When Admiral Silas Delving arrived on the premises, his sister was sitting at the table in the middle of the room, already getting comfy without a care in the world. In front of her, a pot of tea and assortments of snacks had been served, and she immediately munched one down.
"I thought I asked you to stay there and wait for me."
Part of him wanted to reprimand her, but he realized it was probably his fault too. The fate of this mission was sealed when he decided to allow her to tag along, and Kirsten being herself should be the last person he would expect to follow an instruction.
"Sorry, should have told you earlier..."
It was nobody's fault. Her sister was not briefed about the situation; even if she was, Silas knew Kirsten would not care.
Pulling a chair on the opposite side of her, the Admiral sat down and tried to ease the situation. What was done is done.
"Fine, you win," he said in a more relaxed tone, to the delight of his sister. "We've spent this whole morning on horseback. I can spare some time for a snack, we are waiting for our horses to be delivered anyway."
It was a slightly forceful excuse. A trip from their estate to Hdur barely covered half of their journey, but Silas was just trying to appear more amicable and made their conversation sound more natural. Make no mistake, he knew exactly where they were, and not a minute passed without him rubbing the pommel of his sword.
Helping himself with a slice of sweetbread, Silas kept his eyes on a seemingly-good-natured elven man on the counter and a fastidious young girl who yelled they were now running out of croissants to sell. His sister had downed a whole serving for herself, and he now had the chance to accept the invitation.
The bread on his hand was soft, it tasted sweet, delicious, and Normal and he hated it because it was normal and delicious.
He excused himself and stood up.
"Err, brother, what's wrong?
"It's nothing," Despite saying that, Silas rallied a great effort to maintain his gentlemanly demeanor. He walked to one of the windows facing the street, expecting to see his subordinate, but he saw none of them.
The admiral turned, cold sweat trailing on his forehead when he realized that Kirsten was gone too, and at their table, there was an elven man. He waved at him, green eyes glanced as if mocking his confusion. Where is my sister? He would give the man an ultimatum, if he wanted to test him he would get it!
He blinked, then it felt like some unknown forces pulled him. The admiral instinctively gripped his sword and unsheathed it, his fair feature glowed with radiant light, and suddenly he found himself sitting on the same table. Meanwhile, Kirsten emerged behind the counter, lifting a tray full of bread and bumping fists with the Baker's human daughter. "Ohh, so that's how you make a perfect roll!" she bubbled.
The elven man was now sitting in front of him, unmoving, either waiting for Silas' next reaction or whatever. A trace of glow could be seen gradually fading in his eyes as he placed a weapon on their table; an otherworldly pistol with a tubular muzzle and body full of jagged sides. It looked heavy and solid, like something carved out of stone.
And Silas did the same, his saber rested on the table with its edge pointed at their host.
"To what do I owe the pleasure of having the Admiral of Kindeance Navy visiting my humble establishment?" he began, his voice was dignified, but lacking any musical ring the elves were famous for. "I saw you visited Master Stockton before, how was he? Quite a grumpy fellow, but honorable. I get my shipment of butter, cheese, and raisins from him."
At first, he was alerted, but now Silas stared at the man curiously. "Your concern for your neighbor is commendable, Master Baker. But believe there is something more worthy of your time than grazing on a small thing like this."
"Not a small thing, Ser Silas." said the man. "I know Master Stockton has, or-- sorry, had some ties with your family. As far as the contracts between him and your family go, I take no part in them, but Hdur is a small town, and if a single actor missing from the distribution chain, the impact on the economy would be considerable. For example, people get their staple food from me."
"Speaking like a true Kindean I see... Pardon my insensitivity, but I am afraid the best I do is to suggest you file a complaint to the constabulary if the situation affected your business somehow."
"Ah, because it was you who said that, perhaps you could help me forward my concern to your brother? Please? I am afraid after the Black Serpent incident yesterday making an appointment with Ser Aaron would be rather difficult."
"I am sure someone as resourceful as yourself would not need my help."
The elven man lets out a hearty laugh.
"An average peaceful citizen like me would always need help. To seek Peace, Sir Silas, something that perhaps insignificant for your family, but you've heard my words before. You took away peace from a not-the-most-pleasant guy around and it's the whole community who suffers the consequences. You feel me?"
