An hour later, the excruciating, tense dinner finally ended.
Zen walked through the lavish, gold-lined corridors of the eastern guest wing, completely ignoring the awed stares of the elite guards posted along the walls.
He walked into his royal bedroom and firmly locked the heavy mahogany double doors behind him. He heard the mechanical and magical wards click into place, sealing the room off from the rest of the palace.
Zen let out a long, unsteady breath, rolling his shoulders and finally dropping the rigid, exhausting Emperor persona he had been maintaining all night.
"System," Zen said quietly to the empty room, rubbing his temples. "Report on the mapping drones."
[Connecting... Drones active. Palace layout mapped to 42%. Guard patrols logged. The Imperial Vault is located directly beneath the throne room. High-density magical signatures detected inside the vault.]
