The Royal Palace, Winchester
Prince Aethelwold looked at the parchment in his hands, addressed from the "Directorate of York," with disbelief.
He could not believe that the heathen Viking was so bold that he would openly threaten to sue the Kingdom of Wessex for "Breach of Corporate Contract" and "Lost Future Revenue."
The justification for doing so.. citing King Aethelred's previous seal of approval.. was solid enough to prevent the local Ealdormen from coming to Aethelwold's aid, especially in this time of economic uncertainty where nobody wanted to lose their access to cheap northern steel.
However, this was not the most abysmal piece of news that he had received; there was also a courier from the Welsh border, bearing the royal seal of his father.
