“I won't start the battle, but if it comes, I'll finish it.”

“Master Graves was incensed and said, as punishment for my disruption, I would have to write my letters an extra ten times that day."Ten times the better I'll know them, then." I said. "How strange that you should punish me by ensuring I come out more educated than Roden, who has tried to obey you.”

“Kneel, please," Connor said. "I wish to study you better."Come as close to me as you'd like," I answered. "Study me here, on my feet.""You won't kneel?""Would a prince?"Conner raised his voice. "You're not a prince until I say so.""I don't need you to say so, sir. As you see me standing here, I am the prince of Carthya.”

“And you're the biggest coward," I hissed, then caught my breath in my throat as his blade cut deeper."Don't call me a coward," Tobias said, "I'm not!""Have you come here to kill me?" I asked. "Because I'll scream when you do and it'll wake up the princess and probably a whole lot of other people and you'll get into trouble.""You'll be dead.""Yes, but you'll be in trouble.”

“Let's begin with an easy agreement. Before his death, your father and I were negotiating for a small area of land on our borders, near Libeth. The Carthyan land has a spring that my farmers need for their crops. Carthya has other spings nearby, so you won't miss it.""My father wouldn't have missed it, but I would," I said, with no actual idea of what spring he meant. "It happens to be my favourite water source in all of Carthya, and I won't part with it.”

“Everyone gets scared at times. It's only the fools who won't admit it.”

“This is real, then?" Jaron's heart pounded, though he couldn't tell whether it was from sadness or fear for his future. "When you leave, I'm no longer Prince Jaron. I'll be nothing but a commoner. An orphan.”