"I'm thankful for your assistance in setting things right, Roderich. I assure you, once Stulikya's Treasury has started gradually growing its balance again, your contributions will be returned with interest."
"Of course, your Majesty. If I may inquire, there is one detail I noticed that you are not including in your figures."
Ivan raised his eyebrow at the remark from the Baron, who sat across the table from him in one of the Tark palace's many elegant meeting rooms.
"And what could I have missed, your Excellency?" Ivan tested.
"Your sisters," Roderich brought up, "Princess Katerina is betrothed to Duke Antonio of Baisicia, who might inherit the throne of Prathage. Then there's also Princess Natalya, who is betrothed to Prince Ludwig and set to become the next Queen of Ixaidel. Surely you could include the wedding dowries in your figures -"
"I am not intentionally marrying off my sisters to replenish Stulikya's Royal Treasury," Ivan interrupted, "Katerina and Natalya are getting married because they fell in love, plain and simple. Should some form of undetermined dowry come to Stulikya from either marriage contract, then it's up to me, as the head of the Stulikyan Royal Family, to decide where it goes. I might put it straight into the Treasury, or I might apply it against my living costs here in the palace and thereby replenish the Treasury indirectly. And until I see what happens on that front, I am not including it in Stulikya's budget. Do I make myself clear?"
"Crystal clear, your Majesty," Roderich accepted, "I believe we've covered everything that needs to be addressed, unless you have any other requests."
"I do believe that will be all for today," Ivan determined as he rose from his desk, "I'm going to look and see where all my guests have ended up. I'm certain you can find your own way out."
"Yes, I will be just fine," Roderich answered as he rose and bowed to Ivan.
"Have a pleasant day then," Ivan bid farewell as he circled the desk.
Leaving the Baron behind to collect his paperwork, Ivan strolled out of his office and down the hallways towards the gardens at the back of the palace. It had been several days now since Ivan had been turned human again, and all their allies had returned to Tark to heal and regroup. Those who fought him in his beastly form had fully recovered from their minor injuries, except for Lovino who still needed a bit more time to recover. They had filled Ivan in on all the adventures their various groups had been on, and he even had the chance to learn from Arthur about his Russian doppelganger.
In the discussions with Arthur and Princess Madeline, they found that Francis's catalyst spell did more than just bring Arthur here. It was the same morning Arthur arrived in this realm that Ivan decided to leave Bueswood and travel west to Krizoris. In addition, this was the same morning that Princess Madeline first thought of leaving her refuge in the Raevellian mountains to visit Glefield and learn what she could about the war subsiding. The spell's magic somehow triggered this gut instinct in both Ivan and Madeline to venture towards where they would each need to be.
Ivan reached the doors out onto the terrace, where the grand staircase led down into the gardens. The party tent from Erzsébet's flopped wedding had already been taken down and stored away, so now the gardens could be enjoyed for their full beauty without interruption. In the centre of the gardens, the gazebo had been reassembled, and Ivan could see that the dwarfs were out there with a couple Ixaidellians and Prathageans. As Ivan went down the steps, he saw that Tolys was at the bottom with Naktakė and Lilli. The further he got down the steps, the more clearly Ivan could hear Tolys arguing with the raven while the swan chirped in here and there.
"Naktakė, you're being ridiculous… You know as well as I do that it's not allowed… Because she's a princess, and I'm a commoner… With all due respect, miss Lilli, please stay out of this…"
Ivan couldn't help but softly chuckle and smile as he reached the bottom of the stairs. As he approached the party, the swan turned and saw that he was there, before hopping towards him and chirping. Tolys immediately noticed the movement, and straightened himself up before giving a quick bow.
"Your Majesty," Tolys greeted, "Forgive me, I didn't realize you were there."
"It's quite alright, I just got here," Ivan pardoned, "It's not every day I see a man arguing with a raven."
"Honestly, it's not such a novelty," Tolys dismissed, "This tends to happen on a regular basis, and Naktakė has additional sass today."
"Yes, I did hear a bit of what you were saying," Ivan addressed, "You know, you have been of great service to us all. You have supported Princess Madeline through your adventures, you rescued Lilli from her tower, then you protected my sisters from my beastly attacks. If there is anything you want as a reward, I would grant it immediately."
"That is very kind, your Majesty," Tolys acknowledged, "Unfortunately, what I want is not something you can grant."
"So someone else must grant it then?" Ivan pried, "Surely I can put in a good word for you, at the very least."
