"Lis, I"ve had enough of you," Nikto said.

"What do you think, Nikto can"t have a mother?" Tol said digging with a fork in his teeth.

"He can," Lis said in an icy voice.

"That"s enough about me," Nikto said, "now you tell me of yourselves."

"You can ask." Orel smoothened his long dark hair.

"Why are you called Orel²?"

"Ha." Orel laughed. "I don"t even remember that, my ancestors thought an eagle was their forebear, something like that. I"m the last scion of that ancient, formerly royal family. Prince Arel Chig from the family of Eagle."

"Cool," Nikto said. "Now Lis."

"My name is Atley Alis," Lis said without enthusiasm. "Atley son of Alis."

"Why Lis³?"

"Can you guess it?" Lis tossed his dark-red hair gathered in a ponytail on his nape. Nikto smiled.

"You can guess," Lis stated. "No more questions then?"

"You"re not a Black, are you?"

"No. I"m a Red half-blood." Lis winced. "My father was a Red. Something else?"

"Your teeth, they are filed in the way only Red warriors file them. Are you one of them?"

"In the past I was," Lis smirked. "I betrayed them and joined our side."

"Cool, too," Nikto said. "Now Tol."

"At last! My name is Ram Murh! These bastards call me Tolsty⁴ just because I"m taller and stronger than them! And then they got tired of saying such a long word and they started calling me Tol! I"m not a commoner or a half-blood! I"m a true Black, a native citizen of this damned world! My father owns huge lands in the southwest, only I don"t like it there, it"s boring."

"As far as I remember, there are only forests."

"Yep."