Kaarel dismissed the question with a wave of his hand. "You think my men could not catch a little girl?"
The lack of answer did not fool Silver. As of right now, Rose was free! He wondered how his clever sister had escaped the men's clutches. Ethyn hadn't had a hand in it, or Borit would not have known that Rose was missing.
A smile bloomed on Silver's face. 'That's my girl.'
Borit nodded dutifully. "Of course. I am sure the men are just as capable as their fearless leader."
The insult was thinly veiled, but Kaarel pretended not to notice. "The might of Lakyle is absolute. I am glad you have a healthy respect for your allies."
Silver wondered why the two still pretended to be getting along even after the clear betrayal by Kaarel. But he had to admit he had no mind for politics. The underlying chess match that the two were playing was a game to which he did not know the moves.
'Either way, they are both crazy as can be.' The Guardian needed to stay alert. Just because the two were playing nice at the moment did not mean things would remain as they were.
"I look forward to your victory," Borit dipped his head with a bland smile. Lifting his shackles, his face became more serious, "Perhaps we can both throw off our chains then..."
Kaarel studied the Commander for a long time. The general seemed reluctant to answer for some reason. At last he turned away. "It is time to finish our work. Bring out the king."
It took a moment from Rhodri to come out of his room. There was a bit of shouting before the man came out with a large crown on his head. His face held quiet rage.
"You said I had an hour." Rhodri leveled Kaarel with an icy stare. It had not been nearly that long.
"Time flies, I suppose," the general shrugged. "Your time is up, and as I suspected, nothing has changed. It is time to sign the agreement."
"There is no agreement between us," the king would not let the general make it sound like this was a pleasant business.
"You are mistaken. You sign this, and I agree not to kill any more of your soldiers. Every minute you delay another of them will die until I send a messenger to stop them. I do think they will come to resent you if you take too long." Kaarel picked a piece of lint from his stolen uniform.
The king wondered if it was an idle threat, but he doubted it. The general was known for his ruthless tactics. Somewhere, the ground was being painted red with spilled blood.
"When we run out of soldiers, I am sure your Commander here will lay down his life for you, and then the only person left...well, I shudder to think!" Kaarel covered his mouth dramatically.
The last words finally got a rise out of the furious king. He lunged forward only to be held back by three of Kaarel's men.
Rhodri growled, "Where is my daughter?"
"Safe. For now." Kaarel motioned to the chair which doubled as a throne.
"I want to see her, now." The king stayed in place despite the soldiers helping him forward.
Silver wondered what would have happened if Kaarel actually had the princess. Would he parade her around like a doll or continue the same mind games? Right now the general could only bluff, and the king seemed to sense it.
"How about this," Kaarel stroked his chin. "I will have one of my men cut off one of Her Highness's fingers and bring it to you. The princess can both keep you company and still be kept safely in her tower as well. Of course I will not remove her ring finger. She will be needing that one very soon."
Silver balled his fists, mirroring Rhodri's action. It took all of the Guardian's self-control not to fly from his hiding spot to wipe the smile off the general's face.
Rhodri was silent for a long time.
Eventually Kaarel motioned for the soldier by the door to leave. "His Majesty requires the comfort of the princess. Please bring..." the general looked at his own hand and pointed to the pinky, "this finger so that the king is appeased. Oh and do make sure to tell the princess that His Majesty requested it personally. She should be more compliant knowing that it is for her dear old father."
"Enough!" Rhodri boomed. He took a deep breath. "I will sign your terms of surrender."
"Excellent!" Kaarel waved off the soldier, sparing an innocent victim from losing their finger in the general's dastardly plot.
The ruthless man sat lazily near the writing table. Kaarel pushed the document toward the gilded chair. Reluctantly, Rhodri took his seat and pulled the paper towards him.
Borit stood beside the throne with his hands in chains. The king looked at his Commander, his eyes filled with an unreadable expression.
"It's the only way," Borit hung his head. Silver could swear he saw a tear run down his enemy's cheek.
'Convincing...' Silver wasn't sure who he was more angry with: the general who overtly threatened his sister or the Commander who was far more subtle. 'Why can't those two just destroy each other and leave the rest of us in peace?'
A pen was brought and handed to Rhodri. Despite Kaarel's warning, Rhodri took his time to read each and every word. The agreement still turned over control to the one in possession of the document.
This meant that Kaarel could rule until Willric was contacted and officially crowned. Or maybe the king of Lakyle would put up one of his sons as a puppet ruler for time. The end result was the same: Willric would expand his kingdom two fold without losing a single soldier.
And there was nothing Rhodri could do about it.
The pen ran slowly across the page as the ink spelled Birle's doom. Each stroke was a death knell of an era of peace and prosperity. There was no way that Willric would continue to let the people live freely as they did now.
But at least they would live.
"There. Now get out of my sight and stop killing my soldiers." Rhodri's commanding voice sounded defeated as he tossed the pen across the table.
Nodding Kaarel pointed to the same soldier as before. "Tell the executioner to stop his work."
The soldier left quickly, but not as quickly as Rhodri would have liked. As for the rest of the people in the room, they remained, much to Rhodri's dismay.
Kaarel picked up the document and rolled it into a tight scroll. He passed the paper to a thin soldier for safekeeping.
Clapping his hands, the general flashed a brilliant smile. "This calls for a celebratory announcement! I will accompany you as you get dressed, Your Majesty. My real uniform is being brought even as we speak. We both need to look our best. In fact, allow me to help you find the perfect outfit for just such an occasion..."
The two men and Rhodri's escort went back into the bedroom.
Silver prepared to leave. There was nothing more to see, after all.
Or so he thought.
He was wrong.