Hired Swords

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Author :
Publisher : Stanford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0804726965
Total Pages : 282 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (47 download)

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Book Synopsis Hired Swords by : Karl F. Friday

Download or read book Hired Swords written by Karl F. Friday and published by Stanford University Press. This book was released on 1996-03-01 with total page 282 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Tracing the evolution of state military institutions from the seventh through the twelfth centuries, this book challenges much of the received wisdom of Western scholarship on the origins and early development of warriors in Japan. This prelude to the rise of the samurai, who were to become the masters of Japan's medieval and early modern eras, was initiated when the imperial court turned for its police and military protection to hired swords--professional mercenaries largely drawn from the elites of provincial society. By the middle of the tenth century, this provincial military order had been handed a virtual monopoly of Japan's martial resources. Yet it was not until near the end of the twelfth century that these warriors took the first significant steps toward asserting their independence from imperial court control. Why did they not do so earlier? Why did they remain obedient to a court without any other military sources for nearly 300 years? Why did the court put itself in the potentially (and indeed, ultimately) precarious situation of contracting for its military needs with private warriors? These and related questions are the focus of the author's study. Most of the few Western treatments see the origins of the samurai in the incompetence and inactivity of the imperial court that forced residents in the provinces to take up arms themselves. According to this view, a warrior class was spontaneously generated just as one had been in Europe a few centuries earlier, and the Japanese court was doomed to eventually perish by the sword because of its failure to live by it. Instead, the author argues that it was largely court activism that put swords in the hands of rural elites, thatcourt military policy, from the very beginning of the imperial state era, followed a long-term pattern of increasing reliance on the martial skills of the gentry. This policy reflected the court's desire for maximum efficiency in its military institutions, and the policy's succes

Swords Are My Business

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Author :
Publisher : Tor Books
ISBN 13 : 1466854316
Total Pages : 941 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (668 download)

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Book Synopsis Swords Are My Business by : Alex Bledsoe

Download or read book Swords Are My Business written by Alex Bledsoe and published by Tor Books. This book was released on 2013-11-05 with total page 941 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Alex Bledsoe introduced the world to Eddie LaCrosse, the hard-boiled but soft-hearted detective known as a "sword jockey" who, for twenty-five gold pieces a day, plus expenses, will take on any case short of murder for hire. Like Philip Marlowe in shining armor or Sam Spade with a sword, Eddie goes down his mean medieval streets trying to walk the straight and narrow in a crooked, twisting fantasy world. Over the course of four novels, LaCrosse has encountered dragons, pirates, sea monsters, goddesses, ghosts, and magic, all the while keeping his cool and doing what's right. In this collection you'll receive the complete text of the first four Eddie LaCrosse novels. The Sword-Edged Blonde When a childhood friend, now a king, asks Eddie's help in clearing his queen of a murder charge, Eddie's long-buried past refuses to stay hidden. Burn Me Deadly Someone will go to any lengths, including torture and murder, to locate the last remaining dragon eggs. But dragons aren't real, are they? Dark Jenny A poisoned apple sets off political turmoil that threatens to destroy an entire Camelot-like kingdom, and take Eddie with it. Wake of the Bloody Angel Eddie searches for the vanished pirate Black Edward Tew and his legendary treasure, but even the help of a tough former pirate queen may not be enough to save him from what he finds. Swords Are My Business also includes a sample of the fifth Eddie LaCrosse novel, He Drank, and Saw the Spider. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

The Bonegates Series

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Author :
Publisher : Ashley McKee
ISBN 13 : 1947245805
Total Pages : 1164 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (472 download)

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Book Synopsis The Bonegates Series by : Ashley McLeo

Download or read book The Bonegates Series written by Ashley McLeo and published by Ashley McKee. This book was released on 2022-03-20 with total page 1164 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A complete portal fantasy series containing four books: Hawk Witch Assassin Witch Traitor Witch Illuminator Witch From Hawk Witch: A mysterious fae-shifter. A battle royale. A discovery of a lifetime. After I'm sucked into Faerie, I have a chance to start over, to find love, and discover my lost bloodline. Crazily enough, for the first time in my life, my magic is cooperating too. Yet, there's one hitch. Because there's always a hitch, isn't there? To get what I want most, I have to fight gladiator style—and I must win. The competition is more powerful than me, cunning, and a thousand times more charming. Still, when I really want something, I don't give up. And I won't start now. If you like the atmosphere of Holly Black's The Cruel Prince and the action of Leigh Bardugo's Grishaverse, you'll love Ashley McLeo's dark and twisted Bonegates Series. Discover a unique take on Faerie and magic today.

