Seppo had joined Soren’s circle of advisors right away, which wasn’t surprising considering his role during the Hunt. He always had something helpful to say and a new perspective of situations that we got stuck on. He also was the reason none of us fell asleep.

Rose and Diaval had come later, a few months after the Hunt, when we’d finally got all the favor-seekers and bootlickers to leave us alone. Goblins who ignored or despised us before now desperately wanted to be seen as friends and allies. Only after Soren shooed them all away did they come out and ask to pledge allegiance and to possibly become members of his guard if he saw them fit.

It took only a month before the two of them were accepted. Diaval’s magic brought us an unexpected boon and me an unexpected best friend, and Rosamund had let it slip early on that he was also dating Seppo and if Seppo trusted him, I couldn’t find a reason not to.

Of course, with Seppo, came Satu, his mother. If you didn’t know, she could be any adult aging gracefully into her late thirties or early forties, but that didn’t fool me. She’d been around for a long time. No-nonsense and with years of experience behind her, she obviously found her way on the council. She knew the goblin world better than any of us in terms of society and brought with her others to help with everyday tasks like guarding and running the grounds smoothly and even added a member of the council.

She stood next to Satu, a goblin whose face was wrinkled and leathery, withered by age and the harshness of life in the Permafrost. Even goblins aged, though very slowly, and their skin became old like the rest of the creatures on this world. Whether from the human realm, Asgard, or the Permafrost, none of us would live forever. This goblin preferred to wear the same weathered leathers every day and tied back his graying hair into a short ponytail. His face was decorated with battle scars half-covered in the salt-and-pepper hair of his beard. His name was Ivar.

It’d shocked me at first to see an older goblin who truly looked old. The Permafrost extended lifespans, and goblins in general were slow to age, but Satu had been around forever and she looked nowhere near as ancient. Even the power radiating from him was duller, like it was muted.