The emperor watched the scene with quiet amusement while the robed individuals hurried to record everything, as though an opportunity like this was rare.
But when they were finally finished, they moved ahead and began recording every detail they could see.
Their pens scratched across the parchment once more, and the emperor turned to Theo with a faint smile.
After a few minutes, one of the robed men leaned close to the emperor and whispered something in his ear.
Theo felt uneasy. Since the first time he had come here, he had never once heard a robed individual speak.
It was obvious who was male and who was female from the lining of their robes, but other than that, Theo knew nothing about them.
"Young Theo, everything has been recorded except the ant queen," the emperor said once the whispering ended.
Theo glanced at the glass container and at the blob of ants clustered tightly at its center.