Knights of the Sword

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Author :
Publisher : Wizards of the Coast
ISBN 13 : 0786963379
Total Pages : 300 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (869 download)

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Book Synopsis Knights of the Sword by : Roland Green

Download or read book Knights of the Sword written by Roland Green and published by Wizards of the Coast. This book was released on 2012-06-12 with total page 300 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The greatest order of chivalry in the history of Krynn. After a knight has achieved the Order of the Crown, he must then begin his training in the virtues of courage and heroism in order to achieve the Order of the Sword. This is the second tale of Sir Pirvan the Wayward, whose reluctant and inauspicious beginnings bore few clues to his potential as a Knight of the Sword or as a Knight of the Crown, nor as a mentor for another similarly dubious prospect for Krynn's greatest order of chivalry. Roland J. Green is the author of the Starcruiser Shenandoah and Wandor series and numerous Conan novels, and is coauthor (with Jerr Pournelle) of the Jannisaries series. The Warriors series details the exploits of the heroes and villains of the War of the Lance.

By the Sword

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Author :
Publisher : Astra Publishing House
ISBN 13 : 1101127260
Total Pages : 449 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (11 download)

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Book Synopsis By the Sword by : Mercedes Lackey

Download or read book By the Sword written by Mercedes Lackey and published by Astra Publishing House. This book was released on 1991-02-05 with total page 449 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Granddaughter of the sorceress Kethry, daughter of a noble house, Kerowyn had been forced to run the family keep since her mother's untimely death. Yet now at last her brother was preparing to wed, and when his bride became the lady of the keep, Kerowyn could return to her true enjoyments - training horses and hunting. But all Kerowyn's hopes and plans were shattered when her anscestral home was attacked, her father slain, her brother wounded, and his fiancee kidnapped. Drive by desperation and the knowledge that a scorcerer had led the journey which would prove but he first step on the road to the fulfillment of her destiny.

Japanese Swords

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Author :
Publisher : Tuttle Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1462915752
Total Pages : 589 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (629 download)

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Book Synopsis Japanese Swords by : Colin M. Roach

Download or read book Japanese Swords written by Colin M. Roach and published by Tuttle Publishing. This book was released on 2014-08-19 with total page 589 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With over 300 stunning photographs and woodblock prints along with extensive historical and cultural commentary, Japanese Swords is the ultimate authority on Samurai weaponry. Historically, Japanese warriors considered their swords to be far greater than simple weaponry. Their swords were both lethal tools and divine companions -- social and religious icons. Traditionally worn by the samurai as a sign of social status, the Japanese sword represented the junction between the reigning military class and those whom they ruled. Moreover, the samurai sword was a technological and artistic marvel. Many scholars consider it to be the finest sword ever constructed. In terms of symbolism and historical importance, no other blade comes close to the Japanese sword. With a historical, iconographical, and technological perspective, author Cohn M. Roach provides an in-depth study of these magnificent weapons in Japanese Swords. This richly illustrated sword book weaves the blade's primary influences together, tracking its history and illuminating its progress from infancy to grandeur. By studying the evolution of the Japanese sword from this perspective, we better understand Japan and its warrior archetype. Combining research materials from multiple disciplines, Roach uses his expertise as an educator to guide readers through the sword's rise to greatness in a unique way. This book discusses the history, development, and spiritual symbolism of the sword, as well as the esoteric metallurgical techniques used in making it. It also covers the difficult training practices used by skilled swordsmen. Japanese Swords also includes a companion video content featuring a beautifully-filmed documentary that explores the traditional swordmaker's craft. The video content also contains an introduction to the Japanese sword at a sword shop in Kyoto and a visit to a dojo for a beginner's class in the medieval sword-drawing art called iaido.

