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the north way north where we are taller than the southern elves. I joined the army at a
young age and not by choice, originally. I was forced to kill people who had done me no
wrong.
Her eyes and mouth formed three O s on her face. Oh. Damn.
Yes, next time, don t ask. You might get an answer.
She grunted.
Kelin took another bite of his stew, and said through a full mouth, Elves aren t nomadic.
I heard that they build cities and huge, legendary palaces, like Long Range Palace!
He rolled his eyes and chuckled. Out of the four of us, who do you think knows more
about elves?
You, sir, he ceded.
Oh, don t let him bully you. The cook smiled softly as she arrived on velvet feet from
behind. She took a seat next to Thalon.
Oh, this food is wonderful, my lady! Kelin exclaimed.
Well, you helped make it.
Yes, well& this is incredible! He grinned and nearly overturned his plate. This is
absolutely divine!
Her hand snapped out and corrected his plate. Then, don t feed it to the ground.
Jakkobb hid a grin behind his hand. You know, my lady, that s usually the reaction
soldiers have to your food.
Yes, and it was yours too, I recall.
He coughed. In my defense, it is amazing food. He coughed again. So, Derora, what
do you think?
She narrowed her eyes, which started to glow brighter than they had in days. I m
actually wondering why the camp cook was at our trial.
He sighed. I meant about the food, kid.
Oh.
Thalon finished off his bowl. He looked up to the cook, who smiled as gracefully as a
flight of doves. Thank you.
Kelin stared down onto his plate. Der s not wrong though. No offense, my lady, but why
is the cook presiding on our life and death trial?
With high ranked nobility, like, Der injected.
Are you something special? the boy asked.
Everyone s special, she replied. And no, I m just the cook.
Jakkobb s gaze flickered to the cook and then he quickly smiled. Because her cooking
is worth her being a judge. He leaned in and put a hand up to his mouth. She might not cook
for us if we didn t indulge her a little bit.
All Things Impossible Crown of the Realm Dalton 109
Der stared at him with a flat face and one eyebrow raised.
The cook chuckled with the tinkle of bells. I know that our ways must seem strange to
you, and it s difficult to explain. Please, call me Eve.
Der did not relinquish the raised eyebrow. Yes, my lady.
It is an honor to know your name. Kelin ducked his head.
Yes, and now we re becoming friends. Her smile melted their defenses. I m curious, is
Common the only language you know?
Kelin was quicker to respond. Yes, tis.
Times have changed, haven t they? She nodded to Jakkobb. I remember when each
little kingdom of humans had its own language, not so long ago. I ll say it s easier to speak with
them now.
I remember my grandmother speaking Common, Der said.
The cook laughed and shook her head. I m talking about the last of the Centum Wars,
dear. That was before your grandmother s time, I m sure.
It depends, the knight mused, One of her grandparents was quarter elven. Not the
Wars, of course, but longer than humans live, easily.
But, the wars ended two thousand years ago, Kelin protested.
It s because of the Wars that Common was invented, actually, Jakkobb said. Back
then, most petty kingdoms and fragmented states were barely in contact with their neighbors
and they each had their own languages. Common was created to give everyone the ability to
communicate. Many places still have their own languages, but not Thealith, Alscane, Urael or
whatever other kingdoms are there now too. Palls is still used a lot too, I think.
Palls? Der repeated. What s Palls?
Language of the paladin empire.
Oh, Pallens. Right, that makes sense.
The cook s eyes faded to focus on a distant destination. I wonder what the world
would ve been like today if Pallens hadn t been slain.
Kelin coughed. You re referring to Pallens and King Midan being killed by the
Blackhound, right?
Correct, the cook replied.
So, why do we speak Common instead of something else? Der asked.
The cook smiled. Because of the Wars. There was a desperate need for
communication between various races and even humans who had no one language.
You mean there aren t other languages between the elves? Kelin asked.
Eve shrugged. There are dialects. I think the captain here actually grew up speaking
northern elvish, but it s not too distant from the usual. On the other side of the coin, human
languages and a few other races, like halflings, vary incredibly. Everyone needed to
communicate. All the races, and all the different speakers within them. Palls was used as the
medium for a very long time, but along with it was the symbolic power of Pallens, and some
people felt in using it they were submitting to the Empire. Thus, Common was created from
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