The fragile peace of the Vexin fortress was broken by the arrival of a royal messenger. He was a Royal family's knight, his armor gleaming and his face as cold and impassive as a frozen lake. He rode with an air of arrogant superiority, his very presence an insult to the rugged honesty of the borderlands.
Damon and Isolde were in the main hall when he arrived. Damon, dressed in simple leathers, stood at the head of the long table, the weight of his lordly duties a familiar burden. Isolde, with a new sense of belonging, was sitting nearby, helping one of the younger girls learn to mend a torn tunic. The hall fell silent as the messenger entered, his fellow royal knights standing like statues at his back.
"Lord Vexin," the messenger said, his voice clipped and disdainful. He did not bow, a clear sign of disrespect. "A message from King Theron Valerius."
Damon's jaw tightened. "Deliver it," he said, his voice a low rumble of authority that was not to be challenged.
The messenger unrolled a scroll with an elaborate wax seal. "The king has received reports of a rising in the northern marches. The lord of that land has declared his independence and is gathering an army. You are ordered to march your forces north immediately and bring him to heel."
Isolde's hands froze in her work. The northern marches were a barren, unforgiving land. The campaign would be long and costly, and it would leave the Vexin borders vulnerable. It was a perfect trap.
"The northern marches are three weeks away," Damon said, his face a mask of stone. "And the winter snows have already begun to fall."
"The king is aware of this," the messenger replied, a cruel smirk on his face. "He trusts in your famous Vexin resilience. He expects a full account of the campaign by the spring thaw."
Arion, who had been standing beside Damon, took a step forward, his hand clenching at his side. "This is a fool's errand," he growled. "The king wants to see our lands undefended. He wants to bleed us dry."
"The king's orders are not for you to question, Captain," the messenger sneered. "They are for you to obey."
Damon held up a hand, silencing his brother. He took the scroll from the messenger, his gaze never leaving the man's face. "The king's will is law," he said. "The House of Vexin will obey."
The messenger bowed with a theatrical flourish, a final, mocking display of false respect before he left the hall. The moment the door closed behind him, the silence was shattered by Arion's frustrated roar.
"He wants to destroy us!" Arion shouted. "He wants to take our men and our coin, and then he'll send his dogs to take what's left. He knows we can't do this without losing everything!"
"He's right," Damon said, his eyes on the scroll. "The king is punishing us for the Galen deal. He's making us pay his price for our independence."
Isolde, who had been silent, finally spoke. She walked over to Damon, her eyes fixed on the scroll in his hand. "He's not just testing your obedience," she said softly. "He's testing your resolve."
Damon looked at her, his brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"
"The wording of the order," she said, her finger tracing a line on the scroll. "It is not a direct order to crush the rebellion. It is a request for a 'full account.' The king wants a show of force, not a full-scale war. He wants you to lose men and coin, but he wants to do it in a way that gives him a plausible deniability. He is using this as a show of power to the other houses, a warning that he can still break a rebellious lord."
Damon's eyes widened in understanding. Isolde's insight was a revelation. He was not just a warrior, but a king's pawn, and his wife, a princess raised in the heart of that game, was now his most powerful advisor.
"So what do we do?" Arion asked, his fury slowly giving way to a grudging respect for his sister-in-law.
Damon looked at Isolde, a quiet partnership in his eyes. "We do as the king orders," he said, his voice firm with a newfound purpose. "We march north. But we do it our way." He looked back at his brother. "We are not fools. We will not walk into his trap blindly. We will show him a Vexin a king cannot break."