Sword's Call

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Author :
Publisher : C.A. Szarek
ISBN 13 : 1941151000
Total Pages : 301 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (411 download)

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Book Synopsis Sword's Call by : C.A. Szarek

Download or read book Sword's Call written by C.A. Szarek and published by C.A. Szarek. This book was released on 2013-02-21 with total page 301 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For generations, the Ryhans, ruling family of the Province of Greenwald have been keepers of a sword rumored to possess enough magic to defeat kings. Lord Varthan, a former archduke and betrayer of the king, covets the sword and invades Greenwald. Lady Ceralda Ryhan, daughter of the murdered duke, gains the sword and flees, trusting only her white wolf, Trikser—magically bonded to her. Cera needs nothing more to aid in her fight. Jorrin Aldern, half elfin and half human, left his home in the mountains of Aramour to find his human father who disappeared twenty turns before, but finds Cera with Varthan and his shades on her tail instead. His dual heritage and empathic magic will tempt Cera in ways she never thought she’d desire. But can he convince her trust and love can pave the path to redemption or will the epic battle end in tragedy and evil conquer them all?

Swords Against Cthulhu

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Author :
Publisher : Lulu.com
ISBN 13 : 1326318047
Total Pages : 157 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (263 download)

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Book Synopsis Swords Against Cthulhu by : Rogue Planet Press

Download or read book Swords Against Cthulhu written by Rogue Planet Press and published by Lulu.com. This book was released on 2015-06-20 with total page 157 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Swords against Cthulhu, an anthology of sword and sorcery/Cthulhu Mythos crossovers. Mighty thewed barbarians battle alien wizardry and cosmic terror in a blind, unreasoning universe where only the strong survive... The Cthulhu Mythos is best known as a horror genre, but its influence was felt on the work of seminal sword and sorcery writers Robert E Howard and Clark Ashton Smith, and its pessimistic tone has continued to predominate in the genre to this day. However mighty the hero, the forces of chaos, the blasphemous powers of an insouciant universe, are stronger-or are they? All a doomed swordsman can do is face the outer darkness, blade in hand, a song of defiance on his lips, and hope to die fighting... Including stories by Damir Salkovic, Mark Sims, Sergio Palumbo and many more!

Highland Guard

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Publisher : Zebra Books
ISBN 13 : 1420135023
Total Pages : 293 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (21 download)

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Book Synopsis Highland Guard by : Hannah Howell

Download or read book Highland Guard written by Hannah Howell and published by Zebra Books. This book was released on 2015-03-01 with total page 293 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A lady’s secret threatens her land—and reunites her with the man she loves—in this historical Scottish romance by the New York Times bestselling author. Years ago, Lady Annys MacQueen deceived her own people in order to keep her land safe. But now, with Glencullaich on the brink of war, a cruel kinsman threatens to expose the truth. To shield her young son from the sword and her people from devastation, Annys must once again turn to the one man she could never forget... Sir Harcourt Murray lives for duty and honor. So when a laird saved his life, he agreed to father a child with the man’s wife...Lady Annys. When the lovely widow come to him once again, the passion he still feels for her is as all-consuming and perilous as the need to secure her lands. But convincing her that his love is real will require confronting her most wrenching fears—and putting everything they treasure most at stake.

Legacies of the Sword

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Author :
Publisher : University of Hawaii Press
ISBN 13 : 9780824818791
Total Pages : 252 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (187 download)

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Book Synopsis Legacies of the Sword by : Karl F. Friday

Download or read book Legacies of the Sword written by Karl F. Friday and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 1997-07-01 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Western scholars and educators are generally far less familiar with the samurai in his original-and, ostensibly, primary-role as warrior and masters of arms than in his other functions as landowner, feudal lord, literature, or philosopher. Yet, any attempt to comprehend fully the samurai without considering his military abilities and training (bugei) is futile. With verve and wit, Karl Friday combines the results of nearly two decades of fieldwork and archival research to examine samurai martial culture from a broad perspective: as a historical phenomenon, as a worldview, and as a system of physical, spiritual, and moral education.

