Duke Enranth Terros stood in his war room, overlooking a map spread across a wide table. A few wooden pieces marked the borders.
Before him stood his own Master of Coin, Maester Vollen. The older man looked exhausted. He held a ledger-board tight to his chest.
"The Censurae audit continues, Your Grace," Vollen said, his voice flat. "They have sealed three more of our ledger rooms here in Holdorn. They are demanding the raw tallies from our shipments in the northern border spanning for the last five years."
Enranth pushed a marker with his thumb, sliding it toward a location that denoted a dense forest.
"We have provided the summaries," Enranth said.
"They rejected the summaries. They want the original scribe marks," Vollen replied. "The Censurae auditors are being monitored by Imperial officers acting as escorts. They are making sure that procedure being followed.Now they are demanding for a cross reference to our yields against the transport guild receipts."
Enranth kept his eyes on the map. He knew exactly what the discrepancy was.
"I know for a fact that the Censurae is sloth to complete the audit. Primarch Thalmaris is making sure that everything is stalls under the guise of being thorough." Enranth said. "How long before they are forced to complete the audit."
"Months. Perhaps a year," Vollen said. "But the lockdown on our southern mines remains. We are paying guards and miners to sit idle. We are still able to sit comfortably, other resources are still being bought. Iron and steel are being traded."
Enranth tapped his fingers against the table edge.
"We keep coordinating with the Lead Auditor in secret," Enranth said. "Pay the idle wages. We have more than enough to work with. The Lead Auditor can help us but his subordinates are diligent. He can only buy us so much time. We need to locate our target before the audit finishes. If we run out of time, I know what Reitz's move is next."
Enranth then sighed. "At least I know that bastard, Reitz is bleeding coin."
Vollen bowed his head, though he did not look relieved. "Yes, Your Grace."
The heavy door clicked open. Severin, Enranth's chief factor and head of intelligence, stepped inside. He bore a leather satchel and a sealed report.
Maester Vollen took that as his dismissal. He bowed again and slipped out of the room.
Enranth looked up, already expecting the interruption.
"Your Grace," Severin said, offering a deep bow. "We have received intelligence on Bren."
Enranth shifted his gaze back to the map. He rested his hands on the table's edge. "Very well," he said slowly. "Has it been corroborated by our different factors?"
Severin nodded, stepping closer to the light of the table. "Your Grace, we have verified the intelligence through different channels. Multiple factors say similar things."
Enranth agreed with a short grunt. "People lie, or exaggerate," he huffed, crossing his arms. "That is why I do not like having the Arcanists give me information on matters only they can reach."
"They are useful enough, Your Grace. At least they give us another source to verify with," Severin replied. He broke the wax seal on his document and opened the report.
"There have been reports from merchants," Severin read, "that House Blackfyre provides a certain service capable of duplicating books."
Enranth let out a sharp snort. "Is the device confirmed?" he asked.
"Yes, Your Grace. There even was an accompanying writ for it."
Enranth began to walk slowly around the table. He nodded to himself. "What did the writ say?"
"It pertained to a new office Bren has established. It is called the Press Office."
"Interesting name," Enranth murmured, dragging a finger across a wooden piece.
"According to the writ, it will handle all matters pertaining to the device," Severin said.
Enranth stopped his pacing. "Meaning?"
"The device is capable of copying books en masse," Severin answered. "Furthermore, Earl Blackfyre hosted an auction. He leased ten charters to the largest merchant houses and counting firms."
Enranth's eyes narrowed. "He leased the machines?"
"He leased them along with a right to use them," Severin corrected. "The device remains strictly under Bren's control. The merchants bought the privilege to have their ledgers, contracts, and notices duplicated. The bidding was fierce. Coin moved instantly."
Enranth kept his eyes on the map. He stared at one of the wooden markers situated a short distance from the border of Bren. Reitz was not just making copies. He was binding the economic power of the province to his own castle. If the merchants relied on Bren for their contracts, Bren controlled the merchants.
