Three Jewels by Alexander Verlangen

Author:Alexander Verlangen [Verlangen, Alexander]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-08-02T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 11

Adin

After breakfast, Adin returned to his room to nurse his headache. He had been startled that King Auberi sat next to him. They didn’t speak during breakfast and didn’t say goodbye to one another after. Adin had been escorted back to his bedroom. Keir wasn’t at any meal or event after his theatrical breakfast. Cord looked distraught.

It came as a shock when King Auberi entered his room unannounced. The king looked uncomfortable and awkward. The king looked over Adin’s messy room with displeasure. Adin had become accustomed to being alone and now rarely wore clothes in his bedroom.

“King Auberi,” Adin acknowledged, bowing his head, unsure if he should be formal.

The two so rarely interacted. Even when they did, it was arguments and silence that defined their relationship.

“I owe you an apology,” Adin admitted.

The words in the books he had read had forced themselves into him. While he was still confused about his beliefs, he knew not all of them to be correct.

“For what?” King Auberi asked.

“I made assumptions and believed things I shouldn’t. I’m working on it,” Adin promised.

King Auberi smiled at this and looked pleased. He still appeared anxious and uncomfortable but less so. He paced the small room looking even more displeased as he scrutinized it.

“This won’t do. Next time we travel, you will be given a better room,” King Auberi declared.

It was a gift, a reward. It meant the king was warming to him. Adin was unsure how to thank him.

“What do you want from me?” Adin questioned.

“I enjoy our debates. I’m unsure of how I feel about our argument about slaves. I acknowledge it is a point many make,” King Auberi replied, tapping his foot.

Adin didn’t know how to respond to this. It was rare the best path to survival was arguing with a king over beliefs. Most kings were unaccustomed to being challenged. Their courts and ambitious people eager to please kings readily agreed with what most of the kings said.

“Let’s have regular arguments then,” Adin offered.

It was an avenue to respect that Adin had never had. No one particularly cared about his opinion or views on anything. It was an intellectual challenge. No one respected his thoughts enough to want to disagree with them.

The king grinned and agreed. He left Adin alone in his room. Adin flipped through books reading everything that could be found about slavery.

It was a difficult debate as most royals were in favor of slavery. The literature was skewed toward their beliefs. The few former slaves who had books talked about things that didn’t make sense: unity, alliances, and solidarity. Humans didn’t trust fairies or elves. Forming alliances with one another would go against everything everyone had learned.

He remembered Fleur handing him a crumpled piece of parchment and opened it. He knew nothing about her other than she was a slave. He also knew she served the royal court; she was the one who brought the humans their food. She must be trusted by the court.

Jewels are nothing but glorified slaves.

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