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have turned Master Korvin into a turtle?"
"Yes, your Highness. For a year. And tossed him into the moat to nibble on the
plants there so he wouldn't starve," I replied calmly. "One of the most
important lessons you can learn as king is politeness and diplomacy. A smooth
tongue and a simple smile often is more useful to a king than a mighty army.
Always remember that."
"Y-yes, my lady," Noril replied nervously.
"I have a question, Dame Raven," Dawn said, raising her hand briefly.
"Go ahead - and just call me Raven, you two, and I'll simply call you Noril
and Dawn. Bandying about titles will quickly become tiresome," I said, and
smiled.
Dawn smiled back. "Well, do you really think it's necessary to teach me to
rule? I mean, after all, it's Noril that will be king. Master Korvin thought I
didn't really need to learn much more than I already have."
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I snorted. "Noril, tell me - do you ride and hunt and compete in
tournaments?"
"Yes, my la-err, yes, Raven," Noril replied, blushing.
"And do the knights you compete against in tournament hold back against you,
to keep from injuring you, and perhaps allow you to win?"
"Certainly not, Raven! I'd be highly insulted."
"Then there's the possibility you could die accidentally, is there not? You
could fall from your horse while hunting, or be mortally wounded accidentally
in tournament, yes?"
"Well, yes, but I'm a skilled rider and among the best in the lists at tourney
- it's very unlikely," he replied, holding up his head.
"But it's still possible, yes?"
"Well... Yes," Noril replied, nodding.
I looked back to Dawn. "There's your answer, Dawn. It's unlikely, and we all
pray to Yorindar that nothing like that ever happens, but it's still possible.
If Noril dies without an heir, or if his heir is too young to assume the
throne, the power falls to you. Also, Noril might one day have to go to war.
Who else would he leave in charge of his kingdom if not his loving sister? Who
else could he possibly trust more?"
"Oh..." Dawn replied, looking down at her hands.
"It's alright, Dawn," I said, and smiled at her. "Now - let's begin by
assessing just what little Master Korvin has managed to teach you two. We'll
start by reviewing your knowledge of the art and science of warfare - that's
the most important thing a king or queen can ever know. Everything else you
can make mistakes in, and learn from. In war, you cannot make mistakes - if
you do, you'll be dead," I said, and picking up the piece of chalk as I
stepped to the slate on the wall, I began.
Nine.
"Thus it was that Dame Raven became the schoolmistress for my sister and I,
even as she had been for my father before me. She was not a harsh teacher, as
Master Korvin had been, not at all. No, her style of teaching was completely
different. Rote memorization had been Korvin's rule, and a dreadfully dull
method that was, indeed. Dame Raven, on the other hand, taught by example, and
by story, and by involving my sister and I with questions and answers, all
with an ease and style that both showed she had taught these lessons countless
times before, and yet made each lesson seem new and fresh. She would explain
in careful detail those parts that were difficult to understand, and phrase
important things as simple stories, easily remembered. And there was so much
she taught us! Each day, it seemed like my head would burst from being filled
with all the things she talked about - and yet, the next day, there were a
thousand more things to learn. Still, it was more a process of discovery than
it was one of learning, and to this day I remember each of her lessons well.
One lesson in particular, I have always remembered, though it was not taught
in our little schoolroom..."
- King Noril, Autobiography, 1729 NCC
It took a month for the messenger Darian sent to the elf-lands to return,
bearing the books I'd asked Darian to buy. None of them were terribly
expensive, but of course, they were all in elvish. As I didn't want to spend a
year or two translating them, I snuck off quietly one night back to my tower
and summoned a lesser demon to translate them all for me with sorcery. His
will couldn't match mine, so I forced him to the task rather easily. He did an
adequate job, so I thanked him for the work, and complimented him on his
efforts. The squat, toad-like, fanged and clawed thing blinked at me in
surprise at the compliment, then chuckled. "You're the Hyperborean battle-mage
Eddas Ayar. You're gaining quite a reputation in Hell," he said, then vanished
in a puff of flame.
Dawn and Noril's education was only fair - about what Darian had when I first [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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