Ash-colored Despair (9)
- Sorry. I was shortsighted.
The man immediately bowed his head. Longboat silently stepped into his bedchamber, without deigning to answer him. One of the servants quickly followed him. Longboat sent him away, then sat down on a chair, took off his armor and clothes with his own hands, carefully folded them and sank into the warm water that the servants had prepared in advance.
After a whole day in the saddle, his body was saturated with dust and the smell of a horse. He washed himself thoroughly in clean water from head to toe, then took out a dark blue doublet and woolen trousers. Calf length boots completed the look. Standing in front of the mirror, he saw the reflection of a fit, impeccably put together silhouette. His body, hardened by years of training, maintained impeccable posture at all times.
Longboat looked for a while at the man in the mirror, who looked like a statue cast in the imperial forge itself, then threw on his cloak and left the room.
He was just about to head to the meeting hall when he noticed a woman coming down the stairs. Recognizing her as a healer from the palace assigned to the princess, Longboat immediately called out to her:
- Why are you coming down from the top floor?
The woman hurriedly bowed her head:
“Her Highness ordered me to be called...
Longboat frowned. Although he expected that Talia would not listen to him, he felt slightly irritated after seeing this with his own eyes.
In a dry voice he asked:
“What is Her Highness’s condition?”
“It seems that thanks to her resting all day, she felt better than usual.” The fever has completely subsided. True... the pain in my legs still makes itself felt...
— Did you burn sleeping pills again?
Something trembled in her face—apparently she sensed the reproach in his tone. As if making excuses, the woman spoke:
“Her Highness suffers from severe chronic pain. Sleeping herbs are the best way to relieve these torments.
Longboat peered intently into her face. Should you trust the healer sent by the empress? That woman always treated her own daughter like a piece on a chessboard. Who knows what else she's up to.
He studied the healer’s face for a long time, as if trying to unravel her thoughts, and then, waving his hand, gave a sign that she could be free.
Having bowed, the woman walked down the stairs, slowly, but not too slowly. Longboat followed her with his gaze, as if memorizing her back, and headed towards Thalia’s chambers.
He knocked on the tightly closed door. A slightly hoarse voice came in response:
- Come in.
When he opened the door, cool air touched his cheek. Longboat frowned. He expected the room to have a heavy, stuffy smell of smoldering grass, but instead, only a faint aroma of flowers and dried herbs hung in the spacious chambers.
He slowly looked around the haphazardly furnished room and noticed a small shadow on the windowsill.
Longboat was about to call her by name, but suddenly fell silent. Something stopped him, but he didn't understand what.
Shrouded in the sunset light, Thalia turned her head towards him. Their gazes met, and the strange anxiety in his chest suddenly intensified.
Approaching closer, Longboat pulled the collar of the doublet and crossed the room with wide steps. He tightly closed the open window wide, touched her cheek with the back of his hand and felt the icy cold.
- How long did you sit like that?
- What?
— How much time did you spend in the draft?
Thalia narrowed her eyes. The frown made her face look a couple of years younger.
Pushing his hand away with irritation, she muttered:
- I don’t know. Who cares?
- If the fever rises, what then?
- So it will rise.
Longboat frowned. When he spoke to her, a strange feeling came over him. He wanted to force her to obey, and at the same time persuade her as gently as possible.
To banish this feeling, he took a step back. As soon as the distance between them increased, the tension in her shoulders visibly subsided.
Thalia clasped her knees with her hands, looked him up and down and muttered displeasedly:
- And anyway... why are you dressed up like that?
— The guests have arrived, and we will have a small reception.
- Guests?
- Lords of the eastern lands. They say they came to pay their respects.
“Hmm...” Thalia absentmindedly fingered the edge of his cloak and made a strange sound. Longboat silently looked at her hand.
She fiddled with the fabric for a while, then spoke uncertainly:
- I... need to be there too, right?
He looked up. This amazingly beautiful face spread out before my eyes. She strangely stirred other people's emotions. Even he, usually reserved in everything, felt this strange impulse. It was already clear what kind of chaos she could cause if she appeared in public.
Longboat was silent, then slowly shook his head. It would not be possible to hide it forever, but at least until he consolidated his power in the East, he did not want to expose it to the eyes of strangers.
- No need. I will settle everything with the vassals myself. For now, you rest.
“...Are you ashamed of me?” - Her voice suddenly rang cold.
The longboat, already about to turn to the door, stopped and looked at her.
She bit her lip until it bled and continued with a grin:
- Do you already regret that you took a lame woman as your wife?
He clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles turned white. It seemed to him that if he did not do this, he would do something irreparable. Swallowing the words that rose in his throat, Barkas exhaled heavily. Only when the acute wave of feelings subsided did he speak in a low, restrained voice:
“Sometimes I don’t understand... Do you say such things to hurt me—or to hurt yourself?”
Her lips pursed tightly, as if she had swallowed a stone. But the shadow of mistrust on his face did not disappear. Longboat sighed and turned away:
“I’ll call the maid and let her clean you up.” If you really want to attend, I won’t stop you.
“No need,” she muttered and deftly jumped from the windowsill. There was an icy tartness in her voice. “If I stay near you even a little longer, my temperature will definitely rise again.”
With these words, she staggered towards the bed and threw herself onto the sheets. Longboat looked at her for a long time, then, without saying a word, he left the room.
He walked down the stairs and entered the main hall, where he was immediately greeted by hundreds of glances.
The longboat slowly looked around at the people filling the room. Richly dressed high-born lords and their relatives occupied the central tables, while more modestly dressed men sat around, enjoying wine and food.
Everyone stood up at once.
- Welcome, Mr. Heir!
One of the confidants standing at the entrance bowed low. Longboat nodded slightly in response and moved across the hall to the place of honor.
In a low voice he said the proper words of greeting:
- Thank you for coming a long way. Please forgive the modesty of the reception.
- What are you, what are you! I have never drank such great wine in my life! - One of the men at the table exclaimed loudly.
Longboat looked at him carefully. The black bear embroidered on the luxurious cloak was a symbol of an influential family that controlled the south-central lands.
He raised the goblet high above his head, and there were mocking notes in his voice:
“It’s not for nothing that this is a gift from His Imperial Majesty himself.” Even mortal sinners like us are allowed to touch it? After all, this is a reward for all your devotion, Mr. Heir!
He theatrically drained the goblet to the bottom, then placed it on the table with a crash:
“When you think about the blood and sweat you’ve shed, even the sweetest wine seems bitter.”
A tense silence hung in the hall.
Longboat leaned back in his chair and smiled wryly:
“It looks like you came here to start a fight.”