De Foedis et Imperiis (3)

The meeting was as tense as I predicted it was going to be. Not the worst circumstance, but definitely a fertile ground for possible disagreement with how some of the people at the table seemed to be fairly irked or merely annoyed by people from the other side of the mediation.

The only thing I could rely on was the compromise-filled treaty that was meant to appeal and give Ria the chance to staunchly protect it if she found it proper but also a good start for any needed correction. She had agreed to have me bring the early body for a diplomatic agreement, but she had made no promises of agreeing completely to everything that was written there. At least, not until she had the chance to study the paper herself before going for the signing process. As the meeting started, I decided to take a moderate approach regarding the pace, offering a modest but curt introduction and exchange of words with the blonde as we both were meant to appear legitimately in a state of natural agreement driven by mere diplomacy rather than extra-formal interactions.

Too long and it would have appeared the agreement was built on a strained commitment, too quick and people would have doubted this was the real treaty-signing and easily wondered if other encounters had ensued before this one to gain this much eagerness from both leaders of the two sides. Ria responded pleasantly to my polite 'greeting' towards my fellow monarch, returning it with one of her own.

I expected Merlin to add something to it, to already make it clear he was going to interrupt us a fair lot due to his nature. My expectations were proved false the very moment I glanced the mage's way, realizing that his current attention wasn't aimed at me but… to Scathach. Or rather something that was currently accepting some treatment from the former Scottish Queen. I barely noticed Cath Palug's swift action of getting 'appreciated' through some head-scratching and chin-rubbing from the powerful warrior, but I could tell that Scathach's own actions weren't driven by just pure amusement towards the seemingly harmless creature. No, I could tell that the woman knew of the importance behind such a creature and she knew how troublesome Merlin was going to be. I had told her about the inherent nature of interference that the white-haired wizard was keen to promote through his actions, but she seemed mostly surprised when her plan was more than successful. Despite its unruly nature towards Merlin himself, Cath Palug, or 'Fou' as Mya was keen to greet it, was definitely a sucker for tender affection of that kind. Something that Merlin couldn't achieve due to his perverted nature.

With one of the issues defused, only one of the expected ones remained a touchy issue within the meeting himself. While Gawain was holding himself just fine, the piercing attention he was aiming at both Gareth and Gaheris was undoubtedly nerve-wracking for the twins. I knew Gareth was managing by using Lancelot's frame to cover part of her face and dodge a good part of that staring, but her brother had none of this protection and was silently grilled by the older sibling. Much to my relief, the knight had done nothing towards me, not even daring to land a brief look in my general direction. Clearly Ria's warnings had struck true and had urged the man to not pay any attention to me for the sake of not disappointing his ruler.

The same wasn't applied to the one issue I hadn't taken into account due to how little knowledge I had of her. Guinevere, Queen to Arthur and daughter to King Leodegrance, looked fairly curious as she spared me plenty of fascination-filled glances to my figure. I could perceive nothing beyond mere curiosity behind those, yet I couldn't help but feel the excessive staring somewhat troubling as… I could tell something about me left her immensely intrigued and perplexed at the same time. I wasn't exactly sure what drove her to that kind of attention, but I could say it was somehow tied to her husband from the way she also spared passing looks towards Ria. I wasn't sure if the blonde knew of this since her eyes were trained on the paper, looking over the treaty's documentation to see any irregularity within it.

I looked back at the brunette, the woman looking fairly beautiful on her own right, but I still couldn't understand how Lancelot ended up falling in love with someone like her so… suddenly. Even now, as I braced for that kind of eventuality to somehow happen and ruin any chance of peace, I couldn't help but realize that the man didn't seem to care, being more interested in keeping a protective stance over his student and glancing back at Gawain. I was even more relieved when I felt convinced Lancelot wasn't just going to fall in love with anyone there… but someone definitely seemed in the mood to stare hearts at the clueless plum-haired knight from France.

