Their meeting with the king lasted for two more hours; long enough for the majordomo to return with lunch for everyone. Most of that time was spent discussing what they could expect from life in Særis. Some of it was also spent telling King Dreigan about their experiences with the caves. He may have heard the second-hand reports from Elarin and Princess Yona, or perhaps first-hand reports from Amran and Maro, but it was worth telling him in their own words.

Besides those two points, Dreigan did touch upon the official welcome and the reason behind it. Typically speaking, the Særan Court's idea of an official welcome is fairly reserved, much as it is in Llen Færa. Most dignitaries barely get anything more than an audience with the Crown in the throne room with a few courtiers bearing witness. Even Queen Elarin, a royal contemporary, was afforded little in the way of ceremony going by her explanation of her arrival and subsequent welcome.

There were, however, a couple of exceptions, as indicated by Princess Yona. “Foreign emissaries, Wards of the Crown, royal suitors, and dignitaries of significance who will be staying in Særis for an extended period of time. Basically anyone who has the potential to be a meaningful player on the courtroom floor. The two of you will most likely be classed as the latter category, though I have no doubt some will theorise at least one of you will be here as a suitor.”

“Eh?” Rowan almost scoffed. “What would make them think that?”

“Well, you are a powerful Ardent with a rather special title, and I'm about to turn seventeen. As far as Særis, Llen Færa, and Ferran are concerned, I'll officially be an adult and eligible for marriage. Or I will be if the tribunal deems me ready to accept the responsibilities of adulthood.”

“The tribunal?” Rowan asked quietly, not wanting to seem ignorant. She knew of judicial tribunals, but she was sure this was something else. At the same time, it wasn’t something she had studied, and the information hadn't exactly been pertinent to her up until the present moment.

Fortunately, no one looked down on her for not knowing. Instead, they all appeared ready to rectify her ignorance. In the end, it was Yona who explained.

“Officially speaking, all three nations utilise what is called a Range of Majority. This typically means that once you turn seventeen, you are legally an adult, but there are cases where a tribunal is called to determine if one is ready to be an adult.”

“Is it different from a judicial tribunal?” Rowan asked, just to be sure.

“Aye,” Yona confirmed. “A judge may be part of a transitionary tribunal, but they won't be doing it as a representative of the judiciary. You see, a transitionary tribunal is composed of three independent specialists who will assess and determine if an individual is mature enough to be considered an adult.

“At the end of the assessment, they will either extend the individual's minority for an additional year, grant them partial majority for a year, or acknowledge their full majority. By 23, anyone who is still recognised as a minor is granted partial majority. Most people just default to seventeen, but the practice becomes a lot more common as you climb the social hierarchy. For royals and the nobility, it's practically a requirement.”

The revelation at the end had Rowan feeling incredibly awkward in light of her potentially not being considered an adult. Somewhat hesitantly, she asked, “Does that mean I need to be assessed as well?”

“You already have been,” Queen Elarin replied.

Rowan's eyes opened wide with surprise. “I have?”

“Not officially, but yes. Avra, myself, and your healer in Midiris all contributed to the assessment. Furthermore, as you were already nineteen when I gave you your titles, pretty much everyone who would care would just assume the default. If they don't, they can petition Dreigan for a more official tribunal, but such an occurrence is highly unlikely.”

“It would be seen as a slight against you,” Dreigan clarified.

“Ah,” Rowan said in acknowledgement that she was still following before circling right back to her original question. “I still don't get why anyone would think Seres or I might be royal suitors, though.”

“That would be because my two half-brothers are almost the same age as the two of you.”

“Oh.”

Rowan didn't need to say anything else. She understood the implication completely.

*****

Following their meeting with the king, Rowan, and Seres were escorted back to Lochlan and Liadra by Brennan and his partner. Dralik wasn't there.

“He left as soon as he confirmed you were safe,” Liadra told them.

“While we've been enjoying some games with our new friends here,” Lochlan added, motioning to the four Royal Guards and the Awakened Pair from their original escort.

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“Speak for yourself,” one of the guards said with a laughing scowl. “It's going to take me until the next Day of Rest to earn back what I just lost to you. I swear I could have had a Royal Eclipse, and you still would have found a way to bluff me into folding.”

Lochlan sighed whimsically. “What can I say? If you went all in, I may have countered with an inversion. Either way, it has been an absolute pleasure, my good fellows.”

Having played several different card games with Lochlan, including Celestial Revelations, Rowan sympathised with the guards. She'd rather try her hand against a platoon of Stoics than chance her luck with Lochlan. Fortunately, the guards didn't appear to be harbouring any murderous intent towards him.

When the room eventually fell quiet following their arrival and Lochlan's brief exchange with the guards, the Stoic member of the still unnamed Awakened Pair spoke up. “Is it time?” they inquired.

