The first Alder wayhouse had received three reports about Eirwen's human husband before the party reached its gate.
None of the messengers had seen Hajin's face, yet each report gave him a command, rank, plus marriage the treaty did not contain.
One version made him a human general waiting to command the border. Another made him a prince of the Sixth who had demanded an Alder princess.
A third called him Eirwen's husband outright and listed every guard as his future subordinate.
Hajin quietly folded the pages beside the warm wayhouse stove.
'The title crossed the road faster than any wagon, and every official now owns a reason to test the cage.'
"Every official along this road now believes I outrank them, and courtesy will demand they test the claim."
Eirwen flattened the first false report with one steady palm.
"The report is wrong, and I will correct it before courtesy hardens into law."
