Chapter 7 - Chapter 7: The Rebound

Serious discussions were held between me, mother, Nathan and Mr. Duran that lasted till the night. It was established that while my idea was good, it lacked a full proof method required to prevent another unfortunate occurrence brought about by the baron. The starting capital was adjusted to 400 gold coins after it was concluded that a new forge is required to keep up with the blacksmithing work. Mr. Duran usually manipulates molten metal to form the desired shape and then lets it cool resulting in a very high quality product. It is very difficult to manipulate solid cold metal and the results produced are not very good. "Ooh by the way this reminds me. Did you awaken the earth attribute?" Mr. Duran asked. I don't know how to answer that. I mean it's possible once I master the dark attribute I may unlock the skill required to manipulate the earth element. "Unfortunately no. I awakened to the dark element." I answered. "Wow. Congratulations kid that is amazing. The dark attribute allows a user to imbue weapons with magic. We could make you a sword, shield or even a spear that would be a source of envy for all." Mr. Duran said. Whoa, that's amazing. I didn't think the dark element could be that useful. "You guys should make me a magic sword too. I'll pay you very handsomely." Nathan said. Mr. Duran and I broke out an evil grin. Good luck to you Nathan. "Getting back to the topic at hand. I am interested in any ideas on dealing with the baron." Mother said. We then spent countless hours exchanging the various ideas. It was not a secret that I was the king's bastard son. In fact I believe they are at least 3 of us bastard children in the kingdom. Thus it was decided that bothering the royal family with such matters as being rude and inconsiderate. "Well I have one though it's not much. I believe we should exhibit a sample of our modified carriage to the military. I believe there is a small chance that we may be offered a contract to revamp their existing stock. I don't think the baron will mess with us if we have close ties to the military." I suggested. "Hey Nathan. You are the military man here. Do you believe the young master's plan will work?" Duran asked. "Well, it is certainly true that the carriages that you have modified are far more comfortable and easier to handle than those currently in the military. I can't guarantee anything but if the miss was to lend me one of her carriages, I think I might convince some old friends." Nathan added. The next day, Nathan took one of mother's carriages to the Capel military headquarters. The head of this base was Earth Talon. Each kingdom on the island has two Talons who are heads in the military. The kingdom of Capel has The Earth and The Dark Talon. The kingdom of Midrain that is northeast of Capel has the Water and Light Talon. The Kingdom of Ultra that is northwest of Capel has the Fire and Wind Talon. Both Ultra and Midrain share a border with the great wall separating the forest. This is why their Talons are more of an offensive oriented group. At the same time, Duran and I went carriage shopping. Masons were already on site constructing the new forge inside the existing research building hence we saw no point in waiting around till they were done. We managed to acquire 4 merchant carriages that were run down for a total of 10 gold coins. Mr. Duran surely drives a hard bargain I tell you. Either way it's not like they could salvage them, in fact most were even happy to be getting anything in return.Nathan returned to our house at night to give us an update. To summarize, he said that he talked with the deputy commander of the royal guards. Apparently they are from the same home town and were colleagues when he was a lieutenant in the royal guard. He was asked to leave the carriage behind so that the military can conduct their own analysis. We should expect an answer in three days' time as they put it. Next week I believe I should be expecting guests with regards to the whole White Eagle business. Until then I should properly prepare to have this carriage business becomes a reality. We went on to buy 6 more merchant carriages in the week. Nathan's reply was delayed. We later got confirmation through a letter that the Talons were coming to deliver their decision to me personally next week. "Ha-ha ha. Our work with the young master was so impressive that the talons are coming personally to negotiate with us. Thank the gods." Duran said. Yeah I forgot that he doesn't know that I am The White Eagle. Should we tell him? I snuck a look at mother who understood what I was feeling. "Mr. Duran this is a secret that very few people know about I trust that you will tell nobody. Chrono here is expected to be the next White Eagle." Mother said. Duran's expression after hearing this went from laughing, looking around then to a serious face. "Wait, what? The young master himself the legendary White Eagle." Duran asked. "Yes. It is also the reason why all Six Talons will be coming here next week to meet with him." Nathan added. We spent the remainder of the time talking about the legendary feats of the previous White Eagles and how I would join their ranks.