Chapter 46: Chapter 46: A true noble

Jocelyn POV ***

Lady Jocelyn was sitting at the big stone table in the dining hall when her father arrived. His head was bowed in the grief of a man who had just lost his child.

 

“Father,” she said, softly; knowing fully well where it is he was coming from. “How did it go father?”

 

He shook his head and sat directly in front of her, the large table and a basket of green apples between them.

 

“He will send the papers tonight—”

 

Lady Jocelyn snapped her eyes shut.

 

“And you will follow him immediately after the tournament,” said Lord Grove.

 

“That is absurd father,” said Lady Jocelyn, “You promised to give me time—”

 

“He has promised to send a hundred thousand gold florins to us,” Lord Grove continued, “And with that we can finally save our home. Makinburg will be saved.”

 

Lady Jocelyn stared wrathfully at her father with tear brimmed eyes. “You promised you’d wait for us father. You said you would give William time to save us.”

 

“His name is William then? Not Ulrich?” said Lord Grove, coldly. “I did give you time, but then, I did not realize that he was an impostor, a fraud. The son of a common thatcher daring to reach for the skies, daring to change the fixed stars.”

 

“The stars are not fixed, father,” Lady Jocelyn cried. “And William has shown that it can be done. But for his birth, the streets of Salpool would still be crying out his name.”

 

“And a man cannot change his birth, can he? Likewise your William cannot escape the gnarly claws of his cursed beginning. Enough of your argument, Jocelyn, you must marry Count Adhemar. It is your duty as a woman to save the family in time of crisis. But if you want to escape that duty for the childish obsession you call love, then so be it. Remember however, that it was your fault Makinburg fell.”

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Lord Grove grunted, jumped to his feet and stormed out of the room.

 

Lady Jocelyn began to cry as she fell to her knees in despair. She would have to pay the price for her home. A price she cannot simply run from despite having previously told herself so. Being a noble means ones financial problems don't just affect one's own family but the entire realm her family rules over. Choosing to disobey her father means her people starve regardless of who's fault it was.

 

She was furious with her father when she found out he had squandered their fortune in some bad investments some other nobles had pressured him into. She surmised they had done so with ill intentions from the start, though she did not know their motivations for doing so. Her father had argued back then that he could not predict they would suffer a drought for so long. His land being at the absolute border of Borish beside to two other nations, one of which being Count Adhemar's domain in Messers.

 

Lady Jocelyn, had not told William of her family's financial problem. No, she was a noble after all who had her pride and as a noblewoman it was her duty to protect her family's name. It was for this reason that not many knew of her family's current situation, sure their had been gossip but not many could with certainty confirm it.

 

Lady Jocelyn was shocked when she learned count Adhemar had first approached her father about their debts. Though not many knew with certainty some did as they had been the ones who pressured her father to begin with. When the count first came to her father about marrying her to settle his debts she wasn't concerned. She had heard rumors of the type of man Count Adhemar was and suspected the man had no intention of actually marrying her though she did not voice such concerns to her father.

 

Her worries for her family's future still dwelled with her but she did not think it possible that her family’s financial hardship would be solved through marriage alone. She believed no lord would pay such a high price for her even though she was part of the upper echelon of nobles. Social standing is certainly important specially amongst nobles but risking one’s wealth to increase one’s noble rank was another. If done incorrectly one could risk losing both just as Lord Grove was currently in danger of doing.

 

So it took her by surprise when she learned that not only was Count Adhemar pushing to finalize the marriage agreement and settling all of their debts and more even but that King Henry of Messers himself was pushing for the marriage.

 

She felt something was off with arrangement but whenever she tried to discuss it with her father he angered thinking she simply wanted out of the marriage. Her father had heard his daughter associating with Sir Ulrich but when he questioned her about it she had assured him he was a good match, having heard many nobles speak of Sir Ulrich's prestige had helped her convince her father that perhaps he was of good financial standing. Not to mention her father had mentioned to her that he too was starting doubt Count Adhemar's commitment therefore he wasn't against it at first.

 

Now, however, after "Sir Ulrich's" or rather William's identity had been exposed it not only came as a great surprise to the two of them that Count Adhemar was moving forward with the marriage but it was obvious to Lady Jocelyn that her father felt great relief.

 

She continued to cry her sorrows away in the night but in the end she was a true noble after all.

 

Come the morning, she lifted herself up and put on her finest dress to prepare and see her future husband be hailed as the tournament champion.

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