Author's Note

Hello everyone,
I took more time to write this entry for I had a hard time deciding
how to go with it. I hope you will enjoy this one as much as the others.

Have a nice read !

The Duke's diary : Second entry

30th of January, 996 post somnum lunam.

The manor stay pristine, unyielding despise the rot brought inside by my father's decadence. When I first laye my eyes on our family home, I was scared to witness in what state the interior was left behind. From what I've been told by my escort, when father was not lamenting mother's death while spewing occult and prophetic nonsense, he was indulging himself into all the luxurious and scandalous frivolities nobility was know for. He hosted numerous parties where all guests and him included, lost themselves in drunkenness and other activities I dare not name.

While I was to be first escorted into my old bedroom before being brought to our family's crypt where my father's coffin was held, I decided to took 30 minutes to have a look at all the rooms in the mansion. It was clear that the manor had seen better days, cobwebs and dust had claimed most of the interior while many objects littered the floor as if a battle had taken place inside. When asked about the meaning of this mess, the captain told me that father still hold a few events even after loosing the servants who left after being unpaved for 3 months.

I cursed my father's idiocy as I was standing over the sorry sight that was the manor's main hall, where the debauchery must have taken place most of the time. The Blueblood household and name had always pride itself on a righteous and clean image even in the most dires of times, all of us were taught since the youngest age that appearances in the unforgiving and cruel wold of nobility was always the number one priority. Looking over the leftovers of the surely repulsive events who took place her, make my shudder to know how many times our family's name must have been soiled.

However... this is not the time to mindlessly fume over my father's mistakes, anger over past mistakes do not build a better futur. Besides, there is must work to be done and inventorying the damage caused can wait when we plan to undo them. My belongings were brought to my new yet temporary private quarters, before father join our ancestors in death and that I officially inherit the title of Duke. Finding myself back into this old bedroom always manege to bring a nostalgic smile to my face, I fondly remember when my sister and I used to live here.

At least father did not brought disorder to any rooms he usually don't go into, nor any of his guests found themselves in our old bedroom to defile it with their disgusting needs. Now, I must pay back the servants for their last three months services
and bring them back. I sit myself on my desk mother had brought me when I reached my first university year, starting to fill bills of exchange with a simple letter of excuse signed by my name attached to it. Once done, I started to meditate on futur solutions before I was interrupted by the captain of the guard coming in.

"Thank you for bring me here safe, captain. Though most of my gratitude is for you keeping order and peace for the brief period when our house was leaderless. A shall take an hour to recover from this draining journey now, please make sure that a full report about the estate's situation is ready for after I payed my last respects to my father."

"Of course your majesty, is there any problem you need dealt with as soon as possible" ?

"Yes, please take those bills of exchange and send them to be posted to our old servants. They should cover their three unpaid months and make them come back. I suppose that they should already be aware of the succession, but those letters attached to it shall prevent any possible misunderstandings".

"Very well your majesty, consider it already done".

"Please captain, do not forget you and your men to take a well deserved rest. Those next days, month and even years will be exhausting, and everypony will have to be unyielding in body and spirit".

I looked at the officer bow down in thanks and reverence before going away, only hopping that he has taken this order seriously. I took my own advise and made basic stretching exercices before unceremoniously throwing myself onto my bed. After around 45 minutes of laying there, using many relaxing tricks aunt Celestia taught me for recovering quicker while not completely keeping the current problems out of my mind. Once I had gathered enough strength back, I decided to go for a stroll in the manor to keep my legs from going numb.

I walked through the ancient yet study stone corridors of our family house, richly decorated with old armor and weapons themselves complemented with luxurious tapestry and grand paintings, all depicting an older age where war was still a very important part of life. I passed the library after refraining myself from staying in with great difficulty, and passed through the hall of remembrance. This place was a time machine, in the center of the most far away wall was our family tree graved in marble and gold. The rest of the surfaces were decorated with the respective portraits of my ancestors, complemented each with their armory and war gear.

I choose the family's head office as my last destination for this walk, as it was soon to be my futur place of work and where I will pass most of my time in the near futur. To keep my mind occupied on the rest of the way, I took up a little exercice that father gave me when I reached the age of ten. I was to find and later recognized all the secret passages disseminated in the manor. As our family predate the current age of peace, those kind of passageways were a must have for all powerful and rich families and of course, the Blueblood house did not escaped the rule.

The main and most important secret passage was hidden in the grand chimney of the master bedroom, the mechanism to open it was very complexe and brought you into a very long spiral staircase, leading into a hidden alcove directly at sea level. There, a secret dock and ship was waiting for evacuation. I finally reached the office and, for the very first time in my life entered it. The family's head office was a very important and special place, for nobody except the current Duke of
Blueblood, Celestia and her sister Luna 1000 years ago was ever allowed to enter.

The room was by far the most in disarray, mountains of papers and books were littering the floor. Many decorative objects seemed to have been thrown away as if a tornado or a violant magic discharge had happened inside. As I started to put away the mess a peculiar set of things got my attention. In the far right left was standing one of many bookshelves in this room, which was in complete disorder like the rest. However, five books in random places were still standing perfectly in order while it shouldn't be the case. After a few trials and errors, I manege to open the obvious secret passage they were made to open. It brought me into a secret archive holding many very ancient books and scrolls.