair next to his. They were familiar with each other; Luka's wife was cousin to the royal duke. Luka was very confused and looked concerned of being brought here.

The royal duke calmly placed a truth stone on the table, Luka look to be considering leaving the room, it was extremely rude to do something like that, even though he was the royal duke he needed to confer to the noble high council, if we wanted to perform a personal inquiry on any noble.

"Please, Luka calm down, I want to talk with you about important matters " Luka sat back, but he still eyed worried at the stone on the table "You do not have to talk with me, or answer any of my questions if you like" now he looked confused at the duke "There are things happening within Loire, and I am afraid there is few people whom I can trust. I placed the stone so you would also be certain what I am about to say is true” Luka nodded

"I am working for Loire, even at the expense of my authority as future King" Lukas eyes, went wide, he gave the stone on the table a quick look, and it remained the same color. The duke had to demonstrate his intentions, honesty was the only way from here "I want to ask you 2 questions, you don't have to answer any one of them, and you can leave if you like" The duke waited for Luka, but he did not move.

"Are you, or your father planning on using or coaxing the Empire, against Loire?" the duke had been thinking on what he would ask Luka, in the end, the more direct a question was, the better the results of the truth stone, and he did not want to reveal anything until, he was sure.

"No, duke, we are not planning, nor want to use the Empire against Loire" the duke had not turned towards the stone, he was looking at the man. The young Lord was calm when he responded, the same look he always had whenever he talked about René, his wife.

"Are you working with the Empire?" the duke asked

"No, no one in the house Lunebleau, or the house Beaumont for that matter, is working with the empire” the stone just lay still on the table.

"Thank you, Luka, I am sorry, but I had to make sure about this first"

"You had every right of asking this, but why through and official inquiry? Like the one we had before the Fey Danan delegation came?" Luke was frowning, every noble who would take part on the negotiations was asked under truth stone, if the duke held doubts and it was understandable given, the sudden engagement between Frey and Aedrik, why not do it in the open? That would probably ease a lot of nobles.

"There is an enemy, I am not certain if it’s an enemy of Loire, it could also be an enemy of the Empire, or something more twisted" as the duke started explaining, Luka turned towards the stone at the table "The kingdom needs people whom have Loire as their first interest, for that end, I need to ask you more questions, before I continue" Luka was surprised about what the prince had said, but it was true that there had been many strange things happening lately, he nodded.

"Will you act in the best interest of Loire, even if it goes against your personal gain?" The duke waited for the answer.

"I have always acted considering the prosperity of Loire” the duke turned towards the stone, and it laid there unchanging "I do not care for personal gain, but I have a duty towards my people, and ultimately with my family. I would never try to take advantage of Loire for them, but their wellbeing will always be my main concern" The duke let a loud tsk.

"Do you or your father, intend for house Lunebleau to take over the royal family?" the duke waited, but Luka was calm.

"No, neither me or my father are trying to take any authority from the royal family, or any of our peers. We are looking for the interest of house Lunebleau, as well as those of Loire, as the Lunebleaus had always done so" the duke and Luka remained quiet for a moment.

"I am looking for people who care for Loire Luka, I wanted to start with you. Do you promise to keep this a secret?" Luka was surprised, the duke had brought a truth stone to verify what he asked, he could place a binding on him if he wanted to ensure the secret, but he was trusting him...

"I will, your majesty"

"The King is ill, his mind is not what it was, his humor changes like the weather, and I fear, someone is whispering ideas to him" Luka froze at those words, since when had the King been ill. Did the duke intend to find people to support him, to take over...? "I do not wish, to expose this Luka. It is dangerous for the kingdom, as I can see my father faltering in his position as ruler but calling this to attention will alert whomever our enemy is, and the kingdom could face civil unrest" Luka nodded.

"I want to find, nobles who have the kingdom as their priority, we need to find who our enemy is, as quickly and as discreetly as possible. True, if my father condition worsens, securing this nobles, will help prevent any internal conflict, and I am willing, to give more authority to the high council, until everyone is ready for me to take over, but I would prefer to leave that as a last resort" Luka was thinking fast, if it was true that there was some unknown enemy, approaching people as the duke had done with him, would be best. That is why he did not want to make an official inquiry.

"You are the first, I am telling this" Luka understood, house Lunebleau weight on the scale of power had changed. If he could be certain they were not working with the Empire, the alliance was safe, he had started with the greatest and most obvious treat. The duke was fearless.

"You can count me in your majesty, and I would suggest reaching house Beaumont as well" if what the duke said was true, they needed to check as many nobles as fast as they could.

"Yes, I hoped you could set a meeting with them; but to tell you truth, there was one more reason, I have wanted to reach you first" The duke face was stoic "What do you think about the Feydan prince?"

"I think you have spoken with him, more time than I" the duke was sharp, Aedrik was key to pinpointing who their enemy may be, but he had seldom spoken with the man, yesterday dinner had been the longest he had talked with him.

"I get that, but what does your sister think about him? How do you feel he takes the alliance? I think he dined with your family yesterday" Luka smiled, they both knew, the duke did know.

"I think he is honest, and straightforward. He personally believes strongly in the alliance and from the looks of it, so does the empire, at least the imperial family. I think he knows something is off as well, but I think he is more concerned about the unrest inside the empire” the duke, nodded, there was no mystery there, and even more troubling once you consider how the King of Faerun had betrayed them. Knowing he believed in the alliance was perfect a chance, Loire should pursuit the matter with care "Do you think, we should reach for him?"

