Chapter 1096: His Expertise
Kajen Fels arrived like a portrait that had stepped off the wall — half-gray hair, a tuxedo pressed to knife-edge creases, a beard dense enough to hide a man’s whole expression in. His eyes, though, had not agreed to age with the rest of him. They settled on Roland the moment Barov finished the introduction, weighing and measuring with the quiet patience of a craftsman who had spent a lifetime studying faces.
Barov was still wringing his hands, nearly vibrating.
You’re the Hand of the King. Roland smoothed his lips into a neutral line. Compose yourself.
“Your Majesty.” Kajen’s bow was precise, unhurried. “Now I understand why you don’t attend new plays.”
“Do you?” Roland said.
“You’re too young.” A pause, deliberate as a stage mark. “Much younger than I’d imagined.”
A decade ago, in Border Town, Roland would have bristled. Now he simply let the silence hold the weight, let Kajen decide what to do with it. Barov’s warning glance shot sideways like a crossbow bolt.
“I don’t mean your years,” Kajen added, unhurried. “I mean your spirit. I’ve met nobles your age who already lived like old men — counting the hours left rather than the hours spent. Youth has nothing to do with time. A man crawling toward his grave doesn’t become old until he stops looking forward.” The self-mockery arrived in his smile like weather. “I believed I was young until quite recently. It seems life imposes no upper limit on the lesson.”
“Should I take that as a compliment?”
“Neither is obviously better,” Kajen said. “A young spirit drives a man forward — curious, audacious, willing to destroy what he built to build it better. It can also drive him off a cliff.”
“Ahem — Mr. Kajen —” Barov tried.
Kajen caught himself. “Forgive an old man his rambling, Your Majesty.”
Roland waved it off. He was, he realized, beginning to like this man. There was no flattery in him, only observation — a craftsman’s habit. “Let’s come to the matter directly. You want to work with the Magic Movie.”
“I want to understand it.”
So the refusal sent him around the long way. Roland studied him. “You’d accept working on plays you consider beneath your standard?”
“I said nothing about standards.” Kajen’s chin lifted fractionally. “I said each production deserves preparation. Actors who receive no foundation waste their own ability and insult their audience.”
“The Star Flower Troupe plays to workers and soldiers, not lords. I have no time for extensive rehearsals. If you join us, you may find yourself standing in a play you wouldn’t attach your name to under ordinary circumstances.” Roland held his gaze. “Still willing?”
“Your Majesty, I —”
“I don’t think it’s the right placement for you,” Roland said. He watched Barov’s expression shift from relief to alarm and back. “The company I have in mind for the Magic Movie draws mostly from Star Flower. May’s people. A man of your stature joining them now would reshape the troupe’s internal gravity — and not in a direction I want.” He paused, letting Kajen absorb the shape of the argument. “However.”
Kajen leaned slightly forward. Barely a centimeter. Enough.
“I’m planning a piece about love in a dark season — set during the Church’s rebellion, based on two people currently stranded in the Kingdom of Wolfheart.” Roland sketched the outline: the concealment, the faith turned weapon, the redemption threading between. “You have a reputation for exactly this territory. If the play succeeds, I’ll reconsider your request regarding the filming process. A pilot. One work, then we evaluate.”
“Is this based on a true account?” Kajen asked. The calculation in his eyes had given way to something more alive.
“True enough to matter, shaped enough to stage. The two subjects are awaiting rescue. You won’t be able to meet them immediately.” Roland shrugged. “Though you understand the distinction between ‘based on’ and ‘transcribed verbatim.’”
“Of course.” A pause. “Your Majesty. Would you permit me to accompany the rescue operation?”
Barov made a sound.
“To the Kingdom of Wolfheart?” Roland said.
“I’ve written love stories from the outside my entire career.” Kajen’s hands were steady on his knees — the stillness of a man who had decided before he walked in the door. “I can picture a great many things. The particular texture of this one, I cannot. I won’t be a burden. My health remains adequate, and I have a student.”
Roland looked at him for a moment longer than was strictly necessary. An actor-playwright who had reached the absolute summit of his field — and was willing to travel into a contested kingdom, in his declining years, to feel the grain of a story he might otherwise only imagine.
That’s what mastery looks like when it still has hunger in it.
“I’ll consider it,” Roland said finally.
He already knew his answer.
Chapter 1096 - His Expertise
Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
It was Roland’s first time meeting this preeminent actor and screenwriter, his hair half gray, his face half hidden in his bushy and tangled beards, his black tuxedo crisp, and his tie neatly around his neck. Like a man from a portrait, he looked old-fashioned and antiquated.
Roland pictured his portrait hung on a wall, with a caption underneath.
Although Kajen was an elderly man, his eyes had not yet aged. After a bow, the screenwriter directly rested his eyes on Roland. Apparently, it was not his first time having an encounter with a royal family member.
“Your Majesty, this is Sir Kajen Fels,” Barov introduced the man while massaging his hands in exuberance. “He’s the best actor and screenwriter in Graycastle and is also very well known across the Four Kingdoms. Back in the old king’s city, I was a frequent visitor to the Central Theater and I liked Mr. Kajen’s work very much.”
