[Zahryssar — Same Afternoon — House Karzath]
The atmosphere inside House Karzath felt unusually calm, too calm, like a palace waiting for blood to spill.
But inside the receiving hall, Red Knights stood lined beside the black marble pillars in absolute silence. Their silver-red armor gleamed beneath torchlight ominously and before them—
Rakhane Karzath, Lady Arinaya, and several attendants remained kneeling while an imperial decree was read aloud.
"—You are hereby ordered to present yourselves before the Malik by tomorrow afternoon." The Red Knight's voice echoed coldly throughout the chamber. "And should House Karzath refuse this summons…the Malik himself shall deliver rightful punishment upon both the household and its bloodline."
Silence swallowed the hall afterward, heavy, sharp, and threatening. Meanwhile Rakhane slowly lifted his remaining eye toward Arinaya beside him, and strangely, she did not look frightened.
Not even slightly.
