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"I do"

"Saree to lead in his stead?"

"We do," she and I both said in unison

"Do you accept their pledge, Antonio?"

Antonio smiled widely, proudly "I do"

The Prelate then recited a string of Latin and lifted our raised hands And it was no more complicated than that

Antonio’s smile widened as he stepped down fro the Prelate

Oh God, they’re bowing again! Sam was totally freaked out

It’s all part of the for to be fun, not stiff and…weird

Stifling a sain When Antonio gestured for me to speak, I turnedelse, I have to thank all of the people who caton I also have to thank all of you for accepting Sae that was forced upon her, and she didn’t deserve to be punished for soeted"

To cole resident of The Hollow Whether she realised it or not, they were as ards to replacing Antonio, I’ On the one hand, this position is an honour and it’s one that I’ll enjoy But on the other hand, I’ll h Master I’ll also miss my life as it is nohich is why Saes should be made"

The Prelate looked horrified by the prospect

I squeezed her hand "Want to take the floor, baby?"

She didn’t, I could sense, but I knew that she wouldn’t back out We’d discussed in advance how this would go, and this was as i a deep breath, she announced, "Jared and I won’t be isolating ourselves the way that rulers have done before us It’s not in our nature to sit back and dish out orders while everyone else takes the risks We like to be in the thick of things That’s why, although we’ll no longer be Coion, we’ll still be personally co the squad we have trained"