"There are limitations," Severin added, turning to the second page of the report. "They pertain to things that only Castle Blackfyre can supply. The ink, for example, is not scribal ink. There are other regulations, like who is allowed to use the device, and how to handle requests on what they can use it for."
Enranth finally turned away from the map and looked at his intelligence chief directly. "Are we able to acquire one of them?"
Severin shifted his weight. "Your Grace, currently? It is possible, but it raises awareness too much." He paused, meeting the duke's intense gaze. "It would put too much attention on us."
Enranth kept staring, his expression flat.
"But if we can redirect the efforts of our factors around Bren, then it might be possible," Severin suggested quietly.
Enranth gave a mild snort and shook his head. "That is an option that is not on the table right now."
"We have, however, recovered a book that we believe was created from the contraption," Severin replied.
Enranth's posture straightened. "Oh? How so?"
"We have verified the title of the book. It was mentioned during the name day of the Blackfyre heir," Severin explained.
Enranth extended his hand. "You have it, do you not?"
"Yes, Your Grace." Severin unbuckled his satchel, drew out a thin volume, and presented it.
Enranth took the book. He ran his thumb over the cover, feeling the binding.
Fulmen: Roads, Holds and Markets.
He opened the cover. At the bottom of the first page, an author's name was embossed in sharp ink: Maester Kestel Rowan.
Enranth flipped through the pages. The crispness of the letters caught his attention. His eyes widened slightly.
"These are no simple books. They even have maps," he said, furrowing his brows. He flipped back to the page with the map and laid the book flat on the table, comparing the printed lines to the large parchment on the table spread before him. The table map was much larger, of course.
"These maps are identical in scale," Enranth muttered, tracing a river with his fingernail. "But ours have some differences from this."
Severin nodded. "According to sources, these are updated maps. They claim that this is the most recent record of the borders of Fulmen. It includes the lands awarded to Castle Blackfyre by the imperial crown when the Earl took the Krohnlen oath."
"Good. We can update ours," Enranth said. He closed the book with a soft thud. "How many of these have been reported to be made?"
"Around seven hundred was what was reported," Severin answered.
Enranth's face went completely still at the number.
"Multiple factors have confirmed this," Severin added quickly.
"That is a lot." Enranth tapped his fingers against the table. "If they can make this much, then they can make falsehood truth," he contemplated, his voice dropping low.
He looked at the printed map again. If seven hundred merchants carried a map that placed a disputed toll-bridge inside Blackfyre territory, then the toll-bridge belonged to Blackfyre. The Imperial courts deferred to consensus. Reitz was manufacturing consensus by the hundreds. But maybe he could put this to his advantage.
He looked back up. "Is it possible to have an exact copy of the writ?"
"We may be able to, if we can get in contact with some baronies," Severin said.
Enranth hesitated, weighing the risk. "If they made an accompanying writ, then this means it is important. Bren wants control of this device." He pointed a finger at Severin. "Can you give me an estimate of what we would need to acquire one? Give it to me later."
Severin bowed respectfully. "Yes, Your Grace."
"Any word on who the creator of the device was?" Enranth asked, turning back to the war map.
"There are rumors, but nothing concrete. The consensus among the merchants is that it was made by someone who is part of the office of Bren's Master of Works," Severin said.
Enranth snorted. "Basically someone who is in Reitz's inner circle."
Severin slid the first report beneath a second sheet of parchment. "There are other things, milord."
Enranth crossed his arms. "Continue."
"We have confirmed a new infrastructure project."
Enranth's eyebrows raised. He glanced at the wooden marker for Bren. "It seems that Reitz's lease is giving him money for the projects."
"We can't conclude that yet," Severin replied evenly. "The allocations appear separate."
"Does anyone know what the structure is?" Enranth asked.
Severin checked his notes. "It is the foundation for a furnace."
"A new furnace?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
Severin hesitated. He looked up from the parchment. "From descriptions of the layout, and detailed reports of how it looks above... it doesn't seem like a regular furnace. It is located in the outer ring, near the smithing district."
