I picked up the tea again and took a long draught. It was barely half of one hour until the night meal, so I would wait until then to eat.

Odessa, however, started on a pack of biscuits immediately. It was a common phenomenon for younger mages to overuse their magic; no matter the talent, efficiency only comes through experience and practice. Given her last display of magic, she must be starving.

I glanced up at a questioning noise from her and gratefully took a few of the flat wafers, handing her the tea with a smile in return.

“So what did Uncle Askya mean by ‘issues of responsibility’?”

I chuckled softly at that.

“Believe me, Odessa-san – you may have angered Uncle for a moment, but he has been furious at me for several years. You may notice that Uncle Kasker and I share a name, and that should tell you all you wish to know.”

She paused, eyes wide.

“You chose the Rangers over the Imperial Service?”

“That I did, and none of my Uncles have ever quite forgiven me for it.”