"Jeffrey Lord - Blade 09 - Kingdom of Royth" - читать интересную книгу автора (Lord Jeffery)

When Brora had finished, the duke nodded his thanks and turned to look at Blade.
"Well, MasterтАФBlahyd?" He pronounced it in two syllables, and Blade realized that he would have
to go through this Dimension answering to this mispronunciation.
"That's close enough, sir."
"No doubt. You claim to be a footloose mercenary from the southтАФa rather vague place of origin, I
must say. Are there many like youтАФin the 'south'?" The duke's skepticism about Blade's story was
evident in his voice.
Blade knew he had only a split second to decide how to answer. Khystros' keen wits would detect
the slightest hesitation on his part, and then the fat would be in the fire. He put the thought aside, took a
deep breath, and said, "Not many, sir. I'm better than most."
"One rather hopes so," said the duke drily. "If the southтАФor wherever you hail fromтАФis swarming
with fighting men who can kill a dozen Neral pirates singlehandedly, a southern army could gobble up all
the Four Kingdoms and the island of Neral as easily as a cat gobbles up a mouse. However, that's not
our concern now." He turned his head slightly. "Alixa! Some wine for our guests, if you please."
The woman who came out of the curtained doorway at the rear of the cabin was obviously Khystros'
daughter. The family resemblance was unmistakable. She was as tall as her father, only a few inches
shorter than Blade, who was well over six feet, and as slim and fine-boned as a thoroughbred horse. The
face framed by great masses of blueblack hair was high-cheeked, with a broad mobile mouth now
curved in a welcoming smile and large gray eyes that were appraising Blade with frank interest. She was
silent as she sped about the cabin, taking down leather wine bottles and chased silver cups, filling the
cups, and handing them to the three men. Then she folded herself gracefully down onto a cushion by the
door and listened while her father explained to Blade the sad situation of theKingdomofRoyth and of
himself as well.
The pirates of Neral were indeed waxing stronger and fiercer each month and year, as Brora had
said. Never before, in fact, had so large a force as the four galleys that had attacked Blacksnake and
Trident been seen so far south. It was good that the pirates had paid so heavily for their victory. Perhaps
this would make them think before sending a squadron so far afield again.
But it would take far more than one affair of mutual slaughter to beat back the threat from Neral
forever. The pirate island was the base for some two hundred warships plus supporting vessels, manned
by some fifty thousand or more fighting men and women. But there was more than the sheer military
might of the pirates involved in their threat. In fact, that might was seriously flawed by the pirates' lack of
training and experience in land warfare.
But what if their road were smoothed for them by treachery? That was another story. And there was
treachery afoot in Royth itself. Khystros had no proof of this certain enough to lay before King Pelthros.
But he knew to his own complete satisfaction that Count Indhios, High Chancellor of
theKingdomofRoyth , was in the pay of the Neralers. It was obvious that if the pirates could take, by
force or treachery, one of the Four Kingdoms and add its resources to their own, they would become the
rulers of the Ocean and arbiters of the fate of all who lived by it or traveled on it. The stakes in the game
they were playing were enormous, but so was the prize they might win.
But Pelthros was not a strong or decisive ruler. He was exceedingly well-intentioned and concerned
about justice, to be sure, but he failed to realize that justice is not always best rendered by putting off
decisions. He also had definite abilities as a craftsmanтАФjewelry-making in particular, which he pursued
as often as possible, and too often for the good of his realm.
All this (which Khystros mentioned with an apologetic air, knowing it ill became him to criticize his
monarch and brother in such a fashion) had much bearing on Khystros' situation. When the duke had first
broached the notion of the Chancellor's treachery to Pelthros, he had been told sharply to go back and
gather more evidence before he would be allowed to confront a high and long-trusted servant of the
crown with such a monstrous charge. That had given Indhios the time he needed.
The Chancellor in his turn had brought forward cleverly manufactured evidence that Khystros was
conspiring to make off with a large portion of the royal taxes by appointing his own subjects as tax