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‘Well. Color me impressed, Hector.’

‘R-really?’

‘Yeah. Unless you’ve just trapped your arms in your own metal, that is.’

He smirked and annihilated the iron. He stretched his arms and popped his knuckles.

‘By the way, those people are staring at you.’ Garovel pointed to the pump station behind Hector, where a family of four was gawking with varying degrees of confusion.

Hector flushed red. “Uh... I was, uh... that... mgh...”

‘Time to go?’

‘Y-yeah.’ He donned his helm and gave the family a stilted wave before roaring out of the gas station.

His helm didn’t have a visor like the riding helmet, so he had to get accustomed to squinting against the bit of wind that made it through.

He came upon an amusement park with a big green sign that read ‘Serpent World’ in swirling letters. He’d forgotten it even existed out here. The place was famous for its winding coasters and snake exhibits. He remembered wanting to visit as a kid.

Seeing the park meant they were close to the capital, he recalled, and sure enough, no more than ten minutes later, he could see Sescoria’s skyscrapers in the distance. A couple of suburban towns still lay in the way, but they soon fell behind him.

Traffic picked up as he entered the city, and he stiffened his posture, trying to watch the road even more carefully. He eased to a stop at the first intersection. ‘So, um, how do I get to the royal palace?’ he asked as he waited for the light to turn green.

‘The Queen doesn’t live in the palace,’ said Garovel. ‘She lives in Belgrant Castle.’

‘Oh... then what’s the palace for?’

‘Ceremonies, international receptions, that sort of thing. Though, I’m sure she could’ve lived in the palace if she wanted. Some of her relatives probably do.’

‘Huh...’

‘You really should know more about your own country, Hector.’

‘I, ah... yeah, okay...’