Firstborn: Return of the heir

“Sir… Sir… Excuse me, sir…”

Slowly prying his eyes open, Saulus looked towards the source of the disruptive sound. An attempt to look at the window to check the height of the sun above the horizon failed spectacularly as the wave of a sudden headache struck him.

“Sir?”

Noticing the change in the aura around Saulus, the servant that was calling out to him changed his tone a bit.

“What time is it?”

Closing his eyes to avoid the repulsive light of day, Saulus looked towards the servant.

“Just past the second ringing of the city’s bell, sir.”

After a momentary clash between his will and his easygoing side, Saulus finally forced his body up. Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, he once again attempted to look at the window. For some reason, even with the answer voiced, the general failed to understand what was happening.

“Wait, it’s already that late? Why the hell didn’t you wake…”

Before he could even finish his sentence, Saulus suddenly leaned forward over the edge of his bed. As the convulsion shook his entire body, the young man managed to stop himself from vomiting only with the utmost effort.

“Direct order from the Queen, sir. Do not wake him up before the second ringing. He should still manage to prepare for the welcoming ceremony then. Exact words of our Queen, sir.”

Lowering his head to even quote such disrespectful words towards the second most important figure in the entire rebel nation, the servant poorly hid the shivering of his body. Even struck with a devilish hangover, Saulus could easily notice it.

“Merciful firstborns… Dang, I don’t have time for that!”

With the realization of the meaning behind what the servant just relayed, striking Saulus like a bolt of lightning, he jumped out of the bed without any further delay. In just a piece of undergarment covering his most vital parts, he jumped towards the big dressing area, filled with fancy suits that he occasionally had to wear.

And just as expected, his diplomatic robe was already ironed and prepared for him to put on. Not daring to waste a single second of valuable time, Saulus quickly donned his new clothes before coming out. Even though as a soldier, he didn’t really care about being seen or not, but he needed to keep up appearances.

“Where is my water?”

Coming out to the open area of the room, Saulus looked at the servant. While Mengia had a lot of great benefits to offer, both in terms of available services and proximity to the front of the war, it severely lacked the staff in regards to manning up the governing places!

“Sir… I’m so deeply sorry…”

Instead of causing such a young person to have a heart attack over something as minor as lack of water, Saulus simply waved his hand before stepping towards the doors.

“Nevermind. I don’t have the time to wash anyway. Lead the way to the audience room. On one foot!”

Saulus didn’t want to act oppressive towards this clearly stressed servant, but time just wasn’t on his side. With fear only helping to move faster, the two of them quickly reached the open office of the queen, otherwise called an audience room.

“Head general of the Freedom Army, Sir Saulus!”

Noticing the approaching duo, the herald didn’t bother to give either of them the time to tidy up their appearances after dashing to this place. With the doors opening right away, Saulus had no other choice but to straighten up his back, raise his chin and enter the chamber with confidence.

‘Freedom Army’ my arse… But I guess that’s the official standpoint we need to assume on the record…Hiding the ironic smile that craved to appear on his lips as he was announced, Saulus moved just a few more steps forward before resting on a chair directly near Venna’s throne.

“How was the night?”

Taking a quick look at the hall, Saulus could breathe a sigh of relief. With no Bloy or his officers present in the chamber, it meant he made it in time. But the person responsible for such a huge potential mishap was now asking him how his night was?!

“Lengthy… At this point, it feels unnatural for me to have a proper night of sleep.”

Still angry at Venna’s small ploy, Saulus took a few deep breaths to calm his emotions down. Ridding his soul of this pointless anger, the young man finally looked at his queen’s face, only to notice a small, pleased smirk on her lips.

“You really are a…”

Before Saulus could finish his comment, the deep baritone of the herald drowned him out.

“Sir Bloy and the generals of the renowned Pleiades!”

Announcing the guest, the herald gave a signal to the guards at the door. Pulling a set of ropes, they put a complicated system of levers and pulleys into motion, prying the huge and heavy wings of the massive doors open once again.

“Your majesty, sir Saulus…”

After approaching five steps into the chamber, Bloy suddenly stopped. Falling on one knee, he bowed to the duo sitting at the head of the room.

“We have heard of your exploits. There is no need to lower your head in our presence.”

Speaking up from her throne, Venna correctly used the detached, royal form. By referring to herself as “us” and “we”, she openly indicated what position she wished to hold in society once it stabilized.

“It’s a great honor to hear such praise from your lips directly, your majesty.”

Following the diplomatic protocol to its last letter, Bloy moved three paces forward before stopping once again, this time permanently.

“It’s an honor to have such a skilled general in my service. But let’s stop with the pleasantries if you won’t mind… General…”

Casting a short yet meaningful look at Saulus when she called Bloy a title that, so far, belonged only to the childhood friend beside her, Venna quickly focused her attention back on the man in front of her.

With a silent nod on Saulus’ side, Venna continued.

“We heard a fair share of stories detailing your daring exploits in the north-east where you were deployed. If you could sum up your actions and achievements related to your mission in just a few words, it would be of great use to us.”

The initial tension caused by how important both this meeting and Bloy’s news would be was already gone. Even though Saulus didn’t really like the man during the early stages of their cooperation, this was the moment when he could prove his loyalty. The question was, to whom would he pledge his faithfulness to?

“My queen… I came here with great news. We managed to recover the entirety of the north-eastern lands. And that means all of the trade routes connecting our great nation to its supporters are now active. In fact, we expect the first merchant caravan to reach the city in less than a day.”

From the way Bloy formed his sentences, Saulus could already answer the question that appeared in his mind just a moment ago. In the end, Bloy was someone who would put his coins where his mouth was. And given the choice between an endless service in an elite unit and becoming one of the great nobles of the emerging household, it seemed that he made the choice that Saulus had silently hoped he would.