Konrad walked into the hall to find his sister, Elise, and Lady Katarina locked in a hushed quarrel near the hearth. The bad blood between them was thick.

Katarina, holding the purse strings of the vast Bavarian silver, pressed for a swifter swelling of the looms and fields to yield quick coin.

Elise, having taken up the yoke of Konrad’s chief keeper of stores, guarded the grain and iron needed for the new, hidden guns.

"The dividing of the stores is settled, Lady Katarina..." Konrad announced, his sudden voice silencing both women. "The Bavarian coin builds the roads and carts needed to bear the new field guns... Without those guns, the fields are ripe for the taking."

Katarina turned to him, "You place your hidden wars above the gathering of wealth, Konrad. My father looks for a return on his silver, not just a stronger wall for you to hide behind."

"The return is the unbroken rule of this valley, which shields the Bavarian trade roads," Konrad countered. He turned to his sister. "Elise, the brimstone carts from the north tarry. Clear the block at once."

"..." Elise offered a stiff curtsy and hurried from the hall, clearly glad to flee the quarrel.

Katarina watched her go, a frown marking her sharp face. "You treat her like a hired steward, Konrad... Not a sister."

"She serves well in her appointed task," Konrad replied, moving toward his study.

Katarina followed him, "There is another matter. A more... thorny tangle."

She stopped near the door of his study, lowering her voice. "It touches Lady Isolde."

"..." Konrad paused, his hand on the latch. "Speak..."

"She reads letters that do not bear her name," Katarina stated. "I caught her seeking to break a sealed word from my father... She claims it was a ’guarding of secrets,’ but she oversteps her bounds. She acts as if she rules the whispers of this entire keep!"

"Lady Isolde’s charge is to know all things to break threats from within and without," Konrad replied, "Yet, I will draw the line on her reach regarding Bavarian letters."

Katarina was not eased. "She is a viper, Konrad! You broke her pride, and you forged her into something terrifying. She cares nothing for pacts or coin. She cares only for you... And that makes her a wild thing."

"I hold the leash, don’t worry." Konrad entered the study, closing the door firmly behind him.

Later that evening, after the keep had grown quiet, Konrad remained in his study, mapping the heavy supply lines needed for the new breech-loading guns.

A known knock at the door broke his planning.

Isolde slipped into the room. She walked to his desk, placing a small book before him.

"The whispers from the Swabian border, my Lord," Isolde reported, "The Inquisition turns back... The Emperor has called them away to crush a rising of common folk in Franconia. And... there is other news."

She paused.

"Lord Waldemar was found dead in his bed this morning. The maester claims it was a sudden fit of the blood, born of his age and rich meats. The old guard mourns, but they suspect nothing. The sweet salt has cured our sickness."

"A sound choice of the Emperor," Konrad noted, taking the book.

Isolde stepped closer.

She had bound herself to him in blood, secrets, and the dark of his bed, and she meant to secure her hold against the likes of the Bavarian Duchess.

"And the false marriage, my Lord?" she asked.

Her hands gently rested on his shoulders. "The letter to my uncle has taken root. The tale is sown. Soon, when the realm learns I bear your heir, no Bavarian envoy or greedy lord will ever shake my lawful place by your side."

Konrad did not pull away.

He stared at the heavy supply lines drawn on his desk, his mind running a swift reckoning.

He stood up from his desk, turning to face her.

She was a viper, exactly as Katarina had warned, but she was his viper, coiled tightly around the very heart of his new realm... And Konrad intended to extract its venom completely.

***

The morning mist clung to the Swabian valley, doing little to soothe the unrest within the von Frundsberg keep.

The Emperor’s Inquisition was marching and the Swabian League gathered its strength anew.

Konrad awoke before dawn out of harsh need. His bed was empty. Isolde had slipped to her own chambers before first light to guard their secrets. The false tale of their wedding sent to Württemberg demanded careful watching.

He dressed quickly in plain dark wool and made his way to the training field. The yard was quiet.

Tramp... tramp... tramp...

The watch, now numbering over three hundred swords, was already forming lines.

Captain Eckhard watched over the chosen marksmen. They drilled in swift aiming with the new grooved long-arms, their movements sure.

"The loading takes but twenty-five breaths, Lord Konrad." Eckhard reported with a bow. "The new pointed shot flies true."

"It is well..." Konrad nodded, watching a marksman shatter a clay pot at one hundred and fifty paces. "See that the stores are kept in strong, walled cellars away from the flames."

He spent two hours judging the drills, plotting the best ground for the new breech-loading guns when they were finished.

Returning to the keep, Konrad went to the hall to break his fast.

Elise sat quietly, still shaken by the snare that had used her as bait. Lady Katarina of Bavaria ate with care, her eyes missing nothing.

And then there was Uncle Lothar’s empty chair... a grim token of Konrad’s rule.

"The rider from Nuremberg came last night, Konrad," Katarina began, setting her cup down. "The Emperor has set his seal upon your rightful Lordship, accepting the Fugger coin. The Inquisition has turned back entirely to deal with the Franconian rising."

"They took the only path left to them," Konrad replied, cutting his bread. "Are the Bavarian swords still set at the northern bounds?"

"They hold their ground, Konrad." Katarina confirmed. "Five hundred halberdiers and a host of heavy horse. The borders are secure."

Creak...

Before another word was spoken, the doors swung open. Lady Isolde entered.

She walked to the center of the room and stopped, offering a small curtsy to Elise before speaking to the table.

"I pray you hear me," Isolde announced.

"..." Konrad paused.

"Word has been sent to the Duchy of Württemberg of a great shift in my standing," Isolde went on, her eyes fixed on Konrad. "And it is fitting that the ladies of this house know as well."

She placed a hand over her belly. "I bear an heir."

The hall erupted.

Elise gasped, dropping her spoon in shock.