Today Gorsep had several important meetings waiting for him. He sighed, inhaled harder to see the cloud of steam again, and after taking one last look around with a landlord's eye at the renewed hoarding, he slowly moved towards the castle. On the way, he nodded to the guards saluting him, then entered the castle without hesitation. He didn't receive people in the great hall, it was too big and he wasn't sure if someone was listening to him there. He ordered a smaller room to be prepared for his needs. He deliberately removed all decorations from it, leaving only a table, two chairs and a locked cabinet in which there were documents he needed on an ongoing basis. Considering the decorative gilding and rich ornaments in each room, this one made a very austere impression. Irydius was already standing in the room. He had recently finished the task assigned to him and was holding a stack of papers in his hand while waiting for Gorsep to take his seat.
"Sit down - the king of Kanror showed him the seat opposite him.
"My Lord - Irydius gladly accepted the invitation - I prepared the appropriate documents." Rolls of paper landed on the table and one fell to the floor. Irydius quickly picked up the bag and, straightening his hat that had fallen on his forehead, continued.
"As you asked, I counted the area of agricultural land and compared it with the revenues from recent years."
"And?" Gorsep looked at the legist's face with a serious face.
"Well - Irydius cleared his throat - it turns out that the new subjects did not stick to the facts and each of them underestimated their income by an average of 250 to even 850 arenas."
Gorsep crossed his arms over his chest and nodded thoughtfully. Irydius took this as an encouragement to continue the conversation.
"According to previous arrangements - the legist reached for the nearest roll of paper and handed it to Gorsep - I took the liberty of inviting several of the Kanror aristocrats, whose shortcomings were... the most significant. Here's the list."
Gorsep glanced over the neatly written lines. A deep wrinkle appeared on his forehead.
"Which of them is the most arrogant." He looked up from the document at Irydius.
"According to reports, it is Domir. He has extensive estates in the eastern part of Kanror. It includes a large manor house and 12 surrounding villages. His mother was related to the former King Odegon, as her sister married Odegon's father. He has two adult sons and a 14-year-old daughter. They are a proud and self-confident family with high aspirations."
"So Domir is the head of the family and I hope he is waiting to talk to me." Gorsep stated rather than asked and then put the list on the table.
"Yes my Lord, shall I call him?" Irydius immediately jumped up.
"Yes, let him come in and order my two guards to come in with him."
Irydius bowed deeply and then quickly left the chamber. A moment later he heard even, steady footsteps. The door opened silently and Gorsep saw a well-built, middle-aged man with a powerful mustache. Two guards entered behind him. They stood behind Domir, who noticed their presence out of the corner of his eye. He slightly bowed his head in greeting. Gorsep was silent. He looked at the guards and said
"Gag him and whip him."
Domir didn't have time to protest or even be surprised when the experienced guards put the prepared gag in his teeth and cleverly twisted his arms so that the proud aristocrat immediately landed on his knees. Regardless of the protests coming from the gagged mouths, one of the guards cut the expensive gold-embroidered jacket with a knife. Gorsep didn't count the blows; the first round of floggings always had the same number of blows. The whistle of the whip and the sounds of pain and protest muffled by the gag had no effect on him. After twenty times, Domir was tied to a chair and the gag was removed from his mouth.
"So let's start from the beginning. - Gorsep shifted in his chair - Do you happen to have something to tell me?"
Domir gasped for air and breathed quickly. His face was swollen with pain and blood that stained not only his cheeks red.
"I don't know what you mean... my Lord." He panted, expressing all his hatred towards the Equerds in his eyes
Gorsep waved his hand at the guard with the whip, who immediately pressed Domir's head to his knees and lashed out again. This time, the lack of a gag made the screams more expressive.
"Enough - Gorsep interrupted - I am your king, don't forget that."
Domir looked at him with hatred in his eyes and remained silent.
"Mirko - Gorsep said to the guard standing closer to the door, - let a unit of 20 soldiers go to Domir's house and bring his daughter."
Domir's eyes became round, his entire expression expressed one great surprise, he did not understand what was happening. The guard left the chamber without a word to carry out the order.
"Your Majesty, what do you want from my daughter?" Gorsep heard a note of fear in his voice.
"It's up to you - Gorsep grabbed Domir's chin and leaned over him - she can stay in my court as a lady to keep my wife company, and in the future I will find her a husband of suitable rank and wealth, or I will make her a whore for my soldiers."
Gorsep calmly watched Domir's face, saw his nostrils and forehead twitch with hatred. He moved away from the swaggering aristocrat and sat back in his chair.
"What do you want, your Majesty?" The words passed through Domir's mouth with difficulty.
"I know about your frauds when it comes to harvesting and paying taxes. - Domir was silent, there was no point in denying - I need a tax collector, someone who, on my behalf, will ensure that his subjects settle accounts honestly with their king. You are perfect for this. You will be the example that others will follow. Your loyalty will be guaranteed to me by your own daughter." - Gorsep fell silent, waiting for Domir to digest this information.
"I am an aristocrat, your Majesty, it is not acceptable for me to do clerical work." Droplets of saliva landed on the table in front of the King of Kanror. He was panting heavily and angry eyes were glaring from under his half closed eyelids.
"You surprise me, it's hard to suddenly defend yourself with honor when you've just been accused of and proven to commit a fraud. This is an honorable position and my offer is non-negotiable." There was steel in Gorsep's voice.
"As you wish, your Majesty." Said Domir after a moment of silence, but Gorsep could clearly see that his eyes were saying something completely different.
"Don't even think about deceiving me." Gorsep rested his head in his hands and stared at Domir . Reward for loyalty, death for betrayal."
Domir nodded in agreement.
"Iridius," Gorsep shouted. The door to the chamber was open, and the legist had to wait outside the door all the time.
"Yes, my Lord?"
"Take our new tax collector to his chambers and have the elder tend to the wounds on his back."
Irydius approached Domir, whom the guard had freed from his bonds and helped him stand up. Domir pushed his hand away and proudly stood up, pressing his lips into a thin line. He struggled with himself for a moment, then bowed to Gorsep as much as his injured back would allow and staggered, without Iridius' help, to the door.
"Bring in the next one," he heard Gorsep's voice behind him.
Erona left Dagrana's room with a flushed face. It's done, she took a risk and told that woman everything. Now it will turn out whether Dagrana can handle this matter skillfully or whether Erona has lost by making such a choice. As she walked, her heels were clicking loudly on the marble floor, from across the hall he saw a man accompanied by Iridius being led to the chambers intended for the members of the court. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw that his back was naked and bloody. She bit her lip, if Gorsep ordered this, he's probably not in a good mood.