"There's a quarry to the northwest where the stone comes from," he tells her, as they leave the trailing edges of the orchard behind and come toward the archway of the North Gate. "As for the type of stone, I'm afraid you'd have to ask the royal masons. It's harder than marble, but shines like it, doesn't it?"

A wide, graceful path leads them through the gate and into an airy courtyard, neatly manicured and vibrant with flower beds and shrubbery.