Tall man, his hair looked more like a dark-colored mane with how lengthy those were, reaching down to a little below his shoulder. He was wearing a simple armor with a green hue applied to the usual silver, and he looked to be an advocate of battle-hammers from the exposed bit of his current weapon. Lord Galehaut was by all means the only vassal subordinate to Ria that had to come with her entourage. He was by far the most powerful among the bunch when it came to money, lands, and general administrative interest. A man of pragmatic views that, despite wealth of knowledge and mind, was still driven by personal interests. And in this case, matching up with the legend I was well familiar with, he seemed intrigued by Lancelot himself.

Which was technically an odd development since Lancelot himself didn't do anything in particular to gain the interest of Galehaut. At least, of what I was aware about during his stay here in the islands since I knew he didn't do anything in particular at the moment that gained any relevance within Britain beyond being my most loyal supporter in military campaigns, sharing that title with Marcus himself. Maybe I was missing something about this specific matter, maybe it was tied to something that specifically happened in France before Lancelot moved up north. Or maybe Galehaut just spared a look at Lancelot and was thinking that he was 'an interesting fellow' to obsess about. Still, it was clear that there was interest there, but I couldn't tell if it was mere curiosity or the outright desire to accomplish the idea of fancying my first knight.

I was quite… unsure how to tackle both circumstances, as I was well aware that the two scenarios were equally complicated one way or another. Then again, the 'love route' would also open up a good opportunity to further intertwine the politics of the two kingdoms in a friendly environment, or be the precipice of a downfall. Considering all risks and knowing what kind of failure awaited us, I decided it was best to take a careful approach and just not support this kind of behavior without causing any retaliation in the process. Worst case scenario was that Galehaut, in a fit of irritation towards my adamant unwillingness to allow Lancelot to share time with him, managed to force Ria's hand into throwing in an ultimatum that could easily result in war.

Lips twitching at that unpleasant development, I was given something else to think about when Ria seemed to be done scribbling something by some paper she had taken to write down notes and adjustments.

"Apologies, King Joseph. But I believe a few points presented in the document can be considered too… modest. Or too dull compared to what I imagined," The blonde commented with a calm but understanding tone. "Please, do take a look at what I believe could be done regarding this."

I slowly nodded, taking this opportunity to properly glance at the document itself and what Ria thought could be changed. Much to my relief, most of the changes were mostly tied to the trade-section of the treaty and I had been quite conscious of this situation due to how difficult it was to predict a more appropriate deal to offer when it came to some important resources.

The one number that was bolstered the most when it came to Camelot's own intake was the grain one, and I could tell the issue was more tied to Ria's current capacity to sustain an already-struggling agriculture due to the new lands she acquired needed fixing before being available to the local farmers, which meant she had to dispense money and food to handle this matter. Considering that her current lands were possibly less than the ones she originally was meant to obtain, I doubted that she was going to have much success on her own and this is why I knew trade deals had to be part of the treaty to avoid the many issues that would cause if her kingdom experienced economic trouble and suffer any recession.

Differently from my rule, she was still relying heavily on vassals, something that I managed to squash away by making sure the current administrative section of Londinium was administered by officers I hired through requirements. It doesn't matter the class and the wealth, but capacity to handle the task at hand as efficiently and willingly as possible but also keeping a strong loyalty to the capital. Since the recent conquests hardly had any nobility to be wary about, it was easy to implement the system and just give monetary reparation to those that felt like they deserved something for losing that kind of position. Of course, the money wouldn't have been enough to quell any resentment driven by this, but I knew that my reach and my political power stood way above those that didn't want to change. It was either change or dying. There was no fighting it, and they knew I gave them more than enough money for them to build the family to become influential differently than as head of counties or cities.

Other price changes were centered around food, with just a minor adjustment when it came to the fish-related prices due to how limited the sea-faring section was in her kingdom. Minor accommodations, nothing that could pass as any cheeky or forceful demands… but I still had to curb some of the grain's adjustment as adding one third more to what was proposed felt a major push. I settled for one fourth more and nothing more. For the rest, the adjustments were still affordable, so I slid the paper back to Ria.

She quickly glanced at the specific value that was changing, a brief scowl piercing into her blank mask as she realized that her attempt had been noticed and changed to a different number. Instead of trying to alter it again, I saw her write something to the lowest section before giving the paper back to me. The condition that was added was the logical conclusion to avoid any bickering over that option.

