He was coming today because Master Malafar sent him a note regarding my progress, which I fear was not very congratulatory. I think the magic lessons are a waste of time. I mean, Master Malafar doesn’t even teach any of the exciting spells and what he does teach is hardly worth learning. I would much rather tend to my father’s estates and let my brother try magic lessons. He doesn’t have a clue as to how to maximize the income of an estate. His only qualification is that he is older than me.”

Lyra forced a smile at Walak. “Perhaps you will get that chance now. The Academy is finished. Maybe your father will relent and let you do what it is you can do best. I could not even begin to imagine how I would manage an estate. What would you do differently than your brother?”

Antello curled up near the wall, pulling a blanket over himself, clearly disinterested in the conversation. Syman sat pawing through his sack for dry clothes, but Lyra could tell that he was following the conversation closely without appearing to.

Walak brightened at Lyra’s question as if nobody had ever asked for his opinion before. “That’s easy,” he remarked. “My brother is too lax with the gentry for one. Often he has been known to let a payment slide because the borrower complained of problems. He has turned a blind eye to our contracts when a farmer’s yield is not sufficient or when a supplier has failed to deliver the appropriate goods on time. It may not sound like much, but when you add all of these errors up, it comes to a very tidy sum. He also doesn’t know how to negotiate an agreement. There are many vendors vying to contract with my family and he does not appreciate the bargaining position that puts us in. He insists that a contract is only good when both parties are pleased with it, but the fact is, that when you push far enough that the other party balks, that is when you maximize your profits. The point is, my brother just doesn’t know the value of a coin, and I do.”