When the hearing ended, the Council didn't send Zaeryn back to the guest residence as he had expected.
Instead, the Royal Guards escorted him to a consultation chamber elsewhere in the palace for a psychological evaluation.
Hearing Zaeryn say that he had no intention of threatening the Queendom wasn't enough. Nor should it have been.
Words were some of the easiest things in the world to fake, especially when the person speaking knew the wrong answer could cost him his freedom. The Council needed someone qualified to look beyond what Zaeryn said. They wanted to know how he thought, what he valued, how he handled pressure, and whether the restraint he showed was genuine or just convenient.
The consultation chamber was smaller than the Council hall and deliberately less intimidating. Two cushioned chairs faced each other beside a low table. A writing slate and several thin assessment sheets had been laid across it, while a discreet observation panel took up part of the far wall.
