When Crow got back to his bedchamber, he was relieved to see that it was Udolf who was waiting for him inside. His father may have been planning to rush his education, but at least he wasn’t starting today. He hoped that meant Penelope would have a full month to make her preparations. If the old man was still teaching him written Missenar, that probably meant Albin didn’t think he was ready to begin learning about Gorman writing… didn’t it? A ripple of doubt passed through his mind as he entertained the possibility that the king had just been too busy to take over his lesson today.

[i]He could be making preparations of his own to send me to Gorm,[/i] he thought with a wince. From the little he knew of his father, he could tell that the man wasn’t one to sit back and twiddle his thumbs when there was work to be done. It was likely that the king was already doing whatever he needed to arrange the trip for his son. After all, he’d said he would give him a month [i]at the most[/i]. Surely if he could send his ambassador sooner, he was going to do so. Crow shivered at the possibility that he could still leave the castle before Penelope finished gathering support. For her sake, he needed to stall as much as he could.

“Good, you’re here,” Udolf grunted with a gesture toward the table by the window. “Sit. We have much to cover today.”

“More writing?” Crow ventured, complying with the tutor’s instructions by plopping himself down somewhat ungracefully in the cushioned seat. He might have tried to move with a little more grace, but with the turmoil in his head and the weariness in his body, he didn’t feel like putting in the effort today. He just hoped the old man wouldn’t see his uncouth behavior as a reason to make him practice his etiquette again.

“Yes,” Udolf answered curtly. “And I have another book for you to beginning reading through when we’re done with the lesson.”

[i]Great,[/i] the viceroy groaned inwardly. He was having a hard enough time staying awake as it was. If he tried to focus on reading a book until supper, he felt certain it was going to be nearly impossible for him not to nod off. “Alright,” he said, refusing to give away his frustration to the old man. “What will I be writing today?”

“I have a few paragraphs for you to copy,” the tutor responded, unraveling a scroll on the table for his student to look at. “Pay close attention to the spelling of the words, and try to see how the sentences follow the grammatical rules I’ve been teaching you. When you’re finished with that, I’ll have you compose some writing of your own, so you can begin to practice following the rules without the help of looking at them first.”

“Okay,” Crow nodded, though his head already felt like it was swimming from the information he’d been given. He could tell his lack of sleep was catching up to him, and he hoped it wouldn’t affect his performance too noticeably.[i] I’ll be fine,[/i] he thought stubbornly, picking up the quill on the table and dipping the tip into the inkwell. [i]It’s just one lesson. I can do it.[/i]

With renewed determination, the viceroy read through the paragraphs Udolf had given him and began to carefully copy them down on a blank piece of parchment.

--

The writing lesson took most of the day, and by the end of it, Crow felt tempted to lay his head down on the table and sleep where he was. However, despite his exhaustion, it seemed that he had done fairly well. Udolf was pleased, even though it had taken him more times than he was proud of to successfully compose his own sentences without any grammatical errors. The tutor had made him repeat the exercise until he managed to write an entire two paragraphs perfectly, and he was relieved when he was finally given permission to read the new book he’d been given.

Unfortunately, when Udolf handed the book over, Crow saw right away that it was going to be difficult to go through it without falling asleep. It was titled “The History of Missenia” and was apparently about the kingdom that had once been the foundation of Brerra and Younis before they had split into two separate entities. The tutor explained that he believed the book would kill two birds with one stone by helping him advance his reading comprehension and educate him about Brerra’s history at the same time.

Crow didn’t see why it was important to learn about a land that no longer existed but, not wanting to receive another lecture about the importance of history, he kept his mouth shut.

The viceroy settled down on his bed to read the dull book, expecting Udolf to sit at the table as he always seemed to do lately. Instead, the tutor surprised him by gathering his things and heading for the door.

Curious, the viceroy rested the book on his chest and watched the old man walk away. “You’re not staying this time?” he asked and then bit his tongue. If Udolf had simply forgotten to stay in the room with him, he didn’t want to remind him, but it was too late to take the question back now.

“I have other matters to attend to this evening,” the tutor replied vaguely, turning back to meet his student’s gaze. “If you really think you need a babysitter, I’m willing to watch you though.”

Crow rolled his eyes, “I’m perfectly capable of reading on my own.”

“Then I’ll leave you to it,” Udolf nodded. He paused for a moment before speaking up again, “Just so you’re aware, the king will be guiding your lesson tomorrow, so you’ll need to go to his chamber in the afternoon.”

Crow froze. So, his father wasn’t prolonging his studies after all. “He thinks I’m ready to move on already?” he queried tentatively, casting the old man a frown. “It took me hours just to write a couple paragraphs in Missenar without making any mistakes. I hardly think I’m prepared to start writing a second language.”

“I don’t know what the king has planned for you,” Udolf’s voice sounded mildly impatient. He was probably getting tired of answering the viceroy’s questions. “Just try not to be late.” With that, he turned and headed out of the room, leaving his student behind to finish his lesson on his own.

As soon as the door shut, Crow let out his breath in a sigh and picked up his book again. If his father was trying to push him to get ready for the trip to Gorm faster, there was nothing he could do to stop him. So, deciding there was no point in getting worked up about it, he tried to focus instead on reading about Missenia, hoping the distraction would ease his worries about the looming date of his departure.