With the meeting over, Crow said a quick goodbye to his father before turning to head down the corridor that led to the room where Penelope said she would reunite with him. All in all, he was feeling quite good about everything that had happened during their conversation. Not only had the king been pleased about his decision to accept the job, but he had also granted him permission to tie up matters with his companions in the outer villages before he formally accepted the title. He had gotten everything he’d wanted with little to no resistance from Albin.

Despite all the negative things he had heard about his father, he was starting to find it harder and harder to believe that the man was as heartless as his mother and John claimed him to be. After all, why would he be so willing to let his son, a known thief and liar, to travel away from the castle for a week if he didn’t trust him to return? From every angle, it looked like Albin really was trying to make things right between them. A small smile crossed his lips at the thought. It was still strange to him to think that he had a family, since he’d been alone after his mother’s death long ago, but between his father’s welcoming attitude and Naida’s sisterly warmth, he was beginning to feel a little more at home in the inner kingdom than he had before.

After a bit of walking, Crow reached the door to the room where Penelope had told him to go. His heartbeat sped up with excitement at the prospect of telling her how well the meeting with his father had gone. He was sure she would be happy to find out that they could go to the outer villages one more time together before his viceroy training began. It would be the first trip they took on their own since their journey to the Younisian castle two years ago. He couldn’t wait.

Opening the door, he saw that she was already inside the room waiting for him. He casted her an eager grin as he closed the door behind him and made his way over to sit beside her on the bench. “Well, it’s official,” he shrugged, wasting no time in relaying the news of his meeting to her. “I’m going to be my father’s ambassador. He’s already making preparations for a titling ceremony that will happen next week.” His smile broadened slightly as he went on. “Until then, he gave me permission to go back to the outer villages to say goodbye to my companions, and you’re going to be my guard.”

Feeling a burst of affection for the knight, Crow leaned in to meet her lips in a quick kiss. “We can leave as soon as he finishes arranging our money and supplies for the trip,” he said when he pulled back again, resting one hand fondly on her leg. “The sooner the better, I think. It will give us more time to get everything done on the border… and we’ll have more time to ourselves.” He casted her a flirtatious wink.