Chapter 284: v3 - 45: a new beginning VI

Chapter 284: v3 Chapter 45: a new beginning VI

By the time the meal ended, Lorenz’s decision seemed to have settled.

The servants began clearing the table.

Lorenz looked toward the three men seated farther down the table.

"That will be all for tonight."

Robert, Alex, and Gary immediately rose.

They bowed.

"Thank you, Your Highness."

"You may go."

They bowed once more before leaving the dining chamber.

Cassian remained where he was.

He had not been dismissed.

Neither had Marcus.

For a moment, the three men remained in silence.

Lorenz’s gaze moved between Cassian and Marcus.

Then he leaned back slightly.

"I have been considering your assignment."

Cassian waited.

"I had originally intended to place you within my personal security."

He paused.

"But I believe there is a better use for you."

Lorenz turned toward Marcus.

"What do you think?"

Marcus considered Cassian for a moment.

"I believe you are right."

Lorenz nodded slowly.

"Then perhaps the title I promised you may come sooner than we expected."

Cassian’s attention sharpened.

Lorenz looked toward Marcus.

"Your family has several cadet branches with lesser titles, does it not?"

Marcus nodded.

"It does."

"Do you have one that could be granted?"

Marcus thought for a moment.

"Yes."

"And could it be given to him?"

"It could."

Lorenz nodded.

"Then that may solve the problem."

His gaze returned to Cassian.

"What do you think of becoming a count now?"

Cassian’s expression changed slightly.

The possibility had been mentioned before.

But hearing it offered now was different.

Lorenz continued.

"Not the kind of count I spoke of earlier."

"A minor one."

"Nothing that would place you among the great houses."

He paused.

"But enough to give you standing."

Cassian considered the words.

Lorenz leaned forward.

"And that standing is precisely why I believe it would be useful."

"The succession will not be won by soldiers alone."

"I need influence."

"I need men who can enter noble households and speak to people as equals."

"A minor count can do that."

"You can speak directly to their sons and daughters."

"You can attend their gatherings."

"You can form relationships."

"And, more importantly, you can be heard."

Cassian remained silent.

"You would not be approaching their servants."

"You would not be gathering information from people who stand beneath them."

"You would speak to the people themselves."

"Their sons."

"Their daughters."

"The younger members of their houses."

"Those who already have their family’s confidence, and those who may one day inherit its influence."

Cassian understood.

A title was not decoration.

It was permission.

Permission to enter.

Permission to speak.

Permission to be heard.

Lorenz continued.

"And if they believe you are simply a minor nobleman connected to Marcus’s family, they will have no reason to assume you are there on my behalf."

Marcus considered this.

"That identity could be useful."

"Very."

Lorenz looked at him.

"There is no reason for him to remain beside me at every occasion."

Cassian’s eyes shifted slightly.

"There will be times when I want him beside me."

"At other times, he can attend gatherings independently."

"Let people know him first."

"Let them form their own opinions of him."

Lorenz’s expression became faintly amused.

"With that face, I suspect forming an impression will not be difficult."

Marcus gave him a look.

Lorenz ignored it.

"He is young."

"He is presentable."

"He speaks well."

"And he can fight."

He paused.

"That combination will attract attention."

Cassian remained silent.

"Some will want to know him."

"Some will want to befriend him."

"Some may even try to bring him into their own circles."

Lorenz’s smile deepened.

"And that is precisely what we want."

Marcus nodded slowly.

"They may reveal more to him because they believe they are speaking to someone of their own standing."

"Exactly."

Lorenz looked toward Cassian.

"You may learn things simply because they do not think they need to guard their words around you."

Cassian understood the distinction.

This was not merely about gathering information.

It was about creating access.

Influence.

Relationships.

And sometimes, perhaps, allegiance.

Cassian considered the proposal carefully.

"There is one difficulty."

Lorenz raised an eyebrow.

"I do not know all of your customs."

"You will."

The answer came immediately.

Marcus added,

"You already understand the fundamentals."

"You have learned our language while surviving in an Arena."

"Learning which fork to use will hardly be the greater challenge."

Cassian almost smiled.

Lorenz noticed.

"You will learn as you go."

He leaned back.

"You do not need to become a Milician noble overnight."

"You only need to be convincing enough that people accept you while you learn."

Cassian nodded.

Lorenz turned toward Marcus.

"There is still the matter of the identity."

Marcus understood.

"A family history."

"A place of origin."

"A distant relation."

"Something simple enough to remember, but established enough to withstand ordinary questions."

Lorenz nodded.

"Good."

Marcus considered him.

"My family can provide the connection."

"And the title," Lorenz said.

"Yes."

"Nothing that attracts unnecessary attention?"

"A cadet title would be suitable."

Lorenz nodded.

"That is what I want."

He looked back at Cassian.

"You will have a name, a family, and a place in our nobility."

Cassian’s expression remained serious.

"And your position beside me will remain."

Cassian inclined his head.

"As your aide?"

"Yes."

Lorenz paused.

"And as one of my personal guards when necessary."

Cassian nodded.

"You will therefore have two uses."

"A sword when I need one."

"And a nobleman when I need someone who can open a door without knocking."

Cassian understood.

The title would give him access that a soldier could never have.

Lorenz studied him.

"Do you think you can do it?"

Cassian took a moment before answering.

"I have never done it before."

"No."

"But I understand what you are asking."

He met Lorenz’s eyes.

"I will learn."

A quiet pause.

"I will do my utmost."

Lorenz nodded.

"I believe you will."

Marcus gave a small nod of his own.

"So do I."

Lorenz looked between them.

"Then we have our answer."

The plan had not existed when Cassian first sat down at the table.

It had not even existed when Lorenz first assigned the others their duties.

It had formed only after watching him.

A fighter.

A foreigner.

A man with an unknown past.

And now, perhaps, a nobleman who could walk into rooms that Lorenz himself could not always enter.

For the first time that evening, Lorenz looked genuinely pleased with his own idea.

"We shall see what kind of nobleman you make."

--

Tbc