Dacian shook his head. "Oh, it is not rude of all Your Majesty," He assured. As he directed in thought, he bit his bottom lip. His gaze wandered off to the left side for a quick moment. "Well Your Majesty, I have always wanted to serve others while broadening my horizon, and yet really the only way to do so at home is to be a soldier. Even when I was young " He explained. "I was able to get a position at your embassy at home as a translator for your ambassador. I assume that he talked to King Nicolae, asking me to be the first ambassador since the war. So technically I led myself here, but so did my mentor and king."
He nodded a little. "Right. Ambassador, ah…" He thought for a moment. "Ambassador Mayfield, right?" Mayfield had been the ambassador for the entire war; it had been too dangerous to recall him, since Evander and his father had both worried the ambassador would be attacked while returning home. Mayfield had since been able to come back to Aven, though he was still serving as their main ambassador.
Dacian's eyes lit up as he beamed. "Yes! Mayfield!" He nodded. Biting down at his bottom lip, he tried to hold in whatever gleeful chuckle that could escape from him. He sighed gently, smiling at the king. "Yes, Ambassador Mayfield. I used to translate papers and letters for him, then I also would do bilateral interpretations as well. He is also like a mentor to me; he taught some jokes and phrases in your tongue as well." A small trail of laughter left him. "Have you had anyone you looked up to, Your Majesty? Your father? A general?"
He laughed a little as well, pleased at the laughter and smile he had gotten from Dacian. "Yes, Mayfield is a good man." he agreed. "And as for myself…well. I looked up to my father, yes. And Admiral Cane. I'm unsure if you know who he is? But he was the leader of the fleet during the war. He…we probably would have lost, without him."
As the king spoke, he smiled, nodding and listening along. Lowering his chin, he laughed again. "Admiral Cane…" He whispered to himself, trying to see if he recalled the name. His head titled to the right before his eyes lit up again. "Ah! I only have read about the battles he was in, that is all I believe." Dacian sighed. "Your country would have lost with you as well, Your Majesty. You are the mighty head of Aven after all."
Evander nodded faintly. "Yeah. That's true." He replied, running a hand through his hair, smiling for a moment at Dacian. "Still, though. Cane kept the ports open through the blockades that Farrantil tried to put in place. A lot of the port cities wouldn't have survived without him." This city, their capital, was not quite a port city, though it straddled a large river that led to the sea.
"Ah, I see. Sadly I am not well informed in the navy compared to the military, but I have heard that Cane is excellent when it comes to strategy," He said. Dacian was lost in thought as he stared at the king, watching as he smiled. The corners of his lips lowered a little despite his eyes being lit. Even though he tried to say something, he ended up glancing down at the floor. Softly, he whispered an apology.
"He is, yes. Cane was and still is an excellent strategist." he frowned a little at the apology. "Ambassador– Dacian, there is no reason for you to apologize to me." he didn't understand, precisely, why Dacian was apologizing in the first place.
The frown. What did he do? Dacian thought back, still keeping his gaze down. He cleared his throat before saying, "I am not sure why I had apologized. I suppose, I have been feeling terrible about our first interaction. Asking all those questions, you know, Your Majesty." Giving a small smile, he chuckled. "Old habits die hard, or so they say."
He laughed a little. "Questions are just fine, Ambassador Dacian. Really, they are. There are some questions I can't or won't answer, but I don't mind if you ask." He replied, smiling for a moment to try and reassure Dacian.
"Really, Your Majesty?" Dacian sighed gently before moving his head up. He really wondered if it was alright, or at least in Aven. Even in Sceivania, he worried about all the questions he asked; and yet now, he still does. "Ah.. well alright then," He responded. "Really, I should be more mindful nevertheless; I am afraid that I talk too much. I should focus more intently whenever my curiosity is lit up."
He smiled a little. "No, it's fine. Don't…stress yourself, Dacian." he shook his head for a moment. "I don't mind the questions. They're…helpful, really, in some ways."
