Book II, Chapter 33
…additionally, much criticism has been levied over the centuries against Heather Ingerman's espionage failures, especially those early in her tenure. Frequently, such critics find support in her own journals, especially with sufficient cherry-picking to avoid her own cogent analysis of what she did wrong and how to do better in the future. What many of these critics forget is that Ingerman was a teenaged girl at the time when she was first appointed to the role of spymaster of Berk; while she had been extensively trained as a spy agent, the higher-level skills required by her new elevated position took her some time to develop from first principles. It was not until later that she found a mentor in the arts of espionage that…
— Statecraft: The Great Game Of Diplomacy, Espionage & War By Other Means, 1732, Rouen University Press
Tropes That Appear In This Chapter:
- Tongue Trauma: One of the servants that brings the Roman Dragon Riders water has had his tongue removed.
- Villain Has a Point: Maniakes isn’t wrong when he says that Michael is unqualified to be emperor, and that the empire needs someone competent to rule over it.He's nothing more than a petulant child, and I know that he'll turn on me and anyone that shows competence, just like he did Harald! He'll drag the Empire down with him! Our only chance to preserve the empire is to cut him down cleanly now, and put the power of the Empire in the hands of someone who knows what he's doing.