A meeting between diplomats and trade experts would be conducted every few months to debate adjustments to the current pricing, making it so that in case of necessity some push can be made and, in case of economic stability, some fixes to favor back Londinium could be taken.

All in all, the entire meeting was proceeding smoothly as we went through the signing process since we were confident this treaty was going to be what we both needed to consolidate the legitimacy of our respective kingdoms. Once the signatures were written down, we were expected to finally discuss problems that we were in need to address due to the newest setting of the political landscape and… we didn't get the chance to bring up anything when a guard burst through the door.

"What is going on, young man? Can you tell this meeting is important-"

"L-Lord Quintus, a message from the docks!" The soldier interrupted with a nervous and loud voice. "Ships have been spotted approaching, our navy has taken defensive position but the commander of the garrison doubts that we can hold the invasion."

The news felt ludicrous to many, but I took this chance to directly ask a specific question to the messenger, knowing of a single possible faction that could have caused this matter but I needed confirmation before starting to plan out a solution to this matter.

"What flags do the invading ships sport?"

The soldier looked even more nervous. "I-It's the Roman one, y-your majesty."

I sighed. "Soissons."

Marcus scoffed. "Of course the southern issue comes back to bite back at us again."

"You are aware of something, King Joseph?" Quintus asked with a serious tone. "If so, please, enlighten us."

"A few weeks ago the southern section of my kingdom was assaulted by a light invasion of a couple of ships. While the navy is still in process of being built, we had enough defenses to counter the attempt and make sure that they didn't fully retreat," I explained with a grim look aimed at Ria and Quintus. "I thought the target was Londinium since it could become a platform for a proper invasion but… this attack, it can't be just a coincidence they are attacking the region now that we are having this important meeting."

"It's indeed a confusing element," Merlin added, agreeing to this point.

"Do you believe that they hit now because we are here?" Ria asked and I nodded.

"The first attack was planned in such a way that it was clear they had specific targets to land by, and I know that wouldn't have been possible without spies taking note of what is happening in the islands. Someone gave them what they wanted and…" I paused a moment, turning my attention back on the soldier. "Did your commander give a rough estimation of how long they can delay the invasion?"

"T-Two days."

It was barely enough to get some manpower out of the current troops deployed, and I knew that nobody knew how many men were coming against us in this battle. Still, it was going to be more than enough if we managed to bring in the cannons…

"We can get reinforcements from the border guard," Agravain confirmed with a confident tone, his eyes aimed at me. "What can we get from Londinium, King Joseph?"

"Barely a few brigades. The time to cross a proper army would take three to four days, but the brigades should be enough if they get the cannons here quickly," I replied while nodding, eyes back to Quintus. "I believe it would be best to start organizing defensive lines as we get the troops to come, Lord Quintus."

The old man nodded and soon what was once the ground of a diplomatic meeting turned into the headquarters for some military planning for the upcoming defensive battle. I took some time off to write back home to start mobilizing the proper groups needed to be sent, while Ria took care of writing a letter back to the leading figure of the border guards.

This was definitely going to become the first step into a proper alliance. One that I was sure going to remember for a long while once this was all over…

Quintus was quick to allow us to stand by the living quarters he had given us when we first came for this diplomatic meeting, but he requested us all to be moderate with the expenses, something that, while concerned by the implied good guest rule, was still needed to be reminded due the troublesome matter at hand. People did crazy things when facing a war-related situation, especially when the conflict was sudden and potentially grim on many sides of the circumstance.

So I made a mental note to keep humble for the remainder of my stay, well aware that my attention more than ever was needed at the military planning table. Five individuals were rallying around maps and details about the local fortifications, the strength of the local garrisons and what strategy we could start to work on by what we knew right now. I would have tried to keep Lancelot around, but he seemed more fascinated in discussing deeds with Galehaut. From afar, I could tell both were quite friendly with each other, but there seemed to be nothing telling about a romance in the making- and speaking of romances, I was quite intrigued by the little interaction Mya had started with Guinevere, the brunette clearly fascinated by my wife's exotic looks but also interested in something tied to me. Mya didn't seem much concerned, in fact enjoying smiling and chatting vibrantly with the fellow queen about their respective husbands.

