“Don’t mention that to Olivia if you know what’s good for you,” Perez said, sitting slowly up across from her. He kept the ice on his neck, though it didn’t look like he was actually hurt. With the speed he’d been falling, that was terrifying in its own way. Just how tough were dragons? “This ring is gigantic. If it was all lived on, we’d never be able to run it all. But our next-door neighbors have a ton of slaves. Guess that’s how they’ve always done things on the periphery. But we need population, and they need to learn some morality, so it’s a win-win. We’ve got local guides to direct it all. I’ll be coming along as the cultural advisor with my unit. Assassinate a few warlords, plunder a few caravans… it’s going to be a blast. Shame you had to go all diplomat so you can’t come along. Transports are going back all the time, you wouldn’t even have to leave right now...”