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THE PATH OF RENUNCIATION 29
In the afternoon, after giving Movron the last instructions regarding the rest of the students, Karl recalled from duty several officers whom he trusted more than those appointed by Paraman, and ordered them to lay down the carriage. For the first time in his regency, he, along with his sister and brother, left the walls of the White Castle for two weeks. Since the visit to Lausens was unofficial and no social events were planned, as a pretext, Charles voiced the most convenient version to the Council: to complete the training, Liramel had to personally inspect the tax records of the fiefdom. For several months he himself had been openly looking for an opportunity to check his cousin's internal documentation thoroughly and with passion. Karl had long realized that he was dishonest about contributions to the Family Treasury, and the analysis of the reports filed since that time, how the fiefdom passed to him officially, finally convinced him of the validity of suspicions. There was no
THE PATH OF RENUNCIATION 30
Strange, very strange, he thought, and weighed the blade in his palm. The sword was a little lighter than it should have been. Squinting, Karl caught the light and read the inscription along the chute in a whisper. The language belonged to the Allotars.“Interesting little thing,” he said, and reluctantly returned the weapon to his brother. “I'm sure Yakir did his best - I haven't seen anything like that in the treasury. “An alloy from another world,” Christian remarked, sliding the blade back into its sheath.“Mountains hold more secrets than I thought,” Karl nodded in agreement. - This is a weapon of the northern people, although it was obviously forged as a gift. Their blades themselves were curved. – Is that how? Glancing sideways at him, Christian frowned slightly. - By the way, I have long wanted to ask ... What reports from the border? Did the Council's fears come true? Turning around at the sound of approaching footsteps, Carl shrugged vaguely.“So far, it’s quiet,” he a
THE PATH OF RENUNCIATION 31
The small village, bypassed by the road, was just waking up: goats released to pasture were bleating, two fat geese were grumpily cackling ... Liramel had not heard these sounds since she had been visiting Anders's farm with her brothers.“Well, have a good trip…” Glancing at the envoy who was still accompanying them, Karl tucked his thumbs into his belt and, nodding in response to his bow, looked away. The man, whose face was hidden by a hood despite the warm day, hesitated. Sitting in the carriage, Liramel gazed with interest at his straight, tense figure. She already knew that he belonged to Secret Intelligence and had no name or family, but she was curious what a man with such a sharp and unusually deep voice could look like. For some reason, Liramel felt like he looked like one of the Auric family. At least the man carried himself the way only Aurika could, independent and unreasonably proud. As Boanolak wrote, whose works Liramel hardly read every morning, it was always the sm
THE PATH OF RENUNCIATION 32
Toward evening, the dark blue was covered with clouds. Tall and dense, they rushed from north to south, casting huge gray shadows on the ground. The rising wind slightly swayed the tops of the huge fir trees and sorted through the pines with shaggy curls. It got noticeably cooler. Turning off the road, Liramel launched her horse across the grass. The emerald-colored carpet breathed as if alive, and it seemed as if they were not jumping, but slowly swimming against the current towards the billowing green wave of the forest. She frowned uneasily, choking on a premonition that clenched her heart. Everything around seemed to freeze and lose its color. Lyramel had already experienced something similar the day she first met Mark, but this time the strange feeling seemed even stronger and sharper. Involuntarily whipping the horse, she pulled it into a gallop, but immediately pulled the reins. It was impossible to succumb to fear… “Even if you are stronger than the enemy, fear will make
THE PATH OF RENUNCIATION 33
Paraman stood at the exit to the throne room. Leaning his back against the wall dimly lit by the torch, he waited for Yakir to come down, and only then handed him a rolled-up paper and quietly muttered:- Read.Unfolding the sheet, Yakir turned his back to the torch, glanced briefly over the small, dense lines, and, raising his eyes to Paraman, narrowed his eyes, hoping to hide his confusion and surprise:“Lyramel also asked me to leave. Why are these changes? The host decided to replay? Or is it something to do with the recent ceremony? “Too many questions,” the duke replied gloomily, pulling the paper out of his hands. - Do what you're told. We'll see in a couple of months. So the Order. I wonder what Aarmani and Aurok will say to this? Or did you and Carl decide everything behind their backs? Yes Paraman? The duke was so fast that Yakir did not even have time to raise his hand. Hitting his head against the wall, he tried to inhale, but couldn't: cold, hard fingers squeezed his
THE PATH OF RENUNCIATION 34
The maid Liramel had sent to fetch her brother an hour ago hadn't returned. It was already getting dark outside the window, and long bluish shadows lay on the white carpet, stretching all the way to the fireplace. June came into its own smoothly, but early spring has long fluffed the grass and covered the apple orchard with fragrant clover. Now the cats were almost invisible: during the day they dispersed in search of shade, and at night only a sharp-sighted owl could see them. It had been a month and a half since their return from Lausens, and exactly a month since Liramel had last seen Karl. He was dissatisfied with her decision to send Yakir to Varut and began defiantly avoiding any meetings and explanations. At first she also endured her temper, but then she became melancholy and even sank to the point that she sent Linnie to watch her brother, and for the last three days she herself climbed the secret staircase to his chambers and knocked until her hands went numb. But Karl
THE PATH OF RENUNCIATION 35
Frightening the guards, Liramel slammed the door and, almost running to the corridor, looked around. Only a few torches burned along the walls, the rest had already been extinguished, so there was little light. “Lock the chambers,” she said without turning around in response to the questions of the guards and turned to the left. In the semi-darkness, despite the presence of numerous guards, she was always uncomfortable: Liramel was afraid of twilight even more than pitch darkness. Christian's rooms were located at the far end of the White Corridor. The high gilded doors were slightly smaller than those that led into the royal chambers. Asking the officer who saluted her if her brother had been away, Liramel unlocked the heavy doors without knocking and, entering, immediately lowered the inner bolt behind her. It was against the rules, but they didn't bother her much now. Christian didn't sleep. In general, he rarely went to bed before midnight, and sometimes the light in his
THE PATH OF RENUNCIATION 36
Tarham felt that he was missing something important, but he could not catch the right thought, as if someone had thoroughly worked with his mind. However, none of the Initiates had such power. Nevertheless, as soon as it seemed that a little more - and Karl's actions would become clear, the built-up chain collapsed. The move with Liramel was quite predictable. As expected, Lirdan's son wanted to send his sister away and find out who was behind the assassination, and at the same time advance his plan with Lord Varuta. He acted consistently, but Tarham did not understand his interest in the northern borders. Why Karl needed to control the Secret Intelligence Service and what he was trying to do behind the back of the Order, also could not be figured out. Even the younger brother failed, missing one of the messengers: the son of Lirdan removed the witness before he could reach him, Groaning, he got up and sat heavily on the edge of the bed. My legs ached so much that I wanted to cut t