“That is so,” the foreign minister agreed.“Still, if a small kingdom can take back what rightfully belongs to it, itshould count itself lucky, the more so in these days when great kingdoms are somighty. We would need something of a miracle to come away with more than we hadat the beginning.”

“It is with feuds among kingdoms as it iswith feuds among clans,” Muhassin replied. “A small clan with strong friendsmay come out on top of a large one whose neighbors all hate it.”

“What you say is true, but the small clanoften ends up becoming the client of the clan that befriended it,” Hajjaj said.“I do not want us to become Algarve’s clients, any more than I wanted us to beUnkerlant’s clients back in the days before the Six Years’ War, when Zuwayzawas ruled from Cottbus.”

“No man loves this kingdom more than you,your Excellency, and no one has served her better,” Colonel Muhassin said, bywhich flowery introduction Hajjaj knew the colonel was about to contradict him.Sure enough, Muhassin went on, “We have had the accursed Unkerlanters on oursouthern border for centuries. Our frontier does not march with Algarve, and sowe have less to fear from King Mezentio than from King Swemmel. Is this notyour own view as well?”

“It is, and Mezentio is a far moresensible sovereign on his worst day than Swemmel on his best,” Hajjaj said,which made the colonel laugh. But the Zuwayzi foreign minister continued, “Ifthe war goes on as it has been going, would you not say our frontier is liableto march with Algarve’s before long?”

“Hmm.” Now the corners of Muhassin’s mouthturned down. “Something to that, I shouldn’t wonder. The Algarvians are movingwest at a powerful clip, aren’t they? Still and all, they’ll make betterneighbors than Unkerlanters ever did. Aye, they wear clothes, but they havesome notion of honor.”

Hajjaj chuckled under his breath. It wasn’tthat Muhassin was wrong. It was just that what the Zuwayzin and the Algarvians