Post by Antonin Deliambre on Oct 9, 2015 8:41:47 GMT -5
The analogy was not what Antonin expected, though the speech was precisely as he'd anticipated. Naturally, the new heir to the throne had ambitious plans to establish her reign as a new golden age for the Kingdom and intended to take stock of where her allies and opponents stood in regards to her agenda. The Duke heard the youthful Prince out, offering little to nothing in the way of comment or reaction for the time being. He was clearly meant to listen, not reply, during this part.
Only once Julien posed his remark did Antonin bestir himself to react. "I feel I need to make a clarification for the purpose of posterity," his gaze slid briefly to the scribe as his tone went somewhat cool. "It is a long standing custom in Calandria that we do not view women as lesser than men. Much of life as we live it relies upon the concept of joint partnership between man and woman - marriage, raising children, maintaining home and hearth. I do not see it as 'women taking leads over men,' and neither would my vassals. They took their places by right of inheritance regardless of gender; I treat them no differently than I do their male counterparts. As for the forefront?"
Antonin smiled coolly. "I have been at the forefront for years, I see no change in that for the foreseeable future, Your Highness. The only difference now is that others have finally started to notice what we of Calandria have known for years." Since they were dispensing with the fluff, he saw no reason to continue handling the young man with kid gloves. "Indeed. A pity that it was not done sooner, Your Highness." He was not so inclined to relay his vision right now, nor to trust this current atmosphere. Too soon without evidence of true reform, in his mind.
@juliendeveraux