The sixth morning dawned gray and cold. The convoy packed up with an efficiency that impressed Kaien despite himself. They had been traveling for less than two hours when the vehicles jerked to a halt. Aric was out of the cruiser immediately, moving forward to assess the situation.

The road simply ended at a cliff edge where a bridge had once stood. Below, at least fifty meters down, a river churned through rocks that would destroy anything that fell.

“Recent collapse,” Aric’s engineering officer reported, studying the debris pattern. “Within the last week. Weather damage combined with structural fatigue.”

Aric pulled up a map on his tablet, his brow furrowed in calculation. “Rerouting would add three days to our journey. We are on a diplomatic timeline.”

“We could attempt a temporary bridge,” the engineer suggested. “But we would need to bring up the mobile fabrication unit, run structural analysis… a minimum of six hours, possibly eight.”

Kaien walked to the edge, peering down at the chasm. Six to eight hours seemed laughably inefficient. About thirty meters upstream, a massive, petrified tree stood near the cliff edge. It was ancient and dead for decades, its trunk thick as a house.

“I have a better suggestion,” Kaien announced, walking toward the colossal tree. He placed both palms against its trunk, closing his eyes and drawing on the nascent magical energy of the wilderness around them. It was more difficult than it would be at home, but the land here was not as dead as Kareth’s heartland.

“What are you doing?” Aric demanded, striding toward him.

“Solving our problem.”

“Do not…”

It was too late. Kaien released the spell. From Aric’s perspective, the world erupted into chaos. The ground bucked violently. The air filled with the shriek of tearing rock and splintering wood, and the smell of ozone was sharp and acrid. With apocalyptic force, the massive trunk tilted and fell across the chasm, landing with an impact that shook the very cliffs they stood on. It formed a bridge, wide enough for the cruisers, its petrified branches providing crude handrails.

Silence followed. Dust hung in the air, and the ground still trembled. Kaien opened his eyes, swaying slightly from the magical expenditure, his expression triumphant.

“Problem solved,” he announced. “We can proceed immediately.”

Aric stared at the fallen tree, then at Kaien, his face transforming from shock to a cold, contained fury. “You reckless, arrogant…”

“Effective,” Kaien interrupted. “The word you are looking for is effective.”

“You could have destabilized the entire cliff face!” Aric’s voice was low and tight with rage. “That much force applied without structural analysis, without calculating the impact vectors… you had no idea if that tree would land where you intended, or if the trunk would shatter, or if the roots would tear out half the cliff and send us all into the chasm!”

“But none of that happened.”

“Because you got lucky!”

“I got results.” Kaien’s voice grew cooler. “Your engineers wanted eight hours. I took eight seconds. Is efficiency not what Kareth values?”

“Not when it is achieved through chaos and blind chance!” Aric moved closer, his control fraying. “This is exactly what I despise about magic. No planning, no verification, just raw power applied recklessly with a hope for the best.”

“You call it reckless because you do not understand it. I knew that tree’s density, calculated its mass distribution, and applied force at precisely the correct angle. The difference is that I did it through magical intuition instead of mathematical formulas.”

“Intuition is guesswork dressed up as wisdom!”

“And your formulas are just guesswork dressed up as certainty,” Kaien countered, matching Aric’s intensity. “You wanted to spend eight hours analyzing because you cannot conceive of solving a problem without reducing it to calculations. But sometimes the boldest solution is the most logical one.”

“There is nothing logical about uncontrolled displays of power.”

“Then walk around if you prefer. I will use my reckless bridge and arrive at the Veil first.”

Kaien turned and stepped onto the trunk, crossing to the far side. He turned back, meeting Aric’s gaze across the gap. “Are you coming, Prince Aric? Or are you waiting for your machines to tell you it is safe?”

The challenge hung between them, as wide as the chasm itself. Fury and logic warred in Aric’s expression. Finally, with rigid control, he spoke.

“Test the bridge stability. If it holds, we cross.”

His engineers examined the fallen tree with their instruments. The readings came back acceptable, even optimal. The ancient, petrified wood was stronger than conventional building materials.

“It is safe, sir,” the engineer reported, sounding reluctant to admit it.

The convoy moved carefully across Kaien’s makeshift bridge. When Aric finally crossed, he walked directly to Kaien.

“That,” he said quietly, “was the most irresponsible display of power I have ever witnessed. You could have killed us all.”

“But I did not.”

“That does not make it acceptable.”

“It makes it effective. Your way is not the only way, Prince Aric. The sooner you accept that, the less miserable this marriage will be.”

They stood locked in mutual hostility, the philosophical divide between them now a physical confrontation. It took a visible effort for Aric to step back and issue orders to his officers. As they returned to the cruisers, Kaien allowed himself a small smile. He had proven his point.

But watching the rigid set of Aric’s shoulders, Kaien also recognized he had made the gulf between them even wider. Perhaps, he thought with unexpected regret, that was not entirely wise.