e saw that she could not understand what could be wrong with his position.
"Once, when I was very young," he said, "I thought I would rule. But fourteen planets require a whole council of co-ordinators! I gave up that idea and tried to enjoy myself."
She stared at him uncertainly. He waved a hand at the artificial forest.
"It has been like that ever since. They fall all over themselves to devise new ways of getting my attention and to present pleasures and entertainment I am incapable of enjoying. I have more wealth than I can estimate, I sometimes forget which palace I am in, even my wives look alike by now."
"I must sympathize with Your Illustrious Sublimity."
He flung her a hard stare.
"Perhaps you ought! Even my generals and their soldiers have their dreams—of conquest or loot. The engineer who built this dome pictures himself famous and admired. Wilkins is proud of his influence, and other courtiers have visions of doing away with Wilkins and replacing him."
He stood up restlessly.
"You will laugh at me, I know—but there is little enjoyment in life when every whim is catered to at a snap of one's fingers. What have I to desire?"