Once his speech ended, Duke Elias Mason dove back into the party, letting the music flood the hall with reckless joy. Nobles resumed dancing, twirling alongside performers whose seductive movements smeared away the discomfort stirred by his bold remarks, particularly those about the death and sacrifice of soldiers from across the empire, all for the emperor's glory.
"What a pile of crap," Haston muttered over the hum of music.
"I thought it was a solid speech, Your Highness," Glen replied, unmoved.
"You didn't see it as insulting?"
"About as insulting as you've been to me, countless times. Sounds familiar, honestly."
Haston snorted. "You're unreal. If it were my father, he'd have ordered every soldier in the capital to snatch that lunatic up, toss him in a dungeon with no food or water, drag him through Eryndalith for show, then execute him dead-center in the square."
