Niru paused as she took in the King's words. One important lesson her father had given her was to never speak without first thinking beforehand. This had meant that any filler words- things like ums, were meant with strict punishment. As a child, Niru spent many evenings on an empty stomach.
"In some ways I'm unsure how to answer your question. This is the life I know, but I was not born into it, at least not exactly. I haven't ever told this story, every Nitehymn knows it. My half brother, Velkin, was destined for the throne. He was the older of the two of us. Indeed, my father even crowned him the Crystal Prince, the heir apparent. I have always lived a life of privilege, I can never deny that fact. But Velkin always had more than me. His tutors were always the more accomplished professors, his lesson deemed more important. His birthday celebrations more elaborate, his present more expensive, more thoughtful. And so on. My father, that mysterious man whom I never came to understand... the two of them had a relationship I could only dream of. I never knew my mother and Velkin's died when he was very young. The three of us only had each other, and them more than me. Towards the end of my father's life, he became quite ill. Fighting off death for as long as he did, it changes a person. One day he called me into his quarters and told me that I would be crowned the Crystal Princess. It wasn't long after that he finally succumbed to his illness." Niru took another much deeper sip of her tea. "I wasn't meant to be Governess. It took me many years to accept that, but now I understand it. It is my badge of honor. Novox is a complicated web, filled with its ancient traditions. I agree completely with you. Sometimes the past needs to be let go off. Had I been groomed to rule from birth, this idea would have been educated out of me. I would have learned an unquestionable reverence to the way things are. As you put it, 'the rules surrounding yourself,' they're impossible. I haven't been touched by another human being, save my personal physician, in maybe five years."
Niru sighed and for a second became lost in her memories. "I apologize for my frankness. This is unbecoming of a Governess. To babble on about my personal woes, it's extremely inappropriate. But to answer your first question, where do I see my nation in five years? I see a nation, teeming with tradition, with honor and piety, but also walking hand and hand with the rest of the world. I love my people, I love their faith, their reverence, their passion. If the zeal with which they worship could be used to aid others, the unimaginable would be possible. The aid we could provide Mundus, the lives we could improve, the people we could save. One of the Seraphim, Necra, put it best, 'kill the past if you must, for it is a simple thing and one day this will be the past too.' In five years, this nation will burn the past that holds us back and will stand firmly on the world stage. This I promise to you, King David."
"Reverence for those that came before you is admirable. In someways it seems we believe quite similar things. Among the Pantheon, the aid of others is considered the grandest of deeds. In many ways the Imperium has been neglectful of this by closing our border for so long. Indeed, we also believe that humanity fought alongside the gods against an ancient evil long ago." He finished is Modi and smiled, amused at how despite the vast difference between them, how similar the Morelanders really were. "Is there anything else you desire? If not, we could talk a walk to the cliff's edge, the sight of the sea can be quite beautiful."
