Tyranny of Steel

Today was the day that the sailing instructor from Venice had arrived in Kufstein to teach Honoria how to sail. Honoria had awoken bright and early to begin her instruction and had not taken Berengar's kindness for granted. 

She was currently learning to sail a Caravel, a simple sailing vessel used by most nations in the Mediterranean. Berengar had already purchased a few of these vessels for teaching his naval draftees how to sail, and as such, he had more than one available for her to train with.

Today was a special day for Honoria; Berengar took the day off from work to observe her progress and see if she was using the time and resources he had given her wisely. To his surprise, she was already partially knowledgeable in the art of sailing.

Even though her instructor was not pleased with teaching a woman how to sail, he never complained; after all, he was being paid an absurd amount of money to teach this young maiden to sail. Instead, he did his best to equip Honoria with the knowledge necessary to do such a thing as such.

Berengar stood next to Heraclius, who was perched on a post next to him, as the two of them observed Honoria's actions. The pretty smile on her face was one of genuine happiness as she began to rig the sails as instructed.

Seeing this, Berengar and Heraclius both looked at each other before gazing back upon Honoria. The moment their eyes made contact, there was a slight nod of their heads, as if they were thinking the same thing. Which was

'this girl is too precious.'

After sailing down the Danube for a bit and back to Kufstein, Berengar, Honoria, and Heraclius departed the vessel where Berengar handed the instructor a sack filled with silver coins before thanking the man.

"Thank you for this, I know about your reservations, but you have helped me a lot."

The man quickly snatched the pouch from Berengar's hands, where he began to count the coins to ensure the proper amount that was agreed to was still there. After doing so, he spat in the river before addressing Berengar's statement.

"I don't like it; a pretty young thing from her should not be sailing; she should be at home making babies. However, you are the Duke of Austria, and if this is what you like to do with your playthings, far be it from me to complain…."

Hearing this, Berengar merely scoffed; he could not care less what this sailor thought of him. He was simply a means to an end. After confirming the payment, the sailor departed to the City of Kufstein for the day. Like every night, he would spend the silver he gained from Berengar on wine and wenches.

As for Berengar, he escorted Honoria back to the Castle as he began to ask her about her day.

"I see you are not wasting my charity; that is good. Tell me, now that you have some experience sailing, how do you feel about it?"

Honoria thought about Berengar's questions for a few moments before responding with a bitter smile.

"I enjoy it. However, something feels off. It is not like when I was sailing with Agnellus…."

Berengar thought about this for a few moments as he began to address her concerns.

"I can think of two potential reasons for that. First, you have feelings for Agnellus, and you were more interested in spending time with Agnellus than you were sailing."

Hearing this, Honoria began to laugh at Berengar's speculation before teasing him.

"Why, Duke Berengar, are you perhaps jealous of my relationship with Agnellus?"

To this, Berengar scoffed before replying

"You greatly overestimate your importance."

When Honoria heard this, she instantly pouted, and the two walked in awkward silence for a while. After they had walked for a few minutes, she asked Berengar about the second possibility he had mentioned.

"What was your second idea?"

Berengar seemed to be knowledgeable and worldly. As such, Honoria highly valued his opinion. After hearing the princess's question, Berengar scratched his chin for a few moments before saying the second thought he had on her reasoning for not enjoying sailing as much as she used to.

"The second reason could be that the thing you loved most about sailing was the freedom you experienced, and because I have you in a controlled setting as you learn how to sail, you feel as if that liberty you once felt is missing."

The moment Berengar said this, Honoria's eyes flashed, and she looked at Berengar with a complicated expression; after doing so, she smiled bitterly and revealed some of her past to Berengar, completely forgetting her cover story as she did so.

"You are right… Growing up, I was never allowed to leave the Palace. My father was strict and overprotective and did not even allow me to associate with other nobles my age. Though he doted on me for the most part, the reality is that the only company I had was my siblings, and they all treated me like a doll in a glasshouse.

I used to gaze down from my window into the harbor every night as the sun began to set, imagining what life would be like if I were just to run away and hop on a ship sailing to parts unknown—going on a grand adventure, discovering new lands, and meeting new people! 

When my father tried to marry me off to the various princes, I was too shy to talk with them. Of course, I was too proud to admit that and merely told myself that they were too lazy, skinny, fat, ugly, unambitious, drunk, or any other excuse I could think of to justify in my mind that I was too good for them. As such, I rejected every suitor ever brought to me, resulting in me being betrothed to the worst of them all…."

Hearing the girl's story, Berengar was fully convinced that she was Princess Honoria, as her background was the same as what he knew about the princess from the Eastern Empire; not only that, but she had used a term like Palace to describe her family home instead of Villa which was an obvious indicator of her real identity.

However, Berengar did not spoil the moment and merely decided to pet the girl on the head and comfort her. This caused Honoria to look up at Berengar in shock, where she saw his charming smile before he said the words.

"I am sorry you had to go through that; it must have been terrible… I too know what it is like to live a life of loneliness, without a single friend to call my own."

Berengar was genuine when he said this; in his past life, he had spent most of it alone, both of his parents worked all day, and he was forced to endure a life of solitude in an empty house. When he was at school, he was always reading some books, thus causing the other kids to ignore him often.

From the day he was born until he died, he did not have a true friend, merely a string of acquaintances that came and went from his life as time passed. At one point, he, too, had put on a confident façade.

In doing so, he convinced himself that he was better than everyone else and that no woman was good enough for him. Because of this, he could partially understand Honoria's feelings about her lonely past, as he experienced a similar childhood.

Hearing Berengar expresses his sympathy as a kindred soul; a tear began to form in Honoria's eye, which Berengar quickly wiped away with his finger and grabbed ahold of the girl forcing her into his embrace as he stroked her silky white hair while speaking words of comfort.

"Don't cry; you have something that I never had!"

Honoria began to sniffle as she looked up at Berengar's gleaming sapphire eyes with curiosity in her minty orbs before asking Berengar what he meant.

"What's that?"

Berengar then glanced up at Heraclius, who was flying in the sky above, watching over his master like a guardian angel. While doing so, Berengar spoke his words.

"You have a loyal companion in Heraclius; at the very least, that gives you an advantage I never had…."

Hearing this, Honoria began to break out in laughter; it was true; she was incredibly blessed to have such an intelligent and caring pet. The more she laughed, the more her sorrow in her heart began to fade until finally there was silence.

After two stopped outside the Castle's gates, Honoria looked back at Berengar with a gentle smile on her face before making a request of him.

"Promise me something, will you?"

Upon hearing this, Berengar merely smiled and nodded his head before responding, not expecting it to be anything serious.

"Sure, what is it?"

After getting Berengar's assurance, Honoria spoke her conscience

"When you next find yourself troubled by your lonesome past, seek me out, and talk to me about it. In return, I promise to tell you everything there is to know about me."

Berengar was stunned about this; however, before he could respond to Honoria's request, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek. As she did so, her cheeks began to flush as she boldly announced her feelings.

"I think I am starting to fall for you."

With that, Honoria ran off into the Castle, too embarrassed to face Berengar any longer. Berengar merely stood in the doorway to his Castle while stunned, utterly unaware that Linde had seen the entire display from the tower above the courtyard with a frown on her face.