"Exactly my point," Herman agreed, fixing his hat. "Stormcrown has no interest in the throne for now, thankfully. More than likely, she'd use it as leverage on the king, at least until Johan gets some proper heirs of his own, hopefully a few. Johan is young, well-liked and, because of you, some of the more unscrupulous griffons in the kingdom are a bit wary of him. That's why I had you sent here: You're a message—your presence is meant to raise all kinds of questions."