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one of them, made her likable to anyone. If he were asked who was the most fit to lead the group, Yan would not have suggested Grigán. Despite the warrior’s experience in traveling and fighting, he was too stubborn and withdrawn. Yan would have answered Corenn, without hesitation.
    The young man thought he knew more or less everything there was to know about Corenn, but now the Mother of Kaul’s Permanent Council was staring at him with an odd, scheming look that gave him the chills. She had promised him a long conversation. The moment had come. Yan understood without her having to say a word. He looked around to make sure he wouldn’t forget anything, unsure why he was acting this way. Then he shrugged his shoulders and followed the Mother to the stable.
    He felt just as nervous as the night before, when they saw the
other world.
    The memory of the lush sun-laden valley made him sad, just as he felt when the portal closed, sealing off its secret. He now understood that he would never be the same.
    “What about Bowbaq?” he mumbled timidly, as if he were talking to a stranger.
    “He’ll be fine. Léti is keeping an eye on him. I changed his bandages earlier; his wound is very clean, and I don’t think we have to worry about the poison anymore.”
    The harmless tone in her voice relaxed him some, but the Mother’s pensive expression made him feel anxious again. They left the stable and walked in silence. The sun was already high above the horizon, and the Lorelien countryside rejoiced. Thesongs of vorvans and vulturous blackbirds fused together in the air. The hoarse cry of a marine pheasant echoed nearby, and wild boar answered promptly with a groan. The fauna sensed the approaching season of the earth and intended to make the most of the respite the sun now offered.
    Yan enjoyed imagining how scared to death Raji would be, knowing that his guests were outside in the open, easily seen and acknowledged by any passerby. He wasn’t completely comfortable with the danger they imposed on the little man, but he knew that Grigán would rather die than cause an innocent man trouble. Besides, the smuggler would surely be handsomely compensated.
    Corenn remained silent. Yan gathered his courage and dove in.
    “This
long conversation
, does it have to do with the island, or me?”
    The Mother smiled, shooting him a sidelong glance, as their walk brought them under the first trees of a thick forest.
    “Yan the Fisherman, you’re not so naïve anymore,” she said magisterially. “It has to do with you,” she added, after a moment.
    Yan felt his neck stiffen. He had suspected the answer, but was already sorry to have been right.
    Corenn drew in a long breath and began.
    “After what you saw yesterday, I don’t think you’ll find my question too odd. Yan, do you believe in the
impossible
?”
    “Yes, of course,” he answered without hesitation. Then he felt the need to explain his impulsive response. “I mean, I’ve seen it, haven’t I? We all have. Anyone can go around saying things, but that doesn’t prove anything. But yesterday… I was there yesterday. I saw the portal. I saw the other world. And if those things are real, then others can be too.”
    Corenn stopped and stretched as she observed the surroundings. His answer amply satisfied her.
    “Well! Like I thought, this is going to be very easy. Let’s stop here for a moment. I have something to show you.”
    Consumed with curiosity, the young Kaulien squatted in the grass still moist with dew. Corenn unfolded a cloth she had brought for this purpose, sat down on it, and rested her back against the trunk of a young lubilee tree. She lazily took a coin from her purse and held it out to the young man.
    “Place it on the ground upright, on its edge. Wherever you want, but close enough so that I can see it.”
    Yan obeyed, wondering where the Mother was going with this. If Rey had asked him to do something like this, he would have refused to play along,