Merlin was… somewhere. I wasn't sure where precisely, but I could tell it wasn't anything dangerous for our current situation. Scathach was looking by the near windows, staring in the general direction where the invading force was supposed to come from. I saw something glint in her eyes when she approached that spot she was in, a curiosity and a… desire. I wasn't sure if she was just going to indulge with the need to be part of this battle 'reluctantly and forced to by the attackers', but I clearly saw this expression before when it came to hunting demonic boars. Lastly, Felicianus had decided to check the nearby churches. The news of the invasion had reached the inhabitants, and so he deemed it correct to 'do his part as Servant of God' and dispense a message of hope and defiance against our current enemies. While a majority of the inhabitants just barely believed in Christianity, that didn't mean they were going to say no to a benevolent blessing in time of war.

While there was a wild estimation that the military force exerted by the invaders was at least more than what was currently holding the docks in the southern area of the central region, we knew that the force had to be supplied for a quick campaign since most of the ships used for this attack were meant to spearhead a beachhead. The concept of proper invasion in this time period wasn't as advanced as it would then become by the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, with logistics being more focused on handling the voyage rather than present a grand part of the supplies needed for the army to sustain itself.

Knowing that the basis of this invading force was Roman in nature, Quintus didn't exclude the chances of the invaders to try and have the wheat made by the local peasants to try and keep the momentum going. Something that could translate in a second and third assault after the first one was repelled. Agravain was quick to bring up the forests surrounding the major settlement. The first thing I thought he was going to bring up was the chance of setting up a series of ambushes to either delay or dull the spearhead of the assault. A risky and draining move, but not the one that the intelligent tactician was planning for.

His mindset was taken by the need to extend defensive lines even by these dense areas as the chances of encirclement would demand spreading the garrison thin all over the walls, giving the main assault the chance to break through the frontal point of attack. Marcus was quick to inquire about the experience of hunters, with Quintus conceding that with the lack of bandits many had taken the job to an advanced degree and had learned more of the territory surrounding the region and which sections could be better defended than the rest. The plan was to use the hunters as guides to set up flexible lines over the forests, effectively neutralizing the chances of that kind of issue from happening.

"I believe there is still a problem tied to the main advance," Ria argued with a serious look. "I've studied that Romans had a couple of tactics that rendered arrows mostly useless when it came to stall or cripple a large group of their troops."

"The testudo," I remarked with a sigh. "That could be problematic if the cannons don't arrive in time."

"I suppose we will receive some," Quintus commented hopefully and I nodded.

"A couple will arrive late tomorrow," I conceded nervously. "Still, I doubt the number will make the difference considering the speed that kind of tactic would still maintain if they all advance with that formation."

That wasn't going to be a pleasant issue to handle. I had considered trying to fetch some makeshift grenades, but I knew there wasn't enough material available to create a substantial amount of explosive to deal with too many soldiers. Anything else that came up felt too weak to handle the shields used by our enemies, and so there was a long pause as everyone thought about it. There wasn't anything that came to mind… but someone found a proper idea to propose and I couldn't help but almost facepalm as I heard it.

"How… about we try something old to solve this trouble?" Marcus inquired with a distracted tone, still deep in his thoughts. "How about we make use of… ballistas?"

"Are there even any available in the fortress?" Agravain quickly asked, with Quintus frowning and offering a slow nod as he pondered well about this particular topic.

"I believe there are… four. In bad shape, but can be set to be working in a couple of hours of hard work," The holder of Venta Belgarum conceded smoothly.

"Are there plans to create new ones? I believe two to three more would be a way to give us the edge in case there are too many small groups to deal with," I pointed out, managing to get another nod from the old man… before our attention was taken away by some loud noises coming from the hall just outside the meeting room. At first we didn't go to check there, but the noises and the shouting didn't pause even after a while had passed. With the situation at hand, requiring utmost attention from us all, it was a shared behavior between the five of us to go and check. The sight I was presented with reminded me why I should have kept more attention to where the twins and Gawain had gone when the military planning session had started.

