Casper dressed well for the confrontation, in a tailored suit that he’d procured from one of the more meticulous libraries and had altered to fit. In his time moving from kingdom to kingdom, helping to organize rebellions and resistances, he usually dressed like a laborer, a man who worked with his hands. Looking and dressing the part was a necessary piece of the process. He kept his hands calloused as much as he could, because that was a signifier that he, too, was someone who spent his time doing things, not just talking. His actual role was nothing but talking, though sometimes he chipped in with work so that people would give him the time of day. He’d picked up enough skills to not embarrass himself.The visit to Thirlwell’s castle required a different sort of look and demeanor, which is why he had the suit. It was a sign of respectability and belonging. He was there representing the Intra-Cooperative Global Command Authority, treating with the queen and her new king as, essentially, equals. He had no entourage with him, though there were another half dozen people sitting in a tavern three blocks away — a tavern that had been closed in order to hold them in, with soldiers standing outside it. This was diplomacy, of a sort. Everyone’s safety and ability to leave had been guaranteed. But it was Casper alone who would meet with the queen and king. That was fine: he had history with Dirk, and this was better done singly, so there would be no cross-talk or individuation.The throne room was relatively small, a throwback to a simpler time, a relic of the old castle that the next castle had been built on top of. It was a symbol of the legitimacy of the kingdom, in some sense, but in terms of organization and logistics there were certainly better places. A larger room, (...)