Herald of Steel



In the two weeks Alexander partied and enjoyed his time in the capital, he also got to know the people.

Particularly he got to know them in a special party held especially for him, which was arranged by Ptolomy to inaugurate him to Adhania's noble circle.

There, at the large ball, dressed in their finest, Alexander got to meet almost all the nobles that had come for the pilgrimage, including both who were loyal to Ptolomy and those who detested him.

There were of course a few from both sides.

On the friendly side, Alexander met his most recent retainer Jamider (Earl) Tikba, along with a few of the other twelve, exchanging some close pleasantries with them.

But such friendly interactions were rare like chicken's teeth.

Instead, most of the time, Alexander was given the cold shoulders from surprisingly both sides, as many nobles irrespective of their faction saw him as an outsider, and also hated him because of the indiscriminate massacre he had carried out in the capital when he conquered it.

Thus, it was only with Pasha Farzah acting as a guide that he was able to even exchange some pleasantries with the newly converted nobles, while the opposing side pointed their nose high into the sky and shrugged him off.

And though the other side did not want to even talk to Alexander, that did not actually stop him from knowing them, as with Pasha Farzah acting as a gracious mentor helping him learn who was who, Alexander quickly memorized all the important people there.

"That man with a mustache laughing is Matbar (Marquiss) Uzek…the one whose son you almost killed"

"Over there is Matbar (Marquiss) Tareeq, Nanazin's father. I'm surprised he is even here."

"This is Djose's second son, Fais, who came instead of his father. Wonder why Djose didn't? He is quite religious….?"

"The tall man…"

In this way, over the length of the party, one by one Pasha Farzah patiently introduced many of the big shots of Adhan, and even added some commentary to them.

While in this process of roaming his eyes, Alexander too noticed some memorable faces he recognized.

There was the face of Jamider (Earl) Yuusiq who had refused to join him, the countenance of Jamider (Earl) Bahram who had tried but failed to retrieve his men from him, and a few other nobles whose names Alexander did not know the names of but knew by face that they had participated in the alliance against him.

While Pasha Farzah at last introduced Alexander to the most important group of people there.

"That is Vivizan, Pasha of Ankut. He is the one currently giving shelter to Amenheraft," He said, drawing Alexander's attention to an old, hunched-back, frail old man with a cane at the center of the room.

And looking at him, the very first thing that Alexander thought was wondering how did he make the journey here in that physical state.

It seemed to Alexander that a stiff wind could blow the man over.

But such thoughts were quickly drowned as his eyes then registered the people surrounding him.

There was a portly man who kept sending him a deathly glare every five seconds, which Alexander easily recognized as Muazz, and there was the smartly dressed Manuk, who was one of the participants that drew the armistice and at last there was the man himself.

"I do not need to introduce the people there now do I?" Pasha Farzah chimed from the side as he noticed a look of recognition dawn on Alexander, and simply let the boy observe the group.

And so Alexander finally got to meet the man with whom perhaps his entire story started, the one whom he had defeated twice in battle, and the one who was perhaps the biggest obstacle in his path- The former king of Adhania, Amenheraft.

This was the first time Alexander got to see the man in the flesh for real, as at the previous times he was fully clad in armor, and so Alexander made a distinct point to memorize the physical features of the man.

Dressed in luxurious garments, with many of his fingers having rings, each graced with precious jewels, the now dethroned king was a tall, handsome figure. with broad shoulders, and a strong body, his bulky silhouette exuding a sense of strength and energy.

He had a square chiseled face, on which he kept a well-maintained French-cut beard, its color matched perfectly with his neatly cut short hair, while his most prominent facial features were his eyes, which seemed to almost glow with a glint, their gaze sharp and ever watchful.

Alexander still vividly remembered gazing into them when the man had escaped via the Life sea, and seeing them again, Alexander felt a sense of power and authority that Ptolomy simply lacked.

And once Alexander finished scanning the man, he would easily concede without a doubt that at least physically and in demeanor, Amenheraft looked much more regal and king-like than Ptolomy.

After a while of focusing on Amenheraft, Alexander then moved his eyes to the last person in that small group and it landed on a woman.

Dressed in a full-sleeved green gown that was heavily embroidered and fashioned, she was beautiful enough to stand out even among all the ladies there, with a heart-shaped face and jet-black hair that was fashionably lifted into the sky and jeweled to glitter like the stars.

'She must be the wife. I believe she is called Akhemisa' Alexander recalled a piece of information he

had learned before.

But it was not the status of this woman that had mainly attracted his attention. I think you should take a look at

Instead, it was the boy that rested on her arms, appearing to be around two-three years old, while additionally there was a slight bump on her belly, clearly showing she was expecting.

And seeing the cute, plump boy staying gracefully on his mother's lap, Alexander was a bit surprised to see him there.

Because this was the first time he had seen a noble lady carry a baby herself, as this task was usually left to the maids.

The nobility even did not breastfeed their children, much preferring to use wet nurses.

Hence seeing the odd one out, Alexander guessed that this was likely because the woman loved her children very dearly, and was very protective of them.

And after looking at the healthy boy with a healthy red glow to his skin for a while, he somewhat whispered so that only Pasha Farzah could hear, "It seems even if Amenheraft goes, we will still have to deal with his successor."

Alexander did know that Amenheraft had a successor, but seeing it for himself made it all the more real.

"Yeah. Maybe even two." And the old man pointed at Akhemisa's swollen belly as he spookily replied.

It seemed that with perhaps another backup on the way, cutting off the snake's head to quell the civil war would not likely work.

Even if Amenheraft was gone, most likely his retainers would rally behind his son or even daughter.

"Perhaps they will die during infancy," So Alexander even made the heartless wish for the death of two innocent children, hoping they given the low level of medical technology, the children would not be able to pass the vulnerable age up to five.

After all about half the children died during their infancy, unable to reach childhood.

And hearing this Pasha Farzah not only did not disapprove but even gave ideas to Alexander, pointing out,

"If we can somehow feed her a large dose of legummum…. perhaps we can induce even a late-stage abortion."

"But the question is how."

"There have been already attempts on her son's life."

"And so by now, the security around her is very tight."

"Escapically regarding food."

"She only eats what her own cook makes."

"Notice that she has not even touched or eaten anything in the whole party."

"The girl is obsessed with her son's life, and also her own, intent on living through to see him grow up."

Pasha Farzah gave Alexander quite the information report, proving his spies really had their eyes and ears on places that mattered.

And as for Alexander, he only listened and nodded.

He did not even ask if Pasha Farzah had anything to do with the assassination attempts or if it was some other party.

He did not care.

Instead, he tried to think if he had a way to poison the mother and son, and if possible even Amenheraft.

He first thought of the assassin's teapot he had used to Diamous, and then also of using poisoned ice cubes in drinks, where the poison would dissolve as the ice slowly melted.

And while Alexander was immersed in such macabre thoughts, Amenheraft, who had by now noticed Alexander's gaze on them, turned around to lock eyes with him and then stepped forward to greet the man who had stolen everything from him.

Then, completely ignoring Pasha Farzah who was standing next to him, Amenheraft greeted, "So this is the barbarian dog Ptolomy has chained to usurp us!"

He did not make the slightest effort to hide his hostility, his eyes glowing with hatred and nostrils flaring as he addressed Alexander in a loud, crass voice.

And he was intentionally loud enough to let the entire court hear his voice. and as his voice carried over, the whole ballroom went pin-drop silent moments later as the up-until-now somewhat merry atmosphere turned very frosty.

It almost seemed like someone had opened all the windows in the hall room and let the cold, wintery air in.