"Father, you know Ruby's never wrong," Nikolas insisted. "She even knew about Mother's missing necklace, told us which auction house would have it! She's always been precise."
"I know she's never been wrong before," Dorian's voice crackled back through the communication crystal. "But the truth is that she finally is wrong. Arkai Dawnoro is alive. And because of our… precipitous arrival, half the continent is using our name as the punchline to a joke!"
"Father, please, be calm," Nikolas soothed, deploying the strategic patience he'd honed at court. "No one ever mocks those who heed the Saintess's counsel. They're seen as prudent, prepared for the worst. And we announced our mobilization as purely altruistic. It was just a swift response to aid the Dawnoro in their hour of need."
