Giddon made his face even and friendly. Katu Cavenda was a Keepish man, wealthy, an adventurer, who’d come to Monsea sometime back and become Bitterblue’s instant boyfriend. He was irritatingly young and likable, irritatingly handsome with his Keepish looks, his soft Keepish accent, and the streak of white in his black hair that pulled everyone’s eyes to him. He was also a perfectly nice person. Giddon’s friend, really; he’d taught Giddon to sail a boat, right here in the river.

“What does he say about it?” said Giddon pleasantly.

“That everybody fights about zilfium in the Keepish Parliament,” said Bitterblue, then tilted her head as if remembering. “A lot of people in Winterkeep want to legalize zilfium use.”

Froggatt bolted into the room again, huffing and pink, bearing a sheaf of papers, which he placed into Bitterblue’s hands.

“Thank you, Froggatt,” said Bitterblue. “Will you please tell everyone to stop for the night and go have their dinners?”

“Of course, Lady Queen.”

“That means you too.”

“And you, Lady Queen?”

Froggatt wasn’t a particularly tall man, but everyone was taller than Bitterblue. Nor was he old, but there was something fatherly in the tone he always took with the queen, folding his hands and tucking his chin against his chest, peering down at her and patiently waiting.

“I’m quite hungry,” said Giddon, who wasn’t really.

“Yes, all right, you’ve both made your points,” said Bitterblue, pretending to be annoyed. “Go away, Froggatt.”

“Have a lovely night, Lady Queen,” said Froggatt, giving Giddon one last, pointed glance of disapproval.

“Did you see that look?” Giddon said after Froggatt had gone. “When I took his side about dinner!”

“They’re being so grouchy,” said Bitterblue, “ever since I refused to spend more time with a horrible Sunderan earl.”

“They want you to marry an Estillan revolutionary and a Sunderan earl?”

“He kept talking over me,” said Bitterblue. “Then, when I finally told him to stop interrupting, he said, ‘I like a woman with a temper,’ in this creepy way that made it clear he was talking about sex.” She was flipping through the papers Froggatt had given her while she talked, her eyes scanning them quickly. “Here it is,” she said, stopping at a certain page and reading. “‘Zilfium deposits occur naturally all across the Torlan continent. Winterkeep’s environmental laws prohibit the use of zilfium in Winterkeep, but it’s mined there and sold to Kamassar and the other Torlan nations, where it’s used to power trains, ships, plows, machinery in factories.’”

“Winterkeep has airships,” said Giddon. “Don’t the airships use zilfium?”

“No,” said Bitterblue. “Airships are powered by the wind, and held aloft by some gas that doesn’t pollute the air. Airships are uniquely Keepish, and a zilfium-free technology.”