[ She says one tender word and suddenly it's poetry

She brightens a little at his recognition. ]

Yes. He was a terrible mage, but he still managed to become a respected Lord. He made me think that if even he could make his way through the world, then maybe I could too.

[ (affectionate)

But she begins to push her soup around, willing it to cool down a little more. ]

He was a Lord, a teacher, and sometimes a detective too. Though his cases always involved magecraft, so they weren't like detective stories in books.