Morning light reached Hajin through the inn window, finding the exact place behind his eyes where the banquet headache had settled.
He covered his face with one arm while voices from the royal hall returned in pieces, including promises that had sounded expensive before the wine.
Hajin sat upright while the royal voices continued pressing behind his eyes. 'The King offered protection in public, then every noble in that room started measuring what the promise might cost me.'
Cold water removed the worst taste from his mouth, though nothing made the pressure behind his eyes respect the new day.
Juna waited beside the common-room stairs with both ears angled back, wearing the patient expression she reserved for avoidable suffering.
"You smell like a barrel somebody forgot behind a tavern," she said as he reached the final step. "The cold water achieved very little against the smell following you."