Enranth furrowed his brows. "A kiln for bricks?"
"They have ordered refractory brick. But there were reports of them trying different configurations of bricks and that those bricks are going to be used for the new kiln. From the top the footprint is wrong for a kiln," Severin said.
Enranth tapped his fingers against his arm. Concrete and thick stone meant massive weight and permanent heat.
"Is Reitz mad? He is trying to experiment?"
"We don't have all the details at this moment, Your Grace. We only received reports of some people using standardized measurable tools. Also we know based on the people who have talked to that a Kilnmaster, a Master Smith and a Master Surveyor are involved."
Enranth contemplated. He looked to the side. Master Surveyors were for big infrastructure projects, whatever this one was
Whatever they were building, it was built for scale. And scale required vast amounts of raw material. Continuous iron meant armor, tools, and weapons. If Bren could out-produce Loria, the balance of power would shift.
"Watch their supply lines," Enranth ordered. "If they start stockpiling limestone, raw ore, or charcoal in extreme quantities, I want the exact tonnage recorded."
"Yes, Your Grace."
"Also they have started a..." Severin furrowed his brows, it was like he himself didn't understand if he needed to report it. "A gathering during Helio. It first started with one hundred children. We have reports of the families involved."
Enranth motioned him to continue.
"Some select scribes from this established Press Office are teaching children."
"Teaching? What exactly?"
"How to count, how to read. Some basics. It's just that..." Severin paused. "The Blackfyre heir seems to always be present in these events, and these events are conducted in the outer ring. They even give food all day to the children."
Enranth gave a quizzical look. "That's odd," he said, "if they wanted to look for commoners who are able to read and write, then they should look no further than the Kanzlei."
"Witnesses swear that children from the outer ring are involved as well."
"Odd."
"They are also giving them books, and other materials to write with."
"Books?" Enranth asked. "Why is Reitz spending a fortune on commonfolk. Why is he doing this at a cost?"
"That we don't know, Your Grace. What we do know is that the things they teach... the methods they use for arithmetic are different from the teachings of the Kanzlei."
Silence held for a beat.
"They even use different symbols for numbers, and the books they gave are closely guarded. From what we understand the Master of Coin's office is starting to use the symbols too. As for the books, they account and make sure that each book is still with their owners or returned to the Castle Blackfyre."
Enranth processed the information. New symbols. New counting methods. Being taught to street children, while the Master of Coin adopted the same symbols inside the keep. Was Reitz creating a new standard of arithmetic? If the commoners learned it, they could bypass the Kanzlei entirely. Maybe this could be another point of leverage.
"Is it possible to acquire one of these books?" Enranth asked.
"We have no direct factors within Bren. Anyone from Loria is interrogated and closely monitored. Factors from friendly domains can only offer information already known by the common folk."
Severin adjusted his satchel. "But if you really want, Your Grace, we can ask our allies from... further south."he cleared his throat. "We can task them to secure a book, or even retrieve a Press contraption."
The chief intelligencer lowered his voice. "But we can, most likely, use them once. It would be very much possible that their whereabouts would be compromised. Right now they remain hidden, but if we make a move, we rattle the cage. The Blackfyre patrols will find their camps."
Enranth took Severin's words seriously. He looked at the wooden marker resting on the dense forest, south of Bren.
Hundreds of assets. Fed in secret. Kept off the ledgers. Waiting for an order.
"No," Enranth said. He continued after a beat. "You know our plans, right? We need them for the most important part."
Enranth breathed, his mind returning to Maester Vollen and the bleeding accounts. "Right now the Censurae has found more anomalies with our books. If combined with their cards, Blackfyre can topple this duchy with paperwork."
Severin bowed. "I apologize, Your Grace."
"That is our highest priority right now. We cannot deviate from our core plans." Enranth stared at the map, tracing the line from the southern forest directly to Bren's keep. "Keep the southern camps as eyes for now. When the audit concludes that is when we strike. It could buy us some time and also hopefully complete their mission. If the ledgers cannot be balanced, the ledgers must burn."