"What are you suggesting, Lord Ashren?" asked the Trescan lord, eyes narrowing.
"I suggest we face an idealist," Lord Ashren replied. "And idealists are far more dangerous than mercenaries. They cannot be bought off or reasoned with. They must be understood, then eliminated."
The debate splintered again, lords and ladies breaking into smaller discussions, voices rising and falling like waves against a shore. Soren remained at his post, studying their faces, noting which arguments sparked anger and which inspired fear.
"The commoners call him the Emerald Reaper," someone said, voice carrying across the hall. "They say he appears like mist, kills, and vanishes between one heartbeat and the next."
Scoffs and murmurs greeted this, though Soren noticed how several knights shifted uncomfortably at the mention of supernatural abilities.
"Superstitious nonsense," declared Lord Karvath. "He's a man, nothing more. And men can be killed."
