Lygni tossed the last suitcase into the carriage with an ease that still impressed me. Her destination was the capital. I had tried to pry the real reason for the trip out of her in previous conversations, but she was like a vault locked from the inside; she never revealed more than was strictly necessary.
"I'm leaving now," she said, her voice maintaining its usual icy neutrality.
Liss, Obrem, and I formed a small farewell party under the scorching sun of Valenreach.
"Well, I was going to tell you to be careful," I began, flashing a half-smile, "but considering it's you, I think it's better if the others on the road are the ones being careful".
She merely nodded with a short movement of her head, acknowledging the joke without dropping her guard.
"Travel safely, Lady Lygni," Liss wished, with a sincerity I was still struggling to maintain.
Lygni stepped onto the carriage's footboard but stopped suddenly. She turned her head over her shoulder, fixing those analytical eyes on me.
"Don't stop practicing. When I return, I want to see your progress with the Web," she commanded, turning the advice into a mission.
I let out a dry chuckle, crossing my arms.
"Of course. I can't disappoint my teacher, can I?" I replied, holding her gaze.
Without another word, she stepped inside and closed the door. The carriage began to pull away, kicking up a curtain of dust that soon obscured the vehicle on the road. The farewell left a strange taste in the air. Perhaps it was because, amidst the chaos of reconstruction, the four of us had become a functional unit. Now, the balance had shifted.
The carriage vanished over the horizon, and the silence of Valenreach seemed to weigh heavier on my shoulders. Obrem cleared his throat, breaking the trance.
"My Lord, I received a letter early this morning. It's from a group of merchants interested in doing business in our territory," Obrem said.
I turned to him, arching an eyebrow.
"Merchants?" I repeated, the word sounding like an omen.
"Yes, My Lord. Apparently, they travel from city to city. This could help us boost the local economy and bring in resources we don't yet produce," Obrem explained, handing me the parchment.
I took the paper and read the contents in silence:
"To the territory of Valenreach. We are itinerant merchants seeking to establish routes in your lands. We possess a wide range of supplies for sale and interest in acquiring what this soil produces. However, we formally request a reduction in entry taxes. With lower rates, we will be able to offer more competitive prices to your people. Grateful for your attention."
I finished reading the letter in silence. In my past life, these requests for tax cuts were frequent in large administrations. The problem was that, almost always, when this happened, the outcome involved corruption scandals or companies profiting alone at the public's expense.
I looked at Valenreach. The streets were made of packed dirt, kicking up dust with every step; there were very few paved sections. The infrastructure was a ghost of what a real territory should be.
I knelt down and touched the dry soil with my fingertips. We needed money to pave these streets. We needed, above all, to move the economy before winter arrived and we were swallowed by the cold.
"Obrem," I called him, still crouching, feeling the texture of the earth under my nails.
"Give them what they want," I said, extending the letter back to him without looking up.
Obrem seemed surprised, hesitating for a moment as he took the paper. Reducing taxes in a territory that already had so little seemed like financial suicide.
"But on one condition," I added, standing up and brushing the dust off my hands with a determined look that was appearing more frequently on my face.
"They will have the entry exemption, but they will be required to hire local labor for transport and the maintenance of their posts. Furthermore, every coin they save on taxes must be reinvested in purchasing construction materials produced right here in Valenreach," I declared, crossing my arms. "If they want to use our roads, they will help build them. If they try to pass the profit only to the outside, I will close the routes myself before the first shipment even leaves".
Obrem stared at me for a few seconds, processing the complexity of that order. He was used to Durendal's direct politics—brute force or submission—but what I was proposing was an economic trap disguised as benevolence.
"This... this is brilliant, My Lord," Obrem said, a spark of admiration appearing in his tired eyes. "If they accept, Valenreach will begin to rebuild itself with other people's gold. And if they refuse, we will know they never had any intention of helping the people".
"Exactly," I replied, turning my eyes back to the horizon where Lygni's carriage was no longer visible. "We don't have the luxury of waiting for charity. Go, write the response. Tell them the Prince of Valenreach awaits them to sign the agreement under my conditions".
He gave a deep bow and left for the makeshift office. Liss approached, looking at my hands still slightly soiled with earth.
"You are nothing like what the rumors say," she whispered, almost like an afterthought, and then withdrew.
I looked at Valenreach, thinking: what would the real Aether do in this situation? Was he truly an useless prince? I turned back inside.
I can't think of distractions now. I have to practice. The Web.