Leyhar?Veantherolled his eyes theatrically. Enough to keep a wide berth aroundhim. Dylen frowned. Why?Hedetests our kind. He deems us little better than the strumpets whowalk the streets. And he isnt shy about saying so.Youwitnessed this?Ishould say so. It was at a come-of-age party last year for MinisterPelars son. He wasnt the only diplomat in attendance, mind you.Jareth Hadrana was there, and hes the highest-ranking ambassadorin the land. But that didnt stop that stick-in-the-mud Leyhar frommaking a fuss about our presence. Veanthe scowled. He evenembarrassed poor Almerin after he sang at a guests request. Hesaid it was a shame that so venerable a song had been performed by amere trollop.SweetVeres, Dylen muttered. In front of everyone?Ohyes! A good thing Hadrana-tyarsaw fit to chide him for his rudeness. That shut him up quicklyenough. But he kept glaring at us for the rest of the evening.Really, is that any way for a grown Deir to behave? And he a diplomatto boot!Hmm,that doesnt seem like a general dislike for hethare,Dylen remarked. More like a personal encounter with one companionthat blackened his outlook on the rest of the fraternity.Veanthehumphed. Thats no reason to be impolite. He should know betterthan to judge a whole basket by one questionable cranapple! Helooked at Dylen questioningly. Why so curious about him? Itshighly unlikely that hell ever set foot in this club.Dylenshrugged. I know someone who doesnt hold the highest opinion ofhim, thats all. But he does believe Leyhar is good at hisprofession.Idare say your friend is right, Veanthe grudgingly conceded. ElseLeyhar would never have made ambassador. I understand the evaluationprocess is quite brutal. Nonetheless, he has the manners of aburhog!Dylengrinned and said no more. However, as he departed, he felt a twingeof unease.Itwas difficult to reconcile the impression he had formed of TheronLeyhar with what he knew of his son. Riodan did not seem to possesshis sires condescending attitude. Indeed, he showed naught butrespect for Hirlen and grateful amicability toward Dylen. It waspossible he was behaving thusly only because of his presentdependence on the Terises, but Dylen thought it improbable. He wasquite accurate in discerning peoples characters, and Riodansgeniality and lack of arrogance rang true.** * *Studentlodgings will likely be full, Hirlen said over breakfast threedays later. By now the nasty welt on Riodans forehead had faded toa bruise, and the youth had already learned his way around the westdistrict and also ventured into the finance section of the capital inthe central district to draw funds from his bank savings. I doubtthere will be vacancies until the end of the academic year. Have youfinished first term?Riodannodded. I was supposed to complete this year in Sidona thentransfer to the University next year. But Abawould have hounded me without cease to go through with the betrothaland that I couldnt bear. So I came here forthwith.Thenyou will stay with us until a vacancy opens up, Hirlen decided.Icant do that! Riodan protested. Surely there are other roomsavailable.Notfor your purpose, Dylen put in. Theres a reason non-localstudents seldom look farther than the University boarding houses.Beyond those enclaves, their safety is not as ensured, not even inthe