"I feel we should, but it it’s just a feeling. Perhaps we could arrange a more casual meeting, I mean, the weeding is a good reason and René could invite Fleur, we could judge him better that way. My sister thinks highly of him, and at the same time I believe she judges him constantly, but I also think she likes him" Luka liked Aedrik, and after what his father had told him, he felt reassured for Frey, but trusting him with this, Loire needed more than just his feeling.

"I would like that; this can also provide a rare chance for us to get closer. However, we need to decide soon, the prince would make and invaluable ally in this matter, and his ideas for the orcs are ambitious” " Luka wanted to interrupt but the duke stopped him "I understand house Beaumont response, they need every help they can get. Your house as well, has things to gain, and you need to support him, you are to become family, that much is understood, I had my reservations, hence why I also wanted to talk with you first" Aedrik, had laid the idea of pushing inside orc territory, and how it could benefit, Loire, but if they joined or not, the Empire would do it. He wanted to establish a chain of command, if they decided to join, he laid out his movement plans, as they were allies and he did not intend to surprise them when the empire started moving.

Percy Beaumont and some easter nobles had instantly answered they would join the campaign, house Lunebleau had also confirmed their support. The high council would still make a vote to decide of Loire as a whole would recognize the campaign and share its expenses. The duke had certainly been surprised by Aedrik’s decisiveness. The duke managed to calm those against the idea, and allow anyone who wanted to join a reality, that showed their commitment to their alliance, but gave them time to organize themselves, and for him to investigate hidden threats.

"There was something Aedrik discussed with my father and me. There are many records confirming iron mines in the Auvernier mountains, and the orc certainly had been better armored in the recent years. He is so insistent in pushing now, because the orcs are still disorganized, and are certainly not expecting us to come to the warring hills, he intended to try to take these mines from them"

The duke was recalling the map Aedrik had placed on the strategy meeting, he had sent scouts in advance and had a more accurate picture of what was happening inside the warring hills. Loire’s own agents had reported the empire scouts moving inside the warring hills. In Aedrik’s plan the Auverniers would end in direct possession of house Lunebleau, Luka was sharing everything, the duke had made the right choice.

"If we do manage to take over the mines, they will be one of the biggest rewards of the campaign, if Loire contribution is low, there is no way we can claim them without damaging the alliance” the duke felt his stomach hurt, they were being too slow in reacting it was a careful and intelligent move from the empire “However, he says the empire will forfeit their claim on the mines, as a sign of brotherhood and good will to Loire, the mines however would fall naturally next to our dukedom”

The duke raised his eyebrows, the Empire needed iron for Zel, given the position of the mines, it would be a bold claim to keep the mines, but if Loire did nothing, they had no say in it. The empire had invited them, they could have just placed their plans, and keep the mines in the end, but they were considering it from the beginning, they had even talked about it with house Lunebleau, Luka was truly placing his house on the line, he wanted to come clean.

"Coincidentally, my father and I wished to reach you. He is preoccupied about the King lately, your words ease up our worries, since I can now tell him you are aware of this, and that the royal family is still keeping watch over Loire” the duke and Luka both look at each other for a moment “We wanted to talk about this with you, because we know house Lunebleau weight has increased but we, as we always had, still consider Loire first. We even talked with Aedrik, that we would approach you. House Lunebleau intends to give the mine to the royal family, as a token of our loyalty, and that of our allies, and you could grant us, the right to use it. We would pay what is due for the crown, and I think we should trade part of the iron with the empire”

The duke allowed himself to let a long sigh, he had been right in his decision. House Lunebleau was upstanding, they could have gained much they intended to come clean from the beginning. The duke had glanced at the stone, and it had never changed its color. They knew these actions would ease up the tension with the rest of the nobles, help the royal crown, and even fulfill their new commitment with the empire as they were to become family. The duke gave Luka a deep bow.

"Thank you, Luka, and let your father know, house Lunebleau actions will not be forgotten. I am once more, very sorry for having you come this way. It was uncalled for, and I am ashamed to have doubted, not only yourself and your father, but house Lunebleau as a whole. I needed to be remained because Loire was built upon the chivalry of its original knights”

"No, duke, we both care for Loire, and is comforting to know the royal house of Reynaud remains Loire stalwart defendant. House Lunebleau is, as it always been, at the service of Loire, and the crown" Luka knelt, as if the duke was the king.

"Rise Luka, please, we have known each other for some time, and I would like for us to be friends. I hope you would consider me one as well, and when the time comes to take on the crown, I had someone who would call on me, as friends before our titles" the duke, had gone and lifted Luka up "I heard that the prince, send your sister to the trade negotiations" Luka went pale at that remark "I have to say it, but that is something the Empire is well ahead of us, we are wasting half of our chances of having valuable and competent nobles serving Loire, just because they are woman " Luka was surprised to see the duke so calmed about it.

"I think we should follow their example and allow the woman of the kingdom to have more power, I am certain master librarian Emeryn, would be an excellent advisor, and there are many more ladies that would do such and splendid job" Luka agreed, he was worried about what they would think about his sister, but Aedrik had proved to not only care for her, but to value her better than they had "Alas everything must be done in small steps, but what I said, I meant it Luka, we should be friends, and I think are spouses present the perfect opportunity for us to get together and let the nobles know we are close without calling any more attention"

Luka nodded in agreement "I'll talk with René and have her invite lady Fleur, with the wedding as an excuse, that way, we advance on deciding about the prince"

The duke stood up and so did Luka "Loire is proud to have nobles like you and your father Luka, let us hope we have what it takes to stop those who wish the Kingdom harm" the duke offered his hand for Luka, and he took it.

"Let our fields bloom, and our enemies wither" Luka said grabbing firmly the duke’s hand.

"For Loire's knights ride on the horizon" the duke replied.