The meeting continued, but the atmosphere had shifted.
Her consorts weren't openly hostile—not yet—but there was a new wariness in the way they looked at her. A new understanding that something was happening beneath the surface, something they hadn't noticed until now.
Larus, sitting beside her, had remained silent through the entire exchange. But when the meeting finally adjourned and people began filing out, he leaned over slightly and murmured, "That was impressive."
"What was?" Heena asked, gathering her papers.
"The way you didn't give them anything to actually fight against," Larus said. "They know something's wrong, but they can't articulate what. Every complaint sounds petty when they say it out loud."
Heena glanced at him. "You noticed that?"
"Hard not to," Larus said. "You didn't defend yourself. You just… restated facts. Made it sound like they were complaining about good governance."
