How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #10
King Azaz and the Mathemagician pledged that every year at this same time they would lead their armies to the Mountains of Ignorance until not one demon remained, and everyone agreed that no finer carnival for no finer reason had ever been held in Wisdom.
But even things as fine as all that must end sometime, and late on the afternoon of the third day the tents were struck, the pavilions were folded, and everything was packed ready to leave. (19.63-64)
You might think that in a fantasyland, celebrations could last and last, but there's a time for revelry, and a time for getting back to work. Even in the Lands Beyond, people can't party forever. The narrator tells us that "even things as fine as all that must end sometime." If they never ended, maybe they wouldn't be as special. Maybe they'd even be – dare we say – a waste of time.