Camwyn felt his face warming again. The armsmaster’s expression didn’t change. “It’s no shame, lad,” he said softly. “And you need to know your reactions to control them. It’s no harm to have your wrist strengthening a little faster than your shoulder, but you need to balance it across both hands. You’ve done well with the hauks—keep it up—but enough with the sword for today.”

After that came unarmed combat, then footwork drills, and then it was time for other lessons. Camwyn told Aris and the others about his brother’s suggestion that he sleep later.

Jami Serrostin hooted. “I wish my brother would tell me that.”

“I’m not sleepy in the morning,” Aris said.

“You’re also two years younger,” Camwyn said. “Just wait. It’ll happen to you.”

“Is that why you were dropping the hauks?”

“The king thinks so,” Camwyn said. “He said he got clumsier for a while and needed more sleep.”

“Nobody thinks pages need more sleep,” Teris Konhalt said. “And if I don’t leave now, I’ll be late for my duties. Pardon?”

“Of course,” Camwyn said. The others soon followed—all had duties in the palace as well as with him. He uttered another silent prayer that Gird would ward him from any further excitement with his hand and went to his own session with the Marshal-Judicar.

Details of the law regarding the way money could be transferred between gnomes and humans seemed to have nothing to do with him, and it was hard not to yawn as the morning warmed. His eyelids sagged.

“Wake up, Prince Camwyn,” the Marshal-Judicar said. “Did you not sleep last night?”

“Sorry, sir,” Camwyn said. “I had dreams and … and other things.”

The Marshal-Judicar looked hard at him and muttered something Camwyn couldn’t hear. “I suppose it’s natural,” he said aloud, and then, “You need a cup of sib, I daresay. Get more sleep tonight and come tomorrow ready to learn.”

“Thank you, sir,” Camwyn said as he rose and bowed.

His other tutors seemed to have heard something, for all of them gave him an easy time for once. He found that a mug of sib at midmorning, lunch, and midafternoon helped, but he suddenly felt twitchy and wider awake than usual, as if someone had pulled his eyelids up into his head.

“Too much sib,” Mikeli said when they met before dinner. “You’re not used to it. Keep it to one or two a day. Best go for a brisk ride or another session with the armsmaster or you won’t sleep tonight.”

The extra session with the armsmaster, who made him run back and forth the length of the salle, must have helped, because he rolled over only once before falling asleep.