Erin opened her eyes, feeling suddenly and completely awake, as though she'd just snapped out of a trance, rather than woken up from a dream.

Of course, it hadn't exactly been a normal dream....

She turned on the lamp and sat up in bed, blinking. When her eyes had adjusted to the light, she looked down at the clock on her bedside table. It was almost two in the morning.

She frowned a little, doing time calculations in her head. It should be late afternoon in Katan Jyrat now, which would make it early evening at the capital in Raylmiyr. Jechrin had excellent timing, as usual.

She got up and changed out of her pajamas, then went quietly to the bathroom to brush her hair. Then she stood and looked at herself skeptically in the mirror for a minute. She didn't feel nearly well-dressed enough for what she was about to do.

But what she was about to do was basically crazy anyway, so maybe the details didn't matter that much....

The scar on her forehead had healed up enough by now that she no longer needed to wear a bandage to protect it. The lines of the crest were still quite red, though, and very noticeable. Jechrin had said it could take up to a year for the mark to turn completely white.

Fortunately, Kimoja had brought the new illusion charm that Legan had made when she'd come the other day. Erin slid the thin silver ring onto her right hand and watched as the mark was replaced by smooth, normal-looking skin. Even knowing the mark was there, she couldn't see any trace of it.

It really was amazing, no matter how many times she saw it. She needed to be sure to go thank Legan for it the next time she went to Katan Jyrat.

Erin took a deep breath, trying not to think about what she was about to do and how nervous she probably ought to be feeling right now. Then she squared her shoulders, gave her reflection a determined nod, and left the bathroom.

She made her way carefully down the dark hallway, pausing on the landing to listen for any signs of activity from Kirchel's bedroom. The door was closed, and there was no light or sound coming from the other side of it. Good. It was better if Kirchel didn't know anything about this. Not yet.

Erin turned and moved toward the storage room next to the bedroom. Kirchel left it unlocked now, since there was no longer any reason to hide the magical items inside. Erin slipped into the room, closing the door quietly behind her.

It was pitch dark inside. Rather than turning on the overhead light, which would shine out under the door, Erin pointed her finger in the direction of the lamp on the other side of the room.

"Turn on," she whispered in Silmarith.

A soft light flared up on the other side of the shelves, allowing Erin to make her way around to the desk in the back corner. Kirchel's ivareh was sitting on one side of it, the lamplight gleaming dully on its dark surface. Erin sat down and pulled the ivareh out so that it was directly in front of her.

Then she stared at it, her nerves finally starting to get the better of her.

"Hey...are you really sure this is okay?"

Her forehead grew slightly warm. As expected, Jechrin was watching her.

I'm sure. The nayladi might give you a hard time, but just stay calm and tell them what I told you. You'll be fine.

"Is the nayladi even going to listen to me? I mean, they really don't like humans there...."

Nayladis have certain procedures that they need to follow. Kirchel's name should be on their list. As long as you mention her, they'll hear you out.

"You're really sure we can't just tell Arturyn instead...?"

Yes. This needs to be done properly. Telling Seiyan directly will show that I'm willing to trust him. And it will give him a chance to prove that he's sincere about working with us.

"Are you conducting diplomacy here? Or training a dog?"

There's not much difference, to be honest....

Erin snorted. But the thought of Jechrin training the high and mighty king of Raylmiyr like a new puppy did make her feel a little better....

Erin, I've told you before. You're an Anaurian—a member of the most well-connected human clan in existence. Even if they're distant, you have ties to practically every royal family in Isil-Gal. The royal family of Raylmiyr included. And you're currently a princess of the Silver clan of Myrikar—higher ranked than either Seiyan or Arturyn. You're the only person that the true king is willing to carry on his back. If Seiyan respects me, he should respect you. So have some confidence.

"Confidence, huh?" Erin let out a long sigh. "Right. Confidence. Okay."

She stuck out her tongue at the ivareh. Then she finally reached out and ran her finger around the edge of it, the same way she'd seen Jechrin do at Celora's house. A column of silver leapt up from the center of the black dish and hung, quivering, in midair.