Gaheris was sitting on the ground, left hand grasping his cheek while his older sibling stood over him… and Gareth was standing between the two, barely managing to hold back her brother as he seemed ready to advance once more to do something else. I didn't say anything, but I calmly walked around Gawain and right to the two knights. Gareth noticed first, with the blonde allowing me passage as I carefully crouched down and checked on her twin. Gaheris tried to mutter something about being fine, but I noticed that his speech pattern was slightly slurry and, after a quick test to check his attention span, I was quite sure he was going through a mild concussion.

"I-I'm fine," He repeated, the slur and stutter still there.

"You're about to get some packed ice for that hit," I replied flatly, helping him up. I half-expected for Gawain to do or even say something at this development, but, as I looked around my shoulder, I saw the knight in shining armor bowing his head in an embarrassed way towards his own monarch. Ria hadn't remained idle and I could still remember the discussion we had the night before. While she could have held her hand had it been an altercation between her 'nephews and nieces', it would have been troublesome if I had intervened. And I had done so, making her own action required to avoid further escalations.

Gawain would have probably fussed over the matter, maybe said something he could have come to regret. Not only himself, but also the rest of the entourage from Camelot. I barely listened to what was said, with Ria's tone surprisingly quieter but harsher than usual as she addressed the matter. From the surprised look on Agravain's face, it was clear that this was a novel reaction, but not one anyone could blame due to the circumstances over it. I would be told later by Gareth that it all started about a conversation with Morgan that turned sour the moment Gawain mentioned my 'ill-judgment' as the cause of further issues for Britain and how 'the proper King' would have had her executed at once. Gareth tried to mellow the circumstance by saying that Gawain began politely and quite restrained, something that didn't last long as behavior due to Gaheris' sharp remarks. I didn't blame him for these actions, but I had to chide him about trying to stand up so brazenly without the strength to deal with that kind of surprises. While defending my image was good, doing so while endangering themselves felt immensely... unpleasant.

After a while, I managed to lift Gaheris up and help him back to the meeting room. He was still wobbling, the unexpected hit clearly knocking him by surprise, but leaving minimal damage behind despite the fact it had been the result of an armored backhand. In light of this matter, Quintus allowed a full hour of pause to allow the group to deal with the stress that was born by these minor divergences and the news tied to the upcoming attack from the south.

I helped the young man to sit down, with his sister taking over the task of making sure he didn't do anything stupid until he felt any better. With that out of the way, I thought about checking on Ria but she was still busy discussing privately with her knight and so, out of marital commitment, I decided to go and see how Mya was doing. The girl greeted me chirpily, taking a moment off from the conversation she had with Guinevere to accept a quick peck on her lips as I sat down beside her.

"I-It's an honor to finally make your acquaintance, Lord Joseph," Guinevere greeted, a momentary stutter introducing a brief moment of surprise at the affectionate way I interacted with my wife. At least, that was what I could tell from the way her chocolate-brown eyes gazed between the two of us.

"Lady Guinevere, I'm most pleased with myself in this circumstance. I finally have the chance to confirm Arthur's claim of your beauty," I replied smoothly, gaining a pretty blush out of her and I swiftly made sure this didn't turn in blatant flirting. Especially when Mya was around and listening to my sweet talking. "Of course, that was Arthur's own words and I would never-"

"It's alright… Lord Joseph. I was just stunned by the forwardness," The brunette answered, following up with a humble nod. "I've heard of this quality of yours from Arthur himself. He considers it an interesting and defining trait of yours."

"Truly? I suppose he only mentioned the good half of that trait then, because I've been told that forwardness can be as charming as troublesome when overused," I pointed out with a hint of sheepishness. "I tend to create more trouble with this blunt way with my words."

"I wouldn't say so," Guinevere rebuked cordially, clearly engaged by the topic. "My father, King Leodegrance, shares this very quality. While it did cause him trouble in his youth, he ever so mention that maturity and experience made that a strong clue of his real fierceness. And I can say for certain you've got a fierce nature."

I smiled and nodded, but it was Mya that decided to join in the discussion, clearly intrigued by this pleasant environment.

"Lady Guinevere was explaining to me how she and her husband had a more chaste approach to their relationship," She pointed out. "I don't wish to be too rude about it-"

"It's… alright. I suppose this isn't much of a secret due to how many look at us with interest," The young woman pardoned with ease, giving me a fake happy look while nodding at this. "I mentioned to Lady Myasviel that Arthur isn't exactly someone that shows his… affection towards me. I don't blame him for being detached due to his duties, but… I suppose it can be draining at times on my side of things."

