Sam hated Three Hills. It was too loud, and too crowded with stupid people, and it was cold. They’d gotten here yesterday and he couldn’t wait to go back home. They’d heard all about the dragon attack, and poorly understood rumours that shadows had been attacking people at the same time, all of which sounded stupid to Sam.

Word was the dragon he’d sent had been single-handedly killed by Prince Gavin’s fiancé. Sam kind of wanted to meet someone who could kill a dragon single-handed. He wondered if Henry could.

The other rumour that they’d heard last night when Henry had made him sit at a common table with some loud merchants and play nice for three hours had been that there were centipedes in the First Church of the Blessed, so that was where they were going tomorrow. But today it was the academy, and Sam let Henry lead him through the unnecessarily crowded streets as they headed there. The church was in the same area and Sam was going to make Henry take him there after, and then they could just go back to the castle tonight instead of wasting another day in this stupid city.