[He nodded his head, not commenting on the name. It seemed perfectly acceptable after all, and it was perhaps a bit more than expected. He had wondered if Richard was overly protective of the boy, and a name was a good indicator of that.] My daughter is Jinx. You'll have the benefit of meeting her someday as she is in Aldrip with me here.

[Most people, especially after meeting her, wouldn't mess with Jinx much. Even if they tried, she had cultivated protection that he felt confident that she would be fine even mouthing off at the usual random strangers. It was still the Council that he was worried about, but he was still deducing how to upend them.]

Sacrifices in the name of stability and power. That's a violence as old as humanity itself. I will assume you enacted such an act with impunity. [Richard did seem the decisive type, and he could respect that. Enemies of safety were better silenced than allowed to fester.

He noted the change in demeanor, and that was just as fascinating as the previous reaction. Avoiding attachment or embarrassed by his inquiry? He suspected there was something lurking beneath the surface, and he was used to hot-cold behaviour. He did have a daughter after all.]

Why wouldn't I think you have a kingdom? Maybe it's not a whole city or county or country, but you have something that you rule over. [He picked up his tumbler and finished off the whiskey, wiping his lips with the pad of his thumb.] Besides, what brother sits in the shadows of their elder one without wanting time in the sun?