In the carriage bound for the Silent Court, Tristan steadied the faint unease in his heart. Unlike his bargain with his father, this time he had no idea how the prince would react.
When they reached the entrance, the butler stood quietly beside it. He was as unruffled as ever, but he bowed a little deeper when he saw Veylin.
Led by the butler, Veylin and Tristan passed through a long corridor and once again met the master of the residence in his study.
The study door swung open. Prince Wilander stood before an enormous floor-to-ceiling window, gazing out over the Royal Capital.
At the sound, he turned, his penetrating gaze settling directly on Veylin.
"I hadn't expected us to meet again so soon." The prince gave Veylin a kindly smile.
Veylin bowed in greeting, then gestured behind him. Four guards struggled to carry in a metal chest and set it heavily on the floor with a dull thud.
The chest was opened, revealing neatly arranged crystal vials that refracted an eerie blue glow in the daylight.
"Three thousand doses of Blood-Cough Mixture," Veylin said. "Thank you for your support with the Pioneer Edict."
Even Wilander's pupils contracted slightly at the sight of the medicine, now worth its weight in gold. In his letter requesting this visit, Marquis Lorenzo had briefly described the Blood-Cough Mixture Veylin had developed.
But he had expected a few hundred doses at most, a scarce commodity to serve as a political bargaining chip.
He had never imagined Veylin would offer such an astonishing quantity at once.
It was enough to safeguard an armed force ten thousand strong, or stabilize the entire noble quarter of the Royal Capital.
The prince lightly touched the weighty gift. "Count Veylin, your worth truly exceeds anything I imagined."
Veylin met