For glory

Rowan rose early that day. The night before, Admiral Daelin had specifically told him to accompany Lord Aldrius to the family council the following morning.

Throughout dinner, Admiral Daelin had worn a stern expression. Especially when Jaina cut Rowan's steak for him, his piercing gaze looked as though he wanted to give Rowan a beating. But on closer inspection, Rowan noticed a trace of heartache in the admiral's eyes.

Was that really necessary? This wasn't some feudal society. Your daughter marrying into my family didn't mean she would never come back. Our family estates were only a street apart. Even after she married into the Norwington Family, visiting home would only take a few minutes.

Admiral Daelin had remained solemn all evening. Rowan had wanted to ask why he was being made to attend the family council, but the admiral's dark expression had made him lose his nerve.

After all, I was still just a minor. There were some things I didn't dare say, and some things I didn't dare ask.

In any case, after breakfast, Rowan accompanied his father in the carriage to Proudmoore Keep.

Byron and Leonard went with them as guards.

The carriage stopped in the square outside the barracks, and Lord Aldrius and Rowan reached the keep before nine.

Father and son hurried into the council hall, leaving Byron and Leonard waiting outside.

Byron found a secluded corner and took a small book from the little magical backpack at his waist. Its cover was heavily creased, but he still cradled it carefully, terrified of smudging the good stuff inside.

"Move over. Make room for me." Leonard nudged Byron and sat down beside him.

Byron hastily shut the book and said warily, "Don't you have a wife? No peeking."

"Cut the crap. We'll look together." Leonard made a grab for Byron's treasured book, and Byron hurriedly surrendered. "All right, we'll look together. Together."

"They're- they're huge!"

"Heh, pretty good, right? Two gold coins a copy."

Lashius escorted Lord Stormsong to the keep's entrance, then led his warhorse to the stables. With nothing to do, he wandered around the square outside the keep.

The Norwington Family's carriage? Lashius spotted the red Norwington Family crest. As though remembering something, he headed straight toward the carriage.

As he approached, Lashius suddenly heard a series of low chuckles.

He circled the carriage, following the sound, until a laugh that sounded like a pig's squeal finally led him to a cramped corner.

"Ahem. Leonard? Byron!" Lashius rested his left hand on his silver-white sword hilt. His brand-new armor reflected the sunlight, gleaming brilliantly.

Byron and Leonard had just reached an exciting part, and Lashius's arrival spoiled their fun.

Both men had to tuck away their erections at once and get up to face their former friend.

"Lashius?" Byron tucked the little book into his backpack and stood.

Lashius noticed the illicit material in Byron's hand and sneered, "You've been reading that book for three years now, haven't you? Still haven't thrown it away? Is your monthly pay so low you can't afford a new one?"

Lashius and Byron had been classmates at the Military Academy in their younger days, and they had both fought in the Third Freehold Pirate Extermination Campaign. They hadn't exactly been through life and death together, but they could at least be considered comrades-in-arms.

Byron looked Lashius up and down and noticed the Tidesage Mark engraved on his pauldrons. No wonder he sounded so arrogant. He had been promoted.

"What's it to you? More importantly, have you found a girlfriend?" Byron struck right at Lashius's sore spot. They had shared these little books back in the day, too, but Byron favored practice while Lashius favored theory. When the former learned something new, he could put it to use. The latter could only entertain himself.

"How shallow. A man should put his career first. Why should a real man worry about finding a wife? Judging by your current position, you don't seem to have any rank at all. What a disgrace to our Fourth Assault Squad. And Captain Leonard, how did you end up like this after all these years? I invited you to join House Stormsong when the war ended, but you actually refused. From the look of you now, you're still just a guard." Byron had struck a nerve, and the events of those years had also left Lashius nursing a considerable grudge.

Near the end of the extermination campaign, the squad Leonard led had been attacked by remnants of the pirate forces. Leonard had sought help from the Tidesages at Sage Keep, but the Tidesage Conclave had been busy pursuing the fleeing main force of Freehold pirates in search of military glory. They had no time to spare for his little unit.

In the end, it was the Norwington Family's supply unit that had rescued Leonard's squad.

Ironically, Leonard's squad had been serving under House Stormsong at the time. With the Second Fleet destroyed, the Norwington Family's troops had been strategically reassigned among the other families' forces after the war began.

Leonard had been the only member of the squad who was a subject of the Norwington Family. All the other soldiers had come from House Stormsong's lands.

Every member of the squad had resolved to refuse to join House Stormsong's military organization once the extermination campaign ended.

Lashius had been the exception, because House Stormsong had offered him a hefty salary.

That decision had led his comrades to ostracize him. Lashius had bottled up his resentment and sworn that, the next time he saw the squad's members, he would be doing better than every last one of them.

Judging by the results, Lashius had succeeded. He was now commander of House Stormsong's First Column of the Tidesage Forces. His military rank stood several grades above Byron's and Leonard's.

"We have different values. There's nothing to compare," Leonard said, his face stern and his expression cold.

Lashius scoffed. "Is that how you comfort yourself? Follow the weakest family, and you're doomed to accomplish nothing for the rest of your lives. I admit I'm a worldly man, but isn't your lofty pride even more ridiculous?"

"Did you forget to eat before getting that drunk last night?" Byron was baffled. Why had Lashius started acting like a bitter, neglected wife the moment he saw Leonard?

"Shut your mouth! As a lowly guard, shouldn't you salute when you see a superior officer?" The corners of Lashius's mouth trembled with rage. Unable to gain any sense of superiority over Byron and Leonard, his humiliation turned to anger.

Leonard straightened and met Lashius's gaze. Clenching his fists, he slowly walked toward him.

"What? Want to fight? His lordship told me your Norwington Family openly violated the Coastal Defense Regulations. Today's council is meeting to decide how to deal with it. What gives a family without even a fleet the nerve to antagonize House Stormsong and challenge the Third Fleet? Sooner or later, the Norwington Family will drag you down with it." Lashius's face darkened as he sneered.

"Mind your own business. Even if the Norwington Family truly falls into decline, our consciences will be clear. You do it for money. We do it for glory," Leonard said solemnly.

Byron chimed in, "That's right. Glory!"