Karan Stevano finished reading the letter aloud and tossed it on his desk.
"What does it mean?"
The Karin Aniro did not flinch.
"The honest trader in question insulted and attacked Filirae Ayala, one of Mother's ladies-in-waiting, in Fairhaven. And she has committed enough other crimes against the forces of the Kingdom that the city guards would know her at a glance. If I hadn't been busy with this cube business, I would have sent Line to deal with her myself."
Aniro was careful not to add he had tried to go over her body with his mektoub. He hadn't succeeded and that didn't seem the right thing to say at the moment.
The king frowned.
"Are you sure about Filirae Ayala?"
"Sil. Ambassador Nilstilar does not have a monopoly on information from New Trykoth."
Stevano took the letter back and read it again.
"He could have been not aware of this incident?"
Aniro reflected. He felt that the ambassador was a little too quick to defend the interests of other nations, and that he sometimes took certain liberties with the leaders. Like when he had, at the Kamic Circle, preached peace rather than factually answering his questions. Or as his present unfortunate defense of an absolutely indefensible Tryker attested. But he had also managed to give the Kingdom a fairly good image outside its borders, which had not always been the case. The Karin replied, choosing his words carefully.
"The ambassador? Probably not. But perhaps he has been induced to believe in an isolated incident, or that the trader had got better. It is not always easy to distinguish the false from the true in the words of Trykers."
The Karan rumbled.
"I precisely expect my ambassadors to distinguish between the false and the true! And it is certainly not up to them to decide when their mission ends! I refuse his resignation! But he will have to do better in the future. And for starters, I want a complete list of the Tryker guilds and their stance towards the Kingdom. It's about time Ser Nilstilar got up to speed. And a list of the ten most virulent opponents of the Kingdom in the Lakes. And this so-called trader had better be on it! Where is my secretary?"
Stevano punctuated each gesture with a loud slap on the desk. The letter eventually flew off and fell to the floor. It remained there, forgotten.
"What does it mean?"
The Karin Aniro did not flinch.
"The honest trader in question insulted and attacked Filirae Ayala, one of Mother's ladies-in-waiting, in Fairhaven. And she has committed enough other crimes against the forces of the Kingdom that the city guards would know her at a glance. If I hadn't been busy with this cube business, I would have sent Line to deal with her myself."
Aniro was careful not to add he had tried to go over her body with his mektoub. He hadn't succeeded and that didn't seem the right thing to say at the moment.
The king frowned.
"Are you sure about Filirae Ayala?"
"Sil. Ambassador Nilstilar does not have a monopoly on information from New Trykoth."
Stevano took the letter back and read it again.
"He could have been not aware of this incident?"
Aniro reflected. He felt that the ambassador was a little too quick to defend the interests of other nations, and that he sometimes took certain liberties with the leaders. Like when he had, at the Kamic Circle, preached peace rather than factually answering his questions. Or as his present unfortunate defense of an absolutely indefensible Tryker attested. But he had also managed to give the Kingdom a fairly good image outside its borders, which had not always been the case. The Karin replied, choosing his words carefully.
"The ambassador? Probably not. But perhaps he has been induced to believe in an isolated incident, or that the trader had got better. It is not always easy to distinguish the false from the true in the words of Trykers."
The Karan rumbled.
"I precisely expect my ambassadors to distinguish between the false and the true! And it is certainly not up to them to decide when their mission ends! I refuse his resignation! But he will have to do better in the future. And for starters, I want a complete list of the Tryker guilds and their stance towards the Kingdom. It's about time Ser Nilstilar got up to speed. And a list of the ten most virulent opponents of the Kingdom in the Lakes. And this so-called trader had better be on it! Where is my secretary?"
Stevano punctuated each gesture with a loud slap on the desk. The letter eventually flew off and fell to the floor. It remained there, forgotten.