[Nogrod]

Lord Athanar listened expressionlessly to Thornden open up before him. After Thornden finished he was silent for a moment. Finally he laid his goblet to the table with a long sigh.

"I do honour your frankness, even if I had to push a little for you to finally come clean with this issue. But I'm a bit surprised about your attitude. With your age and experience I don't think you are in a position to tell me how to rule my men..." He paused for a moment taking a good look at Thornden. He took a stern face and leaned slightly forwards, talking in a low voice, slowly.

"I don't think even lord Eodwine would have laughed at a situation where during those exact first hours of his rule in a new place the local soldiers would skirmish with his men, his daughter would get beaten and his authority would be openly questioned in front of everyone in a banquet while others would have messed with weapons inside the hall while getting drunk." Athanar reached for his goblet without taking his eyes from Thornden’s. Slowly he leaned a little backwards giving Thornden time to think about what he had just said.

Suddenly lord Athanar flashed a thin smile as he had clearly remembered something. "How was it you said yourself, if I had cared to know people before judging them? How about you then master Thornden?”

There was silence between the men. Thornden was unsure whether Athanar had meant the question as one he should answer for real and Athanar had fell back into the expressionless half stare he pulled out at times. That puzzled Thornden.

Finally lord Athanar’s eyes set alight again and he broke the silence now looking back at Thornden in all frankness. “I don’t know if lord Eodwine ever taught you this, but if not, it is high time someone did.” He paused for a moment to heighten Thornden’s attention. “A lord needs to rule and act differently in different situations. At times a lord needs to be stern, even stone-cold, to exert his authority to the fullest. At other times he needs to be forgiving and lenient, even amiable if that comes naturally to him. The secret of great leadership lies in combining the two in a reasoned measure.”

Suddenly lord Athanar frowned. To Thornden it looked like he was suddenly overcome with sadness. Athanar toyed with his empty goblet for a short while before finally addressing Thornden. “So what should I do with you know?” he asked thoughtfully.

“I do admire your courage and your loyalty with your men. And you’re not one of those who boast more than they do, like so many young captains in the city seem to be. You have qualities to become a great leader Thornden, it is easy to see if you have eyes for it. But then again you have betrayed your lord more or less the first thing in your role as a seneschal to him.”

Lord Athanar looked at Thornden solemnly. “Tell me master Thornden, if you were me, how would you treat a man like you in this situation?” He nodded slightly to let Thornden understand he was in fact waiting for an answer this time.