Tyranny of Steel

While Linde and Adela were comforting each other, Berengar was preparing for the upcoming celebration. The gift he had gotten Adela was a white Arabian Stallion, it was quite costly to obtain, but it was well worth the price. 

While he was making sure the gift was ready for its new master, Honoria played with Heraclius, who she had brought along for the journey. The mighty eagle flew outside the courtyard where Honoria played about, waiting for the celebration to begin.

As such, the day passed before the guests had fully gathered, and night had begun to descend upon the city of Graz. As it did so, the various nobles of Austria gathered for the birthday celebration of the future Duchess of Austria.

Berengar was flanked on all sides by three beautiful women as he stood at the center of attention. Adela was latched onto Berengar's right arm, while Linde was clutching the left in between her mighty bosom. Honoria was behind him slung around his shoulder. The three girls were greatly intoxicated by the drinks provided at the party, and as such, they openly fought for Berengar's attention.

Though many of the men envied Berengar for the love of three beautiful young women, he was having a hard time maintaining his composure. The three girls began to fight among themselves over his affection the moment the alcohol had entered their bloodstream, thus he was trying his best not to chastise them for their unruly behavior.

Adela put on doll-like expressions as she began to rest her head onto Berengar's chest. Her face was flushed red from the wine she had drunk, and she began to speak slowly.

"Berengar... I can't wait for our wedding!"

To this, Berengar petted the girl's silky golden hair before nodding his head silently. He felt like if any words escaped his lips, he would not maintain the calm facade he had created. These three girls were clinging to him like cats to catnip, and he was not even able to drink away his discomfort. 

Count Otto merely laughed as he drank with his wife Wanda; though he was initially unsure about Berengar's little harem, he now felt great joy watching the young Duke's displeasure; it was undeniable that he was not happy with it the way the girls were behaving.

As such, Otto merely sighed before addressing the curious sight.

"Well, all I can say is his grace brought this upon himself. He should not have been so greedy!"

To this, Wanda smiled; seeing her husband in such a good mood about the awkward scenario displaying itself was a good sign. It was so uncomfortable that none of the nearby nobles approached Berengar or the girls and maintained their distance while commenting among themselves.

Linde forced Berengar's hands onto her breasts as she boldly displayed her feelings. When she was intoxicated, it was common for her to forget her manners and act on impulse.

"Darling, I missed you in bed last night. Maybe tonight we can have some fun?"

Berengar immediately withdrew his hand and looked away; when he did so, he noticed that Adela was pouting, like usual, the girl could not handle Linde's suggestive comments. One could tell by looking at her that she was incredibly envious. 

Of course, what came next shocked Berengar, he felt a slight nibble on his neck, and when he went to address it, he noticed that Honoria had sunk her teeth into him ever so slightly out of jealousy. Even though it was harmless, Berengar would not tolerate such violent action, and as such, he quickly shoved Honoria off of him and flicked her on the nose.

"Behave yourself, missy, or I swear to God I will drag you back to Kufstein myself and put you on the first boat back to the Empire!"

Seeing Honoria scolded so fiercely, the other two girls began to laugh at her misfortune, and Berengar felt degraded. Though he was not the slightest bit embarrassed, he had since grown used to such large social gatherings and was accustomed to the way people stared at him.

Honoria, of course, began to pout, and her adorable face as she did so caused many young men in the audience to clench their fists with envy. The three most beautiful women in the room were all clinging to one man, openly displaying their affection for him.

It was enough to drive any sane man insane, yet Berengar calmly reacted to this before deciding he had enough of the girls and their actions. Thus he clanged his glass before making an announcement. 

"I have an announcement to make, though I wanted this to be later in the night; I figured now is as good enough time as any. I will show off the splendid gift that I have gotten my future wife for her fourteenth birthday."

After saying this, the servants left the room before shortly returning while leading a solid white Arabian stallion by the reigns. Its saddle was made of the finest black leather and the blanket of the finest silk. The metallic components were made of gold, and it contrasted with the white fur of the mighty beast perfectly.

Upon seeing this, Adela nearly lost control of the crystal glass in her hand provided by Berengar. However, she maintained a firm grip and merely covered her gaping mouth with her free hand. 

After doing so, she ran up to the horse and began to pet it while staring deep into its dark eyes. The moment the rider and horse met their eyes together, they knew that fate had bound them together. As such, Adela hugged the horse before deciding on a name for it.

"I will call you Siegfried! After the dragon slayer!"

Hearing this, Berengar smiled; Adela seemed to have a similar naming convention to him. After playing around with the horse for a while, Adela jumped into Berengar's arms and pecked him on the lips as a token of her gratitude.

"Thank you, Berengar; I love him!"

Berengar merely took a drink from the glass of wine he had procured while Adela was playing with her horse and smiled before making a joke.

"Hopefully not as much as me, right?"

In response to this, Adela merely smiled and stayed in silence. Afterward, the horse was led out of the Great Hall and back to its stables, where it would be resting from then on. Berengar, on the other hand, began to chat with Linde while the rest of the gifts were brought in.

Adela revealed their contents like a kid on Christmas and thanked everyone for their support. However, nothing triumphed the mighty stallion from the east that Berengar had procured for his little fiancee. 

After Adela had opened her presents, she found a way to sneak off with Berengar to the balcony, where the two began to talk alone. Berengar sighed heavily as he drank from his glass, waiting for Adela to ask the question on her mind.

After a few more sips of wine, Adela finally managed to get the courage to ask her future husband about her concerns.

"Do you love her?"

To this, Berengar made a snide remark

"Which one?"

Adela began to pout once more as Berengar was being purposely obtuse. She did not want to ask the question outright. Nevertheless, Berengar forced her to say it.

"Honoria!"

When Berengar heard this, he nearly spat out his drink. However, he managed to choke it down and regained his composure before responding to Adela.

"Linde told you, did she?"

It only took Berengar a moment to figure out that Linde was responsible for Adela knowing the truth behind Honoria's identity. As such, he placed down his glass and looked off into the full moon in the sky above before answering honestly.

"At the moment, no, at least not to any severe extent. I will admit that I find her attractive, and sometimes she can be charming. That is when she isn't acting like a spoiled brat. What is important is that she has already begun to fall for me.

I have no intentions to rush a relationship with our little runaway princess. I will take things slow and build a relationship with her step by step. After all, she has a part to play in my grand ambitions. 

Whether she finds her way into my heart as anything more than a passing fancy is up to her efforts to improve herself. Regardless of how I feel about her, that does not change what I have to do. An alliance with the Empire is too valuable to give up over personal feelings or a lack of them."

While she was hearing this Adela sighed before grabbing ahold of Berengar's hand and holding onto it firmly. After doing so, she looked him in the eyes with a solemn gaze before announcing the words she had in her heart.

"Even if you become a Polygamous Scoundrel, I will support you until the end. Just promise me that I will be your first wife and that you will never leave me!"

Seeing the sincere gaze that Adela was giving him, Berengar grabbed ahold of her and dragged the girl into his embrace before wiping a tear from her eyes. As he did so, he whispered in Adela's little ear.

"I swear on my life that I will never leave you!"

With that said, Berengar kissed the girl on the lips before releasing his hold over her. After doing so, he lifted his glass of wine and drank its remaining contents. The remainder of the night was spent in celebration, and Berengar would depart for his territory within the next day after all the work of a Duke was never finished.