"Raylmiyr," Erin told it, trying to speak clearly and remember everything Jechrin had told her to say. "Capital city. The royal palace. Seiyan Aieryl-Cryn. Nayladi number seventeen."

The silvery liquid stretched upwards, forming itself into a swirling oval. A moment later, the fog cleared, and Erin was facing a rather startled-looking man in a dark green uniform. He looked like a Silmarith, but he should actually be a Nirayl who had changed his form in order to speak to Silmarith callers. According to Jechrin, Nayladi number seventeen was the contact assigned to Silmarith nobility. It was the one Arturyn used.

"A human?" the Nirayl said, his expression becoming disdainful. "What's a human girl doing calling here? How did you get this contact? Can you even understand what I’m saying?"

"Yes, I can," Erin said, speaking in Silmarith and doing her best to stay calm. She was tempted to speak in Myrik or Nuril or one of the other more exotic languages she was now fluent in, just to see how he'd react, but she resisted. It wasn't time to show off yet. "My name is Erin Lir-Anaurian. I'm Kirchel Lir-Anaurian's cousin. I was in Raylmiyr with her and Emperor Isáran a few weeks ago. I met King Aieryl then, so he should know who I am. I'd like to speak with him, please."

The nayladi scoffed. "A human is asking to speak to the king? You actually think he'll care about anything you have to say?"

"Yes. I think he will."

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"And what exactly does a human want to talk to King Aieryl about?"

"I’m sorry, but I'm afraid I can't give you the details," Erin replied, speaking politely but firmly. "I have a message that I need to pass on to him. And only him."

"Oh, of course. An important, secret message from a little human girl. I'm sure that's worth disturbing the king over," the man said with a sneer.

"Maybe you could just let him know that I'm calling," Erin said, trying not to lose her patience. "Let him decide if it deserves his attention or not."

The Nirayl sniffed irritably. "It’s my job to screen calls."

"Yes, I know that. But King Aieryl isn’t going to like it very much if what I have to say actually is important and you screen me out just because I’m human, now is he?"

He glared at her for a few seconds. Then she saw him reaching out to touch his ivareh, and hers covered over with mist again.

"Did he cut us off...?" Erin muttered, watching the ivareh uncertainly.

No, he's transferring the connection, Jechrin told her reassuringly. Don't worry. He's doing his job properly. He just couldn't resist insulting you a bit in the process. He'll probably get in trouble for it later, if it makes you feel any better....

As he'd predicted, the fog soon cleared again, and Seiyan appeared in the ivareh, looking tired but much more friendly than the nayladi had been.

"Since you called the Silmarith contact, are you using a translation device? Can you understand me?" he asked tentatively. "Or do I need to change forms so I can speak in your language?"

"No, I can understand you. Thank you for accepting my call. I know you must be very busy."

Erin had switched back to English since Seiyan wasn't yet aware that she could speak in other languages. She could actually understand him better now than she'd been able to via the language ring she'd worn when they were in Raylmiyr. She had no idea how Jechrin was so fluent in Nirayl language since he didn't even have the right anatomy to speak it, but she wasn't complaining.

"Don't worry about that. I could use a short break from work, and it's a pleasure to see you again. I just hope my nayladi didn’t give you too hard a time."

"Well, he was a bit rude…."

"You're human," Seiyan said gently. "And since so many humans can't even use magic, I'm afraid the races with stronger magic skills tend to look down on them. And as you're aware, my people have a bad habit of disregarding Elariths in general."

"Right...."

"The nayladi mentioned that you had a message to pass on to me. Is it from Kirchel?"

Erin shook her head. "No, not Kirchel. Uh...sorry, but are you alone? I don't think you'll want anyone else to hear this."

"Oh?" Seiyan raised an eyebrow. "Just a moment."

He turned his head, apparently looking at someone else who was in the room with him. He gave a nod and then waited. A moment later, Erin could hear the faint sound of a door closing.

"I'm alone now. You can speak freely," Seiyan said, turning back to Erin with a slightly apologetic smile.

"Thank you." She took a deep breath and then pulled the silver ring off her finger, revealing the mark on her forehead. "The message I have for you comes from the true king," she said, speaking in Myrik.

