The King smiled briefly and glanced over at me, "Humility, another worthy aspect of character. I have a feeling that you are nothing short of a blessing sent straight from El Elyon to help me in these troubling days."
Nothing more was said for several minutes until the king answered my question, "The attacking force was that of the Nicationer Nation of Crona."
Now that was a surprise even to me. Ever since I was a child I had heard of the strong and prosperous peace between the Kingdom of Philanthia and the Nicationer Kingdom of Crona. I expressed as much, "I thought Crona was a longtime friend of Philanthia's?"
The King nodded grimly, "They were, but that's all changed now. Three months ago they seized our trade delegations and our interests within their nation. Soon thereafter came the border raids. It's nothing of the severity that the Kingdom of Thyana is experiencing, but it's been getting worse. More and more have died on both sides and to this day I am clueless as to what is the cause of all this unprovoked aggression on the part of the Cronians."
Silence stretched on for a moment before the King asked, "Where do you originate from Benaiah?"
I'd known that question was forthcoming, but answering it was made no better by having the foreknowledge of it being asked.
"My mother is of the Kingdom of Smirnaz. My father was a Rollanic tribesman."
The King said nothing and I waited, expecting him to tell me to leave because of my mixed parentage. Instead I heard him say, "I've heard it said that the Rollanic Knights are great horsemen. Is that true?"
"That much is true Sire," I said and to my surprise that was as far as the questioning went. I continued to ride beside the King, who seemed content to just have me by his side.
*****
Four years later
Yet one more patrol through scorched farm fields and abandoned homesteads. It was depressing and clear evidence that the latest peace agreement with the Nicationer Nation of Crona had failed once more.
There was a lot that reminded me of the low lands of Thyana, but the enemy we faced here was different. They weren't hybrid lion men engineered by the fallen messengers of El Elyon to terrorize and corrupt mankind.
No, this was an entirely different kind of war. One that made no sense as it seemed Crona had no stomach for the war that they continually provoked.
The enemy had, on multiple occasions, allowed farming families to flee instead of outright killing them. The attacks had been getting worse, but still Crona seemed to lack a killer instinct when it came down to it.