A Time of Tigers - From Peasant to Emperor
Chapter 1639 - 1639: The Hidden Mighty - Part 8

"As would you!" Lord Blake said. "My King, the time has passed for me treating you mildly. You have blundered far too mightily. This war, you do understand, is your fault? You have given them cause for rebellion, and if you continue to operate as you have been, those that like you not shall make their way all the way to the Capital, and your head shall be mounted on a spike before summer can threaten to begin. Is that the outcome that you desire?"

"…If you would speak just a little bit less harshly, Chief Strategist. He is still the High King," Justus said, though there was little force behind his voice. It was more tiredness than anything else, as if he lamented the position that they stood in.

"That wench Asabel," the High King said. "I should send Melicos for her. With no head for their rebellion, what shall they do?"

"With all due respect, my King," Lord Blake said, "your strategies shall henceforth be ignored. We have far too big a mess to clean up, and if you add more to the pile, it might become an impossible task. No more assassins, and no more plans that we do not approve. Not until this war is done. You can have the traitors when we have captured them, and put out the fires of rebellion. Until then, I ask you to be patient."

"How can I be patient when your suggestions are so full of wretchedness?" The High King said. "The likes of Tavar, of all people! He's not to be trusted. He'll turn on us."

"He's by far the best General that you have direct access to," Lord Blake said. "If you refuse him, you will be entirely subservient to the Generals who owe their loyalty directly to their Silver Kings first. Those of House Tavar have always sworn their loyalty directly to the High King. They're servants of the throne. In all these centuries, not one has threatened to turn traitor, and I do not believe this one shall. For as much as he might have supported the youth Oliver Patrick, he will not forsake his loyalty for him."

"…How can you be so certain? I do not trust him," the High King said.

"Would you prefer to place your trust directly in your Silver Kings then, those with every intention of snatching the throne from you?" The Chief Strategist said. "You are loved not, my King, I think that to be obvious. Those that serve you do not do so out of the goodness of their hearts. If you show weakness, they will take advantage of it. For the mistakes you have made, you are forced to trust in Tavar. And you are damn well lucky that he still shows his loyalty to the crown, for without him, our cause would be entirely lost."

"I trust Tavar also," Justus offered. "He has not been seen on a battlefield since he took his post in the Academy two decades ago, but I do not think he is in any way inferior to the likes of Blackwell, or Blackthorn."

The Chief Strategist snorted. "That's putting it mildly."

"Must we?" The High King pleaded. "Lord Blake, surely… Surely there is another? You have a cunning plan, don't you? Tell me. I'll apologise for the rest of it – just tell me. Yes, yes. I've made a mistake. I ought to have followed your suggestion in dealing with the Patrick boy. Perhaps I ought to have ignored him until a more certain time, I'll admit it! But in return, you admit to me that you know of another way. I can't put my trust in a man like Tavar, not when he has such close ties to the enemy."

He gripped the Chief's Strategists wide sleeves, only to receive a look of condescension in return. "Pull yourself together, Your Majesty," the Chief Strategist said, shrugging him off. "There is no other way. There's no tricks, no schemes, no individual who can overturn this. Only Tavar. The fact that you can rely on Tavar at all, my King – and believe me, you can – is a matter that you should thank the Gods for. He is the wall between you and rebellion. The sooner you accept that fact, the safer you shall be."

The High King's mood turned sour very quickly then. It was a mirror into a different world. A look of darkness flashed over his face. "I ought to have you both dismissed," he said to the two of them. "If I were to put Melicos in charge—"

"Melicos knows nothing of war," the Chief Strategist said. "He caused this war of yours. Put him in charge, relieve us of our duty and our vows. Isolate yourself further. You are the hands of your own destruction, my King. If you would only stand still, you would find that the world is not so harsh as you claim it to be. You're the inflictor of your own demise."

"You care not for me," the High King sniffed.

"If you wished for my love, you are starting decades too late," the Chief Strategist said. "But more important than my love, you have my loyalty. Keep your distance from this matter, and I swear to you, in your name, we shall win this war."

The High King narrowed his eyes at him. "Is that a promise you can keep, Lord Blake? Is that a promise that you would make as well, General Justus?"

"That is a promise that I can keep, if, and only if, you do not get in the way of the authority that you yourself have given me. General Tavar shall be Commanding General of our armies. That is the only solution that exists. From there, we will build our road to victory," the Chief Strategist said.

"If that is the stance that the Chief Strategist has on the matter, then I see no room to doubt him," Justus said. "He has proved himself ever capable. When you have allowed him to move freely, and do as he sees fit, as he ever failed you, Your Majesty?"

"He failed me on the matter of the Patrick cub," the High King sniffed. "I was forced to lay eyes on him in the ceremony. What an insult that was! He should have been dead long before then."

"You know that he had no hand in that, my King," Justus said. "He advised you in a different direction, and you acted contrary to his advice."