114 Blemishes (1/2)
If nothing else, at least the food was delicious. With a sigh, Corco looked over the various offerings of fish and seafood which were presented before him in dozens of bowls. Over the past few months, the king and his chefs had come up with a whole slew of new ways to prepare and enjoy the sea food Saniya was so known for. Garnished with sprigs of a diverse number of herbs and several whole lemons, the first major course of today's banquet was both refreshing and enticing. As far as Corco was concerned however, the contents of the bowls and plates couldn't hold a candle to the music on offer. To the great enjoyment of the lords seated within the garden, a number of musicians had taken center stage, where a large space remained reserved for artistic performances and of course the ubiquitous duels of Medala.
Luckily, there had been enough women capable of playing instruments within what little was left of his father's warrior servants. Otherwise, Corco might have been forced to come to the fore himself. However, the rendition of the piece performed by the specialized musicians was in no way inferior to Corco's own. Despite their inexperience with the style or the composition, a light, an ethereal melody danced among the guests and enhanced the sophisticated atmosphere even further.
Unique, delicious food, a novel approach to liquor, accompanied by delightful music in the most fantastical garden of the south. Yes indeed, everything about the king's first harvest festival was perfect, or it would have been, had it not been for one or two troublemakers.
”King Corco, we need a final decision on the bandit's status soon,” Tama whispered into Corco's right ear. Forced to focus on the very troubles he wished to ignore, the king followed Tama's eyes to find Uchu, the commoner bandit, as he sat in his own private corner of the garden, a frown on his face. Even when the bandit was unhappy, he still managed to enjoy food and drink like no other man in Rapra Castle could. No wonder, as all other men in the castle had a modicum of decorum, at least. They would hold themselves back even when faced with good food and drink and wouldn't shovel and funnel everything before them into their gullet as fast as they could. As evidenced by his own actions, Uchu had far fewer reservations than his new colleagues.
While he tried to force all the food on offer into his stomach, the bandit also managed to create enough noise of ungodly tone and proportion to even drown out the music in his immediate surroundings, intent on killing the mood for as many lords as possible. If nothing else, his lack of manners, together with his previous insult, had isolated the upstart from the other nobles, who had chosen to sit far away from the spectacle. Only Uchu's new ally and attendant Guachimine Villca was still by his side, but shuffled around on his seat in discomfort as he gnawed on his fingernails, rather than the fish before him.
”What do you mean, 'decision'?” Corco asked back after he had looked over the blemish on his perfect banquet with sadness. ”The decision has already been made, there is nothing to decide any more. According to the old Villca's fourth son, who is a noble by status, the second son accepted a duel with this guy, which, by all right, admits him into the same status as any warrior, at the very least. So I had to let him in.”
With a sigh, the king turned away and looked over to the opened walls, down onto the new town he had built atop Sillu Island. Down there, the commoners of Saniya would come together at this very moment to celebrate their year of plenty, the first of many if things went according to plan. In any other Medalan city, they wouldn't even make it into the inner city wall, let alone so close. Corco wouldn't risk his new reputation among the commoners by insisting on old rules.
”Then there's the invitation,” the king continued. ”If the duelists agreed beforehand that the winner would take Khune's invitation - and Uchu won the duel - then I can't do anything about that either. If what Guachimine says is true, the bandit has a right to be here. What am I supposed to do, kill the idiot? In that case, I'll break the very rules which have kept all the lords here, and their ancestors, in power for centuries.”
”But... he killed a noble. Even worse, he brought the head here, into Rapra Castle. It's an insult to the new king. We won't let that stand, will we?” Even though Tama's balled hands were trembling, her voice never became louder than a hiss as she retorted Corco.
”And play right into his hands? I'm not that stupid. Yes, he's acting like a dick, and he's clearly dangerous. But he hasn't really attacked House Pluritac after all. Eliminating a challenger to my authority, one of the Villca heirs, could even be seen as a boon. I'm sure not many lords here would mind if I throw the literal bastard into jail right now, but once they go home and think about it, I'm sure the great masters of the south would realize that they rather not be ruled by a king who plays it fast and loose with the rules.”
”But still-”
”You're right.” Corco raised his hand and interrupted the girl before any disagreement could develop. ”Even though there are many reasons against it, he still spat on my authority. I won't throw him out. That's exactly what the bastard wants.”
Rather than interrupt again, Tama turned silent to listen.
”Think about it, what reason does this guy have to insult me like this? Isn't he just trying to impress all those eastern lords who didn't show up? So he's already achieved his goal, why would I send him away when he's already won? Might as well make the bastard stay and let him suffer with me,” Corco grinned. ”Plus, while I have no reason to throw him out, I and every other noble in this garden have every reason to hate him for his actions. Once the banquet is over, we can just stop inviting him... or not support his succession. As for dueling the bandit to get rid of him... I'm sure that even if we don't do anything, there will still be more than enough people willing to discipline the cheeky bandit for us.”
With a modest nod of his head, Corco pointed out the young lord across the garden. Almost hidden by the long bamboo reeds, even more solitary than his supposed brother, sat the first young master of House Villca, Epunamo. Despite his strong claim to the title of Cashan's lord, and all the power which came from it, he had chosen to sit by himself, only accompanied by his warrior attendant. As soon as he had arrived and understood what had happened, he had taken a seat far away from the other lords and done nothing but stare at the bandit who killed his younger brother.
As a result, the awkward atmosphere in the venue had reached its peak ever since Epunamo's arrival. With the conflict between the Villca heirs at a constant simmer, they had stolen the spotlight from everyone else, including their host. None of the other lords dared be too loud or exuberant, for fear that they might miss an important change in the power balance of the north-east. In the ever-shifting politics of Medala, any slip-up could be deadly.
”No one else has come?” Corco asked. Though he didn't have much hope, he still had to make sure.