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Further discussion was forestalled by the arrival of Farlowe who bowed and presented the wizards and Captain Lomas.
When the three of them had filed in and arranged themselves to stand stiffly within the cramped quarters of the tent, the king spoke, “Gentlemen, I have a mystery here that requires a solution. This morning when I awoke, secure, as I thought, within a magical shield, I found that I had been honoured by a gift of flowers with an accompanying parchment. All three shieldwielders, Farlowe and I were within the shield. No one else could have come or gone through the shield. And when I retired, there were no flowers and no note.” The king turned his gaze on his Captain of the Guard. “Before that, the tent was closely guarded whether I was within it or not. Is that not so, Lomas
