She sat with her eyes closed, her breaths deep, yet steady.

“If My Lady wishes to rest, I would take another carriage,” said the old man.

“Mr Hase, if I did not know better, I would think sir wishes to avoid my company.”

Her words fell like a joke that neither laughed at; however, he did smile. “That could not be farther from the truth.”

“Then let us speak of other matters far from the truth,” she said and, after a moment, her eyes fluttered open. “It was the nature of my work in the capital that I had to rise early to send out the letters at such a time to reach here by dawn. Now that I have returned, I shall rest easier.”

He gave a polite chuckle. “Truly, a socialite is the hardest job. I have heard the scene described as ladies’ politics, yet I at least had the comfort of reality, that there was a foundation of reason if one dug deep enough.”

“To call it politics is saying both too much and too little. Unfortunately, it is something which influences how others would perceive me, so I must be perceptive of what I wish their perception of me to be.”

“Ah, My Lady cannot be too tired if she is still so witty,” he said lightly.

She showed him a small smile, then shook her head. “It is precisely because I am tired that I am so witty. When one is weak, appear strong; when strong, appear weak. That is perhaps the second rule of politics.”

“Which rule would My Lady consider placing above it?” he asked.

Her gaze lazily slid over and held him for a long second before she gave her reply. “Of course, the first rule of this game we call politics should be that one cannot win.”

His smile widened at that.

“Well, there is no need to idle away our time. I am sure sir understands the intention behind his presence this day,” she said, her voice now quieter, yet still as clear.

“Do pretend that I have retired from politics and have not kept up with the city’s affairs,” he said.

She spared him a look, then turned her gaze to the passing scenery. “It is like this. I have been weakening the judges to diminish their ability to bring together the other guilds against me. Today, sir is to act as mediator between myself and Master Schulz. I would present the issue as one between him and the duly-elected mayor with an offer of support in exchange for certain reforms.”

Hase’s mouth quirked into a smile. “My Lady certainly knows how to indulge an old man,” he said, then let out a long sigh. “Indeed, My Lady certainly resembles her father.”

“I would take that as a compliment; however, it is the case that I am simply following his and my mother’s teaching,” she said.

He nodded along. “Lady Nicole, I must confess that I knew her primarily as a prominent daughter of the Nelli family. Once she married your father, her focus shifted away from my circles,” he said, his voice growing softer. “It was only after her passing that I became mayor.”

“Sir would not have liked her,” she said. There was no humour in her voice nor coldness, simply stating a fact, nothing more.

“If I may ask, why would My Lady think that?” he asked.

Her hand came up and she touched her chin with her thumb, then brushed some loose hairs behind her ear. “She did not care for this city like my father and sir did.”

It seemed like such an outrageous thing for a daughter to say of her mother, for anyone to say of the Nicole who arranged for so much charity; however, he did not doubt her, if only because he could not comprehend what intention she could have behind such a lie.

What he instead found in her words was another question: “What does My Lady think of the city?”

“I care not for this city. Rather, I care for the life it nurtures. It is an important distinction,” she said, her voice still neutral.

“Indeed, it is.”

As for what they had spoken of before, nothing else needed to be said: the actor knew his part in the script she had written.

So the carriage trundled along until such a time for him to alight. Once he had, he walked the rest of the way to the destination, whereupon he again saw the carriage, albeit now empty. Inside the building, it was unusually quiet. While there were still the tables and chairs put out, only a single person sat at the bar, the other two present seated in the room’s centre.

“Ah, Mr Hase. Would sir care to order before we begin?”

Her voice called out with an air of unfamiliarity, the way she spoke his name a little off, and he dared not dismiss that she would know he had sworn off drinking and yet arranged this meeting at a public house, albeit an establishment for the wealthier citizens.

He regretted his earlier comment that she resembled her father. No, her father had a certain confidence in his power, while she had a certain confidence in herself.

“Thank you, My Lady; however, I must decline,” he said and gave her a bow as he approached the table. To the other one seated, he gave another bow. “Your Honour.”

Schulz showed a kindly smile. “Please, Hase, there is no need. I am here as guildmaster today.”

“Then I should be here as Mr Hase lest My Lady thinks I am biased,” Hase replied with a smile of his own.

“As if I would doubt the former mayor’s impartiality,” she said, a small smile upon her lips.

Hase sat down on the cushioned chair and composed himself. He took a breath in, preparing to speak, only to be cut off.

“With everyone present, let us begin,” she said, her smile fading. “Mr Hase, my thanks for agreeing to mediate this matter.”

He bowed his head a touch. “It is my honour to still be of use to the city,” he replied.

