Chapter 200: Nothing At All
Lyria's POV
I said nothing.
The King continued staring at me from across the tearoom, his expression darkened by irritation poorly concealed beneath royal composure.
The silence stretched.
Then he spoke again.
"Well?" he asked. "Have you suddenly lost the ability to respond?"
I lowered my gaze further.
"I-I did not know a response was required, Your Majesty."
"Perhaps," he said, "you have a hearing ailment."
"I am not aware of having any hearing ailment, Your Majesty," I said.
His eye twitched.
It was small, barely visible, but it was there, and in the fraction of a second that followed it, he shifted his weight forward as though he intended to rise.
The Queen's gloved hand settled on his lap.
She did not look at him.
She kept her gaze on me, her expression pleasant in the way that had nothing pleasant beneath it.
"Remain calm, Your Majesty," she said to him quietly.
