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“Oh, I’m just tying up a few loose tasks, nothing major. I just don’t want to leave anything lingering overnight.”
“Right,” replies Rory. “Well, don’t stay up working all night. There’s no need to prove how hard you work for us. The efforts are already showing each day.”
“Heed her words, my friend,” says Zalith. “You’re a good man to have on my side.”
“Thank you both. As I said, it’s just a few small things, nothing I can’t handle. Farewell for the evening.”
“See you tomorrow, Slyth.”
I bow to them then spin around my heels, marching out of the dining room. The doors close behind me as their muffled giggles come through the door. With a smile, I head up the stairs, making way for my office.
As I enter, I'm greeted by the pile of papers on my desk, wiping the smile from my face. They pile high and stretch across the table like a small mountainous range.
I’ve been hiding the truth from Rory and Zalith. The fact is that I’ve been pretty overwhelmed with work. I take diplomatic affairs seriously, eager to start my role off well, but I wonder if it’s worth it.
I collapse into my seat, sighing loudly at the papers before me. Written on the top of the sheet are the various names of naga regions and territories.
As the Royal Advisor, I’m the one responsible for forming and handling diplomatic relations between Lodra and its neighbors. The King and Queen are merely representatives of the state, for it is I who does all of the work behind the scenes.
I’d have been lying if I told myself it’s not a tough job. I didn’t expect it to be easy by any means, but it goes far beyond simple well-wishes and good-luck messages to the higher-ups in other regions.
There’s the matter of deals regarding importing, exporting, trading, and invitations for visits amongst a plethora of other responsibilities. As of now, I stare down mindlessly at a paper entitledLodra - Kario Grain Trading Deal.
It doesn’t exactly have me sitting on the edge of my seat. After glossing over the terms and conditions, I sign my name on the dotted line to approve the deal before sealing it up.
I’ll send it off tomorrow.
A dull pain starts to swell at the front of my head. Pinching my nose, I grunt in agony. There’s always so much in my place that I only ever take breaks to eat and sleep. I can’t remember the last time I did something for myself.
I push myself away from the desk, rising to my feet. Turning, I amble to the window that gives me a magnificent view over the settlement of Lodra. Gatherings of lights pepper the region in various places, belonging to villages scattered throughout the land.
On top of everything, the fallout of Vippera’s death has fallen into my hands. Everything that happened before and after her passing has been making the rounds far and wide, thanks much to the humans of Rory’s settlement and the King’s army.
As expected, it’s created a lot of unwanted attention, some of which stares at me from the desk in the form of inquiry letters, pressing me for further details on what exactly happened.
As a result of the news spreading like a plague, my best friends have gained a lot of attention and notoriety from other ruling figures in Nagaland. It’s too soon to say whether it’s good or bad but it’s not a chance I’m willing to take.
“I need to invite Rory and Zalith to another meeting tomorrow,” I say to myself, noting it in my head. In my efforts to calm the storm, I’ve been attempting to get at least one of them to send letters to other kingdoms, most notably the one true king, Ishada Vashma, to get ahead of all the rumors and speculation. I fear someone somewhere will bend the truth out of discrimination towards Rory.
Unfortunately for me, neither of them seems overly concerned about it. It annoys me as I’m the one having to maintain good relations with the other territories, and the King and Queen have even blown it off as an advantage.
“Let the word spread,” they said to me. “This’ll elevate our territory above others, being third only underneath Kario and The Capital.”
“I don’t recommend it, sir. I advise we take an alternate approach,” I pleaded with them.
“No, this is the way, Slyth. Trust us, you’ll see.”
Safe to say, I’m unsure of all this. None of them are the ones in here rifling through letters and documents each day. If they spent even an hour here, they would see my worries.
I look out over Lodra, wishing for the newfound peace to be kept. I then retire to the desk, pulling the topmost envelope off a pile of letters addressed to Lodra’s palace. I fight off a yawn as I tear open the paper.
“Oh, no,” I mutter in concern, seeing the letter has come from a ruler by the name of Kriseri. He oversees a territory in the north, known for its brutish treatment of humans more than anywhere else.
I scan each sentence, my worries growing as I read threats to Rory’s life. Kriseri cites his reasons to be that we are mocking the Naga tradition by placing a human in a royal position.
“This isn’t good. It could spell trouble far worse than even Vippera could have done… Maybe the others will listen to me now, but even then I’m not sure.”
Deep inside of me, I know what it is I must do in order to get ahead of Kriseri’s game. I just don’t know if I want to do it.