“You act like a child… You’re the Hand of the King. Can’t you behave more like an adult?” thought Roland while twitching his lips
“Good morning, Your Majesty,” said Kajen as he clapped his hand over his chest. “Now I know why you don’t watch new plays.”
“Really?” Roland seated himself in the host chair and said, “Why?”
“You’re… too young,” Kajen replied slowly. “You’re much younger than I thought.”
“Are you saying that a person who doesn’t have a great deal of experience of life doesn’t have the capability to understand your plays?” Roland would have been a little affronted at such imprudent comments if he had still been
the lord of Border Town. However, as he grew older, he became more unflappable in such a situation.
But his tone, which dropped dramatically at Kajen’s words, clearly indicated that he was not very pleased.
Barov shot Kajen a warning look.
“No, Your Majesty. I’m not referring to your age but your spirit,” Kajen explained while shaking his head. “Youth has nothing to do with a person’s age. I’ve seen many nobles who live like old men in their prime. Likewise, a man who has crept in his decrepitude doesn’t necessarily mean he’s old.” His smile became a little self-mocking at this point. “I thought I was very young, but now I realize life doesn’t have a limit.”
“Can I take your words as a compliment?” Roland said as he raised his brows.
“We can’t say a young spirit is good and an old spirit bad, Your Majesty.” To Roland’s surprise, Kajen did not answer his question directly but went on, “A person with a young spirit can be motivated, audacious, curious, and the list goes on. However, he may also lose himself or even bring upon himself swift destruction while pursuing his goal, so…”
“Ahem, Mr. Kajen —” Barov interrupted him in a low voice.
“Ah, sorry, please don’t take my words too seriously,” said the dramatist, who had just realized he had spoken more than he was allowed to. “I’m an old man who has seen a lot of things, so I often have some crazy ideas. Please forgive my impertinence.”
“That’s fine,” said Roland, who waved his hand and started to take a liking to Kajen. “Let’s get down to the business. Barov told me that you want to work on my plays or join the Star Flower Troupe. Why’s that?”
Kajen replied straight away, “I want to know more about the Magic Movie.”
“So he’s trying to achieve his goal in a roundabout way after I turned him down,” thought Roland.
“You don’t mind working on plays you disdain?”
“I’m not saying those plays aren’t good…” Kajen explained. “I just feel that each show should be well planned beforehand so that actors can learn from it. Otherwise, they not only waste their time and talent but also fail their audience.”
“But your audience isn’t nobles, and I don’t have much time for rehearsals. If you join the Star Flower Troupe, very likely you’ll be forced to act in a play that doesn’t meet your standards, and your name would potentially be ruined. Did you still want to join us?”
“Your Majesty, I…”
“I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to join the Star Flower Troupe,” Roland talked over him. “The plays I plan to put on show are all meant to entertain the masses. Most of the actors will be from the Star Flower Troupe. I’m afraid I don’t have any plays at the moment that will suit your taste or reflect your talent.”
This time, Barov started to eye Roland.
“However…” Roland ignored Barov’s meaningful blink and said, “I have something else for you.”
“Yes, please,” Kajen said eagerly as he leaned forward.
“In fact, I’m planning to write a play about a romance in a dark time, which actually happened during the rebellion of the Church of Hermes.” Roland then briefly introduced the basic structure of the story. “I’ve heard that you’re expert in plays about love and redemption, so let’s make it a pilot project. If your play turns out to be a great success, I’ll consider about your request next time I film the Magic Movie. How does that sound?”
After Roland seized the new and old Holy Cities, he told the public that the culprit of all the atrocious crimes was the false pope. The real pope had been killed a long time ago. Now, a new church agent had been appointed and he would fully support Graycastle to fight the Battle of Divine Will.
After more than one year of advertisement, the public gradually accepted the “new history”. Now it was time to further uncover the origin of the Battle of Faiths and the church. Once the masses learned the truth, they would view the new church as a completely separate organization from the usurper’s and the church that had persecuted the witches. The new church, therefore, would become a part of Neverwinter’s political body.
“Is the play you’re talking about based on a true story?” Kajen asked. “Can I meet the two main characters in the play?”
“They’re currently in the Kingdom of Wolfheart, waiting for rescue.” Roland said, shrugging. “But I think you should know what ‘based on’ means…”
“Of course,” Kajen confirmed with a nod. “The plays I wrote in the past are also based on royal legends and myths, and I had to avoid using any identifiable family names and family history, but…”
“But what…?”
Kajen hesitated for a moment and replied determinedly, “Your Majesty, although it’s definitely a new experience for me, I would like to join your rescue team if you allow me to. I want to watch this operation. It’ll be very helpful for me to understand their story.”
“Even though this requires you to pay a visit to the Kingdom of Wolfheart?”
“I don’t think I can picture those details in my head, and I don’t want to miss the opportunity you’ve given me,” Kajen said cordially. “I can assure you that I won’t cause any trouble to your team. My health has not failed me yet, and I have my student to take care of me.”