"The King, huh..."
The siblings muttered to themselves, trying to imagine what it would be like to have the King of the strongest Kingdom turn out to be the real enemy.
Kael looked at them for a moment, then at Veylara—
"Of course, there is a possibility that he is being controlled and that he truly is on our side but...
He is still someone who cannot be easily trusted."
Veylara’s face turned grim at those words.
"The theory of the King being under control is quite unlikely."
She spoke, looking at Kael and then Lavinia. Lavinia didn’t react to those words, not showing her complex emotions on her face. Everyone in the room, however, could already see how much it meant for her.
Though having a real conversation was equally important too, so Lavinia did not show any weakness, not right now.
"You are correct."
She nodded, looking at Veylara.
"If the enemy has the power to control the King of the strongest Kingdom, then it is already a hopeless battle.
It would be better to only keep the possibility of King Alden being under the enemy’s control in mind, but while dealing with future scenarios, we will think of him as the true enemy."
She announced.
Veylara and the other Stormholds looked at her with solemn faces. As people who had seen Lavinia live with her father for a long time, they could see how incredibly difficult saying those words must be for her.
"And what about Crown Prince Edric?"
Arlan questioned curiously.
"What about him? Do we consider him an enemy too?"
He asked because in their interactions, it didn’t look like the King and the Crown Prince were allies. They seemed to have grown apart, there was a strange coldness between them that people couldn’t name, but they could definitely feel it.
"And if we do consider him to be an enemy, do we think of him as the King’s ally, or a different enemy?"
The Commander questioned.
Both Kael and Lavinia thought about the question for a while, then, Lavinia sighed.
"We do not know."
She shook her head, accepting her limits.
"We do not have enough information. We need to interact with the Crown Prince more to make a proper decision. For now, we treat him as a different enemy."
Arlan nodded at those words, noting them down in his head.
Then came another important question.
"What about us?"
Veylara asked directly.
"What do you want us to do? The King would already know that we visited you. I doubt he would be able to predict that House Stormhold swore allegiance to Lord Kael, but he will have doubts.
He has already been especially strict on the Stormhold House.
So what does Lord Kael want me to do?
Do I bring the Stormhold forces here?
Or do I stay there, act like a spy, and feed you the information you desire?"
She questioned directly.
Then, before Kael could answer, she interrupted him again and—
"I suggest you let us stay in Drakthar."
She spoke directly.
"I have already called most of my people back to the Stormhold House. Our house is like a fortress, so in case of an emergency, we would be able to defend ourselves well.
Not to mention, what Lord Kael needs the most right now is information, and only our House being there would be able to provide you that as accurately as possible.
Us being here would only make things more complex for your forces here."
Veylara shared her thoughts.
Kael thought about it for a while.
Honestly, he could see how dangerous it would be for the Stormholds if King Alden realised that they had sworn allegiance to him and betrayed Drakthar.
But at the same time, he could also see how he needed someone to give him the latest information about what was happening in the Alliance, and just like Veylara said, there weren’t many who could give them information as clearly as House Stormhold.
Also, it felt somewhat presumptuous to think that the Stormholds, who had been in Drakthar for generations as one of the three founding families, would suddenly be in danger.
King or not, Alden would need a very strong reason to actually harm the Stormholds, not to mention with the world as tense as it was—
He couldn’t afford to lose his forces by going against the Stormholds, not at this moment.
So after thinking about it all—
"Stay in Drakthar."
He made a decision.
"But be prepared at all times. The moment something happens, you contact me."
"I understand."
Veylara nodded.
Seeing their mother act like this in front of Kael definitely felt awkward. Elira and Arlan, however, also couldn’t help but stare at Kael to see how natural he looked as he gave instructions.
He...
He had definitely grown.
They couldn’t help but smile inwardly.
The conversation continued for a good while. They planned and strategised. Kael also familiarised himself with what was happening in the Main World in a more detailed manner. Veylara then gave him a few artifacts that he could use to remain in contact.
Kael took them in. He also told them about Aurelia and Astrael, who appeared later. Veylara listened to it all and gave her own opinion.
Then, after a long conversation, the Stormholds finally stood up.
"We should leave now."
Veylara spoke.
Kael didn’t stop her either. They had already been here for hours. Spending any more time would be suspicious.
On their way back, Kael took them to the Steel Dragon. The Steel Dragon only spared them one glance, then, the Stormholds finally left. Elira gave Lavinia one last hug before leaving. Lavinia smiled at that.
It really had been a while since she had a proper conversation with someone who wasn’t Kael, and it felt... somewhat odd.
"I’d rather talk with just you."
Lavinia sighed as she watched them leave.
"Is that so..."
Kael smiled, gently holding her hand. Lavinia, however, tightened her hold on his hand, then, her eyes shimmered with a dangerous light and she—
"And you..."
She spoke up in a frosty voice.
"You smiled sixteen times while talking to Elira.
She really made you that happy, huh?"
"...huh?"
And Kael’s expression changed.
"...you were counting?"
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