Seiyan's jaw dropped. He stared wide-eyed at her forehead, looking completely shocked. "You.... That mark.... How? And when? It looks quite fresh. You didn't have that when you were here, did you?"

"No. I only got it about a week ago."

"So about the same time that Arturyn spoke with him?"

"Yes. Both were due to the same event."

"I see..." Seiyan said slowly. "So that's why you can understand Nirayl speech, is it? I didn't realize humans could gain that ability. Well...I didn't know it was possible for a human to receive a Relian mark in the first place."

Erin couldn't help frowning slightly at that. Even if he didn't know about Arturyn's mark, Seiyan should know about his language extraction ability. Did he think it was possible for a Silmarith but not a human?

Was this why Jechrin had wanted her to show Seiyan her mark but not reveal his identity yet? To a Nirayl, it would probably be quite significant that there were two Elariths who had been in direct contact with the true king when Seiyan himself hadn't yet.

Maybe this really was like training a dog....

"I don't know if it would be possible for all humans," she said, finally starting to understand why Jechrin had told her to have more confidence. "But apparently my magic is unusually compatible with his. That's why he made contact with me and eventually decided to give me this mark."

That was a highly edited version of the story, of course, but it was still basically true.

"I see," Seiyan said again, frowning a little himself now. "Well then, what's the message that he wanted you to give me?"

"You've decided to break with the current government of Myrikar and form a partnership with Silmar instead, haven't you? He wants to help you out with that."

"To help out? How?"

"As he put it, now that you've decided to ally with Silmar, it would be awfully convenient if your niece were able to marry the emperor, wouldn't it?"

"Yes...it would.... And he knows a way to make that possible?"

Erin nodded. "Your mother always wanted your father to readopt Kiari and Kirchel, right? She kept bothering him about it, didn't she?"

"Yes. But as far as I know, he never relented. I've checked the official records hall to see if he might have filed a readoption statement there without telling anyone, but there was nothing."

"Do you remember your mother's favorite music box?"

Seiyan blinked. "What?"

"Her music box. It was made out of some kind of purple wood, about this big...." Erin held up her hands to roughly show the size. "...with roses engraved on the top."

"How do you—?" Seiyan broke off. He stared at Erin for a few seconds with an odd expression on his face. "Yes.... I remember it. I was recently wondering what had happened to it. I had assumed my father was keeping it somewhere, but we've been going through his things, and we haven't found it yet."

"He buried it. It's underneath the purple rose bush that's on top of your mother's grave, down inside the roots. And...he left one last gift for her inside it."

Seiyan's eyes went wide. "Are you serious...? Such a crazy story...but...if it's really true...."

Erin smiled at him. "Maybe you should go take a look. Don't you think?"

"I.... Yes...I probably should...." Seiyan sat there staring into space for a moment, looking rather stunned by the information he'd just heard. Then he shook himself a little, and his gaze focused on Erin again. "I'll pay a visit to my parents' graves as soon as I can. Should I contact you to let you know what I find there?"

Erin shook her head. "It's all right. I'm still staying with Kirchel for a while, so if you find it, I'm sure I'll hear about it."

"I see." Seiyan made a slightly awkward expression. "And it sounds like the Silver king will probably know whether I tell him or not...."

"Probably. He likes to do creepy things like that."

Seiyan choked a little. "'Creepy things'...?" he repeated, looking scandalized. "Are you sure you should be speaking about him like that...?"

Erin shrugged. "He hasn't seemed to mind so far. If anything, he thinks it's funny when I say things like that."

"Does he...?" Seiyan seemed to think that was quite a novel idea. "It seems that his personality is a bit different from the current king's. I'll be rather glad if that's true...." He paused for a moment, a complicated expression on his face. "Was there anything else he wanted you to tell me?"

"No, that's everything for now."

"All right, then. It looks like I have some work to do...." Seiyan nodded, looking resolute. Then he gave Erin what looked like a genuine smile. "Thank you very much for calling, Erin. Feel free to contact me again whenever you need to. I'll tell the nayladis to treat you more courteously in the future."

"I'd appreciate that," Erin said with a wry smile.