The Merchant

Cassius had learned a great deal about his fathers land and filled a lot of gaps in his general knowledge about Astria itself, such as the green and blue moon above which was theorised to possess a world just like this one, with oceans, creatures and people. While the shattered moon above was thought by scholars and religious cults to have the result of a war in heaven, where a mighty god had been slain and sent down to Astria for his transgressions.

When he asked about this, Akeem said that many thousands of years ago the moon was apparently whole, but Astrian archeology sites and surviving historical documents had found old wall-paintings and early writings indicating a massive explosion that illuminated the night sky for days, the event so large and devastating that it had ripped the moon's southern hemisphere apart. What was thought to have been a god was depicted as falling out of the sky somewhere to the far north across a multitude of cultures.

This unsettled Cassius, who was deeply aware that coincidences never happened twice.

While Akeem, who had forgotten he was speaking to a child and not a peer, had learned a great deal of modern terminology and theories about the land, earth, and sky before realising how long had passed.

A knock on the door brought them out of their deep conversation, which was less a lecture and more of a hands-on workshop where they exchanged knowledge for knowledge and sought clarifications. Akeem felt like this was more of a meeting between his peers, and had noticed he had taken more notes than even Cassius had

Horace, and Carmen, who had been enraptured by the intellectual discussion before them, got up to the door and opened it, allowing a senior custodian into the room who quickly informed the pair of Cassius's next course. Arithmetic.

This made Cassius smile, he was probably more qualified in Arithmetic than any single person alive or dead on this planet.

As the custodian exited, the room fell into a brief silence before a middle-aged, pudgier man entered. His entrance was marked by a sense of bustling energy, a stark contrast to the serene atmosphere left by Akeem's departure. The man, Hektor, was immediately recognizable by his confident gait and the air of importance that clung to him.

Lord Hektor was an accomplished merchant who the Stenfall family had put a great deal of effort into raising, and now who relied on to supply a variety of goods to town and castle. His family had a finger in almost every major supplier of common goods, from clothes, to wine, to medicine, to the coal that burned in the forges, to rarer commodities brought in from outside of the Kingdom. His services had earned him a minor title as a Baron, with his own manor having been constructed in the town below.

The pudgy merchant was surprised to see Horace initially, who immediately recognized him as one of his distant cousins. Horace in turn, was also surprised to see the man who essentially landed him in garrison present and they quickly greeted one another warmly.

As he steps into the room and sees Horace, his surprise turns into genuine warmth. His initial confusion is replaced by a hearty laugh. "Horace! What a pleasant surprise! I didn't expect to see you here, especially not in the Keep itself!"

Grinning broadly, he responds, "Cousin Hektor, it's good to see you too! Thanks to your help, we've managed to get in without a hitch. Although, things are a bit different now—Lord Cassius has seen fit to include Carmen and me in his retinue." Hektor immediately noticed the wry smile on his face and looked back to Carmen, who was trying his hardest to remain invisible.

Observing Horace's wry smile and Carmen's attempts to blend into the background, Hektor's brow furrows slightly in curiosity and concern. "I see. There's more to this story, isn't there? You've jumped several rungs on the ladder quite quickly. What's the real story here?"

Hektor had known this boy and his family for years, and often made an effort to purchase goods produced on their land first for a fair price in an effort to help them profit, he understood Horace was a sharp boy with great ambition and intelligence, but rising from peasants son, to Guardsman, to Retinue? There were multiple, multiple steps missing from his understanding of the Stenfalls normal process.

With a chuckle, Horace explains, "Oh, it's a bit complicated. But let's not dwell on that now. I'm just happy to see you."

Breaking up the happy reunion, Cassius made his presence known. He had just spotted his first valuable patron, and was determined to receive his patronage.

Hektor, quickly realizing he may have been a bit too informal, quickly bowed to Cassius in both respect and apology. "Greetings, Lord Cassius. My apologies for my lack of decorum. I was simply overwhelmed by the surprise of seeing Horace after so long."

Cassius, recognizing Hektor's respect and the potential for future collaborations, responds with a gracious nod. "No harm done, Hektor. It's always a pleasure to reconnect with trusted allies and family. I look forward to discussing how we can further our mutual interests. Your contributions have been invaluable to us."

Hektor paused, wasn't he here to educate the youth on mathmatics and arithmetic? When had this suddenly become a meeting about mutual interests?