"I must advise against that as well," Tolys insisted, "She already has a major decision to make, and I should not be interfering with that."
Ivan nodded in understanding, well aware of what Tolys was speaking of. Princess Madeline still needs to make an important decision about her future, and everyone was waiting to hear what her choice would be. Ivan had already had a private discussion with the Ice Princess about her seven years of exile and her return, and also observed how closely she watched over the Voustan ranger as he recovered from his injuries. It was painfully obvious that there was some sort of personal attachment between Madeline and Tolys.
"If that is what you wish," Ivan complied, "I will leave you to your argument then."
Ivan turned away from the man and the birds, and strolled down the path into the gardens. Within moments, Lilli was in the air circling his head.
"Hello darling," Ivan said, raising his arm in the air, "I'm going to visit the gazebo, will you join me?"
She chirped as she swooped down and landed on his left arm, allowing him to carry her along as he strolled.
The duchess had turned back into a swan the morning after the confrontation in the woods, proving that Erzsébet was not yet gone for good. Feliciano quickly determined that the spell Erzsébet had placed on Lilli was still active, and could only be broken with Erzsébet's death. Since Arthur's mysterious poisoned apple had not yet appeared either, they could only assume that Erzsébet's death and Lilli's swan spell were the last riddles to resolve.
Ivan admired how Lilli continued to handle her situation, as it wasn't easy to be the only person still under one of Erzsébet's spells. It almost seemed as if everything had switched, since Ivan was previously trapped in his beastly form while Lilli was able to be human at least half the time, and now he was always human and she was still changing. Ivan couldn't help but wonder, now that she has been confirmed to be an Ixaidellian duchess, if she'd like to stay in Tark with him once Erzsébet is completely out of the way.
They reached the clearing and approached the gazebo where the dwarfs were chatting away with Arthur, Feliks, Basch and Lenka. The party paused their conversation and acknowledged his presence as Ivan approached.
"Good afternoon," Ivan hailed, "May we join you all?"
The others muttered their acceptance as Ivan took one of the empty chairs, Lilli hopping off his arm to take the armrest instead.
"Don't mind me at all," Ivan ensured, "Surely you were talking about something before I came?"
"We were, in fact," Basch informed, "We were discussing how Lenka will be recognized as a lady of the Ixaidellian court when we return to Inasdiff."
"Oh that's wonderful news," Ivan encouraged, "That would certainly make it easier for the two of you to get to know each other."
"There's only the problem of my name," Lenka reviewed, "We're not sure how to prevent people from misusing it."
"Yes, that certainly is a problem," Ivan assessed, "If you'll permit me, I did have a couple thoughts and questions about your birth spell."
"What would you like to know, Your Majesty?" Lenka asked.
"I was curious about the mechanics of the spell in regards to your name," Ivan explained, "Is it tied directly to the name 'Lenka', or would it adapt to any name you call yourself?"
"That's quite the odd question," Basch remarked, "Does your spell have that restriction, Lenka?"
"I don't know," Lenka admitted, "Why do you ask, your Majesty?"
"I wondered what would happen if you were to change your name," Ivan proposed, "If you were to tell everyone to call you Maria, for example, would using the name Maria trigger your spell?"
"Oh for fucks sake," Arthur added, "How did you come up with that before me, your Majesty? It's actually fairly common in my world for people to change their names, we have full administration procedures to make it happen. Even when they take the crown in many cases, many kings and queens choose a new name for the public to call them in that position of power."
"That's actually a clever idea," Feliks judged, "Lenka can choose a new name for her introduction to the Ixaidellian court, and everyone will address her by that name."
"I like that idea," Lenka evaluated, "The only problem is any of the servants who already know my name, what if they ignore my wishes and keep calling me Lenka?"
"Use your birth spell one last time to add a provision for that," Ivan recommended, "Someone you trust can order you henceforth to correct anyone who uses the name "Lenka", telling them what your new name is and ignoring whatever they tried to say when using your old name."
"That could reasonably work," Basch assessed, "We'll need the twins to check the restrictions of your spell, Lenka, but changing your name could be a solution to your problem. If we put that provision in place, and someone dares to keep abusing your name, they can answer to me."
"I will think about doing that then," Lenka decided, "Thank you for the suggestion, your Majesty."
"Not a problem, miss Lenka," Ivan acknowledged, "The only thing you'll have to decide on is what your new name will be."