Cardenia had never been very close to Rennered—Rennered was a teenager when she was born and their circles never meshed—but he had treated her kindly. As a child she idolized him and his playboy ways from afar, and as she grew older and saw how much of the crush of imperial fame had passed by her to land on his shoulders, was quietly relieved he was there to shoulder it. He seemed to enjoy it more than she ever would.

He was gone and then suddenly the empire needed another heir for emperox.

“I think I lost you there,” Batrin said.

“I’m sorry,” Cardenia said. “I was thinking of Rennered. I wish he were still here.”

“So do I. Although perhaps for different reasons.”

“I would be happier if he were succeeding you. A lot of people would be.”

“That’s certain, my child. But Cardenia, listen to me. I don’t regret that you are succeeding me.”

“Thank you.”

“I mean it. Rennered would have made a perfectly good emperox. He was literally born for the role, just as I was. You weren’t. But that’s not a bad thing.”

“I think it’s a bad thing. I don’t know what I’m doing,” Cardenia confessed.

“None of us knew what we were doing,” Batrin said. “The difference is that you know it. If Rennered were here, he’d be just as clueless but more confident. Which is why he’d faceplant right out of the gate, just like I did, and my mother, and my grandfather. Perhaps you’ll break the family tradition.”

Cardenia smiled at this.

Batrin cocked his head, almost imperceptibly. “You still don’t know what to make of me, do you?” he asked.

“No,” Cardenia admitted. “I’m glad we’ve come to know each other better, these last few months. But—” She opened her hands, palms up. “All the rest of this.”

Batrin smiled. “You want to get to know your father, but you have to focus on getting ready to rule the universe instead.”

“It sounds ridiculous. But yes.”

“That’s on me. You know you were an accident. At least on my part.” Cardenia nodded at this. “Everyone, including your mother, told me that it would be better to keep you at a distance. And I was happy to agree with them.”

“I know. I never blamed you for that.”

“No, you didn’t, and you have to admit that was odd,” Batrin said.

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“You are a literal princess, but you didn’t live like one. I think it’s fair to say most people in your situation would have resented that.”

Cardenia shrugged. “I liked it being optional. When I was eight, I resented it a little. When I was old enough to know what being a princess meant, I was glad I got to miss most of it.”

“It caught up to you anyway.”