A Time of Tigers - From Peasant to Emperor

"He would," Oliver said. "Verdant is capable enough as he is now… though I would say he's clumsy. I would feel better if he trained before it."

"I shall, my Lord. I too recognize that weakness, though I do confess I am delighted that you of all people have judged my strength to be sufficient," Verdant said humbly, bowing his head, in his own richly decorated quarters, with those jewelled rings on his fingers, towards his master.

"There is one other person I would bring," Oliver said, glancing towards Lasha. She stiffened. Even seeing her as alert as she was, with Oliver looking towards her, one would never guess that she was the one he was talking about.

The girl could not have looked more like a noblewoman. She was sat prim and proper and pretty. It was all but impossible to imagine her with a sword in her hand. Even after hearing that the two had been training together, neither Asabel nor Lancelot seemed to have guessed it was her. It left Oliver wondering just what Verdant had said to them when he asked for Blackthorn to be allowed to the meeting.

"Her," Oliver said, pointing. Explore stories on My Virtual Library Empire

The Princess raised an eyebrow to glance at the girl. "Dear Oliver, before I even begin to address what you're saying, can I not point out how it would endear you to be a little kinder to girls. As pretty as she is, how could you treat her so casually as to refer to the lady with a simple 'her' and a point? One might think that she's been spoiling you with her company."

Behind Lasha, Amelia was doing all she could to forecast her approval. With the Princess' eyes on her, she couldn't outright nod, but she seemed to be choosing her side quite firmly regardless.

"Being that what is may—"

"No, no," Asabel said, "do not dismiss it so readily. Your ways are refreshing to me – comforting, even – but I wouldn't encourage bad habits. Though we might all be friends here, it pains my heart to see you treat her so dismissively. You hardly glanced Lady Blackthorn's way, nor have you complimented her on her dress, and now you try to slide away with such a casual point and a 'her'?"

"I didn't compliment your appearance either, Princess," Oliver pointed out.

"No, but at least you have not ignored me, despite the effort that I put in."

"I think the effort she put in was more for you, than me," Oliver said.

"Of course. I don't mean to slander her by saying otherwise, but you see her as she normally is, don't you? You could at least remark it to her. Or rescue her, when I was teasing her earlier," Asabel said.@@novelbin@@

"I…" Oliver paused, only just realizing that she was the one doing the teasing. Had her out-of-place canine not slipped past her lip as she tried to suppress a smile, he likely never would have caught on. He shook his head. Tired as she was, he appreciated her efforts to relieve some of the stiffness.

He gave her a small smile of his own, to indicate that he understood, and then he played the part that she expected of him. "Very well, I'll speak as you ask of me. Princess Asabel, it is the Lady Blackthorn that I intend to bring."

"And…?"

"And, my Lady, I must remark on how pretty you are this evening," Oliver said.

"You didn't have to say 'I must' as though I was forcing you…" Asabel pouted.

So she said, but the line still seemed to have the effect that Asabel intended. Lasha looked shellshocked, Pauline was blushing and Amelia's mouth hung wide open. Oliver ignored the three of them and continued with the proceedings.

"To that end," he said, "I send her as a presentative of your faction. As a result of the alliance that we have in place."

"That would all be very clever," Asabel agreed, "if you hadn't rejected the offer of an alliance last we met. You're troubling, Oliver Patrick, you most certainly are. Taking such reluctance in giving a lovely girl a compliment, and at the same time flipping-flopping with a pure Princess such as I? I do recall you saying that you'd rather us be friends than allies, at the end of the last meeting."

"Merely because the term ally seemed daunting, and I had nothing to offer," Oliver said. "Now I have something to offer. Your share in whatever victories that we might win on future missions. Lasha will be fighting on your behalf, after all. At least, formally."

"Since when did you become so hard to pin down?" Asabel said, sighing. "Fine, I surrender. Go back to your normal way of speaking..."

"I will, if you'll consider the offer."

"Of an alliance?" Asabel said. "In the first place, as I said before, you underestimate your own worth, Ser Patrick. If you'll agree to an alliance now, of course, I too will agree to it readily. As for the proposal to bring Lady Blackthorn along with you… I could make that work and clear it with her father, if both you and her were to insist…"

"Please, Princess," Lasha said, standing from her chair, and giving her strictest bow. "It would mean more than you could ever know."

"It's so much better, isn't it, Lancelot? This kind of straightforward honesty, than the stiffness of recent pledges that we've had to endure." Asabel said, turning to her trustworthy retainer.

"I'm not so sure…" Lancelot said. "At least there was a natural order to things before. A proper way of getting it done. This is just a plague of strangeness. The Patrick boy's sickness has carried over to the other houses, it seems."

"Hush now," she said, tapping his arm. "You were doing well up until now." She then turned back to Oliver and Lasha, sitting up straighter, adopting a more regal poise. It wouldn't have been strange to see a crown atop her golden hair as she sat like that, Oliver thought. "Very well, I accept both of your requests. Formally, the Asabel Pendragon Branch shall declare an alliance with House Patrick.

In accordance with that alliance – approval from her father pending – Lady Blackthorn shall fight alongside Oliver Patrick in his future missions."