"If I may ask, why are those damned forsaken Lords out on their knees in the hallway?" Vinegario said the moment he entered Berryanna's office.
His boots echoed once, sharp and confident, before he even crossed the threshold. The question was not curiosity. It was amusement.
He had just arrived, and on reaching the hallway to Berryanna's office, he found the Lords kneeling down like they had committed an offense. Their backs were straight, hands folded, heads bowed low enough that none dared look up. The silence had been thick, broken only by shallow breathing and the distant sound of footsteps.
He did not even say a word to them. In fact, he was happy. He smirked under his hood and made a playful whistle while walking through them.
Some of the Lords stiffened as he passed. One flinched when Vinegario's shadow crossed his bowed head. Another clenched his fists so tightly his knuckles went pale. None spoke. None dared move. Vinegario noticed all of it and enjoyed it.
