King Baldrick Voreia
At Marcus's reaction, he winced internally. Oh. Right. Well, ped in head, as they say... He listened to their thoughts without interruption, nodding here and there.
"I doubt that Occidens plans an attack so soon. For one thing, such a flagrant abuse of the white peace would bring the wrath of both gods and men upon the, er, abuser. Who would follow such a ruler willingly? And open war between all four lands would not only be disasterous to anyone's plans, but it would open us to... Foreign problems." Baldrick grimaced. The northern clans liked to raid Voreia when times were lean, and in a war, with so many fighting to the south... "No, if there is to be an invasion or a war, it would be after the banquet. And Anatoli will keep its promises of neutrality, I'm sure of it." Baldrick refused to believe Reiann would set a trap to hurt him or his family. It was impossible.
"It's not as if we can afford to not attend. To refuse such an offer would surely invite dishonor upon us." To be honest, Baldrick would have preferred to visit the Queen alone, without the banquet- No other suitors to bother her, then, the cads. "But stepping up border patrols and searches- especially on large-loaded carts- ought to be a priority. To catch any weapons being smuggled in. Or is that too far-fetched for even Occidens?" He chuckled. "I could imagine them trying to smuggle a walking gun inside. They're mad enough about war..."