{Aegis}
If the audit and the military assessment could be considered round one, Aegis was fairly certain she won with stamina to spare.
[Not that those two trials were ever going to be particularly hard,] she thought, pacing in the manor's main room, finger on her chin as she recapped in her head. [Evelyn is an absolute goddess of paperwork. And, looking for those legendary items was bound to come in clutch at some point.]
"So, how much more bullshit can I expect before Mommy Stone throws in the towel?"
"Throws... what?" Evelyn tilted her head.
"It's a boxing ref- never mind. How much can I expect before the Stone family gives up?"
Evelyn sighed.
"Well, in truth, the path to victory isn't all that straightforward."
"What do you mean?"
She stood up, pacing with Aegis now.
"At the end of the day," Evelyn said, "Duchess Evangeline is the matriarch of House Stone. The decision of who Princess Talia marries rests entirely in her hands."
[Ugh. Bullshit medieval norms.]