Dacian stared at king, smiling back. His grin was small as he was still a little worried. "Interesting…I wonder what use my questions served you," He said, tilting his head to the right a bit. "Did somehow make you better? Or did they help you with the monster?" For a moment, his eyes scan the king's face. How would his inquiries be helpful to King Evander? Biting the inside of his cheek, he looked at the king, wondering what he would say next.
He hesitated for a moment, debating about how to answer this one. "They just…helped me sort out the details, I suppose. I hadn't gotten so many questions about the monster before, so it was…nice to get an idea for how best to answer them." he shook his head a little bit, still dancing with Dacian as the music continued to play.
Staring into the king's eyes, he nodded. What his Majesty was saying made sense, though he did make a note to watch his words. Overwhelming the king with questions or just simply by talking is the last thing Dacian wants to do. Taking a quick glimpse around the ballroom, he let out a deep breath before returning back to the king. "Splendid! At least I was the first to ask about the monster, that is good," He beamed. "Sometimes it's better to ask the questions we fear to."
He nodded. "Yes, I suppose I have to agree with you there." He replied, running a hand through his hair as he looked at Dacian. "Either way, the questions weren't too bad, as questions go."
Dacian laughed for a short moment, before stopping himself. Muttering another apology, he turned his head to the side, coughing and then cleared his throat. He shook his head. "Usually, us Sceivanians really do not ask a lot of questions. It's just not what we do, but I think I was cursed with being extremely talkative and curious," He sighed. "I was so worried about when we first met. Thank you, Your Majesty, and the heavenly spirits, at least I know it was useful to you."
Evander nodded. "Of course. Besides, you're an ambassador; it would be considered odd if you had no questions for me or for anyone else." He did his best to reassure Dacian a bit; after all, Dacian was a rather important ambassador.
"I believe you are right, Your Majesty," He stated, nodding in agreement. "Defiently would be odd as an ambassador. Besides, Mayfield would ask me a lot of questions and in our letters, he still does." Dacian could not help but laugh a little again. Quickly gazing down at the floor, he shook his head, still laughing. He sighed. "Oh well, all is good. I appreciate you cheering me up, and dancing with me of course. Are you enjoying yourself, Your Majesty?".
"Of course." He replied, smiling softly as he danced with Dacian. "And yes, I suppose I am. I hope you are?" He didn't want Dacian to be dancing with him simply because he had asked; that wasn't quite what he wanted from this dance.
As soon as the king had asked him, he nodded his head enthusiastically. A beam spread across his face as he stared at the king. "Yes, of course! I am very honored that you are dancing with me." He responded. "And if I may be frank, I had asked you to dance with me because…well…I wanted you to have fun…to enjoy yourself." The beam on him dimmed a little. Dacian kept staring, wondering if the king is having a great time. He hoped.
He smiled again, a faint little one that was more real than many of the larger ones he had given before. "Yes, it's been nice." He agreed, glancing around the dance floor for a moment, before his attention returned to Dacian. "Though I should not dance with you for too long, or rumors will spread."
Dacian took a swift glance around at the others on the dance floor. Somehow he had forgotten about them. A gentle sigh left his lips. "I see, it is alright. We can stop whenever you would like, you are the king after all, You Majesty," He nodded. "Again, I am very honored that you are dancing with me."
Evander smiled, inclining his head. As the song ended, he led Dacian back to the edge of the dancefloor, releasing him. "Thank you for dancing with me, ambassador. It was a lovely dance." He gave a short, quick bow, a quiet smile on his face.
Once they were off the dancefloor, Dacian turned to face the king. What a lovely dance, and what a lovely conversation as well! With a beam, he bowed. "Of course, Your Majesty. I am glad to hear that you had a good time." Again, he gave a gentle bow. Did he accomplish his inital goal of making the king happy? He wasn't sure, and yet, he saw his Majesty's grin and felt assured a little.
