𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐳𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐧 ○ 𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐩𝐨 𝐞.

𝕡𝕣𝕠𝕝𝕠𝕘𝕦𝕖

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

YOUR BACK HURT.

Granted, the stiff and heavy armor wasn't the most comfortable, nor the most agile, but it was the castle's uniform and you were already lucky to be one of the four knights appointed by Duchess Hōseki. While she appeared to be quite stoic and ruthless to most of the common folk, it was generally untrue once you managed to get to know her a bit better. Just as she had once joked with you a long time ago, "get on my good side and I'll permit you to remain by my side. Otherwise, I have no use for you".

The only issue was that standing for hours on end while listening to politics was painfully draining.

"The Kuusina empire admittedly does have quite the army, but their internal organization techniques are relatively poor," Hōseki sighed, leaning her head into the palm of her hand, her elbow resting upon the arm of her chair, exasperated. "Had they been at a closer distance to us, I might've considered negotiating the protection deal with them, alas they're an entire 3 days of travel away."

"But, Duchess Hōseki, it's primordial for us to build an alliance," the man with long, dark green hair tucked into a ponytail - which you recognized as the diplomatic envoy - said, "or else they may opt to direct their forces against us, under the rule of their hot-headed leader who doesn't take no for an answer. As you said, they have a strong army, and ours is barely enough to fend them off, let alone engage in war. We must avoid that route, under all circumstances."

Just as they continued to drone on about what frankly sounded like foreign language to you, the red-haired female glanced up at you. You immediately pushed back your sagging shoulders in an attempt to appear alert, and locked eyes with her.

"Lady [y/n], do you believe that your army would be able to battle, had they needed to face off against the Kuusina empire?"

Her asking for your opinion was, sadly, nothing out of the ordinary: you were the only one she seemed to trust enough to stand guard on the inside during negotiations and other planning stages, therefore you knew enough to make an informed decision. She must've also known that you were in no way qualified to be doing any of that, yet she still does, for reasons unknown.

"The knights in our kingdom are well-trained," you pondered aloud, "but we simply do not have enough soldiers. Especially at a time like this, when there are cases of treason inside our very own walls, it would be unwise to act in a brash way that may lead to military conflict. While it may be sacrificing a few resources or trading with them in order to maintain peace, it is the safer choice."

She smiled faintly, then nodded as she processed the information, which she most likely had already known. The Duchess opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by the other man.

"Cases of treason?" he asked, baffled. "I had been on a voyage to the eastern border in order to complete the last sections of the peace treaty, so this is the first I'm hearing of this. Surely you aren't referring to a potential upheaval, are you?"