The Rose and Thorn Tavern was mostly empty. Many of its patrons had left Medford, fearful of the coming invasion. Those who remained were the indentured or those simply too poor, feeble, or stubborn to leave. Royce found Hadrian sitting alone in the Diamond Room—his feet up on a spare chair, a pint of ale before him. Two empty mugs sat on the table, one lying on its side while Hadrian stared at it with a melancholy expression.

“Why didn’t you come to the castle?” Royce asked.

“I knew you could handle it.” Hadrian continued to stare at the mug, tilting his head slightly as he did.

“Looks like our break will have to be postponed,” Royce told him while pulling over a chair and sitting down. “Alric has another job. He wants us to make contact with Gaunt and the Nationalists. They’re still working out the details. The princess is going to send a messenger here.”

“Her Highness is back?”

“Got in this morning.”

Royce reached into his vest, pulled out a bag, and set it in front of Hadrian. “Here’s your half. Have you ordered dinner yet?”

“I’m not going,” Hadrian said, rocking the fallen mug with his thumb.

“Not going?”

“I can’t keep doing this.”

Royce rolled his eyes. “Now don’t start that again. If you haven’t noticed, there’s a war going on. This is the best time to be in our business. Everyone needs information. Do you know how much money—”

“That’s just it, Royce. There’s a war on and what am I doing? I’m making a profit off it rather than fighting in it.” Hadrian took another swallow of ale and set the mug back on the table a little too heavily, rattling its brothers. “I’m tired of collecting money for being dishonorable. It’s not how I’m built.”

Royce glanced around. Three men eating a meal looked over briefly and then lost interest.

“They haven’t all been just for money,” Royce pointed out. “Thrace, for example.”

Hadrian displayed a bitter smile. “And look how that turned out. She hired us to save her father. Seen him lately, have you?”

“We were hired to obtain a sword to slay a beast. She got the sword. The beast was slain. We did our job.”

“The man is dead.”

“And Thrace, who was nothing but a poor farm girl, is now empress. If only all our jobs ended so well for our clients.”

“You think so, Royce? You really think Thrace is happy? See, I’m thinking she’d rather have her father than the imperial throne, but maybe that’s just me.” Hadrian took another swallow and wiped his mouth with his sleeve.

They sat in silence for a moment. Royce watched his friend staring at a distant point beyond focus.

“So you want to fight in this war, is that it?”