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The Painted Man shrugged "What does that en said, "because the new one is Keerin"

The Painted Man looked up sharply Keerin was Ragen’s Jongleur partner when they found young Arlen on the road, unconscious and dying of deleur had been a coward, curling under his bedroll and whi as demons tested the wards, but years later the Painted Man had caught hi a performance where he claihtly tried to break into the city to revenge itself upon Arlen, and one ti the wall Arlen had called Keerin a liar publicly, and he and Jaik were badly beaten by Keerin’s apprentices as a result

"How can a man who refuses to travel herald the duke?" the Painted Man asked

"Euchor holds tight to power by hoarding people as well as knowledge," Ragen said "Keerin’s stupid little song about One Arot Euchor’s attention Keerin had a ducal commission soon after, and now performs solely at the duke’s pleasure"

"So he doesn’t truly herald," the Painted Man said

"Oh, he does," Ragen said "Most of the ha proper succor, and Euchor even built some way stations on the way to others to accoates to the Duke’s Keep opened at dawn, and the person who strode out to greet the Painted Man was none other than Keerin

Keerin was much as the Painted Man remembered, tall even for a Milnese, with carrot-colored hair and bright green eyes He had fattened a bit, no doubt due to the benefits of his new patron His thin wisp of a mustache still refused to join with the curl of hair at his chin, though powder crinkled in the lines of his face, atte youth

But where he had last seen Keerin in a Jongleur’s patchwork ly His tabard was patched in Euchor’s gray, white, and green, cutting a h his pantaloons were still loose, should he be called upon to tumble, and the inside of his black cloak was seith patchwork colored silk that could be revealed with a twirl

"An honor tofor for the arrival of a few of his key councilors before your audience If you’ll co salon"

The Painted Man followed hih the palace The last time he had walked here, it was a bustle of activity as Servants and Mothers scurried to and fro on the duke’s business But this early in the , the halls were still empty save for the occasional Servant, trained to be all but invisible

Buzzing lalow These needed no oil or wick, no Herb Gatherer’s chemics Lectrics, it was called, another bit of old science Euchor kept only for hiic, but the Painted Man knew from his tinetics, no different fro a mill

Keerin ushered him into a room plush with velvet and a warm hearth The walls were lined with bookshelves, and there was a ht be a pleasant place to wait

But Keerin oblets of spiced wine, and returned to hand one to the Painted Man "I, too, ahter of so I co Arlen would have seethed at this, Keerin still laying clais "I have indeed," he said, clapping the tall Jongleur on the shoulder "An honor to ht, and ill find a quake of rock demons to show the sun!"