Thorn & Blade

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Publisher : Elusive Blue Fiction
ISBN 13 : 1955197644
Total Pages : 356 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (551 download)

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Book Synopsis Thorn & Blade by : Lisa Silverthorne

Download or read book Thorn & Blade written by Lisa Silverthorne and published by Elusive Blue Fiction. This book was released on 2024-09-29 with total page 356 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An Enemies-to-Lovers Forced Proximity Romantasy Suspense Series A century of war. A cursed and dying world. A tenuous truce. And a rigid prophecy that could save it all. Take a steamy, harrowing but steamy carriage ride across Kambria with a brave princess forced to marry an enemy prince and her scorching hot but terrifying outlaw bodyguard. Where two enemies discover true love's spark. TROPES: - Enemies to Lovers - Forbidden Romance - Fated Mates - True Love - Bodyguard - Touch Her and Die - Prophecy Thorn & Blade is the first book in the Curse and Crown series.

The Cambridge History of War: Volume 2, War and the Medieval World

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Author :
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 1108901190
Total Pages : 854 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (89 download)

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Book Synopsis The Cambridge History of War: Volume 2, War and the Medieval World by : David A. Graff

Download or read book The Cambridge History of War: Volume 2, War and the Medieval World written by David A. Graff and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2020-10-01 with total page 854 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Volume II of The Cambridge History of War covers what in Europe is commonly called 'the Middle Ages'. It includes all of the well-known themes of European warfare, from the migrations of the Germanic peoples and the Vikings through the Reconquista, the Crusades and the age of chivalry, to the development of state-controlled gunpowder-wielding armies and the urban militias of the later middle ages; yet its scope is world-wide, ranging across Eurasia and the Americas to trace the interregional connections formed by the great Arab conquests and the expansion of Islam, the migrations of horse nomads such as the Avars and the Turks, the formation of the vast Mongol Empire, and the spread of new technologies – including gunpowder and the earliest firearms – by land and sea.

Murtagh

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Publisher : Penguin
ISBN 13 : 177488299X
Total Pages : 656 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (748 download)

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Book Synopsis Murtagh by : Christopher Paolini

Download or read book Murtagh written by Christopher Paolini and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2023-11-07 with total page 656 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Master storyteller and internationally bestselling author Christopher Paolini returns to the World of Eragon in this stunning epic fantasy set a year after the events of the Inheritance Cycle. Join Dragon Rider—and fan favorite—Murtagh and his dragon as they confront a perilous new enemy! “Christopher Paolini is a true rarity.” —The Washington Post The world is no longer safe for the Dragon Rider Murtagh and his dragon, Thorn. An evil king has been toppled, and they are left to face the consequences of the reluctant role they played in his reign of terror. Now they are hated and alone, exiled to the outskirts of society. Throughout the land, hushed voices whisper of brittle ground and a faint scent of brimstone in the air—and Murtagh senses that something wicked lurks in the shadows of Alagaësia. So begins an epic journey into lands both familiar and untraveled, where Murtagh and Thorn must use every weapon in their arsenal, from brains to brawn, to find and outwit a mysterious witch. A witch who is much more than she seems. In this gripping novel starring one of the most popular characters from Christopher Paolini’s blockbuster Inheritance Cycle, a Dragon Rider must discover what he stands for in a world that has abandoned him. Murtagh is the perfect book to enter the World of Eragon for the first time . . . or to joyfully return.

Death, Culture & Leisure

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Author :
Publisher : Emerald Group Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1839090391
Total Pages : 248 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (39 download)

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Book Synopsis Death, Culture & Leisure by : Matt Coward-Gibbs

Download or read book Death, Culture & Leisure written by Matt Coward-Gibbs and published by Emerald Group Publishing. This book was released on 2020-08-20 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Death, Culture and Leisure: Playing Dead is an inter- and multi-disciplinary volume that engages with the diverse nexuses that exist between death, culture and leisure. At its heart, it is a playful exploration of the way in which we play with both death and the dead.

