<strong>"It's unlikely she would mind",</strong>the man assures you.<strong>"But...did you really say Menji?"</strong><br/>For a moment, there's only the sounds of the cooking. Then the guy whistles.<br/>"<strong>That's...quite the trip, actually! Menji the Magnificent, they call it - yes, though they call many a city 'the Magnificent', but Menji is chief among them! So, I guess you're going to be moving to Almada, from here? Then you should make haste. Tomorrow, or after-tomorrow at most, would be the last day when you'd be able to get favourable winds, so all the traders that are setting sails for there would be trying to sail tomorrow. Unless they miss the morning winds, that is, in which case they'd either have to try for the evening breeze, or wait another day - and then pray, pray to outrun the seasonal change in the winds!"<br/>"And now you're never going to make him shut up",</strong>his sister sighs.<strong>"Not even during dinner. He <em>reads</em> of those faraway places, the ne'er-do-well, and I know he wants to visit them, too! But at least, you can hear him - he's got the latest news. And knows all the superstitions the sailors believe in."<br/>"The winds changing earlier this year isn't a mere superstition",</strong>her brother counters her.<strong> "It's as Gundur the Seeress predicted, and you know all the sailors believe it. Even if there would be the same winds a week from now, no sailor is going to sail for Almada two days from now! They trust her, because she's never been wrong before, and that's it."<br/>"The Temple should do something about her",</strong>his sister mutters.<strong>"Her name ain't even Gundur, ya know? She's from the newcomers."<br/>"The Temple isn't going to antagonize half the captains unnecessarily. So, where were we, fair ladies? Ah yes, Almada - funny thing is it's also called 'The Magnificent', though whether it's for its abundant gardens of for the ostentatious furnishings of the homes, is a matter people tend to disagree over. It was once erected for its strategic position, and then they discovered a gold mine...the gold is gone for over a century now, but the people got used to living in luxury, and to this day, thriftiness isn't among the popular virtues. Which means that usurers can live in opulence there, provided that they have the means to extract their payments; then again, those that aren't out of business, probably do. A saying says that if you meet in Almada someone who doesn't wear opulent clothes, he or she is from the order of the Weeping Blades, sworn to protect the city against another invasion from the forces of the southern empires, given that they only reconquered it about two centuries ago. Though one might think the new trebuchets they're reportedly building there should be enough to discourage an attack..."<br/>"An invasion that might come from the north, of our southerners decide to unite",</strong>his sister interrupts him.<strong>"Lunch is ready, ladies! I'm sure you're hungry now, I always am after listening to my brother go on and on about his distant lands!"</strong><br/>She excuses herself after serving the first meal - broth and bread - explaining that the second still needs some attention. But the broth is good, and the bread is fragrant and still hot from the fire.