“So, it is like this,” she said, her hands making small movements as she spoke. “Master Schulz and Mr Mayor have been at odds. As one can imagine, this has been unproductive.”

Hase nodded along, then turned to Schulz and asked, “Anything sir wishes to add?”

As calm as Schulz looked, his voice still had a spark of frustration. “My Lady has certainly put it… succinctly, perhaps too succinctly.”

“Then do tell him as he did ask,” she said.

Schulz showed no reaction. “Is Mr Mayor not enacting My Lady’s agenda?” he said.

“I find it hard to believe sir would think I explicitly asked Mr Mayor to annoy sir. Regardless, Mr Mayor is the duly-elected mayor and, before that, it was none other than Mr Hase who chose him as a replacement, albeit at the Nelli family’s recommendation. Of course, I am a sizeable landowner of city properties and have certain privileges as ruler; however, I have better things to do with my time than encourage two grown men to feud.”

Still, Schulz showed a blank face, yet a tension filled his arms as if resisting the urge to clench his hands. “My Lady, it is not that I expect Mr Mayor has been specifically instructed to be childish, but rather—”

“There is no ‘but’. Master Schulz, I could have you replaced this very moment and there would be no questions. This is my land to rule as granted by the King. If I had an agenda, you would know of it. It is precisely because I now have an agenda that you are now before me.”

Her voice came out unhurried and even, as if speaking of the weather.

Schulz’s hands finally clenched, yet it was Hase who spoke up, wearing an awkward smile. “My Lady, while I understand the logic, I think we should try to be productive about this.”

“Very well. Mr Hase, how would you suggest we proceed?” she asked.

After a deep breath in, he opened his hands. “First, let us consider the precise matter My Lady wishes to address, the precise matter Master Schulz wishes to address, and then consider what compromises would allow both parties to be satisfied. Although I have retired from politics, I do remember at least that much.” He ended with a chuckle.

She gave a polite titter, her hand over her mouth, as Schulz let out a sigh.

“My matter is simple: I have funded certain projects that are left to Mr Mayor to oversee. However, they are running into delays because of issues with notaries. In particular, the notaries are rather keen to verify his authority with regards to the projects I have funded,” she said.

Hase gave a single clap as he brought his hands together. “Very good, that is certainly something which we should be able to clearly address. Master Schulz?”

Schulz looked at her for a moment, then turned to Hase. “My matter is one less clear. Mr Mayor tends to be dismissive of my presence in meetings, attempts to circumvent the guild whenever possible, and has even interfered with certain proceedings by not allowing time for appeals to be made.”

No sooner had he finished than she went to speak, only to pause at Hase’s raised hand. Hase then turned to Schulz. “I understand how frustrating that must be and is certainly a matter to be solved; however, it is not Mr Mayor here, but My Lady.”

“Well, it is certainly a matter for me to be aware of. Master Schulz does enforce the laws in my place, after all,” she said, a softness to her voice as she touched her chin, gaze distant.

As if not expecting that, it took Schulz a moment to speak. “Indeed. I would tolerate Mr Mayor’s disrespect if it did not reflect poorly upon My Lady,” he said, a caution to his tone that did not go unnoticed.

“So that is how we shall be framing this?” Hase asked, his hands once more coming together in a single clap.

Schulz gave her a look, then turned to Hase. “Yes, Mr Mayor has been infringing upon the authority My Lady has delegated,” he said.

Hase gave a smile, neither too wide nor subtle. “So we shall move on to finding a compromise. To begin with, are there any initial comments on the other’s matter?”

“If I may?” Schulz asked and, at Hase’s nod, he continued. “I assure My Lady that the notaries have not been instructed to obstruct anything, regardless of Mr Mayor’s behaviour. We have been short on members for a while now and, rather than make careless mistakes, we are stricter with our processes. If a list of projects could be supplied, we would be able to ensure they are given priority.”

He spoke with a small smile and a gentle tone. Such was, he had found, how to speak to these spoiled ladies. That impression had been formed upon their first meeting, only he now thought her malleable. The kind of person whose opinion resembled the last person they spoke to.

When he had said her father would be disappointed in the woman she had become, he hadn’t realised how true that statement was. However, he couldn’t entirely blame her; the Royal Palace had no doubt raised her in such a way.

While he was lost in idle thoughts, she feigned contemplation. “Truthfully, I did not have the highest hopes for this meeting, what with how Mr Mayor spoke of sir. I am pleased to find sir is as honest as befits his occupation,” she said, her voice mirroring the touch of softness he showed.

“My Lady flatters me,” he said lightly.

Although she showed him a smile, it did not linger, melting away to something sombre enough to give him pause. “If we may interrupt the meeting… or rather, I would bring another matter forward that may help us suitably resolve this,” she said, her gaze drifting over to Hase.

