All Comments on 'Casus Belli Ch. 14: The Flower and the Axe'

Still loving this! Don’t worry about keeping to some arbitrary schedule, take all the time you need to tell the story just the way you want. The conflicting cultures continue to captivate as we learn more. Thank you for sharing your talents with us.

Hi nthusiastic,

Don't you worry, I won't stop taking my time for this one...

As I told another commenter, who thought the story needed to finish after the Nigawan surrender, some time ago, I'm actually just starting really.

I'm basically still introducing the cast, and still painting out the setting.

And as those who have read "The Samaritan" and its sequels will know, things aren't always what they seem to be in Banbeck's stories.

In this story the first clue that not everything is as it at first glance seemed to be has been revealed already.

There's so much still to come yet...

Anyway, thanks for commenting nthusiastic, it's appreciated :)

I wonder about about Cassy's idea that the Orcs are liberators. If the prizes of the chieftains are all noble, then wouldn't the next generation of rulers be blood nobility (the same nobility in power previously)? I'm curious how the human vs orc nature will play out in mixed-race descendants. Cassy already warned Bashuk about the comparative deceitfulness of humans, and as we saw in a previous chapter, when green and black orcs have offspring, the black orc nature trumped the green orc nurture.

Hi Anonymous,

Interesting questions... ;)

Cassy has always lived largely inside her Bromodin 'bubble', and is only now starting to get a clear view of the entire picture.

And while the prizes are all nobles, not all the Chieftains got a prize, and the packs of those Chieftains didn't get prizes either.

So the majority of the orcish 'upper layer' is still destined to mate with Nigawan commoners.

Bashuk's pack is a prime example of this, with its males in the process of mating with one noble girl and six common girls.

The mixed-race descendants are still relatively far away.

And while certain less desirable black orc qualities were dominant in the only mixed-race example we have seen up to now, that doesn't mean they always have to be.

But even if they were, that still wouldn't mean it has to be the same for the mix between green orcs and humans.

I have a feeling the half-orcs will, on average, inherit the best qualities of both races... ;)

And thank you for commenting, it's appreciated.

Nice to read a new chapter of your saga!

The sex scene between Cassandra, Leavy and Chief Yasso was very hot, the victorious orcish warlord and his two submissive human women.... nice scene you came up with.

It's interesting to get to know a part of the world outside the castle. I was surprised at how the human labourers reacted to the presence of a noble slave.

Apparently they hate their own nobility more than the orcs and don't have much of a problem with human women having sex with the orcish conquerors.

Looking forward to the next chapter. Your work is much appreciated.

Hi greywolf12,

The story has reached the point at which Cassandra's world is really going to expand beyond the confines of Bromodin keep, and in more ways than one...

The Nigawan people are divided on the subject of the (former) nobility, with their individual positions largely depending on their personal experiences.

They certainly aren't as supportive of the nobility as Cassandra expected them to be, but hey might not hate them as much as you think they do either.

As far as the Nigawan people in general are concerned there has been a change of management, and up to now, considering the circumstances, the new masters have behaved themselves surprisingly well.

So now they are observing the orcs with a wary eye, but most of them observed their predecessors with a wary eye too...

And the Nigawans, in general again, don't seem to have much of a problem with inter-species sex because the orcs, except for the noble women, aren't forcing Nigawan women to have sex with them (also remember this is a fantasy world, where inter species sex, outside single species countries like Nigawa, is pretty common.)

And thanks for commenting again, it's appreciated :)

I found that this chapter, though still excellent, lacked the depth of previous chapters. The Yasso thing happened very quickly, and there wasn't enough time to really observe him and Lily. Also, especially after Lily's story, and how she was underage when the vote took place, I don't understand how the orcs thinking that sexually enslaving young girls who were relatively blameless for the actions of their fathers (and mothers, to a lesser extent) in any way resembles justice. They try to shelter Cass from gawkers, but there is no self-reflection on the existence of the prizes. It seems a contradiction with the advice to just suck it up that Cass got when she was crying.

Hi Anonymous,

Regarding Lily; the orcs don't know that she was still underage when the voting took place, they don't even know that a voting took place...

