"Asprin, Robert - Sweet Myth-tery of LifeUC" - читать интересную книгу автора (Asprin Robert)

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Chapter One:

"Is it just me, or does it seem to you /
get more than my share of troubles?"

JOB

"... AND so, TO recap, the situation is this ..."

I ticked the points off on my fingers, giving my
audience a visual image to reinforce my words.

"First, Queen Hemlock wants me to be her
consort. Second, she's given me a month to think
it over before I reach my decision. Third ..."

I tapped the appropriate finger for emphasis.

"If I decide not to marry her, she says she'll
abdicate, naming me her successor and sticking
me with the whole mess. Got that?"

Despite my concern over my predicament, I
was nonetheless proud of my ability to address
the problem head on, summarizing and analyzing
it as I sought a solution. There was a time in the
not too distant past when I simply would have
lapsed into blind panic. If nothing else, my adven-
tures over the years had done wonders for my

2 Robert Asprin

confidence in my abilities to handle nearly any
crisis.

"Gleep!" my audience responded.

Okay ... so I wasn't all that confident.

While I knew I could muddle through most
crises, the one situation I dreaded the most was
making a fool of myself in front of my friends and
colleagues. While they had always been unswerv-
ing in their loyalty and willingness to bail me out
of whatever mess I blundered into, that didn't
mean I was particularly eager to tax our friend-
ships yet another time, even if it was just for
advice. At the very least, I figured that when I did