"And so your work in controlling them to Abbot Olin's needs will be no easy task," Aydrian was quick to reply. "But I have all faith in you, Duke Bretherford. Duke Kalas assures me that there is no more able man in all the kingdom at handling the movements of a fleet. The lives of ten thousand of Honce-the-Bear's soldiers will rest squarely on your shoulders, to say nothing of the overall designs concerning Behren. If Abbot Olin's mission proves unsuccessful, then we can expect those Behrenese pirates to use the turmoil within Honce-the-Bear to strike the coast from Entel all the way up the Mantis Arm."
It made perfect sense, of course, and that was the beauty of the plan, Bretherford knew. Bretherford realized that this was not about Olin, for if Aydrian was truly afraid of the potential consequences concerning Jacintha and Behren, he would have merely held the greedy abbot in check and waited until Honce-the-Bear was fully secured before turning his sights to the south. No, this was about getting Bretherford out of the way and far from Prince Midalis, the duke knew. Aydrian had Kalas securely in his court, and that meant the Allhearts, and they meant the Ursal garrison and the majority of the Kingsmen, and perhaps even the Coastpoint Guards of the southern mainland. But the fleet, like the waters they sailed, were more fluid in all of this, and Aydrian understood that the duke of the Mirianic could bring a powerful allying force to Prince Midalis as easily as Duke Kalas had brought the ground forces to Aydrian! And so however Aydrian might parse his reasoning, the truth of it was that Bretherford was being shuffled out of the way, and away from the main body of Honce-the-Bear's great navy.
The duke was somewhat surprised as the truth unfolded in his thoughts.
Why hadn't Aydrian just dismissed him, perhaps even had him murdered? Why this pretense of more important duties? As he came to understand, Bretherford's estimate of young Aydrian as a tactician heightened considerably. The duke was on the fence concerning the disposition of the kingdom, and Aydrian saw that clearly. And so the young king was putting him into a position where his skills would serve Aydrian well. Aydrian feared him, Bretherford knew - feared that he would take the fleet and hand it over to Midalis. But no such fears would accompany the duke of the Mirianic to Entel, especially when the great bulk of his command would be left behind.
"Your estimate of my understanding of the Behrenese might be exaggerated," Bretherford started to say, trying to wriggle out of this.
"You are the man who will escort Abbot Olin by sea to Jacintha," Aydrian said firmly. "You will coordinate the movements of his naval assets along the Behrenese coast and provide him with the plans for transporting soldiers from Entel to Jacintha, or to whatever other coastal city Abbot Olin chooses."
"You propose to place a duke under the command of an abbot?"
"I have just done so," Aydrian corrected, his tone firm. He had come in pretending to ask a favor, but now he was obviously issuing an order.
"You serve the throne, do you not?"
His pause and expression told Bretherford that Aydrian was not going to let that seemingly rhetorical question pass by without a direct answer.
"I have served Honce-the-Bear for all of my life."
Aydrian grinned. "And you continue to serve the throne of Honce-the- Bear?"
Bretherford didn't blink as he stared at the young king.
"The throne now claimed by Aydrian Boudabras?" Aydrian clarified, so that there could be no irony, no double meaning, in the demanded answer.
"I serve the throne of Ursal," said Bretherford.
"The voice of that throne in Jacintha will soon be Abbot Olin," Aydrian told him. "Abbot Olin travels to Behren at my request and as my emissary.
The fact that he is an Abellican abbot is of no consequence. He serves me at this time, and you will answer to him."
Bretherford wanted to respond to that, wanted to remark something along the lines that Duke Kalas might not be so thrilled to hear of these unexpected developments, but Aydrian's expression told him clearly that there was no room for debate here. The young king hadn't come in to ask anything. He had come in to push Bretherford out of the way.
The duke supposed that he should be grateful that Aydrian had seen this way out, and had not merely ordered him thrown into a dungeon, or quietly beheaded.