Juli was in her quarters alone when she was informed by a servant that she had a guest—none other than her successor for command of the Ghosts, Knight-Major Marius Tirgen. She ordered the servant to send the man in. He was dressed in the finery of a minor noble, rather than for combat as she had usually seen him.<br/><br/>“Princess, it is an honor that you would receive me now as such a critical time fast approaches. I’m surprised you haven’t changed for our guests yet, but I must say you look striking regardless.” He actually grabbed her hand and kissed it.<br/><br/>“Really, Marius?” she asked, looking to him skeptically. “You once called me an ‘uppity oriental bitch with delusions of grandeur,’ and now this?”<br/><br/>Tirgen winced. “Please, Milady—I had no idea at the time that you were of royal blood. That changes everything—I no longer hold anything but fealty to you in my heart.”<br/><br/>“The sad thing is, I can tell that you’re completely serious. Why should this accident of birth mean more than all my deeds, and all our conversations on the subject?”<br/><br/>He frowned. “If you’ll forgive me for saying so, Princess, it was very disingenuous to argue that blood and lineage mean nothing for all those years, all the while posing as one of mere peasant stock.”<br/><br/>She sighed. “It changes nothing. Galen has no noble blood at all, and he was a mentor to both of us.”<br/><br/>“You’ve forced me to admit in the past that occasionally peasants prove worthy of rising, and occasionally those of noble blood prove inept. I will not go back on my promise to evaluate our soldiers for promotion based on their merit and attitudes alone. Still, I am confident that in almost all cases, my faith in the strength and righteousness of the aristocracy is justified. It saddens me that you don’t see how your lineage has so obviously contributed to your ability to command.”<br/><br/>“I don’t want to argue the point again—we always just go in circles.”<br/><br/>“That much I can agree with. Regardless, I came only to inform you that our scouts tracked the progress of the Aserit through our lands. They have been quite punctual, as expected.”<br/><br/>“The Queen detained their scout—I’m shocked they did not delay when he failed to report to them.”<br/><br/>“If you’ll forgive me again, Milady, but you’re still too deeply in a military mindset—this is not a mere raid, it’s an intensely important negotiation for the fate of two kingdoms. Delaying for a missing scout was not necessarily an option the Aserit would have considered.”<br/><br/>“This is one area where you have much more experience than I do,” Juli admitted. “If you’ll excuse me, I have to call for the servants and change back into my dress.”<br/><br/>“An understandable error—you’ve been away from your rightful station all your life. I was invited to observe the reception as one the knights of the realm. I’ll see you there, Milady.”<br/><br/>Juli nodded. It would be nice to have another familiar face present when the Aserit arrived, even if he had often been a rival to her.<br/><br/>After Marius departed, Juli called for her servants and had them once more see to her dress, hair, and make-up. Once again looking a fairy tale princess, Juli waited for the appointed time of the Aserit’s arrival.