I slowly frowned at this. "My lady, I don't wish to press a sore topic if this is indeed one, but I suppose you have tried to discuss this with Arthur? Or that Arthur took notice of this behavior and at least tried something about it."

There was a strange silence after my words, with Guinevere's eyes aimed at the floor before she allowed a sigh to leave her lips. "I would be a liar if I said that… there has been such an attempt."

My mind brought me back to the letters regarding Ria's own frustrations about her marriage. She had been particularly vocal about her best efforts to not drag Guinevere into danger or how she had taken precautions to prevent her true gender from being revealed, but I couldn't recall her ever even hinting about being distant from his own wife. I knew she had tried to have a son with the brunette through what Merlin tried to accomplish and said attempt was ruined by Morgan's imperfection but… this was truly a novelty for me.

It added a massive layer I had never considered up until that very moment. Something that, much to my grimace, also explained why Guinevere and Lancelot created the affair that shattered Camelot. And why Arthur's own response to this even in the myth had been so tame compared to what many other Kings would have done before these circumstances. The King in question blamed herself for what happened, and she knew that the fault was hers and nobody else. And this left me worried about the fact that Ria was setting herself up to create that very affair once more in this timeline by keeping this kind of behavior with Guinevere. If not Lancelot, who was going to be? Gawain? Another close knight?

I could only dread at the time-bomb the blonde had unconsciously created out of her preferences and… I knew I had to do something about it. I decided to keep the conversation just barely on this topic, conceding to the fact that the young Queen was having some trouble even hinting at the matter itself and soon I took my leave the moment I saw Ria herself returning back to the room as she was done with Gawain. The blonde spared a look in my general direction, clearly expecting me to still bring up what happened with her knights.

"Can we talk?" I curtly inquired. "It's not related to what happened with Gawain."

That stumped any worry of dealing with that mess, but opened up a window of curiosity that was as intriguing as worrying from her side. Still, regardless of that concern, she decided to take the bait and see what was going on with my half-serious approach on this matter. The fellow ruler was clueless about what I was planning to interest her about, and I had a strong hint she was going to put on a fierce resistance to what I planned to tell her. I waited until we were pretty distant from any listener and… I started with a direct hit as I knew this was going to be tough and that the girl was potentially going to try and go around the subject itself before we could really discuss it.

"Ria, I've heard that you've not given your wife much thought about in these few months," I muttered calmly but clearly. "Care to elaborate what is this all about?"

...

"I don't… think I follow."

I sighed. "I had the chance to finally discuss with your wife, Lady Guinevere, and she mentioned to Mya how you have taken a rather detached approach with the relationship you have with her," I reiterated with a simpler approach. "Not outright a cold take on it, but still not a healthy marital bond as far as I can tell from her words."

"...What did she say?"

There was something unpleasant about that query, as if Ria was more annoyed than interested in the matter itself.

"Only that she knows you're busy with your kingly duties, which she used to explain why you have been unable to sport any hint of affection, even of the lesser kind. Such as a peck on the cheek, or a hug."

"That is too intimate-"

"You're husband and wife, I'm quite certain that is the highest bit in romances. And I know you don't have an interest in women, but I doubt that this prevents you from the simplest amount of care towards her," I interjected tensely. "And I can tell you're making a solid effort to deny her at least that much."

"It's… more complicated than that."

I frowned. "How so?"

"And private."

"I believe privacy turns secondary when a friend is in the path of making tremendous mistakes. Especially when it comes to this specific predicament."

She scoffed. "I'm not having any trouble."

"Now. And yet, I can't help but worry about you and also your wife since, I remind you, is a human being just like me and you," I shot back sternly. "And don't you try to pull that effort ever, I can sense trouble in your actions when you are doing mistakes."

Raising a perplexed eyebrow, Ria conceded a sigh at my reprimand.

"And where is the mistake? I preserve her from being hurt by..."

She paused, she closed her mouth and I knew what she was trying to say.

"By whom? Perhaps it's someone that is currently unable to cause you any trouble?"