“If Master Schulz doesn’t mind?” Hase said; he looked over and Schulz shook his head. “Please, My Lady, go ahead.”

“May I begin by asking sir how people were judged guilty or innocent, say, three or so centuries ago?” she said, her head tilted to the side.

At the odd question, Schulz could only sigh as he recalled his learning from decades ago. “Well, if we are to go that far back, I suppose it would have been trial by ordeal—burning and drowning among other methods.”

“Indeed. Why was it that those methods have now been mostly abandoned?” she asked, her head now tilted the other way.

He shifted in his seat, taking a moment to compose his thoughts. “In a sense, it is that we thought to have God judge them, yet He has made it clear He shall only judge the dead. However, we cannot simply let criminals go free to cause more harm and disorder, so we have worked towards other methods to determine the truth and thus administer justice.”

After nodding along, she fell into thought for a long moment. “I am conflicted. We are taught not to murder, yet we would make an exception for justice? When asked whether an adulterous woman should be stoned, did Christ not say to let he who was without sin throw the first stone?”

Once more, Schulz found himself the target of a difficult question, but it was fortunately one he could clearly answer. “We may look in the book of Romans—chapter thirteen, where Paul describes how God has put in place our rulers, thus we must respect their authority and submit to their governance. So it is our Christian duty to enforce the laws.”

“I see,” she said, the ends of her mouth curling. “That rather makes this matter simple. It is that I thought I would have to move such cases to be handled by the Church; however, I may instead change the law.”

Quiet out of confusion, he asked, “My Lady?”

She continued as if not hearing him. “That is, I thought that moving such cases to the Church would allow the guild to focus on their other tasks. If that is not necessary, though, then I suppose we may consider other options.”

He more loudly asked again, “My Lady?”

Pausing, she turned to him, her smile soft and brow knitted. “Is it that sir would like to move some of the burden to the Church?”

“No, or rather—what does My Lady mean by changing the law?” he asked, fully aware of how foolish the question sounded when put like that.

“Is it not clear? I would forbid executions,” she said, only to frown. “Of course, they would remain for treason and rebellion. Such crimes must be swiftly dealt with.”

His expression looked almost pained, barely holding on to a small smile. “My Lady, if I may give some advice, I think there is no reason to interfere with the laws. They are working well for maintaining peace and order.”

“With all due respect, Master Schulz, it is sir’s Christian duty to enforce the laws and it is my duty to decide them. If I should seek advice, it would be from the Church as I would wish to rule according to God’s will.”

With neither immediately speaking, Hase cleared his throat, drawing both their attention. “My Lady has brought forward some interesting ideas. While I am sure Master Schulz would like to continue operating the guild as is, it may be necessary to delegate some cases. What does sir think of this suggestion?”

Schulz settled himself with a breath, then shook his head.

Before he could explain himself, she said, “If it is a lack of notaries, then why not train more?”

Relieved that it seemed she would not pursue delegating the cases, he went along with her new thought. “If only it was so easy. We require literate people of unquestionable reputation, lest our reputation become worthless.”

Although he had more to say, her expression became distant and he saw no reason to speak if she would not hear, so silence fell.

Once some time had passed, she brought her hands together, fingers entwined. “The guild is certainly an integral part of the city. If Mr Mayor thinks I would not care for his meddling, he is wrong. However, at this time, I would not carelessly move against the Nelli family. Without their trade, I fear what poverty would follow and what lawlessness such poverty would bring about.

“So it is that, instead of acting personally, how about Master Schulz opens the guild to… people of good standing? It would bring a prestige to the guild that Mr Mayor would be a fool to ignore and they are certainly literate people with reputation.”

Silence followed, Schulz putting together his response. However, in the end, it was Hase who spoke. “Master Schulz, while I know I should not weigh in as mediator, I think it is something worth considering. Over my mayorship, it was precisely these ties which I sought out to strengthen the fabric of our society. Not to mention, these men would not be ones lacking in dues, would they?”

“Ah, if I may?” she said, then paused until Hase gave her a small nod. “While I understand many occupations have certain requirements that favour men, it seems to me that a notary is, if anything, amenable to women. Of course, I may be unaware of certain nuances. However, if sir would be willing to admit women to the guild, I would certainly have no shortage of capable women to recommend either.”

As she spoke, she watched Schulz closely. Assured of his opinion on that matter, she finished by saying, “If not, I could always find alternative employment for them.”

Hase gave a single clap. “Wonderful, I am glad we have so many options to consider.”

She rather agreed. After all, they were options she suggested. As for which he chose, it mattered little to her: such matters ultimately came down to the execution.