The Silurian, Book 3: Longhand, White-tooth, and the Fox

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Publisher : Lulu.com
ISBN 13 : 0648675696
Total Pages : 264 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (486 download)

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Book Synopsis The Silurian, Book 3: Longhand, White-tooth, and the Fox by : L.A. Wilson

Download or read book The Silurian, Book 3: Longhand, White-tooth, and the Fox written by L.A. Wilson and published by Lulu.com. This book was released on 2019-12-31 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Silurian, Book Three: LONGHAND, WHITE-TOOTH, AND THE FOX A GREAT PRINCE ARISES The Fox is taken prisoner by the Dynasty of Cadwallon Longhand, and his cruel and ambitious brother, Owen White-tooth, both of the powerful clan of the Gwynedd Gododdin, who seek to keep Arthur from rising to take absolute rule of Britain as Imperator. The Men of Gwynedd force the Fox into the army of Cadwallon Longhand to fight for the Hound Clan, where he is used in the hope of thwarting any further rise of Arthur's power, for only Bedwyr knows how Arthur fights and wins, only Bedwyr knows the Silurian's heart and way, and for it, Longhand imprisons the Fox in his stronghold of Rhos: here Bedwyr is forced to marry into the Dynasty of Longhand and White-tooth, here he is abused and beaten. Away from Arthur's battles, the Fox's journey is arduous. And it is here, separated from his beloved foster-brother that Bedwyr becomes a powerful prince and warrior in his own right: a man that other warlords fight over to gain for themselves the power of the Fox's sword-arm. But Bedwyr is sworn only to Arthur, and he waits for the inevitable day when Arthur invades Gwynedd with his army to claim back his lost brother.

SILVATICI

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Author :
Publisher : Story Donkey
ISBN 13 : 1739671503
Total Pages : 368 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (396 download)

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Book Synopsis SILVATICI by : Declan Croghan

Download or read book SILVATICI written by Declan Croghan and published by Story Donkey. This book was released on 2022-07-29 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 1066. William The Conqueror takes England. Wrong. That version of history is Norman revisionism and propaganda! The truth is that England did not surrender to The Bastard Duke’s rule. For the next 40 years they fought a war of resistance in the forests and moorlands. This fighting force of proto-guerrillas were called the Silvatici and became the stuff of Norman nightmares. This is their origin story. It follows Edgar The Atheling (the legitimate King of England), Princess Margaret (who becomes Queen of Scotland and Saint Margaret), Kallín of the Rohán ( the young Chieftain of a clan of indigenous mercenaries) and Luna (a ferocious young female warrior). Their adventures take us from the great courts of Normandy, London and York to the wilds of Northumbria and the moorlands which will become the killing fields of the war of resistance to come.

Silver Queendom

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Author :
Publisher : Watkins Media Limited
ISBN 13 : 0857669974
Total Pages : 399 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (576 download)

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Book Synopsis Silver Queendom by : Dan Koboldt

Download or read book Silver Queendom written by Dan Koboldt and published by Watkins Media Limited. This book was released on 2022-08-23 with total page 399 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When you owe money to the biggest criminal in town you are going to need to step up your thieving game a notch… --- Service at the Red Rooster Inn isn’t what you’d call "good," or even "adequate." Darin would be the first to say so, and he owns the place. Evie isn’t much of a barmaid; Kat’s home-brewed ale seems to grow less palatable with each new batch; and Seraphina’s service at the bar leaves much to be desired. As for the bouncer, Big Tom, well, everyone learns right quick to stay on his good side. They may be bad at running an inn, but they’re the best team of con artists in the Old Queendom. When a prospective client approaches Darin with a high-paying job, he knows he should refuse. But the job is boosting a shipment of priceless imperial dream wine, the most coveted and expensive drink in the world. And, thanks to a stretch of bad luck, he's in deep to The Dame, who oversees criminal enterprises in this part of the Queendom. If they fail, they’re as good as dead, but if they succeed… well, it’s enough money to get square with the Dame and make all of their dreams come true. Plus, it's an option for Darin to stick it to the empress, who he has good reason to despise. Then again, there’s a very good reason no one has ever stolen imperial dream wine...