"Goodnight, Zilu."
"Goodnight, Master..." she responded in a low and somewhat sad voice.
Mark gave her one last caress on the head before closing the door.
Emilia and Zilu were left alone in front of the room, and for a few seconds, an uncomfortable silence settled between them.
"...This way," said the queen as she turned around.
Both advanced through the palace hallways in complete silence for several minutes.
It was an uncomfortable silence, the kind that appears when two people who don't know each other at all are forced to walk together without having anything to say.
Emilia walked a few steps ahead, with her back straight and her gaze forward, guiding Zilu toward the room she would assign her.
Meanwhile, Zilu followed behind her, with her ears half-raised and her eyes moving from side to side, observing everything around her except the woman walking in front of her.
The queen looked at her out of the corner of her eye over her shoulder.