"The people-"

"Are already wondering if it's normal their king is so dejected to engage in minimal interaction with his own queen," I interrupted again, feeling the pressure spiking at this development. "They see you as a model to follow, an example to believe, and they can't just wrap their minds about the fact you're keeping distance from the one you're meant to spend time with the most out of all occupants of your castle."

…

She didn't spare me any word for a while, and I thought she was just pondering on what we just finished talking about. I gave her this time to contemplate the matter as I knew this was no easy topic to digest, but it was best to tackle this kind of problem early on before… well, trouble ended up rising. But then, as I saw the blonde close her eyes and prepare to speak up once more, I was 'slammed' by the questions that left her mouth in that regard.

"What if… I love someone already?" She thought out loud. "What if I feel a strong attraction solely for that person and nobody else?"

...

My throat dried up under this circumstance for some mysterious reason. The news just caught me off-guard as Ria had given little to no clue about fancying someone in particular, with most of her focus being her kingdom Could it be that… this was also another element tied to the Lancelot-Guinevere's affair? That the blonde too was busy processing an affair of her own and that this tied up with the whole… mess. This was all a big and stupid mess.

I could have pressed to know who the girl liked. Who she was aiming for and… tried to prevent more issues but… I could tell she wasn't going to tell me, not when she seemed to be nervous from just grazing the topic itself. So I decided to provide her a solution that didn't answer these questions, but that brought her mindset to a more legitimate take on the entire ordeal.

"I'm not asking you here and now to fall in love with Guinevere, Ria," I muttered calmly, trying to hold back my uneasiness on the matter. "I understand your emotions are yours to control and nobody else to restrain, but this doesn't mean you can't at least give that poor woman something to care about. Something that makes her current role worthwhile beyond the blatant duty of trophy wife- and before you ask, I'm aware you're not doing this purposely."

"I'm not," Ria added quickly and I nodded in agreement.

"But still, she deserves to be treated with a degree of affection that can be incredibly chaste, even false love or respect at that," I continued with a serious voice. "Because it's better to give someone a life of simple sounds rather than a maddening one created by the most chilling silence possible."

The metaphor was fairly simple, yet it would be wrong to assume the meaning was just one with that sentence. Silence could be taken as material silence, the lack of noise in general and thus the lack of interaction, but it also represented death as the path Ria was taking would have led Guinevere to certain death. In the original timeline, Guinevere was protected by Lancelot when they were both hunted down by their former friends, even with Arthur's own orders to be more lenient, to have the chance to judge them fairly and taking under consideration multiple factors on the matter. But what would have happened if Guinevere got in an affair with a lesser man? Lancelot succeeded because he was considered the strongest in the Round Table after Arthur himself, but could anyone weaker than him do that?

The answer was unpleasant and this is why I was so adamant for Ria to do something about it. I could tell that this kind of death, especially to a woman so innocent and so genuinely lovely, would be a crime against morality itself. A war against a sense of true justice, and something I couldn't condone, friendship or not.

"...I will give it a try," Ria ultimately conceded. "But I will not go beyond simple gestures."

I nodded. "And I will not ask you to do anything you don't want when it comes to something so intense."

My assurance was met with a sigh and I saw the blonde's posture ease down a little. Just a little, as it was clear something else had gained her interest and, before we could leave, she pushed for another question.

"By the way, Jojo…" The young woman muttered, gaining my interest. "Aren't you curious about… his name?"

...

"If you had the will to give me that information, you would have already. Once more, I'm not here to push you to do anything with your emotions, as you are the only one in charge of those," I interjected with a small smile. "But I hope this young fellow will return your feelings. I can tell you are rather taken by this mysterious man."

Much to my surprise and immense amusement, Ria's face burned a fierce red, my words striking true with how invested she was in this unknown individual. Maybe it was some knight from the Round Table I didn't have the chance to meet just yet, or maybe it was someone I had met but I didn't pay much attention to due to other events.

While I was tempted to take half of my attention to engage in a proper investigation, I knew I had to concentrate fully for the upcoming battle… but after that, I sure was going to search who this mysterious guy was and what kind of 'talk' I would have to give them so they can treat my fellow king with proper respect and kindness.