“Yes,” Brennan replied. “Revi and I are to escort Lady Rowan and Princess Seres, along with their two companions, to their new residence in the city.”

“Understood,” the Stoic replied. “Kreiven and I will see to the King. Though you really should have sent for us before leaving his side.”

“He's perfectly safe, Mina. Queen Ela…”

“It's Minali.”

Brennan was rendered speechless. “Huh?” was about the limit of what he could muster in response. The interruption had been too crisp and to the point, kind of like a needlepoint bodkin shot from a two-hundred-pound warbow.

“My name is Minali. I'm getting tired of correcting you.”

Before Brennan could respond, his partner spoke up in his stead. It was Rowan’s first time hearing him speak. He had a slight accent that she couldn’t place. “I'll make sure he doesn't forget next time, Minali. Until then, I hope you'll accept his apology.”

Right on cue, Brennan bowed deeply and sincerely. “I really am sorry, Minali. There's no excuse for me calling you by a nickname you haven't asked for. Even if I mean it as a term of endearment for a sister-in-arms, it is not fair on you.”

“Apology accepted. Next time I won't be so lenient. Let's go, Kreiven. We've dallied far too much already.”

The Ardent stood up wordlessly and made his way to his partner's side. When he arrived, they left for the study.

After a moment of silence, Brennan spoke up again. “Are we sure Minali is a Stoic? I swear she's more intense than all the other Ardents in her grade.”

Rather than dignify his question with a response, Revi spoke to Seres and Rowan. “If you don't mind ignoring this fool, I'll show you to your new home.”

The comment put an immediate stop to Brennan's theory crafting, and he was soon back to being professional. As soon as he stopped making a fool of himself, he and Revi started guiding the group to where they would be staying for the foreseeable future.

This time it was just the six of them walking through the palace; the four Royal Guards were back in the sitting room at the base of the turret. The size of their escort wasn't the only thing to have changed, however, as the route Brennan and Revi led them down answered one of the questions that Rowan had decided against asking; there really was a significantly easier route between the study and the grand entrance. Fortunately, Rowan now had an idea for why they used such an awkward route in the first place, and she was sticking to it even if it was wrong.

With the new route, it took them just under fifteen minutes to reach the outside, whereas the original route took thirty. They might have been even faster if a courtier didn't try talking to them. Once they were outside, Brennan led them to a waiting carriage. It was smaller than the one Lord Marius had prepared, and markedly less opulent, but it was still incredibly fine.

Rowan, Seres, Lochlan, and Liadra entered the carriage first, utilising the same order they had used previously. They were immediately followed by Brennan, while Revi gave the destination to the driver. When he stepped inside and closed the carriage door, Rowan covered all the windows in preparation for the murder tunnel. If they couldn't see it, they would have no way of knowing it was there.

Neither Brennan nor Revi asked why; they both knew about the caves, so it wasn't impossible for them to guess the reason. Instead, they sat there in awkward silence as the carriage rolled into motion.

No one spoke for the first five minutes of their journey. They just sat there quietly, barely making eye contact. Rowan didn't know how to respond or act. It was one thing to be in the same room as Brennan while he was on guard duty, but this was something else entirely. The carriage was intimate, and it was Rowan’s first time being this close to him since the ball. To make matters worse, they were sitting directly across from each other in the two middle seats.

After a few more awkward minutes, Brennan compounded the issue by saying, “Soooo…” in a long, drawn-out fashion.

Seres smiled mischievously and said, “He's still into you.” She said it with such confidence that it may as well have been a fact, even if Seres had no way of being sure. The way Revi laughed in response confirmed it, as did Brennan's crimson blush.

Rowan was also blushing as she was somewhat embarrassed by Seres just straight up saying it. On top of that, Rowan did still consider Brennan to be highly attractive and she liked the idea that he was still into her, even as her heart yearned for Alena.

“I ahh…” Brennan started. He tried a few more times until he finally succeeded. “I have no intention of getting between you and Lady Alena.”

Rowan had to stop herself from asking, “What if we wanted you there?” It didn't matter that she and Alena had discussed the possibility of expanding their relationship; she had no intention of doing it without seeing her first and taking the time to discuss it further. More importantly, she wanted to experience more of it being just her and Alena for a wee bit longer.

*****

There were a few more attempts at conversion as they continued with the most awkward carriage ride Rowan had ever had the pleasure of experiencing. It kept going for another hour at least when the carriage finally rolled to a stop. It was difficult to say how long it had really been or how far they had travelled as the windows were covered the entire time.

Revi opened the carriage door to what appeared to be a small Manor House and a lone maid. When they all stepped out of the carriage, the maid curtsied deeply and with the grace of a dancer.

“Hello and welcome to the Eversong Mansion. My name is Reia and I am to be your maid if you'll have me.”