"04 - Emperor and Clown 1.0" - читать интересную книгу автора (Duncan Dave)

came rarely in any merchant's lifetime, and Grandsire was going to be enormously
proud of him. Of course the details were still somewhat obscure and extremely
complex, and would have to be worked out very carefully in the morning, when
both parties were more alert, but there was no doubt that this evening's jollity
would reap huge wealth in the future for the House of Elkarath. It would be the
first coup of a very long and successful career.
Skarash bellowed loudly for one of his cousins to fetch more wine. He peered
blearily at his drinking companion.
"You did say exclusive license, sir?"
"Absolutely," said the visitor. "The Imperial court prefers to deal with a
single supplier for each commodity-or even several commodities. It saves
superfluous bookkeeping, you understand."
Skarash nodded wisely, hiccupped, and shouted again for wine. How wise Grandsire
had been to leave him in charge until his returnl "How many commomm-odities
would you expect?"
"Many! But enough of tedious business. Let us talk of lighter things. I
understand you have only recently returned from Ullacarn?"
"Thatsh absholutely correct. How did you learn that?"
"On the same ship as the sultan?"
Skarash nodded again as a shrouded maiden-a cousin or one of his sisters,
perhaps-scurried out from the house with more supplies.
"From Ullacarn?" the stranger inquired, smiling. For an imp, he was
extraordinarily handsome. Very cultured and likable. And he had the polished
accents of a high-class Hubban. Skarash had been listening carefully to those
rounded vowels ... not lately, though.
"Yesh," he found himself explaining, "I went directly. By camel. Not that we
traders go directly, you unshersand ... understand ... because we wander.
Right?"
"Of course," the stranger agreed with another winning smile. "And the sultan?"
"The sultan and Grandsire made a small detour."
"Detour?"
"Through Thume!"
"No! The Accursed Land? Now you have really intrigued me!"
A little later Skarash found time to wonder if he had been wise to mention that
Grandsire was a mage, and now votary to Warlock Olybino himself, but the imp
poured out more wine himself and proposed a toast or two, and the conversation
continued without significant interruption.
Talk droned; insects hummed.
"But how on earth could even a mage have tracked them down in such a
wilderness?"
"Ah!" said Skarash, being mysterious. He really ought to call for some food, to
mop up all this liquor slopping around in his insides. Djinns were notoriously
susceptible to alcohol and tended to shun it for that reason. He never normally
indulged in it himself. "Well, the sorceress had given Grandsire a device to
trace the use of magic, you see . . ."

4
"Aunt?"
Kadolan blinked her eyes open. The room was dark. Her head felt thick and a
nasty taste in her mouth told her she must have been asleep. Then she made out