Tyranny of Steel

Within the city of Kufstein, Linde was currently sitting in her favorite tea shop. This time she was sitting alongside a specific female agent who had been instrumental in the victories of Meran and Vienna during Berengar's past campaigns. 

Since Berengar had ordered Linde to restructure the intelligence agency into something more modern instead of the primitive method they had been using, she needed a proper Deputy Director, and there was nobody better in her mind than the young woman sitting before her.

Linde had a brilliant mind and was a natural prodigy when it came to intrigue, but there was one area she severely lacked in regards to, and that was field experience. The woman before her had proven capable in not only the art of assassination but sabotage as well. 

She had a quick mind and could think critically even while under stress. She had proven fully capable of escaping volatile situations and establishing a proper replacement without the need to go up the ladder of command. 

Without her efforts in the field, Berengar's campaigns might have slowed down. Despite the fact that his army's firepower was overwhelming; the removal of specific vital figures and the sabotage of enemy supplies, equipment, and fortification were needed for a swift victory. 

This woman's name was Hemma, and she was a Kufstein native. She had grown up in the area as an orphan roaming the streets. The skills she gained in surviving her childhood allowed her to be a capable field agent. Now she would be tasked with helping Linde preside over an appropriate intelligence agency instead of a meager medieval spy network.

The two young women sitting across from one another was quite the sight to behold. The female field agent was considered beautiful by most men's standards; however, when sitting next to Linde, who was considered one of the three heavenly beauties of Austria, even she felt discouraged in her looks. 

While sipping from her tea, Linde noticed that Hemma had a dissatisfied expression on her face, and she was not afraid to inquire about the reasoning. As such, she put on a pretty smile that successfully managed to charm the young woman before asking the question on her mind.

"Is something the matter?"

Hemma was by no means a lesbian, but even she could not help but admire Linde's natural beauty and charming personality. As such, she merely sighed before admitting defeat.

"It is nothing serious; I just realized I can't compete with you..."

It took Linde a moment to realize what the woman was talking about; when she did notice, she merely giggled before responding.

"Oh sweetheart, there is no reason to compare yourself with me. You are beautiful in your own way!"

Hemma instantly began to blush when she heard the compliment; as such, she quickly distracted herself by throwing herself into her work. It was a common habit of hers to do so when she felt uncomfortable. 

"So why am I here? Is there something you need from me?"

Seeing that the young woman had broached the subject, Linde pulled out a luxurious purse that she carried along with her. The bag was made out of fine black leather and utilized gold fastenings. The latch itself was gold and studded with diamonds in the shape of a heart, and the strap that it was carried by was a golden chain. 

The leather purse had a delicate diamond pattern embossed atop the surface. Seeing such an elegant handbag, Hemma immediately gazed upon it with envy.  However, after retrieving a few documents, Linde stashed the purse away below the table before handing the young woman the papers. 

The woman quickly glanced at the title, which read as follows.

"Austrian Intelligence Agency"

Seeing such words written on the paper, the woman immediately asked Linde what the documents pertained to.

"What is this?"

Linde merely smiled with a charming appearance before announcing Berengar's plan.

"We are going under a restructure in an attempt to make things more efficient. These documents contain the details; I want you to read through them thoroughly and then burn them. I will be forward with you, Hemma; I need a talented field agent with a quick mind to act as my second in command.

You have proven yourself among the greatest of my field agents, and I think it is about time you receive a promotion worthy of your efforts. What do you say? Will you be my Deputy Director?"

Hemma quickly glanced through the documents, trying to understand the duties of her position. The new job was much more demanding, but it was also far less dangerous and had much higher pay and accommodations. As such, she was quickly enticed by the offer presented to her.

However, she honestly did not believe she was qualified for such a position and, as such, asked the question on her mind.

"Why me? Surely others are more qualified, who have more leadership experience?"

Upon hearing this, Linde raised two fingers before answering the woman's question with a serious expression.

"I have two reasons; first and foremost, I need someone who is acquainted with the field and who can properly direct the field agents in their endeavors; it is an area I am severely lacking. As far as leadership experience goes, others are more qualified in that regard but lack your knowledge of the conditions of the field."

After saying this, Linde allowed Hemma to respond, and as such, the young woman asked the question on her mind.

"And your second reason?"

After hearing this, Linde sighed and rested her pretty face in the palm of her head while staring out the window before answering.

"I needed a woman to fulfill the role; if I spent most of my day in the company of another man Berengar is likely to have him lined up against the wall and shot out of jealousy..."

Hearing this, Hemma assumed Linde was joking and began to giggle; however, the cold gaze Linde gave her before responding sent chills down the woman's spine.

"I'm not joking..."

After saying this, there was a long and awkward silence, that is, of course, until Linde began to stretch her back while yawning; after doing so, she revealed the rest of her thoughts.

"Seeing as how that is the case, you are by far the most qualified to fulfill the position. If anyone has the gall to complain, send them to me, and I will explain why you have the position in full detail. It would be entertaining to see the look on their faces when I ask them how they feel about being executed due to Berengar's jealous nature."

Saying this, Linde immediately began to giggle with a charming smile on her face, to the point where Hemma was concerned about Linde's state of mind considering that she could find something so horrible to be entertaining.  After joking around for a few minutes, Linde asked Hemma about her decision.

"So what do you say? Do you want the position or not?"

Hemma thought about it clearly for a few moments, nodding her head in agreement before formally declaring her intent.

"I accept!"

With that said, Linde smiled once more before taking a sip from her tea; after doing so, she responded to Hemma.

"Good, take those documents home and read them thoroughly; after doing so, burn them. I don't want any evidence of our department existing."

As such, Linde began to get up from her seat and grabbed ahold of her luxurious hand bag where she picked out a few silver coins and placed them on the table as compensation for the tea and cookies. After doing so, she closed the purse and slung it around her shoulder. 

The black and gold bag matched perfectly with her exquisite dress that was in the same color scheme, so much so that every man in the shop had their eyes on Linde throughout the entirety of her conversation with Hemma.

She was like a goddess to the men of Kufstein, and just like a goddess; she was utterly untouchable; after all, she was the Duke's woman, and everyone knew it.  Seeing as Linde was about to leave, Hemma called out to her and asked the question on her mind.

"What do you intend to do now?"

Linde thought about it for a few moments before putting on a sultry smile and boldly announcing in front of the entire tea shop.

"I am going to go satisfy my man!"

The moment Hemma heard this, she nearly dropped her jaw; she could not comprehend how Linde could say something so shameless in a public setting like this. Nor could she understand how Linde got so much work done while living in the Castle with Berengar. If this is how they spent their days, it was a wonder that the spy network had grown to its current extent.

It was at this moment she had a sudden realization, was this position she had just gained nothing more than a way to relieve some of the pressure on Linde's so that the young enchantress could spend more time with Berengar? Hemma immediately began to lament her decision, but it was too late now she was unofficially the Deputy Director of the Austrian Intelligence Agency, which officially did not exist. 

With that said, Linde returned to the castle where she made good on her promise, immediately distracting Berengar from his ongoing work and dragging him to the bedroom for a little bit of mutual stress relief. As usual, the young couple was going at it like rabbits; by now, Berengar had learned his lesson and was smart enough to play it safe and not knock up Linde for a second time.