Dofev, the capital of the neighboring region, was nothing like what Canelle envisioned. The architecture, the people, and the roads were pulled out of a time period yet to exist. Coming from a world where everything was brick and square, this new world was everything but. 

Here, a shape could be both round and angular. 

She pressed her nose to the wagon window and marveled at the buildings one side at a time. They were expected at the residence of the sovereign upon their arrival in the city, or what was the equivalent of their sovereign. Lior related to her how the government in Dofev differed from their own back home, but he didn’t go into specifics as Canelle hoped she would.  

All the young squire had to go on was the rumors. The things she overheard from travelers, some from Dofev, most from elsewhere. In Dofev, marriages were arranged at birth. In Dofev, trees were short, and the dirt was purple. In Dofev, only the wealthy ate on the floor. 

Those same travelers often remarked that the Palace of Bevij was a piece of art like no other. And perhaps it was because she had nothing to compare it to, she couldn’t quite wholeheartedly agree. More so now, surrounded by a collection of towers that resembled nothing close to the traditional definition of ‘palace’ or ‘castle’. She failed to find a word in her vocabulary to fit it. 

The arrangement of the towers intrigued her. They drew their colors from those of the dawn. A few connected to each other, and many of them were angled towards the main four towers in the middle. Several towers had suns etched into them, others had moons in an unknown systematic order. Towers, castles, or palaces aside, the skyline was from another world.

Caught up in her observations, the squire didn’t immediately notice when they reached the base of the main four towers. Lior instructed her to stay behind if she was going to continue to ‘gawk mindlessly’ at everything, and Canelle didn’t react quick enough to respond, let alone follow her. 

There were guards standing around outside, manning their posts in silence. She shuffled away from the window of the wagon to avoid inadvertent eye contact. Their armor and fashion she found captivating, but not enough to risk getting caught staring at them. 

Her curiosity stemmed from what she had seen so far. The fashion in the city wasn’t as flashy as what the guards were wearing and appeared typical to the standards of the other towns they had traveled through. 

When Lior returned to the caravan, they were directed to the tower they would stay in for their visit. The constructs were tall enough that she imagined their whole party would share one, but according to Liot the whole tower was theirs alone. 

The tower was a gradient blue, starting as teal at its base and shifting into a navy blue towards the top spire. In a gold shimmery paint, the symbol of a crescent moon under a silver arch watched the two visitors step inside.

In Bevij, being a squire put her half a tier higher than a maid. She would be regarded as part of the lower end of ‘the help’. Yet in Dofev, the servants treated her as someone of higher standing. 

Not as high as Liorit. Her status was clear to everyone, despite the trail of controversies that followed behind her. Her gait, her speech, and her air all carried a fluency that, try as she might, would never convince anyone that she was anything but nobleborn. 

Two gentlemen split Lior’s belongings between them, while a third carried Canelle’s bags to her assigned room. They were followed closely by two women in uniform, who carried gifts for both guests. Included were sets of Dofec style clothing for the two to wear during their stay in their nation. 

While she loved the idea, she panicked at the thought of having to figure out how to put the garments on. The servant assured her in a thick accent that she would have help, and although her intentions were good, Canelle's anxieties peaked. She wasn’t accustomed to being on the other side of the interaction and wondered if she would find comfort in being the help again. 

No, the gesture was a faint token of her existence. She wanted to be a person worth acknowledging. 

Canelle would settle into their interim abode, fully accepting she would forgo comfort in the extravagance. But her paranoia of breaking or ruining something was ever lingering in her subconscious, resulting in her restlessness. 

And it was in this way that she was back to being the organizer of affairs and nothing else. Being around nobility made her cautious. She wouldn't risk exposing herself and getting executed by whoever— or whatever, governed this land. If that was a risk Lior wanted to take for herself, fine for her. Canelle had no desire to entangle herself in any of it, outside of directing women to the blue tower.