"Master Baker, I am deeply sorry for your predicament, but again I am not the one who can help you, and I am here to enjoy some bread."
Baker's hallow eyes feigned no emotion when he leaned forward. Silence fell between them for a time.
"That's very noble of you. If only your Usuals had a similarly ordinary intention when they walked into my home some time ago."
"They were under my father's order."
It was simply the truth. No provocation, nor mockery whatsoever. Silas had heard about this man, heard what he could do, but seeing his unreadable eyes, he felt anxious, not threatened. Like staring at a large boulder planted on the hillside. The dangers were not yet measured and he would have a plan to deal with it. But uncertainty was still there and it echoed a clear waning; if any of them instigate a violent confrontation, both of them will die.
"True." said the man finally, still with a steely expression."That small detail was the only reason we still have this civil conversation right now, and I trust you would not follow the same mistake your father did."
"That was never my intention, I am here simply because my sister wanted some bread."
"Then I welcome you."
Despite the implied tension, it was as genuine as it gets, bringing a slight confusion to Silas who expected the situation to escalate. For the entire part of this exchange, he tried to distance himself from his Father's doing, but now he felt the offense burned him, and this one Baker had stepped out of his boundary.
"You are an interesting man, Master Baker. But I couldn't help but point out the faults in your ideals. You said you seek peace, but people like you often failed to be self-conscious... to realize there is something bigger than themselves. Those... who unfortunately barged into your establishment, those men, were the right hand of something bigger than you. Any wise man who truly seeks peace would let them be, and both parties would carry on with their lives, peacefully."
The elven man finally let out a thin smile, but he remained in silence, giving Silas a chance to continue.
"When you pray for the rain you have to deal with the mud as well, that's how the world works."
"Not the civilized world that I know." the reply came out sharper than Silas had expected. "I'm sorry to say this, but the rain and mud were always there, to each for their own purposes. It's just... there were always people like you who picked up the mud and throw it around thinking they have the right to decide who deserved to be smudged and who is not. You said people like us should be more self-conscious, but I gotta ask, are you self-conscious enough?"
"I am afraid it has nothing to do with the peace you seek."
"It does, on a grand scale. Your father has been scooping up mud for years, secured it in a large cauldron, and then added gunpowder into it, threatening to smear us all with something called war. He backstabbed his lord on the back, deceived him, and kidnapped his heir. You pushed a fair and reasonable man into madness, and now his wrath is focused on you, all who bear the name of Delving. What do you think he would do next?"
Silence ensued between the two, and Silas hated to be one who have to break through it.
"Master Baker, you think you know better than us," he said in a short chortle, then that smile faded, and a scowl replaced it, fire blooming in his golden eyes. "I think I understand my father's grievance a way better now. You, a foreigner, came to our kingdom and do whatever you please. For years we tolerated you and now you spouting nonsense as if you know about our homeland. Pardon me, but it is... insulting."
"You can call it whatever you want," the elven man shrugged. "doesn't change the fact that your King trusted his foreign agents better than you. Calm yourself, Ser Silas, I understand a man like you has a lot of things to not say."
"I don't have anything to say anyway." It was a pathetically thin veil of lie, and Silas himself had no idea why would he say something so easy to read like that.
"Maybe not, true. But I will do you a favor because it seems your path are destined to be intertwined anyway. You are dealing with a fanatically loyal Samurai, who shredded your associate's strongest champion to ribbons and burned his warehouses to the ground. His friend is a vicious scion of Rosenving who used to be your peer."
"With them is a legendary doctor cloaked in enough urban legend to make a storybook, and a Hybrid Bear who controls plants and weather. And finally, my former boss. They departed this midnight, dead set on liberating your prince. If you want to stop them you should go now, but I suggest you shouldn't"
"You advised me to not stop them after ratting them out?"
"The information I provided above can be easily gathered overnight by a trained spymaster, and the details about their departure were not given out of malice. Admiral Silas, I simply give you an opportunity to make a better decision. Better than what your father and younger brother picked for themselves."
He paused to look at Kirsten, who walked out of the baking area with a bright smile and a basket full of bread.
"The king's punishment will be severe and indiscriminate. Save your family from this madness."
After saying that, the elf picked up his gun and walked back to his counter.
"Those bread! How much do I owe you?"
"It's on me!" said the elf without turning back. "Not every day an Admiral having a brunch in my store."
