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[color=1E90FF][b]Interactions[/b]: Roman [@ReusableSword][/color]
[color=1E90FF][b]Time[/b]: 1510[/color]
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The Sjan-dehk of a few years prior – hot-blooded and eager as he was – would’ve certainly jumped at the opportunity to prove his mettle and bring honour to his name on the field of battle. Or in this case, in the arena of a duel. Reputation was everything for a man under arms, after all. All the more so when said man was considered a noble, albeit only marginally. 

The Sjan-dehk of today, however, needed to do no such thing. For one, there was simply not much left for him to prove. He already captained his own ship – one which he earned through blood, no less – and had already fought enough battles to earn his family and himself fame to last a lifetime. More than that, most likely, if the poets and scholars did what they were wont to do and embellished the odd detail. Granted, such fame would likely be mostly limited to the outlying western islands where Jafi’s fleet spent most of the war, but that was perfectly fine with Sjan-dehk.

More importantly, however, was that Sjan-dehk simply wasn’t good at duelling. Fighting deep in the thick of it and cutting down his enemies was one thing. Fighting a duel with rules was another. The last time he had fought in such a fight – ceremonial swordplay, as his father called it – had been during a banquet held to celebrate the end of the war. Sjan-dehk didn’t even last one round. It took only three bouts before the rush of battle got to his head and he gave his opponent a savage kick to the nether regions. Suffice to say, that had earned him a swift disqualification.

Starting his stay in Sorian with such an incident would be inauspicious, and so Sjan-dehk decided to do the prudent thing and decline the invitation. [color=1E90FF][i]“Sjan-dehk. That is my name. Wasun is family.”[/i][/color] He first gave Roman a quick correction. The royal tutor had already prepared him for such errors. [color=1E90FF][i]“I will watch. Maybe fight next time, yes?”[/i][/color] A slight grin accompanied his last sentence. He followed Roman through the side entrance into the stands. The heat from bodies packed so tightly together and the smell of sweat met him like an overly-familiar friend. It smothered and made wading through the crowd feel harder than it actually was, but it wasn’t anything Sjan-dehk wasn’t used to. 

There was one other reason for Sjan-dehk to watch the fight with Roman. The man had raised the notion of establishing trade between his lands and the Commonwealth earlier, and though Sjan-dehk still didn’t quite know exact whereabouts or even exact name of his homeland, it would’ve been remiss of him if he allowed this chance to slip through his fingers. At the very least, he wanted to get something he could later pass on to Lady Adiyan. [color=1E90FF][i]“I am not a trader. More like…Fighter?”[/i][/color] Sjan-dehk opened by admitting. Honesty was key in all affairs, as the saying went. [color=1E90FF][i]“Lady Adiyan, she ah…She knows more about trade. But we can talk about it first. Know more about our land, yes? I will tell her what we say and she can decide.”[/i][/color]