The fog pressed closer, heavy and wet, as if the domain itself were listening. Rhyka leaned back against the pine trunk, smirk twitching at the corners of his mouth, trying to shake off the strange unease Nero's words had left behind.
But Nero didn't let the silence settle.
He extended one pale hand, palm angled slightly up, as though he were offering something invisible. His fingers were long, steady, and every motion precise.
"Don't misunderstand," Nero said quietly, his voice low but steady, each syllable carrying the weight of something carefully measured. "When I lost my place, it wasn't… ordinary. It wasn't just a vote of council or a signature on parchment. It was a revelation."
Rhyka's golden eyes narrowed, but the faint smirk lingered. "…A revelation?"
