"Miss Astrid, I thought you wouldn't be in the mood to invite us to dine in this royal palace today."
In the reception hall nearest the outer perimeter of the Kingdom's palace, where towering statues stood in solemn grandeur, Astrid and her companions dined with Iris, who had just finished her speech following the trial. They sat in a side hall, enjoying the highest hospitality the Velys royal family could offer its guests.
Hearing Astrid's words, Iris lowered her gaze. She casually smoothed the hem of her dress, covering the thighs wrapped in sheer stockings, and spoke in a subdued voice.
"The tyrant's rule has ended, and the Kingdom's extremist ideology has been corrected. I ought to be happy about that, shouldn't I?"
The citizens standing beneath the gallows had listened as she proclaimed the end of the old regime and the beginning of a new one. Believing that a brand-new life awaited them, every one of them had worn a joyful expression.
