She inhaled, ran her hand over her face, and changed her demeanor. With warmer, more complacent tones in her voice, she said, “It’s fine that you have already given so much and that you wish to continue with such work. Father would have been proud. Aliver would have been proud. The delay between now and when you may return to such work will be a small thing, I’m sure.” She set down her tumbler, untasted as far as he could tell, and leaned forward in her seat. “I am proud of you, too, Brother, but I have an important assignment for you. There has been a mishap in the Other Lands. I will need your help to mend it.”

As he listened, Dariel teetered between dread and excitement. The league had been in contact with the Auldek, those mystery people to whom so many children had been sent. It had not gone well, and now the league needed help. It was hard for him to fathom.

Corinn was telling him he would travel across the Gray Slopes! He would ride waves as large as mountains—if the tales were true—and see the massive schools of sea wolves, the dreaded creatures that only the league had found a way to evade. He would set his eyes on the Other Lands. Amazing, something no known Acacian had ever done.

“You will be my ambassador,” Corinn said, smiling as if there were something more ironic about this than he knew. “You will represent me and carry all my authority with you. You, Dariel, are charged with the most important mission I’ve yet asked of anyone. The collapse of this foreign trade is a greater threat to us than Hanish Mein ever was. I don’t exaggerate. Hanish could be killed outright and moved beyond. Easy. But if we don’t resume the mist trade—”

“You don’t mean to start that again?”

“I do. Stop! I know what you think about it. I know what Aliver promised. But he’s not here. We cannot go on indefinitely trading quota for gems and metals and trinkets. The trade has been pathetic, unsustainable. We need a return to the stability that kept this nation together for twenty-two generations.”

Dariel started to protest, but she spoke over him.

“And I mean that in two different ways. One, we have partners—the league, the Lothan Aklun, even the Auldek—who expect things of us, are invested in us, have so much in place. Do you want them all as enemies?”

Again, Dariel would have spoken, but Corinn did not pause.

“No, of course not. Two, the people of the provinces are growing disgruntled. Tell me you don’t know this is true. They gripe and plot and scheme to cause mischief. It’s only a matter of time, Dariel, until they rebel. And that would do no one any good. It would be chaos. Suffering.”