A Time of Tigers - From Peasant to Emperor

"Are they really that dusty?" Oliver said, sticking out his finger to test one of them. It came back, black with the stuff. "Oh… Yeah, that's pretty dusty."

"You can tell just by looking at it," Greeves said, momentarily stunned out of his tirade, as he wondered why Oliver had bothered to check. "Ain't you meant to be keeping these noble hands of yours all clean?"

"I would agree, my Lord. If they are dusty, we will have the maids clean them," Verdant said.

"Something tells me Volguard wouldn't be too keen on the idea," Oliver said. "He'll want delicate hands to take care of them. Someone that understands their importance."

"If he ain't volunteering to do it himself, then the old man can keep his complaints quiet. The last thing I care about is getting these bastard things clean. Where's the coin, Patrick? If we're to meet with all your various little requests, we're going to need the coin to seize it," Greeves said.

"The trouble is the stone keep, is it?" Oliver said.

"Aye, that's a large part of it," Greeves said.

"Then we will see that left for a while," Oliver said. "I had thought it to be an optimistic idea when I first said it, but it would take too long to build regardless. And there are other matters that need tending to, as you say."

"Eh?" Greeves, for some reason, was stunned by that as well.

"What?" Oliver said. "That's a pretty stupid expression you're wearing, Greeves."

"Well, it's just… You of all people, giving up that quickly…" Greeves said. "Ain't you normally the one cracking the whip, being as stubborn as the rocks that you intended to build the keep out of, making the rest of us keep pace with you." He looked to Verdant for agreement, and tentatively, in the most respectful way he could, the man offered it.

"I have to say that I am surprised as well, my Lord. You tend to pursue whatever you set your mind to until the very end," Verdant said.

"Come now, it was a plan mentioned in passing. I'm not nearly that bad, am I?" Oliver said. With Greeves getting Verdant as reinforcements, Oliver turned to Blackthorn, but she wouldn't meet his gaze. "I'm not, am I, Blackthorn?"

Now that she was called out by name, her shoulders sagged in resignation. "…You can be, my Lord."

"Ehh…" Oliver said. "I thought you were my retainers. How much has Greeves paid you to wander over to his side?"

"As if I would ever have enough money to interest the likes of these two. They grew up with all their toys covered in gold and silver, I imagine, whilst I was throwing mud balls at passing travellers," Greeves said.

"Stop," Lasha said, holding up her hand. "You will hurt my head, merchant."

"Indeed. The very image of you as a child, merchant, as twisted as you are, is inclined to push one towards madness," Verdant agreed.

"See? They're quicker to turn on me than you, Patrick," Greeves said. "…Anyway – how the pissin' hell did you manage to get me this distracted? We've got a list to work through here. You haven't brought me any coin, and you're not talking about selling these books. If you're not building a keep, then there isn't as urgent a need for it… But yer treasury is beginning to look empty.

If something were to go wrong, you ain't got the funds to cover it."

"Well, that goal was always to see Solgrim grow to the degree that the funds it generates would take care of its own future growths," Oliver said. "How has Harmon been getting on whilst we were away?"

"His shop opened the day before yesterday," Greeves said, tapping his fingers on the table.

"Hoh. He must have already brought in a handful of new customers then," Oliver said, nodding to himself in satisfaction. "If we keep up that sort of pace, in time, the traffic we get through Solgrim will only be increased and—"

"Aye, about that – no one pissin' knows that he's here," Greeves said, shattering the plans that were already beginning to knit their way together in Oliver's head. "It'll be a few weeks before the news spreads well enough that they know to look for him. In that time, he'll be working on your armour. You wanted full plate, aye?

Though I can't imagine you wearing it… He'll want to do some measuring with you at some point."

"Well… I suppose that is the natural way of things," Oliver said, taking a seat, as he processed the shocking slowness. In his head, they had been doing much better than the reality that Greeves set in front of him. He supposed that after surviving the Capital, he'd expected the rest of his businesses to be easily resolvable.

"And… Ferdinand came looking around while you were away," Greeves said, keeping his gaze focused on the table. It was an ominous sort of posture. The sort where, it seemed as if he couldn't meet Oliver's eye, no matter how brave he was. It didn't exactly bode well.

He noted that both Blackthorn and Verdant stiffened at the stance, preparing for the bad news.

"And?" Oliver prodded.

"Well… He apologized for the business and Ernest, said the competition was still on, and that was it," Greeves said.

"Gods be damned, Greeves," Oliver growled, as he felt the tension pop to a disappointing degree. "You needn't create so much suspense for what was basically a routine visit."

"Suspense? I didn't do anything of the sort," Greeves said, sniffing. "Was just thinking about the keep. Is a shame not to have one. We've had to use your house, and mine, to house the citizenry whenever we're attacking… But these are just houses, at the end of the day. Not the sort of thing that's perfectly easy to defend.

Besides, you've been bringing in nobles at a stupid rate, haven't you? We don't have enough houses for them all."

"Did you manage to find rooms for Volguard?" Oliver asked. He'd left that to Greeves, not knowing where to put the man himself.

"…Only because your General isn't as much of a bastard as some of these other nobles are likely to be," Greeves said, only then seeming to remember that Verdant and Blackthorn were also nobles. "Meaning no offence, of course. General Skullic gave us a couple of rooms on the second floor for yer Professor, and we've put him there."