Chapter 18
Dilrap puffed and flustered his way down the stairs and along the marble floored corridors of the Palace. The formal robes of his office seemed to have been specially designed to accentuate his wobbling shape and his fluttering concerns: long, wide sleeves eternally having to be hitched back so that he could use his hands; a full length and voluminous gown hanging down from his stomach and, when not threatening to trip him, snagging on some nearby object; a neckline totally unsuitable for such sloping shoulders requiring the almost permanent use of one hand or the other, and a ceremonial hood which invariably fell in front of his eyes whenever disarray in his garments required attention.
Luckless heir to the traditionally hereditary position of King’s Secretary, Dilrap fought
