Herald of Steel

The father and son duo's faces flashed a dark shadow as they acutely sensed the gaze on the two guards change, going from angry at being disobeyed to intrigued and then enlightened.

With one of them making the hypothesis that they might be the 'one', the other soon began to make the connection too.

And as more and more of the relayed description began to match, their heart gave a cartwheel.

They could not believe the fish they had just caught. Such luck!

A huge bonus was bound to be in store from their boss for this great find.

Thus the two men's eyes began to blaze as they greedily stared at the pair.

While facing this dilemma, Lord Cassius's initial instinct was to start running.

Who knew, with a bit of luck perhaps he could escape, the large, rotund man very very optimistically thought.

In fact, this might have gone beyond optimism and entered the realm of miracles.

But whatever his wishes were, it mattered little, as at the end of the day, Lord Cassius found his legs too stiff to move, and his throat too dry to speak up.

While the old man next to him fared a lot better.

Being an accomplished merchant and an experienced negotiator, the sicky wizened man decided to try and apply the trick of his trade here.

Thus he produced a slimy, almost oily smile while bringing a few coins from his large coat, and grinning,

"Good sirs, we are on our way to a secret negotiation with the enemy. If it works, this siege will be lifted and we will have won the battle. But if we cannot meet with them by today, they have threatened to stop the water supply to the house. So please let us pass… you don't want to die of thirst right?"

Trying to appeal to their living instinct, Lord Nolan gave a gentle smile, then pushed the gold coins in his hand towards the palm of one of the guards to suggest,

"Here, have these! A small token of appreciation for all your hard work. Get something good to drink. The wines from Franz are especially good."

The old lord had packed these treasures with the thought to bribe the guards at Lord Parker's camp should any trouble arise, and so being forced to use this resource already here, the old man's weak heart groaned.

But at least the men did not outright reject his alms, but received the sum with a quick nod and placed the large amount graciously into their pouch without any hesitation.

It seemed that they had bought Lord Nolan's story and the pair were on the clear.

Lord Nolan thus silently breathed a great sigh of relief, while Lord Cassius was about to produce a great grin of gratuity.

"Okay, now come with us!"

When suddenly that relief was shattered like a fragile soap bubble, as he saw the soldier give a horrendous grin looking like a cat who had just gotten the milk.

It was clear this show to accepting the bride was just them fucking with the two.

Lord Nolan's face instantly flushed with rage and anger at being denied like this, while Lord Cassius's heart skipped the beat.

But to the two legionaries, who understood very little about politics, all this mattered little, as the one who had taken the bribe sneered back,

"I fucking hate how you nobles think we are just imbeciles. You think we can be bought and sold like some slaves in the market? Alexander would have our and our family's heads if we let you go!"

If these men truly did the two go and it somehow reached Alexander, the pasha would not need to react. The men's squad mates would be more than enough to hang the two by the tree.

And knowing this, he was instantly joined by his partner who mocked further,

"Heh! Negotiations? If these negotiations were so important, why did Alexander order you to be captured? And why are you scampering around like rats? Old fart, you really need to learn to lie better…. and bribe better! Where is my share?"

Facing the glaring snides and mocking taunts, the father and son at last went silent, knowing the jig was up.

These soldiers were not going to budge, especially given they had just called Alexander by name so casually, showing just how close they were.

Lord Nolan had tried to use the wrong tool for the wrong job.

This was no longer the Margraves mansion of before, but there was a new man in charge.

And so these once heavy lord's words carried almost feathery lightweight now.

The following events consisted of mostly silent obedience from Lord Nolan and Lord Cassius, who saw themselves silently escorted back to the mansion and then into the former's room, whereupon they were met with an infuriated Alexander and a pallid Lady Miranda.

Yes, it was the man who was angry, while the softer lady looked as if her soul had just been sucked away.

They already listened to Quilis and his partner's testimony, as well as the interrogation of the captured servants and maid, and combining both of them, they were able to give a pretty concrete picture of what had just happened, and how it had happened.

And although Lord Cassius was not mentioned by name, all fingers were clearly pointed at him, colluding with the enemy.

A conclusion that incensed Alexander, while Lady Miranda felt so wounded that it almost sent her into shock.

It was to the point that a part of her wanted Alexander's encircling ring to fail, just so that she would not have to face reality.

However this time her wishes went unanswered, as with the guide from the men guarding Lord Cassius's door, Alexander was able to quickly send a huge mass of men in that direction and shut that area down.

And with Lord Nolan's naturally advanced age, the duo's slow speed had both of them caught.

"Ah! Lord Cassius, so glad you are back. I was fearing you had gotten lost. Thank goodness my men found you before it got dark."

As the two men were ushered into the room and almost shoved in, these were the words they were greeted with, the dripping sarcasm and taunt almost being unnecessary.

Alexander was sitting behind the study table, his tone cold and yet almost bubbling with hot rage, his fists were clenched into a tight embrace.

It was as if he could not wait to beat the shit out of the two.

Towards this greeting, Lord Cassius shifted his body guiltily, his eyes darting around as if looking for an escape, while the much more experienced Lord Nolan tried to play it cool.

Hence producing a rough cackle, he pronounced with a slimy tone, "Heh heh, Lord Pasha of Zanzan is truly a diligent man. I was just having a hard time breathing, so had Cassius take me out for a walk. But to think you would send so many men to take care of us…. Heh heh, I must admit, this old man is overwhelmed by your hospitality. We are honored, we are honored."

Alexander flashed a chilly light at this, sneering, "Heh! This might be the first time I heard you call me that," before his tone turned acrid, "I am in no mood to play word games with you. Tell me why you did it, old fart!"

The query was short and razor sharp, and the meaning- 'Your guilt has already been decided and now it is only the time to decide your punishment.'

"It? What did you mean? What did we do my lord?" However, it seemed Lord Nolan did not get the memo, as he continued to play the fool, not even responding to the rude slang and only widening his sunken eyes to repeat, "We were just out walking. What are…"

*Snap*!

Alexander did not have the time or patience to listen to this old man spin tales as he did with Lady Felicia, so intent on getting things done as fast as possible, he snapped his finger in irritation, and an instant later,

*Crack*, A spine tingling, crisp snap rang out from the room, followed a split second later by,

"Ahhhhghghghghh!" A piercing, blood curling scream of utter pain, as Lord Nolan felt his sight go pure white.

This was because at Alexander's signal, one of the soldiers from the back had struck the old man's leg with his sheathed sword as hard as he could, and from the sound of it, broken the femur cleanly in two.

"Aghhhhh… Argghhhhh…. Uuuwuwuwww!" Thus described the old man's current situation, as he lay on the ground, crying and hugging his right leg, producing a mixture of soft and loud whimpers.

All while his son next to him stood and watched, stock out of his mind to say or do anything.

He had imagined a lot of scenarios when he was being escorted back, but this was not one of them.

How can a noble ever raise his hand over another? It was unthinkable.

But it was very much 'thinkable' to Alxx, who jumped up from his seat to scream, "Old fart, I saved your life. Now I am going to beat it out of you. Ungrateful swine!"

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