Arrivo del Cancelliere di An Mumhain

Wandress reigned in her red mare Sigrun as she approached the castle. The impressive walls rose to greet her, the gates creaking open to let her into the courtyard. Stripping her red leather riding gloves off her hands she slipped her credentials from a pocket inside her ermine lined cloak, left loose and open due to the balmy Italian air - it was a pleasant change from the baltic Irish air she was accustomed to. A man-at-arms came to greet her, and she handed him her letter. "Please let his excellency Ambassador Thomaskeion know that the Chancellor of An Mumhain has arrived."

~~~

Wandress ha regnato nella sua cavalla rossa Sigrun mentre si è avvicinata al castello. Le pareti impressionanti sono aumentato per accoglierle, creaking dei cancelli aperto per lasciarla nel cortile. Togliendo i suoi guanti di cuoio rossi di guida le sue mani ha slittato le sue credenziali da una tasca all'interno del suo mantello allineato ermine, ha andato liberamente e aperto dovuto l'aria italiana balsamica - era un cambiamento piacevole dall'aria che irlandese baltica accustomed a. Un man-at-arms è venuto ad accoglierlo e gli ha passato la sua lettera. " Lasci prego il suo ambasciatore Thomaskeion di Eccellenza sapere che il cancelliere di An Mumhain ha arrived."

I was sitting at my desk when my secretary knocked the door and entered my office, handing me a letter.
"What's that, Anselmo? Who writes me?"
"It arrived this morning, sir; the messenger that gave me that seemed to have travelled through the whole Europe."
"Well, let's see... please, Anselmo, be free."

Anselmo exited the room while I opened the letter.

Ah, it is from the Chancellor of Am Mumhain, Lady Wandress. Let me see, ah, my representants continue not to find the way to their Embassy... what a problem! And then... mmm, that sounds important! I have to speak with lady Wandress as soon as possible!

After thoughts, action: "Anselmo! Please, be sure that a groom saddles my horse and prepares my travel bags!"
"Yessir, as soon as possible!"

In the meantime I took my travel robe, the heavy wool mantle and the sword, ready to go. I was opening the door when Anselmo appeared suddenly in front of me:
"Ah! Anselmo! Beware of you! Another of these sudden apparition and I will die!"
"Excuse me sir, but a lady asked for you at the Gatehouse."
"Who, Anselmo? I must ride to Ireland without loosing time with any other woman that is not Lady Wandress of Am Mumhain."
"In fact, sir, is her Excellency the Chancellor of Am Mumhain that waits at the gate."
"Ah-hm, well done Anselmo. Warn the groom to take back the horse to the stables."
"Yessir!"

I hurried down the stairs and walked through the outer court of the Castle, then I arrived at the Gatehouse. Lady Wandress was there, wonderful in her riding habits.
I bowed in front of her:
"Lady Wandress, my honours!
Welcome in the Duchy of Milan, Excellency. But please, follow me in the inner court: we will be more at ease. Soon will arrive also the Great Chamberlain, Lady Robyb -my chief, by the way-."

While we were pacing through the gardens, looking at the soldiers under training in the courtyard of the barracks, I told her:
"I just read your letter about the disgraceful situation of my representants in Ireland: they cannot find Am Mumhain Embassy... they reported me that, although they saw the flag, they could not enter the Embassy, thus some farmers told them a strange sentence like that: -the forum does not exist-. It sounds like magic!
For what concerns the other question, the one about Scotland, we will have time to discuss it, but in my office. Do you see, I was preparing myself to ride to Ireland to talk with you about that, but you prevented me. Also that sounds strange, I think that Ireland is a quite magic, supernatural land...
This way, Chancellor, please!"

We passed the second gate, arriving in the Inner Court. There, we sit on a table and a servant brought us something to drink.

Wandress smiled and took her seat, pushing the long plait of her hair over her shoulder. Indeed, the question of access to the Embassy in An Mumhain had been quite an embarrassing one, she would need to devise a method for better signage. She would have to attend to it upon her return to Ireland. "I'm sorry there are still such difficulties with the Embassy. Magic indeed - I don't normally subscribe to the idea of witchcraft, a soldier can't afford to be skittish about the unexplained, but in this case, there really can be no other explanation. Oh, but it is a pleasure to see you again since the conference in Westmorland."

She took a sip of her drink to wash the road dust from her throat, enjoying the opportunity to examine the expansive gardens, and review her brief examination of the Milanese soldiers at their drills. It pleased her to have witnessed the crisp competency of soldiers running exercises in the barrack courtyard, and for a moment she felt a pang of homesickness for her own barracks in Corcaigh.

"I do thank you for receiving me so quickly, I should have sent word of my arrival sooner, but there was little enough time."

I smiled at Lady Wandress and told her:
"Your sudden arrival is not a problem, this castle is like a sea-harbour: people that come, people that leaves, and soon without loosing to much time with words of greetings. Well, I think that, although some cheers and salutes help to create a friendly atmosphere in which is pleasant to work in, they are not necessary for the rough diplomatics. Probably, here's speaking my soldier nature: I prefer to go straight to the point.
However, I am annoying you with chats and chats, and you will be tired for the long ride.
I will show you your office and your apartments, then I will leave you, so you may rest for a while."

We finished our drinks, then I showed her the way:
"Please, Lady Wandress, that's the way."
We went up the great stairs, where many strangers diplomats used to have chats in a babelic chaos of languages, then we passed the heavy-wooden gate of the "Rocchetta", the military quarters of the Castle. I leaded her through the galleries of the first floor, then we arrived to the rooms reserved to the ambassadors of Ireland.
https://castellodimilano.forumattivo.com/c24-irlanda

"Ah, look there! Someone put there a wrong plate: it tells -Munster-, but I think they meant -Mumhain-.
I will give orders to correct it, in the meanwhile accept my excuses.
So, here are your rooms, I hope you may feel at ease.
I won't to tire you, so I leave. Tomorrow I have arranged, if it suits with your programmes, a round table with you, our Ambassador in Scotland, Messire Pusu92, and me, to discuss about the scottish situation. He followed the whole affaire better than me, so he will be -I hope- more exhaustive."

Then I left the room.