Suleiman leaned against the inner keep's wall, looking down at the teeming masses within the town.
It was a fine castle, far better than his family seat at the very least. It had walls, it was sturdy, the plains were fertile, and it stood against the High Mountains while overlooking the plains—a strategically vital location.
But they could not remain in this castle for too long. When a guest lingered in the host's home, trouble was bound to arise.
Yet he truly did not want to give it up. He looked down at his own soldiers patrolling below.
If he wanted to control this castle, he had to find someone loyal and dependable to serve as Lady Lorna's steward. But he simply had no capable administrative talents at hand.
Suleiman thought of Lushen and Roslyn. They were loyal and reliable, and they could certainly hack people down—after all, there was little difference between hacking someone and swinging a hoe—but managing a town...
Bronn was out of the question. He was an ambitious man too. But if Old Nicken came here, what would happen to Foulkeep...
"Ah..." Suleiman sighed softly. He needed someone who at least understood writing, law, arithmetic, and human relations—someone qualified to serve as a castle steward.
Someone who could help Lady Lorna collect taxes and settle disputes within the domain, yet remained loyal to him. And beside himself and Old Nicken, he had no such person at all.
Westeros had far too weak a cultural foundation. Learning and knowledge were the privileges of maesters, nobles, and priests. Even nobles only needed to learn matters related to ruling, while priests merely had to recite the holy scriptures. The Citadel and the maesters alone possessed knowledge and represented it.
That meant that without the support of such people, there