"Do you now?"
Elara thought about that seriously. The way she thought about everything—not performing the consideration, but actually doing it.
"Better," she said finally. "Not completely. But better."
A knock at the door.
She turned. "Enter."
Ken opened it a careful inch. "Your Highness. Message from Master Cullens—the external consultant from the Eastern Collegium has sent preliminary findings. Faster than projected. Cullens says it's worth your attention tonight if you're still working, or morning if—"
"Morning," Elara said.
Ken paused. A very small, very controlled pause. "Yes, Your Highness."
"And Ken."
"Your Highness."
"You stood outside my door for three days," she said. "I told you it was operationally inefficient."
"Yes, Your Highness."
"I'm aware," she said carefully, choosing each word with the deliberateness she used when the words mattered more than usual, "that operational efficiency wasn't the point."
Another pause. Longer.
