Roy's reaction to the Margay's announcement was swift and surprising. He threw his head back and laughed. A loud booming kind of laugh that shook the rafters and shocked those who heard it, into silence.
He laughed until tears filled his eyes, his cheeks were sore and his stomach tight. Goddess! Princess Eris's clear ploy to gain sanctuary at the shrine asthonished him.
The female had proved time and time again to be extremely resourceful, a trait he was quick to appreciate whenever he chanced upon it.
As he was lost in thought, his pupils contracted before dilating to twice it's usual size, it registered in his mind where he would've smelt her lovely sweet scent before. She was the culprit behind the chestnut.
The hunt was on.
Eris wasn't a healer. Relief swelled inside him. He couldn't understand the reason for such a strong reaction, however, he could understand that this female was more than what meets the eye.
Roy started laughing again. By Goddess, he hadn't lusted after a member of the Shrine after all.
Bryant didn't know what to make of his lord's bizzare behaviour. In the short while that he has been serving under his leader's command, he had never seen the warrior smile.
As the wheels in his head turned, the vassal suddenly realised he had never witnessed his leader accept defeat either.
"Don't you understand, my lord?" Bryant blurted out. "You have suffered a great humiliation because of me. I believed her lies. I even gave her an escort to the shrine."
Bryant boldly moved forward until he had placed himself within striking distance of Roy, then said in an anguished whisper, "I alone am to blame. It was my incompetency that caused this."
Roy raised an eyebrow over his temporary second in command's dramatic confession. "We will discuss this later." he announced, with a meaningful glance towards the Margay informant.
When Bryant bowed his head once again, Roy turned back to the little male. "Tell me what you know about Princess Eris. All of it." he ordered.
James lifted his shoulders in a helpless shrug. "I was chased out of the area around eight and a half seasons ago. The task was given to another male by the tribal leader for daring to sneak glances at his female master."
When Roy lifted an eyebrow at the unhelpful information, James hurriedly continued, "I know that Princess Eris was supposed to be mated to a strong, well bred male in the south. If I am not wrong, he is the son of the tribe leader's benefactor; the dowry would've consisted of 8 bags of grain, 3 bags of salt and 6 red crystal coins. If the mating took place, Princess Eris would have been mated to him for about 5 seasons until he was slain by a feral beast during a hunt in Rhinestone Ridge."
Roy made no comment on the information he'd just been given. With no outward reaction, the Margay information felt anxiousness building within him. "It is truly all I know of Princess Eris, my lord." he stuttered, eyes darting around anywhere except the warrior standing before him.
With a flick of his wrist, Roy dismissed James from his presence without uttering a word. He waited until the Margay had left before turning back to Bryant.
In a mild and devoid of emotion tone, he began to instruct his vassal, "In future, you will not parade your wrong doings in front of outsiders. Do you understand me?"
Bryant nodded, fervently. He looked properly horrified by the reprimand, yet, Roy did not raise his voice nor brandish his claws.
Roy let out a sigh. "When you act in my stead, Bryant, your mistakes become mine. If you have learnt anything from this incident, then the inconvience you have caused me might be somewhat beneficial for future endeavours."
Bryant was completely astonished by the warrior's remarks. Never has he served a lord as patient and understanding as this. He had most definitely have never heard of a defeat referred to as an inconvinience before either.
He didn't know how to respond.
Hudson captured Roy's attention when he interjected, "Princess Eris has most definitely proved herself to be cunning, hasn't she? She certainly found an interesting way to slip out of your grasp... for the time being of course." he added with a nod in Bryant's direction.
"Absolutely," Roy answered with a grin. "for the time being."
"It is the truth when I say I fell for her lies." Bryant blurted out.
"No." Roy contradiacted, "You fell prey to her beauty, a honey trap. Recognise the error for what it was, so you won't repeat it."
The vassal slowly nodded. He took a deep breath whilst he withdrew a small hunting knife tucked on the side of his belt.
Bryant's hands shook when he knelt on one knee to offer his father's weapon to Roy. "I have failed you, my lord. Because of me, you have been shamed."
The young soldier closed his eyes in anticipation of the pain. A long agonising minute passed before he opened his eyes again. Why was his leader hesitating?
"You don't wish to retaliate against me, my lord?" he asked, confusion obvious in his unsteady gaze.
Roy let him see his exasperation. He turned to Hudson and caught his smile, nearly smiling himself. Schooling his face into an expression of indifference, he replied, "What I wish to do and what I will do are two different things, Bryant. In time, you will understand."
Taking a pause for the message to sink in, he then continued, "Now, please do tell, why are you offering me your knife?"
Bryant was completely caught off guard by the question. His leader's voice had been so mild, had me misunderstood? Was it possible that his lord was not overly displeased by his error in judgement?
"I offer you my weapon so that you may use it against me, if that is your inclination. My lord, I don't understand. I have disgraced you, haven't I?"
Roy ignored his question and asked one of his own. "Under whose command were you before you came into my ranks?"
"I was under Warrior Sebas for 3 and a half seasons." Bryant answered, truthfully.
"And in all that while, have you ever seen Sebas use his vassal's own weapon against them?"
Roy was prepared to hear a quick, sharp denial. He knew Sebas, with his unholy temper at times may seem intimidating, however, did not believe he could use such methods.
Sebas used slightly aggressive tactics when dealing with younger, inexperienced soldier, a method that found little favour with Roy. There had even been whispers of true brutality, but he didn't pay any attention to such gossip.
No, Roy believed the stories were simply an exaggeration spread with disgruntled young beastmen who hadn't been able to meet the warrior's rigid training requirements or follow his strict routines.
That was his undoing. Roy could not hide his surprise when Bryant nodded. "I did witness such retaliation. Warrior Sebas never outrightly killed any vassals serving under him, but several unfortunate soldiers later died from the punishment inflicted. Their wounds became severly infected."
"Bryant, that explains your perculiar behaviour, cub." Hudson interjected. "The youngling is speaking the truth. Sebas has been known to use physical retaliation and humiliation to gain obedience and loyalty. Tell me, Bryant," he continued with a glace in the young soldier's direction, "Are the bastard vultures, Nimt and Frod still acting as Sebas's right and left hands?"
Bryant nodded again. "They are his most trusted advisers," he said. "When Warrior Sebas is occupied with more important matters, Nimt and Frod supervise the training of the soldiers."
"And the punishment as well?" Hudson prodded.
"Yes," Bryant answered. "The punishment as well."
"Nimt is worse than Frod," Hudson announced. "I've seen him fight. I had hoped he would die during the invasion in the East of Claw Kingdom, but alas the Goddess did not accomidate my sinful wish. I suppose the great evil is bent on keeping him alive."
Bryant finally stood up and took a bold step forward. "May I speak freely?" he asked, hope shining in his eyes as he looked directly at Roy.
After sitting in silence listening to his friend and vassal, the warrior finally opened his mouth. "Isn't that what you have been doing already?"