“A person is defined not by what they claim to believe, not by what they say they will do, but rather by the paths they had taken in the past to get where they are now.” -Saying attributed to the Silver Maiden.

“Are you going to come back with us?” Asked Layla in a booth where she had asked to speak with Cal in private. A fine confection made from layers of flaky pastry interspersed with fresh cream cheese and a cup of tea on the table before her.

“I don’t think so.” Cal said. “I’ll be there for your wedding, for sure, but I’m going to Levain for the spring, I think. Some family business to handle there.”

“I didn’t know you had a family there?” Layla queried as she cut a small piece of the confection with her fork and brought it to her mouth, which caused her to shut her mouth and eyes as she gave an appreciative hum of satisfaction.

“Learned of it pretty recently myself.” Answered Cal, for her part, she munched on a stick of fried dough dusted with powdered sugar and served with a sauce made from caramelized honey. “Turned out I had a half-brother in the orclands, and his son in turn, moved to Levain in scholarly pursuits. I’d be going there partly to pay a visit to him and also to relay a package from his father.”

“What about you, girl? Think you’re prepared for life in the royal harem?” She asked Layla in addition. “Xain is a nice kid, so he’d likely try to treat his wives equally, but we all know a household won’t function in chaos. As the first wife, it’ll likely fall to your shoulders to keep rein of the harem.”

“I considered and prepared for that, yes. As shallow as such words might sound.” Admitted Layla as she sipped her tea. “Mother had made me learn all sorts of things she thought I’d need as one of the emperor’s wives, but to be honest, Cal? I’m still a little afraid I wouldn’t measure up to the task.”

“That’s a good mindset to have in this case I’d say. Don’t be overconfident, and stay on your toes.” Replied Cal. “And always keep in mind, that while it fell to him and the ministers to keep the empire alive and well… It falls to you to care for his health and well-being.”

“I will etch those words in mind, you have my word.”

Their conversation slowed to a halt when the middle aged human lady who was the proprietor of the bakery came to their booth and politely placed two exquisite, broad glass bowls, filled with a dessert that combined many kinds of pastries and fruits, with a frozen treat made from constantly churned milk mixed with eggs and honey, as well a healthy dollop of whipped cream on top.

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The Al-Shan delegation spent a week as they were introduced to the many amenities paradise offered, and thoroughly enjoyed their little unofficial “vacation” there. Aideen had personally taken it onto herself to grant the delegation a tour of the best of what the city had to offer. The various eateries where she booked dinner parties for the delegation had elicited many a raised eyebrows in surprise, when the Al-Shan delegation realized that the chefs that cooked their meals were ancient Archmagus of great power - who simply had devoted his latest few centuries to the culinary arts.

In the end, the delegation was seen off by most of the shot-callers in Paradise, and they left burgeoned with piles of souvenirs and gifts of friendship. Cal gave the delegation a fond farewell, and reirated her promise that she would come and visit the Empire in the summer. Xain still gave her a prolonged hug before he parted with her, but the boy seemed to have matured some more over the past week - probably that night with Aideen might have played more a role than she expected -, and had not embarrassed himself by crying into her bosom again.

Cal herself stayed in Paradise for another week while she restocked on some items, as well as waited as an expert enchanter Archmagus reworked the enchantment on her new knives and short swords. The Dwarves did good work, but Paradise had better, so she saw no reason not to have the better option when she could easily afford it.

She planned to stay in Levain for probably most of the Spring, and had not intended to go far out of the city itself this time, so as to allow an expedient return to Paradise when the time comes near for Xain’s wedding in summer. For what it’s worth, she felt that a city as grand as Levain should have enough to entertain her curiosity for the season at least, and she looked forward to meeting her nephew - and her grand-niece as well.

Once she stepped through the teleportation gate to Levain, Cal immediately noticed the difference.

Where Paradise kept the rooms at which their gates were stationed relatively sparsely decorated, Levain subscribed to a far more grandiose display of wealth instead. The domed room she walked into was easily as large as the entire building that housed the gates in Paradise, with wall decorations lined in gold, platinum, and precious gems abound, an opulent showcase of the city’s economic power and prosperity.

A team of guards - she noticed that at least two of the twelve were quite talented mages themselves - were stationed inside the room, and quite formally requested for her identifications. Cal showed them both her adventurer tag, as well as the signet ring from Aideen, which allowed her to clear the inspection with haste as the guards seemed a bit intimidated by the implication of the two combined.

After all, the signet ring supposedly meant that she would be considered a personal guest to Paradise’s higher echelon, which when coupled with her own adventurer tag’s rank, hinted at a very powerful individual with a very strong backing behind her back. Cal was just glad that she had not brought out the signet ring Xain gave her as well, as she had little intention to abuse that position this time around. The case in Ezram just happened because it had been the most convenient way for her to have handled the matter at the time.

The two mages she identified amongst the guards checked the ring and tag for authenticity - Cal nodded with approval when she saw that one of them had the special parchment used for confirmation of tags with him -, nodded, and quickly conferred to one another before one of them politely bowed and proffered the ring and tag back to Cal. The other mage gave the guards a command in a local language Cal was not familiar with.

The guards then politely split into two lines that led to the door, stood at attention, and bid her welcome to Levain.