The Eastern border
"Your grace, the crown prince, was sighted by our men today, " a steward reported to the Duke of Mills.
"How close is he? " the duke asked.
"A day at most, " The steward answered.
"Are the lords aware of his arrival? " the Duke of Mills asked. There was no emotion on his face. The eastern border was about twenty days away from the capital on a fast horse. So, he was mostly in charge of the affairs of this part of the kingdom. In the past, the eastern part was poor, so the Emperor did not care much as long as he received the tax that was due to him.
In the last three months, the eastern part has been experiencing attacks from their neighbor. They had tried to fight it off but were no match for the enemy, so with no choice left, they wrote to the capital for aid, but only a few soldiers were sent.
Suddenly, after things quieted down, the emperor decided to send the crown prince. It was apparent that he had an important message to pass.
"yes, I hear those lords are getting ready to welcome him at the city gate, " the steward replied.
The Duke smiled, "ready the carriage, " he instructed after thinking about it briefly.
"Yes, Your Grace, " The Steward bowed, but after taking a few steps, he stopped. "Your Grace, I am sure the prince is interested in the rumor surrounding the mine, " he said after receiving the news of the prince's visit. Their spy in the capital sent words that a few of the soldiers who deserted the war had used the news of the mine in exchange for their lives.
The duke waved his hands in response. Of course, he knew that coming to check out the damage of war caused by the attack from the Krus was a disguise. Even the relief the prince brought with him was for show. The main reason why the crown prince would visit himself was to investigate the mine.
The attack from the Krus was really unexpected, so they had no choice but to ask the capital for men. They thought they were careful in hiding the mine and silencing all those who accidentally found out. It was unfortunate that they were not malicious enough.
Although the Eastern borders were far away, As a duke, he did not dare hide something so big without the help of someone in the capital. It had already been a few years since the mine was discovered, and no one expected the sudden exposure, but the Duke of Mills was not worried. All the lords and nobles had participated in making money from the mine, so it should not be exposed easily.
After all, No one would go unpunished if their crime was exposed.
The crown Prince's visit has put everyone on their toes. They have tried their best to stop all activists, but worry still lingers in the air; after all, one mistake could cost their lives.
"Wait, send a message to the lords. We meet at the great hall in three hours. Also, instruct the duchess to prepare a banquet to welcome the prince, " the duke instructed after thinking about it.
The fate of everyone was tied together, so it was best to sit down and discuss the best cause of approach.
"yes, your grace, " the steward bowed and walked out of the hall.
....
There, hours later.
Twenty men sat around the table; the atmosphere was thick with uneasiness. "We all know the crown prince would arrive at our gates soon. What should we do about the mine? " the Duke of Mills asked. He headed the largest area in the east broader, so he had more authority.
"Why are we still discussing this? All activities of the mine have been put on hold. As long as there is no traitor among us, we should rest easy, " th Duke of Ode said. He always felt that he and the Duke of Mills were equal. The Duke of Mile used to be in charge of the entire Eastern region, but after an accident at the northern border twenty years ago, the emperor decided to crisply the power of the dukes in the board of his empire. Therefore, the Eastern border was divided into three, fearing that the Duke of Mile might take offence since he has been faithful to the empire he allowed him will the most power in the east.
The Duke of Ode did not care about this detail, in his opinion, they were all dukes, so their status was the same.
"I agree, we should not mention it, " the Duke of Yul said. The lords and nobles also nodded their heads in agreement.
"you think by not talking about it, the problem we go away? We are not sure of how much information the prince has. Yet, we are already acting confident, " The Duke of Mills frowns.
"Although we are not sure how much information the crown prince has, we know well that this is his first time here. The road to the mine is strange. Only a local would be able to find it, " the Duke of Ode argued. He also hated the fact that the Duke of Mills always wanted to appear as the most intelligent.
"Right, but can you guarantee that there are no deserters from the locals? " the Duke of Mills asked.
The Dukes looked at each other, during the war, many unexpected things had happened. Who could say for sure that one of the locals did not escape?
"Then what should we do? "The Duke of Ode asked. Although the question should be meant for everyone seated around the table, he fixed his gaze on the Duke of Mills; it was like an open challenge.
"We have to prepare for the worst. Things have already gotten to this; it's not like we can hand over the mine now. After all, doing so would only be confirming the rumors, " The Duke of Mills said since no one on the table was willing to say anything.
"what if we give the mine to the prince? We can pretend that the people of Krus did the mining over the years. We can not cover fire with paper, " a lord said. He felt that by preparing for the worst, they would not be acting like lambs waiting for their slaughter.
The lords and duke looked at each other since the emperor already suspected it meant the mine could no longer be hidden, even if they successfully hid it this time, the emperor would not easily give up. Rather than handing over their lives to fate, they might as well look for a lasting solution.
"That can work, " The Duke of Ode was the first to agree. If they plan it well, they could cover up their crime of deceit.
"Do you take the crown prince for a fool? " the Duke of Mills felt that this plan would not work.
"He is not a fool, but as long as we offer him something, he might be willing to let go. After all, an internal conflict would not be suitable for Nexit," The Duke of Ode defended.
"I think it's our best choice at the moment, " the Duke of Yul agreed. Although it was a pity that they did not get to continue keeping the mine and making money, there was nothing more important than life.
"We already sent a report of the war. How do we bring this up," The Duke of Mill asked. Although he still felt it was a wrong decision, he knew it might be the best way out. The mine would be exposed sooner or later, so it was better to make the proper preparations.
"We don't. We allow the crown prince to discover it himself. We have a few prisoners from the Krus. All we have to do is send them to the mine. We would tell them what to say. Our people working in the mine would just insist that they were kidnapped and forced to work in the mine, " The lord who made the suggestion explained.
The hall fell into a long silence before someone spoke up, "This can work, " the others nodded in agreement.