She trailed down the room back and forth in distress.
"Calm yourself. The lord should be back any moment now". He says, relaxedly posing his body on the chair.
"Shut your mouth you plebian. The lord is missing and you expect me to be calm!". She barked, violently.
"What if he tried to meet with the count alone and then! And then!...".
Mikeal had been gone since two in the afternoon and had yet to arrive as of three midnight.
Anna could not bear to imagine what could have happened next if Mikeal decided to convince the lord and his plan failed.
She has seen how strong he appears but this is a count we are talking about here.
The order goes like this; Baron, Count, Earl, Marquis, Duke, and Grand Duke.
Baron as the lowest noble ranking and Grand Duke as the highest noble ranking. Being of the lowest noble ranking, the baron does not have that much authority over his title but is supported by ruling over a certain area of land, small as it might be.
Count on the other hand could be considered as where the true nobility title begins. Land, military possession, economic growth, and population.
They have all those, leading to a stable lordship life and the opportunity to link up with higher nobility in the capital. They also have the option of expanding their land by forcing the barons to be subservient to them.
To capitalize, a count should not be taken lightly. Especially for Mikeal whose current position forces him to be the lord of a dying land and has only two able individual forces ready to fight for his course.
There is no telling what could go wrong in a meeting with the count and Mikeal.
Whatever it was that happened, Anna believes it will not be favourable to Mikeal as he does not have sufficient leverage to compete with the count.
Or at least that is her version of the truth.
"You and I know the lord is no ordinary individual. Going to meet the count alone means he has a sure plan up his sleeve. Try believing in him more will you". Vincent termed, casually.
To think this was the same person that was hating Mikeal until yesterday. Is what Anna thought as she heard Vincent speak.
"What! Why are you giving me that look". Vincent queried the gaze Anna was staring at him with.
She took her eyes off him as she walked to the door. "I am going out there". Her hand was already on the door.
"Hey! Don't try anything foolish like trying to go int-".
"I am back". He spoke at the slight sound of the door opening.
As soon as she turned the handle and pulled it open, she saw Mikeal waiting in front of the door with his hands folded backwards.
"My lord, you are back". Anna welcomed down on both knees.
"Wel-Welcome". Vincent greeted, also going down on both knees.
'Hmm... Has Anna managed to rub her excessive show of loyalty on Vincent'. Mikeal wondered, troubled about having to deal with Anna's constant kneeling6 even though he had rebuked her severally on the case.
"Yes, I am back. And you can both get up now". Mikeal says, walking into the room.
Mikeal walked over to the bed and landed exhaustedly on it.
"What about your meeting with the count, how did it go". Vincent asked.
At his question, he raised his upper body and sat on the bed with his legs dangling above the floor.
"My meeting with the count...". Mikeal paused, building up a rising suspense in their eyes.
He could see how eager they both were to know what the outcome was.
"It went well". He reveals with a smile.
Vincent and Anna were both shocked at the outcome. They knew that Mikeal wasn't an ordinary person, but managing to convince a lord whose authority was far greater than his!
"What did the count ask for in return". Vincent exclaimed.
He had a feeling the count must have requested something in return. That is after all how a trade works. And without a doubt, count Grayad is not one to skip that aspect.
"His request?...". Mikeal pondered.
"He didn't ask me for anything. Even if he did, what could I offer a count who is wealthier than I am".
"!!". They stared, confusedly.
"You mean to say you negotiated with the count to release our village men and he gets nothing in return". Says Vincent, dumbfoundedly repeating the obvious.
"Precisely. Is there a problem".
Anna is looking at him weirdly and Vincent's constant debate on the matter points to the possibility that something isn't adding up. Mikeal had a hard time understanding what?...
"No-Nothing. I just have a hard time believing the count would adhere to your request in return for nothing. Did you perhaps threaten him or something".
"What do you mean threatened? That is rude. All I did was sit with the count and have a heart-to-heart talk with him as one lord to another. I convinced him and opened his eyes to the reason why I need the villagers back".
To his knowledge, Mikeal closely believes this to be what transpired between him and the count. As far as he was concerned, there was no such thing as a threat or use of force to attain his goal.
Persuasion is what he thinks happened.
"And just like that, the count listened to you and gave you what you wanted, no questions asked".
"I don't understand your point Vincent. Is what I explained just now so hard to believe".
"No, it's not that, it's just-...".
Thinking about it, threatening the count does not sound like a believable conspiracy.
'His mage abilities are incredible. I have seen first-hand what it can do, but it is not enough to threaten the count with'. Vincent assessed.
The count has thousands of forces under his control. Not even a mage can go up against that number alone.
So yeah, Vincent ruled out the possibility of a threat happening.
"My lord accomplished such an unimaginable feat. How dare you to question his process".
"No, it is just!".
"!!!".
Mikeal abruptly jumped off the bed, leaving them both speechless!