Suleiman didn't give him much time to reminisce.
He beckoned toward the door, and Olivier immediately led in a dozen captured knights of House Legg.
The knights had lost all their spirit. At that moment, they looked like a flock of plucked chickens, heads bowed, dejected and furtive, not daring to meet Suleiman's gaze.
Suleiman pointed to the benches on either side of the temporary command hall. "Sit down."
The knights sat hesitantly, their bodies stiff, as if the benches were covered in pins.
Suleiman's voice was calm, as if he were discussing the weather. "House Deddings will negotiate the specifics with you."
"But we'll discuss the ransom."
He held up three fingers.
"Three hundred Gold Dragons per knight."
As soon as the words left his mouth, one hot-tempered knight sprang to his feet.
His voice shrilled with anger. "Three hundred Gold Dragons?!"
"You're robbing us! Suleiman, you emptied our castles of all their gold, silver, food, and livestock!"
"I heard you even took my wife's bedsheets! Where are we supposed to find Gold Dragons for you?!"
Another knight stood up too, his face flushed as he chimed in. "Exactly! You took everything you could carry, and now you expect us to pay Gold Dragons to ransom ourselves? Seven save us, what kind of sense does that make?!"
The atmosphere in the temporary command hall instantly grew tense.
An odd smile appeared on Suleiman's face. He leaned forward slightly, clasped his hands on the table, and looked at the agitated knights.
He smiled and said softly, "How interesting."
"You weren't so upset during your stay in my custody."
His gaze swept over the knights' faces one by one.
"I remember very clearly, Ser Hastings. You told me your wife's family had vast lands in the Reach, with five or six