Regarding justice; the orcs did offer the nobles a way out, but the nobles chose to go to war instead, knowing they were risking their own lives, the lives of their children, and the lives of the entire Nigawan population, by doing so. So after defeating the Nigawan army, and paying for it with even more orc blood, the orcs could simply have wiped out Nigawa's entire human population (the "an eye for an eye" principle, not that strange in what is basically a barbaric/medieval setting). But they didn't, they spared the common people, and they didn't even kill the nobles, but enslaved those nobles instead. And then they even spared the children of the nobles from slavery, and offered the young adult females (most of which chose for war, and were looking at being married off for benefit anyway) the opportunity to become prizes instead of basic slaves. So I think the nobles don't have much to complain about justice wise.

Regarding the seemingly conflicting way in which Cassy is being treated; Bashuk's bunch are basically good guys, they like her, she's part of their pack, and a pack protects its own. There are also customs and traditions to be respected though, meaning there are things they can't protect her against without breaking the code. So they shield her from 'gawkers' because they can (and Yasso's reaction to them doing so should have made clear to you that this isn't the usual way a pack handles its prizes), but they also try to toughen her up against what they won't be able to shield her from. So Cassy being made to 'just suck it up' isn't based on indifference but on protectiveness. They just want for her to be prepared, so she won't end up hurt.

Thank you for commenting, it's appreciated.

Pointing out things like this helps me with determining what parts of the story might need more clarification ;)

To the 'person' who just 1-bombed this previously straight 5 story; what a nice gesture to make...

Does the human title "Sir" not indicate nobility in Nigawa? Why aren't the doctor and the engineer enslaved if they are both titled?

@ Anonymous

No, it doesn't indicate nobility, in Nigawa "sir" is a general courtesy title, and it's capitalized once it's associated with a named individual.

Courtesy titles reserved for nobles are (mi)lord and (mi)lady.

Nobility titles are: Kang (King), Kangess (Queen), Pryon (Prince), Pryoness (Princess), Drak (Duke), Drakess (Duchess), Conak (Count), Conakess (Countess), Burgon (Baron), Burgoness (Baroness), and all the lower nobility are simply Lord or Lady.

Thanks for commenting, it's appreciated :)

Mr. Banbeck I'm dying to read the next chapter. Its been so long since the last.

I also wanted to ask if nudity is always going to be a thing with Cassandra? Also, are you going to introduce toys like butt plugs?

Hi Daedalus98,

For starters, you can drop the Mr., it's just Banbeck ;)

This chapter (14) got published not even a month ago, about a month ahead of schedule, because I manage roughly one chapter every two months on average.

Writing 25k+ words chapters simply takes time, and having them edited takes time too.

So I'll be trying to get chapter 15 published before the end of next month...

Regarding Cassandra's nudity; prizes are never allowed clothes normally, but the orcs relaxed the rules a little because human females aren't as cold resistant as orc females are, which is why Cassandra is allowed leg warmers and a cardigan (as are all the other human prizes).

This only changes when a prize becomes a pack-mate, which might or might not happen.

Regarding the toys; the orcs never had a need for them, so they never invented them.

The humans do have them though, so it's possible for them to turn up at some point in the story.

But while the main story-line for Casus Belli has been worked out already, details like this haven't, so I can't provide you with an answer to that question...

Anyway, thanks for commenting, it's appreciated :)

I hope we get to hear more about the other prizes. It must be a lot harder for them than for Cassandra since they don't have any female support network to help them through everything. Also, since there is so much animosity towards the former nobles, it seems likely that any new human females brought into the packs with prizes will make life harder for the prizes instead of easier. Bashuk said no physical abuse, but he couldn't stop the catty comments and behaviours that would chip away at the prizes' psyches, especially when a pack's males aren't around and it's just the prizes at the mercy of pack females who possibly hate them and bear a grudge.

Hi Anonymous, the exact level of animosity against the nobles is still to be established...

At the moment it is clear that some loathe the nobles, but that other's don't.

And you must also keep in mind that most of these prizes are likely to become the pack-mate of their pack's leader one day.

So any human females joining a pack's harem are well advised not to mistreat their pack leader's prize, who's likely to become their superior one day, and even if not mated to him yet is still warming his bed...

That being said, being part of a harem made up of your best friends is definitely a big plus for a prize of course, which makes Cassandra a lucky girl ;)

Hope that clears things up a little...

And thank you for commenting, it's appreciated :)

Hi, it has taken a little longer than expected, but I just submitted chapter 15 (18:20 GMT)

Its title is "To Mate or Not to Mate", and it should be up in a day or two.

Happy reading... ;)