Dear Risa,

  I am conflicted.

  On the one hand, Goldvale is basically my second home, and you live there, and I will always love it.

  But I kinda wish I’d been sent to Dragon’s Pass for college instead. There’s something about it, about the culture here, that just feels right. Like I’m supposed to be here.

  I mean, I’ve been to kobold towns before, and they’re towns with a kobold flair. Not a whole lot of differences between them and the average neko town, really.

  But somehow being in a city where both races and cultures are completely mixed makes something in my soul go “yes, this is where we belong”.

  Maki says he feels the same way, so I know it’s not just me! He thinks we might have been kobolds in a previous life or something.

  In the pamphlets for the Traveler’s Guild it suggests having a “base” guild; a city you visit at least once a year for people to send paperwork and whatnot to. When we first started I suggested making Goldvale our base, but no one wanted to commit like that when we were just starting. I think tomorrow morning I’m going to suggest we make this city our base before we leave.

  Besides, all our paperwork for the liondrakes is signed by people from here, so that makes sense.

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  Oh, I got to drag Cali and Maki all over the city today, filing paperwork. You already know I was in my element. Convincing people in authority that my dubiously legal and highly dangerous idea is sound and valid? Hell yeah.

  It was amusing, or well, I found it amusing, that most of the neko government people saw the liondrakes and were like “you want to what??? Nonononono” while backing away slowly. The kobold government people, though, saw the liondrakes and immediately went “oh yeah, whatever you’re planning, I approve and want in”. What they say about kobolds loving everything dragon-related is true.

  Cali hooked her flying carpet to the male liondrake’s harness and took the Vet Guild’s most senior member for a ride. After that she could have asked for the permit to be written in diamonds on solid gold paper and he would have agreed instantly. That kobold is her #1 fan.

  In other news, we’ve more or less decided on a route to take to get to Winner, the grand capital of the Bestest Empire and the location of Empress Echo’s palace. It should take us just over two months. When we get into the empire we’ll check their maps and ask about roads, just to double-check our plan.

  We aren't going to rush there or anything. None of us know what will happen when we show up on Echo’s doorstep and ask for an audience, but I doubt it’ll go well. Mostly Maki wants closure and I want to be able to say I yelled at an Empress and lived to tell about it. Luke and Cali are just along for the ride.

  Risa, don't you dare skip ahead to find out what happens. That would be cheating.

  I might have to put those letters in a separate notebook, just to keep you in suspense until the right time.

  I'll see if I remember, when the time comes.

  Regards,

  Maeve Zee