The Funeral

Hundreds of people got in line to bid their farewell to Neal. Looking at the people, James was surprised at the amount of nobles that were actually present there. There were even more people entering the church. It was clear that Neal was someone that had many connections. Trying to recognize any of the people that entered, James kept on following the entrance.

Most of the nobles that entered were families known for their military prowess. Given how Neal was a warrior freak, it was clear that most of the contacts he got were also made on the battlefield.

"Look at all those warrior houses." Francis commented. It was clear that he also noticed the display that took place. "Maybe this is a good opportunity for you, to approach some of the families and ask them for help?"

James looked at Francis. His face was first in shock that Francis came up with something like this during a funeral. However after thinking it over, he definitely saw the benefits of it. He was conflicted because of it. At one point he had the possibility to increase his power. However on the other hand, this felt wrong to do at a funeral.

"Young James, it is good to see you again." A voice called out from behind him. Looking back, James saw Thomas Bloom there.

"Sir. What are you doing here? How is Loraine? Is she also here?" James asked in a shocked manner.

"I came alone. I have fought side by side with Neal in a few battles. It is a shame that he got killed." Thomas said with a sad face. After telling the situation with Loraine. She was still home, however he was not able to delay any longer, as the Herewealth family started to pressure, claiming that the every requirements is met.

Worry was building up in James, he had to quicken his campaign. During their talk, James took the opportunity to introduce his friends to Thomas. As the suggestion of Francis was still fresh on his mind, he decided to ask how it would be to try and approach some of the warrior families that were present here.

"That is indeed a smart idea. This is your best opportunity to do so, as it is rare to see so many warrior houses in one place." Thomas said after a moment of thinking. "I would love to introduce you to some of the houses, however as my house is involved in the problem, I cannot choose sides."

Thanking Thomas for his wisdom and efforts, James started to discuss with his friends who and how they should approach the nobles. In the end they decided to first focus on the families that also had some beef with the Herewealth family. After that they decided to establish good relationship with the nobles and try to approach them in the coming days. Therefore the funeral did prove an opportunity for James.

As the funeral was progressing, James went to the side of Hyde. After explaining their idea, he asked him if he knew some families that would support their cause.

Surprised by the idea of approaching the families here, Hyde had a glimmer of praise in his eyes. For this, he decided to provide some insight into the families. There were in total another three families that had a bad relationship with the Herewealth. Moreover, there was another 5 families that could be persuaded easily. The other families required some work.

Thanking Hyde, James divided the task between them. As Warren was occupied with the funeral, the other three decided to approach a noble each. Out of them, James went to the Clarkson family. The head was a middle aged man, around the same ages as Hyde, at the name of Alex.

The group started to move out when the funeral was at its later stage, and was about to be put into the cemetery.

Approaching Alex, James decided to first introduce himself. In order to get his attention, his method was to find a link between the two. Therefore he started to tell how he met Neal. During this story he touched upon the reason for his meeting Neal and the problems that he faced with the Herewealth family. Before they finished talking, James said that he was building an army to take down the Herewealth family and was looking for supporters.

Initially Alex was not keen to help him, however as the story progressed, he started to be more willing to talk about it. After James mentioned that he is building up an army to take down the Herewealth family and the numbers he got, Alex was more willing to continue this talk another time. For that he invited James over for the next day to meet up with him to talk more in detail.

After meeting up with Francis and Christopher, two out of the three families wanted to talk in more detail. Only Francis was not able to persuade the family he approached. However, this was still something in the right path.

It was not time to increase their power for the upcoming final battle.

…