Chapter 184 - 129 : Year 31 - 36 Open Conspiracy

Chapter 184: Chapter 129 : Year 31 - 36 Open Conspiracy

His uncle rose and walked towards the window. Below them, merchants continued to move through the streets, their business bringing new life to a place that had once struggled to attract them.

"The Veymonts have spent generations building a reputation for fairness and generosity," he said. "They believe that treating their vassals well will earn them loyalty, and often it does. But they have grown too accustomed to thinking that goodwill will settle every dispute. They hesitate because they do not wish to damage the relationships that support their authority."

He turned back to his nephew.

"In better times, the Veymonts’ reputation served them well. Their strength made people think twice before taking advantage of their goodwill. But these are difficult years, and even great houses are struggling to recover. A reputation for fairness can become a weakness when others learn they can take advantage of it without consequence."

"Count Lucian has too much on his hands already, and he cannot afford to turn every unpaid tribute into a fight. An open conflict would cost him dearly, and he knows it. We need only make sure we give him no clear reason to take the matter before the Duke."

Garran studied his uncle’s face. The older man’s confidence was unsettling, but it was also comforting. Since his father’s death, Garran had been surrounded by people who reminded him what a Viscount was expected to do. His uncle was the first to offer him a way to do something different without making him feel that he was acting out of weakness.

"And if the clerks demand more records?"

"We give them what they ask for, provided it is in order. The accounts will be ready, the road expenses will be supported by the records we prepare, and the guard reports will agree with the sums claimed. We have weeks to arrange it. There is no need to make this more dangerous than it already is."

Garran looked once more towards the city. He knew the money they had held back should have gone to House Veymont. He also knew that if the Count discovered the deception, the matter could become far worse than a delayed payment. Yet the sight of the busy market below reminded him of what he stood to gain if he kept more of the income within his own territory.

He drew a slow breath.

"Very well. Have the accounts prepared before they arrive. I don’t want anything left for them to question."

His uncle inclined his head, as though the decision had been expected all along.

"Leave the arrangements to me. Your task is to receive them as your father’s successor should, with courtesy and confidence. There is no reason to behave like a guilty man when they enter your castle."

Garran returned to the desk and placed the report among the other papers. He still felt a trace of unease, but his uncertainty was no longer strong enough to make him abandon the plan. If the inspection passed without incident, he told himself, the money would remain available to strengthen his territory, and his first difficult decision as Viscount might prove to have been the right one.

He did not ask his uncle what would happen if the gamble succeeded too well and made him want to try it again.

Several weeks later, a carriage bearing the crest of House Veymont arrived at Ashcombe Castle with two clerks and a modest mounted escort. Their arrival was formal but unremarkable. The guards at the entrance announced them, servants led them inside, and the Viscount received them with the courtesy due to officials sent by his Count.

Garran had prepared himself for the encounter. He welcomed the visitors, answered their questions, and gave them access to the accounts they had requested. His uncle remained nearby during the first meeting, offering explanations when needed and directing them towards the records of road repairs, patrol expenses, provisions, and wages.

The inspection continued over the following days. The clerks compared the ledgers against reports from the guard posts, examined the toll records, and visited sections of the roads where repairs had recently been carried out. They asked for supporting accounts, checked dates, and questioned the officials responsible for arranging supplies and paying the men.

The records were orderly. Some of the roadwork was plain to see, and the guard posts were occupied. The accounts included expenses that were difficult to verify after the fact, but none could be dismissed merely because the sums seemed high. Garran answered respectfully, while his uncle made certain that the explanations remained consistent with the figures before them.

The clerks were experienced enough to notice that the expenses seemed unusually high in some places. They were not, however, able to establish that the Viscount had deliberately withheld tribute or that the reported costs had been falsified. They had no reliable evidence that could distinguish an inflated expense from a genuine one, and the work they inspected gave parts of the account a reasonable appearance.

They could suspect that something was wrong. They could not prove it.

When the clerks eventually returned to Castle Veymont, they submitted their findings to Master Corren. The report did not confirm that Ashcombe’s accounts were entirely honest, but neither did it provide grounds for a formal accusation. The clerks recommended that the Viscount’s payments and expenses continue to be reviewed in future, particularly if similar shortfalls arose again.

Master Corren placed the report before Lucian at their next meeting. The commander read it over his shoulder, his mouth tightening as he reached the conclusion.

"So we have spent money sending men there, and they have returned without finding anything we can use."

"They examined the records and inspected the roads," Corren replied. "Some of the reported expenses are difficult to verify, but I cannot say that they are false. The evidence does not support a charge."

The commander looked towards Lucian. "Then what is to stop him from doing the same thing again?"

Lucian studied the final page before setting it down. He was not satisfied with the outcome, but dissatisfaction alone would not give him the evidence he needed. He could press the matter further, demand additional examinations, or make a formal complaint to Duke Vendettit. Each course would require more time and resources, and none guaranteed that the truth would be established.

"Keep his accounts under closer review," he said at last. "If another shortfall occurs, I want the records examined against this report. We will not accuse him without proof, but we will not forget the matter either."

The commander accepted the decision, though it was clear that he would have preferred a firmer response. Master Corren added the instruction to his records, and the meeting moved on to other business. There were still too many demands on House Veymont’s resources to justify pursuing a suspicion indefinitely.

For the time being, Lucian let the matter rest. The shortfall remained unresolved, and the expense of investigating it had produced no result strong enough to justify a further confrontation.

Meanwhile news of the inspection travelled beyond Ashcombe’s own lands. It passed through the people who had accompanied the clerks, through merchants who moved between markets, and through stewards who exchanged accounts and reports with neighbouring households. The details changed as the story spread, but one fact remained: House Veymont had questioned a Viscount’s shortfall, investigated his explanation, and taken no further action.

Among the five Viscounts beneath House Veymont, the news was received in different ways. Some had little reason to test Lucian’s patience. Their own lands were still struggling, and they needed his cooperation as much as he needed theirs. Others had recovered more quickly. Their fields were producing better yields, their roads were receiving more traffic, and their income was beginning to improve. They noticed that Ashcombe had retained part of his payment without suffering an immediate penalty.

One of those Viscounts asked his steward whether the Count would be equally patient if a payment from their own lands arrived late.

"That would depend on the reason, my lord," the steward replied carefully.

"Of course," the Viscount said. "I was asking whether he would be able to insist on the full amount if we had a reason of our own."

The steward did not answer at once. He understood the question well enough, and so did his lord. Neither made a decision that day, but the possibility had entered their calculations. A weakness did not need to be openly exploited before other people began considering how much freedom it might offer them.

House Aerwyn took a different view. Lucy’s elder brother, now in his sixties and long accustomed to the responsibilities of his title, received reports of the affair from his officials. One of them suggested that House Aerwyn might be wise to review its own contribution, particularly while the Veymonts’ finances remained under strain.

The Viscount set the report aside.

"If we cannot spare more, we will tell the Count plainly. If our harvests are poor, we will show him the figures. But we will not invent expenses or use another man’s conduct to excuse our own."

"My lord, I only meant that the other houses may begin to look after themselves first."

"Then let them." His voice remained calm, but he gave the official no room to continue. "House Aerwyn has served alongside the Veymonts for generations. We have received their protection, and we have shared their burdens. That relationship means something, or it means nothing at all when keeping faith becomes difficult."

House Aerwyn maintained its promised assistance, sending a modest quantity of grain and a small detachment of guards, while keeping enough resources to protect its own holdings. It was not an offer large enough to solve House Veymont’s difficulties, but it was honest help given without attempting to turn loyalty into a claim on the Count’s gratitude.