Even the walk was turning out to be long, really. First, there was learning to pick up the skirt of his robes; he almost broke his nose on the pavement before he got the hang of that. Fortunately, a strong hand grabbed his shoulder from behind.
"I do not understand this custom, but it is unseemly for a warrior to sprawl in the street," Sten's low voice rumbled behind him. Well, of all the unlikely people to watch his back.
His progress was accompanied by frequent catcalls from both male and female bystanders, which he didn't quite understand. Well, clearly they didn't recognize their king out of shiny armor and blindfolded. A soft hand led him along – a female hand? An elf hand? At least he was being led by the hand and not some other body part.