Denial of the Whisper

Chapter Thirty-Two.

Chapter Thirty-Two.

The next morning, I asked Dylana about the Kingdom of Kalash and she showed me the same map she had once shown me, pointed onto the big mass of land in the south of it and said "Here. The Kingdom of Kalash and this is the capital Kritar."

"It's quite big", I said and studied the map more closely "Are those all cities of Kalash or are those only the bigger ones and the map is just not that detailed?"

"Oh, those are only the bigger ones, but as a Kingdom, Kalash is quite centralised, the capital is really huge.", Dylana answered, silently. "But it now also has the Isle of Gnys", she tapped onto the bigger island I had read about the day before.

"Why didn't the King of Kalash attack the Principality of Ralanmar instead?", I asked, and looked at the lower left corner of the map.

"This land here between the border and Ralanmar itself is more or less a desert, only the land directly around Ralanmar is quite green and it's like a big oasis. But also, because Ralanmar is a free city. It also doesn't look like it, but they have a remarkable fleet."

Sighing, I looked at the map again.

"Caaln said, that the war lasted ten years."

"It did."

"But it was lost."

"Yes, it was. But Adri, I really don't know much about that war, I just wasn't there. Ask Caaln or Nyshard, they were. The only other thing I can tell you, is that the king also attacked Mirtd, but the history books mostly forget that part. Most people of Mirtd were slaughtered, if not deemed fit to work in the mines anymore. Only a few were able to flee."
"And those who fled?"

"Some went to Sirnt, some to Myrna Bays and then moved further along Sulrantis to a place where they were welcomed."

I read more books that day, mostly about the Principality of Ralanmar. Sometimes, I had still trouble to believe, how much I just hadn't known until now, and how much I still didn't know. All those different countries and cultures... my mother hadn't even mentioned the war to me, even though it had still raged by that time I was born. The whole night I thought about it, and the next morning, Dylana left me mostly alone because she had taken over some of Nyshard's work due to him being at the Council meeting. I spent most of my day outside, reading in the upper inner courtyard, clad in a thick blanket to keep the chilly air away.

It was late afternoon, when I got inside again, deciding to take a bath and then get ready ti face Nyshard.

Caaln had informed me, that he would be back as expected and would come to my room to meet me later on, which I had found a bit strange. I dried my hair as good as possible with a towel and put on my usual attire, my nervousness rising with every passing minute.

As always with Nyshard, I had no idea about what and how much he would tell me and there was still the possibility, he wouldn't tell me much at all. I had tried to not think that much about that red shimmer I had seen two days before, and I also had not asked Dylana or Caaln once about it, because I already knew, that only Nyshard would give me any answers.

But the strange red shimmer wasn't the only thing occupying my mind, the war Caaln and Dylana had told me about, also was. What happened twenty years ago, was horrible. All those lives lost, so much suffering and pain. And whenever I thought about that, about children that lost their parents or their homes, I was glad that I had at least about twenty years with my mother. If she had told me the truth or not, I still had this time with her, and I wouldn't want to miss it.

Sighing I sat on my windowsill and looked out of the window, glanced at Ilyria underneath the castle, little yellow spots already visible in the darkening evening.