Celestial Hymn 5 (Patreon)

Celestial Hymn
Chapter 5

-VB-

I sat across from Myrcella in a more comfortable room that wasn’t my solar or my bedroom with no guards around us.

Since the king and the Hand of the King could not be budged on this, I accepted that … I was now betrothed to the First Princess Myrcella Baratheon. As such, I requested that we try to get to know each other in the short amount of time we did have together.

Of course, the queen rejected, and the king, seeing the queen reject, accepted just to spite her.

I smiled because I didn’t know what else to do with a young lady in front of me.

“Well,” I spoke up, deciding that I wanted to be open with her. As long as she didn’t despise me, it should be a good start, right? “This is awkward.”

She giggled.

Success!

“Let’s start off with something simple,” I added. “Things like who we are, what we like, dislike, or want to see. I’m Alan Marris, and as you know, I am the baron of the Brownspear Barony.”

She nodded. “I am Princess Myrcella, the third child of the Baratheons of the Crownlands. It’s a pleasure to meet you, ser.”

“... It’s a bit of a pro-.” I stopped myself. Lords and ladies weren’t supposed to be a “professional” at anything but courtly conduct, war, and management. I was an “upstart” lord who got his position because of his “professional” work. If I start asking her about how she felt about my work, then I might be make her think that she was marrying someone unworthy of her position. So I quickly amended and asked something else. “-proposal, but would you like to have me make a portrait of you?”

Drawing was one of the more courtly things that lords and ladies of the realm accepted.

Everyone liked how well they looked on a piece of paper or parchment.

“Oh! I would like that!” she smiled.

Ugh. Bright.

“Then let’s start, then!”

“E-Eh?! Right here? Right now?”

“Yup!” I replied as I reached into and drew forth a simple pad and a few papers I kept on hand for note-taking. It wasn’t the highest quality paper, but it would do for a quick sketch for me to get all of the details so that I could later make a proper portrait. “You don’t even have to stay still. We can talk, and you can move about. It’ll actually help me get more details.”

“O-oh, okay,” she mumbled. She fidgeted. “C-Can I ask you why you accept lordship from uncle but not grandfather?”

Hmm? Politically astute girl or just curious?

I chuckled nervously. “To be honest,” it wasn’t honesty. “I was kind of scared of Lord Lannister.”

“...” she sighed. “I suppose I can understand that.”

“But it was more than. Prince Renly Baratheon came to personally visit me. He showed me that he valued me more than Lord Lannister did.”

She nodded slowly.

“But more importantly, Prince Baratheon, when I asked, promised ‘freedom of expression’ as part of my feudal contract.”

“Freedom of expression?” she asked me curiously.

“For example, I have before painted a woman and man in bed,” I replied without even a hint of shame as my power brought up power … and then did nothing.

She blushed. “U-Uh.”

“Such a lewd scene might not be acceptable in most courts. In stricter places, some might even storm my own castle to burn whatever else they didn’t appreciate. On a more serious note, I have also painted a picture with Prince Baratheon as a not-so-strong leader.”

Her eyes widened.

“It was, however, within reason and not provocative. I did not need permission to make the painting,” I said as I began to sketch. “Of course, I do not display that one openly nor have I sold it; it was a proof of concept.”

“Does he know?”

“Oh, he knows. He’s seen it.” I smirked. “In fact, he asked me to do the same with Prince Stannis Baratheon.”

“!?”

I laughed at her scandalous expression. “Even to a baron like me, it’s known that the princes and His Majesty does not have the best of brotherly relationships. That is fine. I do not personally expect all that is good from everyone. We do as we must. Enough about me, what about you?”

She seemed to think about that for a moment. “W-Well, I like the flower garden in the Red Keep. There is over five dozen different flowers. My personal favorite is the Leonheart.”

“What kind of flower is it?”

“It only blooms after Winter, so I haven’t been able to see it lately. It’s a short flower with red petals with interspaced yellow stripes.”

Basically Lannister’s house colors?

“But it’s more important to keep the flower even though it doesn’t bloom because all plants that are around it do better than plants that aren’t next to a Leonheart.” Interesting. “Mother doesn’t like it. She says that the flower mocks our house because it doesn’t show the brilliance of our house colors all of the time.” The insecure and hypersensitive bitch would say that.

“Everyone has their tastes and favorites,” I hummed. “I’m sure she has her own favorite flower.”

“What about you, Ser Marris?”

“Hmm?”

“What’s your favorite flower?”

“… You know, I don’t have one actually,” I replied with a frown. “It never came up.”

“Really?”

“... I mean, if I had to choose one, then I’ll choose the dandelion.”

“Why?”

“Everyone considers it a weed, but it’s edible and its leaves can be brewed to make liver tonic.”

“So it would be good for father?”

I snorted mirthfully. “If you can get him to drink tea instead of wine, yes.”

She giggled, too.

I supposed that this was a good start to our relationship, however unexpected it was. However, I didn’t want to play the part of the royal financial life-support. Wars were coming, and I, as a lord of the Stormlands close to the Crownlands, was more or less going to be involved in the wars to come.

I was stupid for thinking that I could stay out of this world’s troubles.

Smiling at her, I made the final touches and turned the clipboard around.

She saw my sketches of her and her eyes brightened.

But for now, I could just enjoy the smiles of a young girl.

-VB-

That moment did not last forever.

Eventually, the royal entourage left and Myrcella left with it.

To “prove” my worth, I offered the royal family one of my “masterpiece” statues: David the Thinker. Yes, that Thinker.

Once I saw them off, I began to plan.

For what?

For a technological ascendency to break myself free of the feudal shackles.

-VB-

A/N: no new power this chapter.