— I’ve always felt like Haytham was too smart to actually overlook Charles’ flaws so I kinda figured that Haytham knew Charles was ultimately kinda meh (at best) but that he was:

A: The best of a rough bunch
B: In the right spot (politically)

Haytham had to make do.
So he did the best he could.

(He’s outright not acknowledging the ‘idiot’ comment.)

- from the fence, and with a few lucky grabs he made his way up onto a prominent branch. From there, he simply leaped out and soon found himself climbing onto the top of the bloody sharp fence.

“So uncivilised…”, he cursed.

He sighed.

“Well, I suppose I could…”

He was never one for nature running. Oh, he could jump and climb with the best of free runners, but doing so out in the wild was just never his strong point as a mover.

But what else could he do?

Haytham inhaled and ran towards a tree not-so far -

At present: Haytham was alone in the woods with the castle in the immediate horizon. The mud clinging to his boots made each step make a slight squelching noise.

But this wasn’t his first dark forest.
He—and his boots—would endure.

“Blimey…”