“To the death,” I clarify, causing him to retract with a whimper. “I don’t know why he wanted to kill me. He was a whitehorn, so I assume he was pursuing vengeance for another Imperial raid on his people’s homes. Frankly, the reason is irrelevant: all that matters is that I was his target.” My glare hardens. “Have you seen abadan sorcery up close, Zelac? Do you know what even one stray bolt of sorcerous power is capable of doing to solid stone? One well-placed strike would have killed me outright. A less well-placed one would have crippled me for life. It was like fighting a much weaker Prince, Zelac. There’s no escaping something like that. It was life or death. Me or him.”