"'I am taking a great risk in sending you there, but I think the information you are likely to obtain will be worth the risk. This means, though, that you will need to be doubly on your guard against capture, and you will need to be prepared for the consequences if that happens.'"

High danger means a gamble for high stakes.

Abruptly switched to a new duty, Adrian must acquire more subtle ways of serving his adopted homeland. But when his duty to the Empire of Emor comes in conflict with his duty to friendship, he must choose an unexpected path.

This novella (short novel) of a young man's coming of age is the fifth story of the Law Links volume in The Three Lands, a fantasy series on friendship, romance, and betrayal in times of war and peace.

The Three Lands is part of Chronicles of the Great Peninsula, a cycle of mythic historical fantasy series about a battle between cultures. Chronicles of the Great Peninsula is set at a time when a centuries-old civilization is in danger of being destroyed. The cycle is inspired by conflicts between cultures during the Arthurian Era.