The Rules of Blood-Volume Two ; Chapter (298) - Terms and Insults
“Pray tell, Lord Blanc, with whom can you retaliate? What army do you have?” Fiamma asked, “The Wardens of Blood Denegis are all dead.”
Blanc sighed, opening his mouth to reply, but Velakia entered the conversation, silencing him.
“Authority is not the only thing I can give him, Lady Seraph. If it is for my beloved, I will give control of the entire armies and navy of Iskahul,” she explained as she got to her feet.
“Is that a threat you are making, Your Highness?” Fiamma frowned, her red eyes stuck on the face of the princess.
“Not a threat,” Velakia shrugged, “But a promise.”
“How dare you?” Aidan got to his feet, anger clear on his face.
“I suggest you calm your rabid dog,” Blanc said, looking at Fiamma. “Before he is put down.”
“Is insulting part of the negotiations, you gray fuck? I will kill you, and your bastard family!” Aidan yelled at the top of his lungs.
“On whose authority is he speaking?” Blanc asked, turning to the only relevant person there, “Because that right there is a declaration of war, throwing yet another fistful of dirt in the Order’s face.”
“Lord Blanc is right,” the Daughter turned to look at Fiamma and her son, “If he is speaking under the authority of Blood Seraph, it is both a declaration of war and an insult to our Order.”
“You trait-” Aidan hissed, wanting to throw more insults before a backhand slap over his mouth sent him flying away, straight onto the floor a few feet away from the table.
“My son’s antics are not under our authority,” Fiamma began, “His antics are his, and his alone.”
“Good,” the Daughter replied. “Next time he interrupts or taunts, regardless of whether he has authority or not, the Order will take Blanc’s side in both the negotiations and the war to follow soon after.”
“...Understood,” Fiamma said, barely containing the anger burning inside her.
“Now then,” the emotionless Daughter turned back towards Blanc, “Are there any other terms you wish to add before moving on?”
“Yes, Daughter,” Blanc nodded, satisfied with seeing Aidan flying, “If the earlier mentioned terms are agreed upon, and we come to a deal, we wish for the Order to accompany us out of the Domain, to ensure no retaliation from… foolish fellows comes after we just made peace. For this, we will owe the Order a fav-”
Velakia interrupted, “For the wish of my future fiancé, if all goes well, I will offer the Order three acres of land in our Capital Island, where the Order can freely build a temple.”
A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, the violation.
Blanc was surprised by Velakia’s words, but nodded along, not refusing this new favor she did for him.
The Daughter lowered her chin in agreement, “A wonderful offer for such a low price. The Order accepts.”
“But we do not,” Fiamma got to her feet, “We would still be at a loss if we accept such terms.”
“Feel free to mention your terms, Matriarch,” the Daughter replied, “The Order only accepted the final request.”
Fiamma turned to one of the maids standing along the wall. “Bring everything here,” she ordered.
With a light bow, the maid left the hall, while two others helped Aidan back into his chair.
He held his nose, testing if it was broken, but still remained silent, only able to stare at the people standing opposite him.
A minute later, the maid returned inside the hall, carrying a hefty stack of parchment, which she handed to Fiamma.
“What is this about?” Blanc asked, frowning at what a stack of parchment that large could hold in importance for their current negotiations.
“Reimbursement, of course,” Fiamma replied, a judgmental look on her face, looking at Blanc as if that was the stupidest question she had heard today, “For the time my son wasted on her, for the food she ate, utilities she used, clothes she wore, and wages spent on servants to cater to her needs.”
“I’m sorry, Lady Seraph, but are you serious?” Blanc muttered, baffled.
“Of course, and all this has to be paid before we even consider breaking the engagement,” Fiamma shrugged, “What? Can’t the fiancé of a princess of Iskahul afford such a simple matter?”
I have seven fucking gold coins in my purse,
Blanc thought to himself.
But the issue wasn’t the lack of gold, but the lack of respect this woman showed.
So he turned to the witness, “Daughter, this is the highest level of disrespect. They knew all they were doing when betraying us or mistreating my sister. Otherwise, why would they prepare books worth of parchment filled with what my sister consumed, wore, and how much that cost? Sera has joined their Blood is sanctity of engagement, yet they treated everything as a transaction from the start, regardless of how poorly they treated her, or that her fiancé tried to cut her head off a day ago. This clearly shows the lack of care they had for both the sacred vows taken in front of the Vita and the Order, as well as for this negotiation. They plan to waste our time here. And not only ours, yours too, Daughter.”
“Baseless accusations,” Fiamma hissed, “All you do is throw words around, hoping something sticks.”
“Is that the case, I wonder?” the Daughter asked, turning to look at her, “I am inclined to agree with Lord Blanc on this one.”
“Daughter, I-” Fiamma began, but stopped talking when the Daughter raised her hand.
“This will be all for today,” she said, getting up from her chair, “I have to consult with the Order as a whole on this matter. You will have my answer then.”
With that, the Daughter took her leave, leaving the two parties staring at each other.
But Blanc’s side did not linger for too long either, as they got to their feet.
Velakia and Sera began walking off, but Blanc stayed, his back straight.
“You know, Lady Seraph,” Blanc began, looking at Fiamma, “Sometimes I wonder what our ancestors think of us, if they are pleased or not with what we have become, or represent. And despite not knowing what mine think, I know what yours do. And may the Vita pity their souls, for they are crying to see what their Blood has become. Good day.”
Without waiting to receive an answer or to see Blood Seraph’s reaction, he joined the rest of his companions and left the hall.
Volume Two ; Chapter (298) - Terms and Insults
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