Chapter XXIII: So, you want to be a courtier?
To my lord and brother,
You have my congratulations in finding a knight at court in need of a squire to foist your son on. But if it is your ambition, as I most accurately suspect, to use his squiring as the first step of raising him to a higher position in court and in the king's favour, I fear there is much more work you will need to do.
You have praised at length your son's martial skills. But these skills alone would not find enough favour with King Baelor. The Young Dragon is dead, and all the young knights eager for glory are not our new king's friends, for they have not proven themselves beyond the shedding of blood. A place for such men can no longer be found even among Prince Aegon's retinue, for since his incident, he shuns knights for jealousy of their manliness. He only keeps the company of drunkards now, and that is a fate I do not wish upon the young boy.
One could say that there are several factions at court, though some people could be considered part of more than one. It is to men high in such factions that your son should seek to attach himself.
The oldest of these factions, to which I belong on account of being appointed as one of the Keeper of the Keys a dozen years ago, is that of the Hand of the King, Prince Viserys. Our days of glory are long past, even if king Daeron, and now king Baelor have kept many of their uncle's appointments. There is no security in our positions anymore. The king has changed men solely on account of corruption or incompetence, of which misdeeds I am not guilty. But when the Stranger shall take the Lord Hand in his bosom, we can only pray that fortune shall keep smiling bright.
From our faction, the position of Lord Hunter, the Master of Laws is the shakiest. The king loves greatly justice and disapproves of the haphazardly manner in which it had been dealt before.
The Master of Coin is secure until a more skilled man is found, and the few times he has shown a matter of incompetence, the king has threatened to give his position to his sister, the Princess Elaeana. This is surely a jest.
The king's uncle, Lord Velaryon steadfastly remains in favour, for he has proven himself time and time again at sea. Save for the granting of the Stepstones to his line, his star shall shine no brighter. He seeks not a greater influence at court, save for the affairs of his office. The king has pondered, it seems, to hand over the office to his cousin, the Lady Laena, if the gods take the Oakenfist, but has changed his mind, for he does not wish to keep the lady from the sea. When the times come, only the gods know who shall take the post.
The second faction is that of the King's Men. These are men appointed in posts by our new king, and have caught his eyes on account of competence, wisdom, and honesty. Chief amongst them is Ser Herman Harte. He does not owe his positions because to kinship with the king, for our sovereign has denied power to a closer cousin who has proven himself unworthy. He has served the king well in Braavos and now as deputy to the Master of Ships, and rumours abound that upon the passing of the king's uncle, his star shall shine the brightest in this constellation of courtiers.
Second and most martial of them is Ser Jonos Edgerton. Proven in service in Dorne and in Pentos, he keeps no steady position at court or in the king's employ, but he is ever the king's favourite. His father, the Master of Horse is a man whose council the king does not shun, even if he holds his office by hereditary appointment. One of his brothers is the King's Counter, and through this kinship his fortune shines bright. He might be our next Master of Coin. Alas, the gods do not smile upon me.
Among the same faction we count the septons closest to the king, who advise him in many matters, the septons Cad and Paul. The first knowledgeable in many worldly matters, the second of a most inquisitive nature. These hold a measure of power of some of the King's Men, the Knights Inquisitors. They are men honest and competent, ever eager to root out misdeeds among the king's officials. But some of them are accomplished in arrogance and that might be their downfall.
The strangest man of this faction is Bastyen, the king's fool. He entertains the king with his folly, he speaks with wise words in counsel to our king and is a more accomplished swordsman than many knights. He now rides to war at the king's side, and I am told he has yet to prove himself a craven.
The third faction of which I shall write, now growing stronger since the Holy Passage, is that of the Faithful. We are all faithful, but these are men that have earned the king's favour through their piety. It is curious a fact that these are the most martial of the royal favourites and that their captain is the self-same Jonos Edgerton. He now commands the Holy Hundred, which had guarded the Seven Stones, and which the king has decided to keep on. The Holy Hundred itself counts among the Faithful. But these are not only martial men, for the king is interested in conversation with pious men that hold some degree of intellectual acumen, to not bore himself with them. As with the King's Men, some are useful to the king for service, some for wise counsel.
Of all the king's favourites, Ser Herman and Ser Jonos are the most likely to benefit from the humbling of Dorne, and we might someday call them lords.
If your son is not particularly skilled in matters besides that of arms, I counsel him to read attentively the Seven-Pointed Star, be ever a pious man, and later seek admittance in the number of the Holy Hundred, of whom many shall undoubtedly die in Dorne. These men are not a company in the usual manner, for the king might send them to some errand of the other or grant them offices grander and farther than the Red Keep.
So, if your son has not taken to the vices of drink, gambling or whoring, has not spoken impious words, that is the path that the Crone's Lantern enlightens for him. Find him some septon for a tutor before you send him here. I shall be glad to receive my nephew.
Your ever loyal brother,
Balthasar Grell